Family/Relationships

Task 1. Complete each sentence with one of the words given.

abandoned criticized neglected adopted humiliated

quarreled scolded/told off offended separated retired

a) Keith’s parents ………… him badly when he was a baby.

b) The small child was being ………… by its mother for getting dirty.
c) Tom deeply ………… Ann by ignoring her at the party.
d) David is not my real father, I was ………… by him when I was small.
e) Ian and Fiona are ………… and they may get divorced.
f) I ………… with my boyfriend but we made it up in the end.
g) Jack ………… on his 65th birthday and received his pension.
h) My parents ………… me for having a ring in my nose.
i) Julie’s mother ………… her when she was a few months old and she grew up in an
orphanage.
j) My boss utterly ………… me in front of important clients so I resigned.

Task 2. Use these phrasal verbs, in the correct form, in place of the words in italics. Use a
different phrasal verb each time.

back out fall for split up live up to fall out stand by

take after get on let down look up to break off count on

1. My young son admires his older cousin and copies everything he does.
2. The children supported their mother when their parents got divorced.
3. Katie started crying when her boyfriend ended their engagement.
4. All three children behave like their father and are very sociable.
5. We can trust Richard: he will never disappoint his friends.
6. Marisa quarreled with her sister on the phone and ended the call while her sister was still
speaking.
7. My parents expect me to do well. I hope I can fulfill their expectations.
8. Romeo was strongly attracted to Juliet the first time he saw her.
9. Sasha agreed to drive his grandparents to the wedding, but then changed his mind at the
last minute.

Task 3. Fill in the correct preposition(s).

1. He was very jealous ……. his friend’s success.
2. The old lady was generous ……. her grandchildren.
3. To make a good impression ……. his employer he volunteered to work late.
4. The actress was not impressed ……. the role she was offered.
5. The key …… his success is his decisiveness.
6. The baby had no intention …… eating her food.
7. He forgave me …… insulting him.
8. She was good …… everything at school.
9. She’s good …… her dog because it keeps her company.
10. That student was hopeless …… getting her work in on time.
11. The quarrel resulted …… Catherine leaving the house.
12. Has it ever occurred …… you that you need more interests in your life?
13. The reason …… the closure of the club was lack of membership.
14. The relationship …… a mother and her baby is a very special one.
15. John has got such a great relationship …… Claire.
Task 4. Find 15 common collocations or fixed phrases by completing each space in
the text with an appropriate word from the box.

patch pressure commitment plucked up spoilt

interests rebelled domineering struck out pushy
follow trial live up to hit it off sheltered

I guess I was what one might call a (1)______ child, for I was the only child of Mary and
David Bettleman and I got whatever I wanted. I had a rather weak –minded mother and
by contrast a very (2)_______ father who had exceedingly high expectations of me,
expectations that I could not (3)_________. You see, my father was quite an eminent
lawyer and wanted nothing more than for me to (4)________ in his footsteps. He
encouraged me to win at everything and to be ultra-competitive. He just couldn’t see that
he was being far too (5)_________ and putting too much (6)________ on me. He simply
thought that he was acting in my best (7)_________. Not surprisingly, perhaps, I
(8)_________ against my upbringing by becoming thoroughly apathetic at school.
As soon as I turned 18, I (9) _________ on my own and went off on a trip to India. It was
there that I met Ingrid, a fellow traveler. It became clear that we came from similar
backgrounds.She too was running away from something: in her case a very (10)_______
upbringing, caused by having two very over-protective parents. We (11)________
immediately, and I (12)________ courage and asked her to be my girlfriend. But I was
young and I needed space, and I guess I was too immature to handle the give and
take of a relationship. Or perhaps I was just afraid of (13)________. Anyway, we went
through a very bad (14)_______ and had a (15)_________ separation for a couple of
months.