WORK - Basic Verbs - Learn English Grammar

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♪ Ve-ve-verb, verb, verb, ♪ the verb is the word.

Ve-ve-verb—that's hard to say.

Hey, everybody.

My name is Alisha.

Welcome back to Know Your Verbs.

In this episode, we're going to talk about the verb “work.”

Let's get started.

The basic definition of the verb “work” is to fulfill duties for money or for compensation.

Compensation means payment.

So, for example, salary or an hourly wage, so compensation.

So, to do things in exchange for money is work.

This is a basic definition of the verb “work.”

Now, let's look at the different conjugations of this verb.

Present tense, “work,” “works.”

Past tense “worked,” past participle tense “worked,” progressive tense “working.”

Now, let's talk about some additional meanings of the verb “work.”

Meaning 1, the first additional meaning is to function correctly.

To function correctly means an object is behaving, is functioning in the proper way.

So, let's look at some examples.

“My computer isn't working today.

What happened?”

“The mechanic fixed my car and now, it works perfectly.”

Meaning 2, yes, yes.

Okay, the second definition is to produce a desired effect or result or to succeed at

something.

So, some examples of this.

“His plan is crazy, but I think it might work.”

“I don't think that'll work.”

Fun fact, I took that example sentence, “I don't think that'll work” from a video game

called, “Indiana Jones And the Fate Of Atlantis.”

“I don't think that'll work”

Next one, is to control or to cause to labor.

To cause to labor means like to fulfill your duties to work as in the first the original

basic meaning of this word.

So, let's look at some examples.

“Management worked the team way too hard last year.”

“Today, we're working the computer remotely”

Now, let's look at some variations, the first variation is “work on.”

“Work on” means to try to affect, or like to try to influence, to try to persuade someone.

Some examples of this, “Politicians often work on voters” fears.”

So, to work on someone's fears, it's like they're affecting that.

They are trying to persuade people by focusing on their fears in this example, sentence.

“The movie works on viewers sympathy.”

So, here “works on,” the movie works on means the movie is kind of is affecting the

sympathy of the viewer and then as a result, influence happens so a change in emotion happens

in this way, “to work on.”

The second variation is “work out.”

So, “work out” means to exercise.

“Work out” can mean to lift weights, to jog, to do sports, whatever.

“Work out” just means exercise.

Examples of this, “I never work out,” “She's been working out three days a week

for the last year,” overachiever.

The third variation for this lesson is, “work up.”

So, “work up” means to gradually make progress but with difficulty.

Examples of this, “He worked up to asking the girl on a date.”

“She worked her way up to becoming CEO of a company.”

So, to “work up” to something is like slowly and with difficulty making progress.

So, we can split this phrasal verb like, “She worked her way up.” or “He worked up to

asking the girl on a date.”

So, we pair “work” with the preposition “up” in this example.

Okay, do you know a little bit more about the verb “work?”

If you have any other variations, or if you know a different meaning of the verb, “work,”

or if you just want to practice making a sentence with this verb, please feel free to do so

in comments section.

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some other good study resources.

Thanks very much for watching this episode of Know Your Verbs, we'll see you again soon,

bye.

♪ We can work it out.

♪

We're working now, live to work, work to live, which will you be?

Her pen works.

It’s true, she just drew a picture of me.