Please teach me an example sentence, using "break down"
(meaning: analyze, list the parts of separately)
as a separable phrasal verb.
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Please teach me an example sentence, using "break down"
(meaning: analyze, list the parts of separately)
as a separable phrasal verb.
Better than that, I'll give you a much used pantomime joke that uses two meanings:Quote:
Originally Posted by ivygreen
'I want 12 children to come up on stage.... Right, now these 12 will be broken down by age and sex - well, it happens to us all in the end.'
The clause beginning 'Right' uses the verb in the sense 'analyse or separate'. The punch-line interprets it in the sense 'make to deteriorate through wear and tear'.
b
PS Sorry, it's not separated there :oops:. If it were separated ('I will break them down by age and sex') the joke wouldn't work because it depends on the phrase 'broken down''.
It should be noted that "break down" rarely appears in exactly that uninterrupted form. The subject (that which is being broken down) usually appears in the middle:
"I want you to break responses down by age and income."
As well, it is often used as a combination word:
"I want a breakdown of responses by age and income."