Learning English

Phrasal verbs: informal, formal or neutral?

Ramina from Russia is pleased that she's learning lots of phrasal verbs. But she's worried that her English is becoming too informal. Is she right?

Tim guides you through the mysterious world of phrasal verbs and even travels back in time to explain what's formal and what's not.

Vidiyoo daawwadhuuti shaakala kana xumuri

The problem

Phrasal verbs are a mystery to some students. There are lots of things people think about them that are not always true. One of them is that phrasal verbs are informal, slang or lazy English. 

Are phrasal verbs informal?

Just like any other verb, a phrasal verb can be formal or informal. Most phrasal verbs are simply neutral. 

Informal 

Tim criticises his lazy twin brother. It's an informal situation and the conversation is between people who know each other well. So, it's fine to use informal language:

Stop mucking about. If you didn't mess around so much you'd get a decent job.

Formal 

You will also hear phrasal verbs being used in formal situations. This is what Tim heard in this radio news bulletin:

Scientists have carried out experiments which could lead to a cure for all known human diseases.

It's thought the discovery could bring about a huge change in the future of humankind.

Neutral

But most phrasal verbs are neither informal nor formal; they are just the verbs we use. Look at this description of Tim's morning routine: 

I get up at 7am, set off for work at 8 and am ready to log on by 9.

It would be over formal and in fact sound ridiculous for Tim not to use phrasal verbs to describe his morning routine:

I arise at 7am, commence my journey to work at 8 and am ready to begin the procedure of starting my computer by 9.

As Tim says... that's just weird!

Take Note

A good dictionary will always tell you if a phrasal verb is formal or informal. 

To do

Can you decide whether a phrasal verb is formal, informal or neutral?

End of session

There we go – that's all for this session. How many phrasal verbs can you remember? A dictionary can help you check if they are neutral, formal or informal.

Many thanks to the staff and students of International House, London for their help with this video.

Next

In Session 5 it's time to visit The White Elephant restaurant. Gordon changes his appearance to try and look fashionable, but his work colleagues have their own opinions on how he looks. Watch and learn some fashion-related phrases.