What is Phrasal Verb ?
Phrasal Verbs are verbs that consist of two or sometimes three words. The first word is a verb and it is followed by an adverb (Bring down) or a preposition (Carry on) or both(Do away with) , and they always give a new meaning other than the original meaning of the verb. Phrasal Verbs are also known as Group Verbs.
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How Phrasal Verbs are formed ?
A phrasal verb is a combination of –
A verb + an adverb (Bring down)
Or,
A verb + a preposition (Carry on)
Or,
A verb + an adverb + a preposition (Do away with)
Why do we use phrasal verbs ?
Phrasal verbs are very important. If anyone uses phrasal verbs in speaking, it sounds better. If anyone uses phrasal verbs in writing, it increases the standard of writing.
For example :
“Make out” is a Phrasal verb. It means “Understand”.
If we use “Make out” in a sentence instead of “Understand”, it will definitely increase the standard of your Sentence.
Sentences :
1. I can’t understand the meaning of this passage.
2. I can’t make out the meaning of this passage.
In the second sentence given above, we used “Make out” instead of “Understand”, it definitely increased the standard of the Sentence.
So, by using Phrasal verbs we can increase the standard of a sentence.
Why are phrasal verbs confusing?
Practice makes perfect. Memorizing Phrasal Verbs needs a lot of practice. Phrasal verbs are very confusing. A learner faces a lot of confusion while memorizing Phrasal Verbs. Let’s take some examples for better understanding.
5 Phrasal Verbs with “Bring” and their meanings
1. Bring out – Publish
2. Bring up – Rear
3. Bring down – Reduce / Lower
4. Bring about – Cause
5. Bring forth – Produce
In the examples given above, the main reason behind the confusion is that all of the five phrasal verbs started with “Bring”. So all the phrasal verbs sound almost similar. If you don’t memorize properly, you can make mistake by using one phrasal verb instead of another. Though the phrasal verbs sound almost same, their meanings are different.
How to memorize Phrasal verbs ?
To memorize the meanings of phrasal verbs, you can use this technique.
Memorize Phrasal verb and its meaning together.
Phrasal verb + Meaning
For example,
Bring out Publish
Bring up Rear
If you read again and again Phrasal verb and its meaning together. Slowly it will set in your memory.
How many meanings do a phrasal verb have?
A phrasal verb may have multiple meanings.
How many Phrasal verbs are there in English ?
There is no exact number of Phrasal verbs in English. There are thousands of Phrasal verbs in English.
Where do we use phrasal verbs ?
We can use Phrasal verbs for various purposes such as Spoken English, Written English, English Conversation, etc.
How long have phrasal verbs been used in the English language?
Phrasal verbs have been used in the English Language for many centuries.