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Today, I would like to write about the phrasal verb “bowl over”.  We use it when we want to talk about something or someone which really impresses us. For example:

I had no idea Sarah was such a good singer. She really bowled me over when we went to karaoke last night!

The special effects in that movie absolutely bowled me over! I want to go see it again.

The people in Korea are so nice. My friend and I went there last year, and they bowled us over with their hospitality!

I was bowled over by the food in that restaurant! We have to go there for dinner sometime! (passive voice)

So, we always say bowl someone over; a person and not a thing has to be put in the middle position between “bowl” and “over”. The thing or person which impresses us is always the subject of the sentence.

The phrasal verb for this week is “sleep on”, and it is used when we have to make a big decision about something and we want to think about it overnight. For example:

A: Are you going to take this new job?

B: I don’t know. If I take it, I’ll have to move to London. I need to sleep on it.

We’d like to offer you this job. Please don’t make a decision yet. Just sleep on it, and let us know tomorrow.

A: Have you decided which car you’d like?

B: Not yet. Let me sleep on it, and I’ll tell you tomorrow.

I asked Jennifer to marry me, but she said she needs to sleep on it. That’s not a good sign!

With this phrasal verb, we always use the pronoun “it”. We never use a noun; therefore we do NOT say, “I need to sleep on this decision.”

If we have to make a decision and we say we’re going to “sleep on it”, then it is expected that we will give our decision the next day.

I have a phrasal verb with three different meanings for you today: “go around”. Let me go over the various meanings for you.

1. for an illness to be passed from person to person (usually a cold or the flu). For example:

I caught a bad cold on Sunday. You’d better be careful. It’s going around these days.

My friends in Japan are wearing face masks these days because the flu is going around, and they don’t want to catch it.

2. for a rumor or piece of gossip to be circulated. For example:

There’s a rumor going around that you are planning to start your own company. Is it true?

It’s going around at the office that Peter and Meg are dating, but it’s not true.

3. to have enough of something for everyone in a group. For example:

There aren’t enough test papers to go around, so we’ll have to photocopy some more.

Do you think we’ll have enough champagne to go around, or should we open another bottle?

With the first two meanings, we always use this expression in the -ing form – “going around”. However, with the last meaning, we use the infinitive form – “to go around”. As you can see, we also often use the word “enough” in this case.

The phrasal verb this week is “stand out”, and it is used in three similar but slightly different ways:

1. for someone to be better than other people in a noticeable way. For example:

There were a lot of great actors in the cast, but I think Tricia really stood out.

I went to a ballet last night. All the dancers were good, but the ballerinas from Russia really stood out.

2. for something to be more noticeable than other things. For example:

I love the painting of the windmill. It really stands out in the art collection.

I bought this necklace because it really stood out in the store display case. The design is so original.

3. for someone to be noticeable (sometimes used with “in a crowd”). For example:

Brenda loves to wear bright colors. She always stands out in a crowd.

I’m sure you’ll be able to find Karl easily at the station in Tokyo.  He’s a very big guy, so he tends to stand out in Asia.

This phrasal verb is intransitive which means that it doesn’t take an object.

Today, I have a good expression for all the business people out there. It’s the phrasal verb: “drum up”. It is used when we want to talk about doing something to obtain new customers for a business. For example:

If we advertise in the newspaper or on TV, we’ll be able to drum up some new business.

If we don’t drum up some new business soon, we’ll have to shut down our store permanently.

Our business has been doing badly recently because of the recession. We need to find a way to drum up some new customers.

Brad is our best salesman. He is constantly able to drum up new customers for our company.

I’m not sure why we say “drum up” in this situation, but perhaps a long time ago, people used to use a drum to advertise their products and to get people’s attention. That’s my guess anyway.

We can also use it in non-business situations. For example:

Paula is trying to organize a karaoke night. She’s trying to drum up interest in that now.

The president is trying to drum up support for his new legislation.

Nobody is excited about the camping trip this weekend. We need to drum up some enthusiasm for it.

In these situations, the person tries to talk to other people in order to convince them that the idea is a good one.

I have a phrasal verb for you today which is very useful in these difficult economic times: get by. It is used when we want to talk about a person who is able to survive on a small amount of money. For example:

I have to get by on only $1500 a month. I need to find a better paying job.

Right now, I’m getting by on my salary, but I’m not able to save any money. It’s very frustrating!

My best friend just lost his job. I’m so worried about him. How is he going to get by?

A: You don’t have much money. How do you live?

B: Don’t worry about me. I get by.

As you can see, sometimes we use the word “on” after “get by”. When we do that, we focus on the salary or the amount of money the person has. If we don’t use the word “on” in the sentence, as in the last two examples, we’re focusing on the survival of the person. Therefore, when someone asks the question, “How is he going to get by?” it means, “How is he going to survive?”. Also, in the last example, when the person says, “I get by.” the meaning is “I’m surviving.”

This week’s phrasal verb is to “fork out” for something, and it is used when we want to talk about having to pay a lot of money for something. For example:

My parents told me they’re not going to help me pay for my wedding, so now I have to fork out for the whole thing myself!

I just found out I have to fork out for my son to get braces on his teeth! That’s going to be so expensive!

My girlfriend expects me to fork out for dinner every time we go out!

My friend just had to fork out for a new computer because his old one stopped working.

So, when we use this expression, the person who pays for the thing doesn’t want to do it, but they have no choice. Also, the person considers the amount of money to be quite large.

Today’s phrasal verb is “frown on” and it is used when we want to talk about when someone disapproves of something. In other words, when someone thinks a certain situation is not a good way to live. For example:

My mother frowns on couples who live together before marriage.

I used to frown on drinking alcohol, but now I sometimes like to drink.

A: Don’t your parents frown on you being a rock musician?

B: No, they think it’s cool.

This expression is a little formal but not extremely.

Today I have another interesting and surprising phrasal verb for you. It’s “butter up”, and we use it when we want to talk about flattering someone in order to get something from them. For example:

A: You look so beautiful today, and I think you’re really smart too.

B: Why are you buttering me up? What do you want from me?

Ken was really buttering up his boss yesterday because he wants to take the day off on Friday.

If you want anything from Kate, you have to butter her up first.

I wanted to borrow my brother’s car. I tried buttering him up, but he wouldn’t lend it to me.

I think the best way to remember this expression is to think of someone buttering a piece of toast. When people butter toast, it makes it softer. So instead of butter, people use words of flattery in order to make another person softer and more likely to give them what they want.

By the way, I remembered another meaning for yesterday’s blog entry “The thing is…”, so I will add the extra meaning and give more examples. Please check it out.

This week I have a really fun phrasal verb to teach you: “chicken out”. Normally we don’t use the word “chicken” as a verb, but we can use it in this phrasal verb. We use this expression when we want to talk about a person who is planning to do something, then becomes too scared to do it and changes their mind. For example:

Jimmy was planning to ask the boss for a raise, but then he chickened out.

I was going to ask Susan for a date but, in the end, I chickened out. I’m too worried that she’ll say no.

My daughter chickened out of going on the rollercoaster yesterday at Disneyland. She’s still too young for that I guess.

My friend chickened out of going bungee jumping with me. Would you like to go with me instead?

This phrasal verb is inseparable if we add “of” to it and follow it with an object. My last two sentences are examples of this. It can also be intransitive if we don’t add “of”. My first two sentences are examples of this. Once again, as a reminder, intransitive means that the sentence has no object.

This phrasal verb is a little bit casual, but it’s not offensive. Generally, we use this in casual conversations with friends and people we are close to.