Phrasal verbs and their different treatment

The phrasal verb sit down refers to the 2^nd type of our classification.

 

He never sat down (v+adv) in a chair.

The second phrasal verb sit down has a meaning “to lower your body until you are sitting on a chair”. It refers to the 2^nd type. The phrasal verb describes an action literally. To understand this phrasal verb all we need to what the two words mean when considered separately.

 

I took it off (v+pron+adv) and looked at it.

In this sentence we can see the phrasal verb consisting of a verb followed by an adverb. The type of take off is the 3^rd.

The meaning of take off is “If you take off or take yourself off, you go away, often suddenly and unexpectedly”. The phrasal verb has a special meaning, it is impossible to understand the meaning without knowing this phrasal verb.

The meaning of the phrasal verb look at is “If you look at someone in a particular way, you look at them with your expression showing what you are feeling or thinking”. The type of the phrasal verb is the 1^st.

 

"Your folks know you got kicked out, yet?"

In the sentence the phrasal verb kick off means “to react violently to sb that makes you angry or upset”. The type of the phrasal verb is the 2^nd according to our classification.

 

"I got this hangnail I want to cut off"

The phrasal verb cut off means “If you cut something off, you remove it with a knife or a similar tool”. The type of the phrasal verb is the 2^nd.

 

He kept laughing the whole time I was taking down my suitcase and getting the scissors out for him.

In the sentence there were found phrasal verb –  take down. The meaning of the phrasal verb take down is “If you take something down, you reach up and get it from a high place such as a shelf.” The type of the phrasal verb is the 3^rd (v+adv+n).

 

I'll get you on, the goddam radio."

In the sentence the phrasal verb get on means “if you get on with something, you continue doing it or start doing it”. The construction of the phrasal verb is v+pron+prep. The type is the 1^st.

 

I sat down, in my chair again, and he started cutting his big horny-looking nails.

The meaning of the phrasal verb is “to lower your body until you are sitting on a chair”. The type of the phrasal verb is the 2^nd (v+adv).

 

He kept right on cutting them over the floor, though.

The phrasal verb keep on means “to continue without stopping”. The type is the 2^nd (v+adv+ing).

 

I call people a "prince" quite often when I'm horsing around.

In the sentence the meaning of the phrasal verb horse around is to play in a noisy and careless way that is likely to damage sth or hurt sb. The type of the phrasal verb refers to the 2^nd (v+adv).

 

It keeps me from getting bored or something.

The phrasal verb keep from consists of a verb followed by a preposition. The meaning is to prevent sb from doing sth. The type is the 1^st (v+pron+prep).

 

He didn't mean to insult you, for cryin' out loud.

In this sentence we can see the phrasal verb consisting of a verb followed by an adverb. The type of cry out is the 3^rd.

The meaning of cry out is “to make a loud sound without words because you are hurt, afraid, surprised”. The phrasal verb has a special meaning, it is impossible to understand the meaning without knowing this phrasal verb.

 

I felt sort of sorry for him, in a way.

In the sentence the meaning for the phrasal verb feel for is to have sympathy for sb. The type of the phrasal verb is the 1^st (v+prep).

 

"Well, just cut out calling me--"

In the sentence the meaning of the phrasal verb cut out is leave quickly, esp. so as to avoid a boring or awkward situation. The type of the phrasal verb is the 2^{n d} (v+adv).

 

All of a sudden the door opened, and old Stradlater barged in, in a big hurry.

The meaning of the phrasal verb “barge in” is “to enter a place”. The type of the phrasal verb is the 4^th.

 

He came over to me and gave me these two playful as hell slaps on both cheeks--which is something that can be very annoying. 'Listen," he said.

In the sentence there were found two phrasal verbs. The type of the phrasal verb come over is the 2^nd. The meaning of the phrasal verb is “to move across a room towards where the speaker is”.

 

He went over to the closet in a big hurry.

The meaning of the phrasal verb go over is “to move towards sth”. The type is the 2^nd (v+adv).

 

He never exactly broke your heart when he went back to his own room.

The phrasal verb go back means “to return to a place where you were before”. The type of the phrasal verb is 3^rd (v+adv).

 

Old Stradlater started taking off his coat and tie and all.

In this sentence we can see the phrasal verb consisting of a verb followed by an adverb. The type of take off is the 3^rd (v+adv+n).

The meaning of take off is “to remove an item of clothing from your body”. The phrasal verb has a special meaning, it is impossible to understand the meaning without knowing this phrasal verb.

 

He went out of the room with his toilet kit and towel under his arm.

In the sentence the phrasal verb go out of means to leave a room. The type of the phrasal verb is the 5^th (v+adv+prep).

 

We have investigated three chapters of the novel “The Catcher in the rye”, written by Jerome Salinger. The total amount of phrasal verbs in three chapters is 198. As for the 1^st type the quantity of phrasal verbs is – 46; 2^nd Type – 69 phrasal verbs; 3^rd Type – 40 phrasal verbs ; 4^th Type – 30 phrasal verbs ; 5th Type – 13 phrasal verbs. The results are introduced in percentage in table 10.

 

Table 10

 

According to the analysis of three literal texts we can say that phrasal verbs are wide-spread in such text style. The total amount of phrasal verbs is 662. We differentiated them to the types according to our classification. The prevailing type used in the Belles-letter style is 2^nd Type, where the construction of the phrasal verb is a verb + an adverb. The results are introduced in table 11.

Table 11

 

             2.2.2 Phrasal verbs in scientific style

 

As we know phrasal verbs are mostly used in our everyday life. It is considered that it is not appropriate to use them in scientific texts. Phrasal verbs are rather informal and better to use them in oral speech. But we found out that the authors of scientific articles do not avoid using phrasal verbs. There are not many phrasal verbs, but consequently they are used. [35]

 

We have studied 3 articles of the scientific text style and compared the amount of phrasal verbs with all verbs used in the 3 articles in order to define the percentage of usage phrasal verbs in this text style. The total quantity of verbs used in 3 articles is 482. We investigated 38 phrasal verbs out of 482. The percentage of phrasal verbs is 8 %. The result is introduced in the table 12. It is possible to state that phrasal verbs are used, but the authors try to avoid their usage and choose a single-word equivalent.

Table 12

 

The first scientific article which was taken for the analysis - “Genetic Inequality: Human Genetic Engineering”, written by Danielle Simmons. [36]

 

As genetics allows us to turn the tide on human disease, it's also granting the power to engineer desirable traits into humans.

The phrasal verb “turn on” refers to the 1^st type according to our classification. The meaning of this phrasal verb is – “If something turns on a particular thing, its success or truth depends on that thing”. The particle functions as a preposition.

 

Much of what we currently know about the ramifications of genetic self-knowledge comes from testing for diseases.

In the sentence the phrasal verb “come from” refers to the 1^st type. The meaning of “come from” is “to start in a particular thing or be made from a particular thing”.

 

This process is referred to as preimplantation genetic diagnosis.

The phrasal verb “refer to” means “If you refer to a book or other source of information, you look at it in order to find something out”. The verb is followed by a preposition. The type of the phrasal verb is 1^st.

 

Of course, as genetic research advances, tests are continually being developed for traits and behaviors that are not related to disease.

The phrasal verb “relate to” refers to the 1^st type according our classification. The meaning of this phrasal verb is – “If something relates to a particular subject, it concerns that subject”. The particle functions as a preposition.

 

These tests looked for single-nucleotide polymorphisms that would tell whether an individual had a genetic predisposition for muscle strength, size, and performance.

The phrasal verb “look for” means “If you are looking for something such as the solution to a problem or a new method, you want it and are trying to obtain it or think of it”. The verb is followed by a preposition. The type of the phrasal verb is 1^st.

 

The goal in developing these mice was to study muscle disease and reverse the decreased muscle mass that occurs with aging. Interestingly, the Schwarzenegger mice were not the first animals of their kind; that title belongs to Belgian Blue cattle, an exceptional breed known for its enormous muscle mass.

The phrasal verb “belong to” refers to the 1^st type according our classification. The meaning of this phrasal verb is – “You say that something belongs to a particular person when you are explaining that it was produced by or is part of that person”. The word to functions as a preposition.

 

Schwarzenegger mice differ from these cattle in that they highlight scientists' newfound ability to induce muscle development through genetic engineering, which brings up the evident advantages for athletes.

The meaning of the phrasal verb bring up is “If you bring up a particular subject, you introduce it into a discussion or conversation”. The type of this phrasal verb consisting of a verb and an adverb is 3^rd.

 

Suppose a mother and father select an embryo based on its supposed genetic predisposition to musicality, but the child grows up to dislike music.

In the sentence the phrasal verb base on refers to the 1^st type. The phrasal verb consists of the verb and the particle that functions as a preposition. The meaning of the phrasal verb is “to use or have an idea, an experience, etc. as the point from which something can be developed”. This phrasal verb often used in the passive form.

As for the phrasal verb grow up, the meaning is “when someone grows up, they gradually change from being a child into being an adult”. The type of the phrasal verb is 2^nd.

 

In this scientific article was found 12 phrasal verbs. According to the article there were found 3 types of phrasal verbs out of 5. For the first type the amount of phrasal verbs is 9; as for the 2^nd type – 1 phrasal verb; 3^rd type – 2 phrasal verbs. Speaking about 4^th and 5^th there were not found phrasal verbs. The results are introduced in table 13.

 

Table 13

 

The next scientific article is “The Treasure at the Bottom of the Brain”, written by Henrietta C. Leiner and Alan L. Leiner. [37]

There were found 10 phrasal verbs.

 

Such locations in the brain become irrelevant, however, when a structure is regarded as a computer because a computer's processing power depends not on where it is but on what it contains and to what it is connected.

In the sentence a phrasal verb “depend on” means “If you say that one thing depends on another, you mean that the first thing will be affected or determined by the second”. The type of this phrasal verb refers to the 1^st.

 

Forty times that much information can be sent from the cerebral cortex down to the cerebellum, including information from sensory areas of the cerebral cortex, from motor areas, from cognitive areas, from language areas, and even from areas involved in emotional functions.

The phrasal verb “involve in” means “If a situation or activity involves something, that thing is a necessary part or consequence of it”. The phrasal verb consists of a verb and a particle in that functions as a preposition. The phrasal verb “involve in” was used by the author in this article 5 times.

 

As this torrent of information continues to pour into the cerebellum from many other parts of the brain, and as the cerebellum continues to process this information within its neural mechanism, a flow of output information is produced by it which it can send to various other regions of the brain, telling them what to do and when to do it.

The phrasal verb “pour into” refers to the 4^th type. The particle into can be function as a preposition and as an adverb. According to the article it is possible to say that the particle into functions as a preposition because the phrasal verb has an object “the cerebellum”. The meaning of the phrasal verb is “to arrive somewhere in large numbers or amounts”.

 

In investigating the part of the cerebellum that is greatly enlarged in the human brain, investigators found that each module in this part of the cerebellum (the lateral part) is able to communicate with the cerebral cortex by sending out signals over a segregated bundle of nerve fibers.

The phrasal verb “send out” means “to produce something, such as light, a signal, sound”. According to the article the phrasal verb has an object signals. The phrasal verb is transitive, and a particle is an adverb. So, the phrasal verb refers to the 3^rd type.

 

A recent theory that is broad enough to encompass all of these motor, mental, and sensory functions has proposed that the cerebellum does the following basic processing: It makes predictions (based on prior experience or learning) about the internal conditions that are needed to perform a sequence of tasks in other regions of the brain, and it sets up such internal conditions in those regions automatically, thus preparing those regions for the optimal performance of the tasks.

In this sentence we found 2 phrasal verbs “base on” and “set up”. The first phrasal verb “base on” refers to the 1^st type because the particle functions as a preposition. The phrasal verb means “to use or have an idea, an experience, etc. as the point from which something can be developed”. This phrasal verb often used in the passive form.

As for the phrasal verb “set up”, the particle up functions as an adverb. The phrasal verb refers to the 3^rd type. Set up means “If something sets up something such as a process, it creates it or causes it to begin”.

 

In the article were found 10 phrasal verbs. 1 type – 7 phrasal verbs; 2 type - no phrasal verbs; 3 type – 2 phrasal verbs ; 4 type – 1 phrasal verb; 5 type – no phrasal verbs. (Table 14)

Table 14

 

 

The next scientific article is “Looking for life on Mars? Try the salty bits”. [38]

 The article was written by Alfonso F. Davila. In the article were found a lot of phrasal verbs.

 

Looking for life on Mars?

The phrasal verb means “to search something because you need it”. The phrasal verb consists of a verb and a preposition. The type of “look for” is 1^st.

 

The main reason we explore Mars is to find out if life ever existed there.

The phrasal verb find out refers to the 3^rd type. The meaning is “if you find something out, you learn something that you did not already know, especially by making a deliberate effort to do so”. The particle out functions as an adverb.

 

Things sometimes show up in unexpected corners.

The phrasal verb show up consists of a verb and an adverb particle that is why it refers to the 2^nd type. The phrasal verb show up means “If something shows up or if something shows it up, it can be clearly seen or noticed”.

 

Why would searching for life on Mars be any different?

The phrasal verb search for consists of a verb and a preposition. The type is 1^st. The meaning of the phrasal verb is – “If you search for something or someone, you look carefully for them”.

 

I think we are looking in the wrong places.

The meaning of this phrasal verb look in is “If you look in on a person or place, you visit them for a short time, usually when you are on your way somewhere else”. The type is 2^nd.

 

The atmosphere was thicker and the protective magnetic field was switched on.

The phrasal verb switch on consists of a verb and a preposition. The type of switch on is 2^nd. The meaning is “If you switch on a light or other electrical device, you make it start working by operating a switch”.

 

This is why future missions will focus on the study of ancient sediments, hoping to find fossilised evidence of life.

In the sentence the phrasal verb focus on means “your focus on something is the special attention that you pay it”. The structure of the phrasal verb is “V+PREP”, so it refers to the 1^st type according to our classification.

 

It turns out that salt and ice are also excellent substrates for preserving life.

In the sentence there is a phrasal verb “turn out” with the meaning “If something turns out a particular way, it happens in that way or has the result or degree of success indicated”. The verb followed by an adverb. The type is 2^nd.

 

 

The total amount of phrasal verbs in the article “Looking for life on Mars? Try the salty bits” is 16. As for the 1^st type the quantity of phrasal verbs is –6;

2^nd Type – 7 phrasal verbs; 3^rd Type – 3 phrasal verbs; 4^th Type – were not found phrasal verbs; 5th Type – were not found phrasal verbs. (Table 15)

 

 

 

 

 

Table 15

 

According to the analysis of three scientific articles we came to the conclusion that phrasal verbs are used in such text style. The total amount of phrasal verbs in three articles is 38. Turning to the types of phrasal verbs, we differentiated them according to our classification and the prevailing using of the phrasal verbs’ type is the 1st, but there were not found phrasal verbs of the 5^th type. The results are introduced in table 16.

 

Table 16

 

       

     2.2.3 Phrasal verbs in official style

 

It is known that phrasal verbs are not wide-spread in the official documents. It is not appropriate to use them. Many people try to avoid using them in official speech, documents, official letters, etc. Having analyzed we can state that phrasal verbs are used in such text style, not many.

 

We have studied the amount of phrasal verbs used in official text style in comparison with all verbs used in the texts in order to define the percentage of using phrasal verbs in this style. The total quantity of verbs used in three articles is 120. We investigated 13 phrasal verbs out of 120 verbs. The percentage of phrasal verbs is 12 %. The result introduced in the table 17.

Table 17

 

We choose for the analysis the letter from Camp Coordinator Victor Baute Sanchez to the Deaf Associations. [39]

Having analyzed we found out that there are typical phrasal verbs which are often used in any formal letters.

 

So you have to pay your ticket for yourselves.

The meaning of the phrasal verb pay for is “If a government or organization makes someone pay for something, it makes them responsible for providing the money for it, for example by increasing prices or taxes”. The particle for functions as a preposition. The phrasal verb is transitive. According to the sentence phrasal verb pay for has an object “your ticket”. The type of “pay for” is 1^st.

 

Thank you and we look forward to meet you soon.

The phrasal verb look forward to means “if you say that someone is looking forward to something useful or positive, you mean they expect it to happen”. The construction of the phrasal verb is “Verb+Adverb+Preposition”, so this phrasal verb refers to the 5^th type according to our classification. This phrasal verb is widely spread in formal letters. We can find this phrasal verb almost in each formal letter.

 

We investigated the total amount of phrasal verbs in the letter is 2.

As for the 1^st type the quantity of phrasal verbs is –1; 2^nd Type – no phrasal verbs; 3^rd Type – no phrasal verbs; 4^th Type – no phrasal verbs; 5th Type – 1 phrasal verb. (Table 18

Table 18

 

 

Having analyzed the semi-formal letter from Julio H. Grondona, Chairman of the Finance Committee we investigated 7 phrasal verbs. [40;56]

 

Based on another year of stable revenue growth, FIFA achieved a positive result of USD 196 million in 2009 and increased its equity to USD 1,061 million - thus topping the USD 1 billion mark - and now has a solid equity basis.

In the sentence the phrasal verb base on refers to the 1^st type. The phrasal verb consists of the verb and the particle that functions as a preposition. The meaning of the phrasal verb is “to use or have an idea, an experience, etc. as the point from which something can be developed”. This phrasal verb often used in the passive form.

 

 

Looking ahead, the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ in Brazil is already proving to be a major draw and we have signed the first contracts with national and international sponsors to line up alongside the six existing FIFA Partners.

The phrasal verb “look ahead” means in the sentence - “If you look ahead, you think about what is going to happen in the future and perhaps make plans for the future.”The type of the phrasal verb is the 2^nd.

As for the phrasal verb line up, the meaning is”  If you line up with, behind, or alongside a person or group, you support them”. The type of the phrasal verb according to our classification is the 2^nd.

 

The world's biggest sports event yields an unwavering appeal, perhaps all the more so in times of economic uncertainty, by offering excitement, entertainment and top-class sporting action and therefore provides an excellent platform for commercial brands.

In the sentence the phrasal verb “provide for”  means - if you provide for something that might happen or that might need to be done, you make arrangements to deal with it. The type of the phrasal verb is the 1^st.

 

Nevertheless, the financial success of the 2007-2010 cycle depends on the successful staging of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ in South Africa, and our experiences at the FIFA Confederations Cup give us every reason to look forward with optimism to a colourful celebration that will inspire the world.

In the sentence a phrasal verb “depend on” means “If you say that one thing depends on another, you mean that the first thing will be affected or determined by the second”. The type of this phrasal verb refers to the 1^st.