Verbs with Direction

Someone asked me the other day to turn-up the thermostat. I told them it was attached to the wall with screws and I could not do so without a screwdriver, which I did not have. They seemed quite puzzled and exasperated by my answer and proceeded to go-over and make the desired adjustment to the thermostat.

Last night I wandered off into thoughts about how many American English idioms there are made from verb-preposition combinations: verbs with direction. I started thinking about what it would be like to be a foreigner just learning American English and hearing those common sayings.

His first exposure might be in a hotel after he arrived in America and the housekeeper ask him if he wanted his bed turned-down for the night. Then, the next day he is offered a job that he is told that someone has turned-down. He thinks of the housekeeper turning-down the other applicant.

The old phrase “he turned-up missing simply does not compute. If that housekeeper, however, gets to the former applicant he may turn-up in proper condition for the night.

If you tell someone to turn-down the television are you asking him make it ready for use at night? If you tell someone to turn-up the radio are you asking them to make the radio hotter?

What are you asking if you tell someone to turn-back the covers? When one says the military turned-back the enemy does that mean they plan to get in bed together?

We drive pick-up trucks that do not do any picking at all. Aren't they really put-in and take-out trucks? When you go to pick-up your wife does that mean you will be putting her in the truck? Does it at least mean you will be lifting her off the ground? When we tell our children to pick-up their toys does this mean go put the toys in the truck? Does one ever pick-down?

If you reach above your head and pull-down an apple from a tree did you not pick-down the apple? Why did you pick-on that particular apple tree by picking-out that specific apple? Did you pick-over its fruit before selecting that apple?

When your children talk-back to you do you say you are not going to put-up with that? Then later do you tell your children to put-up their toys? Do they tell you they are not going to do so? Do you wonder why?

What do you really mean when you say something should be put-away? Does put-away mean different things depending upon whether the thing to be put-away is a skateboard, the family pet, or grandpa?

What is the difference between a house that is torn-up and one that is torn-down? Is there a point where it is so torn-up that it cannot be fixed-up and should be torn-down?

If they haul-off the debris from a house that is torn-down do they also haul-on materials to build-up a new structure? Do they do so with a haul-on truck? Why can't one build-up the new structure? Don't rivers build-up sand bars?

What is the difference between shutting-down and shutting-up? Would an elderly shut-in who is told to shut-up be shut-out of the group and perhaps shut-down emotionally. Would it make a difference if I tell the workmen on a completed job to shut-up instead of shut-down?

Why do we always start-up the car and later it has to be shut-down? If we are going to a friend's house do we not start-down the road?

If your passenger tells you to slow-up and you slow-down instead should he be offended? Should he tell you when to speed-up? If he told you to speed-down the road would he want you to go slower or faster?

Can your friend really come-over to your house? How would he do so?

If you go to the drive-in window of a local fast food place and you are leaving is it now a drive-out window? Do you think people really intend to build drive-through windows? What is meant by a drive-in bank?

Does an airplane really take-on passengers? Is that different than a person who takes-in a boarder? Shouldn't the airplane also take-in passengers? Do they really want you to get-on the plane? If you really do try to get-on the plane will they not get-on you? (Thanks George).

It seems logical that one would only take-out the trash and bring-in the groceries. If you go to a restaurant and order take-out are you asking for trash?

At night do you put-out the cat? If the cat has knocked-over your favorite vase are you are put-out with the cat? Why? Neither of you knocked-over a bank.

A cartoon I remember is of a man facing a paper towel dispenser in a restroom. On the front of the dispenser were the words “pull-down: tear-up.” So the man pulls the dispenser down from the wall and tears it apart.

There are many, many more but I have already devoted far too much time to this endeavor. The bottle of Cabernet is now empty and so am I.