Phrasal verbs in English are verbs followed by certain prepositions or adverbs. When some verbs are followed by certain prepositions or adverbs they change their original meaning.
Phrasal verbs cannot be translated literally but their meaning depends on the communicative context in which they are used so they have to be considered as expressions to be learnt as a whole. Examples of phrasal verbs are the following:
- get up = alzarsi
- get on a bus = salire sull’autobus
- get off a bus = scendere dall’autobus
- look for a person = cercare una persona
- look up a word in the dictionary= cercare una parola nel dizionario
Phrasal verbs can be transitive or intransitive. A verb is transitive if it’s followed by an object whilst it’s intransitive if it’s not. Some phrasal verbs can be transitive or intransitive: Take off your shoes (transitive); The plane took off on time (intransitive).
Noun objects, with transitive phrasal verbs, are usually placed after the preposition or the adverb. With some verbs however noun objects can be placed between the verb and the preposition or after the latter: take off your shoes/take your shoes off.
Here is a list of common verbs which change their meaning when followed by certain adverbs or prepositions. These expressions have to be learnt as a whole always referring to the context in which they are used:
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