sign up
No objectThis verb takes no object at all.
How to say it
Stress the particle, not the verb: sign UP. Saying “SIGN up” is the clearest learner tell — the verb stays light and the particle carries the beat.
Link across the gap. The final /n/ of “sign” moves onto the particle and starts its syllable: “sign up” is said “sig-nup”. Pausing between the words is what makes phrasal verbs sound recited rather than spoken.
What it means
To register for a course, service or event.
- “I signed up for a beginners' pottery class.”
- “Over two thousand people signed up in the first week.”
Similar: enrol, register