eng9-3.5· Unit 3: Verbs & Tenses· ~13 min

Common phrasal verbs

Verb + particle combinations and their everyday meanings.

A phrasal verb is a verb joined with a small word called a particle — a preposition or adverb such as up, off, on, out, in, away or back — and together they often make a meaning that is different from the verb alone. For example, 'look' means to see, but 'look after' means to take care of, 'look for' means to search, and 'look up' means to find information. Phrasal verbs are extremely common in everyday spoken and written English, so learning the frequent ones helps you understand reading passages and answer exam questions. Some phrasal verbs are separable, which means an object can go between the verb and the particle (turn the light off / turn off the light), and when the object is a pronoun it must go in the middle (turn it off, not 'turn off it'). Others always stay together (look after the baby). Because the meaning is fixed, each phrasal verb should be learned as a single vocabulary item. For example: 'Please turn off the TV and put on your coat — we have to get on the bus and look for the tickets.'

Key terms

Phrasal verb — A verb joined with a particle (up, off, on, out, in, away, back) whose combined meaning is often different from the verb alone, e.g. give up = stop.
Particle — The small word added to the verb — a preposition or adverb such as up, off, on, out, in, away or back — that completes the phrasal verb.
Separable phrasal verb — A phrasal verb whose noun object can go before or after the particle, e.g. turn the light off / turn off the light.
Inseparable phrasal verb — A phrasal verb that always stays together, so the object cannot split the verb and particle, e.g. look after the child, get on the bus.
Pronoun object rule — With a separable phrasal verb, a pronoun object must go between the verb and the particle: turn it off (not 'turn off it').
Vocabulary item — Because its meaning is fixed, each phrasal verb should be learned as a single unit, e.g. look up = find information, put on = wear.
Common phrasal verbs and their meanings
Phrasal verbMeaningExample
look aftertake care ofI have to look after my grandmother while she is ill.
look forsearchWe have to look for the tickets.
look upfind informationI will look the word up in the dictionary.
give upstop doing somethingThe teacher asked them to give up talking.
turn onstart a machineIt is dark, so can you turn on the light?
turn offstop a machine or lightPlease turn off the TV when you leave.
put onwearI need to put on my coat because it is cold.
put offdelayThe meeting was put off until next week.
find outdiscover informationI called the school to find out when the exam starts.
get onboard transportWe have to get on the bus at the next stop.
get overrecover fromIt took him two weeks to get over a bad cold.
take offremove or flyPlease take off your hat when you enter the building.
Grouping phrasal verbs by particle
ParticlePhrasal verbsSample meaning
upgive up, wake up, hurry up, look up, grow up, get upgive up = stop doing something
onturn on, put on, get on, go on, carry oncarry on = continue despite difficulty
offturn off, put off, take off, go offput off = delay
outfind out, work out, check out, go outfind out = discover information
afterlook after, take afterlook after = take care of
backcome back, give back, take backgive back = return something
✎Using a separable phrasal verb with a pronoun
  1. 1Sentence with a noun object: Please turn off the light. The noun object 'the light' can also follow the verb: turn the light off. Both orders are correct because 'turn off' is separable.
  2. 2Replace the noun with a pronoun: If we replace 'the light' with the pronoun 'it', the pronoun must go between the verb and the particle: turn it off.
  3. 3Avoid the wrong order: We never say 'turn off it'. The pronoun cannot follow the particle, so 'turn it off' is the only correct form.
✎Replacing an ordinary verb with a phrasal-verb synonym
  1. 1Plain verb: Start with the ordinary verb: 'I will discover when the exam starts' and 'It is dark, so please start the light.'
  2. 2Swap in the phrasal verb: Replace 'discover' with 'find out' and 'start the light' with 'turn on the light': 'I will find out when the exam starts' and 'It is dark, so please turn on the light.'
  3. 3Why it sounds natural: Phrasal verbs are very common in everyday English, so 'find out' and 'turn on' sound more natural than the single verbs they replace.
🚫Common mistake

With a separable phrasal verb, a pronoun object must go in the middle. Write 'turn it off' and 'fill it in', never 'turn off it' or 'fill in it'.

🚫Common mistake

Inseparable phrasal verbs cannot be split. Say 'She is looking after her little brother', not 'She is looking her little brother after'.

⚠️Caution

The particle changes the meaning, so do not mix up partners: 'turn on' starts a machine but 'turn off' stops it; 'put on' means wear but 'put off' means delay.

💡Note

Learn each phrasal verb as one vocabulary item: look after = take care of, look for = search, look up = find information, put on = wear.

Rules

  1. 1A phrasal verb is a verb + a particle (up, off, on, out, in, away, back) with a meaning often different from the verb alone (give up = stop).
  2. 2Learn each phrasal verb as one vocabulary item: look after = take care of, look for = search, look up = find information, put on = wear.
  3. 3Separable phrasal verbs allow a noun object before or after the particle (turn the light off / turn off the light).
  4. 4When the object is a pronoun, it must go between the verb and the particle (turn it off, not 'turn off it').
  5. 5Some phrasal verbs are inseparable and always stay together (look after the child, get on the bus).

Practice

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10 random questions per test

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