04, December, 2024

Episode 224: Do you really need to learn Phrasal Verbs?

Welcome back to English-Podcasts. In this podcast we talk about Phrasal verbs. Do you really need to learn them? If so, how many and how?

Notes

Join us as we discuss the pitfalls of Phrasal Verbs.

First of all, what are Phrasal Verbs? They are verbs whose meaning changes when a preposition is added. For example, let’s take the verb “Take”, which has many different meaning depending on the preposition; to take off (for a plane, for clothes), to take on (to hire someone.) to take in (the reduce the size of clothes), take out (to remove).

Ok, so do you really need to learn this. The short answer is yes, especially if you’re working with native English speakers. But what is the best way to remember these verbs?

In this podcast we give some tips and focus in particular on phrasal verbs which are frequently used in meetings.

Recap & Takeaways

The first point is ….. do not be afraid of phrasal verbs, they may seem strange to you, but they can be very helpful and they are an essential part of the language.

The best way to learn phrasal verbs is to see them in context.

So think of your context. Is it a meeting? Is it shopping? Is it at the airport? Is it in a restaurant?

Try to notice phrasal verbs when you’re in these particular contexts. It’s extremely difficult (if not impossible) to learn these verbs from a list in a book. Always visualise yourself in the context.

And in this podcast you’ll notice that you don’t need to learn many of them.

Start small and build on them.