What is the best way to learn phrasal verbs in English? And how distinguish the most common?
10 answers from our tutors
Best answer
The best way to learn phrasal verb is to apply and use it in a sentence..
If you listen to podcasts (NOT news podcasts) you will conversations in REAL English.. You will hear phrasal verbs being used all the time. Make a note of the ones you like and then use them, first in a lesson and then in your everyday conversations. Many students use phrasal verbs without knowing. The problem is that teachers and textbooks make phrasal verbs more difficult than they really are.
- MelissaCertified ESL and TEFL
The most effective way to understand the meanings of words in a phrasal verb is to look up the individual words that make it up. For example, if you encounter the phrase “run out”, you can look up both the verb “run” and the adverb “out” separately and put them together to determine its meaning.
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Learning should always be engaging. Act out the phrasal verbs as you read or say them. This can even be a fun game between friends. You will remember and distinguish them as you recall a chuckle or two. :-) RejoiceAlways :-)
- DaniloTeaching English linguistics
Only a thorough analysis of the language corpus will give you an idea how frequent idiomatic expressions are across language registers. There is a variety of factors that affect the frequency of their use, so the estimates will naturally vary depending on the language analyzed. However, one thing is proven by linguistic research - idiomatic expressions constitute a minor part of the highest frequency vocabulary. Basically, only a limited number of "phrasal verbs" are actually part of this essential vocabulary. Students should focus their effort on getting a good grasp of the essential language concepts. One needs to set priorities in learning a foreign language, and it is not fancy idiomatic expressions that one should put at the center of their study, unless they are at a really advanced stage of the learning process.
- DaniloTeaching English linguistics
One needs to have a clear understanding of the concept of an "idiom" in language, and where the so-called "phrasal verbs" fit into that concept. The majority of students I've taught had a blurred understanding of what constitutes a phrasal verb. It is not just any combination of a verb and preposition that makes up a verbal idiom, popularly called a "phrasal verb". By definition, an idiom is a combination of words that has a meaning which is different from the literal meanings of the indivdual words that make it up. The student needs to distinguish literal combinations of verbs and prepositions from the non-literal ones. For example, the infamous verb "get" can have a variety of meanings depending on the particular complementation, but the majority of them are non-idiomatic. Combinations like "get up", "get down", "get in" etc. typically convey a literal meaning of spatial movement. They can have different metaphorical meanings too, but they are less frequent than the literal ones.
The English language has millions of them and so much of our language is phrasal verbs, the two or three words, one action phrasal verb! I think if you get a list of them and learn the ones that are appropriate for your use. Pick up, go out, put on, take off, ones that you commonly use, you will learn the fastest.
To group them by topic , do exercises with them , put them in your own sentences, make up a story , see how they are used in context
Group them by topic Learn them by topic Use them in a stroy
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- Can you share your experience how you teach students conditionals?
What kind of method do you use to explain clearly each conditional for students? Do you provide some examples from real life and how you do it? Thank you!
Best answer
Tsebo Lucia Lehloa
The best approach is to expose students to the what conditionals are through explanation. Explain all the types of conditionals providing examples for each. Then the details of the structure of each type of conditionals would better come last, then strengthen understanding by having the student produce written and spoken language. Lastly, expose them to more reading and real life listening examples regarding this, sometimesas homework. To gauge their understanding of the structure, give fill in exercises.
- Could you explain me, please, when I need to use 0,1,2,3 and mixed conditionals? Thank you!
Can you provide examples?
Best answer
Mixed conditional combined second and third conditionals to talk about the past situations has a present consequence or a present situations that is a result of a past action Structure: If + past perfect + would +verb If I had studied medicine, I would be a doctor now.
