Phrasal Verbs

Do you back up or back away or back down? Break away / Break down /
Break up? Call back / call off/ call on? Do you find it difficult to
differentiate among them? Then, welcome to Phrasal Verbs ! To start
with, let's find out the difference between ordinary usage and phrasal
verbs,


(1) I got on the No. 8 bus at Banerjee Road. vs I boarded the No. 8
bus at Banerjee Road.


(2) I really need to get on with my paper! vs I really need to continue writing!


(3) We need to get on together to succeed. vs We need to understand
each other to succeed.


(4) We?ll have to be getting on soon, or we?ll be late. vs We should
leave soon, or we?ll be late.


As you can see the same meaning is conveyed by the pair of sentences
but while one of them uses a single word, the other uses a phrasal
verb.


Definition - A Phrasal Verb is a combination of words in any of the
following forms :-


VERB + PREPOSITION


VERB + ADVERB


VERB + ADVERB + PREPOSITION


Very often the phrasal verb (PV) has a meaning which is quite
different from the original verb. This makes it slightly difficult for
the new learner because, even if he breaks down the phrasal verb into
different words and looks up its meaning in the dictionary, he will
not be able to understand the meaning of the phrasal verb itself. For
example 'look after' as a PV means 'take care of.' However
independently look would mean 'see' and 'after' means 'next in order'!
There are some resources on the web which help with understanding the
meaning of phrasal verbs. Say - you come across the phrasal verb 'keep
up' and want to know the usages of the phrasal verb.


Go to - http://www.phrasalverbdemon.com/corpus.htm and type in the
phrasal verb 'keep up' in the Verb Search Box at the top


This will throw up the following results:



You're walking too fast. I can't keep up with you.

Life moves on. I just can't keep up with it. In her first few weeks in
her new job, she took some work home in order to keep up.

The underwater pictures are unbelievable. Keep up the good work.

The international community needs to keep up the pressure and maintain
a visible presence in Cambodia during the critical transition period.


You're not being honest to yourself so you probably won't even keep up
the pretense for very long.


Some Rules for Phrasal Verbs


1) Verb + preposition / adverb


Example:

I ran into my teacher at the movies last night. So run + into = meet


2. Some phrasal verbs are intransitive. An intransitive verb cannot be
followed by an object.


Example:

She suddenly showed up. 'show up' cannot take an object


3. Some phrasal verbs are transitive. A transitive verb can be
followed by an object.


Example:

We made up the story. So 'story' is the object of 'make up.'


4. Some transitive phrasal verbs are separable. The object is placed
between the verb and the preposition.


Example:


I talked my mother into letting me borrow the car. Here mother is the
object for the verb


5. Some transitive phrasal verbs are inseparable. The object is placed
after the preposition.


Example:

I ran into an old friend yesterday.


Some Phrasal Verbs are discussed below to illustrate how different
meanings can be obtained from the same word


BREAK


break down = fail to function

break in = interrupt a discussion; burgle

break off = discontinue (relationship etc.)

break out = escape from prison

break up = end a relationship


CALL


call back = return a phone call

call for = require

call off = cancel

call out = read names aloud

call on = request somebody to do something

call up = reach by phone


FALL


fall apart = fall into pieces

fall behind = fail to keep up pace

fall for = be in love with; deceived by

fall off = decrease

fall out with = quarrel with

fall through = fail, miscarry


What is the relevance of Phrasal Verbs in the CAT?


Phrasal Verbs are used quite frequently in everyday spoken English.
That itself makes them very important! Apart from this, PV are tested
in the CAT in the following form. A sample word is taken and and four
different sentences are constructed using the sample word. One has to
identify which of the sentences has incorrect usage.


Example:


Sample Word : Hand


1. I have my hand full I cannot do it today.


2. The minister visited the jail to see the breach at first hand


3. The situation is getting out of hand here.


4. When the roof of my house was blown away, he was willing to lend me a hand.


The most frequently used phrasal verbs are formed with the following
words: break, bring, call, carry, come, do, fall, get, go, keep, look,
make, put, run, set, take, turn.


Make sure that you research the above phrasal verbs from the sources
given below and thoroughly understand the different ways in which
these phrasal verbs can be used.


Sources for Practice:

">http://www.stuff.co.uk/phrasal.htm

http://www.learn-english-today.com/phrasal-verbs/phrasal-verb-list.htm


http://www.phrasalverbdemon.com/quizzesintro.htm