Phrasal verbs

Phrasal verbs are essential elements in English, especially in conversation. It consists of a verb and an adverb or preposition. Phrasal verbs are no different from ordinary verbs, but they are often idiomatic and so, it is not easy to tell their meaning based on the literal meanings of the words. Take ‘look’ and ‘look up’ as examples. Both are verbs, but they have utterly different meanings.

Let’s see what happens when the word ‘look’ collocates with an adverb or preposition.

• Look after = to take care of something or someone
• look around = to visit somewhere and look at the things in it
• look back = to recall about what was happened in the past
• look down (upon) = to think you are better than someone
• look for = to attempt to notice something or someone
• look up (to) = to respect or admire someone
• look ahead = to think about what will happen in the future and prepare for them
• look into = to investigate a problem or situation
• look on = to watch something happen without being involved in it