Lesson
Using the verb 'to be' combined with particles:'to be away' means to have gone to another place.
- Sandra won't be back until next month, she is away in China at the moment.
- I'm sorry but Martin is away on holiday this week. Can I help you?
'to be down' means to be unhappy or depressed.
- Until I found a new job, I was down for a long time.
- Sue has been down since she turned 50.
'to be down' can also mean the opposite of 'to be up', to have fallen or got smaller.
- The dollar is down one cent against the euro.
- Profits are down this quarter due to bad sales in Europe.
'to be in' means to be at home.
- I tried to phone Donna last night but she wasn't in so I couldn't speak to her.
- I'll be in this afternoon if you'd like to come for tea.
'to be off' means to leave or to start on a journey.
- I'll see you tomorrow morning, I'm off now. Have a nice evening.
- We're off to Florida on Tuesday. The flight leaves at ten o'clock.
'to be off' can also mean that food is old and has gone bad.
- Don't eat that yoghurt, I think it's off. It's been in the fridge for ages.
- Smell the milk, I think it's off.
'to be on' means that something is taking place
- That documentary is on TV tonight but I don't know which channel it is on.
- Let's go shopping on Saturday. The sales are on at the moment.
'to be on' can also mean to be working or switched on.
- I think he must be deaf, the TV was on very loud.
- When I arrived, the lights were on but nobody was at home.
'to be out' is the opposite of 'to be in' so means to not be at home or to be absent.
- I'm sorry but Jack's out. Can I take a message?
- Marie is out until lunchtime. She's got an appointment at the dentist this morning.
'to be up' means to have risen, got higher.
- Prices are up more than ten per cent.
- Unfortunately our costs are up more than twenty per cent because of the increase in the cost of petrol.
