Vocabulary Words for Body Movements

Vocabulary Words for Body Movements

Bend in English

to move your body or part of your body so that it is not straight

Bend

/bend/

UK
UK

/bend/

US
US

Ex. Every part of his body ached and he could only bend his elbow halfway.

Break in English

to destroy or end something, or to come to an end

Break

/breɪk/

UK
UK

/breɪk/

US
US

Ex. He breaks his piggy bank.

Carry in English

to move someone or something from one place to another

Carry

/ˈkær.i/

UK
UK

/ˈker.i/

US
US

Ex. Where do you carry your gold?

Cartwheel in English

to move your body in a cartwheel action

Cartwheel

/ˈkɑːt.wiːl/

UK
UK

/ˈkɑːrt.wiːl/

US
US

Ex. The children were cartwheeling across the lawn.

Catch in Enlgish

to take hold of something, especially something that is moving through the air

Catch

/kætʃ/

UK
UK

/kætʃ/

US
US

Ex. I managed to catch the glass before it hit the ground.

Clap in English

to make a short loud noise by hitting your hands together

Clap

/klæp/

UK
UK

/klæp/

US
US

Ex. “When I clap my hands, you stand still,” said the teacher.

Crawl in English

to move slowly or with difficulty, especially with your body stretched out along the ground or on hands and knees

Crawl

/krɔːl/

UK
UK

/krɑːl/

US
US

Ex. The child crawled across the floor.

Cry in English

to produce tears as the result of a strong emotion, such as unhappiness or pain

Cry

/kraɪ/

UK
UK

/kraɪ/

US
US

Ex. I could hear someone crying in the next room.

Dance in English

to move the body and feet to music

Dance

/dɑːns/

UK
UK

/dæns/

US
US

Ex. Can you dance the tango?

Dive in English

to jump into water, especially with your head and arms going in first, or to move down under the water

Dive

/daɪv/

UK
UK

/daɪv/

US
US

Ex. They ran to the pool, dived in, and swam to the other side

Drag in English

to move something by pulling it along a surface, usually the ground

Drag

/dræɡ/

UK
UK

 /dræɡ/

US
US

She dragged the canoe down to the water.

Drop in English

to fall or to allow something to fall

drop

/drɒp/

UK
UK

/drɑːp/

US
US

Ex. She accidentally dropped her ring down a drain in the road.

Hit in English

to move your hand or an object onto the surface of something so that it touches it, usually with force

Hit

/hɪt/

UK
UK

/hɪt/

US
US

Ex. Teachers are not allowed to hit their pupils.

Hold in English

to take and keep something in your hand or arms

Hold

/həʊld/

UK
UK

/hoʊld/

US
US

Ex. Can you hold the bag while I open the door?

Jog in English

to run at a slow, regular speed, especially as a form of exercise

Jog

/dʒɒɡ/

UK
UK

/dʒɑːɡ/

US
US

Ex. “What do you do to keep fit?” “I jog and go swimming.”

Jump in English

to push yourself suddenly off the ground and into the air using your legs

Jump

/dʒʌmp/

UK
UK

/dʒʌmp/

US
US

Ex. He had to jump out of an upstairs window to escape.

Kick in English

to hit someone or something with the foot

Kick

/kɪk/

UK
UK

/kɪk/

US
US

Ex. I kicked the ball as hard as I could.

Kiss in English

to touch with your lips, especially as a greeting, or to press your mouth onto another person’s mouth in a sexual way

Kiss

/kɪs/

UK
UK

/kɪs/

US
US

Ex. She kissed him on the mouth.

Kneel in English

to go down into, or stay in, a position where one or both knees are on the ground

Kneel

/niːl/

UK
UK

/niːl/

US
US

Ex. Kneel down and sit on your heels, arms at your sides.

Laugh in English

to smile while making sounds with your voice that show you think something is funny or you are happy

Laugh

/lɑːf/

UK
UK

/læf/

US
US

Ex. They laughed at her jokes

Leap in English

to make a large jump or sudden movement, usually from one place to another

Leap

/liːp/

UK
UK

/liːp/

US
US

Ex. He leaped out of his car and ran towards the house.

Lie in English

to move into a position in which your body is flat, usually in order to sleep or rest

Lie

/laɪ/

UK
UK

/laɪ/

US
US

Ex. Why don’t you lie down on the sofa for a while?

Lift in English

to move something from a lower to a higher position

Lift

/lɪft/

UK
UK

/lɪft/

US
US

Ex. Could you help me lift this table, please?

Look in English

to direct your eyes in order to see

Look

/lʊk/ 

UK
UK

/lʊk/

US
US

Ex. They looked at the picture and laughed.

March in English

a walk, especially by a group of soldiers all walking with the same movement and speed

March

/mɑːtʃ/

UK
UK

/mɑːrtʃ/

US
US

Ex. It had been a long march and the soldiers were weary.

Open in English

not closed or fastened

Open

/ˈəʊ.pən/

UK
UK

/ˈoʊ.pən/

US
US

The thieves broke the safe open and stole the diamonds.

Pick In English

to take some things and leave others

Pick

/pɪk/

UK
UK

/pɪk/

US
US

Ex. Pick a card from the pack.

Point in English

to direct other people’s attention to something by holding out your finger towards it

Point

/pɔɪnt/

UK
UK

/pɔɪnt/

US
US

Ex. “Look at that!” she said, pointing at the hole in the door.

Pour in English

to make a substance flow, esp. out of a container and usually into another container

Pour

/pɔːr/

UK
UK

/pɔːr/

US
US

Ex. Would you like me to pour you some coffee?

Pull in English

to move something towards yourself, sometimes with great physical effort

Pull

/pʊl/

UK
UK

/pʊl/

US
US

Ex. He pulled the chair away from the desk.

Punch in English

a forceful hit with a fist (= closed hand)

Punch

/pʌntʃ/

UK
UK

/pʌntʃ/

US
US

Ex. She gave him a punch on the nose

Push in English

to use physical pressure or force, especially with your hands, in order to move something into a different position

Push

/pʊʃ/

UK
UK

/pʊʃ/

US
US

Ex. Can you help me move this table? You push and I’ll pull.

Run in English

(of people and some animals) to move along, faster than walking, by taking quick steps

Run

/rʌn/

UK
UK

/rʌn/

US
US

Ex. I can run a mile in five minutes

Sit in English

to (cause someone to) be in a position in which the lower part of the body is resting on a seat

Sit

/sɪt/

UK
UK

/sɪt/

US
US

Ex. Sit yourself down and have a nice cool drink.

Slip in English

to slide without intending to

Slip

/slɪp/

UK
UK

/slɪp/

US
US

Ex. Careful you don’t slip – there’s water on the floor.

Squat in English

to position yourself close to the ground balancing on the front part of your feet with your legs bent under your body

Squat

/skwɒt/

UK
UK

/skwɑːt/

US
US

Ex. He squatted down and examined the front wheel of his bike.

Stand in English

to be in a vertical state or to put into a vertical state, especially (of a person or animal) by making the legs straight

Stand

/stænd/

UK
UK

/stænd/

US
US

Ex. Tom says if he stands for a long time his ankles hurt.

Stretch in English

to cause something to reach, often as far as possible, in a particular direction

Stretch

/stretʃ/

UK
UK

/stretʃ/

US
US

Ex. She stretched out her hand and helped him from his chair

Talk in English

to say words aloud; to speak to someone

Talk

/tɔːk/

UK
UK

 /tɑːk/

US
US

Ex. She talks to her mother on the phone every week.

Throw in English

to send something through the air with force, especially by a sudden movement of the arm

Throw

/θrəʊ/

UK
UK

/θroʊ/

US
US

Ex. Don’t throw your apple core on the floor!

Tiptoe in English

on your toes with the heel of your foot lifted off the ground

Tiptoe

/ˈtɪp.təʊ/

UK
UK

/ˈtɪp.toʊ/

US
US

Ex. The children stood on tiptoe in order to pick the apples from the tree.

Walk in English

to move along by putting one foot in front of the other, allowing each foot to touch the ground before lifting the next

Walk

/wɔːk/

UK
UK

/wɑːk/

US
US

Ex. He walks two miles to work every morning.

Wave in English

to raise your hand and move it from side to side as a way of greeting someone

Wave

/weɪv/

UK
UK

/weɪv/

US
US

Ex. She waves her hands around a lot when she’s talking.

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