Phrasal verb
chop up
Definition
phrasal verb. to cut something into many small pieces using a knife or a sharp tool.
phrasal verb. to divide a solid object, typically food or wood, into multiple smaller fragments through repeated cutting or hacking motions.
Examples
“Please chop up the onions for the soup.”
“After the storm, we had to chop up the fallen branches to clear the driveway.”
“The chef demonstrated how to chop up the herbs finely to ensure their oils were fully released into the sauce.”
Examples
simple
“Please chop up the onions for the soup.”
contextual
“After the storm, we had to chop up the fallen branches to clear the driveway.”
complex
“The chef demonstrated how to chop up the herbs finely to ensure their oils were fully released into the sauce.”
Usage
commonly used with food items or wood; the object can go between 'chop' and 'up'.
Teaching tip
contrast with 'slice' (thin, even pieces) or 'dice' (small cubes); 'chop up' is more general and implies less precision.
Pitfall
Chop up it into pieces.
Chop it up into pieces.
when using a pronoun like 'it' or 'them', it must go between the verb and the particle.
Phrasal verb
Particles
up
Separability
optional
Pattern
chop + (object) + up
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/chop-up