English — separable vs inseparable phrasal verbs
Many English phrasal verbs are transitive, but they split differently. With a separable verb the object can go after the particle or between the two parts: turn off the light or turn the light off. With an inseparable verb the two parts stay together: look after the children. Knowing which type you have decides where the object — and especially a pronoun — can stand.
How it works
With a separable verb a noun object may go either side of the particle (turn off the light / turn the light off), but a pronoun must go between the verb and the particle: turn it off, never turn off it. With an inseparable verb the object always follows the whole unit, pronoun included: look after it, put up with it.
Examples
| Type | Noun object | Pronoun object |
|---|---|---|
| separable | turn off the light / turn the light off | turn it off ✓ (not turn off it ✗) |
| separable | pick up the kids / pick the kids up | pick them up ✓ (not pick up them ✗) |
| separable | fill in the form / fill the form in | fill it in ✓ (not fill in it ✗) |
| inseparable | look after the children | look after them ✓ (not look them after ✗) |
| inseparable | get on the bus | get on it ✓ (not get it on ✗) |
| 3-part (inseparable) | put up with the noise | put up with it ✓ (not put it up with ✗) |
| 3-part (inseparable) | look forward to the trip | look forward to it ✓ (not look it forward to ✗) |
Good to know
The most common mistake is putting a pronoun after a separable particle: turn off it and pick up them are both wrong — say turn it off, pick them up. A dictionary marks the split with brackets: turn (sth) off is separable, look after (sb) is not. Three-part verbs like put up with and look forward to are always inseparable, so the pronoun stays at the end: I can't put up with it, I look forward to it.