Phrasal verb: get down

Phrasal verbs are an important part of learning a language, which we’ve spoken about before on the Bespeaking blog. But there are so many different phrasal verbs, all with at least one meaning, so we thought it was high time (overdue, past time) to introduce you to another one!

Phrasal verbs are a verb + preposition or participle. The preposition or participle changes the original meaning of the verb into something else. One common phrasal verb you’ll hear in English is get down, or get down to. Get down has a few different meanings, so let’s get going and talk about this phrasal verb!

Phrasal verb: get down

Meaning #1: to dance or enjoy oneself

Do you like going to a wedding and dancing the night away? When your favorite song comes on the radio, do you dance around your kitchen and sing along? Then you like to get down! The first meaning of the phrasal verb get down means to dance or enjoy yourself. It’s a fun one to use, especially if you really love to dance.

For example:

• I really miss getting down. Do you want to go dancing with me on Saturday night? There’s a fun party downtown that will have great music!
• Sarah thought that John was a very formal person. He always seemed so in the office. But she realized how fun he could be when he got down to hip-hop at the company Christmas party!

Meaning #2: get [x] down: to depress someone or make someone sad

As soon as you add a subject in between get and down, it changes the meaning of this phrasal verb completely. While to get down is fun and exciting, if you get someone down, you make them sad or bring down the mood.

For example:

• Carl has some of the saddest stories. Every time he tells one, he really gets us down.
• Sarah has had really bad luck lately. I know it’s not her fault, but it really gets me down when I talk to her.

Meaning #3: get [x] down: to take notes

Context is important when using phrasal verbs! You can also use a variation of get down to talk about taking notes or writing something down. You may have used this phrasal verb in college when you were in a lecture (class, speech) or when you’re on the phone with someone.

For example:

• Hold on, I need to find a piece of paper. Can you repeat your phone number so I can get that down?
• Her professor spoke very quickly, making it hard for Isabel to get all of the important facts down in her notebook while he was talking.

Meaning #4: get down to: to begin or start something

“Let’s get down to business, to defeat…the Huns!” This quote from the Disney movie Mulan is one of the best examples of this variation of the phrasal verb get down. It means to begin or start something, and in the movie, the soldiers are starting their training to defeat (win against) their enemies. If you’ve seen the movie, I’m sure this song is stuck in your head now!

For example:

• I’m ready to get down to it. I really want to get started, but I have to wait for everyone else to get here.
• We have a five-a-side soccer match every Saturday morning, but we have to wait for everyone to show up before we can get down to picking teams.

Have you used get down or any of its variations when speaking English before? Can you think of any other good examples? Try using it in a sentence in the comments below!