FOCUS ON: gerund phrasal verbs vs

FOCUS ON: gerund phrasal verbs vs. phrasal verbs followed by the -ing form

We have seen in previous sections that phrasal verbs are sometimes followed by the -ing form. We have also seen that transitive phrasal verbs sometimes take gerund objects. At a glance, there seems to be no difference between these two constructions:

Jim went away singing.

-ing form

Jim stuck with singing.

gerund

But because a gerund is a verb functioning as a noun, it can be replaced with an ordinary nongerund noun. However, this is not true of the -ing form:

Jim went away it. Jim stuck with it.

blow... off p.v. [informal] When you do not do something that you are supposed to do because you do not want to or because you do not think it is important, you blow it off.

l was supposed to report for jury duty Monday morning, but I blew it off.

Bob had a hangover, so he blew off helping Marsha fix her car.

bring up

bring ...up (to) p.v. When people bring something from a higher level or position or from south to north to where you are, they bring it up or bring it up to where you are.

Would you please go 929h715j downstairs and bring up the package that was just delivered?

The rescue workers brought morphine up to the injured mountain climber.

bring ... up p.v. When you introduce a new topic into a conversation, you bring it up.

Last night during dinner, Dad brought up the idea of saving money by staying home instead of taking a vacation this year.

You and your big mouth! We were having a great time until you brought that up.

bring ... up (to) p.v. When you bring up children, you care for them as they grow to adulthood. When you bring up children to believe something or to behave in a certain way, you try to teach this belief or behavior to them.

Tom was born in Canada, but he was brought up in the United States.

Bringing quadruplets up is a lot of work.

I was brought up to believe in honesty and compassion.

burst out p.v. When you burst out laughing or crying, you begin laughing or crying loudly and suddenly.

Heather burst out laughing when I fell into the swimming pool.

When Sam heard the news, he burst out crying.

come back

come back (tolfrom) p.v. When people return to a place where you are, they come back or come back to that place or come back from the place where they were before.

Todd went to Florida thinking it would be hot and sunny, but he came back talking about how cold and rainy it was.

I'm never coming back to this awful place again.

comeback p.v. When people, organizations, companies, or athletes overcome difficulties and become successful again, they come back.

My home team came back from last place and won the championship.

Senator Dolittle lost in 1988, but he came back to win in

comeback n. When people, organizations, companies, or sports teams overcome difficulties and become successful again, they make a comeback.

The Bulls were down by 34 points but won the game with an 18-point lead what a comeback!

come back p.v. When a condition, problem, situation, or activity returns or greatly increases, it comes back.

l need to see the doctor. The pain in my shoulder has come back.

There isn't much chance that double-digit inflation will come back any time soon.

comeback n. When a condition, problem, situation, or activity returns or greatly increases, it makes a comeback.

Health officials are concerned that tuberculosis is making a comeback.

come back p.v. When a fashion or fad comes back, it becomes popular again.

Miniskirts are coming back this year.

Western movies and TV shows go out of style and then come back every few years.

comeback n. When a fashion or fad becomes popular again, it makes a comeback. l saved all my wide neckties because I knew they'd make a comeback someday.

get off on p.v. [informal] When you get off on something or get off on doing something, you find it enjoyable and exciting.

Sally loves winter sports, and she especially gets off on snowboarding.

Mountain climbing is what I get off on.

go away

go away p.v. When you leave a place or leave a person, you go away.

Go away! I'm trying to study.

Mark went away not realizing he had left his briefcase behind.

go away (for) p.v. When you travel for a period of time, you go away for this time.

We always go away for a few weeks in the winter.

Lydia is going to go away for a while.

go away (to) p.v. When you leave your home and live temporarily at another place, such as a school, you go away to that place.

Jane didn't go away to school; she went to a school near her home.

Some young people are nervous about going away to school, but others look forward to it.

go away p.v. When a condition, problem, situation, or activity disappears or greatly decreases, it goes away.

l have a pain in my back that never goes away.

If the rain doesn't go away, we'll have to call off the game.

run around

run around p.v. When you run around a place, you run to various parts of it.

The cat ran around the room chasing the mouse.

The children were running around the museum, and the guard told them to stop.

run around p.v. When you run around doing something, you go to various places trying urgently to accomplish something that is important to you.

The woman was running around the store looking for her lost child.

We ran around the house trying to rescue whatever we could from the rising floodwater.

runaround n. When people are not honest with you or helpful to you, they give you the runaround.

Why didn't you just tell me the truth instead of giving me the runaround?

stick with p.v. When you stick with a habit, plan, or type of work, you continue as before, without change. Stick to is similar to stick with.

l don't like computers. I'll stick with writing letters by hand.

Todd thought about a career change but decided to stick with teaching.

stick with p.v. When you stick with something that you use, you continue to use it.

My wife wants me to switch to decaffeinated coffee, but I'm going to stick with regular.

My mother has stuck with Ivory soap for forty years.

stick with p.v. When you stick with people, you remain with them or remain loyal to them.

It'll be very crowded at the festival, so stick with me so you don't get lost.

That other guy running for senator has some good ideas, but I'm going to stick with Senator Dolittle.

stick ... with p.v. When you stick people with something, you force them to take something or deal with something undesirable or unpleasant.

I'm sorry to stick you with all this work, but you're the only one who can do it.

The shoes I bought don't fit, but the store where I bought them doesn't accept returns, so I guess I'm stuck with them.

EXERCISE 40a - Complete the sentences with phrasal verbs from this section. Be sure the phrasal verbs are in the correct tense.

I didn't know anyone at the party except Leticia, so I ________ ________ her.

All Timmy's friends are ______ ______ for the summer, so he won't have anyone to play with.

I have a job interview at 8:30 Monday morning, but that's too early for me, so maybe I'll just it

Miguel was surprised how much he enjoyed watching figure skating. He really _______ _______ ________it.

Linda ________ ________ from the party talking about what a good time she had.

Susie's birthday party exhausted me. The kids were _________ _________ yelling and screaming for hours.

I gave my grandfather a computer, but he said he'd rather ______ ______ his old typewriter.

My grandmother was ______ _ _____ on a farm, but she moved to the city when she got married.

Dan ________ ________ buying a motorboat, but his wife said it was a crazy idea.

I know running is great exercise, but I'm going to _______ _______ swimming.

I hope high-heel shoes never ________ ________; they're so uncomfortable.

The strange noise in my engine has ________ __________, so I'm going to take the car to a mechanic again.

I asked the mechanic why the sound keeps _______ _______ and coming back.

Bob's joke was pretty funny. Everyone_________ ________laughing.

Betty smelled smoke, and she ______ _______ the house frantically looking for

the source.

Why does the boss _________ me making coffee every morning? Why can't someone else do it?

I saved my father a lot of money by not _________ _________ to school.

After his defeat, the former champion said he would ________ ________.

Frank came to my door with flowers and an apology, but I told him to ____ ____.

Whenever my brother in Florida visits me here in Minnesota, he some oranges

EXERCISE 40b - Write answers to the questions using phrasal verbs and nouns from this section. Be sure the phrasal verbs are in the correct tense.

They're not following the original plan. What aren't they doing?

I took some aspirin, and my headache was gone for a while, but now I have a headache again. What did my headache do?

You started to cry suddenly and loudly. What did you do?

Hank was supposed to meet with his parole officer in the morning, but he didn't go because he wanted to sleep late. What did Hank do to his meeting with his parole officer?

The hotel desk clerk didn't tell me he had canceled my reservation by mistake. Instead he invented a lot of crazy excuses that he knew weren't true. What did the hotel desk clerk do?

Todd's sister was very upset, and he asked what the problem was, but she told him to leave her alone. What did Todd's sister ask him to do?

Skiing is what Heather likes more than anything. How does Heather feel about skiing?

Everyone in the factory was busy, so when the delivery truck came, David was forced to unload it by himself. What happened to David?

Nancy began talking about joining the Peace Corps. What did Nancy do?

The number of people with malaria decreased, but now the number is increasing every year. What is malaria doing?

Poverty is a problem that never decreases or disappears. What doesn't poverty do?

You went on a business trip three weeks ago, and you haven't returned yet. What haven't you done yet?

Ned had to call his broker immediately, so he ran to various places looking for a telephone. What did Ned do?

It would be nice to leave this city for a week or two. What would be nice?

When I was young, my parents taught me to believe in the golden rule. What did my parents do?

EXERCISE 40c - Write eight original sentences using phrasal verbs from this section. Try to use either gerunds or the -ing form.

EXERCISE 40d, Review - Complete the sentences with these phrasal verbs from previous sections. Be sure the phrasal verbs are in the correct tense. To check their meanings, review the section number given after each one.

At school, Luis got into a lot of trouble for something I did, and now he it me.

If I could ________ it again, I'd do it differently.

The price of gas is expected to______________to$1 a gallon within a month.

The light suddenly ________ ________, and I couldn't see a thing.

Do you have to go already? Can't you ________ ________ for a few minutes?

We don't want to forget anything, so let's ________ ________ the list one more time to be sure.

The announcement was a real surprise. I'm not sure what to ______ _______ it.

This book I bought is missing some pages. Can you it to the bookstore for me tomorrow?

Crime was getting out of control, so a new sheriff was elected who promised to ________ ________ the law.

That gun is loaded, so I wouldn't ________ ________ with it if I were you.

After I threatened to go to the police and tell them everything, he ________ ________ and stopped making threats.

My brother always thought I would be a failure, so now that I'm rich, I love to _____ it him by complaining about how hard it is to keep a thirty-room house clean.

My son is a good boy. If he was shoplifting, I'm sure someone him it.

In my history class we studied the various things that ________ ________ ________ the current situation.

The month we spent in Italy was a lot of fun, but it seemed to ________ _______ so quickly.

My brother-in-law is so sneaky. He tried to me telling him the combination to my safe.