Phrasal verbs are a verb + one or more particles (prepositions or adverbs) that create a new meaning.
Example: get over = recover or overcome (not “get” + “over” literally).
They are very common in spoken English and often unpredictable.
Types of Phrasal Verbs
1. Two-Part Verbs
Verb + one particle
Examples:
grow up – The children are growing up.
take after – She takes after her mother. (= She looks like her mother or she behaves like her mother.)
count on – I can count on you. (= I know I can trust you or I know I can believe you.)
a) Inseparable
Verb and particle cannot be split.
She takes after her mother.
b) Separable
With a noun object, you may place the particle before or after the object:
She gave back the money. / She gave the money back.
I get it — they’re thinking in Portuguese, where we say “mais cinco minutos.”
But in English, the word order is different.
Let’s fix it: ❌ more five minutes → ❌ wrong ✅ five more minutes → ✅ right!
📚 Why?
Because “more” is a modifier — a word that gives additional information about another word. In this case, it modifies the noun (minutes), and it must come after the number.
➡️ In English, the correct structure is:
👉 number + more + noun
I need ten more minutes.
She bought two more books.
We’ll wait five more days.
🆚 “Five more minutes” or “Five minutes more”?
Both are grammatically correct, but there’s a difference in tone. Let’s compare:
✅ Five more minutes (most common, especially in conversation)
– Most common – standard form for everyday English – Natural in everyday conversation – Neutral tone
Example: Can I have five more minutes, please?
✅ Five minutes more (less common, more literary or dramatic)
– Less common – More poetic, dramatic, or old-fashioned – Often used in songs or literature
Example: Just five minutes more — let the world wait while I gather my thoughts.
🎧 Practice Time!
1. Complete with the correct word order:
a) I need ______ to finish this book. (more / five / minutes)
b) She bought ______ for the trip. (bottles / more / two)
c) We waited ______, but he never came. (more / ten / minutes)
d) He asked for ______ to explain. (one / more / chance)
e) And then she whispered: “Give me ______, just to say goodbye.” (more / five / minutes)
2. Identify the correct sentence:
a) ( ) I’ll need more five hours. ( ) I’ll need five more hours.
b) ( ) She read two more pages. ( ) She read more two pages.
c) ( ) We’ll stay more three days. ( ) We’ll stay three more days.
d) ( )Five minutes more, and he would’ve seen the sunrise. ( ) More five minutes, and he would’ve seen the sunrise.
3. Translate to English using the correct structure:
a) Eu preciso de mais cinco minutos.
b) Ele ficou mais três dias no hotel.
c) Podemos esperar mais dois minutos?
d) Ela pediu apenas mais um minuto de silêncio.
e) Mais cinco minutos e tudo teria sido diferente.
4. Fix the sentence (rewrite it correctly):
a) I want more ten minutes.
b) She needs more two books.
c) Can I have more one chance?
d) Just more five seconds and we would have kissed.
5. Creative Writing Prompt ✍️
Complete the sentence using your imagination and the structure “___ more ” or “ minutes more”:
a) Five minutes more and… (Exemplo: Five minutes more and the storm would’ve passed.)
b) One more chance to…
c) He needed just a few more…
d) Ten more steps and…
Answers:
Exercise 1: a. five more minutes; b. two more bottles; c. ten more minutes; d. ten more minutes; e. five more minutes
Exercise 2: a. (✔) I’ll need five more hours./ b. (✔) She read two more pages. / c. (✔) We’ll stay three more days. / d. (✔) Five minutes more, and he would’ve seen the sunrise.
Exercise 3: a. I need five more minutes. / b. He stayed three more days at the hotel. / c. Can we wait two more minutes? / d. She asked for just one more minute of silence. / e. Five minutes more and everything would have been different.
Exercise 4: a.I want ten more minutes. / b. She needs two more books. / c. Can I have one more chance? / 4. Just five more seconds and we would have kissed.
Recently, a student was describing his weekend and said: “We went to downtown to visit.”
Hmm… something’s not quite right. Can we say that?
This little sentence inspired me to dig deeper into how “downtown” is used in American and British English — and the results were interesting!
🇺🇸 American vs. 🇬🇧 British English
The word “downtown” is commonly used in American English, but much less in British English. In fact, its use and grammatical role change depending on the variety of English and the context.
🧠 In American English, “downtown” is often used as:
🔹 An adverb (no preposition needed!)
Meaning: to or in the central part of a city
Examples:
I’m going downtown now.
She works downtown, but lives in the suburbs.
We were stuck downtown in traffic.
✅ So instead of saying: “We went to downtown to visit.”
You should say: “We went downtown to visit.”
“Downtown” as an adverb does not need the preposition “to.”
🔹 An adjective (used before a noun)
Meaning: related to the central business district
Examples:
A downtown hotel
Downtown Los Angeles
A downtown office building
Used this way, “downtown” describes where something is.
🏙️ In British English…
British speakers are more likely to say:
“the city centre” or
“the town centre”
Example:
We went to the city centre to visit a museum.
They tend to use “downtown” only as a noun, and even that is rare or used in specific contexts.
🔹 As a noun
Meaning: the central part of a city
Examples:
There’s a nice hotel in the heart of downtown.
We walked around downtown for hours.
The restaurant is two blocks from downtown.
Note: In this case, you can use a preposition like “in” or “from”, depending on the verb.
❗ So, what’s is the most important point to remember?
If you’re speaking American English, don’t say “to downtown.”
Instead, say:
✅ “We went downtown.”
Unless you’re using “downtown” as a noun (less common), which would allow for:
✅ “We went to the downtown area.”
✅ “We stayed in downtown.”
👉 Watch this short video explanation:
✍️ Try it yourself!
✅ Decide if the sentence is Correct or Incorrect — and if incorrect, fix it:
We had lunch downtown.
She went to downtown.
I love downtown cafés.
They moved downtown last year.
He works in a downtown office.
We explored the downtown.
Check your answers at the end!
💬 Creative Practice (Bonus)
Write a short paragraph or dialogue using at least three of these expressions:
go downtown
downtown store
live downtown
downtown traffic
the heart of downtown
✅ Answers (Correct or Incorrect):
✅ Correct
❌ Incorrect → Correct: She went downtown.
✅ Correct
✅ Correct
✅ Correct
✅ Correct — In American English, “the downtown” is acceptable when “downtown” is used as a noun, e.g., “We explored the downtown (area).”
💡 For a more natural version of sentence 6, you could also say: “We explored downtown.”
🗺️ So how do we say that we went to visit a new city and wanted to see its downtown?
There are a few natural ways to say this in English, depending on how “downtown” is used:
✅ “We went downtown to visit.”(adverb)
✅ “We drove downtown to visit.”(adverb)
✅ “We went to downtown Luiz Alves to visit.”(adjective – modifying a proper noun)
✅ “We went to visit the downtown of the city.”(noun)
Each version is grammatically correct — just remember the structure depends on how “downtown” is functioning in the sentence.
There are some differences between these three ways of talking about the future. The differences are not always important; often we can use two or three different forms to talk about the same thing.
PREDICTIONS
Going to: we can see the future in the present; we see things coming or starting:
Look out! You’re going to break that glass! (I can see it now.)
Will: we think or believe things about the future:
Don’t give him a watch – he‘ll break it. (I think so, because I know him.)
Practice I: What’s the best form?
Perhaps we are going to / will meet again one day.
Look! Andy is going to / will fall off his bike!
I think you are going to / will love Paris.
Look at those clouds: it‘s going to / will rain.
DECISIONS
Will: we are making decisions; spontaneous decisions made at the time of speaking:
‘We’ve got a letter from Jan.’ ‘Ok, I‘ll answer it.‘
Going to: decisions are already made; decision made before the time of speaking:
‘There are a lot of letters to answer.’ ‘I know. ‘I‘m going to do them all on Tuesday.’
Practice II: Which one: I’ll or I’m going to?
I’ve decided (that) ……………… stop smoking.
‘I don’t want to cook tonight.’ ‘All right, then. ……..cook.’
‘I haven’t got any money.’ ‘No? OK. ………….. pay.’
‘Do you want to go out tonight?’ ‘No, ………….. study English.’
‘These pants are dirty.’ ‘Really? Oh, yes, they are. …………. wash them.’
‘Is Ann eating with us?’ ‘Wait a minute. ………….. ask her.’
PLANSAND ARRANGEMENTS
Going to and the present progressive are often both possible when we talk about plans.
We use the present progressive mostly for fixed plans with a definite time and/or place:
I‘m going tosee Ann sometime soon.
I‘m meeting Ann at the theater at 8 pm.
Sarah‘s starting university on September 17.
Practice III: In three of these sentences, the present progressive is possible. Which three?
Jack is going to arrive at 4 pm.
I’m going to learn French one of these days.
I’m going to fly to Paris next year.
Mom’s going to tell me about her problems.
We’re all going to spend this month in Brazil.
Are you going to answer all those emails?
ANSWERS:
PRACTICE I: 1. will; 2. is going to; 3. will; 4. is going to
