Master 5 Essential Business Phrasal Verbs – Quiz & Practice!

Phrasal verbs are important in business English. They help you sound natural at work. In this lesson, you will learn 5 useful phrasal verbs that are common in meetings, emails, and office conversations.

What’s Inside?

Step 1: Take a short quiz with real-life dialogues.

Step 2: Practice with a worksheet (matching + fill-in-the-blank).

Step 3: Try a bigger quiz with more phrasal verbs!

By the end of this lesson, you will understand and use these verbs correctly at work.

Ready? Let’s begin!

Step 1.

For each short dialogue, choose the correct option. Then listen to the correct answer.

1.

-The delivery was _____ at customs due to missing paperwork.

-Alright, can you follow up and see how soon we can get it cleared?

a) turned up

b) held up

KEY

The correct answer is b) held up.

HOLD UP (hold up, held up, held up)

phrasal verb

to delay or stop something from happening

The traffic held up our bus for 30 minutes.

The flight was held up because of bad weather.

The meeting was held up while they fixed the projector.

We were held up at the store because the line was long.

The delivery was held up at customs due to missing paperwork.

TURN UP (turn up, turned up, turned up)

phrasal verb

to arrive or appear somewhere

He turned up late to the meeting because of traffic.

We waited for an hour, but she never turned up.

A lost document finally turned up on my desk.

More guests turned up than we expected.

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2.

-Can you _____ the contract for the new supplier?

-Sure, I'll put together a draft and make sure everything looks good.

a) draw up

b) sign up

KEY

The correct answer is a) draw up.

DRAW UP (draw up, drew up, drawn up)

phrasal verb

to write or create an important document, plan, or list

The lawyer drew up the contract for the new supplier.

We need to draw up a plan before the meeting.

The manager drew up a list of tasks for the team.

She drew up a proposal for the company's new project.

The company drew up new rules for remote work.

SIGN UP (sign up, signed up, signed up)

phrasal verb

to register for something, like a class, service, or activity

I signed up for a business English course online.

She signed up for the company’s new training program.

You need to sign up before using the app.

We signed up for a gym membership together.

He signed up to volunteer at the charity event.

3.

-We need to _____ unnecessary expenses this quarter.

-Agreed, let's start by reviewing our travel and office supply costs.

a) bring up

b) cut down on

KEY

The correct answer is b) cut down on.

CUT DOWN ON something (cut down on, cut down on, cut down on)

phrasal verb

to use or do less of something, especially to save money, time, or improve health

I need to cut down on sugar because I eat too many sweets.

We’re trying to cut down on office expenses to save money.

He decided to cut down on coffee because he was drinking too much.

They cut down on meetings to give employees more time to work.

She wants to cut down on screen time and read more books.

BRING UP (bring up, brought up, brought up)

phrasal verb

to mention or talk about something in a conversation.

She brought up an interesting point in the meeting.

I didn’t want to bring up the bad news at dinner.

He brought up his concerns about the project deadline.

Let’s not bring up old arguments again.

During the interview, they brought up my previous experience.

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4.

-The deal _____ at the last minute because of budget issues.

-That's frustrating. What are our next steps?

a) fell through

b) came through

KEY

The correct answer is a) fell through.

FALL THROUGH (fall through, fell through, fallen through)

phrasal verb

if a plan, deal, or arrangement falls through, it does not happen, it fails

Our vacation plans fell through because the flights were too expensive.

The business deal fell through at the last minute.

We were going to buy a house, but the sale fell through.

Their plan to open a new office fell through due to budget cuts.

The event fell through because not enough people signed up.

COME THROUGH (come through, came through, come through)

phrasal verb

to succeed in a difficult situation or to deliver what is needed

He came through with the report just before the deadline.

We were worried about the funding, but our investors came through.

She always comes through when we need help.

The team came through and finished the project on time.

5.

-The deadline was tight, but we managed to _____.

-Great job! The client was really impressed with our work.

a) mess it up

b) pull it off

KEY

The correct answer is b) pull it off.

PULL (it) OFF (pull off, pulled off, pulled off)

phrasal verb

to succeed in doing something difficult or unexpected

The deadline was tight, but we managed to pull it off. 

Nobody thought we could close the deal, but we pulled it off.

The event had so many last-minute issues, but the team pulled it off. 

MESS (it) UP (mess up, messed up, messed up)

phrasal verb

to do something wrong or make a mistake that causes a problem

He messed up the report by using the wrong numbers.

She was nervous and messed up her presentation.

I messed up my schedule and forgot about the meeting.

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Step 2.

Click below to download the business phrasal verbs worksheet.

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Step 3.

Click the image below to take a longer quiz on business phrasal verbs!