carry over
SeparableThe object can go before or after the particle — but a pronoun MUST go in the middle: “clean it up”, never “clean up it”.
How to say it
Stress the particle, not the verb: carry OVER. Saying “CARRY over” is the clearest learner tell — the verb stays light and the particle carries the beat.
A glide appears. Two vowels meet, so American English slips a /j/ between them: “carry over” → “carry-yover”. You do not insert it deliberately — it falls out of not stopping between the words.
Verb vs noun
As a noun the stress flips to the front: the verb is carry OVER, the noun is CARRYOVER. Same two words, different beat — “to carry OVER” is the action, “a carryover” is the thing. Getting this backwards makes the sentence land oddly even when every sound is right.
What it means
To transfer something to a later period.
- “Unused vacation days carry over into the next year.”
- “We'll carry the remaining budget over to Q3.”
Similar: transfer, roll over