Phrasal Verbs with OUT

Here are seven Phrasal Verbs that are worth learning:

#CAE #speaking #PV
Where do you see yourself in five years time?
I COULD WELL BE in the same job I have now. I wouldn't RULE OUT workING abroad AT SOME POINT THOUGH. I MIGHT HAVE SETTLED DOWN and have a wife and two kids BY THEN. Who knows?https://t.co/kFYY298Keh

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) November 30, 2022

Spanish PM refuses to RULE OUT suspending Catalonia's autonomyhttps://t.co/VmxFV1YW2M#PV
to rule out = not to consider (descartar)

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) October 8, 2017

 

#PV PULL OUT (OF STG) - to stop being involved in an activity
e.g. The favourite PULLED OUT OF THE COMPETITION due to injury.
e.g. After a long war, the Soviets PULLED THEIR TROOPS OUT OF Afghanistan in the 1990s.
e.g. Lack of funding meant he had to PULL OUT.

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) January 14, 2020

As a child I used to watch it. Now it's just hyped up trash.

I reckon the UK should pull out of the event but it's not going to happen. pic.twitter.com/sKfqq0ibKr

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) May 13, 2018

 

#PV FIGURE OUT - to understand or solve stg
e.g. I can't FIGURE HIM OUT; one minute he's friendly, the next, very unpleasant.
e.g. I can't FIGURE OUT what this gadget is for.
e.g. I FIGURED OUT THE MEANING of the word from the context.

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) January 15, 2020

#idioms IT'S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE.
used to say that you do not think that something is very difficult to do or to understand

It's basic arithmetic. IT ISN'T ROCKET SCIENCE.
You don't have to be A ROCKET SCIENTIST to FIGURE IT OUT.#PV figure sth out = to understand or solve sth pic.twitter.com/Vy2qAwkyI3

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) November 10, 2018

 

#PV CHURN OUT - to produce large amounts of something quickly, usually something of low quality (producir en masa, hacer como churros)
e.g. She churns out novels at the rate of four a year.
e.g. The factory churns out thousands of t-shirts every week.

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) January 16, 2020

Fraudsters are using AI to churn out fake IDs before selling them to under-18s for as little as £12 - and experts say supermarkets, pubs and airports need to be on 'red alert' https://t.co/wce3OC8WqT pic.twitter.com/zuOADo5RDB

— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) March 29, 2024

 

#PV RUN OUT (of stg)- to finish, use, or sell all of something, so that there is none left
e.g. This government has RUN OUT OF IDEAS. It's time for change.
e.g. We're RUNNING OUT OF TIME. Hurry up!
e.g. Can you get some beer? I've RUN OUT.
e.g. I hope I don't RUN OUT OF MONEY. pic.twitter.com/qBHlj6EKFr

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) January 17, 2020

@joeelm2015
Spanish bars 'could run out of whisky, gin and rum' https://t.co/PBW7Id8BJU via @MailOnline

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) October 29, 2021

 

#PV TURN OUT - to happen in a particular way or to have a particular result
e.g. The cake TURNED OUT WELL.
e.g. I’m disappointed at the way things have TURNED OUT.

- to be discovered to be something
e.g. It all TURNED OUT TO BE a mistake.
e.g. It TURNS OUT THAT I was right.

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) January 18, 2020

You can almost feel the @guardian wishing this projection to turn out to be right. Since the crisis began, all they have done is snipe.

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) April 8, 2020

#PV PHASE OUT - to remove or stop using stg gradually or in stages (retirar/eliminar progresivamente)
e.g. Germany has agreed a plan to PHASE OUT coal power by 2038.
e.g. I think we should PHASE OUT smaller coins. I mean, who use one and two cents?

≠ phase in

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) January 19, 2020

Government sets out plan to phase out animal experiments https://t.co/3OSCMKbojS

— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) November 11, 2025

 

 

Week 1: All #PV + OUT
rule
pull
figure
churn
run
turn
phase

N.B. Put into correct form.

5. The USA __ out of the Paris climate deal.
6. Things didn't quite __ out as I expected.
7. The film industry __ out all sorts of awards to actors.

— English in Madrid (@madteacher72) January 20, 2020

 

Give two example sentences for each Phrasal Verb. Think of how you would use them at work or give an opinion about something using them.

Look at the following conversation in Spanish, think how you would translate each sentence and then compare it with the conversation in English.

💬 Conversación entre dos colegas

Mia: Oye, Tom. ¿Has tenido tiempo de revisar la propuesta del nuevo cliente?

Tom: Sí, y sinceramente todavía estoy intentando descifrar cómo se supone que funciona su cronograma. Me parece increíblemente ajustado.

Mia: A mí también. Pero no creo que debamos descartar la idea todavía. Quizás con algunos ajustes podamos lograrlo.

Tom: Es cierto. Aunque escuché que su socio anterior tuvo que retirarse del proyecto porque los plazos cambiaban constantemente.

Mia: Eso no es una buena señal. Pero aun así, si todo resulta bien, esto podría ser una gran oportunidad para nosotros.

Tom: De acuerdo. Mi única preocupación es que esperan que produzcamos contenido a un ritmo irreal. Somos buenos, pero no somos máquinas.

Mia: Exacto. Y si nos quedamos sin tiempo o recursos, quedará mal todo el equipo.

Tom: Hablando de recursos, leí un correo diciendo que quizá empecemos a eliminar gradualmente el sistema de contenido antiguo el próximo mes. Eso va a cambiar mucho las cosas.

Mia: Vaya. Eso podría ayudarnos a largo plazo. Hablemos con el equipo, intentemos descifrar un plan realista y veamos si podemos hacer que la propuesta funcione sin quemar a todos.

Tom: Buena idea. ¡Empecemos antes de que nos quedemos sin el poco tiempo que nos queda hoy!

💬 Conversation Between Two Colleagues

Mia: Hey, Tom. Have you had a chance to look at the proposal for the new client?

Tom: Yes, and honestly, I’m still trying to figure out how their timeline is supposed to work. It feels incredibly tight.

Mia: Same here. But I don’t think we should rule out the idea yet. Maybe with a few adjustments we can make it happen.

Tom: True. Although I heard their previous partner had to pull out of the project because the deadlines kept changing.

Mia: That’s not a great sign. But still, if everything turns out well, this could be a huge opportunity for us.

Tom: Agreed. My only concern is that they expect us to churn out content at an unrealistic pace. We’re good, but we’re not machines.

Mia: Exactly. And if we run out of time or resources, it’ll reflect badly on the whole team.

Tom: Speaking of resources, I read an email saying we might start to phase out the old content system next month. That’s going to change things a lot.

Mia: Oh wow. That could actually help us in the long run. Let’s talk to the team, try to figure out a realistic plan, and see if we can make the proposal work without burning everybody out.

Tom: Good idea. Let’s get started before we run out of the little time we have left today!