11 In

The particle in, when used with phrasal verbs, keeps a lot of its basic meaning, often referring to things which move towards being, or are already, ‘within something’ or are ‘included in something’. Look at this transcript of a meeting at a computer software company. Dominic, the Chief Executive, who chairs the meeting, speaks first. Note the phrasal verbs with in.

Chair Well, I think we should begin. One of our colleagues from Manchester has been delayed, but I’ve asked David to show her in when she gets here, so she’ll join us later, I hope. Now, first item is the Musicmatch software suite, which, I like to think, has helped to usher in1 a new era in music production. It’s been bringing in good profits, and we’ve certainly been able to cash in on the recent crash of one of our major rivals, as we all know, but with an economic recession setting in now, we may want to rethink our pricing so that it fits in better with the rest of our range. We also need to factor in2 the loss of a major client – we lost the Popmaster contract this year.

Grace Can I come in here, Dominic? Ben and I are already looking at this and we’ll have something to report next week. Basically we hope to build in an automatic upgrade system so that customers will find it easier to stay with us. Ben’s looking at the cost. I said I’d pitch in3 so that we can get it moving faster.

Chair OK, well, maybe we can leave that. But I’d just like to say, remember, we need flexibility – we don’t want to become boxed in4 by our own systems. We’ll come back to it.

David Sorry to cut in, Dominic. Amy Peckham is here.

Chair Ah, good. Our colleague from Manchester has arrived. Hello, Amy. You’re very welcome. Can you squash in there somewhere? Sorry the room is a bit small. Amy Peckham, everyone. Some of you know her already. Right, I suggest we move to Chloe’s presentation. I believe you’re going to use the projector, Chloe?

Chloe Yes. Could we close those blinds? Thanks. Oh dear, they’re still letting a lot of light in. Never mind. I’ll begin. I’d like to use this presentation as a lead-in5 to our general discussion about the future.

1 (formal) begin or cause a period in which new things or changes happen 2 include something when making a calculation or when trying to understand something 3 (informal) help with work that needs to be done 4 restricted 5 something that introduces something else

Tip

Take note of the context when you meet new phrasal verbs. For example, the context on this page is a fairly informal business meeting. Spoken business English is often less formal than the spoken language of business in some other languages and cultures. The same is often true for other contexts, such as spoken academic language.

11.1

11.2

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11.4

dictionary.cambridge.org Find phrasal verbs or phrasal adjectives from the opposite page which mean the following:

1 benefit from 6 introduction 2 interrupt (two answers) 7 take into consideration 3 help 8 find a space 4 introduce 9 include 5 unable to act freely 10 start

Correct the mistakes with the phrasal verbs in these sentences.

1 My new curtains are excellent – they don’t bring any light in. 2 Alba, can you pitch Mr Hill in as soon as he arrives, please? 3 Having the meeting on the 28th would squash in better with our plans than the 30th. 4 Our off ice in Buenos Aires has cashed in a lot of new business this year. 5 When you are planning the course, make sure you set in enough free time. 6 It’s rude to factor in when someone else is in the middle of speaking. 7 If everyone shows in, we’ll soon get the job done. 8 If I move up, then Rachel should be able to box in at the end of the bench.

Complete this paragraph with verbs from the opposite page.

My ten-year-old daughter Rosie had some friends to sleep over last night. Eight of them managed to sleep on her bedroom floor. I don’t know how they (1) themselves in as it is a very small room. Rosie’s birthday had been the previous week, but we had her party yesterday as that (2) in better with other plans. In the evening we had a barbecue and we made lots of diff erent salads and puddings. Rosie and her friends all (3) in, and they enjoyed helping as much as eating. Later in the evening rain (4) in, so they went indoors and watched a film. I was afraid the girls would wake up ridiculously early, but we’ve had new blinds fitted and they don’t (5) any light in, so no one stirred till half past eight.

Cross out the item which does not normally collocate with the phrasal expression in bold. Use a dictionary if necessary.

1 bring in customers / profits / a loss / business 2 a lead-in to a discussion / a bargain / a lesson 3 a recession / rain / a new product sets in 4 usher in a price increase / a new era / changes

Over to you

What other phrasal verbs with in do you have in your vocabulary notebook? Do they also have a connection with the basic meaning of in? As you learn other new ones, think about how the idea conveyed by in might help you remember the meaning of the phrasal verb.