Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs are very important in English grammar because they make spoken language more natural and effective.
A phrasal verb is made up of two or three words — a verb + one or two particles (prepositions or adverbs).
Their meaning is different from the main verb, so it is essential to learn them separately.
What are Phrasal Verbs?
When a verb is combined with a preposition or adverb and together they form a new meaning, it is called a phrasal verb.
Examples:
Look + after = Look after (to take care of)
Give + up = Give up (to quit or stop trying)
Types of Phrasal Verbs
1. Transitive Phrasal Verbs – Take an object.
He put off the meeting. (He postponed the meeting.)
2. Intransitive Phrasal Verbs – Do not take an object.
The plane took off. (The plane became airborne.)
3. Separable Phrasal Verbs – Object can come between verb and particle.
She turned off the light. / She turned the light off.
4. Inseparable Phrasal Verbs – Object cannot come between verb and particle.
I looked after the kids. (Only this form is correct)
Common Phrasal Verbs List
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| Look after | To take care of | She looks after her younger brother. |
| Give up | To quit / stop trying | Don’t give up your dreams. |
| Take off | To fly / to remove | The plane took off on time. / Please take off your shoes. |
| Put off | To postpone | We had to put off the meeting. |
| Bring up | To raise a topic / raise children | She brought up an important issue. |
| Run out of | To finish / exhaust | We ran out of milk yesterday. |
| Call off | To cancel | They called off the match due to rain. |
| Turn on | To switch on | Can you turn on the light? |
| Turn off | To switch off | Please turn off the fan. |
| Look for | To search | I am looking for my keys. |
| Break down | To stop working / fail | My car broke down on the way. |
| Come across | To find unexpectedly | I came across an old friend yesterday. |
| Carry on | To continue | Please carry on with your work. |
| Check in | To register at hotel/airport | We checked in at 10 AM. |
| Check out | To leave after paying | We checked out of the hotel early. |
| Get along | To have a good relationship | They get along very well. |
| Hang out | To spend time | We hang out at the mall every weekend. |
| Look up | To improve / search | Things are looking up. / Look up the word in the dictionary. |
| Set up | To establish / arrange | They set up a new company. |
| Take back | To retract / return | I want to take back what I said. |
More Examples with Phrasal Verbs
He gave up smoking last year.
The baby is looked after by her mother.
We should carry on despite difficulties.
Please turn off your mobile phones during the exam.
I ran out of money yesterday.
Exercise: Choose the correct phrasal verb
She decided to ___ smoking. (give up / look after)
They ___ the meeting because of the storm. (put off / take off)
I need to ___ my keys; I can’t find them. (look for / break down)
The car suddenly ___. (broke down / called off)
We ___ at the hotel at 3 PM. (checked in / set up)
Translate into English using the correct phrasal verb
- Please turn off the lights before leaving.
- He looked after his sick grandmother.
- They called off the match due to rain.
- She brought up the topic in the meeting.
- I ran out of sugar while baking the cake.
Conclusion
Phrasal verbs are very important in everyday English conversation. Learning and practicing them makes your language natural and effective. Make sure to understand them carefully and use them daily.