Akihiro's Journey: Listening for Post-Verb Words

2025-05-27 00:00:00 / episode: 439

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Welcome back to English Listening World! I'm Les Perras, and this is the eighth episode in our series "Akihiro's Listening Journey."

In our previous episodes, Akihiro discovered the rhythm of English, learned to break sentences into manageable chunks, practiced shadowing, mastered high-intensity repetition, discovered the power of closing his eyes, learned to identify Subject-Verb-Object patterns, and focused on verb tenses. Today, he'll tackle another challenging aspect of English: those small but crucial words that follow verbs.

For many English learners, phrasal verbs can be incredibly confusing. Words like 'up,' 'down,' 'in,' 'out,' 'over,' and 'through' completely change the meaning of verbs when attached to them. Today, Akihiro will discover how paying special attention to these post-verb particles can dramatically improve his comprehension. Let's join Akihiro as he makes this important discovery!

Chapter Eight: Listening for Post-Verb Words

Nine weeks into his English listening journey, Akihiro felt his confidence growing steadily. His repertoire of techniques had helped him overcome many listening challenges, and his colleagues had noticed the improvement. Mr. Wilson had even asked him to lead a portion of the next client presentation.

The weekly planning meeting was underway, with team members discussing the upcoming presentation.

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"Let's go over the report before Friday's client meeting."

Akihiro heard "Let's go" clearly, but "over the report" sounded like "overethereport" – one blurred word. His mind processed "Let's go..." and he assumed they would be physically going somewhere.

"Where are we going to present the report?"

Several colleagues glanced at him with confused expressions.

"We're not going anywhere. I meant let's review the report together now."

Heat rose to Akihiro's cheeks as he realized his mistake. "Go over" didn't mean physically going somewhere—it meant to review something. Another idiom that had tripped him up despite his progress.

"I see. Yes, let's review it."

As the meeting continued, Akihiro noticed more phrases that combined verbs with small words: "look through the data," "bring up concerns," "point out issues," "check in with the client." Each time, the small word after the verb completely changed its meaning.

Back at his desk after the meeting, Akihiro received an email from Sarah:

"Looking forward to" and "check over" – more combinations of verbs with small words. He searched online for "English verbs with small words" and discovered the term "phrasal verbs" – verb combinations that create meanings different from the original verb alone.

He read examples: "look up" (search for information), "look after" (take care of), "look into" (investigate), "look over" (examine) – same verb, completely different meanings depending on the particle that followed it.

During lunch, he approached Tanaka-san with his discovery.

"Tanaka-san, I've been confused by these... phrasal verbs? Like 'go over' meaning to review, not to physically go."

"Ah yes, phrasal verbs. They're one of the biggest challenges for Japanese speakers because we don't have similar constructions in our language."

"Today I misunderstood 'Let's go over the report' completely."

"It happens to all of us. In Japanese, we use completely different verbs for different meanings. But in English, they change the entire meaning by adding these small particles—over, up, down, in, out, through."

"When I was learning, I developed a specific technique. I trained myself to listen carefully for any word that follows a verb. Those tiny words often carry crucial meaning."

"So after identifying the verb using my SVO technique, I should pay special attention to any small word that follows it?"

"Exactly. Most of these particles are unstressed in speech, which makes them easy to miss. But they're essential for understanding the true meaning."

That afternoon, Akihiro created a list of common phrasal verbs used in his workplace:

"GO: go over (review), go through (examine in detail), go on (continue), go ahead (proceed) LOOK: look into (investigate), look up (search for), look over (review), look forward to (anticipate) BRING: bring up (mention), bring in (introduce), bring about (cause) PUT: put off (delay), put together (assemble), put through (connect)"

He practiced with recordings from previous meetings, focusing specifically on catching these small post-verb words. He noticed how native speakers often connected these particles to the following word rather than the verb itself, making them even harder to catch.

The next day, Akihiro participated in a client call where the project requirements were being discussed.

"We'll look into the integration timeline and get back to you."

Akihiro silently noted: "look into" – investigate, not physically look inside something.

"Great, we'll follow up with detailed specifications next week."

"Follow up" – continue with additional action, not physically following someone.

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: "Let's go through the security requirements before we wrap up."

"Go through" – examine in detail. "Wrap up" – conclude.

Near the end of the call, the client addressed Akihiro directly.

"Akihiro, could you put together a quick summary of the technical implementation for our IT team?"

Akihiro caught "put together" – compile or create, not physically placing items next to each other.

"Yes, I'll create a technical summary and send it over by tomorrow."

"Send over" – another phrasal verb he had used correctly without even thinking about it.

"Nice job catching all those requests, Akihiro. The client was throwing a lot of phrasal verbs around."

"Thank you. I've been working on listening for those small words after verbs."

That evening on the train home, Akihiro added to his growing collection of listening techniques:

"Technique #8: Listen for Post-Verb Words

Pay special attention to small words that follow verbs (up, down, in, out, over, through, etc.)

These particles completely change the verb's meaning

Many phrasal verbs have meanings unrelated to their component parts

These particles are often unstressed and connect to following words

Group phrasal verbs by their base verb to learn patterns

Common in business contexts: go over, look into, follow up, put together, etc."

He also noted how this technique combined with his previous ones:

Use rhythm recognition to identify stressed verbs, then listen for unstressed particles

Apply chunking, but be careful not to separate verb from its particle

When identifying SVO, include particles as part of the verb

Focus on verb tense first, then any particles that follow

As the train neared his station, Akihiro reviewed a presentation script on his phone, consciously identifying all the phrasal verbs: "We'll go over the key findings, point out areas for improvement, and follow up with recommendations."

Eight techniques now. Each one addressed a specific challenge in English listening. Those small post-verb words that had once blended into a confusing blur were now signposts that guided his understanding.

Akihiro smiled as he put away his phone. The language that had once seemed so impenetrable was revealing its patterns, one technique at a time.

And that's how Akihiro discovered his eighth listening technique: paying attention to post-verb words!

To practice this technique yourself, try these simple steps:

Train yourself to listen for small words that follow verbs

Learn common phrasal verb patterns, especially those used in your field

Remember that these particles are often unstressed but carry important meaning

Group phrasal verbs by their base verb to recognize patterns

Be aware that particles often connect to the following word in speech

Combine with previous techniques for comprehensive understanding

This technique is particularly helpful for speakers of languages that don't use phrasal verbs, such as Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and many Romance languages.

Join us next time when Akihiro discovers how recognizing common sound changes in casual English speech can dramatically improve his comprehension!

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