EducationEnglish.Phrasal verbsCOMMUNICATION · A2–B1

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← Phrasal verbs

Lesson 110 / Nature & observation

The garden and the natural world.

5 phrases · 12 minutes · Look, listen and try.

Observe light, water, branches and living things in familiar scenes.

After this lesson, you can

  • Use this lesson’s expressions to talk about the situation introduced above.
  • Distinguish “block out” and “wash away” in context.
  • Use “jut out” in a sentence connected to your own situation.
Practice and check your answers →

Match words to pictures →Play What is She/He doing? →

A randomly assigned, fixed male or female synthetic voice for each phrase or sentence · Slow playback at 0.7× preserves pitch.

Phrase 1 / 5Understand context
Nhi draws a curtain to block out bright sunlight at her reading corner.
Nhi draws a curtain to block out bright sunlight at her reading corner.

block out

The curtain blocks out the bright sunlight.

Read the example again

The curtain blocks out the bright sunlight.

These earplugs block most of the noise out.

Read the example again

These earplugs block most of the noise out.

View meaning & usage

Prevent light or sound from entering

block out somethingblock something out

Here this means keeping light out. Compare “block up”, meaning obstruct a pipe or passage. With a pronoun, say “block it out”.

Cambridge Dictionary · block out

Haven't studied yet
Nhi watches rain wash away a chalk drawing on the path from a dry porch.
Nhi watches rain wash away a chalk drawing on the path from a dry porch.

wash away

The rain washed away our chalk drawing.

Read the example again

The rain washed away our chalk drawing.

The stream washed the loose soil away.

Read the example again

The stream washed the loose soil away.

View meaning & usage

Remove or carry something away with water

wash away somethingwash something awaybe washed away

Water removes or carries something from its original place. Compare “wash down”, meaning drink with food in the earlier lesson.

Cambridge Dictionary · wash away

Haven't studied yet
A branch juts out from a hedge beside the path; Nhi notices it from a safe distance.
A branch juts out from a hedge beside the path; Nhi notices it from a safe distance.

jut out

A branch juts out from the hedge.

Read the example again

A branch juts out from the hedge.

Be careful of the rock jutting out beside the path.

Read the example again

Be careful of the rock jutting out beside the path.

View meaning & usage

Project beyond a surface or an edge

jut outjut out from something

Describes a part projecting outward. The -ing form is “jutting”, with a double t. This is a position, not a branch growing rapidly.

Haven't studied yet
Nhi learns about a seed-eating bird that lives on seeds.
Nhi learns about a seed-eating bird that lives on seeds.

live on

These small birds live on seeds.

Read the example again

These small birds live on seeds.

During the trip, we lived on rice and beans.

Read the example again

During the trip, we lived on rice and beans.

View meaning & usage

Have a particular food as a main source of nourishment

live on something

Here this describes a main food source. “Live on” can also describe living on an income. It does not mean living on top of the food.

Haven't studied yet
Nhi views a museum display showing that dodos died out.
Nhi views a museum display showing that dodos died out.

die out

Dodos died out centuries ago.

Read the example again

Dodos died out centuries ago.

Some old traditions are dying out.

Read the example again

Some old traditions are dying out.

View meaning & usage

Become extinct or disappear completely

something dies out

Use this for a species or custom disappearing, not just one individual dying. The -ing form of “die” is “dying”.

Haven't studied yet

The examples were written for this course. Usage was checked against Matt Errey’s book, pages 12, 137, 69, 79, 36. A2–B1 is the course’s intended level.

OBSERVE · UNDERSTAND · MATCH

Match phrases to pictures

Drag a wire from the dot beside a phrase to the dot beside its matching picture. You can also tap a phrase, then a picture. Drag again to change a pair before checking.

Read the picture descriptions for more context. Similar expressions are accepted when they fit the particular scene.

A conversation in context

Read the conversation and find the expressions you have learned.

  1. Mai

    That branch blocks out much of the light.

    Read the example again

    That branch blocks out much of the light.

  2. Alex

    The rain washed away the chalk marks below it.

    Read the example again

    The rain washed away the chalk marks below it.

  3. Mai

    Let us check whether any part is jutting out over the path.

    Read the example again

    Let us check whether any part is jutting out over the path.

Compare the uses

block out / wash away

“Block out” prevents light or sound from entering; “wash away” removes something with water. The causes and results differ.

Practice and check your answers

Try answering before revealing the suggested answer. This practice is not scored.

The answers below are models. Other answers can also work if they preserve the facts, meaning and structure requested in the task.

A situation to apply what you have learned

A screen prevents harsh light entering a greenhouse. Rain outside has removed chalk arrows from the path.

  1. Describe the screen’s effect.

    Show the answer and explanation

    The screen blocks out the harsh light.

    The screen prevents harsh light entering the greenhouse: “blocks out the harsh light”.

  2. Replace “the chalk arrows” with “them”: The rain washed the chalk arrows away.

    Show the answer and explanation

    The rain washed them away.

    “Them” replaces the chalk arrows removed by rain, so use “washed them away”, keeping past-tense “washed”.

  3. Report both effects without confusing their causes.

    Show the answer and explanation

    The screen blocks out light, while the rain washes away the chalk.

    The screen blocks light and rain removes chalk; “while” links the effects without exchanging their causes.

The usage comparisons are checked against the Cambridge Dictionary entries linked beside the compared expressions. The additional conversations and exercises are written for this course.

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