• Phrasal Verb – Chat up.
  • Meaning – To start a conversation with somebody who you are attracted (sexually or romantically) to.  You chat somebody up if you wish to get to know them better, in the hope that the conversation will lead to some kind of relationship.
    • This phrasal verb is separable.
    • “Who was that bloke you were with last night? It looked like he was chatting you up!”
    • “I was out with my fam last night, but I spent most of the night chatting up Lisa!”
  • This is an informal British English expression.
  • A chat-up line refers to a line or phrase used to flirt with someone or to try to start a conversation with someone. For example, “Do you have a map? I just keep getting lost in your eyes!” 

In The News:

Ancient ‘lovely buttocks and muscular thighs’ chat-up line aired in the UK’s Parliament

What is a phrasal verb?

A phrasal verb is a verb combined with 1 or 2 small words. These small words are particles. A particle can be a preposition or adverb. The phrasal verb has a different meaning from the verb alone because the particle changes the meaning of the verb.

Some phrasal verbs can be separated. When we change the tense of the phrasal verb we only modify the verb part. The particle remains the same.