Verbs that change meaning when paired with little words. 50 essential ones that native speakers use every day.
“Phrasal verbs are why learners can read English well but struggle to follow real conversation. 'Look up' does not mean look in an upward direction. It means 'search for information'. There are thousands. Today, the 50 most useful.”
I woke up at 6. I got up at 6:15. I put on my clothes. I sat down for tea. I looked through the news. Later I ran into an old friend on the street. We caught up over coffee. He brought up something I had forgotten about. I had to make up an excuse to leave. I called him later to make up for it.
Count the phrasal verbs in that paragraph. Eleven, in 80 words. Phrasal verbs are everywhere in spoken English. You cannot avoid them. So you must learn them.
SEPARABLE: you can put the object between the verb and the particle.
'I will pick up my friend' OR 'I will pick my friend up'. Both correct. With a pronoun, you MUST separate: 'I will pick him up' (NOT 'I will pick up him').
INSEPARABLE: the verb and particle must stay together.
'I ran into an old friend.' (You cannot say 'I ran an old friend into'.)
Most phrasal verbs with movement (look at, look after, run into) are inseparable.
wake up = stop sleeping. 'I wake up at 7.'
get up = leave the bed. 'I got up late today.'
put on = dress yourself. 'Put on your coat.'
take off = remove clothing OR plane departing. 'Take off your shoes.'
look up = search for information. 'I'll look it up online.'
look after = take care of. 'She looks after her grandmother.'
look forward to = anticipate with excitement. 'I look forward to seeing you.'
give up = quit, stop trying. 'Don't give up!'
give in = surrender. 'She finally gave in.'
pick up = lift, collect, learn quickly. 'Pick up the kids at 3.'
drop off = deliver. 'Drop me off at the station.'
run into = meet by accident. 'I ran into an old friend.'
run out of = use all of something. 'We ran out of milk.'
turn on / off = switch electricity. 'Turn off the light.'
turn up / down = increase / decrease volume. 'Turn the music down.'
find out = discover. 'I found out the truth.'
make up = invent OR reconcile. 'He made up a story.'
take up = start a new hobby. 'She took up gardening.'
go on = continue. 'Go on, tell me more.'
carry on = keep doing. 'Carry on with your work.'
come up = arise, appear. 'A problem came up.'
bring up = mention OR raise a child. 'He brought up the topic.'
show up = arrive. 'She didn't show up.'
set up = arrange or establish. 'Set up the meeting.'
get along = have a good relationship. 'They get along well.'
Click “Translate” below if you need any word in your own language.
Search for information.
Look up the word in a dictionary.
Stop trying.
Never give up.
Have no more of.
We ran out of bread.
Discover.
I will find out tomorrow.
Arrive at a place.
He showed up late.
Have a friendly relationship.
We get along well.
Wait with excitement.
I look forward to the weekend.
Invent a story OR reconcile after a fight.
He made up an excuse.
Phrasal verbs cannot usually be translated word-by-word into other languages. You have to learn them as whole phrases. 'Look up' is not 'look + up'. It is one unit meaning 'search'. Treat them like new vocabulary.
Try these on paper or out loud. Mr. Gee's rule: practice today, do not save it for tomorrow.
Phrasal verbs = verb + particle (up, off, on, in, out, etc.) with a meaning different from the parts. The 50 most common cover most everyday conversation. Memorise them as phrases, not parts.
Read aloud every day. Even if it sounds funny. Your tongue needs practice.
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