A phrasal verb is a verb and preposition which together mean something different from the individual parts.
For example:
The little boy was racing along the corridor when he ran into his teacher.
In this example the boy was running and he literally ran into his teacher and knocked him over. Here the phrase ran into is not a phrasal verb.
However, look at this example:
I was walking down the street when I ran into my old principle.
In this case I was not running at all, I was strolling casually! Here we have ran + into which work together to mean meet by accident. This is a phrasal verb.
About Phrasal Verbs
In modern English there are many words which have a Latin origin. A lot of these are verbs.
For many of these Latin based verbs there are also English phrasal verbs which mean the same thing. For example:
Original Latin – English English – Phrasal Verb
manu tenere – maintain – keep up
tolerare – tolerate – put up with
succedere – succeed – come off
As you can see English uses a modern version of the Latin alongside an equivalent phrasal verb. Phrasal verbs tend to be used in everyday speech and informal writing whilst Latin based verbs are more scientific and formal.
Forming Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs consist of a verb followed by a preposition or adverb:
{verb} + {preposition/adverb}
run + into
look + after
pull + off
Meaning in Phrasal Verbs
The meaning of a phrasal verb is very different from the meaning of the two words taken together:
go = leave
off = from
but
go off = become bad, moldy
The same phrasal verb can also have several very different meanings:
take off = remove
take off = imitate
take off = leave the ground
Teaching Phrasal Verbs
Because the meaning of a phrasal verb can’t be guessed by looking at the individual parts, it’s best to teach phrasal verbs as a set phrase in your TEFL class. When you are going through a text with the class and a phrasal verb comes up, by all means check that the class understands it and if not then teach it.
But don’t give out lists of phrasal verbs and get your class to learn them. This is pretty pointless.
No. Simply put, teach them as they come up; teach them as a set phrase.
Objects with Phrasal Verbs
Some phrasal verbs can stand alone or be followed by a direct object:
{phrasal verb} + [direct object]
She took off her coat.
The plane took off.
When a phrasal verb takes a direct object, the two parts of the verb can usually be separated and the adverb or preposition can be put before or after the object:
She took off her coat.
She took her coat off.
But if the object is a pronoun, it must break the phrasal verb in two:
She took it off.
* She took off it.
3-Part Phrasal Verbs
Some phrasal verbs consist of 3 parts. These function just like 2-part phrasal verbs except that they can never be split.
{verb} + {adverb} + {preposition}
She did away with her husband.
You must not go back on your promise.
See Also
Common Phrasal Verbs – a list of common phrasal verbs.
Did you know that if you subscribe to our website, you will receive email notifications whenever content changes or new content is added.
1. Enter your e-mail address below and click the Sign Me Up button.
2. You will receive an email asking you to confirm your intention of subscribing to our site.
3. Click the link in the email to confirm. That’s all there is to it! Note: if you wish to unsubscribe from our site, click the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email you received.
Then indicate you no longer wish to receive our emails.
Thank You
IWeb TEFL Team