PHRASAL VERBS ~ BREAK (Exercises & Keys)

PHRASAL VERBS WITH “BREAK”
I. Fill in the gaps using an appropriate preposition.
1. The boss wants these expenses to be broken....still further. He says that they are not very detailed.
2. The Japanese company has broken....many of the technological barriers that we are meeting in developing our computers.
3. He is a new clerk and the boss wants to break him....gently.
4. I expect the meeting to break....at seven in the evening.
5. Please, don`t keep on breaking....while someone else is talking.
6. There was some fighting between the hooligans in the football ground, and the police had to be called to break it....
7. Having discovered the truth, the detective broke....Mr Quy`s alibi.
8. When she saw his corpse, she broke....in loud weeping.
9. There were serious problems on the flight when one of the engines broke....
10. He was very enthusiastic before he realised that his plans had broken....
11. He broke....from the sentries and disappeared into the fog.
12. Those animals are not difficult to break....
13. A gang of thugs broke....the church and damaged the altar.
14. When we told her that her husband was dead, she broke....tears.
15. They seemed to be a happy couple, but they argued bitterly and broke....their engagement.
16. A fire has broken....in the woods. People think that the person responsible is a pyromaniac.
17. Three dangerous murderers have broken....of prison and are somewhere in the area.
18. The Second World War broke....in 1939.
19. That old ship is going to be broken....
20. They can`t stand each other and so their marriage has broken....
21. The lecture will probably break....at eight o`clock.
22. He`s very late, his car must have broken....
23. The first world war broke....in 1914.
24. Some hooligans broke....the football ground during the match.
25. He`s very impolite and he often breaks....other people`s conversations.
II. Replace the following phrasal verbs with another word or phrase of the same meaning.
1. He should break away from his old habits.
2. About seven members of the Labour Party have broken away to form a splinter group.
3. In Canada, the province of Quebec wants to break away and form a new country.
4. They were torturing him, hoping that his resistance would break down.
5. The machinery broke down because of a mechanical fault.
6. After three years in India, his health had broken down.
7. The dictator wants to break down all resistance and opposition.
8. The boss wants you to break down all the statistical material.
9. Burglars had broken into the local bank and stolen the money.
10. Please don`t break in when we are speaking.
11. A tramp broke into the church looking for shelter.
12. When she heard the joke she broke into a loud laugh.
13. Work has once again broken into my leisure time.
14. Let`s break off for a few minutes and have some tea.
15. I wasvery surprised when I heard that they had broken off their engagement.
16. The war broke out as a result of a lack of negotiations.
17. Several jailbirds broke out of prison during the night.
18. His face broke out in a rash.
19. The sun broke through the clouds.
20. The meeting broke up in disorder.
21. His health broke down when he stayed in the Middle East.
22. In the middle of the class they broke off for a few minutes to have a chat.
23. The island of Corsica wants to break away from France.
24. The manager told the clerk to break down the figures.
25. They broke off their engagement when she found out that he had been married before.
III. Replace the words in italics with an appropriate phrasal verb.
1. You say that 18,000 people use this toothpaste. Could you classify them into age-groups?
2. They had to remove the door to get into the house.
3. He was overcome by sorrow when telling me about his mother`s death.
4. After years of heavy toil his health was ruined and he had to retire.
5. The car stopped working when we were in the middle of the lane.
6. The negotiations were discontinued because neither side would compromise.
7. A gang of thugs entered by force and damaged the rooms.
8. As I wasspeaking he kept interrupting all the time.
9. Indian horses are very difficult to train.
10. James has terminated his engagement to Mary.
11. They were in the middle of an argument but stopped talking when the