According to Hook, we must recognize the importance of verb-particles as they are commonly used by native English speakers. Moreover, their range of practical uses is gradually increasing in modern English.
The purpose of this study is to analyze the kinds and the amount of verb-particle shown in Korean Middle School English textbooks.
Verb-particle construction is defined by linguists as a verb and an adverbial or prepositional particle. This study attempts to present the differences between phrasal verbs from prepositional verbs. Verb-particle construction can be divided into phrasal verbs, prepositional verbs, and phrasal prepositional verbs. The main difference between phrasal and prepositional verb is found to be separable. The adverbial particle can b e separated into the object and obligatorily from the prenominal one in phrasal verb. On the contrary, in prepositional verbs, prepositional particle cannot be separated from the object. The stress is put on the adverbs of the former, while it falls on the verb of the latter. It is commonly assumed that the meanings of phrasal verbs are totally inconsistent from the component elements, and that they should be considered as idioms requiring personal memorization. However, meaningless memorization of vocabulary has been one of the main reasons which make students lose interest in English.
In order to improve communicative competence, we should often use the verb-particle. The English learning environment for most Korean English learners in middle school is focused on their performance in the class setting. Therefore, the textbooks used in the class setting are important for English learners in middle school in Korea. As a result, textbooks have to be well organized and improved gradually for the future of English education. We must consider better textbooks to offer.
And English phrasal verbs should be presented with both the idiomatic and literal meaning. Moreover, the difficulties inherent in language translation of the various meanings of phrasal verbs to the learner's first language must not be overlooked. Various examples should be given to emphasize the variety of meanings for each phrasal verb. Lastly, English phrasal verbs should be introduced with other phrasal verbs related to their meanings in order to further the understanding of English phrasal verb.