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The English language has a funny way of complicating even the most simple of things, and unfortunately
for you, phrasal verbs are an example of this. Like most things in English, you probably already use them
on a regular basis without even realizing it. But, it’s helpful to understand what exactly phrasal verbs are
officially, so you can learn the different types and start to use them in your own writing. So, let’s take a
look at the definition of phrasal verbs, the different types that exist, and try to explain why learning the
different types will benefit you in the long run.
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:
1. Leave or escape
2. Become known (“Somehow the secret got out“)
3. Say something with difficulty (“He could hardly get the words out for the
tears”)
4. Clean something (“This detergent will get most household stains out“)
5. 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.
Phrasal Verbs
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.
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.
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 List from A to Z
Phrasal Verbs List with Act
Phrasal Verbs List with Answer
Phrasal Verbs List with Ask
Phrasal Verbs List with Back
Phrasal Verbs List with Be
Phrasal Verbs List with Beat
Phrasal Verbs List with Blow
Phrasal Verbs List with Break
Phrasal Verbs List with Bring
Phrasal Verbs List with Call
Phrasal Verbs List with Carry
Phrasal Verbs List with Check
Phrasal Verbs List with Come
Phrasal Verbs List with Crack
Phrasal Verbs List with Cut
Phrasal Verbs List with Fall
Phrasal Verbs List with Fill
Phrasal Verbs List with Get
Phrasal Verbs List with Give
Phrasal Verbs List with Go
Phrasal Verbs List with Hang
Phrasal Verbs List with Hold
Phrasal Verbs List with Jump
Phrasal Verbs List with Keep
Phrasal Verbs List with Kick
Phrasal verbs List with Knock
Phrasal Verbs List with Lay
Phrasal Verbs List with Live
Phrasal Verbs List with Let
Phrasal verbs List with Look
Phrasal Verbs List with Make
Phrasal Verbs List with Mess
Phrasal Verbs List with Move
Phrasal Verbs List with Pass
Phrasal Verbs List with Pick
Phrasal Verbs List with Play
Phrasal Verbs List with Pull
Phrasal Verbs List with Put
Phrasal Verbs List with Run
Phrasal Verbs List with See
Phrasal Verbs List with Send
Phrasal Verbs List with Set
Phrasal Verbs List with Speak
Phrasal Verbs List with Stand
Phrasal Verbs List with Take
Phrasal Verbs List with Throw
Phrasal Verbs List with Turn
Phrasal Verbs List with Walk
Phrasal Verbs List with Wash
Phrasal Verbs List with Work
Phrasal Verbs List with Try
Phrasal Verbs List with Think
Phrasal Verbs List with Spring
Check out: Confirm and pay for goods and services at a facility when
leaving
Check out: Withdraw (an item), as from a library, and have the withdrawal
recorded
Check out: Record (someone) as leaving the premises or as taking
something therefrom, as from a library or shop
Check out: Examine, inspect, look at closely, ogle; to investigate
Check out: Prove (after an investigation) to be the case / in order
Check up: Verify through brief investigation or examination
Check up on: Examine or inspect something in order to determine its
condition
Fill in: Fill; to replace material that is absent or has been removed
Fill in: Inform somebody, especially to supply someone missing or missed
information
Fill in: Substitute for somebody or something
Fill in: Beat up; to physically assault
Fill out: Complete a form or questionnaire with requested information
Fill out: Have one’s physique expand with maturity or with surplus weight
Fill up: Fill the tank of a vehicle with fuel
Fill up: Annoy, or displease, by taunting, or by excessive nagging
Fill up: Satisfy someone’s hunger
Hold back: Act with reserve; to contain one’s full measure or power
Hold back: Contain; stop
Hold back: Delay the progress of, especially in school
Hold down: Restrain; to check
Hold down: Continue, to hold and to manage well
Hold in: Restrain oneself
Hold off: Delay someone or something temporarily; to keep at bay
Hold off: Delay commencing
Hold off: Delay commencing an action
Hold on: Grasp or grip firmly
Hold on: Keep; to store something for someone
Hold on: Wait a short time
Hold on: Remain loyal
Hold out: Wait, or refuse in hopes of getting something better
Hold out: Survive, endure
Hold out: Withhold something
Hold out: Set something aside or save it for later
Hold over: Save, delay
Hold up: Wait or delay
Hold up: Impede; detain
Hold up: Support or lift
Hold up: Fulfill / fulfill or complete one’s part of an agreement
Hold up: Rob at gunpoint
Lay by: Put away for future use; put aside; store; save; hoard; to build up as
savings
Lay down: Give up, surrender, or yield (e.g. a weapon)
Lay down: Intentionally take a fall while riding a motorcycle, in order to
prevent a more serious collision
Lay down: Specify, institute, enact, assert firmly, state authoritatively,
establish or formulate
Lay down: Lie down; to place oneself in a reclined or horizontal position,
on a bed or similar, for the purpose of resting
Lay low: Topple or overcome; to cause to fall; (of a person) to knock out
Lay off: Cease, quit, stop (doing something)
Lay off: Stop bothering, teasing, or pestering someone; to leave (someone)
alone
Lay on: Provide (food or drinks) for free
Lay on: Repeatedly say (particular things)
Lay out: Arrange in a certain way, so as to spread or space apart
Lay up: Make a layup with (a basketball)
Throw away: Discard (trash, garbage, or the like), to toss out, to put in the
trash, to dispose of
Throw away: Waste, to squander
Throw down: Cause something one is holding to drop, often forcefully
Throw in: Add something extra free of charge
Throw off: Confuse; especially, to lose a pursuer
Throw off: Introduce errors or inaccuracies; to skew
Throw on: Hastily put on (clothes)
Throw out: Discard; to dispense with something; to throw away
Throw out: Dismiss or expel someone from any longer performing duty or
attending somewhere
Throw out: Offer an idea for consideration
Throw out: Produce in a haphazard fashion
Throw up: Vomit
Throw up: Produce something new or unexpected
Throw up: Cause something such as dust or water to rise into the air
List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with H & K.
List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with M & N.
List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with O & P.
List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with Q & R.
List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with U, W & Y.