How to hear different meanings of phrasal verbs in movies

Pick up can mean collecting someone by car, catching an infection, or trying to start a romantic encounter. In Playphrase.me, enter pick up and listen to several videos to hear these uses in succession.

In Grow House, for example, someone is going to come back and collect a van: pick up the van. Another result concerns catching an infection: pick up one of those nasty bugs. The expression is familiar, but the action changes. The words after pick up help explain which meaning is being used.

When words come between the verb and particle

The two parts can also be separated: pick me up, pick you up. With a separable phrasal verb, a personal pronoun goes between the verb and particle. If someone is coming to collect you, the request is pick me up. The British Council guide to phrasal verbs explains this word order.

Search for pick * up to hear these forms. The asterisk allows words between pick and up. Results can also include the two words next to each other.

One result includes tried to pick me up: the speaker is describing someone's attempt to approach them romantically. The pronoun me alone does not settle the meaning; pick me up can also refer to a ride. The situation makes the difference.

Spend some time with each query: first pick up, then pick * up. You can hear both the different meanings and how the expression fits into a line. If a scene is still unclear, open Contexts and listen to the neighboring lines.