PHRASAL VERBS

A phrasal verb is a verb followed by an adverb or preposition.

run away (verb + adverb)

look after (verb + preposition)

The adverb or preposition in a phrasal verb is also called the particle.

A phrasal verb can also be a verb followed by an adverb and a preposition.

get on with

run out of

Some people also call phrasal verbs ‘multiword verbs’ or ‘prepositional verbs’.

Intransitive phrasal verbs

Some phrasal verbs are intransitive and some are transitive. Here is an example of an intransitive phrasal verb, (one not needing an object).

run out I went to see if there was any milk left in the fridge but found that we had run out (= there was no milk left in the fridge).

Transitive phrasal verbs

Here is an example of a transitive phrasal verb (one needing an object).

run sth up             Thomas ran up huge debts by borrowing money to try to keep the company going. (= he spent so much that he had very large debts).

In the dictionary we show transitive phrasal verbs by writing the phrasal verb with ‘sb’ (short for ‘somebody’) or ‘sth’ (short for ‘something’). This shows that the phrasal verb has to have an object. In the example above,we show ‘run sth up’ because you can only ‘run something up’, you can’t just ‘run up’. If a phrasal verb can be transitive and intransitive,we show it like this: light (sth) up. The bracketed (sth) shows that something can ‘light up’ or it can ‘light something up’.

Moving the object with a transitive phrasal verb

If a phrasal verb is transitive, you need to know if you can put an object between the verb and the particle. For example, you can do this with take off but not with look after.

Take your coat off. ✓ Look after yourself. ✓

Take off your coat. ✓ Look yourself after. ✗

In the dictionary we use [M] after the phrasal verb to show that the phrasal verb needs an object but that the object can come between the verb and particle, or after the particle. Take off, for example, will appear as follows: take sth off [REMOVE] phrasal verb [M] to remove something, especially clothes.