Phrasal verbs are an essential part of English fluency. They combine a verb with a preposition or adverb to create expressions with meanings that often differ from the original verb.
In this lesson, we’re exploring 100 phrasal verbs that use the particle “over.”
1-10: Basic movement and position
Go over
To visit someone’s home or place.
“I’ll go over to your house after work.”
Come over
To visit.
“Would you like to come over for dinner tonight?”
Move over
To shift position to make space.
“Please move over so I can sit down.”
Roll over
To turn from one side to another.
“The dog rolled over when I offered him a treat.”
Fall over
To lose balance and drop to the ground.
“She fell over when she slipped on the ice.”
Tip over
To cause something to fall on its side.
“The wind tipped over the potted plant.”
Knock over
To hit something so it falls.
“He accidentally knocked over his glass of water.”
Push over
To cause something to fall by pushing.
“The strong winds pushed over several trees.”
Step over
To lift your foot and pass above something.
“We had to step over the fallen branch on the path.”
Climb over
To go up and over something.
“The children climbed over the fence to get their ball.”
11-20: Communication and discussions
Talk over
To discuss something thoroughly.
“Let’s talk over the proposal before making a decision.”
Think over
To consider carefully.
“I need time to think over your offer.”
Look over
To examine or inspect.
“The mechanic looked over my car and found the problem.”
Go over
To review or examine.
“We should go over the contract one more time.”
Read over
To read something carefully.
“Please read over this document before signing it.”
Mull over
To think about something deeply for a period of time.
“I’ve been mulling over your suggestion all week.”
Chat over
To discuss in a casual way.
“We chatted over coffee about our vacation plans.”
Talk someone over
To persuade someone.
“She talked me over to her point of view.”
Argue over
To have a disagreement about something.
“The siblings were arguing over who would get the last cookie.”
Discuss over
To talk about something during something.
“We discussed over lunch what our next steps should be.”
21-30: Completion and transition
Get over
To recover from an illness or emotional upset.
“It took him months to get over his breakup.”
Be over
To be finished or completed.
“The movie is over. Let’s go home.”
Start over
To begin again.
“I made a mistake, so I’ll have to start over.”
Do over
To perform again.
“The director asked them to do over the scene.”
Begin over
To restart something.
“We’ll have to begin over with a new approach.”
Hand over
To give something to someone.
“Please hand over your assignments.”
Turn over
To give control of something to someone else.
“The retiring CEO turned over leadership to his successor.”
Take over
To assume control or responsibility.
“The new manager will take over the department next month.”
Pass over
To go beyond or disregard.
“They passed over her application without consideration.”
Skip over
To miss or omit.
“Don’t skip over any questions on the test.”
31-40: Covering and concealing
Cover over
To place something on top to hide or protect.
“They covered over the furniture with sheets before painting.”
Paper over
To hide problems without solving them.
“The company tried to paper over the scandal.”
Gloss over
To treat something superficially.
“The report glossed over the serious problems.”
Brush over
To treat something quickly and superficially.
“The teacher brushed over that complicated topic.”
Go over
To exceed a limit.
“The project went over budget.”
Spill over
To flow beyond the limits.
“His anger spilled over into his work relationships.”
Boil over
To overflow while boiling; or for emotions to become uncontrollable.
“The milk boiled over when I wasn’t watching.”
“Tensions boiled over during the heated debate.”
Cloud over
To become covered with clouds; or to become sad.
“The sky clouded over just before the picnic.”
“His face clouded over when he heard the bad news.”
Fog over
To become covered with fog; or to become confused.
“The windshield fogged over in the cold weather.”
“My mind fogged over from exhaustion.”
Ice over
To become covered with ice.
“The lake iced over during the night.”
41-50: Control and power
Run over
To hit with a vehicle.
“The car ran over a nail and got a flat tire.”
To review quickly.
“Let’s run over the main points before the meeting.”
Walk all over
To treat someone with disrespect.
“Don’t let your boss walk all over you.”
Roll over
To easily defeat.
“Our team rolled over the competition.”
To renew (financial).
“I decided to roll over my savings into a new account.”
Win over
To gain the support or approval of someone.
“The candidate won over the voters with her speech.”
Lord over
To act superior to others.
“She lords over her employees instead of treating them as equals.”
Rule over
To have authority over.
“The king ruled over a vast territory.”
Preside over
To be in charge of an event or meeting.
“The judge presided over the trial.”
Watch over
To protect or supervise.
“The parents watched over their children at the playground.”
Look over
To supervise or monitor.
“The manager looked over the new employees.”
Hold power over
To have influence or control over.
“The blackmailer held power over the politician.”
51-60: Repetition and review
Go over
To repeat.
“Let’s go over the instructions once more.”
Do over
To repeat an action.
“If you make a mistake, you can do it over.”
Run over
To rehearse or review.
“Let’s run over our presentation before the meeting.”
Look over
To review or check.
“I need to look over my notes before the exam.”
Read over
To read again.
“I read over the letter before sending it.”
Check over
To examine carefully.
“The doctor checked over the patient.”
Work over
To revise or improve.
“The editor worked over the manuscript.”
Go over again
To repeat a process or explanation.
“Could you go over that concept again?”
Start over
To begin again from the beginning.
“Let’s start over with a fresh approach.”
Try over
To attempt again.
“If the first method fails, try over with a different approach.”
61-70: Emotional reactions
Get over
To recover emotionally.
“It took me years to get over my fear of flying.”
Think over
To consider deeply.
“I need to think over what you’ve said.”
Fuss over
To give excessive attention.
“Grandparents often fuss over their grandchildren.”
Gush over
To express enthusiasm excessively.
“The critics gushed over the new film.”
Obsess over
To think about something constantly.
“He obsesses over every little detail.”
Agonize over
To worry intensely about something.
“She agonized over the difficult decision.”
Brood over
To think anxiously or moodily about something.
“Don’t brood over past mistakes.”
Fret over
To worry.
“She frets over her children’s safety.”
Cry over
To shed tears because of something.
“Don’t cry over spilled milk.”
Grieve over
To feel intense sorrow about.
“The nation grieved over the loss of its leader.”
71-80: Movement and transition
Cross over
To move from one side to another.
“We crossed over the bridge into the next county.”
Head over
To travel toward.
“Let’s head over to the mall.”
Fly over
To travel by air above something.
“We flew over the Grand Canyon.”
Drive over
To travel by car to a place.
“I’ll drive over to your place after work.”
Swim over
To swim to a place.
“He swam over to the other side of the pool.”
Jump over
To leap across something.
“The athlete jumped over the hurdle.”
Hop over
To jump lightly over something.
“The rabbit hopped over the low fence.”
Leap over
To jump high and far over something.
“She leaped over the puddle.”
Bend over
To incline the upper body forward and down.
“Bend over to touch your toes.”
Flip over
To turn something upside down.
“The gymnast did a perfect flip over the bar.”
81-90: Distribution and coverage
Spread over
To distribute across a surface or time.
“The payments will be spread over six months.”
Scatter over
To throw or place things randomly.
“The wind scattered leaves over the yard.”
Sprinkle over
To distribute small amounts.
“Sprinkle salt over the dish before serving.”
Pour over
To dispense liquid onto something.
“Pour the sauce over the pasta.”
Spill over
To cause liquid to flow over the edge.
“Be careful not to spill your coffee over your laptop.”
Drip over
To fall in drops onto something.
“The paint dripped over the edge of the can.”
Layer over
To place one layer on top of another.
“Layer the sliced potatoes over the onions.”
Coat over
To cover completely with a substance.
“Coat over the chicken with the sauce before baking.”
Paint over
To apply paint on top of something.
“They decided to paint over the graffiti.”
Dust over
To cover lightly with a powdery substance.
“Dust over the cake with powdered sugar.”
91-100: Miscellaneous uses
Sleep over
To stay overnight at someone’s place.
“The kids are going to sleep over at their friend’s house.”
Stay over
To remain overnight.
“Since it’s getting late, why don’t you stay over?”
Keep over
To reserve or hold onto.
“We’ll keep these leftovers over for tomorrow.”
Hold over
To extend or postpone.
“The play was held over for another week due to popular demand.”
Carry over
To transfer from one place or time to another.
“Let’s carry over this discussion to our next meeting.”
Hang over
To remain as a threat or influence.
“The deadline hangs over us like a dark cloud.”
Look over
To observe from a higher position.
“From the balcony, we looked over the beautiful garden.”
Preside over
To be in charge of.
“The chairperson presided over the board meeting.”
Watch over
To guard or protect.
“Angels watch over us, according to some beliefs.”
Win over
To gain someone’s support or approval.
“Her sincere apology won over even her harshest critics.”
Mastering phrasal verbs with “over” will significantly enhance your English fluency. Practice using these expressions in your everyday conversations to make your English sound more natural and idiomatic. Remember that many phrasal verbs have multiple meanings depending on the context, so pay attention to how they’re used in different situations.
