How to Use the Phrasal Verb ‘Shake Off’
“Shake off the bad vibes and keep dancing. When people try to bring you down, turn the music up. ”
Shake off is a phrasal verb that is commonly used in spoken English. In this post, I’m going to teach you its different meanings and how we use it in English conversations.
When we shake something off, we remove it by shaking. So we can say,
“Shake off your shoes before you get into the car”.
But as a phrasal verb, it can be used figuratively in a few different ways. Read on to learn more.
Teaching English Just Got Easier!
Save hours of time with an organized collection of high quality, easy-prep ESL lesson plans and worksheets right at your fingertips.
The Phrasal Verb ‘Shake Off’
1. To Recover from Illness
When you shake off an illness, you finally manage to recover from it. For example,
“I can’t shake off this headache I’ve had all day.“
“My cold is better but I can’t shake off this cough.”
2. To Get Rid of a Bad Feeling
When you free yourself from a negative feeling or experience, you shake it off. So we can say,
“We can’t shake off the feeling that he’s lying.“
“The city has finally shaken off its bad reputation.“
3. To Escape
You can also use this phrasal verb to say that you managed to get away from someone who is following you. For example,
“She managed to shake off the photographers.“
“They drove through the red light and shook off the police.“
I hope this was useful! If you have any questions, please let me know in the comments below!
