Particle guide
Phrasal verbs with under
The particle under starts from one core idea — below, submerged, or insufficient. Sink In groups its verbs by the recurring ways that idea plays out, so verbs that look unrelated line up into patterns.
24 phrasal verbs · 8 meaning groups
Pressure
A person or thing loses strength under pressure, weight, or demands.
Below The Surface
A person or thing moves or stays below a surface.
Usual verb + particle uses
The verb keeps its normal meaning. The particle adds its usual direction or relation.
duck under
Lower the head or body to pass beneath something
“She ducked under the low branch.”
“Leo ducked under the club rope while Maya waited in the queue.”
pull under
Drag something or someone beneath the surface
“The current pulled him under.”
“A wave pulled the swimmer under.”
submerge under
Be covered completely by water
“The fields were submerged under the floodwater.”
“The path was submerged under the river water.”
Business Failure
A business disappears because it can no longer continue.
Unconscious
Medicine makes a person unconscious for a procedure, or the person becomes unconscious.
Too Much Work
A large amount of work covers a person and feels hard to escape.
Hiding
Under the surface means hidden.
Not Enough
The amount is below the needed level.
Sink In — iOS & Android
Practice the under patterns in Sink In
The app turns each meaning group into short review cards: recognition, particle cloze, meaning-to-particle recall, and schema matching.
- Learn the pattern behind dozens of verbs at once — not one-off translations.
- Spaced repetition (SM-2) brings each meaning back right before you forget.
- Four practice modes train recall and discrimination, not just recognition.
