This Blog

This blog addresses problems in grammar, research, and style that I have frequently encountered in my students' and my own writing. I aim to explain these problems and provide resources for others who may encounter similar difficulties.

Saturday, 14 May 2011

Phrasal Verbs

Students often ask me how to decrease their word count for assignments.  Changing phrasal verbs to one-word verbs is an easy way to lower word count and improve writing.

Phrasal verbs consist of a verb and a preposition (such as at, from, and in) or a prepositional phrase (such as in the place of or from doing):

come in
give up
step up
wind up
go out from
put in the place of
take away from
stop from doing

There is almost always a more precise single-word verb that can replace a phrasal verb:

Phrasal Verb                       One-word Verb
come in                        =          enter
give up                         =          quit
step up                         =          intensify
wind up                        =          conclude, tease, arrive
go out from                  =          exit
put in the place of         =          replace
take away from            =          confiscate
stop from doing            =          prohibit

Phrasal verbs add to a word count, but they may also confuse a reader who is not familiar with the phrasal verb.  The preposition or prepositional phrase changes the meaning of the verb.  For example, the meaning of “wind up” may be difficult to discover from the meaning of “wind” and can have completely different senses in different contexts: to conclude an action, to tease a person, or to arrive somewhere.

Find the best one-word verb for the situation.


Resources

The English Page explains how to use phrasal verbs properly.  Learn English Today has a handy alphabetical list of phrasal verbs and their meanings.

The English Club and Stuff have good basic quizzes.  Frankfurt International School’s quiz is much more challenging. 

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