Phrasal Verbs
What Are Phrasal Verbs?
Simply put, a phrasal verb is the combination of a verb with another word or two from a different grammatical category. It could be an adverb, a preposition, or in some cases even both.
The idea is that the words from the other grammatical categories enhance the verb in some way by adding some more information. The idea is that the phrasal verb takes the place of a single verb to describe a similar idea, by simply adding more information for the reader or listener. Remember, a verb’s meaning is simple enough to remember if you just remind yourself that all verbs are ‘doing words’ i.e. they show action in some way. We’ll take a look at the different types of phrasal verbs below so you can understand this idea better.
Some examples of phrasal verbs with the verb “GET” are “get at”, “get in”, “get out”, “get off”, “get away”, “get over”, “get back”… and they ALL have different meanings!
Each phrasal verb can also have multiple definitions. For example, GET OUT can mean:
- Leave or escape
- Become known (“Somehow the secret got out“)
- Say something with difficulty (“He could hardly get the words out for the tears”)
- Clean something (“This detergent will get most household stains out“)
- Spend free time out of the house (“You work too hard. You should get out more”)
Phrasal verbs are used more frequently in everyday speech than in formal writing/ speaking. They are used often in everyday conversation by native speakers of English.
Types of Phrasal Verbs
Intransitive Phrasal Verbs
These types of phrasal verbs refer to phrasal verbs that are not directly related to an object, and the preposition must always follow the verb directly. That means that they are used as phrasal verbs in a more general sense and are not used to answer the what or the who of the sentence. We told you the English language is sometimes unnecessarily complicated didn’t we… These phrasal verbs are best understood with examples, so you can see how the words are not related to anything in particular.
- To tell somebody that your car ‘broke down’ is an example of an intransitive phrasal verb because there isn’t a direct object within the sentence. Direct objects should answer the question who or what. To say “my car broke down” doesn’t answer either of those questions because nothing follows it, so it is an intransitive phrasal verb. You know that ‘broke down’ is a phrasal verb because ‘broke’ is the verb, and ‘down’ is the preposition, but the phrasal verb could just as easily be replaced with the verb ‘malfunctioned’.
Nonseparable Transitive
Nonseparable transitive phrasal verbs simply refer to phrasal verbs that do relate to a direct object, so the phrase in some way answers the who or the what of the phrasal verb. The Nonseparable part will become more clear later as we look at examples where the verb and the preposition in the phrase can be separated, but just remember in this case the verb and preposition cannot be separated because it wouldn’t make sense to do so. Here is an example.
- She came across the pen she had been looking for behind the desk. In this case ‘came across’ is the phrasal verb, but you know that it is an example of a nonseparable transitive phrasal verb, because it is answering the question who or what. She ‘came across’ the pen she had been looking for. The pen she had been looking for is the direct object and it is what the character ‘came across’ (or ‘found’ if you were to replace it with a verb). The nonseparable part comes in when you realize that moving the preposition ‘across’ to anywhere other than right next to the verb ‘came’ just wouldn’t make sense. You can try it for yourself now. Try saying the sentence above with ‘across’ in different places, you’ll see that it can’t be done. So, it’s a nonseparable transitive phrasal verb.
Optionally Separable Transitive
We really wish that we were just making this stuff up at this point, but oh no, the English language really does have phrasal verbs where you can separate the preposition and the verb simply because you feel like it, and the sentence will still make sense. These phrasal verbs are still transitive because they relate to a direct object again, but they’re optionally separable because you can move the preposition to places other than right next to the verb and the sentence still carries the same meaning. Let’s take a look.
- Can you hand out the homework? This sentence works as a transitive phrasal verb because they are asked to ‘hand out’ (phrasal verb made up of the verb ‘hand’ and preposition ‘out’) the homework (‘the homework’ is the direct object, because it answers the question ‘what?’ in this case). Now this is where the optionally separable part comes in, because if you felt like it, you could have said: Can you hand the homework out? It makes perfect sense still, but the verb and preposition have just been separated by the direct object in this sentence.
Obligatorily Separable
This is the final example of a phrasal verb, and these phrasal verbs must be separated in some way in order to make sense. That means that the preposition and the verb must have something between them, because together the sentence wouldn’t be understood. Here is an example.
- I looked it up online. Here ‘looked’ is the verb, ‘up’ is the preposition, and ‘online’ is the direct object that answer’s the ‘what?’ question. It is obligatorily separable, because to have the words together wouldn’t be grammatically correct. To say I looked up it online, might make sense, but it is awkward to say because grammatically it is incorrect. So, when the phrasal verb has to be separated in some way to be grammatically correct, it is an obligatorily separable verbal phrase.
Why Learn Phrasal Verbs?
If reading this guide has left you scratching your head wondering why you’d bother learning about them at all, well it’s actually really important that you do. Phrasal verbs are something that we use everyday both in our writing and our speech, so getting to grips with them is important. You don’t necessarily have to know the different types by name, but you ought to recognize the different types because you could end up making grammatical mistakes that make your writing or speech difficult to follow. Phrasal verbs are an integral part of the English language, so learning about them now can really help with your understanding of how to use certain combinations of words in the correct way.
We hope you’ve found this guide useful and are at least now aware of what phrasal verbs are and why there are different types that need to be understood.
Common Phrasal Verbs with Meanings
- Act up – to misbehave or malfunction
- Add up – to make sense or calculate
- Back off – to move away or retreat
- Blow up – to explode or become angry
- Break down – to stop working or have an emotional collapse
- Bring up – to mention or raise a topic
- Call off – to cancel or postpone
- Carry on – to continue
- Catch up – to reach the same level or make up for lost time
- Check in – to register or arrive at a hotel
- Clean up – to tidy or make something clean
- Come across – to encounter or find
- Come up with – to think of or invent
- Cut off – to disconnect or stop something
- Do over – to repeat or redo something
- Drop off – to fall asleep or decrease
- Eat out – to dine at a restaurant
- Figure out – to understand or solve a problem
- Fill out – to complete a form or document
- Get along – to have a good relationship or cooperate
- Give in – to surrender or yield
- Go ahead – to proceed or allow
- Hang out – to spend time together
- Hold on – to wait or retain something
- Keep up – to maintain or continue
- Knock out – to defeat or make unconscious
- Lay off – to terminate employment or stop doing something
- Look after – to take care of or be responsible for
- Make up – to reconcile or create something
- Pass out – to faint or distribute something
- Pay back – to repay or return a debt
- Pick up – to collect or improve
- Put off – to postpone or delay
- Run into – to meet unexpectedly or collide with
- Set up – to arrange or establish
- Show up – to arrive or appear
- Stand by – to support or remain loyal to someone
- Take over – to assume control or responsibility
- Think over – to consider or reflect on something
- Turn down – to refuse or decrease
- Use up – to consume or deplete
- Wait on – to serve or attend to
- Watch out – to be careful or alert
- Work out – to exercise or resolve a problem
- Write down – to record or note something.
Common Phrasal Verbs with Examples
| Phrasal Verb | Example Sentence |
|---|---|
| Break down | My car broke down on the way to work. |
| Call off | They had to call off the concert due to the bad weather. |
| Come across | I came across an old photo of us when I was cleaning the house. |
| Cut off | The phone cut off before I could finish my sentence. |
| Drop off | Can you drop me off at the station on your way to work? |
| Figure out | I need to figure out how to fix this problem. |
| Get along | I get along well with my colleagues at work. |
| Give up | I tried to fix the computer, but I had to give up in the end. |
| Look forward to | I’m really looking forward to the concert next weekend. |
| Make up | We had an argument, but we made up later. |
| Put off | I keep putting off going to the dentist. |
| Take off | The plane took off on time. |
| Turn down | He turned down the job offer because the salary was too low. |
| Work out | I need to work out more to get in better shape. |
| Bring up | She brought up the topic of politics at the dinner table. |
| Get over | It took me a long time to get over my fear of flying. |
| Hold on | Can you hold on for a moment while I check something? |
| Look after | I have to look after my sister’s cat while she’s on vacation. |
| Run out | We ran out of milk this morning, so I had to have my coffee black. |
| Show up | He didn’t show up for the meeting, so we had to reschedule. |
| Turn up | The music was so loud that I had to turn up the volume on my headphones. |
List of Phrasal Verbs that Start with A
- Act up: To behave badly or misbehave.
Example: The children always act up when they’re tired.
- Add up: To make sense or be logical.
Example: His story just doesn’t add up.
- Ask around: To ask many people the same question.
Example: I asked around but nobody knows where he is.
- Ask out: To invite someone to go out with you.
Example: He asked her out to dinner.
- Answer back: To respond rudely or defiantly.
Example: She always answers back when she’s told what to do.
- Aim at: To direct or point something towards a target.
Example: He aimed at the bull’s-eye and hit it.
List of Phrasal Verbs that Start with B
- Back away – to move away from something or someone
Example: The dog backed away when it saw the stranger.
- Bail out – to rescue or provide financial assistance
Example: The government bailed out the company during the recession.
- Bear out – to support or confirm something
Example: The evidence bore out his claims.
- Bear with – to be patient with someone or something
Example: Please bear with me as I try to solve this problem.
- Beat down – to weaken or wear down someone’s resistance or enthusiasm
Example: The constant criticism beat down her confidence.
- Bear up – to endure or tolerate something difficult
Example: Despite the tragedy, he managed to bear up and carry on.
- Blow up – to explode or become angry
Example: The factory blew up, destroying the entire building.
- Bring about – to cause or make something happen
Example: The new policies brought about a significant change in the organization.
- Bring along – to bring someone or something with you
Example: Don’t forget to bring along your camera.
- Bring down – to cause the downfall of someone or something
Example: The scandal brought down the politician’s career.
- Bring up – to raise or mention a topic
Example: She brought up the issue at the meeting.
- Brush up – to improve one’s skills or knowledge in a particular area
Example: I need to brush up on my Spanish before my trip to Mexico.
- Build up – to increase gradually in size or importance
Example: The company is building up its presence in the market.
- Break away – to leave or escape from a group or situation
Example: The athletes broke away from the pack and took the lead.
- Break down – to stop working or functioning properly
Example: The car broke down on the highway.
- Break into – to enter a building or conversation forcefully and without permission
Example: Someone broke into our house while we were on vacation.
- Break out – to suddenly start or begin, especially in a negative or undesirable way
Example: A fire broke out in the building.
- Break up – to end a relationship or a meeting
Example: The couple broke up after years of dating.
- Bring in – to introduce or initiate something new
Example: The company brought in a new policy to increase productivity.
- Bring out – to produce or reveal something that was hidden or unknown
Example: The writer brought out a new book last month.
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