Phrasal Verbs with HANG

Phrasal Verbs with HANG (Meanings & Examples)

Hello, English learners 👋 Welcome to today’s vocabulary lesson. The verb hang appears in many everyday phrasal verbs, especially in spoken English. Native speakers use them constantly when talking about waiting, socialising, relationships, phone calls, and difficult situations. In this lesson, you’ll learn common phrasal verbs with hang, with clear meanings and natural example sentences. These expressions are particularly useful for B2 First and C1 Advanced learners.

Let’s take a look.

Hang around

Meaning: to stay in a place without a clear purpose.

• Paul likes to hang around the café, reading and people-watching.
• We hung around the city centre after the concert.
• A stray cat often hangs around our garden.

Hang back

Meaning: to hesitate or stay behind instead of acting immediately.

• She hung back during the discussion and listened carefully.
• He hung back after class to speak to the teacher privately.
• They hung back from the crowd near the stage.

Hang in (there)

Meaning: to persevere in a difficult situation.

• The coach told the team to hang in despite the pressure.
• Hang in there — things will get better.
• She’s hanging in, even though the workload is heavy.

Very common in encouragement.

Hang on

Meaning: to wait for a short time.

• Hang on a second — I’ll grab my jacket.
• He asked me to hang on while he checked the timetable.
• Hang on, I didn’t quite catch that.

Hang out

Meaning: to spend time relaxing or socialising.

• We usually hang out at the park on Sundays.
• She hangs out with her colleagues after work.
• Where do you normally hang out?

Hang over

Meaning: to cause worry or remain as a negative influence.

• A sense of uncertainty hung over the meeting.
• The mistake hung over him for years.
• Dark clouds hung over the event all afternoon.

Hang together

Meaning: to stay united and support one another.

• The team must hang together under pressure.
• Families often hang together in difficult times.
• The community hung together after the floods.

Hang up

Meaning: to end a phone call.

• She hung up angrily before he could explain.
• I always feel a bit sad after hanging up on old friends.
• Don’t hang up — I’m not finished yet.

Hang on to

Meaning: to keep something and not let it go.

• Hold on to your ticket — you’ll need it later.
• She hung on to the letter for sentimental reasons.
• Try to hang on to this receipt.

Hang back from

Meaning: to avoid getting involved.

• He hung back from making a decision too quickly.
• She hung back from the argument, preferring to stay neutral.

Final Tip for Learners

Phrasal verbs with hang are extremely common in spoken English, especially in informal conversations. Try learning them in short phrases and using them naturally, rather than memorising long lists.

A few well-used phrasal verbs can make your English sound far more natural.

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