In this lesson, you’ll learn 15 useful phrasal verbs with ABOUT, together with their meanings, grammar, register and natural examples.
The word about is small, but when it joins a verb, it can produce some surprisingly useful expressions.
Compare:
- How did the problem come about?
- How should we go about solving it?
- She immediately set about fixing it.
- The changes brought about a noticeable improvement.
Although these four expressions all contain about, they have completely different meanings.
Some are especially common in British English, while others are used internationally. They are useful for everyday communication and for learners preparing for B2 First and C1 Advanced, particularly in Reading, Listening and Use of English.
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A Note About ABOUT and AROUND
You may notice that some of these phrasal verbs can also be used with around:
- hang about / hang around
- fiddle about / fiddle around
- mess about / mess around
- wait about / wait around
- sit about / sit around
In many cases, about is particularly common in British English, while around is often more widely used internationally.
However, you cannot simply replace about with around in every phrasal verb.
For example:
- bring about a change ✅
bring around a change❌
So it is best to learn each expression as a complete unit.
1. Bring about
Meaning: to cause something to happen.
This phrasal verb is particularly useful in more formal English and in essay writing.
- Technological developments have brought about major changes in the way we communicate.
- What brought about the decline of the industry?
2. Come about
Meaning: to happen, especially in a way that was not planned or expected.
- How did this situation come about?
- The opportunity came about completely by chance.
Compare:
bring something about = cause something to happen
something comes about = something happens
- The campaign brought about major changes.
- The changes came about gradually.
This is a particularly useful distinction for advanced learners.
3. Fall about
Meaning: to laugh a lot or uncontrollably.
This expression is informal and particularly British.
You will often hear:
fall about laughing
- Everyone fell about laughing when he told the story.
- We fell about when we saw the photograph.
It is much stronger than simply saying: We laughed.
4. Fiddle about
Meaning: to spend time doing small or unimportant things instead of doing what you should be doing.
- Stop fiddling about and finish your homework.
- He spent half the morning fiddling about instead of starting the report.
You can also use:
fiddle about with something
This means to keep touching, adjusting or making small changes to something.
- Who has been fiddling about with the television?
In British English, fiddle about is often used where fiddle around may be heard elsewhere.
5. Get about
Meaning 1: to move from place to place, especially physically.
- Despite his age, he still gets about very well.
- After the operation, she found it difficult to get about.
- A bicycle is a useful way to get about the city.
Meaning 2: to travel to many places.
- She gets about quite a lot because of her job.
6. Go about
Meaning: to do something or deal with something in a particular way.
One of the most useful patterns is:
How do you go about doing something?
- How would you go about solving this problem?
- She went about organising the event very efficiently.
It can also mean to continue with your normal activities.
- Everyone went about their daily routine despite the bad weather.
7. Hang about
Meaning: to stay somewhere without doing very much or without having a clear reason for being there.
Hang around is also very common.
- There were several people hanging about outside the station.
- Stop hanging about and come inside.
- We hung about for a while after the concert.
It can also mean wait.
- I’ll hang about here until you’re ready.
This expression is informal.
8. Knock about
Meaning 1: to travel around casually, often without a fixed plan.
- They spent six months knocking about Europe.
Meaning 2: to treat something roughly so that it becomes damaged.
- My suitcase got badly knocked about during the journey.
Useful expression
knock about with someone
This can mean to spend time socially with someone.
- He used to knock about with a group of musicians.
This expression is mainly informal.
9. Lie about
Meaning: to spend time lying down and doing very little.
Lie around is also common.
- I just want to lie about all weekend and do nothing.
Be careful with the past tense:
lie → lay → lain
- Yesterday, he lay about all afternoon.
This is different from lie meaning say something that is not true:
- He lied about where he had been.
Same spelling in the infinitive — completely different meaning.
10. Mess about
Meaning 1: to waste time or do things without any particular purpose.
- Stop messing about and get ready.
- He should be studying instead of messing about on his phone.
Meaning 2: to behave in a silly or annoying way.
- The children were messing about at the back of the classroom.
You can also say:
mess about with something
- Don’t mess about with the settings unless you know what you’re doing.
Mess about is common in British English; mess around is also widely used.
11. Put about
Meaning: to spread information, news or rumours to a lot of people.
This expression is mainly British and informal, and the information being spread may not be true.
- Someone has put about a rumour that the company is closing.
- False information was being put about online.
- Who put it about that I was leaving?
A common structure is:
put it about that + clause
- Someone put it about that the manager was going to resign.
12. See about
Meaning: to deal with something or make arrangements for something.
- I’ll see about booking the tickets.
- We need to see about getting the roof repaired.
13. Set about
Meaning: to begin doing or dealing with something, usually in a determined or organised way.
- She immediately set about cleaning the house.
- Once they had agreed on a plan, they set about putting it into practice.
14. Sit about
Meaning: to spend time sitting somewhere and doing very little.
Sit around is also extremely common.
- They sat about chatting all afternoon.
- We can’t just sit about waiting for something to happen.
This phrasal verb often suggests inactivity or wasted time.
Compare:
- We sat in the café. → simply describes our position/location.
- We sat about in the café. → suggests we stayed there doing very little.
15. Wait about
Meaning: to stay somewhere waiting, usually with little or nothing to do.
Wait around is also common.
- We waited about for nearly an hour before the bus arrived.
- I don’t want to wait about all afternoon.
- Several students were waiting about outside the classroom.
You may also see:
wait about for someone/something
- We waited about for the doctor.
Phrasal Verbs with ABOUT: QUIZ
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Learning Tip
A useful feature of about is that it often creates the idea of movement or activity without a very precise direction or purpose:
- hang about
- lie about
- mess about
- sit about
- wait about
But this is only one pattern. Expressions such as bring about, come about, go about, see about and set about have developed meanings of their own, so they are best learnt as complete chunks.
Try creating one sentence about your own life with each of the phrasal verbs with ABOUT.
Related posts:
- Common Phrasal Verbs for B2 First
- Separable and Inseparable Phrasal Verbs
- 10 Phrasal Verbs with SIT with Meanings and Examples
- How to Learn 10 Phrasal Verbs a Week
- 35 Phrasal Verbs and Their One-Word Alternatives
- B2 First Vocabulary
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