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Unit 115 · Phrasal verbs

put on your shoes put your shoes on

Study

A

Sometimes a phrasal verb (put on / take off etc.) has an object. For example:

verb object
put on your coat

You can say:

›

put on your coat

or

›

put your coat on

verb object
take off your shoes

You can say:

›

take off your shoes

or

›

take your shoes off

But it/them (pronouns) always go before on/off etc.:

›

put it on (not I put on it)

›

take them off (not I take off them)

›

It was cold, so I put on my coat. or ... I put my coat on.

›

Here's your coat. Put it on.

›

I'm going to take off my shoes. or ... take my shoes off.

›

Your shoes are dirty. Take them off.

B

Some more phrasal verbs + object:

turn on / turn off (lights, machines, taps etc.):

›

It was dark, so I turned on the light. or ... I turned the light on.

›

I don't want to watch this programme. You can turn it off.

also switch on / switch off (lights, machines etc.):

›

I switched on the light and switched off the television.

pick up / put down:

›

Those are my keys on the floor. Can you pick them up for me?

›

I stopped reading and put my book down. or ... put down my book.

bring back / take back / give back / put back:

›

You can take my umbrella, but please bring it back.

›

I took my new sweater back to the shop. It was too small for me.

›

I've got Rachel's keys. I have to give them back to her.

›

I read the letter and then put it back in the envelope.

Exercises (4)

0/4 exercises checked
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115.1

Look at the pictures. What did these people do?

  1. 1Man turning on the light
    He the light.example
  2. 2Woman taking off her hat
    She .
  3. 3Man putting down his bag
    He .
  4. 4Woman picking up a magazine
    She .
  5. 5Man putting on his sunglasses
    He .
  6. 6Woman turning off the tap
    She .
115.2

You can write these sentences in three different ways. Complete the table.

  1. 1
    I turned on the radio. | I turned the radio on. | I turned it on. example
  2. 2
    He put on his jacket. | He . | He .
  3. 3
    She . | She took her glasses off. | She .
  4. 4
    I picked up the phone. | I . | I .
  5. 5
    They gave back the key. | They . | They .
  6. 6
    We turned the lights off. | We . | We .
115.3

Complete the sentences. Use these verbs with it or them.

bring backpick upswitch offtake backturn on
  1. 1
    I wanted to watch something on TV, so I .example
  2. 2
    My new lamp doesn't work. I'm going to to the shop.
  3. 3
    There were some gloves on the floor, so I and put them on the table.
  4. 4
    The heating was on but it was too warm, so I .
  5. 5
    Thank you for lending these books. I won't forget to .
115.4

Before you do this exercise, study the verbs in Appendix 7 (page 251). Complete the sentences. Use a verb from the box. Sometimes you will also need to use it/them/me.

fill inknock downlook upshow roundturn downgive upknock overput outthrow awaytry on
  1. 1
    They a lot of houses when they built the new road.example
  2. 2
    That music is very loud. Can you ?example
  3. 3
    I a glass and broke it.
  4. 4
    'What does this word mean?' 'Why don't you ?'
  5. 5
    I want to keep these magazines. Please don't .
  6. 6
    I a pair of shoes in the shop, but I didn't buy them.
  7. 7
    I visited a school last week. One of the teachers .
  8. 8
    'Do you play the piano?' 'No, I started to learn, but I after a month.'
  9. 9
    Somebody gave me a form and told me to .
  10. 10
    Smoking isn't allowed here. Please your cigarette .