EducationEnglish.Phrasal verbsCOMMUNICATION · A2–B1

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← Phrasal verbs

Lesson 26 / Difficulties & recovery

Overcoming difficult days.

5 phrases · 12 minutes · Look, listen and try.

Describe the obstacle, find a solution, and talk about recovery.

After this lesson, you can

  • Use this lesson’s expressions to talk about the situation introduced above.
  • Distinguish “run into” and “go through” in context.
  • Use “figure out” in a sentence connected to your own situation.
Practice and check your answers →

Match words to pictures →Play What is She/He doing? →

A randomly assigned, fixed male or female synthetic voice for each phrase or sentence · Slow playback at 0.7× preserves pitch.

Phrase 1 / 5Understand context
Minh had a problem when his bicycle tire went flat.
Minh had a problem when his bicycle tire went flat.

run into

We ran into a problem with the bike on our way home.

Read the example again

We ran into a problem with the bike on our way home.

Tell me if you run into any difficulties.

Read the example again

Tell me if you run into any difficulties.

View meaning & usage

Encountered an obstacle

run into a problem / difficulty

The meaning in the lesson is to encounter an unexpected problem; Different from "run into a friend" which means meeting by chance.

Cambridge Dictionary · run into

Haven't studied yet
Minh was tired from a busy period with many unfinished tasks.
Minh was tired from a busy period with many unfinished tasks.

go through

He is going through a difficult week at work.

Read the example again

He is going through a difficult week at work.

We went through a lot when we moved house.

Read the example again

We went through a lot when we moved house.

View meaning & usage

Going through difficult times

go through something

Here it is about going through an experience, not examining each item of the document.

Cambridge Dictionary · go through

Haven't studied yet
Minh found a way to solve a puzzle and was delighted.
Minh found a way to solve a puzzle and was delighted.

figure out

I finally figured out why the printer stopped.

Read the example again

I finally figured out why the printer stopped.

Can you figure out how to open this box?

Read the example again

Can you figure out how to open this box?

View meaning & usage

Understand / find the solution

figure out somethingfigure something outfigure out why / how

After thinking or considering, you understand the cause or find a solution.

Haven't studied yet
Minh gets better after a cold, puts the tissue aside.
Minh gets better after a cold, puts the tissue aside.

get over

It took me a few days to get over the cold.

Read the example again

It took me a few days to get over the cold.

She is still getting over the disappointment.

Read the example again

She is still getting over the disappointment.

View meaning & usage

Recovering from illness or sadness

get over an illness / disappointmentget over it

In the lesson, it means recovering or overcoming the effects of an unpleasant thing. Do not split phrases.

Haven't studied yet
Minh is recovering at the hospital and is visited by relatives.
Minh is recovering at the hospital and is visited by relatives.

pull through

He was very ill, but he pulled through.

Read the example again

He was very ill, but he pulled through.

The family was relieved when she pulled through.

Read the example again

The family was relieved when she pulled through.

View meaning & usage

Overcoming a critical condition

pull through

Often emphasizes surviving or overcoming a serious condition, stronger than just getting over a cold.

Haven't studied yet

The examples were written for this course. Usage was checked against Matt Errey’s book, pages 109, 57, 44, 52, 100. A2–B1 is the course’s intended level.

OBSERVE · UNDERSTAND · MATCH

Match phrases to pictures

Drag a wire from the dot beside a phrase to the dot beside its matching picture. You can also tap a phrase, then a picture. Drag again to change a pair before checking.

Read the picture descriptions for more context. Similar expressions are accepted when they fit the particular scene.

A conversation in context

Read the conversation and find the expressions you have learned.

  1. Mai

    We have run into a problem with the booking.

    Read the example again

    We have run into a problem with the booking.

  2. Alex

    Let us figure out what happened before changing everything.

    Read the example again

    Let us figure out what happened before changing everything.

  3. Mai

    Good idea. We have gone through difficult changes before.

    Read the example again

    Good idea. We have gone through difficult changes before.

Compare the uses

run into / go through

“Run into” a problem means encounter difficulty unexpectedly; “go through” means experience a period or event. A sudden problem may begin a longer difficult period.

Practice and check your answers

Try answering before revealing the suggested answer. This practice is not scored.

The answers below are models. Other answers can also work if they preserve the facts, meaning and structure requested in the task.

A situation to apply what you have learned

A community printer fails unexpectedly. The team has dealt with a similar difficult period before.

  1. Describe encountering the new problem.

    Show the answer and explanation

    We have run into an unexpected printer problem.

    The unexpected printer fault is a problem the team has “run into”, rather than the whole difficult period.

  2. Replace “the cause” with “it”: Figure out the cause.

    Show the answer and explanation

    Figure it out.

    “It” replaces the cause being investigated, so “figure out the cause” becomes “figure it out”.

  3. Write an encouraging message using go through.

    Show the answer and explanation

    We have gone through a problem like this before and can work together.

    “Have gone through” recalls an earlier difficult experience to encourage the team facing the present problem.

The usage comparisons are checked against the Cambridge Dictionary entries linked beside the compared expressions. The additional conversations and exercises are written for this course.

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