FULLY IDIOMATIC PHRASAL VERBS
Fully idiomatic combinations are those in which the meaning of the whole is not easily deduced from the parts, although it may well be deduced from the context:
The conversation petered out after about ten minutes. (gradually came to an end) Someone tipped off the police that a robbery was being planned. (warn, give secret information)
The government has decided to crack down on antisocial behavior. (impose sanctions)
The nonsense song caught on and was soon being heard everywhere. (become popular)
Please stop butting in. We are trying to balance the accounts. (interrupt)
The illustrations given show that it is by no means easy to establish boundaries between what is idiomatic and what is not. Many verbs, both one-word and multi-word, have a number of related meanings according to their collocation with different nouns and depending on the contexts in which they are used. Particularly characteristic of phrasal verbs are their metaphorical extensions of meaning, from concrete to abstract or abstract to concrete; and from one context to another less typical one. A simple phrasal verb such as put up offers the following examples, among others:
The boys have put up the tent. (erect)
They’re putting up a new block of flats. (build) They’ve put the bus fares up. (raise)
I can put two of you up for a couple of nights. (provide a bed for)
The others will have to put up at a hotel. (lodge)
The project has been approved, but someone will have to put up the necessary funds. (provide)
Our neighbors have put their house up for sale. (announce, offer)
An illustration of the occurrence of complex and catenative VGs (together with lexical auxiliaries and phrasal verbs) in spoken English is provided by the following short extract from a recorded conversation:
Rachel: We got locked out1 of the flat yesterday. Harry: How did you get back2 in?
Rachel: We had to borrow3 a long ladder and climb up4 to the first floor balcony.
Harry: I thought that with the kind of security lock you’ve got, you’re not supposed to be able to lock yourself out.5
Rachel: That’s true. But if you happen to bang6 the door a bit too hard, it locks itself.
Harry: It’s better to have to lock7 it from the outside.
1get-passive, phrasal verb; 2phrasal verb; 3 lexical aux; 4 phrasal verb; 5 lexical aux. + lexical-aux. + phrasal verb; 6phased VG; 7 lexical-aux
