English Phrasal Verbs - a Beauty of the English Language and a Headache for its Learners

What is... phrasal verb? There are several definitions given by British and American grammarians who are authorities on... subject. What would be... most helpful approach for... learner of English whose mother tongue is Russian? Does Russian grammar have any similar ways of supplying... commonly used verb with... new meaning?

... answer is - yes, it has. Only it isn't... adverbial particle (... very-very short adverb that often looks like... preposition), but... prefix ['pri: fiks] that gives many commonly used verbs... new meaning: «говорить», «уговорить», «переговорить», «приговорить», «оговорить», etc.

You already know quite... few phrasal verbs. You have been using them since... first year you took up your course of English. Here are some of them:

• Verbs that do not take... object (intransitive verbs): be in, go in, come
in, go on, hold on, go back, be back, etc.

• Verbs that take... object (transitive verbs): turn sth on, turn sth off, see
sb off, give sth back, put sth on, look sth up, etc.

Most phrasal verbs are short.... adverbial particle that is part of them is stressed, unlike... preposition which is not stressed (in either English or Russian, by... way).

Phrasal verbs are mostly used in everyday informal situations and make... conversation natural and expressive. They may be used in formal situations, too, but their more stylistically formal synonyms are preferred.

e.g. The discussion has been put off. (informal)

The discussion has been postponed, (more formal)

Most phrasal verbs have synonyms belonging to... more formal style:

bring back - return

call off - cancel

carry out - fulfil

give up - stop doing

turn down - 1) reject

2) lower the sound

... advice that can be given for learning phrasal verbs easily is not to try to remember... long list of such verbs at once.... much better way of memorizing phrasal verbs would be learning... very modest portion at... time (за один раз).

Phrasal verbs with 'turn'

turn... down - 1) reject an offer (отклонить предложение)

2) lower the sound (of TV, radio, etc.) (приглушить звук)

Parti

turn... up - make louder (сделать громче)

turn... into - change into something different (превратиться)

turn... off -switch off (выключить)

turn... on - switch on (включить)

turn out - be the result in the end (оказаться, оказываться)

5. Translate the following into English using the phrasal verbs with 'turn'.

1. Оказалось, что все его попытки заняться бизнесом заканчивались
провалом.

2. Родители попросили детей приглушить звук телевизора, но дети
не послушались их и сделали его еще громче.

3. Она обратилась в известную фирму по поводу устройства на рабо­
ту, но, к сожалению, ее не приняли.

4. Не забудь выключить свет, когда будешь уходить!

5. Когда мы наконец приехали в гостиницу, которую мы заброниро­
вали по Интернету, оказалось, что свободных номеров нет, и нам
пришлось искать другую гостиницу.

6. Как только он приходит домой, он сразу же включает и телевизор
в гостиной, и радио на кухне. Это просто невыносимо!

7. Он был очень удивлен, когда, вернувшись после своего долго пу­
тешествия, обнаружил, что она превратилась из подростка в оча­
ровательную молодую женщину.

■ Phrasal verbs with 'go'

до after - follow (следовать за)

до down - fall (about prices, demand, production) (снижаться (о ценах, спросе, производстве)

до up - increase, rise (about prices, demand, production) (расти (о це­нах, спросе, производстве)

до down as - be considered / remembered / recorded as (запомниться как..., войти в историю как...) до down with - become ill with (заболеть чем-л.) до in for - 1) get interested in (заинтересоваться, заниматься) 2) enter competitions (участвовать в соревнованиях) go on - continue (продолжать)

go out with - go to a theatre / cinema, restaurant, etc, with a boy / girl­friend (встречаться с молодым человеком, девушкой) go with - match (e.g. colours) (подходить)

71

Unit three

6. Translate the following into English using the phrasal verbs with 'go'.

1. Когда я был молодым, я занимался спортом, но сейчас, к сожале­
нию, у меня нет на это времени.

2. Ты знаешь, что Джон встречается с Энн?

3. Он почувствовал, что за ним кто-то идет, и побежал.

4. Колония пропала и вошла в историю, как «пропавшая колония».

5. Как ты думаешь, красная сумочка подходит к моему синему пла­
тью?

6. Он позвонил полчаса назад и сказал, что заболел гриппом и не
может прийти на работу.

7. Как говорят эксперты, цена этой старинной картины, похоже, бу­
дет расти.

PART 2

Read the text and make sure that you understand it. The list of new words on p. 75 will help you.

THE BRITISH GO ON COLONIZING AMERICA*

The first English colony that succeeded in surviving in spite of the hard conditions of life in the New World was named Jamestown in honour of King James the First who took over as the King of England after Queen Elizabeth died in 1603.

The Jamestown expedition was financed by a group of rich London investors who had formed a joint stock company called the Virginia Company. The first Jamestown settlers were recruited by the Virginia Company and the Company's directors first of all wanted them to find gold in America and bring them a quick profit on their investment.

It would only be fair to say that some of the recruits were also thinking of gold more than of anything else. As travellers and explorers they were very in­experienced and made many serious mistakes. They had chosen a swampy site for their settlement and did not think in good time of growing enough food to feed themselves. They failed to establish good relations with the natives and were permanently at war with them. As a result they began to die of starva­tion, diseases and in wars with the Indians.

* The British go on colonizing America; The First Slaves in the New World; Pilgrims // O'Callaghan B. An Illustrated History of the USA. Longman, 1994.

Part 2

In spite of all that new settlers continued to arrive, among them 90 young women the Virginia Company shipped over in 1619 as wives for the colonists. Each man who wanted a wife for himself had to pay the Company ' 120 pounds weight of best tobacco leaf.

By that time a young settler named John Rolfe had discovered a new way of making tobacco leaves milder, and the export of this new kind of tobacco began to bring good money, which actually saved Virginia.

Most of the settlers recruited by Virginia to work on tobacco plantations were poor people from England who had promised to work for the employer for an agreed period of time in exchange for food and clothes. If by the end of that period the worker was lucky enough to remain alive, he became free to work for himself.

But soon another kind of labour force, that practically did not cost anything at all, appeared in Virginia.