Phrasal verbs I podcast Hello and welcome to this podcast brought to you by That's English!, the Spanish Ministry of Education's official distance learning English course. To find out more about That's English! go to www.thatsenglish.com or contact your local Official School of Languages. In today's podcast we are going to talk about phrasal verbs. It would probably be true to say that for many English language students, understanding and using phrasal verbs is one of the most challenging aspects of the language. With this podcast, we aim to help you. So what is a phrasal verb and why is it important to become familiar with them? As you probably already know, most phrasal verbs have two parts, one is the verb and the other is an adverb particle. For example, you have the verb break down. We could say, for instance: Today I've had to come to work by bus because my car broke down yesterday. As you can see, the meaning of break down is not equivalent to the meaning of the verb 'break' plus the meaning of the particle 'down.' Together they acquire a new meaning. Some phrasal verbs have three parts, consisting of a verb, an adverb particle and a preposition, such as look forward to. For example: I've been working really hard all year and I'm really looking forward to going on holiday. It is often, though not always, the case that phrasal verbs have alternative latinate equivalents, that is, verbs that come from Latin or French. So we could say, for example: I have enjoyed my English course so much, I'm going to go on studying next year or I'm going to continue studying next year. Continue, like "continuar" in Spanish, comes from the Latin continuare. Usually the verbs that come from Latin or French are used in more formal situations, while phrasal verbs are used in everyday, more colloquial English. So, for example, if I were responding to a letter of complaint, I might say: We will attempt to solve the problem as soon as possible. On the other hand, if I were writing an e-mail in response to a friend I'd say: I'll try to sort it out as soon as possible. Phrasal verbs are very common and you will find them in many different contexts so it is important for you to become familiar with them. They can be transitive verbs, that is to say, verbs that take an object, such as put off: They had to put off (or postpone) the football match because of the rain. Phrasal verbs can also be intransitive, meaning they do not take a direct object. For example: The noise of the engine died away as the car turned the corner. In the case of transitive, two-part phrasal verbs, in many cases, the verb and the adverb particle can be separated as the particle may come before or after the object. So, we could say, for example: I picked up the pen or I picked the pen up. However, if we replace the object with a personal pronoun, like him, her or it, the pronoun is always placed before the particle. So, going back to our previous example, we would say: I picked up the pen but I picked it up. Nevertheless, there are some transitive two-part verbs that cannot be separated. These verbs are called prepositional verbs and a good dictionary will help you to identify them. You will already be familiar with some of them such as: look for, look after or deal with. With these verbs the object, even if it is a pronoun, goes after the particle. So we would say, for example: He has found a new job in London and now he's looking for a new flat. I will look after the cat for you while you're away. This problem is going to get much worse unless you deal with it straightaway. And finally, as we said earlier, some phrasal verbs have three parts: the verb, the adverb particle and a preposition. These verbs are also non-separable, because they contain a preposition, so the object always comes last, even if it is a pronoun. For example: He has just returned from his holiday and he must now catch up on his work. It's my birthday party next week and I'm really looking forward to it. She's on a strict diet and has had to really cut down on the amount of sugar she eats. Like single-word verbs, one phrasal verb can have many different meanings, so it is very important to understand the correct meaning from the context. To give you an example, we have looked up the verb make up in the Oxford Learners Dictionary and have found that it can be used in all of the following ways. Most students will be familiar with the verb, and the related noun make-up, with the meaning of applying cosmetics to your face or someone else's to make it more attractive or different. Another meaning of "make up" is to invent a story or a lie. We could say, for example: He makes up a bedtime story for his daughter every night. "Make up" also means to form or to constitute. For example: Women make up more than half of the parliamentarians in Rwanda. Another meaning of "make up" is to replace something that has been lost or compensate for something. For example: She didn't have a lunch break today to make up for being late to work this morning. Also, if a friend stays at your house one night, you might have to prepare or make up a bed for him or her in the spare room or on the sofa. And if you are staying at a hotel, the maid will usually make up your room during the morning, that is, he or she will clean and make the bed. And last, but not least, if you make up with somebody, it means that you put an end to a disagreement and become friends again. In the UK you will often hear small children being told to kiss and make up. This is just one example of how one phrasal verb can have many different meanings, but the same thing happens with many other non-phrasal verbs. In any case, when you come across a new verb or a new meaning of a phrasal verb that you are already familiar with, it is always advisable to write it down in a complete sentence as the context will help you to remember the meaning. Well, we hope you have found this podcast useful. Look out for the next ones in which we will help you learn the meaning of the most common phrasal verbs. See you later! We hope you have enjoyed this podcast, brought to you by That's English! Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter. We look forward to hearing from you. Bye for now! Find a summary below of the four different types of phrasal verbs, that we have just talked about: Intransitive two-part verbs that are non-separable, like break down or die away Transitive two-part verbs that are optionally separable, like put off or pick up Transitive two-part prepositional verbs that are non-separable, like look for or deal with Transitive three-part verbs that are non-separable, like look forward to or cut down on