Everyday Grammar: Introducing Phrasal Verbs
2024-10-11
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1Welcome back to Everyday Grammar from VOA Learning English.
2Today we look at a very common verb form in English - phrasal verbs.
3There are over 5,000 verbs that fall in this category.
4Do you know how to use them?
5In this episode, we will introduce this type of verb and help you understand how and why English speakers use them.
6In future episodes, we will give more information about the different kinds of phrasal verbs.
7Our story begins back when other languages - French and Old Norse - began to influence Middle English.
8That period started with the invasion of the British Isles in 1066 by William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy.
9There were small particles, or prefixes, placed before verbs in Middle English to change their meaning.
10One that we still use is for as in forlorn.
11The word lorn in Old English meant lost.
12Adding the prefix for created forlorn, meaning to be lonely or sad.
13As time went by, these prefixes started to disappear.
14Some reappeared as adverbs, separate words that came after the verb.
15William Shakespeare, who wrote many plays between 1589 and 1613, is a well-known writer of the time.
16His works, written in Early Middle English, include over 5,744 phrasal verbs.
17In Modern English, we use phrasal verbs more often in informal language.
18The reason for that practice goes back to the time when French influenced English.
19English speakers thought that French words, or words of Latin origin, were polite or cultured.
20When you want to speak more formally, you can use a single word of Latin or French origin instead of most phrasal verbs.
21For example, the phrasal verb look over can be replaced by review.
22As English learners know well, daily conversation in English is almost never formal.
23So feel free to use phrasal verbs when you speak English in everyday settings.
24Another general fact about phrasal verbs is that British English uses different ones from American English.
25At one time, British English speakers used phrasal verbs much less often than American English speakers.
26Now, the Oxford English Dictionary lists many phrasal verbs in common use in British English.
27Let's start with the basic structure of phrasal verbs.
28A phrasal verb is a phrase with two or more words: a verb and a preposition or adverb or both.
29An example is in this sentence:
30I looked up my cousin's phone number.
31The verb is look, and up is the adverb.
32The phrasal verb look up means "to research" or "search for."
33Some phrasal verbs allow an object to separate the phrase.
34I didn't know the number so I had to look it up.
35Here, the pronoun it stands for the object, number.
36Other phrasal verbs have to stay together.
37You can say you care for someone with the phrasal verb look after as in:
38I looked after Andy's dog while he was on vacation.
39But you cannot say, "I looked his dog after while he was on vacation."
40The first two kinds of phrasal verbs we looked at have two words.
41The next kind has three words.
42For example,
43I put up with the noise of my neighbor's party because I knew it was his birthday.
44Here, the phrasal verb put up with means tolerate.
45The verb put is followed by the particle up and the prepositional phrase with + object (the noise).
46These phrasal verbs must have direct objects.
47We cannot say, "I put up because I knew it was his birthday."
48Let's look at some examples.
49Carrie asked me to help out with the cooking.
50Here, we can substitute a single verb, assist, for the phrasal verb help out.
51However, we need to keep the preposition with when we paraphrase the sentence, as in:
52Carrie asked me to assist with the cooking.
53Another three-part phrasal verb is look up to. It means admire. We can say,
54She looks up to her sister.
55Here, sister is the direct object. We cannot move sister to any other place in the sentence, as in "She looks her sister up to."
56Learners may be confused because there are combinations of verbs and prepositions that look like phrasal verbs.
57How do you tell the difference?
58A regular verb + preposition combination has two meanings.
59Take the sentence,
60I looked up at the sky.
61Here look means view and up means in a higher direction.
62On the other hand, a phrasal verb has a single meaning. We saw look up earlier, meaning "research."
63Another test is whether you can move the object.
64You cannot say, "I looked the sky up," with the meaning "I gazed upwards at the sky."
65So if you want to test whether a combination of words is a phrasal verb, ask these questions:
66Can I substitute a single word for a two-word phrase?
67The answer should be "yes."
68Can I remove the direct object in a three-word phrase?
69The answer should be "no."
70In the next Everyday Grammar, we will take a closer look at phrasal verbs that can separate from the adverb.
71I'm Jill Robbins.
1Welcome back to Everyday Grammar from VOA Learning English. 2Today we look at a very common verb form in English - phrasal verbs. There are over 5,000 verbs that fall in this category. Do you know how to use them? In this episode, we will introduce this type of verb and help you understand how and why English speakers use them. In future episodes, we will give more information about the different kinds of phrasal verbs. 3Phrasal verbs in history 4Our story begins back when other languages - French and Old Norse - began to influence Middle English. That period started with the invasion of the British Isles in 1066 by William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy. 5There were small particles, or prefixes, placed before verbs in Middle English to change their meaning. 6One that we still use is for as in forlorn. The word lorn in Old English meant lost. Adding the prefix for created forlorn, meaning to be lonely or sad. As time went by, these prefixes started to disappear. Some reappeared as adverbs, separate words that came after the verb. 7William Shakespeare, who wrote many plays between 1589 and 1613, is a well-known writer of the time. His works, written in Early Middle English, include over 5,744 phrasal verbs. 8Formal language and phrasal verbs 9In Modern English, we use phrasal verbs more often in informal language. The reason for that practice goes back to the time when French influenced English. English speakers thought that French words, or words of Latin origin, were polite or cultured. When you want to speak more formally, you can use a single word of Latin or French origin instead of most phrasal verbs. For example, the phrasal verb look over can be replaced by review. 10As English learners know well, daily conversation in English is almost never formal. So feel free to use phrasal verbs when you speak English in everyday settings. 11Another general fact about phrasal verbs is that British English uses different ones from American English. At one time, British English speakers used phrasal verbs much less often than American English speakers. Now, the Oxford English Dictionary lists many phrasal verbs in common use in British English. 12The structure of phrasal verbs 13Let's start with the basic structure of phrasal verbs. A phrasal verb is a phrase with two or more words: a verb and a preposition or adverb or both. An example is in this sentence: 14I looked up my cousin's phone number. 15The verb is look, and up is the adverb. The phrasal verb look up means "to research" or "search for." 16Some phrasal verbs allow an object to separate the phrase. 17I didn't know the number so I had to look it up. 18Here, the pronoun it stands for the object, number. 19Other phrasal verbs have to stay together. You can say you care for someone with the phrasal verb look after as in: 20I looked after Andy's dog while he was on vacation. 21But you cannot say, "I looked his dog after while he was on vacation." 22The first two kinds of phrasal verbs we looked at have two words. The next kind has three words. For example, 23I put up with the noise of my neighbor's party because I knew it was his birthday. 24Here, the phrasal verb put up with means tolerate. The verb put is followed by the particle up and the prepositional phrase with + object (the noise). 25These phrasal verbs must have direct objects. We cannot say, "I put up because I knew it was his birthday." 26Let's look at some examples. 27Carrie asked me to help out with the cooking. 28Here, we can substitute a single verb, assist, for the phrasal verb help out. 29However, we need to keep the preposition with when we paraphrase the sentence, as in: 30Carrie asked me to assist with the cooking. 31Another three-part phrasal verb is look up to. It means admire. We can say, 32She looks up to her sister. 33Here, sister is the direct object. We cannot move sister to any other place in the sentence, as in "She looks her sister up to." 34How to identify a phrasal verb 35Learners may be confused because there are combinations of verbs and prepositions that look like phrasal verbs. How do you tell the difference? 36A regular verb + preposition combination has two meanings. Take the sentence, 37I looked up at the sky. 38Here look means view and up means in a higher direction. On the other hand, a phrasal verb has a single meaning. We saw look up earlier, meaning "research." 39Another test is whether you can move the object. You cannot say, "I looked the sky up," with the meaning "I gazed upwards at the sky." 40So if you want to test whether a combination of words is a phrasal verb, ask these questions: 41Can I substitute a single word for a two-word phrase? 42The answer should be "yes." 43Can I remove the direct object in a three-word phrase? 44The answer should be "no." 45In the next Everyday Grammar, we will take a closer look at phrasal verbs that can separate from the adverb. 46I'm Jill Robbins. 47Dr. Jill Robbins wrote this lesson for Learning English. 48________________________________________________ 49Words in This Story 50prefix - grammar. a letter or group of letters that is added at the beginning of a word to change its meaning 51adverb - grammar. a word that describes a verb, an adjective, another adverb, or a sentence and that is often used to show time, manner, place, or degree 52informal - adj. (of language) relaxed in tone; not suited for serious or official speech and writing 53preposition - grammar. a word or group of words that is used with a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase to show direction, location, or time, or to introduce an object 54object - grammar. a noun, noun phrase, or pronoun that receives the action of a verb or completes the meaning of a preposition 55tolerate - v. to allow (something that is bad, unpleasant, etc.) to exist, happen, or be done 56Now it's your turn. Write a sentence that uses a phrasal verb and we will give you feedback in the Comments.