The main phrasal verbs of the English language. Phrasal verbs in English, rules, examples

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 face the challenge of translating phrasal verbs. in English, due to the fact that they are often idioms. In this case, they cannot be translated verbatim. However, sometimes such a decoding of the elements that formed 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 in one way or another have a more formal counterpart used in formal speeches and correspondence.

Frequently used phrasal verbs

In this article, you are given the opportunity to review all the main phrasal verbs of the English language. Now the most used phrasal verbs containing the following words are considered to be English: look, take and come. So let's talk about them separately.

Look and its forms

With the help of a verb look - look the following phrasal verbs can be formed:

look after - take care of somebody

Your mom has been looking after since you were born.

Your mother has taken care of you since you were born.

look ahead - think about the future (look ahead)

Stop being a child! please, look ahead .

Stop being a kid (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 someone who gets bad grades in school.

look on - watch, watch

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

Liza is not involved (does not take part) in the play. She only 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 am looking forward to hearing from you.

look up to - admire

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

yours new hairstyle just beautiful. There is no one who does not admire her.

Combinations with take

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

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

you absolutely take after your mom.

You are very similar to your mother.

take care of = look after

He will take care of your parrot whilst you are off.

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

take off - take off, take off from the ground

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

The flight to Canada will take off at 19:15.

take on - hire employees

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

come across - accidentally stumble; seem to impress

I usually come across some photos of my childhood.

I often stumble upon my own photographs from my childhood.

I hope I came across as an enthusiastic person.

I hope I came across as an interested person.

come forward - introduce yourself, introduce 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 English phrasal verbs.

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 editions are losing their former popularity, and on the Internet you can already find many different online dictionaries, as well as courses, methods for learning and memorizing words.

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

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

Phrasal verbs A-D

Letter	Phrasal verb	Meaning (translation)	Usage examples
A	abide by	obey; follow	If you want to study at university, you must abide by the appropriated rules. You will have to obey certain rules if you want to study at the university.
	account for	Explain; make excuses	I hope you are able to account for the money you spent. I really hope that you can explain where you spent this money.
	agree with	agree with someone	That's right. I agree with you. It is right. I absolutely agree with you.
	answer back	Rude answer; bicker	Do not answer back your teacher! Don't you dare be so rude to the teacher!
	applyfor	Apply (for a job, visa, etc.)	I applied for the job of customer assistant two weeks ago. Two weeks ago I applied for a job as a salesperson.
B	back up	1) support 2) save (file, program, image)	1) Could you back me up, please? Could you support me please? 2) You "d better back up all your files.
		Improve; improve	I decided to beef up my presentation with images and graphics. I decided to improve my presentation with images and graphs.
		Explode	The terrorists made the car blow up. The terrorists blew up the car.
	break up	break up (about relationships)	Matt and Lindsey broke up yesterday. Matt and Lindsey broke up yesterday.
	bring up	To raise a child	You should stop your nightlife and start to bring up your child. It's time for you to stop going to clubs and start raising your child.
C	call back	call back (by phone)	You have to call me back after a while. You will have to call me back after a while.
	call off	Cancel	The end-year-party has been called off by the headmaster. The end-of-year party was canceled by the headmaster.
	calm down	Calm down; relax	Calm down, please. That's just a little problem. Please calm down. This is just a minor difficulty.
	carry on	Continue	Carry on, Garry. You are going to be the winner! Harry, keep up the good work. You must be the winner.
	cut down on	Reduce (spending on something; size)	We need to cut down on chocolate. You need to stop eating so much chocolate.
D	deal with	Solve problems; deal with something	You need to know how to deal with girls. It's time for you to learn how to deal with girls.
	do without	to live without anything	You have to do without choclate for two days. You'll have to go without chocolate for a couple of days.
		To sign; write down	We used to draw up such good things. We used to record such beautiful things.
	dress up	1) Dress nicely, elegantly 2) Dress up (for a holiday)	1) How often does he dress up? Does he often dress like this? 2) Halloween is a right time to dress up. Halloween - best time a year to dress up in unusual costumes.
		visit regularly; visit	I always drop in to see my dad on my way from university. I stop by my dad's all the time on my way home from university.

Phrasal verbs E-J

Letter	Phrasal verb	Meaning (translation)	Usage examples
E		Finish something a certain way	He has had troubles since his childhood. So he ended up in prison. He had problems since childhood. As a result, he ended up in prison.
F	fill out	Fill out (form, application)	You also need to fill out this form. You also need to complete this form.
	find out	Learn	I will find out the time train leaves. I'll find out when the train leaves.
G		Climb (on board, on the bus)	I hope you will get on board without problems. Hope you get on board without any problems.
	get out of	avoid anything	I "m sure my son tries to get out of doing his homework. I am absolutely sure that my son is trying to avoid the process of doing homework.
		Give up; throw	Never give up! You will achieve great results. Never give up! And you will get great results.
H		Hang up; end a phone call	Please do not hang out. We will be back to you after a minute. Hold the line, please. We'll get back to talking to you in a minute.
	hurry up	hurry up; hurry	If you are not hurry up, we will miss the train. We'll miss the train if you don't hurry.
J		Join; participate	Come on, Suzie! Join in our team. Come on Susie! Join our team.
	jot down	Record quickly; take notes	I had to jot down his email. I had to quickly write down his e-mail.
K		keep doing something	Please, make him keep on silence. Please make sure that he remains silent.
	keep up with	Succeed for someone	I don't want to keep up with her. I don't want to keep trying to keep up with her.
L	let down	let down; disappoint	I have never let anyone down. I have never let anyone down.
	leave out	not announced; not mentioned	Nobody knows the prince name because it is not left out. Nobody knows the prince's name because it hasn't been announced yet.

Phrasal verbs M-Z

Letter	Phrasal	Meaning (translation)	Usage examples
M		Confused (about names)	I "ve been introduced to too many people. So I still mixing up their names. I was introduced to too many people. I still confuse their names.
		move in (to a new house)	I"ve just bought a new apartment but I still haven"t move in. I just bought a new apartment. But I haven't settled into it yet.
	move out	Move out (from home)	My friend got a job in the UK. She moves out next week. My friend got a job in the UK. She will move out of the apartment next week.
N	note down	Record something	I need to note down a few numbers. Can you give me a paper? I need to write down a couple of numbers. Give me a piece of paper, please.
P		Turn on	Can you put on the TV? Could you turn off the TV?
		Pick up someone	Listen carefully. Jamie will pick you up at 7 o "clock. Don" t be late! Listen to me carefully. Jamie will pick you up at 7. Don't be late!
R		Rely on someone	Darling, you can always rely on me. Honey, you can rely on me.
	run away	run away	My dad ran away from his place at the age of eighteen. My father ran away from home when he was 18 years old.
	run out of	End; expire	Can you borrow me some coffee? Sorry, I "m run out of it. Can you lend me some coffee? Sorry, but I don't have it.
S	show off	Show; boast	Maureen show off with her new bike. Maureen wants to show off on her new motorcycle.
		(Spoken) Shut up	I "ve had enough of it. Shut up now! I'm over it. Shut up!
	sit down	sit down	Hello. What's up? You can sit down if you want. Hi. What happened? You can sit down if you want.
T	think over	Discuss, ponder	I need to think over before I make up my mind. I need to think things through before making a decision.
	try sth on	try on	This T-shirt is XL-size. Do you want to try it on? This T-shirt is XL. Would you like to try it on?
U		run out to the end	My roommate always uses up my cereals. My roommate constantly eats my cereal.
W	watch out	Be careful!	Watch out! It's hazardous to go there. Be careful! It's dangerous to go there.
	work out	1) exercise 2) Find a solution 3) Count something	Janine works out three times a week. 2) You need to find a solution. Come on, work it out! You need to find a solution. Come on!

Practical tasks

When learning English, like any other language, practice plays a key role in achieving success. Those who wish to learn or recall any topic will require special exercises. English phrasal verbs are no exception. Only by trying to thoroughly understand this difficult topic and practicing the language daily and with diligence, one can count on good results.

Specialized Editions

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 workbook, containing tests, tasks for paraphrasing, as well as oral tasks aimed at the final development of phrasal verbs. Give preference to publications whose content is diverse. This approach helps to work out the topic of the English language in its various aspects at a high level.

little surprise

The people viewing this article must be just learning or even going to learn today's topic - English phrasal verbs. The test offered to you does not aim to reveal in-depth knowledge of phrasal verbs. However, these 10 questions will get you started on today's topic. Such a simple test will be a good start to progressive learning.

Answers at the end of the article!

Test on the topic "Phrasal verbs"

Number	Question	Answer options
1	What time does he ____? At 7.15 p.m. My flight back is at 9.45 p.m.
2	- Don't ___! You will take this exam again in July.
3	- I have to ___ every day to be ready for a tennis tournament.
4	- The match was ___ due to the rainy weather.
5	Do you bring my copybook with you? Oops, sorry. I've forgotten to take it. Oh God. You've __ me __ again.	3) calm … down
6	Hello. It's Matt and his telephone answering machine. I'm not available now. So you should __ me __ later or leave me a message.	2) call ... back 4) note … down
7	It's dark outside. Maybe you should __ the light __.
8	Jessica and Mike have ___ __.	1) answered back
9	If you want to ____ __ the UK visa you need at least the passport.
10	You are my only friend. Don't ____ __ from me now.

Summing up

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

According to the results of research, a step memorization system is best suited for memorizing phrasal verbs. Learn 5 verbs a day. It's 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 build up a vocabulary that will give you the prerequisites for a fluent level of conversational English.

Practice and remember: stable practice plays a leading role in learning English!

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

Good luck learning English!

Phrasal verbs have become very popular in modern English speech. If you want to understand modern English, then you can't get away from this topic. Native speakers use phrasal verbs very actively, and if you do not know them, it will be problematic to understand English speech.

Phrasal verbs. Introduction

Verb → preposition

Verbs of motion → preposition

Go out/go in/come back

Very often a phrasal verb can look like a combination of a verb of motion and a preposition. In this case, the preposition will indicate the direction of movement. This combination is very easy to understand and remember.

Accordingly, we can say:

geton,lookout,runaway,takeoff etc. These are all phrasal verbs.

Let's break down these links:

Get on- get into transport (one of the many options for translating this bundle). I got on the bus. - I got on the bus.

look out- look from somewhere look- to look, but it is not clear where, preposition out indicates that we are looking from somewhere). For example, you look out the window - you are looking out of the window.

run away- run away ( run- run, away- walk away) run away with me - run away with me.

take off- take something off, take off your clothes take- take, off- leave the space take off- remove yourself) take off the socks - take off your socks.

Looking at these examples, you can intuitively guess how the link is translated. We see that we have before us verbs that denote direction, and prepositions associated with this direction.

Consider more examples (in these examples we will also use the verb of movement + preposition):

get out - you walk → We get out of the car. - We got out of the car;

go in - for walk , in walk → Go in one ear and out the other. It went in one ear, went out the other. The English say so too.

Come on→ Come on! He is waiting for you. - Quicker! He is waiting for you.

grow up→ What do you want to do when you grow up? - What will you do when you grow up?

Come back→ He will come back to her - He will return to her.

turn round→ He turned round and looked at me - He turned and looked at me.

We see that with verbs of motion, everything is much simpler. In this case, the English preposition plays the role of a Russian prefix. For example, in Russian we speak at go, and in English the role of the prefix " at" will play a suggestion off, and as a result we get - drive-offat drive.

Here are some examples to get you started note that we do not translate the verb separately from the preposition).

Get on – we already know that one of the translations of this very popular bunch is to get into some kind of transport. Now let's take a look at another situation.

How are you getting on? = How did you do? – How are you doing? In this offer get on- cope. This is far from the last meaning of this bundle.

look out- look out from somewhere. I look out of the room. - I look out of the room.

And here is another example where the same phrasal verb gives a completely different meaning.

look out= be careful! Watch out! Be careful!

Break down, break- break, down- move down. What can be broken down? Well, yes, it sounds strange. Let's see what it means in context. my skateboard broke down.- My skateboard is broken.

Break up- breake down.

They broke up yesterday. - They broke up yesterday.

Any phrasal verb only makes sense when it is used in context.

Phrasal verb → preposition

Sometimes a phrasal verb can be followed by another preposition, and then we get something like this: “Why did she run away from you. Why did she run away from you? And then we panic: “how to translate all this?”, “What does it mean, two prepositions after the verb?”. But here everything is not so complicated as it seems at first glance.

We just have to understand that, most likely, the first preposition refers to the verb, and the second to the object, that is, away → run, from → you.

Each phrasal verb often has a synonym.

For example:

You can give up

You can stop smoking - you can quit smoking.

The same combination can have different meanings and perform different functions, it all depends on the situation and context.

For example:

Some phrasal verbs are pointless to use without an object. For example, I put out– I extinguished. What did I put out? It is completely unclear what is at stake. And now, in order to get a complete sentence with meaning, we must definitely add an object. I put out a fire. - I put out the fire. Well, now everything fell into place.
Based on whether the object is present in the sentence or absent, phrasal verbs can be divided into:
- transitional ( phrasal verbs have an object );
- intransitive ( phrasal verbs not require object and are independent).

Iturned off the computer.- I turned off the computer. If just I turned off- I included, then the phrase itself does not make sense, and, of course, in relation to the action, the question suggests itself.

This table provides examples of transitive and intransitive phrasal verbs.

Since a sentence with a phrasal verb can have an object (we already know that such verbs are called transitive), it is logical that this object should find its place in the sentence. Hence the question. Can the object break the link and come between the verb and the preposition, or can it only come after the phrasal verb. Yes, such a division is possible.

Therefore, phrasal verbs can be:

separable, most phrasal verbs can be separable object → these include transitive verbs (phrasal verb + object);
inseparable cannot be separated object → these include all intransitive (phrasal verb without object) and some transitive verbs (phrasal verb + object).

Consider an example with a separable phrasal verb:

"You should give up this job.“You must give up this job.”

"You should give this job up».

In both cases, the link is translated in the same way, but here's what's interesting: since we are performing an action on an object (the object is this job), then this object can stand between the main verb and its preposition or not break at all. Even though the preposition came after the object, they still denote one indivisible concept, it continues to be a phrasal verb.

As a rule, there are two options where the object will appear: after the phrasal verb or between the verb and the preposition. It depends on the speaker himself.

But if you replace an object pronoun (it / them / me / he, etc.), then they must necessarily place the pronoun between the two parts (between the verb and the preposition).

Let's consider the same example.

Should I give up this job? → Yes, you should give itup.

Will we pick up t he children? → Yes, let's pickthemup.

The pronoun will always come between the verb and the preposition.

Examples with inseparable phrasal verbs:

I came across the book by chance. I stumbled upon this book by accident.(You can't say: I came the book across)

I stayed up all night. - I didn't sleep all night.(You can't say: I stayed all night up.)

Sometimes the same phrasal verb can be both transitive and intransitive.

Here is an example with a transitive phrasal verb.

my mother gave up smoking.- My mother quit smoking.

And here is the same phrasal verb, but in this example, it plays the role of an intransitive.

Don't give up!- Do not give up!

Why is it important to learn phrasal verbs? Since native English speakers always use such verbs in their speech, learning a language without these verbs does not make sense. And, of course, this has its advantages, we do not need to know a huge number of words in order to express our thoughts.

To conclude, let's revisit some phrasal verbs that will help you complete the next test.

Verb	Translation
take off	take off
act out	to have a dialog)
wake up	wake up
be back	come back
carry on	continue
get up	get up
get off	get out of the car)
get on	get into transport
turn off	turn off
turn on	turn on
look out	watch from somewhere
run away	run away
go in	come in
grow up	grow up
turn round	turn
break up	part
check in	check in (at the hotel)
check out	to check out, to leave (from a hotel)
go away	leave
put down	put

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Task 1 of 10

1 .
Number of points: 1
Mike […] his T-shirt. Mike took off his shirt.
Task 2 of 10

2 .
Number of points: 1
We should […] the train. We must get on the train.
Task 3 of 10

3 .
Number of points: 1
When I finished working on the computer, I […]. When I finished working on the computer, I turned it off.
Task 4 of 10

4 .
Number of points: 1
[…] and don't come back. - Leave and don't come back.

2016-04-04

Greetings, my dear readers.

Have you ever watched a movie or ? Or maybe you had to listen to natural, and not academic, English speech? If the answers to these questions are yes, then you definitely should have noticed that native speakers use phrasal verbs in almost 80% of sentences. Therefore, today we have a lot of important things on the topic of the day:

I want to tell you what it is - a phrasal verb,
I will share with you my top 20 "The most popular phrasal verbs in the English language",
and I will also give a couple of secrets on how to remember them the fastest.

Ready? Then go ahead!

By the way, after studying, you can continue to get acquainted with them further:

What is a phrasal verb?

I would even say this is a phenomenon when a verb, together with a certain preposition, acquires a certain meaning. Let's look at an example.

What are you looking for ? - What you looking for?

Do you still look after you grandmother? - Are you still looking after for your grandmother?

In this way, with a change in the preposition after the verb, you can radically change the meaning of the whole word and even the sentence.

What is extremely important is not to confuse phrasal verbs with dependent prepositions. The latter are always paired with a certain word (for example, listen to smth- listen to something) and if you change the preposition, then the phrase will simply be wrong. But if you change the preposition in a phrasal verb, you can get the correct, but completely different meaning.

I think you got the idea, and now my table is a list of the most common verbs with translation and examples for better understanding and memorization.

Top 20 most popular phrasal verbs and examples of their use

Go on - continue.

I suddenly stopped talking.

- go on , - she said.

I suddenly stopped talking.

-continue, - she said.

Pick up - raise.

The telephone was ringing, but I couldn't pick it up. - The phone rang but I couldn't raise handset.

Get up - get up.

Get up , brush your teeth and hair. I have almost finished preparing the breakfast.- get up brush your teeth and comb your hair. I have almost finished preparing breakfast.

Turn on\off - enable/disable.

Turn on the light, please, and turn off the radio. - Please, turn it on light and turn off radio.

Turn around - turn around.

You look amazing in this dress. turn around one more time. - You look great in this dress. turn around again.

Hold on - hold, wait.

Hold on a minute, please. I need to check schedule. -Wait one minute, please. I need to check the schedule.

Give up - give up.

Never give up if you don't have faith in you success at the moment. - Never not give up, even if you do not believe in your success at the moment.

Carry on - continue.

Whatever happens - just carry on ! - Whatever happens - continue.

Come on - come on, go ahead!

Come on , guys! You can win! -Forward, guys! You can win!

Call off - cancel.

We were about to go for a meeting when it was suddenly called off. - We were about to go to the meeting when, unexpectedly, canceled.

Break down - break.

I can't meet you. My car has broken down recently. - I cannot meet you. My car recently broke down.

Bring up - educate.

It costs a lot to bring up a child nowadays. - Now grow child is very expensive.

Find out - find out.

What if he find out? - What if he learns?

Walk away - leave.

If you don't love me - just walk away. - If you don't love me - just leave.

Look for - search.

What are you looking for? - What you looking for?

Stand up - get up.

When the teacher enters the classroom - stand up. - When the teacher enters the classroom - stand up.

Sit down - sit down.

When the teacher asks you to sit down- do it. - When the teacher asks you sit down- sit down.

Run away - run away

How many times did I want to run away from all my problems? - How many times have I wanted run away from all my problems?

Come in - enter.

Come in! Mother has almost finished serving the table. -Come in. Mom almost finished setting the table.

Try on - try on.

This dress matches your eyes. You should try it on . - This dress matches the color of your eyes. you need it try on.

How to quickly and easily learn phrasal verbs?

Oh, there is no universal answer to this question. But from my own experience, as well as many years of experience with my students, I can say that learning basic phrasal verbs is much easier than you think. Here are some tips and techniques for remembering:

Divide them into groups.

According to any principle convenient for you: by the main word, by preposition, by topic, or simply by quantity - as long as it is convenient for you to remember. The point is that you start learning small groups of phrases.

Make mental analogies.

At one time phrasal verb look for - search, - I remember the fact that it is pronounced like Russian word"loupe". And to this day, the image of a magnifying glass pops up in my head every now and then.

Draw analogies and associations, build your own visual system that will help you quickly and desirable.

Practice.

A lot of practice never hurt anyone. , listen to natural English speech, fiction - you yourself will not notice how you will start using phrasal verbs more and more.

Well, if you're tired, then here's what I'll tell you:

« Calm down and carry on Relax and keep going!

But if you still feel that you need support in learning the language - subscribe to my blog newsletter, where I regularly share important and useful information.

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