What are phrasal verbs?
Phrasal verbs are phrases that indicate actions. They are generally used in spoken English and informal texts. Examples of such verbs include: turn down, come across and run into.
Phrasal verbs consist of a verb and a preposition or an adverb:
| Verb | Preposition/adverb |
|---|---|
| get | up |
| go | through |
| write | down |
| take | after |
Sometimes phrasal verbs consist of three elements:
| Verb | Preposition / adverb 1 | Preposition / adverb 2 |
|---|---|---|
| look | forward | to |
| put | up | with |
| sit | in | for |
When added to the verb the preposition or adverb may change completely the meaning of the verb. Here are some examples:
| Phrasal verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| look for | search/seek | He is looking for his keys |
| look up to | have a great deal of respect for a person | His father is his model. He is the person he looks up to. |
| look forward to | await eagerly/anticipate with pleasure | She is looking forward to visiting Paris. |
| look up | to try to find a piece of information by looking in a book or on a computer: | She didn't understand the word. So she looked it up in her dictionary |
The meaning of phrasal verbs
Sometimes, it is difficult to understand the meaning of phrasal verbs. Before looking them up in a dictionary, it would be helpful to use the context to understand them.
Literal meaning
Some phrasal verbs have a literal meaning. They can be easily understood.
- She opened the door and looked outside.
- She was walking across the street when she heard the sound of an explosion.
Idiomatic meaning
Phrasal verbs can also have a figurative or idiomatic meaning which makes them difficult to understand.
- Can you put me up for tonight?
The phrasal verb 'put up' here does not mean to build (as in putting a fence up). It has, however, an idiomatic/figurative meaning. It means to let someone stay in your house.
How many types of phrasal verbs are there?
When it comes to speaking about the different types of phrasal verbs, there are several different ways in which phrasal verbs differ. We’re going to try and present the four main categories commonly used to differentiate between various phrasal verbs.
1. Transitive vs. intransitive - Transitive phrasal verbs are those phrasal verbs that have to be followed by an object.
- I gave up smoking two years ago.
- You have to fill out this form.
- Can you look after the kids today?
Intransitive phrasal verbs, on the other hand, do not require an object, and you can freely use only them and still convey the meaning correctly.
- We broke up yesterday.
- He got angry and ran out.
- She simply passed out.
2. Separable vs. inseparable - You can separate some phrasal verbs, while you cannot separate others. Additionally, some phrasal verbs you can separate, but you don’t have to. That’s English for you.
And, by separate, we mean to separate the verb from the preposition or adverb, like this:
- He will turn up soon. You can’t say “He will turn soon up.”
- My car broke down yesterday. Not “My car broke yesterday down.”
Some phrasal verbs, as we’ve mentioned, you can separate:
- You can turn my offer down. This is completely correct.
- Could you please chop the veggies up? Again, completely appropriate!
3. Multiple meanings - Now, there are some phrasal verbs that have more than one meaning, making them a nightmare for language learners. But, you should know they exist, even if they are a bit tricky to learn.
- Work out - It can either mean that something will transpire successfully (My plan worked out without a hitch.), or it can have to do with exercising (I am going to work out later today.)
- Take off - When you take some time off work, you go on holiday and stop working for a period of time. But, if you take off your shoes, you remove your shoes from your feet. Finally, if a business takes off, it becomes successful very quickly.
Yeah, we know, it’s a lot to take in…
4. Three words - Finally, there are phrasal verbs which consist of not two, but three words. Let us give you just a couple of examples:
- Look up to - When you look up to somebody, they are your role model and you want to become as they are.
- Catch up with - If you’re behind on work, for example, you need to catch up with it and bring all your affairs in order.
- Get away with - This means that you got off scot-free after doing something that would, otherwise, bring some consequences down upon you.
- Tips for learning phrasal verbs
1. Grouping - Never group your phrasal verbs by verb when trying to learn them. You’ll end up with a mishmash of get-ups and get overs you won’t know how to use. Instead, group them by prepositions.
It makes it easier to remember the general meaning of each preposition and how that meaning affects the meaning of the verb used together with it.
2. Context - Trying to learn phrasal verbs just by attempting to memorize them together with their meanings will get you on a fast track on the road to nowhere at all. You may end up knowing the meaning, but you’ll have no idea how to use it.
That is why you should always try to learn phrasal verbs by placing them in context, i.e. an entire sentence. That way, you’ll even have a finished template in case you ever have to think of a phrasal verb on the spot.
3. Music - There are few ways that have shown better results when learning phrasal verbs than using music to do so. Ever heard of earworms? Songs you can’t help but sing throughout the day once you hear them in the morning?
Well, music will make phrasal worms out of phrasal verbs. We think this pun works. Sort of? Nevermind. Just open Google, type in a phrasal verb + “lyrics”, see the song that uses that phrasal verb, play it on YouTube, and that’s it!
4. Stories - Finally, try to create stories that revolve around several different phrasal verbs. Remembering a story is a lot easier than remembering three or four isolated phrasal verbs.
Nobody says the story has to be in the form of a Cinderella or a Little Red Riding Hood. You can create brief remembrances of your everyday life and learn phrasal verbs like that. Find a story type that works for you!
How many phrasal verbs do you need to know?
As many as you want to. Or - you should know a phrasal verb for every occasion. Perhaps you should only learn phrasal verbs that sound cool to you or the ones that you’ve heard your friend using.
In reality, there really is no “set number of basic phrasal verbs every English learner should know if they want to become a proficient speaker of the language!”. Try to learn a couple, to begin with, and then one or two every week to enrich your vocabulary.
Aside from that, we have only one final piece of advice for you - stay away from complicated and unusual phrasal verbs you cannot remember the meaning of at least until you master the common ones.
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