What Are Phrasal Verbs?
Phrasal verbs are combinations of a verb and one or more particles (a preposition, an adverb, or both) that together create a completely new meaning — a meaning that is often very different from the original verb on its own. For example, the verb "give" means to hand something to someone, but "give up" means to stop trying, and "give in" means to surrender or accept something reluctantly. These combined meanings cannot be guessed simply by knowing the individual words.
Phrasal verbs are one of the most challenging aspects of English for learners, but they are also one of the most important. Native speakers use phrasal verbs constantly in everyday conversation, informal writing, and even in business English. Without knowing the most common phrasal verbs, it is impossible to understand films, songs, podcasts, or natural conversation in English.
There are thousands of phrasal verbs in English, but the good news is that a relatively small number of them appear very frequently. By learning approximately 100 to 150 of the most common ones, you will be able to understand and participate in the vast majority of everyday English conversations.
Verb + Particle (preposition or adverb)
The particle changes the meaning of the verb. Common particles include: up, down, on, off, in, out, away, back, over, through, around, along, about, after, into.
Not every verb followed by a preposition is a phrasal verb. Compare:
She looked up the word in the dictionary. = She searched for the word. (Phrasal verb — new meaning)
She looked up at the sky. = She directed her eyes upward. (Verb + preposition — literal meaning)
If the meaning changes when you add the particle, it is a phrasal verb. If the meaning stays literal, it is simply a verb followed by a preposition.
Types of Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs are divided into several categories based on their grammar. Understanding these categories is essential because it determines where you can place the object in the sentence.
| Type | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Transitive Separable | Has an object. The object can go between the verb and particle, or after the particle. | Turn off the light. / Turn the light off. / Turn it off. |
| Transitive Inseparable | Has an object. The object must always come after the particle. You cannot separate the verb and particle. | I ran into an old friend. (✔) I ran an old friend into. (✘) |
| Intransitive | Has no object. The phrasal verb stands alone. | The car broke down on the motorway. |
| Three-word phrasal verb | Verb + adverb + preposition. Always inseparable. Object comes at the end. | I look forward to meeting you. She came up with a brilliant idea. |
With separable phrasal verbs, if the object is a pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, us, them), the pronoun MUST go between the verb and the particle. It can never go after the particle.
✔ Turn it off.
✘ Turn off it.
✔ Pick them up.
✘ Pick up them.
This is one of the most frequently tested rules in English exams!
Separable Phrasal Verbs — The Most Common
Separable phrasal verbs are the most flexible type. The object can be placed either between the verb and particle or after the particle — unless the object is a pronoun, in which case it must go in the middle.
Verb + object + particle → Turn the music down.Verb + particle + object → Turn down the music.Verb + pronoun + particle → Turn it down. (ONLY option with pronouns)
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| turn on / turn off | Start / stop a device or light | Please turn on the air conditioning. It is very hot. |
| pick up | Lift something from a surface; collect someone | Can you pick up the kids from school today? |
| put on / take off | Wear / remove clothing | Put on your coat. It is freezing outside. |
| give up | Stop trying; quit a habit | She gave up smoking three years ago. |
| find out | Discover information | I just found out that the concert is cancelled. |
| put off | Postpone; delay | Do not put off your homework until the last minute. |
| throw away | Discard; put in the rubbish | Please throw away those old newspapers. |
| work out | Calculate; solve; exercise | I need to work out how much the trip will cost. |
| fill in / fill out | Complete a form or document | Please fill in this application form and return it by Friday. |
| look up | Search for information (in a dictionary, online) | If you do not know the word, look it up in the dictionary. |
| bring up | Mention a topic; raise a child | She brought up an interesting point during the meeting. |
| make up | Invent (a story); reconcile after an argument | He made up an excuse for being late. |
| call off | Cancel | They called off the wedding just two days before the ceremony. |
| figure out | Understand; solve through thinking | I cannot figure out how this machine works. |
A useful trick: if you can put a noun between the verb and particle, it is separable. Try inserting a noun: "Turn [the TV] off" — if it sounds natural, the phrasal verb is separable.
Inseparable Phrasal Verbs
With inseparable phrasal verbs, the verb and particle must stay together. The object always comes after the complete phrasal verb. You cannot place anything between the verb and the particle.
Verb + particle + object → ALWAYS in this order.
You can NEVER put the object between the verb and particle, even if the object is a pronoun.
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| look after | Take care of | Can you look after my cat while I am on holiday? |
| run into | Meet by chance | I ran into my old teacher at the supermarket yesterday. |
| get over | Recover from (illness, disappointment) | It took her months to get over the flu. |
| look into | Investigate; examine | The police are looking into the cause of the fire. |
| come across | Find by accident | I came across some old photographs in the attic. |
| go through | Experience (something difficult); examine carefully | She is going through a very difficult time at work. |
| deal with | Handle; manage a situation | How do you deal with stress during exams? |
| count on | Rely on; depend on | You can always count on her. She never lets anyone down. |
| get on (with) | Have a good relationship with | She gets on really well with her colleagues. |
| take after | Resemble (a family member) | He takes after his mother. They have the same eyes and smile. |
Unlike separable phrasal verbs, inseparable phrasal verbs keep the particle glued to the verb even with pronouns.
✔ I ran into her at the mall.
✘ I ran her into at the mall.
✔ Can you look after them?
✘ Can you look them after?
Intransitive and Three-Word Phrasal Verbs
Intransitive phrasal verbs do not take an object at all. They express a complete idea on their own. Three-word phrasal verbs consist of a verb, an adverb particle, and a preposition, and they are always inseparable.
Common Intransitive Phrasal Verbs:
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| break down | Stop working (machine); lose emotional control | Our car broke down in the middle of the motorway. |
| wake up | Stop sleeping | I usually wake up at seven o'clock on weekdays. |
| show up / turn up | Arrive; appear | He finally showed up an hour late with no explanation. |
| grow up | Become an adult | She grew up in a small village near the coast. |
| set off | Start a journey | We set off early to avoid the rush hour traffic. |
| pass away | Die (polite/formal) | His grandfather passed away peacefully in his sleep. |
| hang out | Spend time casually | We usually hang out at the cafe after school. |
Common Three-Word Phrasal Verbs:
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| look forward to | Feel excited about something in the future | I am looking forward to the summer holidays. |
| come up with | Think of (an idea, a plan, a solution) | She came up with a brilliant solution to the problem. |
| put up with | Tolerate; endure | I cannot put up with the noise from the construction site anymore. |
| get along with | Have a friendly relationship with | Do you get along with your new neighbours? |
| keep up with | Maintain the same speed or level | It is hard to keep up with all the changes in technology. |
| run out of | Have no more of something | We have run out of milk. Can you buy some on the way home? |
| get rid of | Remove; throw away; eliminate | I need to get rid of these old clothes. They do not fit anymore. |
| catch up with | Reach the same level; meet to exchange news | Let us catch up with each other over coffee this weekend. |
A very common exam mistake: after "look forward to", the verb must be in the -ing form, because "to" here is a preposition, not part of the infinitive.
✔ I look forward to meeting you.
✘ I look forward to meet you.
✔ She is looking forward to starting her new job.
✘ She is looking forward to start her new job.
Special Rules and Patterns
Phrasal verbs have several important grammatical patterns and rules that you need to know for both speaking and exam preparation.
| Rule | Explanation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Phrasal verbs in all tenses | Phrasal verbs follow normal tense rules. The main verb conjugates; the particle stays the same. | She is looking after the children. / She looked after them yesterday. |
| Phrasal verbs in passive voice | Transitive phrasal verbs can be made passive. The particle stays with the verb. | The meeting was called off. / The children are looked after by their grandmother. |
| Multiple meanings | Many phrasal verbs have more than one meaning depending on context. | Take off: remove clothing / the plane leaves the ground / become successful quickly. |
| Formal vs informal | Phrasal verbs are generally more informal. Academic and formal writing often prefers single-word equivalents. | put off → postpone / find out → discover / give up → abandon |
| Noun forms | Some phrasal verbs become nouns when written as one word or with a hyphen. | break down → a breakdown / take off → takeoff / set up → a setup |
| Stress pattern | In phrasal verbs, the stress usually falls on the particle. In verb + preposition (literal), stress is on the verb. | She picked UP the phone. (phrasal verb) / She walked UP the hill. (literal) |
In academic writing and formal situations, consider using single-word alternatives:
put off → postpone • find out → discover • look into → investigate • bring up → mention • come up with → devise • give up → abandon / cease • turn down → reject • set up → establish • carry out → conduct • make up → fabricate
Phrasal verbs are the heartbeat of natural English. Without them, your sentences may be grammatically correct, but they will never truly sound alive.
— The Grammar GazetteExample Sentences
Phrasal Verbs by Topic
Learning phrasal verbs by topic can be more effective than memorising random lists. Here are the most useful phrasal verbs grouped by common situations.
| Topic | Phrasal Verbs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Daily Routine | wake up, get up, put on, take off, lie down, go out, come back, wash up | I wake up at six, get up, put on my clothes, and head out to work. |
| Relationships | get on with, fall out (with), make up, break up, ask out, go out (with), look up to | They broke up last month, but they made up after a long conversation. |
| Work & Study | hand in, carry out, set up, take on, deal with, keep up with, drop out (of) | Please hand in your essays by Friday. I will carry out the evaluation next week. |
| Health | work out, get over, come down with, pass out, throw up, cut down on | She came down with the flu and had to stay in bed for a week. |
| Travel | set off, check in, check out, take off, get on, get off, pick up, drop off | We checked in at the hotel, dropped off our bags, and set off to explore the city. |
| Technology | turn on, turn off, plug in, log in, sign up, back up, shut down, set up | Make sure you back up your files before you shut down the computer. |
| Money & Shopping | pay back, save up, rip off, shop around, sell out, pick up | The concert tickets sold out in less than ten minutes. |
Do not try to memorise long lists of phrasal verbs. Instead, learn them in context: read them in sentences, hear them in conversations, and practise using them in your own writing and speech. Start with the ones related to topics you use every day (daily routine, work, relationships) and gradually expand your vocabulary.
Common Mistakes
Phrasal verbs are a frequent source of errors, especially in exams. Here are the most common mistakes and how to avoid them.
✘ I look my children after every day.
✔ I look after my children every day.
"Look after" is inseparable — the particle must stay with the verb.
✘ Please turn off it.
✔ Please turn it off.
With separable phrasal verbs, pronouns MUST go between the verb and particle.
✘ I look forward to see you next week.
✔ I look forward to seeing you next week.
"To" in "look forward to" is a preposition, so the verb must be in the -ing form.
✘ I need to get over of my cold.
✔ I need to get over my cold.
✘ She takes after to her mother.
✔ She takes after her mother.
Do not add extra prepositions that are not part of the phrasal verb.
In academic essays and formal reports, use single-word equivalents where possible.
✘ The experiment was carried out to find out the effects of... (too informal for academic writing)
✔ The experiment was conducted to determine the effects of...
Phrasal Verbs vs Single-Word Equivalents
Knowing when to use a phrasal verb and when to use its formal single-word equivalent is an important skill. In general, phrasal verbs are preferred in spoken English and informal writing, while single-word verbs are preferred in academic, legal, and formal contexts.
| Phrasal Verb (Informal) | Single-Word Equivalent (Formal) | Example (Informal / Formal) |
|---|---|---|
| find out | discover / determine | I found out the truth. / The investigation determined the cause. |
| give up | abandon / cease | He gave up smoking. / He ceased smoking. |
| put off | postpone / defer | They put off the meeting. / The meeting was postponed. |
| turn down | reject / decline | She turned down the offer. / She declined the offer. |
| carry out | conduct / execute | We carried out a survey. / A survey was conducted. |
| set up | establish / create | They set up a new company. / A new company was established. |
| look into | investigate / examine | The police looked into it. / The matter was investigated. |
| come up with | devise / propose | She came up with a plan. / A plan was devised. |
| bring up | mention / raise | He brought up the topic. / The topic was raised. |
| go through | experience / examine | She went through a lot. / She experienced many difficulties. |
| make up | fabricate / invent | He made up a story. / He fabricated a story. |
| get rid of | eliminate / discard | Get rid of the old files. / Discard the old files. |
Use phrasal verbs in: everyday conversation, emails to friends, informal essays, stories, dialogue in fiction.
Use formal equivalents in: academic essays, business reports, official letters, scientific papers, formal presentations.
The ability to switch between the two styles is a sign of advanced English proficiency.
Using only formal single-word verbs in spoken English can sound unnatural and stiff. Native speakers overwhelmingly prefer phrasal verbs in conversation. If someone says "I discovered that the establishment was not operational" instead of "I found out that the shop was closed," it sounds strange. Choose the right register for the situation.