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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
Grammar Girl here. Listen up, everyone! Today’s topic is phrasal verbs, as in to listen up.
And now, guest-writer Bonnie Trenga writes, a listener, Paulino from Minneapolis, would like to know what phrasal verbs are and why they are called that.
Phrasal verbs always seemed to stump1 my students when I taught English as a second language in Tokyo, Japan. Even those of you who are native speakers might not know what a phrasal verb is, but you probably use one at least every hour. Let’s go over them, then (hint, hint!).
What Is a Phrasal Verb?
A phrasal verb is a verb that comprises more than one word, often a verb and a preposition, such as to back off or to hold up (1). Some other common ones are to give up, to break down, and to run out of. I imagine phrasal verbs are called that because the two (or sometimes three) components2 make up a phrase, and this set of words acts as a single verb unit. Phrasal verbs are often considered idioms or components of idioms (2). As with idioms like to kick the bucket, which is an impolite way of saying to die, the meaning of phrasal verbs doesn’t always make sense from the words used in the phrase.
This is definitely a challenge for students of English. For example, one meaning of the phrasal verb to hold up is to assault someone with a weapon in order to steal money or valuables. It has nothing to do with the verb to hold. Some phrasal verbs have multiple meanings, so that makes it even more difficult for language students. Another meaning of to hold up is to manage, as in “How are you holding up?” The sad news for English learners is that you have to just memorize phrasal verbs and their meanings, in the same way that French or Spanish learners have to memorize verb conjugations. And I’m sorry to say that there are thousands of phrasal verbs.
Splitting Phrasal Verbs
Not only do you have to memorize the meanings of phrasal verbs, but you also have to remember if you’re allowed to split the verb from the preposition. For example, if you use the phrasal verb to hold up, you could say, “The crook3 held up the bank” or you could say, “The crook held the bank up.”
But you can’t split up other phrasal verbs. For example, you have to say, “We ran out of napkins.” You couldn’t say, “We ran napkins out of.”
One listener wonders about all the cooks on TV, who use "up" after "fry." Is "fry up" a proper phrase? That's a good question. To fry and to fry up mean about the same thing, just as to eat means about the same thing as to eat up. In these cases, if you add an up, it makes your sentence more colloquial5, more informal. I suppose the cooks on TV are being conversational6 and friendly when they advise you “to fry up a few jalapeños.” If they were writing a formal cookbook, though, I imagine they'd stick with to fry: “Take three jalapeños and fry them lightly.”
You, too, should use your judgment7. For example, if you were writing a dissertation8 on Henry VIII, you might not want to write, “The king hung out with all the nobles.” It would probably be better to write, “The king associated with all the nobles.” If there’s a doubt, use more formal language.
Phrasal Verbs at the End of a Sentence
Some of you might be wondering what to do with a phrasal verb when it ends a sentence. Perhaps you were taught that it’s wrong to end a sentence with a preposition. That isn't always true, but even if it were, phrasal verbs are a unit, so if you end a sentence with a phrasal verb, you’re not ending it with a preposition; you’re ending it with a phrasal verb. For example, “Let’s kiss and make up” ends with the phrasal verb to make up, as in to reconcile. The sentence would not make sense if you deleted the up just to make a nosy9 grammarian happy: “Let’s kiss and make.” That clearly doesn't work.
When Phrasal Verbs Become Nouns and Adjectives
Although phrasal verbs are made of two or three separate words when you use them as verbs, you squish them together as a closed compound or use a hyphen when you turn them into nouns or adjectives. For example, you can “break down” (two words) or have a “breakdown” (one word). Or you can “tune up” your car (two words) or get your car a “tune-up” (hyphenated, tune-hyphen-up). Unfortunately, there are no firm rules and you'll have to check a dictionary to see whether you make a closed compound or hyphenate.
For all you non-native speakers who are listening, I know that phrasal verbs are frustrating10. Lucia comments: “I hate phrasal verbs, they are ... too hard to remember ... and then you can misuse11 them and put yourself into really embarrassing situations. Could you give me some advice ... on these English mutant monsters?” Lucia, I’m sorry you see these as monsters. When I was an ESL teacher, I remember trying to explain the meaning of to clean, to clean up, to clean off, and to clean up after. There’s a subtle difference in the meaning of each. Eventually I decided12 to write a guide to 120 of the most common phrasal verbs. Since I saw myself as a humorous, off-the-wall teacher, I called it Off-the-Wall Skits13 with Phrasal Verbs. If you are interested in exploring this text for a class or for individual study, we’ll put the link on the website.
It’s a real achievement when English learners can master common phrasal verbs and sound like a native. Lucia was right, though; you can put your foot in your mouth if you make a small mistake with a phrasal verb, so be careful. As for you native speakers listening, just remember that there are no hyphens in phrasal verbs when you use them as verbs. Check your dictionary when you use adjectives or nouns that are derived14 from them.
Thanks to Bonnie Trenga, author of The Curious Case of the Misplaced Modifier, for guest-writing this episode. She blogs at ...
Visit my site, QuickAndDirtyTips.com, to sign up for a free chapter of my book, Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing, and while you're there, you'll also find a link to Upcoming.org, where you can find out all about my book tour.
Also, many of you have said you wish the show would come out more often. Well, I'm happy to tell you that starting in next week, Grammar Girl will come out twice-a-week. If you're subscribed16, you'll get the next show Monday night. And if you're not subscribed, this is a good time to do it so you'll never miss another show.
That's all. Thanks for listening.
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1
stump
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| n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走 | |
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components
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| （机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分 | |
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3
crook
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| v.使弯曲；n.小偷，骗子，贼；弯曲(处) | |
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versus
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| prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下 | |
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colloquial
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| adj.口语的，会话的 | |
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conversational
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| adj.对话的，会话的 | |
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7
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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dissertation
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| n.（博士学位）论文，学术演讲，专题论文 | |
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nosy
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| adj.鼻子大的，好管闲事的，爱追问的；n.大鼻者 | |
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10
frustrating
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| adj.产生挫折的，使人沮丧的，令人泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的现在分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧 | |
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11
misuse
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| n.误用，滥用；vt.误用，滥用 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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skits
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| n.讽刺文( skit的名词复数 )；小喜剧；若干；一群 | |
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14
derived
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| vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取 | |
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administrative
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| adj.行政的，管理的 | |
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subscribed
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| v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意 | |
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