Vocabulary practice for advanced students: Phrasal verbs 3 - Thẩm Tâm Vy

 Thẩm Tâm Vy, December 10th, 2018 VOCABULARY PRACTICE 03 ~ PHRASAL VERBS 3 
VOCABULARY PRACTICE FOR ADVANCED LEARNERS 
PHRASAL VERBS 3 
 It is assumesd that a wide range of phrasal verbs, and their grammatical types, are already known. These 
units focus on multiple meanings, and less well-known meanings of common phrasal verbs. Note that there 
may be other meanings for the verbs listed here. 
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~ 
Rip someone off (= charge too much - colloquial; often used with passive) 
- You paid €50? They really ripped you off! 
- In big cities tourists usually get ripped off. 
Run (= someone) down (= criticize) 
- She's always running down her husband. 
- Don’t run yourself down so much. 
Run down (= lose power, allow to decline) 
 - I think the batteries are running down. 
Run into (= meet) 
- Guess who I ran into at the supermarket! 
Run to (= reach an amount / have enough money) 
- I don't think we can run to a holiday abroad this year. 
- The special report ran to over 400 pages. 
Run over (= check - also run through ) 
 - Let's run over the plan once more. 
Run up (= a bill - let a bill get longer without paying) 
- I ran up a huge telephone bill at the hotel, 
Run up against (= encounter - usually a problem) 
 - We've run up against a slight problem. 
See someone off (= go to station, airport, etc. to say goodbye to someone) 
 - I went to the station to see them off. 
See through (= realize the truth about) 
 - I saw through his intentions at once. 
 - I can see right through you! 
Send (something / someone) up (= make fun of by imitating) 
 - Jean is always sending up the French teacher. 
Set about (= start working) 
 - We must set about re-organizing the office. 
 - A team of technicians set about repairing the damage. 
Set in (= establish itself - especially weather) 
- I think this rain has set in for the day. 
- When the banking crisis set in, most governments were caught unawares. 
Set out: a. (= give in detail in writing) 
 - This document sets out all the Union demands. 
b. (= arrange) 
 - I've set out the refreshments in the hall. 
Set out (= start an action) 
- Sue set out to write a biography but it became a novel. 
Set up (= establish) 
- An inquiry into the accident has been set up. 
-The government has set up an advisory group. 
Set on / upon (= attack) 
 - We were set upon by a gang of hooligans. 
Sink in (= be understood gradually - colloquial, intransitive) 
- Slowly the realization that I had won began to sink in. 
Slip up (= make a mistake - colloquial) 
 - Someone slipped up and my application was lost. 
Sort (something) out (= find a solution - colloquial) 
 - Don't worry, Mary will sort out your problems. 
 - She'll help you sort yourself out. 
Stand by (= keep to an agreement) 
- The company agreed to stand by its original commitment. 
- Whatever happens, I'll stand by you. 
Stand for: a. (= represent - initials) 
 - e.g. stands for ‘exempli gratia’; it’s Latin. 
b. (= tolerate) = chấp nhận 
 - I will not stand for this kind of behaviour in my house! 
Stand in for (= take the place of) 
 - If the director is ill, you will have to stand in. 
- Carol has kindly agreed to stand in for Graham at the monthly meeting. 
Stand up to (= resist, bear stress) = chịu nổi 
- The engine won’t stand up to the strain. 
- The plastic grass in the stadium stands up well to heavy use. 
Step down (= resign - colloquial) 
- The chairman has stepped down after criticism from shareholders. 
Step up (= increase) 
- Production at the Leeds plant has been stepped up. 
- The government has stepped up its efforts to build more housing. 
Stick up for (= defend - especially yourself, your rights - colloquial) 
- She will stick up for him and make any excuse possible. 
- You must learn to stick up for yourself. 
Take in (= deceive) 
- His disguise took everybody in. 
- Don’t be taken in by her apparent shyness. 
Take (= it) out on (= make someone else suffer because of ones own sufferings) 
- I know you are unhappy but don't take it out on me! 
Take off (= imitate - colloquial) 
- Dave takes off the prime minister really well. 
Take on: a. (= acquire a new characteristic) 
- My grandmother has taken on a new lease of life since her operation. 
 Thẩm Tâm Vy, December 10th, 2018 VOCABULARY PRACTICE 03 ~ PHRASAL VERBS 3 
b. (= do something extra) 
- She has taken on too much with a full-time job as well. 
Take out (= insurance - sign an insurance agreement) 
- Ann has taken out life in surance. 
- The company took out a full-page advertisement in a national paper. 
Take over (= gain control of; conquer) 
- The army tried to take over the country. 
- The com pany was taken over by a multinational. 
Take to someone (= develop a liking for) 
- You'll soon take to your new boss, I’ m sure. 
- I took to Helen immediately. She's really great! 
Take up (= time - occupy time) 
- The meeting took up a whole mornin g. 
- Most of his time is taken up with gardening. 
Talk out of or into (= dissuade from, persuade into) 
- Paul talked me into going swimmig, against my better judgment. 
- Ann was thinking of leaving her job,but I talked her out of it. 
Tell someone off (= scold - colloquial) 
- Owr teacher told us off for being late. 
Tie in with (= be in agreement with) 
- I'm afraid your party doesn 't quite tie in with our arrangements. 
Track (= someone) down (= trace the whereabouts of) 
- The police tracked down the killer and arrested him. 
- We managed to track Peter down in the café opposite. 
Try out (= test something) 
- Let's try out the new washing machine. 
- Why don't you try out your French on the waiter? 
Turn (= something / someone) down (= reject an offer) 
- Another company offered me a job but I turned them down. 
- He asked her to marry him but she turned him down. 
Turn out: a. (= happen to be in the end) 
- He turned out to be an old friend of Helen's. 
b. (= come to a meeting or form a crowd) 
- Thousands of fans turned out to welcome the tea m. 
Turn up: a. (= be discovered by chance) 
- Don’t worry about that missing book; it’s bound to turn up sooner or later. 
b. (= arrive - often unexpectedly) 
- Not many people turned up for the lesson. 
Wear off (= lose effect - especially a drug) 
- These pain killers wear off after about two hours. 
Work out (= calculate - also work out at for specific amounts) 
- The hotel bill worked out at over £500. 
PRACTICE 
I. Underline the best word or phrase to complete each sentence. 
1. Tom asked Jane out, but she turned down him / turned him down. 
2. In the end / Initially I set out to prove that such a voyage was possible. 
3. If he treated me like that I wouldn’t stand for him/ tit. 
4.The government should set up a committee / a minister to sort the matter out. 
5. Both teams stepped up the pace / the rate in the second half. 
6. The dog didn’t take to its new owner / liking me. 
7. The good news / The prize hasn’t really sunk in yet. 
8. I told her off / told off her for leaving the office unlocked. 
9. After a week on the ice the expedition ran into difficulties / potholes. 
10. They really rip the bill / you off in this restaurant! 
II. Read the text and decide which option (= A, B, C or D) best fits each gap. 
Tantrum 
 Telesales have become the bane of my life. Recently I have been so inundated with 
them that I now refuse to answer the phone between 6 and 9 in the evenings. Friends 
and relatives understand, and don't bother calling at these times. Last week I was almost 
(1)...D...taking out a contract with a different phone company, before I realized what I 
was doing and slammed the phone down. If it's not advisers promising to (2).......out 
your finances for you, or persuading you to (3)........life insurance, it will usually be 
home improvement companies. My advice is, don't be taken (4)........by the friendly chat 
at the beginning of the conversation. You can (5).......all their charming chit chat with 
ease - all they really want is your custom and your money. So (6).......them, and, 
preferably politely, just say ‘no'. 
1. A. set in B. stuck up for C. worn off D. talked into 
2. A. try B. set C. sort D. take 
3. A. run into B. take out C. set about D. stand by 
4. A. in B. over C. up D. off 
5. A. turn out B. take to C. tell off D. see through 
6. A. stick up for B. run up against C. tie in with D. stand up to 
III. Read the text and decide which option (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap. 
 Meetings which (1)...too much of managers3 time are being blamed for inefficiency 
and lost revenue, according to a report from the Institute of Managerial Affairs. The 
report concludes that a lot of business meetings are a waste of time: the decisions made 
in them could be arrived at by other means, or the managers presence delegated, with a 
capable deputy standing (2).......the manager. But it seems this message has not (3)......in 
yet, for the number of hours devoted to meetings continues to increase annually. 
 In-house meetings are bad enough, but some companies insist on lavish affairs in 
hotels or restaurants, (4).......huge bills in the process. If this were not bad enough, one 
leading finance company has (5)........a committee to investigate the new scourge of 
unnecessary meetings. The number of weekly meetings for the committee has just been 
(6)......up from two to three! 
 Thẩm Tâm Vy, December 10th, 2018 VOCABULARY PRACTICE 03 ~ PHRASAL VERBS 3 
1. A. run over B. set in C. turn out D. take up 
2. A. by B. in for C. up to D. for 
3. A. sunk B. set C. taken D. stood 
4. A. taking on B. sending up C. working out D. running up 
5. A. run into B. sorted out C. taken out D. set up 
6. A. sent B. stepped C. run D. taken 
IV. Complete each sentence with one word. 
1. The government has allowed the coal industry to run..down.. 
2. Robert was set.............by two masked men and robbed. 
3. Why didn't you stick..............for me instead of saying nothing? 
4. Lefs run.................. the details of the arrangements just once more. 
5. Most of my time is taken..................with answering the phone. 
6. I’ve run................against a number of difficulties in this area. 
7. The buffet was set..................on a number of low tables. 
8. The next day, teams of local people set................clearing up the damage. 
9. No one expected the government to stand............. the agreement. 
10. Hundreds of people turned................in the rain to watch the marathon 
V. Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first 
sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. Use between two 
and five words. 
1. I need someone to take my place at the ceremony. IN 
 I need someone to stand in for me at the ceremony. 
2. In the end it was quite a sunny day after all. OUT 
 It.......................be quite a sunny day after all. 
3. Members of the audience started making fun of the speaker. UP 
 Members of the audience started..........................the speaker. 
4. Janet persuaded me not to sell my house. OUT 
 Janet..........................................my house. 
5. Brian does a good imitation of the French teacher. OFF 
 Brian........................the French teacher really well. 
6. The effect of these pills only lasts for three hours. OFF 
 The effect of these pills....................... three hours. 
7. Harry swore he would not go back on his promise. BY. 
 Harry swore that he.............................his promise. 
8. Laura has just insured her life. OUT 
 Laura has just................ life insurance policy. 
9. The detective found the thief and recovered the stolen jewellery. DOWN 
 The detective..........................and recovered the stolen jewellery. 
10. I need a calculator to arrive at the total. WORK 
 I can’t..................................a calculator. 
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ANSWER KEY