FILL IN THE BLANK
"After years of overworking, she decided to _______ boundaries and stop answering emails after 6pm."
set
"He's exhausted because he took on too many projects at once."
→ Say the same using a collocation from the project.
He burned out because he took on too many projects at once.
"The company's decision to offer flexible hours led to greater employee _______ ." (ENGAGE)
engagement
"When I first started working remotely, I _______ very isolated. It took months to adjust."
a) used to feel b) would feel c) tend to feel
a) used to feel — would cannot be used with stative verbs like feel
"I used to working from home before the pandemic."
I used to work from home before the pandemic.
"He _______ a sedentary lifestyle — he sits at a desk for ten hours a day and never exercises."
leads
"She manages to survive financially even though she only works part-time."
→ Use an expression with get.
She gets by even though she only works part-time.
"She found the lack of _______ in her new role really difficult to deal with." (AUTONOMOUS)
autonomy
"She _______ the new open-plan office yet — she finds it really hard to concentrate."
a) isn't used to b) doesn't use to c) hasn't tended to
a) isn't used to
"She would be very stressed in her old job — she never relaxed."
✅ She used to be very stressed — would cannot be used with states.
"The company launched a new programme to _______ employee wellbeing and reduce absenteeism."
promote
"It took him months to recover from the stress of the restructure."
→ Use an expression with get.
It took him months to get over the stress of the restructure.
"The _______ of the 40-hour week is now completely impossible in a remote work context." (MEASURE)
measurability
"He _______ working such long hours. That's why he gets so furious every time he needs to stay online outside working hours."
a) doesn't use to b) isn't used to c) hasn't got used to
b) isn't used to
"He isn't used to work such long hours yet."
✅ He isn't used to working such long hours yet.
"Working from home has completely _______ the line between personal and professional life for millions of people."
blurred
"There's a constant, invisible sense of pressure in the background that never fully switches off."
→ Use an expression with ambient.
There's an ambient hum of obligation that never fully switches off.
"The constant pressure to be available created a sense of _______ that never fully switched off." (OBLIGE)
obligation
"I need to _______ my colleague _______ the report before I send it to the client."
a) get / to review b) get / reviewing c) make / to review
a) get / to review
"I got my colleague reviewed the report before I sent it."
✅ I got my colleague to review the report before I sent it.
"After his burnout, David decided to _______ a healthier lifestyle and _______ a hobby outside of work."
adopt / take up
"Workloads increased slowly and quietly after the pandemic — nobody noticed until it was too late." → Use an expression with swell.
Workloads swelled silently after the pandemic.
"The _______ of deep work requires eliminating all distractions — including shallow tasks." (CONCENTRATE)
concentration
"Remote workers _______ report higher satisfaction scores than office-based staff, according to recent research."
a) are used to b) would c) tend to
c) tend to
"They're getting used to have fewer meetings since the restructure."
✅ They're getting used to having fewer meetings since the restructure.