🇬🇧 ENGLISH

Phrasal Verbs in Real Life

B1/B2 Practical English · 50 items · 30–40 minutes

Progress: 0 / 5 exercises completed

Focus: delayed actions, lost progress, unexpected meetings, and final outcomes.

Exercise 1: Progress, Delay and Surprise

Choose the phrasal verb that fits the situation naturally.

1.I have had the form on my desk for weeks, but I still have not ___ filling it in.

Aput off
Bgot around to
Cfell behind
Dran into

2.After being ill for ten days, Noor spent the weekend trying to ___ on the reading.

Aend up
Bcatch up
Cbring up
Dback out

3.Without regular practice, you can quickly ___ your classmates.

Afall behind
Bturn out
Cget around to
Dcheck out

4.On the train home, I ___ my former piano teacher completely by chance.

Acame up with
Bput together
Cran into
Dset aside

5.The café looked ordinary from outside, but it ___ to serve excellent food.

Acarried out
Blooked into
Cended up
Dturned out

6.We missed the last bus and ___ walking home in the rain.

Aended up
Bcaught up
Cbrought forward
Druled out

7.The repairs took longer than expected and ___ our move by two weeks.

Apaid off
Bset back
Copened up
Dwent ahead

8.Before buying the headphones, I want to ___ a few online reviews.

Atake over
Bfollow up on
Csort out
Dcheck out

9.It took several attempts, but all the extra training finally ___.

Abacked out
Blooked into
Cpaid off
Dput off

10.Instead of postponing it again, I will ___ booking the appointment tonight.

Ago ahead with
Bbring up
Cfall behind
Dhand over

Exercise 2: Decisions and Problem-Solving

Choose the best expression for each stage of a decision or investigation.

1.The support team is ___ why the app deletes some saved settings.

Asorting out
Blooking into
Cruling out
Dbringing up

2.After checking the logs, the engineer finally ___ what caused the error.

Anarrowed down
Bfigured out
Cput off
Dstepped down

3.The airline has now ___ the missing-baggage problem and sent the case.

Asorted out
Bcame up with
Cran into
Dtook on

4.We can ___ the flat near the motorway because the traffic is too noisy.

Aweigh up
Bbring forward
Crule out
Dget through to

5.There are sixty courses; first, let us ___ the list to five realistic choices.

Acall off
Bopen up
Cfollow up on
Dnarrow down

6.Before signing, she needs to ___ the advantages and disadvantages of both contracts.

Aweigh up
Bfall behind
Ccarry out
Dget around to

7.Can you ___ a cheaper way to send these parcels?

Abrush off
Bcome up with
Cback out
Dset back

8.I could not ___ to the insurance company, so I sent a message instead.

Atake on
Bend up
Cput together
Dget through to

9.The clinic will ___ the test result next week to see whether the treatment helped.

Astep down
Bhand over
Cfollow up on
Dturn out

10.The store plans to ___ the old payment system gradually, not remove it overnight.

Aphase out
Bbring up
Ccatch up
Dcheck out

Exercise 3: Plans, Time and Commitments

Use the context to distinguish changing a plan, cancelling it, or withdrawing personally.

1.The dentist cannot see me on Tuesday, so we have to ___ the appointment until Thursday.

Acall off
Bput off
Cbring forward
Dgo ahead with

2.The director is free sooner, so they have ___ the interview to Monday.

Abacked out of
Bset aside
Cbrought forward
Dcarried out

3.Because of the storm, the organisers had to ___ the outdoor concert completely.

Acall off
Blook into
Cget around to
Dhand over

4.The venue is available and everyone agrees, so we will ___ the workshop as planned.

Anarrow down
Bweigh up
Cgo ahead with
Dbrush off

5.Liam had agreed to drive us, but he ___ the arrangement the evening before.

Aput together
Bopened up
Cfollowed up on
Dbacked out of

6.Try to ___ a little money each month for unexpected repairs.

Aset aside
Btake over
Cbring up
Dfall behind

7.The producer decided to ___ the release date after the testing finished early.

Asort out
Bbring forward
Crule out
Dstep down

8.Rather than ___ the whole trip, they changed the destination.

Achecking out
Bcalling off
Ctaking on
Dpaying off

9.We should not ___ a decision until we have read the full proposal.

Aget through to
Brush into
Ccome up with
Dcarry on

10.Even after the first supplier refused, the team decided to ___ searching.

Ahand over
Bcarry on
Cbring up
Drule out

Ask what changes: responsibility can be accepted, transferred, or taken into control; a concern can be introduced, dismissed, or voiced.

Exercise 4: Work, Responsibility and Communication

Select the phrasal verb that describes what the person actually does.

1.When the team leader left, Priya agreed to ___ the extra responsibility.

Ahand over
Btake on
Cbrush off
Dstep down

2.The founder retired and her daughter ___ the family business.

Acarried out
Bput together
Ctook over
Dbrought up

3.Before her leave starts, Rosa will ___ her client files to Marcus.

Ahand over
Blook into
Cend up
Dset aside

4.The laboratory ___ a full safety test before reopening.

Acame up with
Bput off
Ccarried out
Dfell behind

5.Could you ___ a two-page summary from these meeting notes?

Atake over
Brule out
Copen up
Dput together

6.Mina ___ the issue of unequal workloads during the meeting.

Abrought up
Bset back
Cchecked out
Dcalled off

7.The supervisor ___ the warning and did not investigate it.

Aphased out
Bbrushed off
Cfigured out
Dnarrowed down

8.If the instructions are unsafe, employees should ___ rather than stay silent.

Acatch up
Bback out
Cfollow up on
Dspeak up

9.He rarely talks about his worries, but he has started to ___ to his brother.

Aput off
Brule out
Copen up
Dtake on

10.After twelve years as chair, Ms Okafor will ___ in June.

Astep down
Bgo ahead with
Cbring forward
Dlook into

Exercise 5: The Project Route

Place each full expression once to complete the project update.

📚 Vocabulary Bank — Drag the words below:

LOOK INTO THE DELAY
RULE OUT THE FIRST SUPPLIER
NARROW DOWN THE OPTIONS
WEIGH UP THE RISKS
COME UP WITH A BACKUP PLAN
PUT OFF THE LAUNCH
BRING FORWARD THE BRIEFING
HAND OVER THE FILES
FOLLOW UP ON THE COMPLAINT
END UP CHOOSING THE LOCAL TEAM

1.First, the manager will [ Drop here ] reported by the delivery company.

2.Because their quote is incomplete, we can [ Drop here ].

3.That should help us [ Drop here ] from eight to three.

4.Before deciding, the directors must [ Drop here ] carefully.

5.Meanwhile, the design team will [ Drop here ].

6.If testing is not complete, we may need to [ Drop here ].

7.However, we can [ Drop here ] so everyone knows the new timetable.

8.Before her holiday, Hana will [ Drop here ] to the new coordinator.

9.Customer services will [ Drop here ] tomorrow.

10.After all that, we may [ Drop here ] anyway.

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N E R D

Word Origin

Naturally Eccentric, Remarkably Different

Word / Phrase Category Origin & Explanation
Phrasal verb grammar A phrasal verb combines a verb with a short particle such as up, out, or on. The particle often changes the meaning substantially: take on is not simply take.
Work out grammar Work out can mean find an answer, understand a cause, or develop successfully. The precise meaning comes from the context.
Setback etymology A setback is literally something that sets you back. It now commonly means a delay or problem that slows progress.