Improving our English

Media

Part of Panorama

Title: Improving our English
Language: English
Year: 1967
Rights
Abstract: Idiomatic English - nouns, verbs, adverbs, prepositions, and expressive phrases.
Fulltext: IMPROVING OUR ENGLISH This section of Panorama will be regularly published for the benefit of Filipino students of English. It will be devoted to idiomatic English — nouns, verbs, adverbs, prepositions, and expressive phrases. Idiomatic expressions are distinctive ways or peculiarities of using words and phrases in English. They are usually forcible, terse, and vivid. They are the most difficult part of the language for a person to learn who is not an American or Englishman. They must be committed to memory and frequently used in speaking and writing. VERBS WITH PREPOSITIONS 1. Abide by a statement, a decision; He must abide by our agreement. 2. Abound in. Our seas abound in fish. 3. Abstain from food, from drink, from harmful practices. 4. Accede to a request. Accept it. 5. Accommodate a person with a sum of money he needs. 6. Account to the librarian for the book you borrowed. 7. Accuse a person of bad conduct. 8. 1 Acquit oneself well is to do one’s work well. The student acquitted himself well in his lesson. 9. Act under. They act under orders of their chief. 10. Adhere to one’s party, to principles of truth and honour. 11. Admit of. This rule admits of no exception. 12. Back out means to withdraw from a promise. He tried to back out of the contract. 13. Back up means to support. He backs up his classmate in a discussion with another student. 14. Bear out, is to confirm. If some proof bears out the accusation, this party will go to jail. 15. Bear upon or on: applies or relates. Your statements do not bear on the question. 58 Pa no r a ma 16. Bear with, means, to tolerate, to be indulgent to. Bear with me while I point out the error you made. 17. Beat off, is to drive back. It is not easy to beat off a swarm of bees attacking us. 18. Beat upon, is to strike upon continuously. The rain descended, and the floods dame, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell. — Bible. 19. Blame for. He blames you for neglect of duty. 20. Blow over is to pass away without injurious effect. The storm speedily blew over. 21. Blush at, for. She blushed at the mention of her lover’s name. I blush for the vices of my countrymen. 22. Boast of. One boasts of his strength and riches. 23. Boil down to is to be reduced to a point. His reasons boiled down to this. 24. Border on. His loud yelling bordered on madness. 25. Break away from control. The student broke away from all discipline. 26. Break into is to enter suddenly and forcibly. His carabao broke into my rice field and did much damage. They break into a run, is to change from walking to running. 27. Break out is to burst forth, to appear suddenly; also, to escape from restraint. The sun broke out and brightened the horizon. Cholera has broken out among the barrio inhabitants. The fire broke out in the lower floor and soon the whole house was in flames. 28. Break with, means, to stop being a friend. 29. Bring down, is to cause to come down, to humble; to shoot down. To bring down proud looks. 30. Bring out, is to expose, to cause to appear. The investigation will bring out surprising stories. 3). Bring up. To bring up a child, is to educate or train him. 32. Call at one’s house; to come to the house and ask about its residents. This boat does not call at Cebu. 33. Call on or upon. To pay a brief visit to. Of what use is it to call on people who are not your friend. I hope Ma r c h 1967 59 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 60 to call on you at your office today. You will be called upon to explain your conduct. Care for or about. He did not care about wealth. I don’t care for sugar, means, 1 do not like sugar. Carry out, is to execute instructions given. A dutiful son likes to carry out his father’s wishes. He has no doubt about this ability to carry out his plan to study in this college. Cast aside, is to reject, to throw aside as useless. Do not cast aside the love of truth. Cast in one’s lot with, is to share with him in happiness or misfortune. Cast out, is to reject, to expel. The Jews cast him out of the temple. Catch up, is to snatch or take up suddenly; to come up with, to overtake. You catch up a companion in a walk, or in his studies, when he has got ahead of you. Clear a person of or from an accusation. Close down. A shop is said to have “closed down” when it stopped business. Come across, is to meet with accidentally, to discover, Searching for things in the library, I came across an old book. Come by. To come by way of or by means of. This package came by boat and not by plane. He would not tell me how he came by his watch. Come up to, is to conform to, to be equal to. This book comes up to my idea of what a school book ought to be. Compete with a person, for a thing. These young men competed with others for the first prize. Complain of a thing, to a person, against or of a person. He complains of a pain in his leg. I have to complain against him for his bad manners. Comply with, is to fulfill or to do what has to be done. They will comply with the order of the President. They asked him to comply with their request. Pa n o r a ma 48. Confide in a person; confide a thing to a person. Do not confide your secrets to a stranger. I confided in him because he is truthful. 49. Consist in, of. His ability consists in his strong college preparation. The group consists of men, women, and children. 50. Correspond to or with: resemble or agree. The wing of a bird corresponds to the arm of a man. His opinion does not exactly correspond with mine. 51. Crave for, is to yearn for. The thirsty man craves for a glass of water. 52. Cut off, is to separate or to put an end to something. He cut off the head of the chicken. When all roads are guarded, his retreat is cut off. 53. Dawn on, means gradual realization, getting clearer, as morning dawns. It dawned on me, after careful thought, that his report was not true but merely invented. 54. Deal in, is to do business in. This merchant deals in assorted articles. 55. Deal with, is to have to do with. This subject deals with legal questions. Teachers should know how to deal with new students. 56. Deprive of. A man is deprived of his right to work for a living. Sickness deprives him of eyesight. 57. Dig up the soil in his piece of land is to turn over the soil by digging. 58. Disagree with. He disagrees with him on the question of politics. 59. Dispense with, is to get rid of something. He can easily dispense with his services. 60. Dispose of, is to sell or to give away. He has disposed of all his belongings. 61. Dissent from an opinion. 62. Distinguish between two or distinguish one from another. The light is so dim that I cannot distinguish a dog from a cat. An honest judge does not distinguish between the rich and the poor. Ma r c h 1967 61 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. 76. 77. 78. 79. 62 Do away with, is to put away, to remove, to destroy. We need to do away with bad habits. Do without a thing, is to get along without the thing. He can do without sugar for his coffee. Draw off, is to take away. He has drawn off a gallon of water from the barrel. Draw on or upon. One is said to draw on or upon a bank when he issues a check in order to get money from his deposit in it. Drive at, is to aim at, to intend. I listened to his long talk but could not make out what he was driving at. Dress up, is to adorn by dressing. He just now met his father dressed up in fine style. Drop in, is to visit casually. On my way home, I dropped in at the grocery to buy a few things. Drop out. To drop out is to leave the ranks. The teacher was so unreasonably strict that some students dropped out. Egg on, is to urge on. He egged him on to fight with a bigger man. Engage in battle, in controversy, in business; to be engaged in writing a letter. Entrust a person with a thing; entrust a thing to a person. I entrusted my money to him to take to the bank. I entrusted him with my money to take to the bank. Excel in painting, music, mathematics, running. To be superior to or better than others in some work or ability. Exchange a thing with a person for an equivalent. Will you exchange seats with me? I exchanged an old dress with my cousin for a hat. Fall on or upon, is: To drop on, or to attack. The Constabulary fell on the Huks capturing them. Fall out with a person, is to quarrel with him. Fall through, is to fail, to come to nothing. As neither of us would agree, the plan fell through. Feed on or upon. His dog feeds on poor meat. He feeds his horse on corn and molasses. Pa no r a ma 80. Feed with. I have fed the baby with milk, not with rice. 81. Ferret out, is to search out by patient efforts; to follow out till discovered. The police did not stop till he ferreted the thief out. 82. Flare up, is to give out a dazzling light. Also, to suddenly grow angry or irritated: He flared up when he was scolded. 83. Fly at, is to rush upon suddenly, to attack suddenly with angry words. The dog will fly at a man’s throat. The cat flew at the mouse. 84. Fret at, or about, is to be irritated. What is the old man fretting at? 85. Furnish a thing to a person; furnish a person with a thing. You furnish food to the hungry, medicine to the sick. You furnish a family with provisions, and a relative with money to buy articles for you. 86. Get along, is to advance; to prosper; also to live pleasantly together. He seems to be getting along well in his business. These two brothers never could get along. 87. Get at, is to reach, to attain to. The phrase implies effort. Our object in our study is to get at the truth. It is no easy thing to get at the meaning of every new Tagalog word. 88. Get behind, is to fall behind. It is the opposite of get • before. A man gets behind in business. It means he does not succeed and therefore is not able to meet the claims upon him. A man gets behind with his rent, when he is unable to pay his rent when it becomes due. 89. Get in, meaning, to enter. I went to your house today, but could not get in, i.e. enter it. A man gets in debt, meaning becomes indebted. 90. Get over, is to overcome, to surmount. To get over an illness, to recover from it. The boys got over the garden wall and ran away. The habits of a lifetime are not got over immediately. This man never got over the death of his son, meaning he was not able Ma r c h 1967 63 to recover from the shock he received from his son’s death. 91. Get to, is to reach, to come close to, to attain to. I resolved if possible to get to the ship. When do you get to your destination? 92. Give in to, is to submit to, to agree to, to yield assent to. He gave in to the wish of the majority. The old gentlemen must give in to him. 93. Give off, is to produce odor or vapors. Some flowers give off their sweet fragrance at night. 94. Give up, is to abandon or relinquish, or to fail utterly. I gave up possession of my house today. We have given up all hope of our father’s recovery. The lawyer said his client would not give up his claim to the property. To give up, is to die. He gave himself up to all kinds of low vices. We waited dinner for you till seven and then we gave you up. 95. Glance at, is to take a quick look at; or to touch on lightly, as in a speech. He glanced at the stranger’^ face. This newspaper article glances at our relations with America. 96. Go after, is to follow, to pursue. The dogs went after the wounded deer. 97. Go at. To go at a problem-means to try to solve it. 98. Cro on'with a work, is to keep on doing it. The good student goes on steadily with his studies. 99. Grieve at, for, over. They grieved at my misfortune. I grieve for him over the death of his father. 100. Grow in, is to increase or advance in respect of. Our friend grows in wisdom as he grows in years. 101. Guard against, from. He should guard against mistakes in his work. Her mother tried to guard her from dangers. 102. Hand down, is to leave to one’s successor, as from father to son. Our parents handed down to us their house and land. (To be Continued') 64 Pa n o r a ma