phrasal verb · informal
carry on (informal, complain)
UK/ˈkæri ɒn/US/ˈkæri ɑn/CAR·ry ON
speaking
to complain or make a fuss about something (British informal)
Examples
“Stop carrying on about the noise — it's not that loud.”
“He carried on all evening about the service at the restaurant.”
“She tends to carry on when things don't go her way.”
Band 8 sentence
“Although the queue was long, she didn't carry on; instead she calmly explained her situation to the staff.”
Collocations
- carry on about
- carry on at
Word family
carried on verb (past)carrying on verb / gerund
Common mistakes
keep complaining→carry on about / keep complaining (both possible)
Say it for a higher band
5moan→6complain→7+carry on (about)
Synonyms
moan
complain
Easily confused
complain
“She complained to the manager about the delay.”
Related words
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