Unit 20. ,Hang a'round and ,Look 'up to.

Two-stress phrasal verbs

Unit 20; Part A

When two-stress phrasal verbs (see Unit 19A ) are used in conversation, both the verb and the particle are usually made prominent:
     ,hang a'round   It was freezing cold, so I didn't want to HANG aROUND.
     ,get a'long   My brother and I don't really GET aLONG together.
     ,call 'back   I'm busy at the moment. Can I CALL you BACK?
     ,write 'down   I'll never remember the number. Can you WRITE it DOWN for me?

Notice that a pronoun between the verb and the particle is not usually prominent. However, the particle is ofen non-prominent -

when there is a noun (the object) afer the phrasal verb but still in the same clause:

Shall I WRITE down the NUMber for you?

when we want to put special emphasis on the verb:

       A: I can't remember Trudi's address.
       B: Why didn't you WRITE it DOWN?
       A: I WROTE it down. (or: I DID write it down.)

when there is a prominent noun (the object) between the verb and the particle. Compare:

       Can you CALL the DOCtor back? He called about your test results.
       but: I didn't understand the message about these pills.
        I'm going to CALL the doctor BACK.¹

¹'the doctor' is not prominent because it is information already understood (see Unit 33)

Unit 20; Part B

Three-word phrasal verbs also have two stresses, with secondarystress on the first word (the verb) and main stress on the second word(the first particle):
     ,look 'up to     I'd always LOOKED UP to her.
     ,grow 'out of      The dress was small and she soon GREW OUT of it.
     ,go 'through with    When the time came to leave I couldn't GO THROUGH with it.
   ,put 'up with      I was finding it hard to PUT UP with him.

Unlike two-word phrasal verbs with two stresses (see A),three-word phrasal verbs ofen have prominence on the first and secondwords even when there is a noun (the object) after the phrasal verb butstill in the same clause. Compare:
    ,cut 'back on    1. I've CUT BACK on it.
                            2. I've CUT BACK on SMOKing.
                            3. I've CUT back on SMOKing.
both 2 and 3 are correct.

Unit 20; Part C

Many compound nouns (see Unit 16) come from two-stress phrasal verbs. These nouns usually have stress on the first part. Compare:
      'mix-up   I got the times MIXED UP.
                      There was a MIX-up over times.
      'warm-up It's important to WARM UP before exercise.
                       He hurt his ankle during the WARM-up.
      'washout   The tennis match was WASHED OUT.
                       It was a WASHout.

Exercises

1 Listen and underline the prominent syllable.

Listen and underline the prominent syllable (s) in each part inbold. All the phrasal verbs are two-stress phrasal verbs but sometimesthe particle is non-prominent.
20.2.jpg

Example: I'm busy now. Can you call me back?
1   Have you handed your homework in yet?
2   The fire's on. Don't forget to turn it of before you go out.
3   At the stream I rolled my trousers up and paddled across.
4   We don't have much money, but I'm sure we'll get by.
5   My father and I didn't really get along.
6   My handwriting is terrible, as my teachers are always pointing out.
7   The painting suddenly fell of the wall.
8   If any letters come for me, can you send them on?

2 Say one of the responses in the box.

You will hear seven questions. Afer each question, press 'pause' andsay one of the responses in the box. (Think carefully about prominencein the phrasal verb.) When you press 'play' again you will hear thecorrect answer. (Note that all the responses include three-word phrasalverbs.)

         If I can come up with the money.
         No, but I don't know how I'm going to get out of it.
         ~~We'll come on to it next semester.~~
         Well, first, we should do away with private schools.
         No, she just walked off with it.
         Yes, I think he's hoping to put in for a promotion.
         I've only just sent away for them.

Example: You hear Are we going to study ecology soon?
You reply We'll COME ON to it next semester.

3 Form a compound noun.

Complete each (a) part of these pairs of sentences using one of thephrasal verbs in the box. (You may need to change the form of theverb.) Then form a compound noun from each phrasal verb to completeeach corresponding (b) part.

back up check in follow up ~~hand over~~ get together

Example: a When he demanded my wallet I handed it over .
              b United Nations troops supervised the handover .
1   a I only had a small bag, but I still had to __________ it __________.
      b When you get to the airport go straight to the __________.
2   a The whole family usually __________ on our mother's birthday.
      b All the neighbours had a __________ to celebrate the New Year.
3   a The files are important, so make sure you __________ them __________.
      b Before I shut down my computer I always make a __________.
4   a Her suggestion was interesting, so I decided to __________ it __________.
      b The first meeting on the subject was two years ago, and this one is a __________.

Nowlisten and check your answers. Then say the sentences aloud, makingsure you put prominence in the correct place in the words you havewritten.

Follow up: When you read about a topic that interests you, keep a note of compound nouns from phrasal
verbs and their related phrasal verbs. Make sure you know where the main stress goes.

Unit 19 Unit 20 Unit 21