Under phrasal verb(Phrasal Verbs) implies a stable combination of a verb with a preposition, and sometimes a verb with an adverb and a preposition. In this case, the added preposition radically changes the meaning of the verb with which it is used. A preposition or a combination of two prepositions, and sometimes an adverb and a preposition, coming after the verb and influencing its lexical meaning is called postposition. Consider the following examples:

The first of the proposed verbs (to give) does not have a postposition, but the second (to give up) is phrasal, and the postposition up has radically changed its meaning. Let's look at a few more examples of phrasal verbs:

Let's compare the meaning of the phrasal verbs given in these examples with the meaning of the same verbs without postpositions:

Postpositions are part of the phrasal verb, but they still remain prepositions, that is, an unchangeable part of speech. And even considering a phrasal verb as a single whole does not give the right to attach verb endings to a postposition, which is a fairly common and rather serious mistake made by English language learners (i.e. incorrectly - He gets ons..., correctly - He gets on.)

The most common postpositions and verbs at the base of phrasal

The most common postpositions are:

Some phrasal verbs have not one, but two postpositions, for example:

More often than others, phrasal verbs are based on verbs denoting movement, as well as verbs to get, to give, to take, to look, to turn, to break. They appear in a large number of phrasal verbs and give a lot of meanings, for example:

Here are not all the phrasal verbs possible on the basis of the verbs to go, to get and to take, and not all of their meanings - in fact, this is only a small part of the abundance of phrasal verbs that exist on their basis.

Variety of meanings

Be careful - most phrasal verbs have more than one meaning, for example:

Use with direct object

Phrasal verbs can be, that is, require an addition after themselves or be used without it. And if the verb is intransitive, then nothing can “separate” it from the postposition. If with a phrasal verb, then options are possible - the addition can appear after the postposition or between the base verb and the postposition, for example:

However, if a personal pronoun acts as an object, it must be placed between the base verb and the postposition. Placing a pronoun after a postposition will lead to a gross error, so replacing the noun in the previous examples with the corresponding personal pronoun, we get the following:

If you are in doubt about whether a verb is transitive or intransitive, you can always find out with the help of a dictionary, most of which show the transitivity of verbs using notations vi for intransitive verbs and vt – for transitional ones. Transitive verbs are indicated in some dictionaries by adding an abbreviation smth (something - something) or smb (somebody - someone):

tolookaftersmb/smth – to look after someone/something

Formal and informal style

Most phrasal verbs find wider distribution in spoken language. In written speech, which is usually more formal in nature, their more formal analogues are often used, for example:

Although it is worth noting that not all phrasal verbs have synonyms, which is why they are quite common in official written speech.

Phrasal verbs are peculiar combinations of “simple” verbs and prepositions (one, maximum two) or adverbs. The main property of phrasal verbs is semantic and syntactic indivisibility.

Features of phrasal verbs

Many English learners struggle with translating English phrasal verbs because they are often idioms. In this case they cannot be translated literally. However, sometimes such a decoding of the elements that form the phrasal verb helps to approximately understand the essence of the words. Some phrasal verbs can have different, sometimes even idiomatic, translations, while others, on the contrary, are easily translated word for word.

Almost all phrasal verbs one way or another have a more formal counterpart, used in formal speeches and correspondence.

Frequently used phrasal verbs

This article gives you the opportunity to consider all the main phrasal verbs of the English language. Nowadays, the most commonly used phrasal verbs in the English language are considered to contain the following words: look, take and come. So let's talk about them separately.

Look and its forms

Using a verb look - look The following phrasal verbs can be formed:

look after - take care of someone

Your mum has been looking after you since you were born.

Your mother has looked after you since you were born.

look ahead - think about the future (look forward)

Stop being a child! Please, look ahead .

Stop being a child (stop fooling around)! Maybe it's time to think about the future.

look down on - look down on someone

My friend never looks down on somebody who gets bad marks at school.

My friend never looks down on anyone who gets bad grades in school.

• look on - look, observe

Liza didn't take part in the play. She just looked on .

Lisa is not involved (does not take part) in the play. She just looks.

• look for - look for something

What is Matt doing? He's looking for a newspaper.

What is Matt doing? He is looking for a newspaper.

• look forward to - look forward to something

I look forward to hearing from you.

I'm really looking forward to hearing from you.

• look up to - admire

Your new hairstyle is marvelous. Everybody looks up to it.

Your new hairstyle is simply beautiful. There is no one who does not admire her.

Combinations with take

Also, popular phrasal verbs of the English language include all sorts of variations in the use of the verb take - take :

take after - to be like someone; take on certain traits (in character, appearance, behavior)

You absolutely take after your mom.

You look a lot like your mom.

• take care of = look after

He won't take care of your parrot while you are off.

He will take care of your parrot while you are away.

• take off - take off, get off the ground

The plane to Canada takes off at 7.15 p.m.

The plane departing for Canada will take off at 19:15.

• take on - hire workers, personnel

I have been taken on by a leading company.

A very promising company is hiring me as an employee.

• take out - move, remove

He took out his laptop to search for information.

He took out his laptop to search for the information he needed.

Come and the troubles that come with it

An incredible amount of difficulty in learning causes both beginners and those who continue at least one of the phrasal verbs based on come -come :

come across - accidentally stumble upon; seem, make an impression

I usually come across some photos of my childhood.

I quite often come across photographs of myself from childhood.

I hope I came across as an enthusiastic person.

I hope I come across as a concerned person.

• come forward - introduce yourself, name yourself

The teacher asked me to come forward .

The teacher asked me to introduce myself.

• come up against - face problems

The film is going to come up plenty of criticism.

The film will have to face a lot of criticism.

About dictionaries

If you have a lot of time and space for books, you can try to carry out the study procedure using a dictionary of phrasal verbs in the English language.

Such collections are very often published and republished by such famous companies as Cambridge University Press, Longman and Pearson.

However, in the age of technology, paper publications are losing their former popularity, and on the Internet you can already find many different online dictionaries, as well as courses, methods of studying and memorizing words.

Another advantage of online learning is the ease with which everyone can find the necessary list of phrasal verbs in the English language, which is mandatory to ensure fluent and relaxed communication. After all, as we already know, phrasal verbs are practically not used in formal speech, official letters and other business messages.

But how can you learn all the necessary phrasal verbs in English? The table will help us.

Phrasal verbs A-D

Phrasal verbs E-J

Phrasal verbs M-Z

Practical tasks

When learning English, like any other language, practice plays a dominant role in achieving success. Those wishing to learn or recall any topic will need special exercises. English phrasal verbs are no exception. Only by trying to thoroughly understand this difficult topic and practicing the language every day and with diligence can you count on good results.

Specialized publications

As exercises, you can purchase various specialized books for a detailed study of the topic “phrasal verbs of the English language.” Examples of such publications are easy to find in bookstores.

Each of them has its pros and cons, but a textbook alone will not be enough. Anyone who wants to learn a language is strongly recommended to purchase a workbook containing tests, paraphrasing tasks, as well as oral tasks aimed at final practice of phrasal verbs. Give preference to publications whose content is diverse. This approach helps to work on the topic of the English language in its various aspects at a high level.

A little surprise

People viewing this article must be still learning or even about to study today's topic - English phrasal verbs. The test offered to you is not intended to reveal in-depth knowledge of phrasal verbs. However, these 10 questions will help you get started on today's topic. This simple test will be a good start to progressive learning.

The answers are at the end of the article!

Summing up

With the help of the tips given above in this article, as well as regular practice and skill-building exercises, you will very quickly achieve the desired result. Don't forget that the main criterion in learning a language is regularity. Exercise for at least 15 minutes every day. And you will see that it is much more convenient and effective than torturing yourself with an exercise for 2 hours, but only once a week. This approach loads the head with work, but, due to the structure of the brain, a person cannot remember much.

According to research results, a graded memorization system is best suited for learning phrasal verbs. Learn 5 verbs a day. Is this a lot? Of course not. But now let's resort to simple arithmetic. 5 times 7 (days of the week) is 35 words per week. 35 times 4 (weeks in a month) is 140 phrasal verbs per month. Just think - 140!

Just one month is enough to acquire the vocabulary that will provide you with the prerequisites for fluency in spoken English.

Practice and remember: consistent practice plays a dominant role in learning English!

And now the promised answers: 2, 1, 4, 1, 4, 2, 2, 2, 3, 2.

Good luck in learning English!

A few thoughts about phrasal verbs in English.

Hi all! In this article I would like to talk about phrasal verbs. Do you like them? I'm betting yes! 🙂 But how many of them do you know? And in general, how many phrasal verbs are there in English?

And the answer will be - A LOT! In fact, phrasal verbs are one of the most difficult topics to learn. I've been learning English for more than a year and a half, but I can't say that I know many phrasal verbs and use them often in my speech. I always try to learn them, but the point is that the best way to remember them is through frequent practice. And for me it’s quite difficult to speak English every day for a long time, I just don’t have anyone with me. Of course, I practice English with my tutor and with friends, but this is not enough to master phrasal verbs well. I would really like to go to some English speaking country and live there for a while. I think this would be the best way to remember the most popular of these expressions!

But one way or another, it is very important to learn phrasal verbs and try to use them in conversation. This is a characteristic feature of the English language that makes you speak better.

What is a phrasal verb?

This is a set expression, usually consisting of two words that are combined with each other. One of them is a verb, the other, as a rule, a preposition. If you try to translate them separately, you will not understand the meaning of the phrase, because it is the complete phrase that has an exact translation and the best way to remember it is to memorize it and use it as often as possible.

Phrasal verbs are stable combinations of verbs with prepositions or adverbs. They resemble short phrases, and their meaning may not correspond to the literal translation of the verbs themselves and depends on the context.

English phrasal verbs cannot be ignored in order to understand modern colloquial speech. For example: let's connect the verb come= to come, to arrive with prepositions in= in, back= back, out= from, outside, up= up, by= about, by and adverb over= over. We get the following directions of action:

Some translations are quite literal and easy to understand and remember. Others are idiomatic, here it is worth turning on your imagination, making associations, and making narrative, interrogative, emotionally charged sentences with them. You can choose synonyms of Latin origin for them, for example: go on (continue) - continue (continue), to put off (put off) - to postpone (postpone).

Master verb forms in English you should gradually, starting with the most common ones, and also make an individual selection of your favorite phrases, and not mindlessly cram a huge list of words.

Phrasal verbs are divided into transitive, i.e., requiring a direct object after themselves without a preposition, and intransitive, which do not have a direct object after them without a preposition, into divisible and indivisible. Based on this, table of phrasal verbs in English might look like this:

Examples with divisible phrasal verbs:

What should I do? I can't still figure it out! = What should I do? I still can't understand this!

I suppose he's going to ask me out on a date. = I think he's going to ask me out on a date.

Please, wake him out at 7 a.m. = Please wake him up at 7 am!

Forget it, put everything away and try to be happy! = Forget it, put everything aside and try to be happy!

I have been cleaning my room up since yesterday. = I have been cleaning the room since yesterday.

Here are your tests results. Please, give them away! = Here are your test results. Please give them away!

Examples with indivisible phrasal verbs:

She looks after my cat when I`m on holiday. = She looks after my cat when I'm on vacation.

Her kids are well cared for. She is a wonderful mother! Her children are well cared for. She is a wonderful mom!

The plane took off on time. = The plane took off on time.

If you behave like this, I will disagree with you! If you behave like this, I will not agree with you!

If you eat fresh fruits and vegetables, you`ll get over soon! If you eat fresh fruits and vegetables, you will soon get better!

In their society people tell on each other. = In their society, people inform on each other.

Examples with intransitive phrasal verbs:

Next morning he went away, and nobody saw him anymore. = The next morning he left and no one saw him again.

Don`t give up! We'll go through! = Don't give up! We will break through!

Hold on! I'll be in a second. = Stay on the line, I'll be there in a second.

Hurry up, I'm already hot! = Hurry up! I'm already hot!

He was old, but to step aside– that was out of the question. = He was old, but leaving his position was out of the question.

The Double You foreign language studio has compiled a list of common phrasal verbs that we would like to present to your attention.

Table of English Verb Forms

Phrasal verbs in English

What is a phrasal verb?

A phrasal verb in English is a combination of two or three words: a verb and an adverb, a verb and a preposition, or a verb, an adverb and a preposition.

Most of them are formed from a small set of verbs (such as get, go, come, put, set) and a small number of adverbs and prepositions (such as away, out, off, up, in).

Sometimes the meaning of a phrasal verb can be easily guessed (for example, sit down - sit down, look for - search). But in most cases its meaning is very different from the meaning of the verb with which it is formed. For example, the verb hold up can mean “to hold up” or “to try to rob someone,” but obviously has nothing to do with directly “holding” something.

What is the difference between phrasal verbs?

In a sense, we can say that phrasal verbs are the same as ordinary words, and they need to be treated as such. However, while learning English using them, some problems related to grammar may arise.

There are five types of phrasal verbs.

1. Intransitive. Without add-on:

You're driving too fast - you ought to slow down.

2. Transitive verb, whose complement can be in two positions - after the verb or after the particle:

I think I'll put my jacket on.

I think I'll put on my jacket. However, if the object is a pronoun, it must come between the verb and the particle: I think I’ll put it on.

WRONG: I think I'll put on it.

3. Transitive verb, whose object must appear between the verb and the particle:

Its high-quality designs sets the company apart from its rivals.

4. Transitive verb, whose object must come after the particle:

The baby takes after his mother.

Why do you put up with the way he treats you?

5. A verb with two objects - one after the verb, the second after the particle:

They put their success down to good planning.

Degree of formality
Phrasal verbs are less formal and are found in informal texts and spoken English.

Using informal phrasal verbs in situations that require formality (such as a business letter) may sound inappropriate and incorrect.

How not to learn phrasal verbs

Often students talk about the need to study phrasal verbs while sighing and shaking their heads. They often find this area of ​​the English language extremely difficult and tedious. Why? Perhaps because teaching phrasal verbs has always been difficult and tedious for the teacher, and therefore tedious for the student.

In any case, you should try to avoid the following ways of learning phrasal verbs:

Through long lists (in general, a simple list of words does not engage the imagination and is a poor method for learning any vocabulary item);

By focusing solely on the verb (for example, “phrasal verbs with GET”). This usually results in a list of verbs that don't belong in any group and are just confusing.

Phrasal nouns

The idea of ​​phrasal verbs has been expanded into the concept of phrasal nouns, where the combination of a verb and a particle means not an action, but an object. The particle can appear either before or after the verb.

input: You helped us a lot - we value your input.

standby: The projector is on standby - presentation starts in a minute.

onset: The flight was delayed due to the onset of storm.

back-up: I regularly make a backup of my computer hard drive.

If the particle comes first, then the phrasal noun is never written with a hyphen. If it’s on the second, then sometimes a hyphen is placed between two parts of a phrasal noun.