Leon's Links

_____________

Charities
to which u can
donate time & $
It's Tax
Deductible
_____________

English's Infamous
Phrasal Verbs
a tutorial; free English lesson

List of Common English Phrasal Verbs

Test Your Knowledge of Phrasal Verbs

Introduction to Phrasal Verbs

Many learners of English may wonder how to distinguish a particle of a phrasal verb from a preposition or an adverb.

For instance, in the sentence:

I look for you,

"for" could be a particle of the phrasal verb: "look for", OR it could be a preposition!

If "for" is a particle, then the meaning of the sentence is:  I seek you.
I look for you. = I seek you.
{Note:  look for is v.t. (transitive verb), which means it requires an object}

OR
If "for" is a preposition, then the meaning of the sentence is: I look on your behalf.
I look for you. = I look on your behalf.
(Note: for you is a prepositional phrase; and the verb look hereinabove is v.i. (intransitive verb), which means the verb does NOT have an object.}

 

*IMPORTANT NOTE:  Particles of phrasal verbs do NOT have meaning all by themselves.  Prepositions and Adverbs do have meanings.

PREPOSITIONS usually (but not always) answer the question: where?
            BUT, prepositions (as the name suggests) must come BEFORE a noun.

ADVERBS usually answer the questions: HOW? or "Which DIRECTION?"
            (adverbs modify verbs, showing how something is done, or in which direction something is done).

 

Next Example:

I put my clothes on,

...Is "on" a particle of a phrasal verb ("put...on"), or is it a preposition, or is it an adverb?

ANSWER:  adverb

*Most grammarians would disagree with me; BUT, I shall prove it!

THE PROOF:

1.  In the sentence above, "on" has meaning; Therefore, it CANNOT be a particle of a phrasal verb.

2.  There is no noun after "on", so it cannot be a preposition.  If we write: "I put my clothes on my body," then we could say that "on" is a preposition.  CONCLUSION: in the above sentence, "on" is not a preposition.

3.  In the sample sentence above, the word "on" tells us the direction where I put my clothes, namely "on my body".  Hence, it is an adverb.

AIM of THIS PAGE

The aim of this page is to help learners of English recognize particles of phrasal verbs by contrasting them with the prepositions AND/OR adverbs of the same spelling.

 

　

Abbreviations Used Herein Below

adv = adverb
o = object of sentence verb
prep = preposition
p_ph = prepositional phrase
s = subject
v = verb
v.i. = intransitive verb (no object for the verb)
v.t. = transitive verb (object required for the verb)

 

　

SAMPLE 1:  "Look at"

One of the most difficult words, perhaps, to distinguish would be "at" in the following sentence:

I look at you.

In the above sentence, is "at" a particle of a phrasal verb, or a preposition.  Which is correct:

[I] + [look at] + [you].  or  [I] + [look] + [at you]. ???

　

In order to answer that question, we must figure out whether "at" has any meaning.

It might seem to some learners that it has none.  But, it does.

Refer to the diagram below:

"At" has meaning, just like all the other prepositions in the diagram above.

[Note:  some grammarians might disagree.  They are allowed to disagree.  It is their prerogative to do so.  This grammarian has shown logically and with evidence that "at" in the sentence "I look at you," functions as a preposition because (a) it has meaning, and (b) it is followed by a noun.]

　

 You may contact Leon the Grammarian for grammar questions
by registering on his Bulletin Boards

TEST YOUR UNDERSTANDING:  "Put + _________"

The verb "put" causes many problems for native English speakers and non-native English speakers as well.  Look at the following sentences and try to decide which ones have phrasal verbs and which ones don't.  TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE:

1.  Put on your shoes.
2.  Put your shoes on.
3.  Put your shoes on the floor.
4.  Put your hands on your shoes.

5.  Put the garbage out.
6.  The car puts out a lot of pollution.
7.  He put me out 100 dollars.

8.  He put his hat off the table.
9.  She put off her homework.

10.  Put down that book.
11.  Put that book down.
12.  He put me down.
13.  Don't put people down.

14.  Put up that book.
15.  Put that book up.
16.  Can you put me up for the night?
17.  I can't put up with that crap!

Answers:

[Note: There are different kinds of adverbs.  For tutorial on adverbs, please click here.]

1.  on = adv
2.  on = adv
3.  on = prep  {on the floor = p_ph}
4.  on = prep  {on your shoes = p_ph}

5.  out = adv
6.  out = particle  {put out = phrasal verb [meaning:  emit]}
7.  out = particle  {put out = phrasal verb [meaning:  cost]}

8.  off = prep  {off the table = p_ph}
9.  off = particle  {put off = phrasal verb [meaning:  postpone]}

10.  down = adv
11.  down = adv
12.  "put down" has two meanings:
     (12a) literal meaning: opposite of "pick up"; down = adv
     (12b) figurative meaning: insult or belittle; "put down" = phrasal verb
13.  same as 12

14.  nonsense.  no answer.
15.  up = adv
16.  put up = phrasal verb [meaning:  give room and board] + for the night = p_ph
17.  put up with = phrasal verb [meaning:  tolerate]

The last two are very interesting samples of English.

In #16, we see TWO preposition-like words in a row: up for
In #17, we also see TWO preposition-like words in a row: up with

Whenever ones sees TWO prepositions in a row, one knows there is a phrasal verb.  The question is:  Is it a two-part phrasal verb or a three-part phrasal verb?

In #16, the word "for" IS a preposition in the phrase: for the night.

In #17, the word "with" is a particle (of a phrasal verb: put up with [meaning: tolerate]).

 

Any Questions?
Get Answers on...

Leon's Free Bulletin Boards

(Please post grammar questions in the Grammar Section)

 

WHAT?  That's all?  No, there's more

Here's a list of phrasal verbs.

List of Common English Phrasal Verbs
& Sample Sentences

abbreviations used herein below
sb = somebody
sth = something
US = United States (and usually Canada)
UK = United Kingdom (Great Britain & Northern Ireland)
v.i. = verb intransitive (no object for verb)
v.t. = verb transitive (object required for verb)

* = see addendum (below chart)

NOTE:  Americans use these more than UK citizens do.

 

Phrasal Verb v.t.
v.i.		 Meaning Sample Sentence
act out * v.i. create a noisy disturbance;

have a temper tantrum

 The child acted out in class when he did not get his way.
act up v.i. same as above" [Chiefly US] Pat, don't act up in class!
back (sb) up v.t. support (sb) When I tell them what happened, please back me up.
clean up * v.i./v.t. clean (a structure) Please clean up your room.
come up with (sth) v.t. invent (sth) How did you come up with that idea?
cut (sb) down * v.t. belittle (sb) He cut me down by calling me a dog.
fool around v.i. play Jaime, please don't fool around when you should be doing your homework.
give up v.i. forfeit I give up.  You win.
give up v.t. relinquish I gave up the right to lawyer, to represent myself.
goof off * v.i. play; act silly Jaime, please don't goof off when you should be doing your chores.
look down upon v.t. despise Jerry looked down upon me, because I shaved my head.
look for v.t. seek My daughter looked for me all over the store.
look up to v.t. admire I look up to Lao Tsu.
make up v.i. repair a relationship I'm sorry.  Let's make up and be friends again.
make up v.t. invent (sth intangible) You just made that song up, didn't you?
stand down * v.i./v.t. abdicate The president stood down from his position to spend more time with his family.
stand up (to sb) * v.t. challenge (sb) I stood up to my father, when he challenged my rights.
stand up (for sb) * v.t. challenge sb (for sb) She stood up for me, when my rights were challenged.
take (sth) in
take in (sth)		 v.t. to understand (sth) Did you take in everything that the professor taught today?
take up (a hobby) v.t. start a hobby We decided to take up violin lessons.
talk down (to sb) * v.t. talk condescendingly She talked down to me, as if I were a child.
talk (sth) out v.t. get one's feelings out by talking (together) We talked it all out, and the problem is now solved.
talk (sth) up v.t. promote (vocally) He talked the new project up.
try (sth) out
try out (sth)		 v.t. try a product to see if it works; test a product He tried out the pen before he bought it.
work out v.i. exercise She works out twice a week.
work out v.i. be solved; have a happy ending The relationship will work out.
work out v.t. solve (some problem) They tried hard to work out their problems in the "rocky" relationship.

NOTE:  this is not a comprehensive list.  There are literally thousands of phrasal verbs.  I just can't think of them all right now.  As I think of more, I will add them to the list.

*ADDENDUM*

*act out:  "out" could theoretically be labeled as a metaphorical adverb, because it could be said that it has meaning.  When a person acts "out", he/she typically exhibits "outward" manifestations of distress in antisocial ways.

*clean up:  "up" could theoretically be labeled as an adverb, because the phrasal verb ("clean up") typically denotes picking things up off the floor and putting them away.

*cut down:  "down" could theoretically be labeled as a metaphorical adverb, because it could be said that it has meaning.  When person "A" "cuts" person "B" "down", or "belittles" person "B", then person "B" feels "smaller", which means person "B" loses self-esteem and feels less of a normal person.

*goof off:  This phrasal verb comes from the Disney character, Goofy.  Goofy is a silly character.  To "goof off" implies that one is acting like Goofy.  Hence the phrasal verb could be labeled as an impersonation of Goofy, perhaps a new kind of metaphor that we've not yet explored as a human race.

*stand down: This phrasal verb, is not always a phrasal verb, because it has a literal meaning.  Generally, the leader of a country, nation, or institution stands on a platform above the rest of his/her subjects.  When he/she abdicates, he/she literally stands down, off the platform.  In such situations, down would be an adverb indicating the direction of standing.  We also use the phrase "step down".

*stand up to/for:  These phrasal verbs, like "stand down", have literal meanings as well; and it is this grammarian's opinion that it is highly debatable whether they should even be classified as phrasal verbs.

*talk down to:  "down" would be a metaphorical adverb and "to" a preposition, if we understand the true meaning of the phrasal verb, which is to talk condescendingly to sb.  It is debatable whether it qualifies as a phrasal verb.