It won’t take me a moment to clear away.
I’ll help you clear away the dishes.
3.96 Here is a list of phrasal verbs that have only one meaning but that can be used with or without an object:
answer back
breathe in
breathe out
call back
clear away
clear up
cover up
drink up
help out
open up
take over
tidy away
wash up
ergative phrasal verbs
3.97 Just as with ordinary verbs, some phrasal verbs are ergative verbs; that is, you can use the object of the transitive verb as the subject of the intransitive verb.
The guerrillas blew up the restaurant.
The gasworks blew up.
I won’t wake him up just yet.
He woke up in the middle of the night.
See paragraphs 3.59 to 3.67 for information about ergative verbs.
3.98 Here is a list of ergative phrasal verbs:
back up
block up
blow up
book in
break off
break up
buck up
build up
burn up
check in
check out
cheer up
close down
dry up
get off
heat up
hurry up
line up
move on
open up
peel off
pull through
rub off
shut up
sign up
slow down
spread out
start off
thaw out
wake up
warm up
wear down
wear out
3.99 In the case of some ergative phrasal verbs, the second word can be a preposition if the other thing involved needs to be mentioned, or can be an adverb if the other thing involved is clear from the context.
…leaves that had been blown off the trees.
My hat blew off.
3.100 Here is a list of ergative phrasal verbs whose second word can be a preposition or an adverb:
blow off
chip off
get down
get through
get up
move down
move up
peel off
poke through
stick in
stick on
position of the object
3.101 When you are using a phrasal verb with an object that is a short noun phrase, you usually have a choice as to where you put the object. It can be placed either after the second word of the phrasal verb or after the first word and before the second word.
He filled up his car with petrol.
She filled my glass up.
He handed over the box.
Mrs Kaul handed the flowers over to Judy.
3.102 However, when the object consists of a long noun phrase, it is more likely to come after the second word of the phrasal verb, so that the two parts of the phrasal verb are not separated too widely. In this way, attention is focused on the information contained in the noun phrase, rather than on the second word of the phrasal verb.
Police have been told to turn back all refugees who try to cross the border.
when the object is a pronoun
3.103 When the object is a pronoun such as me, her, or it, it usually comes before the second word of the phrasal verb. This is because it is not new information, and so it is not put in a position of prominence at the end of the clause.
I waited until he had filled it up.
He tied her up and bundled her into the car.
when the object is an abstract noun
3.104 If the object of a phrasal verb is an abstract noun such as hope, confidence, or support, it usually comes after the second word of the phrasal verb. So, although you can say He built his business up, you usually say We are trying to build up trust with the residents. Similarly, although you can say He put my parents up for the night, you normally say The peasants are putting up a lot of resistance.
The newspapers whipped up sympathy for them.
They attempted to drum up support from the students.
He didn’t hold out much hope for them.
cases where the object is always placed after the first word of the verb
3.105 With a small number of phrasal verbs, the object is always placed between the first and the second words of the verb. For example, you can say I can’t tell your brothers apart but not I can’t tell apart your brothers.
Captain Dean was still ordering everybody about.
I answered my father back and took my chances.
Note that most of these verbs take a human object.
Here is a list of phrasal verbs that always belong in this group when they are used with an object:
answer back
ask in
bash about
bind over
book in
bring round
bring to
brush off
call back
carry back
catch out
churn up
count in
drag down
dress down
drop round
feel out
get away
hear out
help along
invite in
invite out
invite over
jolly along
keep under
knock about
mess about
move about
muck about
order about
play along
play through
pull about
pull to
push about
push around
push to
run through
see through
send ahead
send away
send up
shut up
sit down
slap around
stand up
stare out
string along
talk round
tear apart
tell apart
tip off
truss up
turf out
Some phrasal verbs have more than one transitive sense, but belong in this group when they are used with one particular meaning. For example, take back belongs in this group when it means remind someone of something but not when it means regain something.
The smell of chalk took us all back to our schooldays.
…his ambition of taking back disputed territory.
Here is a list of phrasal verbs that belong in this group when used with a particular meaning:
bowl over
bring down
bring out
buoy up
cut off
do over
draw out
get back
get out
give up
have on
hurry up
keep up
kick around
knock out
knock up
nail down
pass on
pin down
pull apart
push around
put down
put out
see out
set up
shake up
show around
show up
start off
straighten out
take back
take in
take off
throw about
toss about
trip up
turn on
ward off
wind up
objects with prepositions
3.106 Remember that when a phrasal verb consists of an intransitive verb followed by a preposition, the noun phrase always comes after the preposition, even when it is a pronoun.