If you are an English learner or a beginner then it becomes very essential to understand each and every concept. Without proper understanding, you won’t be able to frame correct sentences. In this session, we would be discussing the different types of phrasal verbs along with examples that will help you in gaining a good understanding of the concept.
What Do You Mean By Phrasal Verb?
In English grammar, a phrasal verb is basically a phrase that consists of the verb along with a preposition or an adverb. You can see that the phrasal verbs create the meaning that is very different from the meaning of the verbs on its own. They are generally two-words long and also sometimes have three words.
There are basically 4 different types of phrasal verbs:
- Transitive Phrasal Verb
- Intransitive Phrasal Verb
- Separable Phrasal Verb
- Inseparable Phrasal Verb
Now let’s move ahead to learn about each of the phrasal verbs mentioned above:
1. Transitive Phrasal Verb
A phrasal verb that generally requires an object in the sentence is called a transitive phrasal verb. If in case there in no object then the sentences cannot express the complete meaning or sense of the sentence. For example:
- Meghan looks after her restaurant all day long.
- The staff carried on with their work even after the arrival of the manager.
- The hailstorm and landslides brought about a huge disaster.
- The project managers called off the meeting without discussing the main issues.
- You can switch on the lights of the kitchen while cooking.
- Mayank is trying hard to give up on smoking.
- Maya turned down the proposal of Vivek in the morning.
2. Intransitive Phrasal Verb
In the case of intransitive phrasal verbs, we can say that they do not require an object in the sentence to make it sound complete. Intransitive phrasal verbs show that without an object, the sentence can make complete sense. For instance, you can observe the sentences given below that do not have any object in them but still, they can express the correct meaning of the sentence.
- The patient in the hospital passed away yesterday.
- When will you get up in the morning?
- The mice ran away.
- These kids are growing up.
- The vehicle just broke down.
Learn more about examples of transitive and intransitive phrasal verbs in detail in a different article.
3. Separable Phrasal Verbs
In the case of a separable phrasal verb, you would observe that the phrasal verbs can be separated for using the phrasal verbs in different places in a given sentence. The verbs and prepositions can be separated. So, these phrasal verbs can be used as an in-joined form as well as in the separated form.
For example, observe the sentences carefully and judge the difference.
- You can switch off the lights.
- You can switch the lights off.
- Mohan will pick up you from the Bandra bandstand.
- Mohan will pick you up from the Bandra bandstand.
- The avid customers requested to cut down the prices of the products.
- The avid customers requested to cut the prices down of the products.
4. Non-separable Phrasal Verbs
The non-separable phrasal verbs are those verbs that cannot be separated for using it in different places in the given sentence. These phrasal verbs remain together. For example, you can have a look at the examples to understand better.
- Sheeja always looks after her children.
- The patient passed away in the hospital.
- The strong hailstorm brought about a huge unexpected disaster.
- It is always said that you should stay away from bad company.
- The murderer ran away.
- Mayank is trying his best to give up on smoking.
- The team carried on with their work.
Learn more about examples of separable and inseparable phrasal verbs in detail in a different article.
| Note: By looking at all the examples you can note that the intransitive phrasal verbs are inseparable. |
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