Syntactic features
Phrasal verbs are combinations of a lexical verb and an adverbial particle (p) (get up, switch on/off, take back, sit down). They may be intransitive, with no object, as in 1 or transitive (with a direct object) as in 2 and 3:
1 What time do you usually get up in the morning?
2a She switched off the light. 2b She switched the light off.
3 She switched it off.
With a noun as Object, the particle in most cases may either precede or follow the object as in 2. But if the Object is a pronoun, the particle is placed after it, as in 3.
The motivation for this choice has to do with the distribution of information. We focus on the new information by placing it last. So in 2a the new information is the light; while in 2b and 3 it is the switching off. Pronouns do not usually represent new information and are placed before the particle.
This choice of emphasizing either the noun or the particle is not possible with a synonymous one-word verb. Compare:
They cancelled the wedding. (focus on wedding)
They called off the wedding. (focus on wedding)
They called the wedding off. (focus on off)
Some verb + particle combinations can be used both transitively and intransitively, e.g. blow up (= explode), break down (= reduce to pieces). In some cases, the transitive and intransitive clauses form an ergative pair with a causative meaning in the transitive:
Terrorists have blown up the power station. (transitive)
The power station has blown up. (intransitive)
while in others the meaning is related by metaphorical extension:
They broke down the door to rescue the child. (transitive)
Her health broke down under the strain. (intransitive)
The car has broken down. (= stop working) (intransitive)
