Learn how to use the verb "Follow"
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| Hi everybody. Welcome back to Know Your Verbs. My name is Alisha and in this episode, we are going to talk about the verb Follow. Let's go. |
| So the basic definition of this verb is to move behind someone or something and to go to the same place that that person or thing is going to. |
| Examples. |
| I will follow you to the park. |
| Follow me! I know where we're going! |
| The conjugations of this verb now. |
| Present. Follow. Follows |
| Past. Followed. |
| Past participle. Followed. |
| Progressive. Following. |
| Now, let's talk about some additional meanings of this verb. Okay. The first additional meaning is to understand, to understand. |
| Examples. I don't follow you. Do you follow? So, we can really just replace the word follow with understand here. In the first example sentence, I don't follow you. We can say, I don't understand you. It means, I don't understand what you're saying or I don't understand what you're thinking. I don't follow you. It sounds more casual like I don't follow your train of thought. Train of thought means like the path you took to arrive at your destination thinking wise. |
| Follow you just sounds more casual. It's like I can't understand. I can't follow the path of your logic in other words. So I don't follow you. In the second sentence, it's a question. Do you follow meaning do you understand? Do you understand what I am saying? So follow can mean understand quite simply. |
| Okay, let's go to the second meaning for this verb. So the second one is, to happen after something else. To come after something else. Examples of this. |
| A delicious dessert followed the roast chicken. |
| A luxurious hot spring experience follows a massage on this 1-day tour. |
| In these example sentences, we see follow is used to describe something that happens after something else. In the first example sentence, I mentioned a dessert that followed a roast chicken. So yes, dessert is being presented first in the sentence. So I said, a delicious dessert followed a roast chicken. So that means, a delicious dessert came after a roast chicken. So followed, yes. Followed shows the thing that came after the other thing. |
| So, we see the same thing in the second example sentence. A luxurious hot spring experience follows a relaxing massage. So yes, luxurious hot spring experience is first in the sentence. However, we are using the verb follows. So that means, it comes after a massage in this case. So yes, it's presented first in the sentence but this use of follow means Come after. So that means, we are presenting a sequence in this way. |
| Let's go to the third meaning which is, to obey. To obey. So to obey something. Okay. Examples of this. To obey. |
| Did you follow the instructions on the Instant Ramen? |
| She decided to follow her manager's advice. |
| So, in both of these sentences, we are meaning, obey with the verb follow. So we could say, did you obey the instructions on the Instant Ramen but obey sounds quite strong. We use obey for like people who are in positions of power above us. |
| So in this case with Ramen, it's packaging. So we usually say, follow the instructions on the packaging. So meaning, obey the instructions on the packaging but obey is quite a strong word. We use follow instead. |
| In the second sentence, she followed her manager's advice is like, she obeyed her manager's advice. So yes, a manager is in a position of power above you. Sure. Obey is typically used when we are given like strict orders for something like military or like something from the president. Something from very high up and like very strong orders like obey your commanding officer or something like that. |
| In this case, it's advice meaning that it's probably not so serious. It's like a suggestion and it's a manager. So she has probably like a workplace relationship. So we would probably use follow someone's advice in this case. So follow means obey but it's not quite as strong, not nearly as strong. Much softer. |
| So, the fourth meaning is to be very interested in something and to watch that thing closely. Examples of this. |
| I don't really follow sports. |
| She's been following the news very closely. |
| So, the first example sentence is a negative. I don't really follow sports meaning I don't really have much interest in and therefore, I don't really watch much sports. In the second example sentence, she's been following the news very closely. It means, she's been very interested in and watching a lot of news lately. |
| So, this use of follow is quite convenient. It includes meanings of being interested in something and watching something carefully or closely. So, to follow a topic or to follow an activity. So this means being interested in that activity and doing or seeing or reading about a lot of it. |
| Variations. Let's look at some variations of this verb. The first variation is, to follow suit. This means, to do the same thing as the person previously mentioned in the sentence or in the situation. |
| Examples. |
| My manager just quit the company. I think I'm gonna follow suit. |
| Her boyfriend decided to leave the party, so she followed suit. |
| So, in both of these examples, we see, one person makes a decision or takes an action and the other person does the same thing. We show that with the expression, follow suit. So, in the first example, my manager quit the company, I think I'm gonna follow suit. So I think I am going to do the same thing as the person I just mentioned. So, my manager quit the company. I think I am going to do that as well. I think I am going to follow suit. |
| In the second example sentence, her boyfriend decided to leave the party. So she followed suit. So he left the party. She decided to do the same thing he did. She followed suit, past tense. She did the same thing he did. So follow suit means to do the same thing as the person previously mentioned. |
| The next variation is, to follow through. To follow through. We often used to follow through on or to follow through with something. This means, to keep a promise or to do something you said you were going to do. |
| Examples. |
| I hate it when people don't follow through with their plans. That's true. That's called flaking. Okay. |
| Example sentence #2 |
| I am going to follow through on my resolution to find a new job. Okay. So, here we see a couple examples. So, the first one is sort of a negative statement. I hate it when people don't follow through with their plans meaning, I hate it when people don't do the things they say they are going to do. So I hate it when people make a plan and break the plan or make a suggestion and don't do that thing. So, they don't follow through with their plans. |
| In the second example, the speaker previously made a resolution. A resolution is a kind of goal. So, the speaker previously made a resolution. The speaker has decided to follow through meaning to try to achieve that resolution. To try to do that action. So, that means that the speaker is going to find a new job. So the speaker is going to do the thing he or she promised to do. |
| The last variation for follow today is to follow in someone's footsteps. To follow in someone's footsteps. This is kind of an easy one to imagine. So, to follow in the same footsteps as someone who walked before you. However, that person who walked before you is typically a parent or maybe a grandparent or someone senior to you that you admire. |
| Example sentences. |
| He's following in his father's footsteps and becoming a lawyer. |
| She decided not to follow in her mother's footsteps after all. |
| So, to follow in someone's footsteps typically refers to a career choice. So, in the first example sentence we saw lawyer. So, he decided to follow in his father's footsteps meaning, he decided to do the same thing his father did as a career. Become a lawyer. So meaning, chose the same thing as his parent. |
| In the second, we see a different situation. She decided not to follow in her mother's footsteps meaning she chose a different career path from her mother or she chose a different life path from her mother. |
| So, to follow in someone's footsteps means to do the same thing, usually the same career as their parent or their grandparent. |
| So, those are a few new ways to use the verb follow. I hope if you have any questions, if you want to try to make a sentence or if you know some other ways to use follow, please feel free to try it out in the comments. |
| Thanks very much for watching this episode of Know Your Verbs and we will see you again next time. Bye bye! |
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