Phrasal Verbs

Time for some phrasal verb fun! Here are five for you to learn. Complete the sentence using the correct verb and remember to change the tense when necessary.

slip up - to make a mistake/an error

pick out - to choose

nod off - to fall asleep

close down - to close a place forever/permanently

Phrasal Verbs have a way of worming their way into our everyday English. Many have more than one meaning so they can be quite confusing.

In this exercise you must read the sentence and the clue in brackets and try to put an appropriate phrasal verb in the correct tense in the gaps. The missing phrasal verbs are popular.

Take a look at the following ten sentences and choose the correct missing verb. This exercise is good for High Intermediate English students.

Link: Which question is best?

Youth club organisers have found a new weapon to drive out teenagers who overstay their welcome - songs from the musical 'The Sound of Music' have been used to encourage youngsters to go home when youth clubs wrap up for the night.

Staff at the Hilton Community Centre were having difficulty dispersing teenagers, who were reluctant to leave when the youth club ended at 10pm on Thursdays and Fridays. Hearing the singing nun pipe up is the way they are told that the party's over.

Here are some sample sentences using English idioms. After you read the sentences, see if you can match each idiom with the definition.

1. After he was cut by the team, he turned over a new leaf and started working out.

2. I couldn't believe he actually passed himself off as a native speaker.