Phrasal verb BREAK

Study the phrasal verbs. Lead-in.

The school broke up for Christmas holidays last week.

The robber is going to break into the school building and steal the computers there.

The girls broke out into laughter.

So, Sam, being curious, broke in: “What’s up, girls?”

“Oh, it’s the handle of the cup that has just broken off.”

The negotiations at Sarah’s work broke down last week.

Her washing machine has just broken down.

So, she eventually broke down.

More phrasal verbs with BREAK …

break away	escape: When her husband started treating her badly, she decided to break away.
break away	get separated and leave (usu., a political party): She wanted to break away from the conservatives as she did not agree with their policy anymore.
break down (B2)	stop working (a fault in the system): On their way to the mountains their car broke down.
	start crying: When her best friend betrayed her, she broke down.
	not succeed, fail: The peace talks broke down and the war continued.
	divide something into smaller parts: It’s better to break our expenses down into different categories, like food, transport, entertainment, etc.
break in	interrupt (= cut in): Sorry for breaking in, I have some urgent news for you,” she said panting.
break in	enter a building/ car using force and/ or violence: A burglar broke in and stole the money.
break into (a place)	enter a building/ car using force and/ or violence: A terrorist broke into the President’s manor and threatened him.
break in on (your chat)	interrupt (your chat): “My brother is always breaking in on my chats when I’m talking to my friends,” she complained to her mother.
break with sth	stop to have any connection/ link with: break with traditions/ break with the past
break off	get separated from something: The handle of the cup broke off.
break off	break something off – separate something: “You’ll break the door handle off if you keep shaking it so violently,” she said in terror.
break out	suddenly begin (usu., something* bad)*: World War II broke out in 1939.
break out	escape: A few prisoners broke out of the island prison.
break through	make an important discovery (in science): We hope that scientists will soon break through in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease.
break up	close for holidays (schools): Our schools break up for Easter in March or April every year.
break up	end a relationship: The two decided to break up.

Practice

Exercise 1

Match.

1 / 6

Match.

break away

break through

break with

2 / 6

Match.

break down

break in on (your chat)

break off

3 / 6

Match.

break in

break up

break out

4 / 6

Match.

break into

break down

break out

5 / 6

Match.

break something off

break down

break up

6 / 6

Match.

break away

break in

break down

Your score is

Exercise 2

Fill in the gaps.

1 / 8

The scientists have recently broken in genetic engineering.

2 / 8

Mike broke Mary, so he is single now.

3 / 8

Peter’s car broke , so he took to the garage last week, where it is being serviced now.

4 / 8

In the Middle Ages the bubonic plague epidemics broke around the world.

5 / 8

Two robbers broke the bank and stole all the money.

6 / 8

On hearing the sad news, she broke .

7 / 8

Sam broke while we were conversing with Lyn and didn’t even apologise.

8 / 8

“These traditions are obsolete, we want to break them now that we live in the 21^st century”, Matt said at the meeting, introducing his plan of renovation.

Your score is

Exercise 3

Exercise 4

Write the meanings of the phrasal verbs.

1 / 10

When Kitty was picking the cup, the handle broke off.

2 / 10

Having married a Muslim woman, he broke with traditions.

3 / 10

We hope that our team will soon break through in the field of genetic engineering.

4 / 10

They broke out of prison located on an island.

5 / 10

World War II broke out in 1939.

6 / 10

Mr. Johnson broke with the company he worked for many years.

7 / 10

“If these negotiations break down, the company will go bankrupt,” said the CEO.

8 / 10

He apologised for breaking in on their conversation and announced some good news.

9 / 10

Schools and universities break up at the end of December.

10 / 10

She broke down when she heard the bad news.

Your score is

Exercise 5

Replace the verbs in bold with the phrasal verbs. Make other necessary changes.

1 / 10

The negotiations with A&B company failed.

2 / 10

The political situation in the region is so tense that a war is expected to start any moment from now.

3 / 10

The scientists are about to make an important discovery, which will solve major problems that agriculture has been facing in the past few decades.

4 / 10

She was upset when one of the cupboard doors got detached/ separated.

5 / 10

Her views differed a lot from the rest of the group, so she just left.

6 / 10

“Will you please not interrupt our conversation?” she asked.

7 / 10

Did the school close for Easter a few days ago?

8 / 10

The girls burst into laughter when Mike told them a joke.

9 / 10

When the car stopped working, she got out of it and checked the engine.

10 / 10

The couple decided to end their relationship after 10 years.

Your score is

Exercise 6

Exercise 7

enter a building/ car using force and/ or violence

1/10

make an important discovery

2/10

interrupt (= cut in)

enter a building/ car using force and/ or violence

3/10

escape

get separated and leave

4/10

get separated from something

separate something

5/10

stop to have any connection/ link with

6/10

stop working (a fault in the system)

start crying

not succeed

divide sth into smaller parts

7/10

close for holidays (schools)

end a relationship

8/10

suddenly begin (usu, sth bad)

escape

9/10

interrupt (your chat)

10/10

Commit these phrasal verbs to memory!

Start

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Exercise 8*

Make up a 5-sentence story, using the phrasal verbs from the list in any form you need.

Begin your story with “One dark evening …”

1 / 1

You can do this task either here or on a piece of paper. Use the prompts below in any order you prefer.

break up with a boyfriend – break down – break out of prison – break into my house – break off

P.S. This exercise is not corrected here as there are multiple possible answers. We recommend turning to your teacher for correction if needed.

60 words left

Your score is

The average score is 0%

Exercise 9*

Make up 4 short dialogues (2-3 lines each) on the given topics. Use as many of the phrasal verbs from this block as possible.

Example: Two people discussing the latest political news.

Tim: Did you hear that Sam Taylor, our PM, wants to break away from his party due to the recent disagreements?

Hank: Yes, he announced that he would break with the current party and form a new one with more conservative views and policies.

Example: Two people discussing the latest political news.

Tim: Did you hear that Sam Taylor, our PM, wants to break away from his party due to the recent disagreements?

Hank: Yes, he announced that he would break with the current party and form a new one with more conservative views and policies.

P.S. This exercise is not corrected here as there are multiple possible answers. We recommend turning to your teacher for correction if needed.

1 / 4

Dialogue 2. Two acquaintances gossiping.

60 words left

2 / 4

Dialogue 3. Two colleagues talking about possible faulty gadgets in the office.

60 words left

3 / 4

Dialogue 1. Two friends discussing the latest news.

60 words left

4 / 4

Dialogue 4. Two classmates learning historical facts.

60 words left

Your score is

The average score is 0%