Lesson 3: 14 Essential Phrasal Verbs (B2): Meanings & Interactive Practice

1. carry out — strong collocation with trial/study/experiment (perform/execute).
2. cut off — idiomatic for a dropped call/connection (we got cut off).
3. narrowed … down to — fixed pattern: narrow X down to N (reduce possibilities).
4. turn off — you turn off devices/flows (heaters, taps, lights).
5. gives off — emission of heat/smell/light uses give off (inseparable transitive).
6. came up with — means “thought of/produced” an idea.
7. find out — discover/learn information; takes whether/when/how clauses.
8. came off — event/plan succeeded or happened as intended.
9. plugged in — state of connection to electricity; necessary for charging.
10. put … through — telephone transfer formula: put me through to…
11. turn … into — transformation into another state (plan → mess).
12. break … down into — analytical division into parts/sections.
13. broke down — vehicle/machine stopped working.
14. work out — calculation/result sense: the cost “works out” (ends up) fair.

• They carried out a full audit of the safety procedures. Separable, but with a full NP object speakers often place object after the particle; with pronoun → carry it out.
• Please put me through to the logistics department. Pronoun sits between verb and particle for separable verbs.
• We narrowed the shortlist down to three candidates. Requires both down and to before the final number.
• The compound gave off a new scent during testing. give off is inseparable; noun follows the particle.
• She found out (that) the shipment had already left. find out + that-clause; avoid *find out to…*

1. Phrasal: will carry out a follow-up evaluation. → Formal: will conduct a follow-up evaluation. carry out ↔ perform/conduct.
2. Phrasal: the adhesive gave off fumes… → Formal: the adhesive emitted fumes… Emission = give off vs emit.
3. Phrasal: **cut off** the water supply… → Formal: **suspend/terminate** the water supply. Stopping an external supply.
4. Phrasal: concept **turned into** a product. → Formal: concept **became/was transformed into** a product. Transformation.
5. Phrasal: event **came off** despite the forecast. → Formal: event **succeeded/proceeded successfully**. Event success = come off.

• put through — connects callers; plug in is electrical; come on is lights/heating starting.
• give off — produce/emit; turn into = transform; come off = succeed/detach.
• break down — collapse & machine failure; turn off requires an agent; carry out ≠ failure.
• narrow down — reduce possibilities; work out = solve; come off = succeed.
• work out — (a) calculate; (b) end well; find out = learn info; come on irrelevant.

Corrected A

“Before we carried out the factory tour, the power was turned off, and the ventilation began to give off a smell. We tried to plug the backup fans in, but the phone line cut us off unexpectedly, so we couldn’t call Facilities. In the end, the inspection didn’t come off because the lights never came on.”

• carried out to → carried out + noun object (no infinitive).
• turned off by itself → passive acceptable within set: was turned off.
• give a smell off → give off + noun (inseparable).
• plug it … on → plug … in (correct particle).
• put us through → cut us off (disconnection, not transfer).
• didn’t work out → didn’t come off (event failed to happen as planned).
• came off (lights) → came on (start operating).

Corrected B

“We finally came up with three names for the app and narrowed them down to two. During the demo, the label on the prototype came off, and the whole discussion broke the idea down into an argument. Still, the release came off as planned.”

• Fixed order: come up with.
• Particle order: down to.
• Physical detachment: came off (label).
• Pronoun/NP placement: broke the idea down.
• Event success: came off (not came on).

1. Phrasal: gives off → Formal: emits. Emission equivalence.
2. Phrasal: found out → Formal: ascertained/discovered. Information learned.
3. Phrasal: narrow down → Formal: reduce/limit. Use down … to for the final set.
4. Phrasal: came off → Formal: succeeded. Event/result success.
5. Phrasal: broke … down into → Formal: analyzed/decomposed. Analytical partition.

• had been cut off — past perfect passive precedes “replied”; connection loss is typically passive.
• work out — future simple: “will work out” for prediction of outcome.
• come on — simple present habitual/scheduled action (automatic lighting).
• has broken down (or broke down): present-perfect suits “this week” (time not finished); simple past acceptable if speaker views incidents as completed.
• put me through — simple past for a completed transfer yesterday.

• turn off — to repel/discourage; cut off = disconnect/stop supply.
• cut off — isolation/interrupted links (transport/communications); turn off is for devices/flows.
• work out — solve/compute; find out = discover external facts.
• turned into — transformation over time; come off = succeed (event), not transformation.
• comes off — success of a trial; comes on refers to machines/lights starting.

1. broke down — server failure = stop working.
2. plugged in — generator not connected to power.
3. put (callers) through — transfer to emergency mailbox.
4. find out — discover the scope/extent.
5. give off — emit heat.
6. narrowed — reduced possible causes…
7. down to — completes the reduction pattern.
8. carry out — execute/run diagnostics.
9. came up with — created a new slogan.
10. came off — the launch succeeded.

1. Call-centre: “I’ll put you through to the correct team.” / “If we get cut off, I’ll call you back.” put through fixes misrouting; cut off names dropped calls; alternatives like turn off or plug in misdescribe the scenario.
2. Lab: “Let’s carry out a contamination test.” / “We’ll find out whether the batch is usable by noon.” carry out = perform; find out = discover results; work out would imply calculation, not experimentation.
3. Campus: “Please turn off space heaters when rooms are empty.” / “These old units give off excess heat; we’ll replace them.” Device control + emission description; cut off would be too broad/administrative.
4. Venture: “Your weekend baking has turned into a micro-business.” / “Now come up with a name and pricing tiers.” Transformation + ideation; come off is about a single event’s success.
5. Investigation: “We must narrow down fifty leads to five.” / “Then we’ll work out the best interview order.” Reduce set vs. plan sequence; find out would be for learning external facts.
6. Budget: “Let’s break down the total by department.” / “It works out at under €40 per person.” Analytical partition + result calculation; carry out would be incorrect here.