Information AboutPhrasal Verbs |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT PHRASAL VERB | |
| english grammar | |
| verb types | |
|
According to Tom McArthur: Alternative terms for phrasal verb are ‘compound verb’, ‘verb-adverb combination’, ‘verb-particle construction (VPC)’, AmE “two-part word/verb’ and ‘three-part word/verb’ (depending on the number of particles).McArthur, Tom: “The Oxford Companion to the English Language”, pp72-76, Oxford University Press, 1992 ISBN 0-19-2114183-X. ' Preposition ' and ' Adverb ' as used in a phrasal verb are also called ' Particle ' in that they do not alter their form through Inflection s, (are therefore Uninflected – do not accept Affix es, etc.). PHRASAL VERBS IN INFORMAL SPEECH Phrasal verbs are usually used informally in everyday speech as opposed to the more formal Latinate verbs, such as “to get together” rather than “to congregate”, “to put off” rather than “to postpone”, or “to get out” rather than “to exit”. LITERAL USAGE Many verbs in English can be combined with an adverb or a preposition, and readers or listeners will easily understand a phrasal verb used in a literal sense with a preposition:
Verb and adverb constructions can also easily be understood when used literally:
An adverb in a literal phrasal verb modifies the verb it is attached to, and a preposition links the subject to the verb. IDIOMATIC USAGE It is, however, the figurative or idiomatic application in everyday speech which makes phrasal verbs so important:
The literal meaning of “to get over”, in the sense of “to climb over something to get to the other side”, no longer applies to explain the subject's enduring an operation or the stress of an examination which they have to overcome. It is when the combined meaning of verb plus adverb, or verb plus preposition is totally different from each its component parts, that the semantic content of the phrasal verb cannot be predicted by its constituent parts and so becomes much more difficult for a student learning English to recognise. Another, but much more difficult, example is “to beat a path to someone’s door.” an idiomatic phrasal verb meaning “to go and see someone frequently and in large numbers, because the person in demand represents someone well-known, successful and/or famous, and it is important that those calling at the door are able to speak to the person".
TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE PHRASAL VERB Phrasal verbs also differ in their transitivity or intransitivity in the same way as normal verbs do. A transitive verb always has an object:
"Across" in this sentence is the preposition to "the bridge". An intransitive verb does not have an object:
"Up" here is the adverb, and does not have an object. SEPARABLE OR INSEPARABLE PHRASAL VERB A further way of considering phrasal verbs is whether they are separable or inseparable. In inseparable verbs, the object comes after the particle:
Separable verbs have several ways separating verb, particle and object. Usually, the object comes between verb and particle:
However, with some separable verbs, the object can come before or after the particle:
PHRASAL VERB COMBINATIONS OF ADVERB AND PREPOSITION
= verb (got) + adverb (up) + preposition (from) + object (the seat he was occupying).
= verb (is getting) + adverb (away) + preposition (to) + object (a flying start). PARTICLE ADVERBS AND MODIFYING ADVERBS AND WHERE THEY ARE POSITIONED When modifying adverbs are used alongside particle adverbs intransitively (as particle adverbs usually are), the adverbs can appear in any verb/particle/adverb positions:
The particle adverb here is "round" and the modifying adverb is "unhappily". ("Round" is a particle because it is Not Inflected — does not take affixes and alter its form. "Unhappily" is a modifying adverb because it modifies the verb "look"). With a transitive verb, the adverb goes either before the verb of after the object or particle, whichever is last:
(The particle adverb is "up" because it uninflected, and "cheerfully" is the modifying adverb because it modifies the verb "pick"). DIRECT AND INDIRECT OBJECTS Combinations of phrasal verbs with direct and indirect objects are common:
= verb (helped) + direct object (the boy) + preposition (to) + an extra portion of potatoes (indirect object)
= verb (put) + direct object (the accident) + adverb (down) + preposition (to) + indirect object (the driver’s loss of concentration) PHRASAL VERBS COMBINED WITH SPECIAL VERB FORMS AND CLAUSES Rosemary Courtney also includes special verb forms and clauses in phrasal verb constructions.Courtney, Rosemary: "Longman Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs", Longman Group Uk Limited, 1989 ISBN 0-582-55530-2 CSD, ISBN 0-582-05864-3 PPR ;Phrasal verbs combined with wh-clauses and that-clauses: Sentences which include verb + particle + object(s) + wh-clauses
= transitive verb + preposition(dictate to) + direct object (his class) + wh-clause (what is the right thing to do).
= transitive verb + preposition (called for) + pronoun (me) + wh-clause (when the time came).
= intransitive verb + adverb (watch out) + that-clause (that you don’t hit your head on the low beam). ;Phrasal verbs combined with verb-ing forms:
= transitive verb + pronoun (prevent me) + preposition (from) + verb-ing form (seeing) + pronoun (her). Some linguists differentiate between phrasal verbs and prepositional verbs, while others assume them to be part of one and the same construction, as both types are phrasal in nature. NOTES SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
FURTHER READING
|
|
|