Everything you need to understand and use phrasal verbs naturally in English, 20 essential everyday verbs, separable vs inseparable rules, and exam practice.
A phrasal verb is a verb combined with a preposition or adverb (or both) that creates a new meaning, often completely different from the individual words. "Give up" doesn't mean "give" and "up" separately; it means "quit." Phrasal verbs are everywhere in spoken, everyday English, and understanding them is essential for natural-sounding fluency.
They're genuinely one of the hardest areas of English vocabulary because the meaning usually can't be guessed from the individual words, and the same phrasal verb often has multiple, unrelated meanings depending on context.
| Type | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Intransitive (no object) | verb + particle | The plane took off. |
| Transitive, separable | verb + object + particle, or verb + particle + object | Turn the light off. / Turn off the light. |
| Transitive, inseparable | verb + particle + object (always) | She looks after her sister. |
| Three-word phrasal verbs | verb + particle + preposition (always inseparable) | I'm looking forward to it. |
| Rule | Example |
|---|---|
| Separable, noun object: either order works | Turn off the light. / Turn the light off. |
| Separable, pronoun object: must go in the middle | Turn it off. (never "Turn off it") |
| Inseparable: object always comes after the whole phrase | I ran into an old friend. (never "I ran an old friend into") |
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| give up | Quit | She gave up smoking last year. |
| look after | Take care of | Can you look after my dog this weekend? |
| find out | Discover | I found out the truth yesterday. |
| get on with | Have a good relationship with | I get on well with my colleagues. |
| put off | Postpone | We had to put off the meeting. |
| run into | Meet by chance | I ran into an old friend today. |
| turn down | Reject / lower volume | She turned down the job offer. |
| set up | Establish / arrange | They set up a new company. |
| break down | Stop working (machine) / lose control (emotion) | My car broke down this morning. |
| carry on | Continue | Please carry on with your work. |
| look forward to | Anticipate with pleasure | I'm looking forward to the holidays. |
| get over | Recover from | It took her weeks to get over the flu. |
| bring up | Raise a topic / raise a child | She was brought up in Spain. |
| call off | Cancel | They called off the wedding. |
| show up | Arrive, appear | He showed up late again. |
| work out | Exercise / find a solution | We worked out a solution together. |
| take after | Resemble (family) | She takes after her mother. |
| hold on | Wait | Hold on, I'll be right back. |
| go on | Continue / happen | What's going on here? |
| come across | Find by chance | I came across an old photo yesterday. |
Some phrasal verbs keep a fairly literal, guessable meaning; many others become completely idiomatic, with a meaning you simply have to learn.
| Literal (guessable) | Idiomatic (must be learned) |
|---|---|
| sit down (sit + physically down) | give up (quit, nothing to do with "give" or "up") |
| come in (enter, physically) | run into (meet unexpectedly, not physical running) |
| stand up (stand + physically up) | break down (stop working, not physically breaking) |
In formal writing (essays, reports, official emails), a single-word alternative to a phrasal verb is often preferred.
| Phrasal Verb (informal) | Formal Alternative |
|---|---|
| find out | discover |
| put off | postpone |
| give up | quit / abandon |
| set up | establish |
| go on | continue |
| ❌ Incorrect | ✅ Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Turn off it. | Turn it off. | Pronoun objects must go between a separable phrasal verb and its particle. |
| I ran an old friend into. | I ran into an old friend. | Inseparable phrasal verbs never split, the object always follows. |
| I'm looking forward see you. | I'm looking forward to seeing you. | "Look forward to" needs "to" + gerund, not the infinitive. |
| She look after of her brother. | She looks after her brother. | "Look after" doesn't need an extra "of", it's already a complete phrase. |
| Exam | How Phrasal Verbs Are Tested | Sample Question |
|---|---|---|
| Cambridge B1 Preliminary / B2 First | Phrasal verb meaning and formal alternatives frequently appear in Reading/Use of English. | Word formation and gap-fill tasks matching phrasal verbs to single-word synonyms. |
| IELTS Speaking | Natural phrasal verb use is a strong marker of range and idiomaticity, especially in Parts 2 and 3. | Using "look forward to," "get on with," "find out" naturally in extended answers. |
| IELTS Writing | Formal alternatives (postpone, discover) are generally preferred over phrasal verbs in Task 2 essays. | Choosing "establish" over "set up" in a formal argumentative essay. |
| Trinity GESE/ISE (SELT) | Everyday phrasal verbs are essential for natural conversational fluency. | Discussing daily routines and relationships using phrasal verbs like "get on with" and "look after." |
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