adverbial particle

English edit

adverbial particle (plural adverbial particles)

(linguistics) The adverbial component of a phrasal verb; a word, typically a short one, which functions as an adverb accompanying and qualifying the verb component of a phrasal verb.
In the phrasal verbs 'set up', 'throw away', 'shut down', 'carry out' and 'take over', the words 'up', 'away', 'down', 'out' and 'over' are the adverbial particles.

The sentence 'He turns on everyone he meets' has very different meanings depending on whether the word 'on' is parsed as a preposition (i.e. turn on as "to attack or criticise suddenly") or as an adverbial particle (i.e. turn on as "arouse").

Not to be confused with adverbial participle.