If I pick somebody up from the airport, I could express this action using the regular verb ‘collect’. Most phrasal verbs have a twin: a regular verb which has a similar meaning. Students don’t have to recall unusual verbs and then use them to form phrasal verbs. are the basis for most common phrasal verbs.
High-frequency verbs such as pick, give, make, take, put, come etc.
I remember when a Japanese student realised that most common phrasal verbs are formed using common verbs and common particles. Common phrasal verbs often use common verbs. It’s true that we can often express our ideas using regular verbs but phrasal verbs help us communicate more efficiently. The second sentence with the phrasal verb is far more concise. She picked up some Italian during her holiday in Rome. She learned some Italian by practising it rather than being taught it during her holiday in Rome. I think we use phrasal verbs because they make our conversation more natural and fluid. Many of my students ask me why native speakers of English use so many phrasal verbs when we can often express our ideas using regular verbs. Phrasal verbs can make communication quicker, easier and more relaxed. Do they need to spend so much time studying phrasal verbs if they are going to be writing scientific papers or legal contracts? If they need to use English to express themselves orally, especially with native speakers, they will need to focus on using and understanding phrasal verbs but this may not be a legitimate need for all learners. Many students need to learn how to write formal English, for example, if they are working in academia.
Phrasal verbs are used much more in informal spoken than in formal written communication. Phrasal verbs are not so important in conversations between non-native speakers and this has important implications for learning and teaching English. Many students learn English because they want to use it as a Lingua Franca or an international language. However, I wouldn’t use so many with a native speaker with a different variety of English, such as an American, and wouldn’t use the same ones – many of the phrasal verbs I use with close friends are used colloquially as items of slang.When I speak to expert native speakers of English, I limit my use of phrasal verbs and tend to use regular verbs instead.
When I speak to my friends from my home town, I use dozens of phrasal verbs. Phrasal verbs are used much more between native speakers than between non-native speakers. The next day, we had a great discussion about them and we produced a class poster entitled: 10 things you should know about Phrasal Verbs As a teacher I found them a nightmare to teach until I asked a group of high-level learners to do some research about phrasal verbs for homework. Whoever and wherever I teach, most students tell me they find phrasal verbs really difficult.
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