GIVE, KEEP, BREAK, CATCH, SEE


These common verbs have many different meanings. This unit looks at some important meanings of these verbs, and in some cases they combine with specific nouns, e.g. give someone a ring, break the law, etc. You can learn these as expressions.


Give


I´ll give you a ring this evening. (= phone you this evening)
Could you give me a hand? (= help me)
Please give my regards to Paul. (= please say "hello" to him from me) or If you see Paul, please give him my regards.


Keep


The coat will keep you dry; the gloves will keep your hands warm. (= the coat/gloves will help you to stay dry/warm) (keep + noun/pronoun + adjective)
I keep losing my glasses. I keep getting backache. (= I lose my glasses / get backache again and again) (keep + ing)
Please keep in touch. (= don´t forget to stay in contact, eg. phone or write to me sometimes)
The school keeps a record (= clear written information) of the number of times that students are absent.


Break


He broke the world record again. (= created a new record, e.g. He ran the 100 metres in 9.85 seconds, which is 0.1 seconds faster than anyone else)
Most people break the law at some point in their life. (= do something wrong/against the law)
In my first lesson with a new class, I usually do something to break the ice. (= to make people feel more relaxed when they first meet strangers)


Catch


We can catch a bus down the road. (= take a bus/travel by bus)
How did you catch that cold? (= get that cold/virus)
Catch the ball and throw it to James.


See


A: This part of the picture doesn´t look right compared with the other part.
B: Yes, I see what you mean. (= I understand what you are saying)

A: Do you think we need to hire a car?
B: I don´t know. I´ll see (= I´ll ask and find out) what the others say.

I don´t/can´t see the point of practising six hours a day. (= I don´t understand the reason for practising six hours a day)

(from the book English Vocabulary in Use by Stuart Redman - Cambridge University Press)