Separable vs Inseparable Phrasal Verbs

CEFR B1-B2 • Phrasal Verbs • When you can split (call him up) and when you cannot (look after him)

Why this rule trips everyone up

You can say "I called him up" OR "I called up Sandeep." Both work. But you cannot say "I looked Sandeep after." It must be "I looked after Sandeep." The difference is whether the phrasal verb is separable (you can split it with the object) or inseparable (you cannot). This page covers the rule and the 30 examples you need to know cold.

The two categories

Type	Object placement	Example
Separable	Either between OR after	"Call up Sandeep" / "Call Sandeep up" — both work
Inseparable	Always after the particle	"Look after Sandeep" only — never "Look Sandeep after"

The pronoun rule (critical)

If the object is a pronoun (him, her, it, them, us, me), separable verbs MUST be split.

Right: "I called him up." (pronoun split)

Wrong: "I called up him." (cannot keep pronoun after particle)

Right: "I called up Sandeep." (noun, can stay after)

Memorize: separable + pronoun = MUST split. "Look it up" not "look up it." "Turn it on" not "turn on it."

Common separable phrasal verbs (15)

You can split these. With pronouns, you must.

turn on / turn off

"Turn on the laptop" / "Turn the laptop on" / "Turn it on"

look up

"Look up the address" / "Look the address up" / "Look it up"

fill out

"Fill out the form" / "Fill the form out" / "Fill it out"

throw away / throw out

"Throw away the old draft" / "Throw the old draft away" / "Throw it away"

pick up

"Pick up the package" / "Pick the package up" / "Pick it up"

set up

"Set up the meeting" / "Set the meeting up" / "Set it up"

put off

"Put off the launch" / "Put the launch off" / "Put it off"

bring up

"Bring up the issue" / "Bring the issue up" / "Bring it up"

figure out

"Figure out the bug" / "Figure the bug out" / "Figure it out"

call off

"Call off the deal" / "Call the deal off" / "Call it off"

turn down

"Turn down the offer" / "Turn the offer down" / "Turn it down"

back up

"Back up the data" / "Back the data up" / "Back it up"

shut down

"Shut down the server" / "Shut the server down" / "Shut it down"

roll out

"Roll out the feature" / "Roll the feature out" / "Roll it out"

hand in

"Hand in the report" / "Hand the report in" / "Hand it in"

Common inseparable phrasal verbs (15)

The object MUST come AFTER the particle. Cannot split.

look after

"Right: Look after the dog." / "Wrong: Look the dog after."

look into

"Right: I will look into the issue." / "Wrong: I will look the issue into."

get over

"Right: Get over the disappointment." / "Wrong: Get the disappointment over."

run into

"Right: I ran into Marina at the conference." / "Wrong: I ran Marina into."

deal with

"Right: Deal with the customer issue." / "Wrong: Deal the customer issue with."

come across

"Right: I came across an interesting article." / "Wrong: I came an interesting article across."

go over

"Right: Go over the contract." / "Wrong: Go the contract over."

stand for

"Right: What does CRM stand for?" / "Wrong: What does CRM stand?"

count on

"Right: Count on Aiyana to deliver." / "Wrong: Count Aiyana on."

care for

"Right: She cares for the elderly." / "Wrong: She cares the elderly for."

refer to

"Right: Refer to the user manual." / "Wrong: Refer the user manual to."

focus on

"Right: Focus on quality this quarter." / "Wrong: Focus quality on."

go through

"Right: Go through the proposal carefully." / "Wrong: Go the proposal through."

insist on

"Right: She insists on quality." / "Wrong: She insists quality on."

amount to

"Right: The savings amount to $200k." / "Wrong: The savings amount $200k to."

How to remember which is which

There is no clean rule, but a useful pattern: two-word transitive verbs that act on a direct object are usually separable (turn it on, look it up, fill it out). Verbs with prepositions of direction or attachment (after, into, over, on) are usually inseparable (look after, look into, get over, count on).

Two-word vs three-word phrasals: three-word phrasals (look forward to, get out of, put up with) are almost always inseparable. The pattern is: subject + verb + particle1 + particle2 + object.

Quick test: separate or not?

1. "I will look up the address." → with pronoun "it"?

"I will look it up." SEPARABLE — pronoun must split.

2. "She is looking after her sister." → split it?

Cannot split — INSEPARABLE. "She is looking her sister after" is wrong.

3. "Set up the meeting at 3." → with pronoun "it"?

"Set it up." SEPARABLE.

4. "We need to look into this issue." → split it?

Cannot split — INSEPARABLE. "Look into" stays together.

5. "Throw away the old laptop." → with pronoun "it"?

"Throw it away." SEPARABLE.

Common mistakes

"I will call up him" → "I will call him up." Pronouns must split separable phrasals.
"Look the issue into" → "Look into the issue." "Look into" is inseparable.
"Pick the kids up at 3" = OK (separable verb with noun), but with pronoun: "Pick them up at 3" not "pick up them."
"Get the bad news over" → "Get over the bad news." "Get over" is inseparable.
"Set the meeting up for tomorrow" is fine, but "Set it up for tomorrow" with pronoun MUST split.

Practice: Test yourself

Tap each question to reveal the answer.

Where to go next

Explore Phrasal Verbs