Episode 174
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Hi, I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. And I am here to help you speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.
Today we are going to continue learning new phrasal verbs. This time with the verb TAKE.
several times from different grammar points. I can change the tense or the person. And like that, you will learn grammar in context.
Ok. Let's start!
Most English learners tend to become overly concerned with how to learn phrasal verbs. A phrasal verb is just a verb and a particle. For example, "take after."
There are thousands of phrasal verbs. Sometimes they may be confusing.
Also, each phrasal verb can have multiple meanings.
Ok, this scenario doesn't seem very encouraging, and the million-dollar question is:
How can you learn all those phrasal verbs?
Here's the good news: You need to learn the most common ones. In other words, what people use most of the time.
So, let's learn some common phrasal verbs with the verb TAKE:
1. Take After somebody
To resemble a parent (looks or behavior)
"I take after my mother so much that people think we are sisters."
2. Take something Apart
It means to disassemble or to separate the parts of something so that they are not together.
"I'm going to have to take apart the remote control to clean it well."
3.Take something Back
This phrasal verb means to say that you don't really mean what you've said or written.
"I take it back. You're not the worst person I've ever met. But you are the second-worst person I know."
4. Take Down
It means to separate the pieces of a structure or write something down.
Examples:
"We'll have to take down the cupboard if we want to paint the walls."
"I've been trying to get back to you, but I took your number down incorrectly."
5. Take On
It means to accept a job, responsibility, or to hire somebody.
Examples:
"I can't take on any more responsibilities; I'm too overstressed."
"By the end of the year, we plan to take on 100 more people in our company."
6. Take over
It means to gain control.
Examples:
"My boss told me to take over the project because my colleague was inefficient."
"When my father retired, my brother took over the business."
7. Take somebody Up on something
This phrasal verb means to accept an offer.
Example:
"-You're always welcome to visit us."
"-Thank you, I'll take you up on that the next time I come to Vienna."
Ok, so today, we have learned some phrasal verbs with the verb take.
My advice is to learn phrasal verbs in context and never memorize them, especially because many of them have several meanings.
Let's listen to the phrasal verbs we learned today:
Take After somebody
Take something Apart
Take something Back
Take down
Take on
Take over
Take somebody Up on something
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Now, let’s practice.
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GRAMMAR MADE EASY
POV Story: Grammar in Context
Read the same story in two different points of view and notice how the grammar changes naturally.
Past Tense
(Learn grammar without memorizing)
I will tell you a short story more than once. Each time, I will change one grammar point. I may change the tense or the person. This way, you will learn grammar in context.
Let's start!
Tony didn't take after his father. They were not much alike, either physically or character-wise.
However, they did have something in common. They both liked machines. Tony's father liked to work with his hands and could repair almost anything. And Tony enjoyed taking things apart like an old TV or washing machine. He spent hours figuring out how it worked.
Tony worked as a janitor at night in a factory. One day, he saw that one of the machines was faulty. And this opportunity was appealing to Tony, so he started to take it apart separately until he repaired it. It was just a loose bolt.
In the morning the manager noticed that the machine worked perfectly and asked who was responsible for it. Tony explained that it was him who fixed the machine, so he was promoted immediately. His boss offered him to take on the responsibility of the chief repairman. Naturally, Tony took over the position, and from then on, he was in charge of all the repairs in that factory.
Past Tense
Tony and Tom didn't take after their father. They were not much alike, either physically or character-wise. However, they did have something in common. They all liked machines.
Tony and Tom's father liked to work with his hands and could repair almost anything. So the two brothers enjoyed taking things apart like an old TV or washing machine. They spent hours figuring out how it worked.
Tony and Tom worked as janitors at night in a factory. One day, they saw that one of the machines was faulty. And this opportunity was appealing to Tony and Tom, so they started to take it apart separately until they repaired it. It was just a loose bolt.
In the morning the manager noticed that the machine worked perfectly and asked who was responsible for it. Tony and Tom explained that it was them who fixed the machine, so they were promoted immediately. Their boss offered them to take on the responsibility of the chief repairman. Naturally, Tony and Tom took over the position, and from then on, they were in charge of all the repairs in that factory.
Past Tense
Hi, I'm Tony, and I must admit that I didn't take after my dad. We were not much alike, either physically or character-wise. However, we did have something in common. We both liked machines. My dad liked to work with his hands and could repair almost anything. And I enjoyed taking things apart like an old TV or washing machine. I spent hours figuring out how it worked.
I worked as a janitor at night in a factory. One day, I saw that one of the machines was faulty. And this opportunity was appealing, so I started to take it apart separately until I repaired it. It was just a loose bolt.
In the morning the manager noticed that the machine worked perfectly and asked who was responsible for it. So, I explained that it was me who fixed the machine, and I was promoted immediately. My boss offered me to take on the responsibility of the chief repairman.
Naturally, I took over the position, and from then on, I was in charge of all the repairs in that factory.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Review
Vocabulary
Review the most useful words and expressions before listening again.
take after
resemble an older family member.
take apart
separate something into pieces.
take on
accept work or responsibility.
take over
gain control of a role or organization.
janitor
a person who cleans and maintains a building.
faulty
not working correctly.
loose bolt
a metal fastener that is not tight.
in charge of
responsible for controlling or managing something.
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