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  #11  
Old 28-Oct-2008, 14:36
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Default Re: Phrasel verbs

Here's one that got forgotten:

'to write and ask for something to be posted to you' - (a good one, this ) send off for or send away for

b
  #12  
Old 02-Nov-2008, 05:21
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Default Re: Phrasel verbs

Helloo
Here are an other exercise:

the phrasal verb equivalents for the following:
'to put on a performance'
'when fighting suddenly begins'
'to faint or collapse'
'to read about something in order to become aquainted with the
subject'
'to remove moisture'
  #13  
Old 02-Nov-2008, 08:09
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Default Re: Phrasel verbs

I'd say I "down emphasize" possible down accentuate instead of 'to make something appear less important'.
/torgil
  #14  
Old 02-Nov-2008, 11:50
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Default Re: Phrasel verbs

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Originally Posted by torgil View Post
I'd say I "down emphasize" possible down accentuate instead of 'to make something appear less important'.
/torgil
Not quite. It's 'play down'. Your two don't work. I've met "de-emphasize" or "take the emphasis off/[away from]".

If you play something down so far that you ridicule it, you pooh-pooh it - pooh pooh definition | Dictionary.com

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  #15  
Old 02-Nov-2008, 11:57
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Default Re: Phrasel verbs

PS A similar phrasal verb, meaning 'to make something appear less extreme or severe' is 'tone down': 'The first draft of the report said clearly who was to blame for the series of mistakes, but the editorial committee toned it down before publication.'

Here's a new one to guess: 'to calculate'.

b
  #16  
Old 16-Nov-2008, 05:57
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Default Re: Phrasel verbs

Here are more:

the phrasal verb equivalents for the following:
'to be criticised'
'to deal with something that needs attention'
'to push the plug of an appliance into an electric socket'
'to pay attention in order to try to notice something'
'to know what is happening'




I think the last one is "to be aware" but is this a phrasel verb?
  #17  
Old 26-Nov-2008, 17:50
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Smile Re: PhrasAl verbs

Quote:
Originally Posted by BobK View Post
Good topic. It's probably best to ask for example sentences; definitions can seem very complex, and they sometimes - as in your last one, I think - allow you to confuse a negative sense ('not to be able') with a phrasal verb often used in a negative context: If I went to work in my pyjamas I could never live it down. (Or have I guessed wrong? If so, 'live down' is another one for you. .

b
I totally agree with you that live down is often used in a negative context. And it is true that the phrase live down means 'to be able to make people forget a mistake you have made'.
Let's take a look on the following sentence:
Sandra called her principal the wrong name at the banquet, in front of everyone, and she thought she would never live it down. (American idioms v.4.6 )
from this sentence we understand clearly that: Sandra knew she had made a mistake by wrongly calling her principle's name. That's why she thought she would never be forgiven or forgotten.
Another evidence of this point: (live down - Idioms - by the Free Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia.)
live down: to do well so that others forget something bad you said or did. Example: After the way she behaved at the office party, I don't think she'll ever be able to live it down.

Last edited by dungdinh2002; 26-Nov-2008 at 18:29.
  #18  
Old 26-Nov-2008, 18:10
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Default Re: PhrasAl verbs

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Originally Posted by dungdinh2002 View Post
It is true that the phrase live down means 'to not be able to make people forget a mistake you have made'.
...
No - my post, all that time ago, was simply to suggest that actual examples would make it easier to understand the use of a phrasal verb. I thought - wrongly - that Sara was suggesting an inaccurate definition (which might be nearly right in some contexts).

b
  #19  
Old 21-Dec-2008, 06:10
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Default Re: Phrasel verbs

Helloo
here are other ones, I would like you really to help me find their equivalent phrasel verbs:


the phrasal verb equivalents for the following:
'to agree with something or somebody'
'to go with someone to the station or airport and say goodbye'
'to investigate'
'to disconnect the supply of something'

Thank you.
sara
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