(to) end up

Here's one of the more all-purpose verb:  (to) end up.

This is an intransitive verb, which probably is indicative of its nature.

Here's an example of the context in which I saw this word used today:

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Peruvian authorities are still trying to unravel the mystery of why hundreds of dolphins ended up dead on beaches in the country over the past 2 1/2 months.

Here, the reference "end up" was very final.

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Of course it does not necessarily have to point to the end of ends.

Quitters still end up as winners

And of course, as athletes are bought by one team, then later sold and bought by another, we ask questions such as this 2012 one:

Where Will Peyton Manning End Up?

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Perhaps you can go online and determine where Payton Manning ended up for the 2012-2013 football season.

We're going to end by quoting Natalie Goldberg, author of "Writing Down the Bones," a text I used in my writing classes:

“Writers end up writing about their obsessions. Things that haunt them; things they can’t forget; stories they carry in their bodies waiting to be released.”

Would you agree?

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(to) step down

In today's news, we had two multi-word verbs that are different only in their choice of the preposition practically side by side. We had (to) step aside and (to) step down.  

We will begin with (to) step down. Notice sometimes the preposition "from" is used and at other times the preposition "as" is used. Can you see the differences between the sentences in each case?

Steve Jobs steps down from Apple

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Summitt steps down as Tennessee's women's basketball coach

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James Murdoch to step down as BSkyB chairman

In case case, (to) step down means to resign from a high position. This could be in government, in business, etc.

Now do a search for "Nixon steps down". Everything comes up "Nixon resigns". This is because Nixon stepping down was such a dramatic an historic piece of news that only the singular word "resigns" would have the type of impact that the event conveyed. 

So what is your theory about when to use "as" and when to use "from"?

Use "from" when you are going to immediately afterward name the company or event that the person resigned from.  

Florida judge steps down from George Zimmerman trial

Use "as" when you name their position: chairman, president, etc.

Mubarak steps down as President of Egypt, hands power to military

It's fun to find multi-word verbs in the news because these add so much color to what we read!

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(to) come to expect

Here's an absolutely wild and extremely common transitive verb that I have seen very little attention paid to in vocabulary books or vocabulary lists, or grammar books.

Do a Google search on "come to expect". You'll be surprised what you find.

Our first instance of it in the headlines is here, in an important health article:

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“Many of the things that are routinely done are things that patients have come to expect and doctors have routinely ordered,” said Dr. Christine Cassel, president and CEO of the ABIM Foundation.

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SOUNDING BOARD: We've come to expect certain negative behavior

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And here's an interesting twist on the expression "(to) come to expect" in a video from Vanderbilt Hospital:

We've Come To Expect the Unexpected: Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt

What do you think it means?

Definition #13 of the Oxford Learner's Dictionary defines it as: 

13 [transitive] come to do something to reach a point where you realize, understand or believe something

Follow the link (above) and look at some other really good examples of this word in context.

And then come up with a few sentences and uses of your own.

For example, what have you come to expect from politicians?

What have you come to expect from life?
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Come Down Hard On ( ~ )

Here's a transitive multi-word idiom that you don't want people doing to you.

Let's first take a look at a few examples from the headlines and see if you can come up with any hypotheses as to what it might mean:

Supreme Court Health Care Law: Justices Come Down Hard On The Mandate 

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Law must come down hard on coal mine lawbreakers

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NFL Comes Down Hard On New Orleans Saints For 'Bounty-Gate'

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Well, based on these three headlines, would you say it means something closer to "to support" or "to admonish"? 

We see it meaning "to admonish", "to criticize harshly".  You can see that someone or something came down hard on somebody or something. It could be a teacher coming down hard on a student, a parent coming down hard on a child, or a spouse coming down hard on a spouse.  In each of these statements, it's a strong statement that may have strong repercussions, often legal.

Put this verb - (to) come down hard on (~ ) - in your browser and see the various cases in which this verb is used. In each case, look to see who did what, and who is coming down hard on him/them, and what would be the repercussions, legal or otherwise, of this.

 

Breaking Away (to) break away (from)

One of my favorite of all time movies was a 1979 film called "Breaking Away". It was about a group of teenage boys who discover a love for bicycle racing. The term "breaking away" has reference to sports and also to the boys' social lives, as each one has to break away from the expectations of the surrounding world to live a life right for him.

You can view the trailer of this movie by following this link.

This verb "(to) break away" can be used thus in a variety of contexts, from sports to politics to sociology. 

Let's look at how it's used in the news headlines.

As Romney breaks away from the pack, Rick Santorum hopes for an upset

Here's another one:

Presbyterian group breaks away over gay clergy

What is this group breaking away from, and why?

And here is a third headline:

Nigeria breaks away from African Union at its own risk

Why does Nigeria want to break away from the African Union? What could be the consequences of this?

See how many contexts you can find this word used.  In each case, what is the individual or group or object breaking away from, why, and what might be some consequences of this?

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(to be) at stake

Here's a nice expression that is useful in any number of situations.  It expresses the reality that life and consequences and choices go hand in hand. 

What’s at stake for the candidates tonight on Super Tuesday
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Global Warming - What's At Stake
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 Social Security:What’s at Stake for Children, Youth, and Grandfamilies

The expression implies that if one thing happens, something else will be at risk. It also implies that if one thing happens, there will be other major consequences.

Is Your Health At Stake? Do No Neglect On What That Really Matters

Is your health at stake if you spend too much time in front of your computer without the proper posture? 

What is at stake is the global warming problem is not controlled or solved?

Find some other colorful expressions in the news and on the Internet that use this expression. Find out what's at stake!!!

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cut back, (to) cut back on, (to) cut down on

Today's CNN poll was this:

Quick vote

Are rising gas prices making you cut back on driving?

• Yes
• No

There is a noun that derives from this verb, "(a) cut back", and this word is very common in political and economic circles:

Government Cutbacks Spur More Layoffs

 
The verb is - (to) cut back on (something).  Very similar to this is the verb (to) cut down on (something).  Here are some other examples of these verbs from news headlines:

Americans Cut Down On Checking For Colon Cancer During Recession 

 Chelsea Handler: Why I've Cut Back on My Drinking

India says it won't cut back on Iran oil imports, in defiance of stiffer US and EU sanctions

These two verbs, (to) cut down on (something) and (to) cut back on (something) are fairly interchangeable.  They both imply to reduce the level of whatever it is that's being done!!

So can you think of a few things in your own life that you'd like to cut down on?

Send us your thoughts in the comment box below.

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