My laptop is running out of power. I should probably plug it in.
Overview of Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs are mainly used in spoken English and informal texts.
Phrasal verbs are verbs used with a particle (a preposition or an adverb).
- in
- out
- on
- off
- up
- down
- away
- back
Some meanings of phrasal verbs are easy to guess:
- Put On: I need to put on my headset if we're going to work in the control sector.
- Sit Down: Could everyone please sit down!
Sometimes, the meaning(s) of a phrasal verb can be very different from the verb's original meaning without a particle:
- Hold = to have or keep
- Hold Up = to cause a delay, or to rob
- Traffic held me up.
- The criminal held up the bank.
- Throw = to send through the air
- Throw Away = to put something in the garbage
- Just throw away your coffee if it is too sweet.
- She threw her old flight book away.
If a phrasal verb takes an object, there are often two possible places to put the object. We can put the object between the verb and the particle, or after the particle:
- Put On
- I need to put on my jacket. I'm cold.
- I need to put my jacket on. I'm cold.
- Wake Up
- Please be quiet. Let's not wake up the baby.
- Please be quiet. Let's not wake the baby up.
- Throw Away
- Could you do me a favour and throw away the garbage?
- Could you do me a favour and throw the garbage away?
However, if the object is a pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, them, us, this, that, etc.), then you must put the pronoun between the verb and the particle:
| Named Object | Pronoun as Object |
|---|---|
|
"Could you do me a favour and throw away the garbage?" "Could you do me a favour and throw the garbage away?" |
"OK. I'll throw away it." "OK. I'll throw it away." |
|
"Is it okay with you if I turn off the music?" "Is it okay with you if I turn the music off?" |
"Yes; it's terrible. Turn off it." "Yes; it's terrible. Turn it off." |
Sometimes a phrasal verb is followed by a second preposition. Then we cannot separate the verb and its particles, even if the object is a pronoun.
When are you coming back to Vancouver Control Tower? We'll miss you!
My supervisor always tells me to stay away from Sector 2. So you also must stay away from it.
Let's get out of clearance delivery. I want to work ground control. Let's get out of here!
Phrasal Verbs with In and Out
In/Into
- The aircraft stopped and the person got in.
- When are you moving into the new control tower?
- Cheryl came into the control room and sat down.
- Let's jump into the aircraft and go to the island.
- Someone broke in and stole my laptop.
Out/Out of
- We walked out of the terminal building.
- You should stay seated in the jump aircraft. You don't want to fall out.
- We need to check out the control tower by 11 AM tomorrow morning.
- Could you please let the trainee out?
- I hate smoking! Please get out!
Note the difference between in and into. After into, there must be an object which has a physical space, like a room, a building, or a car, plus a sense of movement as the actor changes places.
- Here is a key. Let yourself in anytime.
- Here is a key. Let yourself into my apartment anytime.
- Open the curtains. Let in the sun.
- Here's my car. Get in.
- Get into my car.
The same difference exists between out and out of:
- Before we leave for the airport, we need to check out.
- Before we leave for the airport, we need to check out of the hotel.
- Let's check out the weather forecast.
- Okay; we're done taxiing. You can get out.
- Don't get out of the cockpit yet.
Other Phrasal Verbs with In
- Fill In / Out = to complete a form or questionnaire
- Please fill in all the information and give it back to me when you're finished.
- Plug In = to connect something to a power source
- The headset isn't broken. You just haven't plugged it into the air traffic control console!
Other Phrasal Verbs with Out
- Work Out = to do exercise (usually at a gym)
- I worked out for a couple of hours last night.
- Find Out (That... / About Something) = to discover a fact or piece of information
- When did you find out that your boyfriend was lying to you?
- When did you find out about the news?
- Give / Hand Out = to give something to every person
- Usually someone hands out free newspapers at the train station.
- Run Out (Of Something) = to use all of something
- We're going to run out of milk soon. We should buy some before we do.
- Figure Out = to be able to understand something or solve a problem
- The streets of this city are so confusing. I still can't figure them out.
- Go Out = for a cigarette, a candle, or fire to stop burning, or for lights to stop shining
- It's very common for the lights to go out in our house during a wind storm.
- Put Out = to stop fire, including the fire of a cigarette or candle
- You'll have put out your cigarette before you go in. It's a non-smoking building.
Phrasal Verbs with Away and Back
We usually use away to emphasize distance when leaving a place or person:
The man rented my aircraft and flew away.
I don't want to see you right now. I'm busy. Please go away.
When I got to the airport this morning, the aircraft had just flown away.
I tried to take a photo of you and the DC3, but you walked away.
We use back to indicate returning to places and people:
- I need to take these strip holders back to the console.
- Could you put that back please?
- We are leaving now and we'll come back around 10 PM.
- When are you going back to the control tower today?
- Could you please pay back the money I lent you last week?
Other Phrasal Verbs with Away
- Stay Away (From) = to not go close / near something or someone
- You should really stay away from that area as it can be a little dangerous.
- Throw Away = to put something in the garbage
- I hate throwing away food when so many people in the world don't have anything.
- Paul gave me some candies, but I threw them away. I tried one and it was terrible.
- Put Away = to put something in its normal place / out of sight
- The teacher will get angry if you don't put your phone away during class.
- Give Away = 1. to give something to someone because you don't want it anymore, or
2. to give free samples or services from a company- I gave away my old furniture to a couple of students.
- At the train station this morning, a juice company was giving away samples.
- Get Away (From) = to escape from a person or place, or to leave somewhere with difficulty
- I almost caught a fish but it got away.
- The car thief got away from the police.
Other Phrasal Verbs with Back
- Call / Phone / Text / Email / Write Back = to reply to a phone call, text, email, letter, etc.
- I'm sorry. I'm a little busy now. Could I call you back later?
Exercise
Open the exercise to begin the activity. Follow the instructions in the document.