Phrasal verbs

Abstract

This chapter provides a background on the hundreds of complex verbs in the English language, each consisting of a simple verb and one or two prepositions or adverbs called phrasal verbs. It highlights the meaning of a phrasal verb that cannot be directly inferred from the basic meanings of its component words, so that each phrasal verb is, in effect, a separate lexeme and must be accorded its own entry in the dictionary. The meaning of almost every phrasal verb relate to the meanings of the words making it up, albeit in an indirect way. The chapter demonstrates how the meanings of phrasal verbs hang onto, live on, hit on, and turn against can be explained in terms of extensions from the basic meanings of the verb and preposition involved. The meaning of a phrasal verb clearly relates to the basic meaning of the component simple verb.