English Grammar Lab

← C1

Pronoun placement in phrasal and multi-word verbs

You will be able to Place noun and pronoun objects correctly with separable, inseparable and three-part verbs.

Explanation

With a separable phrasal verb, a pronoun object goes between the verb and particle: turn it down. With an inseparable verb, the object follows the complete verb: look after them. In three-part patterns such as talk someone out of something, the person comes after the verb and before the remaining particles.

Examples

Detailed course

Understand the grammar point

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Detailed explanation

Multi-word verbs combine a lexical verb with one or more particles or prepositions. Their word order depends on the type of construction. A separable phrasal verb allows a noun object either before or after the particle: turn the volume down / turn down the volume. A pronoun object, however, must appear between the verb and particle: turn it down, not *turn down it*.

Inseparable prepositional verbs keep the verb and preposition together: look after the patient, rely on the evidence, deal with the complaint. Both noun and pronoun objects follow the complete combination: look after her, not *look her after*. The preposition introduces its complement and cannot normally be moved.

Three-part verbs contain a verb, a particle and a preposition: put up with, look forward to, come up with, talk someone out of. Most are inseparable as a whole, but some include an object position inside the pattern. Compare put up with the noise, where the object follows all three words, with talk him out of resigning, where the person appears between talk and out of.

Meaning cannot always be predicted from the individual words. Look into means investigate, bring about means cause, and carry out means perform. Learners should therefore record the grammar together with the meaning: carry out something / carry something out; look into something; put up with something; talk someone into doing something.

To check word order, replace the noun object with a pronoun. If the correct form is switch it off, the verb is separable. If the correct form is look into it, the combination is inseparable. For three-part patterns, consult the complete frame and identify whether a person, thing or action occupies each slot.

How to form it

Separable phrasal verb: verb + noun + particle or verb + particle + noun, but verb + pronoun + particle. Inseparable verb: verb + particle/preposition + noun or pronoun. Three-part verb: learn the complete frame, for example put up with + object, come up with + object, or talk + person + out of + -ing.

A pronoun object must separate a separable phrasal verb.

The object follows the full combination in an inseparable prepositional verb.

Three-part verbs have their own complement frames and must be learned individually.

Replacing a noun with a pronoun is a useful test of separability.

Meaning and grammar should be recorded together because many combinations are idiomatic.

Guided examples

The board turned the proposal down after reviewing the costs.

Turn down is separable, and the noun object appears between the verb and particle.

The board turned it down after reviewing the costs.

With a pronoun object, separation is obligatory.

The support team looked into it immediately.

Look into is inseparable, so the pronoun follows the complete combination.

We cannot put up with repeated security failures.

The object follows the full three-part verb put up with.

Her supervisor talked her out of resigning.

The person object appears after talk and before out of; the action follows in the -ing form.

The committee came up with a workable alternative.

Come up with is an inseparable three-part verb whose object follows the complete expression.

Common mistakes

Not: Please turn down it before the presentation begins.

Use: Please turn it down before the presentation begins.

A pronoun object must come between the verb and particle of a separable phrasal verb.

Not: The nurse looked the patient after all night.

Use: The nurse looked after the patient all night.

Look after is inseparable, so the object follows the complete verb.

Not: I am looking forward to meet the new team.

Use: I am looking forward to meeting the new team.

To is a preposition in look forward to and is followed by an -ing form.

Not: She talked out him of leaving.

Use: She talked him out of leaving.

The person object belongs between talk and out of.

Before you practise

  • What type of multi-word verb is this?
  • Where would a pronoun object go?
  • Does the complete pattern contain a preposition followed by an -ing form?
  • Have I learned the meaning together with the word order?
  • For a three-part verb, have I filled each complement position correctly?

Reading text

Handling a Fault in a Conference System

About 242 words

During an international conference, the main audio system began to produce a loud echo. The technician first turned the volume down, but the problem continued. When the chair asked whether the speakers could still hear one another, the technician turned it up again and began a full investigation.

The support team looked into the fault from a control room behind the stage. They checked each cable, switched the backup equipment on and tested it. Because switch on is separable, the pronoun appeared between the verb and particle. The engineers did not say *switched on it*.

After twenty minutes, one engineer came up with a possible explanation. A remote participant’s microphone had been connected to two channels at the same time. The local team tried to talk the participant through the settings, but the connection failed. They could not put up with the continuing echo, so the chair paused the session.

A colleague then talked the remote participant into restarting the application and out of using the automatic audio option. The sequence matters: talk someone into doing something encourages an action, whereas talk someone out of doing something discourages it.

Once the microphone had been reconfigured, the team switched the main system back on. The echo disappeared, and the conference continued. In the incident report, the technician listed the multi-word verbs carefully because their particles and pronouns affected the clarity of each instruction. Accurate word order made the troubleshooting procedure easier to follow.

Reading comprehension

  1. What did the technician do first?

    Show answer

    The technician turned the volume down.

  2. What caused the echo?

    Show answer

    A remote participant’s microphone was connected to two channels.

  3. What actions did a colleague persuade the participant to take?

    Show answer

    Restart the application and stop using the automatic audio option.

  4. Why did the report list the multi-word verbs carefully?

    Show answer

    Because particle and pronoun placement affected the clarity of the instructions.

Grammar in the text

  1. turned the volume down

    Turn down is separable; the noun object appears between the verb and particle.

  2. tested it

    The pronoun replaces backup equipment and follows the ordinary transitive verb test.

  3. looked into the fault

    Look into is inseparable and means investigate.

  4. talked the remote participant into restarting

    The person object appears before into, and the encouraged action is expressed with an -ing form.

Listening practice

Watch a TEDx talk

“10 ways to have a better conversation” — Celeste Headlee (TED). Listen for clear, natural English and pick up new vocabulary while you review this grammar point.

Check your understanding

Which of these is one of Celeste Headlee's rules for a better conversation?

Check your understanding

What does Headlee say is the single most important skill for having a good conversation?

Practice

Choose the best answer. The music is too loud. Please ___.

Practice

Choose the best answer. Her colleagues tried to ___.

Practice

Choose the best answer. The legal team will ___ before responding.

Written practice

Produce the answer yourself. Capitalisation and final punctuation do not affect validation, but the grammar and word order must be correct.

Word ordering

Written practice

Put the words in the correct order.

him / out of resigning / talked / she