Phrasal Verbs — Take, Get, Make, Look
A B1 guide to high-frequency phrasal verbs grouped by main verb — take off/up/over/back/after, get up/along/over/by/away, make up/out/up for, and look up/after/forward to/into — with separable vs. inseparable rules and clear examples.
What Phrasal Verbs Are
A phrasal verb is a verb plus a small word (a particle) like up, off, out, or over. The two parts together create a new meaning that is often very different from the verb alone.
The plane took off. (= left the ground)
I ran into an old friend yesterday. (= met by chance)
Can you look after my dog this weekend? (= take care of)
In this lesson we focus on four very common verbs — take, get, make, look — and the most useful particles that go with each.
A Quick Note on Word Order
Phrasal verbs come in two types:
| Type | Object position | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Separable | Object can go between or after | take off your coat / take your coat off |
| Inseparable | Object must come after the particle | look after my dog (✗ look my dog after) |
When the object is a pronoun (it, them, me…), separable phrasal verbs put the pronoun between the verb and the particle:
Take it off. ✓
Take off it. ✗
Some phrasal verbs (like look forward to) take three parts and never separate.
take
Take combines with several common particles. Most are separable.
| Phrasal verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
take off | (plane) leave the ground; (clothes) remove | The plane took off at 9. / Take off your shoes. |
take up | start a new activity / hobby | She took up yoga last year. |
take over | gain control of | A new manager took over the team. |
take back | return; admit you were wrong | I'll take this shirt back to the shop. / I take back what I said. |
take after | resemble (a family member) | She really takes after her father. |
Take after is inseparable. Most of the others are separable.
Take your coat off. ✓
Take off your coat. ✓
Take it off. ✓ (pronoun must go in the middle)
get
Get is one of the most flexible verbs in English, and its phrasal verbs are everywhere.
| Phrasal verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
get up | leave bed in the morning | I usually get up at 7. |
get along (with) | have a good relationship with | I get along with my colleagues. |
get over | recover from (illness, problem) | It took her weeks to get over the flu. |
get by | manage with what you have | We don't earn much, but we get by. |
get away | escape; go on a short trip | The thief got away. / We're getting away for the weekend. |
Most get phrasal verbs are inseparable. The object (often a person or thing) follows the whole phrase.
I get along with my brother. ✓
I get along my brother with. ✗
She got over her cold quickly. ✓
make
Make has fewer common phrasal verbs than take or get, but the ones it has are very useful.
| Phrasal verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
make up | invent (a story); become friends again after a fight | He made up a story about losing his keys. / They argued, but made up the next day. |
make out | manage to see, hear, or understand | I can just make out the sign in the distance. |
make up for | compensate for | I'll make up for the mistake by working extra hours. |
Make up is separable: He made up a story. / He made it up.
Make up for has three parts and is inseparable: the object goes after all three.
I'll make up for the lost time. ✓
I'll make for up the lost time. ✗
A nice contrast:
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
make up | invent something / reconcile |
make up for | compensate for something |
I'm sorry — let me make it up to you. (= compensate you)
look
Look is interesting because the meaning of the phrasal verb is often very different from the simple verb look.
| Phrasal verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
look up | find information (in a book, dictionary, online) | I'll look up the word in the dictionary. |
look after | take care of | Can you look after the kids tonight? |
look forward to | feel happy about something in the future | I'm looking forward to the holidays. |
look into | investigate | The police are looking into the accident. |
Important rules:
look upis separable:look up a word/look it uplook after,look forward to, andlook intoare inseparable
Look forward to is followed by a noun or -ing form:
I look forward to your reply. (noun)
I look forward to seeing you. (verb + -ing)
I look forward to see you.seeing, not see)
Putting It All Together
Some quick examples that mix the four verbs in everyday situations.
I get up at 6, make my bed, and look out at the garden.
She took up running last month and gets along well with her training group.
Could you look after the dog while we get away for the weekend?
I'll make up for being late by buying coffee — and I'll look up the new café online.
| Verb | Most common particles |
|---|---|
| take | off, up, over, back, after |
| get | up, along, over, by, away |
| make | up, out, up for |
| look | up, after, forward to, into |
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Better | Why |
|---|---|---|
I look forward to see you next week. | I look forward to seeing you next week. | After look forward to, use the -ing form (to is a preposition here). |
She looks her grandmother after. | She looks after her grandmother. | Look after is inseparable — the object goes after the whole phrase. |
Take off it before you come in. | Take it off before you come in. | Pronoun objects of separable phrasal verbs go between verb and particle. |
I get on well my colleagues. (with missing ‘with’) | I get along with my colleagues. (also get on with in BrE) | This phrasal verb needs with to introduce the person. |
Can you make for up the lost time? | Can you make up for the lost time? | The order is fixed: make up for + object. |
I'll look the word up in the book. | I'll look up the word in the book. (or) I'll look it up. | Both word orders are fine with full nouns; with pronouns, the pronoun must go in the middle. |
It took me a long time to get over from the flu. | It took me a long time to get over the flu. | Get over does not need from. |
Practice: Exercises
The plane ___ at 7 a.m. sharp.
Summary
Phrasal verbs build on simple verbs by adding particles that change the meaning. With take, learn take off, take up, take over, take back, and take after. With get, the high-frequency set is get up, get along (with), get over, get by, and get away.
For make, the three you cannot avoid are make up (invent / reconcile), make out (manage to see or understand), and make up for (compensate). For look, learn look up (find information), look after (take care of), look forward to (feel happy about), and look into (investigate).
Two rules will save you most of the time. First, check whether the verb is separable or inseparable — and remember that pronouns always go between the verb and particle in separable phrasal verbs (take it off, look it up). Second, after look forward to, use the -ing form (looking forward to seeing you).