Phrasal verbs are a way of communication.
They’re made of a root verb (such as go, put or set) and an adverb or preposition (such as away, on or out).
This blog explains the meanings of five common phrasal verbs containing the verb send.
Send is often used with adverbs and prepositions when it means ‘to arrange for something to be delivered to someone’.
For example: He sent a letter.
Send away
- To order someone to leave a place.
e.g. We asked to go in but they sent us away.
Send a way for
- To write to a person or organisation asking that they send something to you.
e.g. I’ve sent away for details of the holiday.
Send back
- To return something that is not satisfactory (return).
e.g. I hated it so I sent it back. / You can always send it back.
Send for
There are two meanings to the phrasal verb ‘send for’:
- To ask for someone to come to you.
e.g. I think we should send for a doctor.
- To arrange for something to come to you or be delivered to you.
e.g. I sent for some food. / In the end we had to send for an ambulance.
Send in
There are two meanings to the phrasal verb ‘send in’:
- To arrange for people or equipment to go to a place.
e.g. The army were sent in to fight the rebels. / Normally, we send in the experts.
- To send a letter or document to an organisation.
e.g. You can send in your invoices now.