Collocations and Phrasal Verbs
Master collocations and phrasal verbs in English. Learn natural word combinations and verbs with particles to sound more natural and improve your fluency.
What Are Collocations and Phrasal Verbs?
Collocations are natural word combinations that sound right to native speakers.Phrasal verbs are verbs combined with prepositions or adverbs that create new meanings.
📋 Quick Reference
Collocations
Collocations are word combinations that sound natural to native speakers.
| Type | Pattern | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adjective + Noun | adj + noun | heavy rain | heavy rain |
| Verb + Noun | verb + noun | make a decision | make a decision |
| Noun + Verb | noun + verb | rain falls | it rains |
| Verb + Adverb | verb + adv | work hard | work hard |
| Adverb + Adjective | adv + adj | completely wrong | completely wrong |
| Noun + Noun | noun + noun | coffee shop | coffee shop |
Tomar una decisión (no 'hacer una decisión')
make a decision (not 'do a decision')
Make a decision
Lluvia fuerte (no 'lluvia fuerte')
heavy rain (not 'strong rain')
Heavy rain
Trabajar duro
work hard
Work hard
Collocations with 'Make' and 'Do'
Important differences:
- Make: make a decision, make money, make progress
- Do: do homework, do business, do exercise
- Make = create or produce something
- Do = activities or tasks
Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs are verbs combined with prepositions or adverbs that create new meanings.
| Type | Example | Object Position |
|---|---|---|
| Intransitive | wake up, sit down | No object |
| Separable transitive | turn on, pick up | Object can go between verb and particle |
| Inseparable transitive | look after, get over | Object must go after the particle |
Me despierto a las 7 AM
I wake up at 7 AM
I wake up at 7 AM
Enciende la luz / Enciende la luz
Turn on the light / Turn the light on
Turn on the light
Cuido a mis hijos
I look after my children
I look after my children
Separable vs Inseparable Phrasal Verbs
Important differences:
- Separable: the object can go between the verb and the particle
- Inseparable: the object always goes after the particle
- Pronouns: always go between verb and particle in separable verbs
- Examples: Turn it on (not 'Turn on it')
Common Phrasal Verbs
Some very common phrasal verbs you should know.
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| get up | get out of bed | I get up at 7 AM every day |
| get on | board (vehicle), continue | Get on the bus. Let's get on with work |
| get off | leave (vehicle) | Get off the train at the next station |
| get over | recover from | It took me weeks to get over the flu |
| get along | have a good relationship | I get along well with my colleagues |
| get away | escape, go on holiday | The thief got away. We need to get away |
| get back | return, reply | I'll get back to you tomorrow |
| get through | finish, reach by phone | I got through the exam. I can't get through to him |
Me levanto a las 7 AM todos los días
I get up at 7 AM every day
I get up at 7 AM every day
Me llevo bien con mis colegas
I get along well with my colleagues
I get along well with my colleagues
Te contactaré mañana
I'll get back to you tomorrow
I'll get back to you tomorrow
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| look after | take care of | I look after my grandmother |
| look for | search for | I'm looking for my keys |
| look forward to | anticipate eagerly | I look forward to seeing you |
| look up | search for information | Look up the word in the dictionary |
| look down on | despise | Don't look down on others |
| look into | investigate | The police will look into the matter |
| look out | watch out! | Look out! There's a car coming |
| look up to | admire, respect | Children look up to their parents |
Phrasal Verbs with 'Put'
Phrasal verbs with 'put' are very common and useful.
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| put on | wear, turn on | Put on your coat. Put on the music |
| put off | postpone | Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today |
| put up with | tolerate | I can't put up with this noise anymore |
| put away | store, tidy away | Put away your toys |
| put down | place down, criticise | Put down the book. Don't put him down |
| put up | build, accommodate | Put up a tent. Can you put me up for the night? |
| put out | extinguish, publish | Put out the fire. The company put out a statement |
| put through | connect (phone), put through (stress) | Put me through to the manager. The exam put students through a lot of stress |
Ponte tu abrigo. Enciende la música
Put on your coat. Put on the music
Put on your coat. Put on the music
No pospongas para mañana lo que puedes hacer hoy
Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today
Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today
No puedo tolerar este ruido más
I can't put up with this noise anymore
I can't put up with this noise anymore
Multiple Meanings
Many phrasal verbs have multiple meanings:
- put on: put on clothes / turn on a device
- put out: put out a fire / publish news
- put through: connect a phone call / put someone through an experience
- Context determines the meaning
Common Collocations
Some very common collocations you should know.
| Adjective | Correct Collocation | Incorrect |
|---|---|---|
| heavy | heavy rain, heavy traffic | strong rain, strong traffic |
| strong | strong coffee, strong wind | heavy coffee, heavy wind |
| fast | fast car, fast food | quick car, quick food |
| quick | quick decision, quick meal | fast decision, fast meal |
| deep | deep sleep, deep thought | heavy sleep, heavy thought |
| sharp | sharp knife, sharp turn | strong knife, strong turn |
Lluvia fuerte, tráfico pesado
heavy rain, heavy traffic
Heavy rain, heavy traffic
Café fuerte, viento fuerte
strong coffee, strong wind
Strong coffee, strong wind
Decisión rápida, comida rápida
quick decision, fast food
Quick decision, fast food
Collocations with 'Make' and 'Do'
Important differences:
- Make: make a decision, make a mistake, make money, make progress
- Do: do homework, do business, do exercise, do research
- Make = create or produce something
- Do = activities or tasks
Common Mistakes
Correct: Correct collocations ✅
do a decision, strong rain → make a decision, heavy rain
Correct: Pronouns between verb and particle ✅
Turn on it. → Turn it on.
Correct: Use the correct object position ✅
Look the children after. → Look after the children.
Correct: Learn collocations as units ✅
strong coffee (if you mean 'heavy') → heavy coffee
Correct: Consider context for the meaning ✅
The car broke down emotionally. → The car broke down mechanically. / She broke down emotionally.
Important Rules
1. Collocations
Learn collocations as complete units.
- Don't translate them literally
- Memorise them as full phrases
- Practise with real examples
- Use collocation dictionaries
2. Separable Phrasal Verbs
Handle object position correctly.
- Object can go between verb and particle OR after
- Pronouns ALWAYS go between verb and particle
- Examples: Turn on the light / Turn the light on / Turn it on
- Never: Turn on it
3. Inseparable Phrasal Verbs
The object always goes after the particle.
- Object ALWAYS after the particle
- Never between verb and particle
- Examples: Look after the children (never: Look the children after)
- Learn which ones are inseparable