Learning Highlights:
- A ‘phrasal verb’ is a verb that has a base verb and one or two particles.
- The trick to look out for when it comes to separable transitive phrasal verbs is when you use a pronoun, you must put it between the verb and particle.
- This lesson is designed for intermediate (or medium) level learners.
Transcript:
(Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript.)
Hi everyone… and welcome to the BAD ENGLISH MADE BETTER podcast.
We’re part of SBS Learn English…, and we’re here to deliver some tips and tricks for people learning the language.
This show is designed for intermediate (or medium) level learners. But, if you are a beginner, please stay and listen to challenge yourself.
I’m Ai-Lin, your host and teacher. I’ve been helping people with their English for nearly thirty years in Australia and overseas… and in each episode, I’m here to bring you a different lesson to help us make BAD ENGLISH BETTER.
This episode is all about when verbs grow into phrases and things get interesting.
EPISODE 6: PHRASAL VERBS
So, let’s begin…
You might remember back in Episode Two, we learned all about verbs, and how to use them to express the past, present and future.
But did you know that verbs aren’t just single words? Some verbs come in sets of two or three words. They call these phrasal verbs.
Let’s take a closer look…
A phrasal verb is a verb that has a base verb and one or two particles.
Common particles used in phrasal verbs are words like…
- at
- away
- down
- in
- off
- on
- over
- out
- up
In a phrasal verb, the particle is part of the verb… and the phrasal verb has a different meaning to its base verb.
Take the verb ‘look’. Let’s put it in a sentence…
She looked up and saw a bird.
In this case, 'look' is followed by the preposition 'up'. The meaning of the base verb ‘look’ remains the same, and the preposition ‘up’ tells us which direction she turned her eyes towards. Each word, ‘look’ and ‘up’ retains its literal meaning.
But listen to this sentence…
I didn’t know that word, so I looked it up in the dictionary
Here, look is the base verb and up a particle. And together, they form a phrasal verb.
It has a different meaning to its base verb. That is, ‘to look up’ and ‘to look’ have different meanings. Look up means ‘to search for’.
How about this one…
She looks up to her sister.
Here, look is the base verb followed by two particles up and to. Do you know what ‘look up to’ means? It means ‘to respect.’
So, you can’t always guess the meaning of the phrasal verb from the individual meanings of the separate words.
Why don’t you have a go?
I’ll say two sentences, and you choose which one has the phrasal verb.
He runs up a hill every morning as part of his training
She runs up a huge bill every time she goes shopping
Yes! The first one is straightforward. But Sentence 2 has the phrasal verb “runs up,” meaning to ‘allow something to accumulate.’
How about these sentences?
They put on a smile even though they lost
He put his cup on the coffee table
I bet you got this. And, if not, no stress.
It’s Sentence 1 that has the phrasal verb… “put on”, meaning to ‘behave in a way that is not natural’.
So, now you’ve got the hang of exactly what they are and how to spot them, let’s look at some ways you can put these phrasal verbs into practice.
The thing to remember is phrasal verbs are still verbs and work the same way all verbs do. Also, as we know from back in Episode 3, every sentence has a verb.
The trick to look out for when it comes to separable transitive phrasal verbs is when you use a pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, us, them), you must put it between the verb and particle.
Listen to the same example:
Turn off the TV
Turn the TV off
Now, replace the TV with the pronoun ‘it’, and you get…
Turn off it
Turn it off
Something’s not right, is it?
The rule once again: When you use a pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, us, them), you must put it between the verb and particle.
So, “Turn off it” is wrong. Sounds strange. “Turn it off” is right.
So, I’m hoping, after all that, you’re learning to love the phrasal verbs because there is a lot to love. Literally. Like more than 5,000.
Nooooooo!
That’s it. Turning off.
English, it’s badder than we thought.
Did I do something wrong?
…Don’t worry, they’ll be back. Thanks for listening to BAD ENGLISH MADE BETTER.
I’m your host and teacher Ai-Lin Bhugun. Catch you next time.
