Understanding Phrasal Verbs

What is a metaphor? You may be surprised to find out that it is NOT only something English teachers make you learn to write poetry! Metaphors are absolutely everywhere, and understanding them will be the #1 trick to understanding any phrasal verb you find *out in the wild.*

This episode is only an introduction to metaphors. Be ready for more episodes where I go in depth with specific orientational metaphors (such as GOOD is UP) and how knowing these little ideas will make so many phrasal verbs make sense!

I'm on Instagram @introvert.english if you have any questions.

In this episode I give 5 good reasons to learn phrasal verbs, in no order. Actually, #5 is the one I want you to hear the most, oops!

Links: 

Article- NPR- 5 Reasons Why We Code Switch

In this episode I explain the myth of business English and how it is related to phrasal verbs. I give a few examples (taken from the popular business English book, Market Leader, there are thousands of phrasal verbs you could use for business.)

The examples:

Links and other things mentioned:

Marissa's article about how to write a bilingual resume: https://relearnalanguage.com/bilingual-resume-examples-tips/

Marissa on Instagram @multilingualmarrisa

In this episode I discuss how important word stress is in English in general, and give you lots of examples. I give you more tips on how to know when someone uses a ~phrasal verb...if its really a phrasal verb or the NOUN version. The end of the episode also includes an exercise to practice your listening skills (to see if you can differentiate between nouns vs phrasal verbs.)

In a nutshell: for most phrasal verbs, PUT THE STRESS ON THE SECOND WORD! The meaning changes if you put the stress on the first word.

(My Argentinian intonation is coming through a lot in this episode. Yes, my native language is English! But just as you can pick up accents in new places, you can pick up intonations, EVEN SPEAKING A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE. Maybe its a whole attitude. Anyways, some of my speech patterns here are a little less US and a little more Argentina. :P If that sounds confusing to you, what I mean is, I literally sound Argentinian when I speak English sometimes.

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In this episode I cover some important concepts that will help you in your English journey, not only with phrasal verbs:

1. PHRASAL VERBS ARE NOT 'INFORMAL'

I use a speech from Barrack Obama to illustrate how phrasal verbs are not informal, or slang. They are essential to sounding natural in SPOKEN ENGLISH. 

A list of German vs Latin words in English (Latin is formal and Germanic is normal.) : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Germanic_and_Latinate_equivalents_in_English 

Note: this is not an exclusive list to be memorized, there are thousands and thousands of examples.

Here is the speech by Barrack Obama that I shared, in the entire speech I counted 25 phrasal verbs in 16 minutes:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueMNqdB1QIE&list=LL&index=24&t=0s 

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In this episode I make use of the song 'Take on me' by the 80's Norwegian band a-ha to explain the rule of word order in separable phrasal verbs. 

*I do not own the rights to this song, and the segment of the song played in this episode is for educational purposes only.*

Rule:  With separable phrasal verbs, if the direct object is a pronoun ( me, you, I we, etc) it has to go in the middle of the phrasal verb. That is, it has to be separate. 

TAKE ON-  transitive

2. Transitive and Separable-  to fight or compete against someone (similar if you imagine it as accepting some work, the work of fighting someone.) Often used for competitive or sporting events.

Useful links-

Stay up to date and follow me on Instagram @english.for.introverts  .  (I changed my username from what I said in the episode!)

Macmillan Dictionary- take on:  https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/take-on

Introverted Language Learner private Facebook community: https://form.jotform.com/alyssapoco/facebook-group

Espresso English- summary of phrasal verbs! : https://www.espressoenglish.net/phrasal-verbs-in-english/

Youtube- a-ha Take on me video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djV11Xbc914

Lyrics to 'Take on me': https://genius.com/A-ha-take-on-me-lyrics 

Separable phrasal verb practice worksheet from Cambridge: https://www.cambridge.org/grammarandbeyond/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/PhrasalVerbsDownloadable.pdf

In this episode we discuss fill out, find out, and figure out. We compare find out and figure out, because they are commonly confused with each other. 

 Fill out:

 1. transitive and separable- to complete a form with information.  Very similar to 'fill in,' though that is more typically used with shorter things, such as fill in blank, fill in one line of information, instead of filling out a whole application or form.

 2. A) intransitive (more common)- a euphemism (that means a nice way to say something) for gaining weight. Not necessarily positive or negative. Although please note that in the US it is not polite to comment on people's weight.  So its better to use it to speak about yourself, or you might hear family members using it with each other. I have really filled out during the quarantine.  I need to buy all new clothes!

 B) transitive and separable - same meaning. She fills that dress out beautifully. 

 Find out:  (takes less effort , less analyzing, less of a process than figure out)  To simply find an answer to something but checking, online, in a book, asking a person, etc. You might look it up or check. 

1.  A) intransitive , can be used as a complete phrase alone- to find the single answer to a question, such as a definition, a time, a scheduled event, a fact, etc. I don't know when our next meeting is, but I'll find out. (You will simply check your calendar or ask your colleagues.) Notice there is no direct object here. 

More examples that are common phrases:

I don't know, but I'll find out.

B) transitive and inseparable- same meaning, but has a direct object. 

When will you find out who your new neighbors are?

 2. intransitive and separable (rare)-  for people to discover something secret or hidden about you, to discover who you really are. In the job interview I lied and said I passed the IELTS exam, but they didn't ask for the proof. I hope they don't find me out.

Figure out:  transitive and separable

examples :

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Stay up to date and follow me on Instagram @english.for.introverts  .  (I changed my username from what I said in the episode!)

Ok, so this was the second podcast I ever recorded in my life, but the information here is almost like a phrasal verbs masterclass. Almost. I intentionally did not go into more detail; I don't want to scare you away! There is a reference photo at the bottom of this description that will be useful to copy into your notebook or save.

In this episode we discuss:

Why are phrasal verbs confusing (multiple meanings, used with pronoun IT and therefore no context within the sentence, connotation (the feeling behind it, is it negative or positive, etc,) THERE ARE SO MANY, and finally, they have specific usage and classification (transitive, intransitive.)

https://imgur.com/JoQ2uvE

Stay up to date and follow me on Instagram @english.for.introverts  .  (I changed my username from what I said in the episode!)

In this episode I introduce myself, tell you a little about my background, and give you a brief explanation of what to expect from this podcast.