An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'get along' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. This instalment of Phrasal Verbs Explained is all about the lesser known phrasal verb 'get along'. As you will learn, 'get along' is a close cousin of the more famous phrasal verb 'get on' as it shares many similarities with it, however it also has its own meanings and uses and I will explain all of these to you over the course of the article. Furthermore, I will provide you with lots of example sentences in context to show how each application is used. So, without further ado, let's make a start and see what you can discover about the phrasal verb 'get along' today.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one) Get Along - The Basics: Key information & the individual words 'get' and 'along' Get Along - Meaning 1: To leave or move from where you are Get Along - Meaning 2: To have a good relationship with someone Get Along - Bonus: Get along vs get on - what is the difference? Get Along - Meaning 3: To manage in a satisfactory way Get Along - Bonus: The idiom 'to get along on a shoestring' I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS GET ALONG: KEY INFORMATION Usage Medium Number of meanings 3 Past tense forms Got along / Got along (UK) / Gotten along (US) Separable? No Before we begin our exploration of the phrasal verb 'get along', we should first spend a little bit of time looking at the words 'get' and 'along' as this can often provide us with some useful background information to help with our understanding of the phrasal verb meanings. To get - This verb will need no introduction as it is one of the most commonly used verbs in the English language and is perhaps the most confusing for English learners as its meanings are so numerous and diverse. The meanings of 'to get' include 'to receive', 'to understand', 'to become' and 'to arrive' to name just a few. To confuse things even more, it is irregular and even has two accepted past participle forms with 'got' being more common in British English and 'gotten' being more common in American English. What did you get for your birthday? I don't get the joke; why is it funny? You will get cold if you don't put some warm clothes on. When do you think you will get here? Along - 'Along' is a rarer prepositional particle that we do not see appearing in phrasal verbs very often. As a word, it tends mainly to be used to refer to a movement either in a line or from one end of something to the other. When used in phrasal verbs, 'along' can add this idea of movement in a direction to the base verb (go along), as well as ideas like progress ( come along ) and accompaniment (bring along). So, now that we have covered the basics, let's move on to the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'get along'.... MEANING 1: To leave or move from where you are Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B1 - Intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere but more common in American English Potential synonyms To leave, to go, to move, to move along, to head off, to depart Separable? No As I mentioned in the Basics section, the prepositional particle 'along' is often used to refer to a movement of some sort and this is precisely what it means in this first application of 'go ahead', which is 'to leave or move from where you are'. Typically, this application is used to talk about when you are in a specific place and you need to move from there to go somewhere else. This is often when there is an element of urgency or hurrying involved. This usage sounds a little old-fashioned in modern English and is not as common as it used to be, however you can still here it in use in some parts of the UK and in the southern USA. I would say that you hear it most frequently in the expression "I / We had better be getting along", which is used by speakers to mean that it is time for them to leave. Look at the time! I'd better be getting along if I want to miss the rush hour traffic! We'd better be getting along as we have to be up early tomorrow. Furthermore, 'get along!' can also be used in an imperative way, that is to give someone a command, order or instruction. I seem to remember if a teacher ever caught us in the corridor at school when we were late for a lesson, he or she would tell us to " get along to class ", meaning to go there quickly, without delay. It is also still possible to hear the construction "get along with you!" to mean the same thing, but is also a little rare these days. Get along, now! You’ve got lots of work to do. Get along home before it starts to get dark. What are you doing loitering in the corridor? Get along to class! You may have noticed in the information table above that I stated that this application cannot be used in a separable way and while this is generally true, there is one way that we can use it separably. When being used in its imperative form, it is quite common for speakers to insert the reflexive 'self' pronoun between 'get' and 'along'. This doesn't actually change the meaning in any way but I think it can just soften the tone of what you're saying, especially if it is a recommendation and not an order. Get yourself along to the town hall today as there will be a charity event taking place there. Get yourselves along to your local bookstore and pick up a copy of my new novel. MEANING 2: To have a good relationship with someone Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere but more common in American English Potential synonyms To get on Separable? No We'll now move on from the rarest of the three meanings of 'get along' to the most commonly used one, which is 'to have a good relationship with someone'. For this application, we also need the additional preposition 'with'. If you get along with someone, it means that you like each other and you have a friendly and amicable relationship. Typically, you enjoy spending time with that person and do not argue or fight with them. We can also use this in the negative to describe when two people do not have a good or friendly relationship. As I mentioned above, we need the extra word 'with' if we want to specify the person with whom the good relationship exists. However, you should note that it is fine to use "two people get along" when we already know who the people are and therefore do not need to specify their names. On a grammatical note, I would say that this application tends to be used more in simple aspect tenses as it acts as more of a state verb to describe something that is unlikely to change much (although of course it can in this particular situation). Moreover, although I have stated that this application is used for two people, this is not always the case and it can be used for multiple people too. I get along well with my co-workers. My daughter gets along with everyone in her class. My brother and I got along when we were kids, but not so much now. Jake got along with his new teammates right away. Frank and Jim have always got along despite their different opinions. The two families had always got along well until the dispute over the land. I’m sure you will get along with her once you meet her in person. They will get along better after spending more time together. Photo: Pexels GET ALONG VS GET ON - WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE? For those of you who have a good knowledge of 'get' phrasal verbs, you may be wondering what the difference is with the phrasal verb synonym 'get on' here. Well, the short answer is nothing in terms of meaning; they both mean the same thing. The difference lies in where they are used. While British English speakers do use 'get along', we tend to use 'get on' more commonly to describe a friendly situation. American English speakers on the other hand do not use 'get on' as much and use 'get along' instead. MEANING 3: To manage in a satisfactory way Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere but more common in American English Potential synonyms To get on, to cope, to manage, to survive, to get by Separable? No We have now arrived at our third and final meaning of the phrasal verb 'get along', which is 'to manage in a satisfactory way'. This last application can be used in two ways: to talk about life in general and to talk about specific life situations. For life in general, we can use 'get along' to talk about managing to survive with enough money, food and basic necessities in a way that is satisfactory. It might not be leading a jet set lifestyle with a six-figure bank balance but it is sufficient for what we need. It is often used to highlight the fact that the person in question is independent and does not rely on other people for money etc. Alternatively, it can also be used to refer to when someone doesn't have problems in their life, typically caused by a lack of something. I get along just fine on my own, thank you. Rosie gets along without much money. I was getting along fine until my car broke down. Don’t worry, we will get along somehow. Secondly, we can also use 'get along' to talk about coping to managing ok in more specific or temporary situations in life. This is particularly used when there are difficulties or struggles involved in the situation or if it is something new like when a person moves house or starts a job. In these scenarios, it is common for another to ask the person " how are you getting along ?". I can get along without my phone for a few hours, no problem. I'm sure we will get along until the power comes back on. Kit will have to get along on instant noodles until payday. We’ll get along with just one suitcase between us for the weekend. We’ll just have to try and get along in this small apartment until we find something bigger. Photo: Pexels BONUS: The idiom 'to get along on a shoestring' To finish the post off, here is a nice little idiomatic expression for you that features the final application of 'get along' that we just looked at. To get along on a shoestring - We can use this expression to describe situations in which people have to live with a very small amount of money or a limited budget. It implies that someone does not have much money and most or all of it is spent on the basic necessities to live like rent / mortgage, food, bills etc. Like most students, I had to get along on a shoestring when I was at university. They’re going to have to get along on a shoestring until their new business starts making a profit. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'get along'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'get along'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'crack up' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. This article is all about 'crack up', which is a very informal phrasal verb with a surprising number of meanings. In the article, I will explain the different meanings that it has in English, including some American uses that British speakers do not tend to say. For each different application, I will provide you with lots of example sentences in context to show you how to use it and impress all of your English-speaking friends and colleagues. So, without further ado, let's make a start.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one) Crack Up - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'crack' and 'up' Crack Up - Meaning 1: To break something into pieces Crack Up - Meaning 2: To laugh a lot Crack Up - Meaning 3: To have a mental breakdown Crack Up - Meaning 4: To be reputed to be Crack Up - Bonus: The noun 'crack-up' I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS CRACK UP: KEY INFORMATION Usage Medium Number of meanings Past tense forms Cracked up / Cracked up Separable? Sometimes In this post, we will explore five different ways to use the phrasal verb 'crack up' with a bonus section at the end explaining how you can use it as a noun. First of all however, let's take a moment to consider the two lexical stars of the show, 'to crack' and 'up', and what they mean on their own. To crack - The verb 'to crack' is relatively uncommon in English and has a couple of meanings. The most common of these, and the one that has the most pertinence for the phrasal verb 'crack up' is 'to break without separating into separate parts', often caused by weakness or an impact. If something cracks in this way, a jagged line on its surface is normally visible and these are most commonly seen on windows, phone screens and walls. We can also use the noun 'crack' to refer to this line. In addition, 'to crack' can also mean 'to make a short, loud sound' and 'to hit a part of your body e.g. your head', among other rarer meanings. Elaine accidentally cracked the glass while washing the dishes. The ice on the lake began to crack under the weight of the ice skaters. I cracked my phone screen when I dropped it on the floor. The whip cracked loudly in the air. Dave almost cracked his head getting out of the car. Up - The super common prepositional particle 'up' is undoubtedly the one that is found most often in phrasal verbs and can be used to add various ideas to them, ranging from an upwards movement ( stand up ), to notions including preparation ( set up ), increase ( go up ), improvement ( look up ) and separation ( break up ). So, now that we have considered the basics, let's move on to the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'crack up'.... MEANING 1: To damage or break something into pieces Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? American English Potential synonyms To crack, to break up Separable? Yes Perhaps rather unexpectedly, we are going to start our exploration of the meanings of the phrasal verb 'crack up' with a rarer meaning, which is 'to damage something or to be broken into pieces'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Wall Surface Window / Screen Car / Airplane / Boat The reason for starting with this one is that it is perhaps the closest to the literal meaning of the combination of the two words, with the pairing of the idea of something cracking with the meaning of separation that we get from the word 'up'. Usually, we reserve the use of this application to talk about surfaces and physical objects that develop cracks and often (but not always) break into separate pieces as a result. On a grammatical level, you should note that this is typically used in an intransitive way (without a direct object) to talk about when damage occurs as the result of something like an accident or impact, without stating the agent or person who caused the damage. The ice started to crack up under the weight of the lorry. My grandmother's old vase cracked up when it fell off the shelf. John's windshield cracked up after being hit by a stone whilst he was driving along the main road. The wall outside our house cracked up badly during the earthquake. The frozen ground will crack up when the temperature rises. Personally, 'crack up' would not be my first choice in some of the example sentences above, as I would usually just use 'crack' on its own or in other cases 'break up' or 'smash'. Another way that 'crack up' is used in this way in American English is to describe damage that occurs to vehicles like cars, airplanes and trains occurs when they have been involved in an accident or collision. The boat cracked up on the rocks during the tsunami. . The plane cracked up on landing, but luckily nobody was seriously hurt It can also be used in some cases informally to mean 'to crash' or 'to collide' with something and here it implies a serious accident. I must admit that as a British English speaker, this is a completely new meaning for me but from what I understand from my research, this usage is one that you will still see in American newspapers and media, however it is becoming a bit dated, with verbs like 'to smash up' and 'to wreck' now replacing it. Note that when used to talk about an accident, it can be used both transitively (with a direct object) and intransitively (without a direct object), as I will show you in the sentences below.... The car cracked up on the highway and was found on the grass verge. The helicopter cracked up shortly after it took off. The old car has finally cracked up after years of rough driving. Billy cracked up his father’s truck trying to drive it in the snow. MEANING 2: To laugh a lot Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To burst out laughing, to be in hysterics, to fall about Separable? Yes We will move now from a usage of 'crack up' that I am not so familiar with to our second application, which I am VERY familiar with, and which means 'to laugh a lot'. To clarify, when I say 'to laugh a lot', I do not mean to laugh many times over a period of time but rather to laugh very hard or in an uncontrollable or enthusiastic way. When we use 'crack up' like this, we are talking about the kind of laughter that makes you want to pee yourself or that stops you breathing normally, i.e. when something is extremely funny. Furthermore, it is often when the laughter is sudden or spontaneous. Grammatically speaking, you should note that with this application, we can use it both transitively (to talk about moments when we start laughing) and intransitively (to talk about something that causes us to start laughing). For example, you can say that you always crack up when you watch a specific movie or that a scene in that particular movie always cracks you up. Moreover, it is a fairly informal usage that is mainly found in spoken English and casual writing. I always crack up when I watch that stand-up comedian. My teenage children crack up at the silliest things. The whole class cracked up when the teacher slipped on the loose mat. Kelly was cracking me up with her impressions of our boss. Margaret had cracked me up so much with her holiday stories that I couldn’t breathe. That joke cracked me up so much that I nearly cried. He's so funny, he really cracks me up! MEANING 3: To have a mental breakdown Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To go mad Separable? No We've just looked at the positive application of 'crack up' and now I'm sorry that I have to bring down the mood as this next application is a very negative one and means 'to have a mental breakdown'. First of all, to clarify what I mean by the term 'mental breakdown', it is when a person becomes mentally or emotionally unwell due to having a lot of pressure and strain in their lives. This could often be work stress, worries about finances, coping with the strain of family, or often a combination of two or more of these. It is a form of mental illness and is characterised by different symptoms such as extreme anxiety, paranoia, insomnia (not being able to sleep) and neglecting your physical health and hygiene. If you say that a person 'cracks up', it is a very informal way of saying that they have developed some, or all, of these symptoms as a result of stress in their lives. Note that unlike the previous application, we do not tend to use this one in a transitive, separable way, so you would not typically say that something cracks a person up. If you did, it would be understood as it made him or her laugh (as in the previous application). Some people crack up under constant work stress. Deborah cracks up every time things get out of control at work. My sister’s cracking up trying to manage a stressful job, school, and family. Some of the contestants are cracking up under the pressure of the competition. After the scandal, the politician completely cracked up and was forced to go away to a retreat for several weeks to recover. Josie cracked up when her marriage ended. Pete cracked up from exhaustion after working nonstop for months. She’ll crack up if she doesn’t take a break soon. MEANING 4: To be reputed to be Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To be reputed to be Separable? No We have now arrived at our fourth and final meaning of the phrasal verb 'crack up', which is 'to be reputed to be'. For this one, let me first explain what I mean by 'to be reputed to be' as it may not seem clear to you at the moment. If you're not familiar with the verb 'to repute', you may at least know its noun 'reputation', which is definitely more widespread in English. In short, 'to repute' means 'to be thought of in a certain way by a lot of people'. It is quite an interesting verb as it is only really ever used in its passive form 'to be reputed to be...', which means 'to have a reputation as / for something'. For example, if a restaurant has a reputation for being very good, you could also say that "the restaurant is reputed to be very good". So, what about 'crack up'? Well, 'to be cracked up to be' is just a synonym of saying 'to be reputed to be' and means that people hold certain shared beliefs or opinions about something. Therefore, it can be used when you want to say if your own personal experience of something corresponded with its reputation or not. That new bar on George Street is cracked up to be really good. The new phone model is every bit as impressive as it’s cracked up to be. This book is exactly what it’s cracked up to be; a modern classic! I loved it! In the example sentences above, I have shown how this application of 'crack up' is used in a positive sense, but the majority of the time it is in fact used in a negative sense. When used negatively, it implies that something is not worthy or deserving of its good reputation...see the examples below.... The movie wasn’t all it was cracked up to be; it was actually pretty boring. Life in the city isn’t as wonderful as it’s cracked up to be. It's noisy, dirty and expensive. The restaurant wasn’t everything it was cracked up to be. We waited a long time for our food and my wife's main course was not cooked enough. Working from home isn’t as easy as it’s cracked up to be. It can get very lonely. The job sounded amazing, but it wasn't what it was cracked up to be and I left soon after starting. Photo: Pexels BONUS: The noun 'crack-up' So, now that you are familiar with the different ways that you can use 'crack up' as a phrasal verb, let me just briefly explain how we can use it as a noun. There are in fact two different meanings of its noun form and both of these are connected to the phrasal verbs meanings that we have already looked at.... Meaning 1 = a mental or emotional breakdown. This is quite a rare usage but I think you would understand it very well based on the phrasal verb meaning.... Neil's crack-up came after months of trying to hide his anxiety. Everyone thought Sue was fine until her sudden crack-up last year. Meaning 2 = A physical accident, crash or collision. As with the phrasal verb meaning, this is a very American usage. The pilot sadly died in the plane crack-up. Our car was badly damaged in the crack-up on the freeway. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'crack up'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'crack up'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'draw out' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. In this post, I will be explaining the English phrasal verb 'draw out'. This may be a phrasal verb that you are already familiar with or it may be the first time that you have ever come across it. Either way, my aim in this post is to explain its different meanings for you, so that you know how to understand and use it effectively in your English conversations. I will also give you lots of example sentences to for each one. So, let's make a start.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one) Draw Out - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'draw' and 'out' Draw Out - Meaning 1: To draw something by hand Draw Out - Meaning 2: To prolong something Draw Out - Meaning 3: To withdraw money from a bank Draw Out - Meaning 4: To tempt someone or something from their hiding place Draw Out - Meaning 5: To encourage someone to talk Draw Out - Meaning 6: To become longer (days) 🇬🇧 Draw Out - Meaning 7: To depart from a train station Draw Out - Bonus: The adjective 'drawn-out' I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS DRAW OUT: KEY INFORMATION Usage Common Number of meanings 7 Past tense forms Drew out / Drawn out Separable? Sometimes As you know, in this post, I will be explaining the phrasal verb 'draw out', but how well do you know its individual component words 'draw' and 'out' on their own? Let's briefly look at them before we move on to the phrasal verb meanings.... To draw - 'To draw' is an interesting verb in English as it has several different meanings that all come from the same original idea. Perhaps the most well-known of all of these is 'to create a picture of something using a pen or a pencil'. This idea comes from the original meaning of 'to draw' of 'to drag' or 'to pull' as when you draw a picture, you are dragging the pen over the paper to create the line. In addition to this main meaning, 'to draw' can also mean 'to pull something in a specific direction' and 'to move a part of your body' in a particular way, among other meanings. 'To draw', like many other common English verbs, is irregular. I like drawing pictures. The artist drew the mountains with a pencil. The horse will draw the carriage along the street. I drew my legs up out of the way of the vacuum cleaner. Out - The prepositional particle 'out' is an extremely common word in the English language and features in many phrasal verbs. Arguably it's most common function in phrasal verbs is to give an idea of completion or exhaustion ( run out , tire out), however it can also add ideas like appearance ( come out ), elimination ( cut out ), expansion (spread out) and rejection (leave out). So, now that we have covered the basics, let's move on to the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'draw out'.... MEANING 1: To draw something by hand Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B1 - Intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To draw, to sketch Separable? Yes As per usual on Phrasal Verbs Explained, let's start the meanings with the one that is closest to the literal meaning of the two words combined and that is 'to draw something by hand'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Design Idea Diagram Picture Map This may seem like a strange question but are you already familiar with the phrasal verb 'write out'? If not, it means to put all of the details of something into written form or to reproduce them in writing. Well, the same idea also applies with 'draw out', except that this time it is pictorial or illustrated form. If you draw something out, you simply draw a picture of something on a piece of paper (or other suitable surface). For example, maybe you have an idea of an outfit that you want to wear to a party, so you draw it out to see what it looks like on paper. Or, if you are trying to explain the directions to somewhere, you might find it easier to draw out a map instead. This application is separable and you can put the thing being drawn either between the words 'draw' and 'out' or after them without affecting the meaning. I would say that it is used more frequently in a non-separable way. The architect drew out the plans for the new building on a large sheet of paper. Michelle quickly drew a rough map out to show us how to get there. Carol drew out a sketch of the invention that she had in mind. The artist drew out the figure before adding any colour. I drew a simple diagram out to explain how the machine works. The teacher drew out a chart on the board to illustrate the process. Verity drew out the layout of the garden to show where each plant would go. Mike drew out the design carefully, ensuring that every line was precise. MEANING 2: To prolong something Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To extend, to lengthen, to prolong, to protract, to drag out, to elongate Separable? Yes Our next meaning of 'draw out' is one that means 'to prolong something' or, in other words, to make something longer. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Meeting Conversation Negotiation Word With this application, we are not talking about making something longer in a physical sense, but rather in a temporal sense, so that it lasts for a longer time. It is normally used when something continues for longer than it normally does or than is expected or, in some cases, necessary. As you can see from the list of commonly used nouns above, it is often used in the world of business to talk about processes and meetings that go on for an extended period of time. The meeting was due to end at three, but the manager’s long explanations drew it out for another hour. Becky tried to draw out the conversation so she wouldn’t have to say goodbye. The negotiations were drawn out over several months before they reached an agreement. The politician tends to draw out his speeches, making them much longer than necessary. The director decided to draw out the suspense in the final scene to add impact. They’re only drawing out the inevitable by refusing to make a decision. Ben's slow responses drew out the interview far longer than expected. The lawyer’s questioning seemed designed to draw out the murder trial. One other way that 'draw out' can be used in this way is with words. If someone draaaaaaws ouuuuuuuut a word, they make it last for much longer than is normal. This may often be for a specific reason, such as for persuasion or emphasis. Imogen drew out the word "soooo" to show her disbelief. Luca always draws out her vowels when she's tired, making every sentence sound lazy. “Pleeeease,” Sally drew out the word, hoping to persuade her Dad. The teacher drew out the student’s name for emphasis: “Maaaark!” BONUS: THE ADJECTIVE 'DRAWN-OUT' Before we finish this section, I just want to make you aware that. we can also use the past participle form 'drawn-out' as an adjective to talk about something that lasts longer that usual or necessary. The management meeting was long and drawn-out. It was a drawn-out process but thankfully we reached an agreement in the end. MEANING 3: To withdraw money from a bank Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To withdraw, to take out Separable? Yes In many countries in the world, people are using paper money less and less in favour of electronic payments and this change directly affects our third meaning of 'draw out', which is 'to withdraw money from a bank'. Simply put, if you draw money out of a bank, building society, business or any other place where it can be stored, you take it out in order to spend it. If you remember in the Basics section, I explained how 'to draw' can mean 'to pull' and here you are literally pulling the money out of your bank, especially if you use an ATM. As I mentioned, in the UK and the USA less and less people (including me) carry physical money with them and tend to pay for everything on card or electronically, so there is a chance that this particular usage will become archaic soon. What is the situation in your country? Do people still mainly draw out money from banks and carry it in their wallets or is electronic payment now becoming the status quo? Let me know in the comments as I'd be interested to know! Lois went to the bank to draw out some cash for her weekend plans. Vincent drew out all his savings to pay for the new car. I need to draw a few hundred dollars out before the trip. They drew enough money out to cover the deposit. Sian drew out £200 from her account yesterday, leaving her balance at zero. Joe decided to draw out some cash rather than use his card. The company drew out funds from its reserve account to deal with the emergency. I’ll draw out a bit of money so we have some just in case. MEANING 4: To tempt someone or something from their hiding place Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To tempt out, to entice, to coax, to extract Separable? Yes The next way that we can use the phrasal verb 'draw out' is to talk about when a person or an animal is hiding somewhere as it means 'to tempt someone or something from their hiding place'. Henry, my cat I may have mentioned before on this website that I have two cats and when we adopted our second cat, Henry, he was an extremely shy little kitten (that's him in the picture on the right). The first thing that he did when he arrived in his new home was run away and hide behind the washing machine. I think he must have stayed there for 2 days. During this time, we tried desperately to draw him out from his hiding place by putting food and toys out and leaving him alone but none of these drew him out. It was in fact, Arthur, my other cat, who drew him out in the end! That story about Henry is a great example of when this application of 'draw out' can be used as we were trying to persuade him to leave his hiding spot by tempting him with things that he would enjoy and of course this is also something that can be used for hidden people. As a general rule, it normally involves doing something to encourage or tempt the hiding person or animal to leave the place that they are inside and to come out into the open. The park ranger left some food in the forest to draw out the shy fox from its den. Maggie tried to draw out the kitten that was hiding under her bed with a piece of string. The police used a negotiator to draw the suspect out from the building. The caterers hoped the smell of cooking would draw the campers out from their tents. A squeaky toy helped draw out the frightened dog from the corner. The exorcist used a clever trick to draw out the spirit, according to legend. One other rarer way that this application of 'draw out' can be used is to talk about non-living things and extracting or pulling them from the places in which they are situated. This may be as simple as drawing something out of your pocket or removing a fluid such as blood or oil. The nurse will draw out some blood with a syringe. Vernon drew out a hidden knife from his belt. Luke carefully drew out a splinter from his finger. The scientist tried to draw out the essential oils from the plant. The mechanic drew out the old fluid before refilling the tank. The dentist drew out the damaged tooth. Meditation can help draw out negative emotions. George drew out a folded letter from his pocket and handed it to Mildred. MEANING 5: To encourage someone to talk Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To elicit, to put at ease, to get someone to talk Separable? Yes Let's now move on to meaning number five of the phrasal verb 'draw out', which is a bit similar to the previous one and it means 'to encourage someone to talk'. For this application, we are mainly concerned with people who are shy or nervous and therefore do not want to talk to others and express their thoughts and feelings. If you are able to draw someone out, it means that you help them to speak more freely and be more open. This might be by making them feel relaxed and less nervous, gently or subtly asking them the correct sorts of questions or even giving them an alcoholic drink or two. The method is not relevant and does not dictate the use of the phrasal verb however, it is just used to express that we are able to make a shy or reserved person more talkative. The interviewer’s gentle questions helped to draw out the shy guest. Amelia tried to draw out her best friend, who usually kept her feelings to herself. The therapist slowly drew out the child, encouraging him to share his feelings. Steven's calm manner drew even the most reserved members of the group out. The teacher managed to draw the quiet student out during a class discussion. A good listener can often draw out people who are reluctant to speak. The journalist’s patience was the key to drawing out a powerful story from the witness. Diane used humour to draw her nervous interviewee out. MEANING 6: To become longer (days) Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? British English Potential synonyms To get lighter, to lengthen Separable? No The next application of the phrasal verb 'draw out' is one that it most commonly heard in British English to talk about days and it means 'to become longer'. You may be thinking that this is a strange usage as days are always 24 hours long, so I should point out here that we are thinking about daytime and nighttime and the hours of light and darkness. Wherever you are on Earth, unless you live near the Equator, you will experience 6-month periods from the middle of winter to the middle of summer when the days get longer and the nights get shorter, with the opposite happening in the six months from summer to winter. In this period when we head from winter to spring and the days are getting longer, we can say that " the days are drawing out ". This is particularly noticeable if you are far from the Equator, which is perhaps why we say it a lot in British English. Likewise, if you have read my post about the phrasal verb 'draw in' (link here ), you should know that we use this to talk about when the days get shorter. Note that this usage does not take a direct object and is therefore not separable. The days are starting to draw out now that the seasons are changing. You can tell winter is finally ending; the evenings are drawing out. As summer approaches, the days draw out and it stays light much later. The evenings have drawn out noticeably since last month. The days draw out so gradually that you hardly notice at first. By March, the days have really drawn out compared to January. It’s nice to see the evenings drawing out after those long dark winter nights. As the year progresses, the days draw out and the temperature begins to rise. MEANING 7: To depart from a train station Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To depart, to pull out, to pull off Separable? No We have now arrived at our final meaning of the phrasal verb 'draw out' and that is 'to depart from a station'. For this application, we are not talking about when passengers leave the station after arriving at their destination but rather when the trains leave the station. Quite simply, when a train draws out from a train station, it starts moving and heads away from it towards its next destination. Note that we can also use 'draw in' to talk about when a train arrives at a station. I would say that both 'draw in' and 'draw out' are both quite formal uses and can often come across as a bit old-fashioned but it's of course possible that you may hear them being used by native speakers still today in some situations and circumstances. On a grammatical level, like with the previous application, this one is also not separable and does not take a direct object. The train drew out of the station exactly on time. We waved as the train drew out, disappearing around the bend. The express drew out slowly, gathering speed as it left the platform. A whistle blew, and the locomotive drew out from the station amid clouds of steam. Passengers leaned from the windows as the train drew out into the night. The old engine drew out with a deep rumble that echoed down the tracks Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'draw out'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'draw out'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'turn over' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. In this post, I will be explaining the phrasal verb 'turn over' and the various different uses and applications that it has in English. It may surprise you to learn that there are at least 8 different ways to use it, from simply turning something so that it faces the opposite direction to making money. Read on to learn what they all are, with detailed explanations of each one plus lots of example sentences.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one) Turn Over - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'turn' & 'over' Turn Over - Meaning 1: To change from one side to the other Turn Over - Bonus: The idiom 'to turn over a new leaf' Turn Over - Meaning 2: To change the television channel 🇬🇧 Turn Over - Meaning 3: To think carefully about something Turn Over - Meaning 4: To have a particular throughput Turn Over - Meaning 5: To make money Turn Over - Meaning 6: To give someone ownership of something Turn Over - Meaning 7: To make an engine run Turn Over - Meaning 8: To burgle 🇬🇧 Turn Over - Bonus: The noun 'turnover' I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS TURN OVER: KEY INFORMATION Usage Common Number of meanings 8 Past tense forms Turned over / Turned over Separable? Yes The words 'turn' and 'over' are two common words in English and before we look at the different meanings of 'turn over' as a phrasal verb, let's quickly consider what these two words mean as single lexical units.... To turn - This is a frequently used verb in English that has several different meanings, all of which indicate a change of some sort. It can mean to rotate or spin in a circular movement (like a carousel or the Earth), or alternatively it can be used to describe the movement of a person or object to face a different direction. Another key meaning of the verb 'to turn' is to change from one thing to another or to become another age when it is your birthday. The Earth turns on its axis. The record player was turning but no sound was coming from it. I turned to face the sun. Jack turned the car around the bend. The weather is turning and winter is on the way. My Dad is turning 60 tomorrow. Over - The prepositional particle 'over' is one that has multiple different meanings in English. These include to express being above something, moving above or across something and exceeding something, as well as being synonyms of the words 'during', 'finished' and 'about'...it's a confusing word! When used in phrasal verbs, the idea of a movement above or across something can often be found ( come over , run over ). Other ideas that 'over' can add to phrasal verb constructions include review ( go over ), change ( take over ) and falling (fall over). Now that we have looked at the basics, let's move on to the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'turn over'..... MEANING 1: To change from one side to the other Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level A2 - Elementary Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To turn, to switch over Separable? Sometimes Let's begin our exploration of the meanings of the phrasal verb 'turn over' with a nice and straightforward one, which is 'to change from one side to the other'. I think that this application is more or less the literal meaning of the two component words as it means to turn something so that it faces the opposite side. Note that this is often when the item is facing upwards or downwards, rather than sideways, in which case the phrasal verb ' turn around ' would more likely be used. For example, if you have a mattress on your bed, it is a good idea to turn it over every few months so that a different side of it is facing upwards. Alternatively, if you are playing a game of cards, you may need to turn over a card to reveal what it is and to do this you simply turn it, so that the side with the number or person is now facing upwards and visible. Note that on a grammatical level, this application can be used both transitively (with a direct object ) and intransitively (without one). In other words, you can turn something over or something can turn over by itself. Susan turned over the pancake, so it could cook on the other side. I turned over the pillow to rest on the cooler side. The wind turned over the leaf, showing its lighter underside. The mechanic turned over the car part so that he could weld the bottom. Please turn the card over to see the instructions. The cat turned over and lay on its back in the sun. We are not just limited to objects with this application however, as it is also possible for a person to turn over, or more rarely unless you are a paramedic, to turn a person over. One way that this is used particularly commonly in an intransitive way when referring to people is to talk about when we turn over in bed. What this actually means is when you are asleep and facing one way and you move your body so that you are facing the other way. This could be from side to side or could be from your back or front to your side or any combination of these. I made my husband turn over in bed last night as his snoring was so loud. The nurse asked the patient to turn over onto his other side. As I was turning over in bed last night, I accidentally knocked the cat off the bed. One other common way that you may come across this first application of 'turn over' is in reference to books and pages. When you turn over a page, you simply move the page of a book that you have finished reading to the other side so that the writing on the reverse is visible instead. This usage is more common in British English than in American English. PTO A frequently used acronym for this usage exists, which is PTO, meaning "Please Turn Over" and you will often find this at the bottom of a document to advise the reader that the document continues on the reverse side. Billy turned over the page to continue reading the story. If you turn over to the next page, you will see a diagram explaining this model. Photo: Pexels BONUS: The Idiom 'To Turn Over A New Leaf' This is a good point in the post to introduce you to a common idiom featuring this application, which is 'to turn over a new leaf'. If someone turns over a new leaf, it means that they make a positive change in their life and start to behave in a better way by stopping their bad habits and activities. The reason that the word 'leaf' is included here and not 'page' is because 'leaf' is actually an old word meaning 'page'. It is not really used much nowadays apart from in this expression and in words like 'overleaf' (on the next page) and the phrasal verb 'leaf through' (to quickly look through the pages of a book or magazine). John has turned over a new leaf and has stopped all his criminal ways. She is very sorry for what she has done and promises to turn over a new leaf. Let's see whether or not she sticks to her promise! MEANING 2: To change the TV channel Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B1 - Intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? British English Potential synonyms To change channel Separable? Yes Our second application of the phrasal verb 'turn over' is another simple one that is used primarily in British English and that is 'to change a television channel'. Quite simply, if you are watching a programme on TV, you may want to turn over to see what is on the other channels when it has finished. For this application, we are talking about watching terrestrial television with a live schedule of programmes and advertisements etc and not on-demand TV or streaming services. As a consequence of the changing nature of how we consume television these days, this usage is becoming rarer but can still be heard, especially among older people. Can you turn over? I want to see what else is on. I turned over to Channel 2 just in time for the movie to start. Don’t turn over just yet; I’m still watching this! Sam kept turning over the channels because nothing interesting was on. Turn over to the news; I think it’s about to begin. Paula turned over quickly when the adverts came on. If you don’t enjoy this show, just turn over and find something better. MEANING 3: To think carefully about something Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To consider, to think, to mull over, to deliberate, to contemplate, to ponder Separable? Yes The first two applications of 'turn over' that we have looked at so far in this post have both been somewhat literal, however this third application is a bit more idiomatic in nature as it means 'to think carefully about something'. This time, if you turn something over, you think about it carefully or for a long period in your mind. In fact, this application is perhaps most commonly heard in the expression 'to turn something over in your mind'. Most of the time, this is used when someone has a difficult decision to make and needs a lot of time to think about it. Alternatively, we do also say this when something stressful or unpleasant has happened and you need time to think about it and process it afterwards. I think you can picture this a bit like a chicken that repeatedly turns over and over in an oven and which needs a certain amount of time to turn over before it is cooked and ready to eat. I’ve been turning the idea over in my mind all weekend and I'm still unsure. Ben lay in bed turning over everything that had happened that day. Kelly spends hours turning things over in her head before making a decision. After the meeting, I kept turning the discussion over in my mind. He often turns over the consequences before he acts. Madeline lay awake all night turning over what her boss had said. I’ve been turning your words over in my mind since yesterday. MEANING 4: To have a particular throughput Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To go through Separable? Yes The next couple of applications of 'turn over' are ones that are used in business English, with this first one being heard in the retail (shopping) sector in particular as it means 'to have a particular throughput'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Stock Goods Products Staff / Employees Merchandise Firstly, if you are not sure about the word 'throughput', it means the amount of work, materials or people that pass through a system or organisation over a period of time. Essentially, it can be used for anything that can be processed by a business, whether that be stock that a business buys and sells or the number of people that it employs. If you want to talk about how high or low the throughput of a specific company, shop or organisation is, we can use this application of 'turn over' to do so. For example, if a shop buys and then sells a lot of stock over a weekly period, we can say that it turns over a lot of stock in a week. Likewise, in organisations which regularly have a high number of employees who leave and then need to be replaced, we can say that it turns over staff at a fast rate. This shop turns over stock so quickly that new products have to be put on display daily. We turn over seasonal items fast, especially around the Christmas holidays. Our clearance section turns over merchandise faster than any other department. High street stores have to turn over inventory rapidly in order to stay competitive. That distribution centre turns over more stock than any other facility in the region. Fast-food chains tend to turn over employees at a high rate. MEANING 5: To make money Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To make, to earn Separable? No Another way that you may hear 'turn over' in the world of business and commerce is this fifth application, which is 'to make money'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Money Profit Amount It is a cold hard fact that the sole aim of any business is to make money from its commercial activities. Any money that a company makes is known as revenue and when we talk about how much revenue a company makes, we can use this application of 'turn over'. As we use 'turn over' to talk about how much money a company makes, it is usually expressed either with an amount of money or with a description of the amount e.g. "a lot" or "twice as much". Furthermore, if the company is lucky enough to make a profit, i.e. it makes money after all of its expenses have been paid, we can also say that it "turns over a profit". Note that unlike the previous applications of 'turn over' that we have looked at, this one is not normally used in a separable way. The company turns over nearly $5 million USD a year. That small bakery turns over more money than you'd expect. Our online store now turns over twice as much as it did last year. They turned over a record amount in sales during the holiday season. The firm turns over huge profits thanks to its international exports. Last quarter, the business turned over £750,000 in revenue. Their new product line helped them turn over significant profit. Despite the recession, the retailer still turned over a healthy amount., The company expects to turn over even more next fiscal year. They’ve been turning over steady revenue since they expanded overseas. MEANING 6: To give someone ownership of something Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To hand over, to relinquish Separable? Yes Our next application of 'turn over' is one that can be used in many different areas of life, from work to personal matters, and means 'to give someone ownership of something'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Ownership Company / Business Land / Estate Keys Control Criminal To describe this meaning in another way, it is to transfer the control or possession of something to another person. This is often when the person receiving it has a legal right to it, either because they are entitled to it somehow or because they now own it. In addition, it is also possible to turn over the responsibility for something to someone else. Examples of when you may come across this application are when information or records are required to be turned over to the police for legal purposes, when a business owner retires and has to transfer ownership of it to someone else and when someone hands over the keys to a property when it has been sold. You may have noted that I included 'hand over' in the last example above as it functions as a synonym of 'turn over', however there are some differences in nuance between the two. Firstly, 'turn over' sounds a bit more formal and serious than 'hand over' and secondly, it often implies that the person turning over the item is only doing so because they have been ordered to do so or are legally required to and are not doing it voluntarily. 'Hand over', on the other errr hand, can often imply that something is given more willingly. Sir David turned the business over to his daughter when he retired. The land was turned over to the government after the dispute has been settled. The company will be turned over to new management next year. Under the court order, Fred was required to turn over all financial records. They turned over ownership of the property to the charity last month. The estate was turned over to the Duke's heirs following the reading of the will. The suspect refused to turn over the stolen items to the police. Poppy plans to turn over control of the company to a successor at some point next year. One other way that this application of 'turn over' is used in (almost) the same way is in relation to people. If you turn someone over, you are talking specifically about criminals and when someone delivers a person who is suspected of having committed a crime to the police or the authorities. For example, a criminal in custody may turn his fellow gang members over to the police, an illegal immigrant may be turned over to the immigration authorities by a member of the public or you may even turn yourself over if you feel guilty about a crime that you committed and feel like you should be punished for it. After hours of interrogation, the gang finally agreed to turn their leader over to the police. The group of neighbours caught the burglar and turned him over to the authorities. Rather than turning himself over to the police, Jeff tried to escape the country. The rebels refused to turn over the captured soldiers to the government forces when they were asked to do so. MEANING 7: To make an engine run Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To run Separable? No Next up, we have an application for all the petrolheads (car fanatics) among you as another meaning of the phrasal verb 'turn over' is 'to make an engine run'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Engine Motor Generator In basic terms, if an engine runs, it means that it is operating correctly and producing power, regardless of if the vehicle or machine that it powers is moving or stationary. We use 'turn over' to describe when we talk about making an engine start to run. When you insert a car key into the ignition and turn it, the starter motor physically rotates, typically causing the engine to start running. This process of activating the starter motor with the key is referred to as 'turning over'. This is not normally something that people need to think about until there is a problem and the engine fails to start. Usually, when this problem occurs, you hear a sound as you turn the key, indicating the engine is turning over, but the engine doesn't start. As a consequence, this application mainly tends to be used when there is a problem. The engine refused to turn over this morning as it was so cold. Victor tried to start the truck, but the engine wouldn’t turn over. After a few attempts, the motor finally turned over and started. Amy turned the key, but the engine didn’t even turn over. Once the fuel started flowing, the engine turned over smoothly. The boat’s engine turned over nicely after being repaired. Keep cranking it; the engine should turn over in a minute! It took a while, but eventually the generator turned over and began humming. MEANING 8: To burgle Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? British English Potential synonyms To burgle, to rob, to do over Separable? Yes We are going to end the phrasal verb meanings on a negative application (sorry), which is another British English usage, meaning 'to burgle'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... House / Apartment / Flat Home Building Shop Company For those of you who are not sure, the verb 'to burgle' means to illegally enter a house or property with the intention of stealing things or committing a crime. If someone turns over your home, it means that they burgle it, often searching through it, stealing things and making it very untidy in the process. Often, when talking about someone who has been the victim of this crime, it is common to refer to it in the passive sense with the verb 'to get', especially as we do not normally know who the criminals were. The thieves turned the whole house over whilst the family was away on holiday. We got home to find the place had been turned over by burglars. The shop was turned over during the night and the cash register was emptied. Burglars broke in and turned the office over, searching for valuables and cash. They turned over every drawer and cupboard in the place looking for jewellery. We got our house turned over last night but luckily nothing valuable was stolen. Someone turned our garage over and stole all my Dad's tools. They got their flat turned over whilst they were sleeping in bed. Photo: Pexels BONUS: The noun turnover Lastly, before we wrap up this post, let's just take a look at the noun 'turnover', which has a couple of different meanings.... Turnover as revenue : You will hopefully remember that earlier in the post I explained how we can use 'turn over' to talk about how much revenue a business makes over a period of time. We can also use the noun 'turnover' as a direct synonym of revenue here. Simply put, a company's turnover is how much money it makes from its activities during a specific period. The company reported an annual turnover of £5 million last year. We managed to double our turnover after we launched the new product line. It can also be used to mean the throughput of something, especially when talking about the number of employees that start working for and leave an organisation in a period of time. High employee turnover is causing major recruitment challenges for the company. Turnover as a food : Last but not definitely not least, it is also possible to eat a turnover. These are pastry snacks on which some fruit (most commonly apple) is placed on the pastry and one end is then turned over, enclosing it in its own little tasty pocket. Delicious! My Gran makes the best apple turnovers! They're so good! If you want to try and make an apple turnover, you can find the recipe here.... https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/apple_turnovers_21653 Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'turn over'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'turn over'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'hold down' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. This article is all about the phrasal verb 'hold down' and in it I will explain 5 different ways that you can use it in English. We will start by looking at the literal and more common uses, before moving on to some rarer ones at a more advanced level. For each application, I will also provide you with a lot of example sentences in context to show you how it can be used and therefore help you to know when you can use it when speaking English. So, without further ado, let's make a start.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one) Hold Down - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'hold' & 'down' Hold Down - Meaning 1: To forcefully stop someone or something from moving Hold Down - Meaning 2: To keep the level of something low Hold Down - Meaning 3: To keep a job or relationship Hold Down - Meaning 4: To repress people Hold Down - Meaning 5: To eat something and not vomit afterwards I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS HOLD DOWN: KEY INFORMATION Usage Medium Number of meanings 5 Past tense forms Held down / Held down Separable? Yes As you know, we will be looking at the phrasal verb 'hold down' in this article, but how much do you know about the individual words 'hold' and 'down'? I assume the answer to that question is quite a lot as these are common words in English but let's just quickly review them before we continue with the phrasal verb meanings.... Like most of the commonest verbs in English, 'to hold' is irregular and has several different meanings. The most frequently used of these is 'to retain something in your hand or in your possession for a period of time'. In addition to this, it can also mean 'to support something' and 'to keep something in place, so that it cannot move or leave' and this link with the verb 'to keep' is one that we will see again later as we look at the meanings of 'hold down'. I was holding a glass of water in my hand. Laura held the safety rail tightly as she walked up the stairs. Don't worry, you won't fall; I will hold you. The suspected thief was held in a police cell overnight. You will undoubtedly be familiar with the prepositional particle 'down' and will therefore know already that it's main meaning is to talk about a downward movement or decrease of some sort. This idea is also one that you will find in some 'down' phrasal verbs (fall down, get down ). In addition to this, when 'down' appears in a phrasal verb it can be to add other ideas such as dismantling or collapsing (tear down), recording (write down) or stopping (shut down), among others. Now that we have covered the basics, let's proceed to see the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'hold down'..... MEANING 1: To forcefully stop someone or something from moving Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B1 - Intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To restrain, to pin down, to depress Separable? Yes We will start the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'hold down' with the one that is a literal meaning of the two words combined and that is 'to forcefully stop someone or something from moving'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Person Criminal / Suspect / Prisoner Dog / Cat Paper Button I would say that we can divide this first application into two distinct categories: living things (people and animals) and objects. Let's first consider the idea of holding a person or an animal down. This is where we need to use force to stop them from moving from the low position that they are in. Normally, this is when the individual is on a horizontal surface such as the ground or an operating table and we need them to stay where they are and not get up and move. In order to do this, we must physically hold them in position by continually pushing them down onto the surface. Of course, don't forget that whoever is being held down will not want to be and is therefore likely to put up some resistance to this. Typical example situations of where you might come across this is when the police have arrested a criminal and need to hold them down on the ground or when an animal is at the vets and tries to escape and hide (as pet owners will know they almost always do). The nurse had to hold the patient down while the doctor gave the injection. Several people tried to hold the dog down, so the vet could examine it. We had to hold her down to stop her from thrashing during the seizure. Two guards managed to hold down the suspect until the police arrived. He was so strong; it took three of us to hold him down! Now, let's think about holding down non-living or inanimate objects. The idea here is essentially the same as with living things, i.e. that we are applying pressure to an object to stop it moving in an upwards or sideways direction (or both). Of course, as we are dealing with objects and not living beings, there is no desire to move, however there is still resistance from forces trying to move the object e.g. the wind. Typical scenarios of this would be holding down a button for a period of time to reset a device and using a heavy weight to hold down papers or documents that may get moved by the wind or a draught. Solomon had to use his hands to hold down the lid as the wind kept trying to lift it. Sandra put a rock on the stack of papers to hold them down and stop them from being blown away. Three firefighters had to hold down the hose when the water pressure surged. Hold down the reset button for 5 seconds until the display screen flashes. MEANING 2: To keep the level of something low Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere with some American English sub-usage Potential synonyms To keep down, to limit Separable? Yes Our second meaning of 'hold down' is another one that could be considered as a literal meaning of the two words and that is 'to keep the level of something low'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Price Costs / Expenses Level Usage Amount / Quantity / Number Noise One way that the word 'down' can be used is as a synonym of the adjective 'low', particularly when talking about things that are measured numerically in levels. This is important for understanding the second application of 'hold down', which is essentially just a continuation of the previous one. However, instead of talking about physically holding something in place, so that it does not move, we are now thinking about levels of things that can be measured with numbers that we do not want to increase or rise. Most frequently, this application is heard in reference to prices and costs, which are things that none of us want to increase. Additionally, this may be used to talk about things like employee turnover in a business, economic inflation and levels of pollution, all of which can be me measured in numbers. As you can see, these are often things whose levels naturally go up and dow and which sometimes require some intervention in order to keep the levels low and it is this intervention that we call 'holding down'. If you have read my post about the phrasal verb 'keep down' (link here ), you might recognise that this is in fact a synonym of this phrasal verb, however you should not that 'hold down' is not used as commonly. The government is trying to hold inflation down by cutting interest rates. We need to hold down our costs if we want the project to stay within budget. The team managed to hold down prices despite rising production expenses. Good management helped the company to hold down staff turnover. Eating healthily and exercising can help you hold your cholesterol levels down. The store is offering discounts to hold the number of unsold items in stock down. New technology is helping farmers to hold down water usage during dry seasons. In addition, there is also a usage of this application in American English, which means to limit something and is often used in reference to noise and sound. The idea here is that if you hold the noise down, it stays at an acceptable or quiet level and does not become too loud. Note that this would not be used in British English and 'keep down' would be used as the alternative here. We need to hold down the noise so we don’t wake the baby. Could you hold it down, please? I’m trying to concentrate. MEANING 3: To keep a job or relationship Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To keep, to retain, to hang onto Separable? Yes For many of us, having a good job that we enjoy or a successful relationship are two of the most important objectives in our lives and this third application of 'hold down' can be used to talk about both of these things as it means 'to keep a job or relationship'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Job Position Relationship Marriage Let's first consider the idea of holding down a job. If you are able to hold down a job, it means that you can find a job and then keep it for a long time, with the idea being that you do not get fired or quit after a short period of time. Equally, it can be used in the negative sense for people who cannot hold down a job, meaning that they are unable to find permanent work and always seem to be looking for one. Bill has finally managing to hold down a steady job after years of unemployment. Despite his health issues, Phillip was able to hold down a full-time position. It's hard to hold down a job and study at the same time. Ele’s been holding down that job for over ten years now. Even while raising three kids, Gemma managed to hold down two part-time jobs. Likewise, with relationships if you are able to find a romantic partner with whom you enter into a long-lasting relationship, you can say that you "held down a relationship". Again, when talking about those people who are unlucky in the romance department, we can use the negative and say that he or she cannot hold down a relationship. Less commonly, you may hear this being used with other words for relationships like 'marriage'. Olivia can’t seem to hold down a relationship for more than a few months. Holding down a relationship when you're suffering from mental health problems can be extremely challenging. If you can hold down a job, you can hold down a marriage. Lastly, for both jobs and relationships, you should note that we typically use this when there is something remarkable or surprising about the fact that someone can or cannot hold one down. This may be that the person has not had much luck finding work or a partner in the past or it may be that they are extremely good at doing so. MEANING 4: To repress someone Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Rare Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To keep down, to suppress, to limit, to restrict, to repress, to oppress Separable? Yes We are now on to the final two meanings of 'hold down', which are both rarer synonyms of the phrasal verb 'keep down'. The first of these is 'to repress someone'. Firstly, if you are not sure about the meaning of the verb 'to repress', it means to keep something under control and limit it in some way. When we apply this to people, it simply means to control them and restrict their freedom, which is sadly something that has happened in all parts of the world since human societies have existed. When people are held down in this way, it is almost always directly or indirectly caused by a government or the rulers of a regime or country who want to maximise their own power by restricting everybody else's. You may also, much more rarely, find this application being used to talk about companies and businesses, which also have their own leadership and power hierarchies and can hold certain employees down, stopping them from advancing in their careers within the organisation. The regime used force and propaganda to hold people's opposition down. For decades, discriminatory laws were used in the country to hold down minority communities. The company’s unfair policies were put in place to hold down workers who spoke out for better conditions. The activists accused the government of trying to hold the voices of protestors down. Education restrictions were a way of holding down certain groups and limit their opportunities within society Corrupt leaders used fear tactics to hold down anyone who questioned their authority. Heavy taxes were imposed on the poorer classes to hold them down and keep them dependent. MEANING 5: To eat something and not vomit afterwards Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Rare Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To keep down Separable? Yes Lastly, we come to the fifth application of the phrasal verb 'hold down' that I will explain for you in this post and as I mentioned previously, this is another rarer usage and it means 'to eat something and not vomit'. Nouns & pronouns commonly used with this application.... Food Drink Meal Anything Liquid This might sound a bit of a strange definition and you may be wondering why we need it as the vast majority of times that people eat, they do not vomit. If that were the case, then we would probably not survive for very long. Of course, there are times when we become ill, in particular with food poisoning or viruses and we are not able to eat or drink anything without vomiting afterwards and it is on these rare occasions that we use this application of 'hold down'. When these unfortunate illnesses occur, we will use 'hold down' to talk about our ability to keep food or drink in our stomachs after we consume it. It is literally the idea of holding it in a lower position since the stomach is below the mouth. As I also mentioned earlier in the post, the synonym phrasal verb 'keep down' is probably used more commonly than 'hold down' here. Lois was so sick that she couldn’t even hold a sip of water down. After the surgery, Mike struggled to hold down any solid food. I was so hungover that I barely managed to hold down breakfast before heading to work. The medication helped Edwards hold down his meals for the first time in days. Try to hold it down for a few hours so that your stomach can settle. Barry hasn’t been able to hold down anything since last night. They gave Penelope some ginger tea to help her hold her food down during the flight. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'hold down'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'hold down'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'mix up' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. How well do you know the phrasal verb 'mix up'? I imagine that many of you will have heard it before but did you know that there at least 4 different ways to use it in English? In this post, my aim is to explain these different applications and provide you with lots of example sentences to enable you to recognise and use them to enhance your English level and impress your friends and colleagues. So, without further ado, let's get started.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one)   Mix Up - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'mix' and 'up' Mix Up - Meaning 1: To mix two or more things together Mix Up - Meaning 2: To put things in the wrong order Mix Up - Meaning 3: To confuse two or more things Mix Up - Meaning 4: To become involved in something Mix Up - Bonus: The noun 'mix-up' and the adjective 'mixed-up' I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS MIX UP: KEY INFORMATION Usage Common Number of meanings 4 Past tense forms Mixed up / Mixed up Separable? Yes The phrasal verb 'mix up' is formed from the base verb 'to mix' with the prepositional particle 'up' and so, as per usual on Phrasal Verbs Explained, let's start our phrasal verb analysis by considering the two individual words themselves. The verb 'to mix' is one that is very well known in English and means to combine two different things, normally in order to form one single substance, product or thing. You can mix ingredients to make food, a painter may mix two colours to create a third one or a DJ might mix two songs together. In addition to its usage as a verb, the noun 'mix' and adjective 'mixed' are heard a lot in English. The barman carefully mixed our cocktails. If you mix red and blue, you get purple. Oil and water do not mix. I've mixed the ingredients together and put the dish in the oven. The prepositional particle 'up' is perhaps the most common of all prepositions that form phrasal verbs and can add many different ideas to the verb. Perhaps the most logical meaning that it can give a phrasal verb is the idea of an upwards movement or increase (' go up ' and 'shoot up'). Additionally, when 'up' is found in phrasal verbs, it can add a sense of completion ( end up , wrap up ), preparation ( set up ), accumulation (save up) and improvement ( look up ), among others. So, now that we have looked at the basics, let's move onto the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'mix up'.... MEANING 1: To mix two or more things together Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level A2 - Elementary Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To mix, to combine, to shake up Separable? Yes The first application of the phrasal verb 'mix up' that we will look at is one that you may be familiar with already and it simply means 'to mix two or more things together'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Nouns for types of food Ingredients Paint Chemical Cement To clarify, if you mix things up, you thoroughly combine or blend two or more different things together with the aim of creating something new. As a result, it is common to hear 'mix up' in this sense being used in reference to food and drink preparation. You may be wondering if this is the same as the verb 'to mix' on its own and while these two are more or less synonyms of each other, there also are some subtle shades of difference between them. Firstly, the verb 'to mix' is more formal than 'mix up' and so you are perhaps more likely to see it in recipes and instruction manuals, whereas 'mix up' might be used more in everyday speech. Secondly, I think 'mix up' conveys more the idea of a complete mix, so that the two or more things being mixed are absolutely 100% blended and it is not possible to blend them anymore. More often than not though, these two variations do mean the same thing and the only differences that arise are just from the tone or emphasis of the speaker. Note that this usage is separable and you can place the object between 'mix' and 'up' or after them and this will not change the meaning. Lucy mixed up the batter for the pancakes. Jeremy mixed up some cement to repair the wall. Let’s mix a salad up with all these fresh vegetables. The artists mixed up the paint colours to create a new shade. I'm going to mix the ingredients up in a large bowl before baking. The bartender mixed a few cocktails up for the guests. First, you will need to mix up some dough for the cookies. Whilst I was mixing up the herbs and spices for the marinade, I realised I had added the wrong herbs. Tom carefully mixed up the chemicals in the lab. Sarah's kids asked her if they could mix up some mud and water to make pretend pies. MEANING 2: To put things in the wrong order Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To mess up, to scramble, to jumble Separable? Yes In the last application, I explained how 'mix up' can be used to mean to combine two things by mixing them together in an intentional, positive way and now for our second application we have a bit more of a negative meaning as it means 'to put things in the wrong order'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Order Documents / Pages Dates / Days / Times Numbers Letters Imagine that you have spent a few hours preparing a work presentation on your computer with many different slides in the correct order to make it as effective as possible. The next week, just before the presentation starts you check the slides and notice that they are all out of order, with the first slide at the end and the second slide where the third slide should be etc. In this situation, you can say that the slides were 'mixed up' as the correct slide order was changed. This particular scenario has never happened to me but I have been in many situations in my life in which the order of something has been mixed up, causing me lots of problems or hassle as a result. Anyway, to clarify further, we can use this application for any situation in which the correct order of something is changed so that it is wrong. This might be something that is arranged in numerical or alphabetical order, something that is organised into chronological (time) order or even things that are arranged in a physical space. I've accidentally mixed up the pages of the report. Penny mixed the order of the photos in the album up. The teacher mixed up the students’ test papers by mistake. Please don’t mix up these files; they need to stay in alphabetical order. We mixed up the shipping labels and sent the packages to the wrong addresses. John mixed up the letters in his name so that it spelt njho. The numbers somehow got mixed up when I entered them into the spreadsheet. Someone's mixed up the order of the slides in the presentation, so I need some time to fix it. You should note that we often use the past participle form 'mixed-up' here as an adjective to refer to things whose correct orders have been mixed up and are therefore incorrect. If you want to add some emphasis or stress to say that the order of something is very mixed up you can say "all mixed up". Oh no! The receipts are mixed up; I spent ages putting them in the correct order yesterday. The loose pages of the manuscript fell on the floor and when I picked them up they were all mixed up. MEANING 3: To confuse two or more things Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To confuse, to muddle (up), to conflate, to confound Separable? Yes Next, we will move on to the third and perhaps most commonly used application of the phrasal verb 'mix up' and that is 'to confuse two or more things'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... People Numbers Dates Names Words This application is typically used when there are two or more things that share similar characteristics or attributes and as a consequence, people can make the mistake of thinking that one is the other and vice versa. For example, imagine that you meet two sisters, Lucy and Laura, who both look alike and have long brown hair. If you only met them once or twice and didn't know them very well, it would be easy to think that Lucy was Laura or Laura was Lucy and when you do this you are mixing them up. As you can imagine, this application is often one that is associated with older people, however I think that this is a bit unfair as everybody has the capacity to mix people or things up when they are not overly familiar with them. On a grammatical note, we can often also use the construction "to get XXX mixed up (with XX)" here as an alternative and you will often hear native speakers saying this in these situations. I always mix up your twins; they look so alike! I don't know how you tell them apart. Don’t mix up salt and sugar when you’re baking or you will have a nasty surprise. Claire got the two movie titles mixed up. Luke mixed up my phone with his because they are the same model. The waiter got our orders mixed up. I always get the words 'affect' and 'effect' mixed up. The teacher mixed up my essay with another student’s. Louise mixed up the names of the two cities. It’s easy to mix up those two songs as they have such similar melodies. You should also know that it is possible to use the construction 'to mix someone up' to mean 'to confuse someone or make them feel worried or upset in some way'. This is a rarer usage that I don't think I have ever personally used but it does exist, so you may well come across it one day in your English-speaking interactions. Don’t tell her that yet; it’ll just mix her up. That dream I had last night really mixed me up. She was so mixed up after the breakup that she didn’t know what she wanted anymore. MEANING 4: To become involved in something Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To involve, to get involved with / in, to embroil, to implicate Separable? Not usually Let's now move on to our fourth and final meaning of 'mix up', which is the most advanced of its applications but nevertheless has a logical link to the others and that is 'to become involved in something'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... People Numbers Dates Names Words Let me first clarify, when I say "to get involved in something", what I mean is to become a participant in a situation or alternatively, when talking about people, to become part of a social group. If you are mixed up in a situation or group of people, it simply means the same thing. You should note however that when we use 'mix up' in this context, it is usually to talk about something negative, troublesome or complicated. For example, you might talk about getting mixed up in a political scandal if you somehow become involved in one, or being mixed up in an argument between two friends who try to include you in it. When referring to people, this is often used to describe when someone starts socialising and spending time with groups or gangs of undesirable people or even criminal gangs. On a grammatical note, you should note that this application is mostly used in the passive voice and is formed with the constructions ' to get mixed up in ' to describe the process of becoming involved and ' to be mixed up in ' to describe the existing state of being involved. When talking about people, it is also possible to use 'with' as an alternative to 'in'. Paul got mixed up in a bad crowd at school. I advised Emily not to get mixed up in office politics. They are mixed up in a legal dispute that has been dragging on for years. I don’t want to get mixed up in their argument; it's nothing to do with me. Ben somehow got mixed up with the wrong people. Elizabeth got mixed up in a scandal without even realising it. Our company is mixed up in a corruption case. Don’t get mixed up in things that don’t concern you; it will do you no good! Tim was afraid of getting mixed up in criminal activity. Lesley got mixed up in a messy breakup between her friends. Photo: Pexels BONUS: The noun 'mix-up' and the adjective 'mixed-up' Now we've finished looking at the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'mix up', however did you know that there is also a noun 'mix-up' and adjective 'mixed-up' that have emerged in the English language as a result of this phrasal verb..... Let's first think about the noun 'mix-up', which is actually a pretty commonly used word, especially in the workplace in the English speaking world. A 'mix-up' is in fact just a mistake or error that causes confusion, often arising from a misunderstanding or as a result of someone mixing up two different things, like in the third application ( here ). Apologies for the mix-up; I thought the meeting was tomorrow! We had a mix-up at the airport and almost ended up on the wrong flight. The company blamed an administrative mix-up for the incorrect invoices. The adjective 'mixed-up' on the other hand can be used to describe a situation in which there is a 'mix-up' as per the above, however it is more commonly used to describe people. If you say that someone is 'mixed-up' it is usually to mean that he or she is emotionally unstable and is often confused and upset, sometimes with the potential to cause trouble. As such, it is often used to describe naughty children or teenagers who play up due to deep social or emotional issues. Kathy was a mixed-up teenager just trying to figure out who she was. Terry seems like a nice guy, he's just a bit mixed-up right now. The character in the story is a mixed-up young man who is searching for meaning. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'mix up'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'mix up'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'find out' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. This article is all about the phrasal verb 'find out', which is one that is extremely well known among English learners due to how common it is in everyday English. Did you know however that there are in fact two ways to use it? If you didn't, don't worry because in this post, I will explain both of these uses for you in detail, with a lot of example sentences for each one to ensure that you can find out as much as you can about this indispensable little phrasal verb 😊 So, without further ado, let's make a start.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one)   Find Out - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'find' and 'out' Find Out - Meaning 1: To learn new information Find Out - Bonus: To find out for oneself Find Out - Meaning 2: To be discovered after doing something wrong I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS FIND OUT: KEY INFORMATION Usage Common Number of meanings 2 Past tense forms Found out / Found out Separable? Yes Before we look at the meanings of 'find out', I just want to quickly consider the individual words 'find' and 'out' themselves to understand what they individually contribute to the phrasal verb. 'To find' is a commonplace verb in English that means 'to discover something'; this may be intentionally when you have lost something and are looking for it, or it may be by accident when you come across something unexpectedly. Like a lot of common verbs in English, 'to find' is irregular, with 'found' being both the simple past and past participle forms. In addition to this main meaning, 'to find' can also be used to mean 'to be present somewhere' and 'to feel a certain way about something' among other lesser used meanings. Claire found a £50 note on the pavement. The police have found the stolen car. Where can I find a shop that sells British newspapers? Traces of cocaine were found in the person's blood. I find that as I get older I dislike cities more and more. The prepositional particle 'out' is one of the most commonly featured particles in phrasal verb constructions. 'Out' often means away from the centre of something or a movement towards, or into, an external area from an internal one and this meaning can often be carried across into phrasal verbs, with ideas like removal and distribution (throw out, hand out). In addition to this, 'out' can be used in phrasal verbs to add ideas such as completion ( work out ), ending ( go out ) and disappearance (fade out). So, now that we have covered the basics, let's move on to the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'find out'.... MEANING 1: To learn new information Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1- Beginner Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To discover, to learn, to seek out Separable? Yes The first of our two meanings of 'find out' is the most common one and is one that I am sure that you will know already and that is 'to learn new information'. Words that commonly follow this application.... That About If Whether Question words: how / when / why etc When we discover new information, it may be in the form of factual information that we obtain from reading or asking questions or it may be in the form of information that we get from using our senses to perceive and interpret the world around us and what is happening in it. Moreover, this may be intentionally or by chance and we can use 'find out' in all of these scenarios. For example, many of us now have internet-enabled smartphones that give us access to a huge amount of information at any time that we want it. If you are curious about something and want to learn new information about it e.g. how many people live in Hawaii or what are the lyrics of a song, it is possible to look it up on a search engine on your phone and find the information out . Furthermore, it is likely that many of you reading this are here intentionally because you want to find out more information about the phrasal verb 'find out'. To give you a few more examples, you can also find out your exam or health test results, you may want to find out when a person's birthday is or how many siblings they have and your boss may ask you to find out some information that they will need for a specific task that they are working on. I am going to find out who’s responsible for this error. Louise found out the truth after asking several witnesses. We need to find out what time our train leaves tomorrow. The journalist found out more details about the political scandal. John has been trying to find out how the new system works since yesterday morning. They tried to found out the cost of the project by contacting the contractor responsible for it. Let’s find out whether the art gallery is open on Mondays. Can you find out where Melanie bought that jacket; it's so nice! The company found out what their customers wanted through surveys. In the sentences above, you will note that in each scenario the person wanted to discover or find out the information but as I stated earlier, we can also use 'find out' when the information discovery is accidental. For example, someone might find out that their partner is cheating on them if they accidentally see a text message or email from his or her lover, or if you do a DNA test, you could find out that you have a half brother or sister who you did not know existed (this recently happened to a friend of mine). I found out by accident that George was leaving the company. Jimmy found out about his surprise party when he saw the decorations outside his house. They only found out Jackie was already married after the wedding ceremony. I found out about the death of an old friend whilst scrolling on social media. During the house extension work, the family found out that there was a secret hidden cellar underneath the kitchen. In terms of register, whilst 'find out' is used a lot in spoken English, it is often replaced by a verb such as 'to discover' or 'to learn' in written English, particularly when it is a formal document. You are still likely to see 'find out' a lot on social media and in informal written English though. One last thing that I want to stress here is that this first application is extremely common in spoken everyday English and you can hear it being used by native speakers all the time. In all my years of teaching English, I've often noticed how learners and non-native speakers do not use it as much, choosing synonyms like 'to learn' and 'to know' instead. Whilst this is fine and there is usually nothing wrong with it, I would urge any learners to adopt a habit of using this application of 'find out' as it can really help your English to sound natural. Photo: Pixels BONUS: To find out for oneself A fairly common variation of this first application is 'to find out for oneself', which is perhaps quite an obvious meaning but I will explain it nevertheless. If you find something out for yourself, rather than learning about or discovering something through someone else's second-hand information, you discover it through direct personal experience or through personal investigation. It tends to be used more for experiences than for learning information but it is possible for both. You think it's easy but one day you will find out for yourself how difficult it is to live alone. Don’t just take my word for it; find out for yourself if it really works! Kerry found out for herself that managing a business is harder than it looks. Everyone must find out for themselves what they really want in life. MEANING 2: To be discovered after doing something wrong Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To discover Separable? Yes The second of our two applications of the phrasal verb 'find out' is really an evolution of the first but it is quite specific and is definitely more of an advanced level usage. Rather than finding information out, we are now finding people out and we use this for situations in which a person is discovered after doing something wrong. We use this application for any time when a person does something that they hide so that other people do not know about it for a period of time. When the truth of what the person has been doing becomes known, we can say that he or she has been "found out". As I stated above, this is typically used when the concealed activity is negative in nature and therefore includes lies, deception and secrets as well as criminal activities like fraud, theft and bribery. It could also be used when someone's real character is discovered and a part of themselves that they kept hidden becomes evident to other people. As a result of often being associated with negative activities, this usage does carry negative connotations, but it is still possible to use it for positive things that involve secrets like planning a surprise party, but this usage is much rarer. On a grammatical note, this application is often used in the passive voice as our focus tends to be on the discovery of the hidden wrongdoings and is often not on the person or people who discovered it. The thief was eventually found out by the police. Michelle pretended to be a lawyer, but she was soon found out when people realised she had no law knowledge. If you cheat on the test, you’ll definitely be found out. He tried to hide his past, but his friends found him out over time. Don’t lie; you’ll be found out sooner or later. They thought that no one would notice, but their fraudulent activity was found out in the end. Morgan was afraid of being found out as a fake. It took months, but the journalist finally found the corrupt officials out. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'find out'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'find out'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'take to' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. This post is all about the English phrasal verb 'take to'. I am certain that everyone reading this will be familiar with the construction 'take to', however do you know the different ways that you can use it as a phrasal verb? In this post, I will explain all of the different ways to use it, from the literal version that you are sure to know, to non-literal ones such as liking someone and hiding in your bedroom. I'll also provide you with common idioms that feature 'take to', lots of example sentences of how it is used and I will even explain why there is a duck in the picture above! So, without further ado, let's make a start.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one)   Take To - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'take' and 'to Take To - Meaning 1: Literal Take To - Meaning 2: To start liking someone or something Take To - Meaning 3: To begin doing something regularly Take To - Meaning 4: To learn how to do something quickly Take To - Bonus: The idiom 'to take to something like a duck to water' Take To - Meaning 5: To go somewhere to escape or for safety Take To - Bonus: Common idioms & expressions featuring 'take to' I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS TAKE TO: KEY INFORMATION Usage Common Number of meanings 5 Past tense forms Took to / Taken to Separable? Only with the literal application Phrasal verbs can often be very tough or confusing for learners to understand as their meanings can differ so much from the literal meanings of the words that form them. Despite this, I think it is a good idea to consider these words individually as they can often provide some clues to the less obvious phrasal verb meanings and so let's begin by looking at the words 'take' and 'to'. I think that every one of you reading this post will be familiar with 'to take' because it is an extremely common irregular verb in English. Perhaps its main meaning is to 'transport someone or something from one place to another, often when it is away from where the speaker is, was or will be'. Please can you take these documents to reception. The taxi took us to the airport. In addition, 'to take' has many other meanings, both common and rare, including 'to remove something', 'to last for a period of time' and 'to tolerate'. Take a copy and pass the rest on to your classmates. The journey from London to New York takes 7 hours by plane. I don't think I can take much more pain; I need morphine! The other word in our phrasal verb combination is the very common prepositional particle 'to'. This is actually one of the most common words in the English language and can be used in many ways, including to form the infinitive of a verb. Moreover, it is often used with movement to refer to a destination, direction or the recipient of something. Despite being so widespread in English, 'to' features in surprisingly few phrasal verbs when compared to particles like 'up' and 'down'. When it is included in phrasal verbs, it can add different ideas such as direction and communication. So, now that we have covered the basics, let's move on to discover what happens when we combine 'take' and 'to' to form a phrasal verb.... MEANING 1: Literal Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level A1 - Beginner Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To bring to, to deliver, to ferry Separable? Yes Let's start with the literal meaning that we get from combining the words 'take' and 'to, which is simply 'to carry or transport something to a place'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Person / Animal Food Documents Parcels / Packages Car You should note that when 'take to' is used this way, it is not a true phrasal verb usage as we do not get a new meaning when we combine the words here; it is just a verb + preposition structure. Remember that a true phrasal verb is when the meaning is different to the sum of the parts (we will move on to these shortly). We use this literal application to talk about physically transporting a person, animal or object from one place to another. This can be by carrying it or using a form of transport like a car or bicycle. Be careful not to confuse this usage with 'bring to'. While both of these verbs talk about transporting someone or something, 'take to' is used when the movement is away from the speaker, or to another location from where the speaker is and 'bring to' is for when the movement is towards the speaker or where the speaker will be. Are you taking anything to the party tonight? (the person asking the question will not be at the party) Are you bringing anything to the party tonight? (the person asking the question will be at the party) On a grammatical level, unlike the non-literal applications of 'take to' that we will look at shortly, this application is separable and should always be used with the object between 'take' and 'to. I have to take my car to the garage tomorrow. Pamela took the kids to the park after school. Please take this package to the post office before 4pm. Nik took his grandmother to the hospital. Can you take me to the airport for 6 a.m.? The cable car will take you to the top of the mountain. We took our dog to the vet last week for a check-up. Take this cup of coffee to your Dad and wake him up. Sue has taken her car to the garage to be looked at by a mechanic. One other way that this can be used literally is when we use 'to take' with a form of public transport like a bus a or a train, meaning to travel on it. When you take a bus or train etc, it is common to state the destination of where you are going and for this we need 'to'. I am taking a train to London in the morning. The tourists took a boat to the island, where they spent the day. MEANING 2: To start to like someone or something Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To like, to take a shine to Separable? No The second of the applications of the phrasal verb 'take to' that we will consider in this post is the first of the "proper" phrasal verb meanings and this one is 'to start to like someone or something'. This application is used for both people and things, typically to describe those moments when people decide if they like someone or something shortly after meeting or experiencing them for the first time. From my own experience, I would say that it is more frequently heard in reference to people than to objects or things. To explain further, think of those times in life when you meet someone for the first time and you immediately like them, perhaps because they are cheerful and friendly they say something nice about you, or there is something about their energy that appeals to you. In these situations, instead of saying that you liked them immediately, you could say that you " took to them straight away ". Alternatively, if you did not the like person or were not sure about them, you could say the same in the negative, i.e. you did not take to the person when you first met them. . I wasn’t sure about the new manager at first, but I quickly took to him. The puppy immediately took to its new home. Surprisingly, the children took to the healthy food once they tried it. Martha didn’t think she’d like city life, but she soon took to it. It took Barbara a while to take to her new grandson but she loves him dearly now. My Mum really did not take to my ex-girlfriend and told me that she was bad news from the start. MEANING 3: To begin doing something regularly Photo: Wix Media CEFR Langage Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To take up, to make a habit of Separable? No In the last section, I explained how 'take to' can be used to mean to begin liking something and for the third application, we are going to take things one step further as it means 'to begin doing something regularly'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Running / jogging Cycling Fishing Gardening Smoking Drinking / Alcohol / Booze I guess this is quite a logical progression from the previous meaning as when we like something, we often do it again and if we do it regularly enough, it becomes a habit. So, as you can probably guess, we use this application a lot with nouns for when people take up hobbies and pastimes. Note that these are mostly used in the gerund form e.g. cycling, running, playing football but in some cases we can also refer to nouns. It is not only used with hobbies and pastimes though as it is also used to describe something that a person starts doing regularly (that they did not do before). This includes bad habits too such as drinking alcohol, smoking and stealing. On a grammatical note, this is not separable and is mainly used in the simple past and present perfect tenses as you only really know something is a habit after the action has been done many times in the past. After retiring, Jim took to gardening every morning. John has taken to running as a way of forgetting about his work stress. Louise took to reading the newspaper on the train to work. Malcolm took to biting his nails whenever he felt nervous. During the Covid lockdown, many people took to baking bread at home. My grandfather has taken to walking with a stick, even though he doesn't really need one. Shelley took to stealing money from her parents in order to buy cigarettes. Leanne took to getting to work early just to enjoy some quiet time at the office. MEANING 4: To learn how to do something quickly Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To pick up Separable? No Our fourth meaning of 'take to' is another one that is linked to the previous two applications and is 'to learn how to do something quickly'. We all have things that we are naturally able to do easily, which other people may find difficult or harder to learn. For example, I am naturally good at learning languages, however I am terrible at driving and cooking and I do not possess any natural skills when it comes to these activities....none....ask anyone who knows me! When a person starts learning something new, if the have a natural ability to do it and learn it very quickly, we can say that they " take to it ". For example, you might say that a person takes to driving, or a child takes to riding a bike. You should note that normally when we use this application we need to give an indication of how quickly the person takes to something and this is normally in the form of an adverb (quickly, immediately) or a phrase that functions as an adverb (after a short time, more quickly). If you're not sure, remember an adverb is used to describe a verb action. Lastly, sometimes we can use this application to describe when a person starts doing something new in their life, like living in a new country or starting a new job, which links us nicely back to the previous application. Suzanne took to skiing immediately, as if she had done it all her life. Laura's children took to swimming after just a few lessons. Surprisingly, Joanne took to the complicated software with ease. Robert took to speaking French so naturally that his teacher was highly impressed. The German tourists took to driving on the left-hand side of the road much more easily than they had expected. My younger brother took to chess the very first time he played and beat the whole family. Photo: Pexels BONUS: To take to something like a duck to water You may have noticed the picture of the duck at the start of this post and wondered what on Earth a duck has to do with the phrasal verb 'take to'. Well, the reason for it is that we have a very well known idiomatic expression featuring both 'take to' and ducks in English, which is 'to take to something like a duck to water'. If you take to something like a duck to water, it means that you find that you have a natural ability to do something when you try it for the first time and do not find it difficult or challenging. It could also be used for those times when you do something new without having any issues or problems with it, like starting school or a new job. Paul took to his new job like a duck to water. I was worried about my son starting university, but he took to it like a duck to water. MEANING 5: To go somewhere to escape or for safety Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Rare Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To flee to, to withdraw, to flee to Separable? No For the fifth and final application of 'take to', we are going to have a change of vibe as this one is not similar to the others and means 'to go somewhere to escape or for safety'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Bed Room Hills / Mountains Sky Shelter / Refuge Many of us have experienced times in our lives when we have needed to go somewhere in order to stay safe and in these often worrying and stressful situations, we can use the phrasal verb 'take to' with the name of the place of safety or comfort to describe this escaping action. I would say that the most commonly used noun with this application is actually 'bed' as many people go to bed for long periods of time when they are ill or upset in some way as it offers a place of refuge, safety and comfort for us. Furthermore, some people (especially teenagers and young people) will take to their bedrooms to be alone where they feel safe. In more extreme cases, people may take to a place of shelter or refuge in times of war and natural disasters when their homes and lives are threatened and to avoid danger. We also see this in the animal kingdom, with birds taking to the skies to avoid predators and mammals taking to the water to escape fires for example. Lastly, you should note that this application is perhaps slightly more old-fashioned than the others, however it is still used in everyday English, so you well may come across it at some point! Feeling unwell, Tracey took to her bed for the rest of the day. The wounded soldier has taken to his tent to recover. When the storm broke out, the mountain hikers took to a nearby cave for shelter. After the argument with his parents, Callum took to his room and refused to come out. During the riots in the city, many families took to the countryside to stay safe. Exhausted after the long journey, the travellers took to their beds without dinner. Photo: Pexels BONUS: Common idioms and expressions featuring 'take to' We've already looked at the idiom 'to take to something like a duck to water', however we also have some other commonly used expressions and idioms featuring 'take to' that I want to make you aware of.... To take to the streets - The expression 'to take to the streets' is used to describe when people are angry and frustrated about something. As a result, they start demonstrating or, in extreme cases, rioting in the streets of a town or city. In other words, they want to show their opposition to something that has been decided by their government or an authority and want it to change. Thousands of protesters took to the streets to demand justice after the new law was passed. To take to the road - We use this expression to talk about when someone starts a journey, which is often one with many different destinations such as a tour. This could be a singer or group on a world tour to promote their music or a company on a marketing trip. With just his backpack and guitar, Neil took to the road in search of adventure, fame and fortune. To take someone to the cleaners - This idiomatic expression does not mean to take someone who is dirty to be cleaned but is rather used when someone takes all of your money or belongings in a way that is considered to be unfair or illegal. Let's hope you never need to use this one! The con artist took the Ben's grandfather to the cleaners, leaving him with nothing in his bank account. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'take to'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'take to'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'hang on' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. In this article, the phrasal verb that will be going under the microscope is 'hang on'. I imagine that many of you reading this will know this phrasal verb as it is common, however did you know that there are at least 8 different ways to use it in English? In this post, I will explain these 8 different ways to you and provide you with lots of example sentences for each one. So, without further ado, let's make a start.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one)   Hang On - The Basics: Key information and the individual words 'hang' and 'on' Hang On - Meaning 1: Literal Hang On - Meaning 2: To grip something with your hands Hang On - Meaning 3: To wait for a short period 🇬🇧 Hang On - Bonus: To keep someone hanging on Hang On - Meaning 4: To depend on something 🇺🇸 Hang On - Meaning 5: To blame someone for something Hang On - Meaning 6: To listen carefully to someone Hang On - Meaning 7: To keep hold of something Hang On - Meaning 8: To persevere I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS HANG ON: KEY INFORMATION Usage Common Number of meanings 8 Past tense forms Hung on / Hung on Separable? Sometimes All phrasal verbs are formed by combining two separate individual words to form a new lexical unit with its own meanings. In the case of 'hang on', the two words that we are combining are the verb 'to hang' and the prepositional particle 'on'. The verb 'to hang' is a common irregular verb in the English language with a number of different meanings. I would say that the most common of these is to suspend an object by attaching the top part of it to something, while leaving the bottom part free to dangle or swing in the air. It is also quite a special verb as one of its meanings (to kill someone by hanging them from a rope) has its own past tense form: 'hanged', as opposed to the standard past tense form: 'hung'. Moreover, 'to hang' is used in a large amount of phrasal verbs, such as 'hang out', 'hang back' and this one 'hang on'. Can I hang my coat somewhere? The decorations were hanging on the Christmas tree Sally hung the clothes out to dry in the sunshine. The murdered was hanged for his crimes. The word 'on', like many other particles, is extremely common and is used in a huge number of ways in modern English. Its main meaning however is probably 'to be physically in contact with and supported by a surface' e.g. on the table or on a wall. When used in phrasal verbs 'on' can be used to add various different ideas like continuation ( carry on ), progress ( get on ), targeting (pick on) and activation (turn on), among others. So, now that we have covered the basics, let's dive into the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'hang on'.... MEANING 1: Literal Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level A2 - Elementary Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To hang, to hang up, to suspend Separable? Yes Let's begin our exploration of the phrasal verb 'hang on' with the literal meaning of the two words when they are combined. This first application of 'hang on' that we will cover is not really a true phrasal verb meaning as it is simply talking about the action of hanging an object on something that supports it, such as a hook, a nail or even a Christmas tree. Beth hung her coat on the rack by the door. Please hang your backpack on the hook, so it doesn’t fall. Robert hung the picture on the wall above the fireplace. You can hang your towel on the bar after you’ve had a shower. Alternatively, it is also possible to use this from a more passive perspective to advise that something is hanging somewhere or was hung somewhere. Where has my coat gone? It was hanging by the door! The decorations have all been hung on the Christmas tree and it looks lovely. MEANING 2: To grip something with your hands Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B1 - Intermediate Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To hold tight, to grip, to grasp, to cling Separable? No Do you enjoy rides like roller coasters or big wheels? Well if you do, this second application of 'hang on' will be a very useful one for you as it means 'to grip something with your hands', which is exactly what you need to do when you are whizzing around at speed on a fairground ride. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Rail Bar Side Handle Hand To clarify, we use this particular application when we need to hold something tightly for safety, support or both. It is very similar to the phrasal verb synonym 'hold on', however 'hang on' is perhaps a little more informal and used more in spoken English. It is often used when there is some sort of danger or risk and if you do not 'hang on', you could be injured or, in extreme cases, killed. Consequently, it is regularly used in the imperative form, often followed by 'tight' or 'tightly' to tell the person to grip firmly. Hang on to the railing, the steps are slippery and you could fall. The child hung on to his mother’s hand while crossing the street. Hang on tight! The roller coaster is about to start! The fallen climber hung on to the edge of the cliff until help arrived. Debbie hung on to the rope as the boat rocked in the huge waves. The monkey hung on to the tree branch with both hands. Louis had to hang on to the side of the bus as it sped around the corner. MEANING 3: To wait for a short period Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B1 - Intermediate Usage Common Where is it used? British English Potential synonyms To wait, to hold on, to stop Separable? No The third application of 'hang on' is a primarily British one that means 'to wait for a short period of time'. This usage is an informal one that is mostly used in spoken British English and, like the previous application, is also a synonym of 'hold on', which is likely to be more familiar to learners of American English. Typically, when a speaker says 'hang on' it is to ask the other person / people to wait for a short period of time like a few seconds or a couple of minutes. As such, it is common to hear the expressions 'hang on a second' or 'hang on a minute' being used here (or extremely informally even 'hang on a min' and 'hang on a sec'). Hang on, I’ll be ready in just a minute. Could you hang on while I find that file for you? Hang on, let me check who’s at the door. If you don't mind hanging on a second, I’ll print the document. Could you hang on until the manager gets back? Hang on a second, this won’t take long. Just hang on, the show is about to begin. Another way that British speakers use this application is when they think of something that is interesting or notice something that is incorrect and they want to make others aware of it, sometimes by stopping the flow of a conversation. Hang on, you said that you were at home sick on Friday night, so why is there a picture of you on Facebook in the bar? Hang on, that is not right - we need to do it another way. Hang on a minute, I've just had a brilliant idea about what to do for James' party Photo: Pexels BONUS: To keep someone hanging on Whilst we are on the subject of waiting, I want to make you aware of the expression 'to keep someone hanging on', which means to keep someone waiting for something like a decision or information that you want or need. As a result, the person who is waiting in suspense continues to have high interest in the other person or pays them a lot of attention. You should know that there is also a similar expression, which means the same: to leave someone hanging. This expression is something that you often hear about in romantic relationships and therefore has featured in many songs over the years, like this 80s gem (that was originally a 60s classic).... MEANING 4: To depend on something Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To depend on, to be contingent on, to hinge on, to be conditional on Separable? No Let's now move on to our fourth application of the phrasal verb 'hang on', which is 'to depend on something'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Decision Verdict Outcome Result Future When we say that one thing hangs on another, it is exactly the same as saying that one thing depends on it, meaning that it will be directly affected or decided by it. In other words, one thing can only happen when something else allows it to or makes it possible. As a result, this application is often used in life situations in which decisions must be made and outcomes must be reached, e.g. court cases, test results. Michael's success hangs on whether he passes the final exam. The outcome of the trial hangs on a single piece of evidence. The decision of the medics hangs on the results of the medical test. Our holiday plans hang on the weather this weekend. The future of the project hangs on the approval of the board. Emma's reputation will hang on how she handles this situation. The team’s chances of winning hang on their star player’s performance. Everything hangs on what happens in the next few hours. MEANING 5: To blame someone for something Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To blame Separable? Yes Have you ever been in a situation where you have been blamed for something, even though you did not do it? This is something that happens to lots of people and our fifth application of the phrasal verb 'hang on' is used to describe exactly this situation. Most of the time with this usage, a person is accused of doing something or blamed for something that they did not do. In many cases, it can be the real culprit who blames the innocent person as a way of avoiding getting caught for what they did. You should note that to use this application, you should follow a set structure, outlined below: to hang something on someone The 'something' mentioned above is usually a crime, wrongdoing, failure, fault or problem of some sort and the 'someone' is the person who receives the blame. Lastly, you should note that this usage is another informal one that is more commonly heard in American English, although it would be understood by almost all native English speakers. They tried to hang the mistake on the new employee but the manager soon realised. Don’t hang this failure on me; I wasn’t even there! Phil always hangs his problems on other people instead of taking responsibility for them. Sue didn’t want the accident to be hung on her, since it wasn’t her fault. How dare you try and hang this on me! I had nothing to do with it and you know it! You should be aware that the management might try and hang this on you so that they do not need to explain their actions to the shareholders. MEANING 6: To listen carefully to someone Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To listen, to concentrate on Separable? No Maybe one day if I ever get the time, I might start recording video clips to explain phrasal verbs. If I do, I hope that my viewers will hang on attentively to what I say. The reason that I am telling you this is that the sixth meaning of the phrasal verb 'hang on' is exactly that: 'to listen carefully to what someone says'. We use this application when a listener is extremely focussed on or deeply interested in what the speaker is saying and they want to hear more. It is almost like they are transfixed or hypnotised by the person's words, although not quite as strong as that but you get the idea I'm sure. You should also note that this application tends to follow a set expression, which is "to hang on to a person's every word", however there are other variations of this too. Most of the time, this usage is heard when the speaker is very interesting, when the listener greatly admires the speaker or even when the listener has a sexual or romantic interest in the speaker. The students hung on every word their teacher said. Samantha hung on Logan's every word, eager to hear what he would say next. The audience hung on the speaker’s words throughout the whole lecture. Jason loved telling stories and the children would hang on his every word when he did. The young players hung on the coach’s words, waiting for their last-minute instructions. The crowd hung on the politician’s words, hoping for good news. Poppy always hung on her grandmother’s words whenever she shared old family stories. The fans hung on the singer’s every word during the interview. MEANING 7: To keep hold of something Photo: Pexels CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To keep, to retain Separable? No Our seventh and penultimate meaning of the phrasal verb 'hang on' is a very common one that means 'to keep hold of something'. To explain, when I say 'keep hold of something', what I mean is to retain something in your possession and not give it away, sell it or get rid of it somehow. It stays with you and continues to belong to you. For example, imagine that you borrow a phone charger from a friend as you have lost yours. Once you have charged your phone, you try to give the charger back and your friend tells you to "hang on to it" (keep it) as that is their spare charger and they have another one. Another example would be if you are clearing out your attic and you come across all of your old school books. You then have to make a decision about throwing them away or hanging on to them (keeping them). On a grammatical note, for this application we require the additional preposition 'to' and for this it is possible to see two variations: 'to hang on to' and 'to hang onto'. Both variations are deemed to be correct and have no difference in meaning, however the three-word version 'hang on to' is considered to be the most grammatically correct. Rachel decided to hang on to her old books instead of selling them. I think you should hang on to that jacket; it might come back into fashion one day. Paul hung on to his first car even though it had a lot of problems. They’re going to hang on to the house until the market improves. Rosalind hung on to the necklace because it was a family heirloom. I think I'll hang on to these receipts in case we need them later. Joseph hung on to his childhood toys for sentimental reasons. The Jones family want to hang on to their land rather than sell it to developers. Bella hung on to the letter for years, unable to throw it away. Nick decided to hang on to his shares, hoping their value would rise. MEANING 8: To persevere Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To persevere, to persist, to continue, to keep at it, to struggle on Separable? No We've now reached our eighth and final application of the phrasal verb 'hang on', which means 'persevere' and is something that you may have done if you have read this entire article in one go 😀 If you're not sure what the verb 'to persevere' means, it is 'to continue to do something despite difficulties or challenges' and this usage of 'hang on' means the exact same thing. In other words, you persist with something although it is hard. As you can imagine, this application is normally used for any situations or scenarios which are difficult for the person experiencing them and for which a lot of effort and determination are required. This could be anything from running a marathon, to being involved in a court case or writing a blog about phrasal verbs. The idea is that you do not stop when things become hard but rather continue until you succeed. One common variation of this that you may come across from time to time is 'to hang on in there!'. We use this nice little expression normally as a phrase of encouragement for other people to say is like saying "don't give up!" or "you can do this!". Times are tough, but we just have to hang on until things get better. Vernon hung on through months of pain and finally recovered. The team hung on despite being outnumbered and managed to win. Amy’s hanging on, even though the workload is immense. The company is hanging on with the hope of attracting new investors. Becky hung on to her dream, even when everyone else doubted her Come on Louise hang on in there! Only 2 miles of the marathon left to run. Hang on in there, Michelle. We know you will survive this. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'hang on'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'hang on'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END

An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'cut down' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context Photo: Pexels Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native. How well do you know the phrasal verb 'cut down'? Did you know that in modern English it has at least 3 different meanings and applications? In this post, I will be explaining these different meanings and giving you lots of example sentences of each one to show you how the kinds of contexts that they are used in. So, without further ado, let's make a start.... TABLE OF CONTENTS   (Click to jump to each one) Cut Down - The Basics: Key information & the individual words 'cut' and 'down' Cut Down - Meaning 1: To make something fall to the ground by cutting it Cut Down - Bonus: The Sycamore Gap Tree Cut Down - Meaning 2: To reduce something Cut Down - Meaning 3: To kill someone Cut Down - Bonus: The idiom 'to cut somebody down to size' I love writing this blog & helping learners but I receive very little feedback as to how useful it is or if people enjoy & learn from it. Therefore, if you find the post useful, please like & share it or leave a comment at the end. I'd be very grateful. Thank you! James 😊 Photo: Pexels THE BASICS CUT DOWN: KEY INFORMATION Usage Common Number of meanings 3 Past tense forms Cut down / Cut down Separable? Sometimes The phrasal verb 'cut down' is formed by combining the verb 'to cut' with the prepositional particle 'down' and so before we take a look at 'cut down', let's first briefly consider the meanings of these words on their own. I am sure that you are already familiar with the super common verb 'to cut', which is one of those annoying and confusing irregular verbs that does not change its form in the past tenses. The main idea of the verb 'to cut' is to use something sharp like a knife or scissors to break a surface or separate something. In addition, it can also be used to mean to reduce, to stop or to end something. My hairdresser cuts my hair once a month. I cut myself whilst I was chopping onions. Somebody has cut the telephone cable. My hours at work have been cut and now I am only working three days a week. The government is looking to cut the benefits for many people. As you will know, the word 'down' has many different meanings and uses in English, many of which are to describe a downward movement or decrease of some sort. In phrasal verb constructions, 'down' can often indicate these ideas as well as ideas like defeat or destruction ( break down ) or controlling (calm down), among others. So, now that we have considered the basics, let's move on to the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'cut down'.... MEANING 1: To make something fall to the ground by cutting it Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Medium Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To fell, to chop down Separable? Yes Our first application of the phrasal verb 'cut down' is more or less a literal combination of the meanings of the two words and is 'to make something fall to the ground by cutting it'. Nouns commonly used with this application..... Tree Plant Hedge Grass Weeds Pole You will notice that the majority of the nouns in the list above are for plants and that is because this application is overwhelmingly used with our green-leaved friends and in particular, trees. If you cut something down, you use a sharp implement like an axe or a chainsaw and cut through the base or lower part of it, causing it to fall to the ground. Note that we only tend to use this when the plant or structure is tall and will fall over and hit the ground once it has been cut. On a grammatical note, this is a separable application and you can use 'cut a tree down' and 'cut down a tree', without any change in the meaning. The workers cut the old oak tree down to clear space for the new road. Before the storm arrived, several trees were cut down to prevent them from falling on houses. The farmer cut down the tall grass with his scythe. The council had to cut down the damaged telephone pole after the accident. The lumberjacks carefully cut down the pine trees to use them for timber. The villagers were forced cut down the sacred palm trees to build huts. The soldiers were ordered to cut the enemy’s flagpole down. After weeks of work, they finally cut the massive cedar tree down. Photo: Pexels BONUS: THE SYCAMORE GAP TREE There was a story in the UK national news a couple of years ago about a famous tree called the Sycamore Gap tree, which was found in the North of England near to the Scottish border. The tree was situated in the middle of a dip in the landscape between two small hills, creating a beautiful sight and landmark and it was popular with tourists and was even used in Hollywood movies. Sadly, a couple of mindless drunken idiots decided to cut the tree down one night for no apparent reason, which was so sad. There is a picture of the tree above and if you want to learn more and see how this application of 'cut down' is used, check out this link.... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-72c404c5-35f2-4d43-bed1-1f5f1f7208dc MEANING 2: To reduce something Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level B2 - Upper intermediate Usage Common Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To reduce, to cut back (on), to decrease, to lower Separable? No The second of our three meanings of the phrasal verb 'cut down' is the most commonly used in everyday English and means 'to reduce something'. Nouns commonly used with this application.... Cigarettes Alcohol Meat Bread Carbohydrates Writing Length There are a few different variations of this second application of 'cut down', however the core meaning of all them is to reduce or lower the amount, size or frequency of something. This may be something physical that you need to reduce the size of by cutting it. This would be something that you may often hear with jobs that require skilled trades like carpenters or plumbers, or even DIY. For example if you are trying to install a new shelf in your kitchen and the shelf is too big for the space, you may need to cut it down with an appropriate tool so that it fits. Furthermore, it is common to cut a new carpet down to the correct size before laying it in a room. The carpenter cut down the table legs in order to make it shorter. Maggie asked the tailor to cut her dress down so it would fit better. The plumbers cut down the pipe to the right length for installation. Joe the mechanic cut the metal rod down to the right size to fit inside the machine. Additionally, this application of 'cut down' is also a great one to talk about when you want to reduce the amount of something in general. This may be in reference to how much money you spend or the level of something measurable like pollution or crime. Note that when we follow 'cut down' with a noun or a gerund here, we often add the additional preposition 'on' to link the noun to the phrasal verb. The addition of 'on' does not affect the meaning. The company plans to cut down production costs this year. We need to cut down our expenses if we want to save for a vacation. The government is working to cut down pollution in big cities. The new police commissioner has vowed to cut down on crime in big cities over the next 5 years. Moreover, if you want to talk about reducing the frequency that you do something like a habit or an activity, you can use 'cut down' to express this too. This one is frequently heard in everyday English since cutting down and reducing our intake of certain things is often done to improve our health and life in general. This is also one that you will hear when people talk about going on a diet or trying to lose weight. I’ve been trying to cut down on how often I eat fast food. To lose weight, Shelley is trying to cut down the amount of sugar in her diet. Ben promised to cut down his use of plastic bags. The doctor told Jeanette to cut down on drinking coffee during the day. You should cut down your spending on clothes if you want to save money. They are trying to cut down the amount of paper used in the office. Farmers were encouraged to cut down their use of chemical fertilisers. I need to cut down on checking my phone every few minutes; I'm addicted! The teacher advised the students to cut down on careless errors in their writing. We’re going to try and cut down on unnecessary trips to the supermarket. Lastly, it is also possible to use the construction 'to cut something down to' when you want to specify the desired reduced size, level or frequency of something once you have cut it down. For example, you may cut down how many cigarettes you smoke from 20 to 10 a day, or you could cut down how often you go on social media to just once per day. One example that can often be heard here is in relation to writing and documents when there are too may words and you need to reduce the amount, so you may need to cut the document down to a maximum of 500 or 1000 words for example. The article was cut down to 1000 words for the magazine. The Prime Minister's speech was cut down to just five minutes because of time limits. The company’s cut their budget down to $1 million. The team was cut down to only ten players after two were injured. The movie direct had to cut the movie length down to two hours for the final release. MEANING 3: To kill someone Photo: Wix Media CEFR Language Level C1 - Advanced Usage Rare Where is it used? Everywhere Potential synonyms To kill, to slay, to murder, to slaughter, to strike down Separable? Yes Our third and final meaning of the phrasal verb 'cut down' is the rarest of the three and means 'to kill someone'. Typically, we use 'to cut someone down' when a person is killed by a weapon such as a gun or knife or by a disease. It is quite a literary and formal usage and one that you probably would not use in everyday speech talking with your friends and family. Personally, it reminds of when people are killed in battles, particularly those historical ones when people fought with swords and shields. As you can see from the examples below, this is often used in the passive voice, told from the perspective of the victim. The knight was cut down in battle before he could raise his sword. Several soldiers were cut down by enemy fire. Sir Robert cut down all of the soldiers who tried to attack him and held the line by himself. Innocent civilians were cut down during the attack. The merchant was cut down by an assassin’s blade in the dark alley. The hero's father was tragically cut down in the prime of his life, leaving him an orphan. Many young men were sadly cut down on the front lines of the war. You should note that we also have an expression 'to be cut down in your prime' which is used to talk about when a person is killed at a young age before they are able to reach their full potential. The young woman was a brilliant scientist, cut down in her prime before completing her research. The budding athlete was cut down in his prime by a sudden illness and he never got to fulfil his dream of competing in the Olympic Games. History is full of leaders who were cut down in their prime, leaving their work unfinished. Photo: Pexels BONUS: The idiom 'to cut somebody down to size' Let's finish the post with a little idiom featuring 'cut down', which is 'to cut somebody down to size'. This expression is one that we can use to describe those really satisfying moments when a person who thinks that they are very important or successful is made to realise that they are not as important or successful as they think. As you can probably imagine, this one is used for people who are arrogant and overconfident and need a reality check! Henrietta thought she was the smartest person in the room, but the professor’s tough question cut her down to size. The critics cut the actor down to size with harsh reviews of his latest film. The arrogant player was finally cut down to size when the rookie outperformed him and scored more goals than him. Photo: Pexels We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'cut down'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts. Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'cut down'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!! Sign up on the form below if you want to receive new blog posts directly by email every week as soon as they are published. Also, if you found the post useful, please like and share it on social media. See you next time! James 😊 THE END