The phrasal verb I have for you this week is “lead on”. It is used when we want to say another person gives false hope to someone about a romantic relationship. For example:
I thought that girl really liked me, but she was just leading me on.
I was led on by that girl. (passive voice)
If you don’t want to be my boyfriend, just tell me now. Please don’t lead me on.
A: Have you ever been led on by someone?
B: Yes, I have. I dated a guy in university and I thought he was serious about me, but he wasn’t. I hate it when guys lead you on like that!
As I mentioned before, this expression is only used for romantic relationships; it can’t be used to talk about friendships or business relationships.
I hope none of you have ever been led on by someone. 🙂
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