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Unit 01
Phrasal Verbs: The Basics
types, word order & particles
What Is a Phrasal Verb?
A phrasal verb is a verb followed by one or two small words called particles (up, down, out, off, on, in, over, away, back…). Together they often have a meaning that is very different from the verb alone: give (vermek) → give up (vazgeçmek).
Phrasal verbs are extremely common in spoken English, films, series and informal writing. Many of them also have a more formal one-word equivalent (find out = discover), which is important for reading and exams such as YDS and YÖKDİL.
Four Types of Phrasal Verbs
| Type | Example | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Intransitive (no object) | The car broke down. / I woke up early. | Nothing comes after the particle. |
| Separable (transitive) | Turn off the TV. / Turn the TV off. | A noun object can go before or after the particle. |
| Inseparable (transitive) | She looks after her mother. | The object always comes after the particle. |
| Three-part | I can't put up with the noise. | Verb + two particles; never separated. |
Word Order with Pronouns
| ✅ Correct | ❌ Wrong | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Turn it off. | Turn off it. | Separable + pronoun → the pronoun goes in the middle. |
| Pick them up. | Pick up them. | Same rule for me, you, him, her, us, them. |
| Turn off the light. / Turn the light off. | — | A noun object can go in either position. |
| Look after her. | Look her after. | Inseparable → the object always comes after the particle. |
| She picked up all the books on the floor. | — | A long object usually goes after the particle. |
What the Particles Often Mean
| Particle | Common idea | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| up | completion, increase | eat up, fill up, speed up, turn up |
| down | decrease, writing, stopping | slow down, write down, calm down, break down |
| out | removal, discovery, to the end | find out, sort out, run out, wipe out |
| off | leaving, stopping, removing | set off, call off, turn off, take off |
| on | continuing, wearing, starting | go on, carry on, put on, turn on |
| back | return | call back, give back, pay back |
| over | review, repeat, transfer | think over, go over, take over |
| away | distance, removing | throw away, give away, put away |
Phrasal Verbs and Their Formal Equivalents
In speaking, phrasal verbs sound natural. In academic writing, the formal verb is often preferred — and in YDS reading passages you will meet both.
| Phrasal verb | Formal equivalent | Turkish |
|---|---|---|
| find out | discover | öğrenmek, keşfetmek |
| put off | postpone | ertelemek |
| carry out | conduct, perform | yürütmek, gerçekleştirmek |
| come up with | devise, propose | (fikir) bulmak, ortaya atmak |
| look into | investigate | araştırmak, incelemek |
| go up / go down | increase / decrease | artmak / azalmak |
| set up | establish | kurmak |
| turn down | reject, refuse | reddetmek |
| put up with | tolerate | katlanmak |
| leave out | omit | dışarıda bırakmak, atlamak |
Annotated Examples
Subject
Verb
Auxiliary
Object
Adjective
Adverb
Preposition
Hover over any word to see its role.
subjectSheverbturnedobjectthe offerverbdown.
↳ Separable: the object can go between the verb and the particle.
Pleaseverbturnobjectitverboff.
↳ Pronoun object → always in the middle: turn it off.
subjectWhoverblooks afterobjectyour children?
↳ Inseparable: look after + object.
Common Mistakes
Turn off it, please.
→
Turn it off, please.
A pronoun object goes between the verb and the particle.
Please pick up them.
→
Please pick them up.
Separable verb + pronoun → verb + pronoun + particle.
Can you look my cat after?
→
Can you look after my cat?
Look after is inseparable.
She gave up to smoke.
→
She gave up smoking.
Give up is followed by -ing.
I'm looking forward to meet you.
→
I'm looking forward to meeting you.
To is a preposition here → -ing.