Phrasal verbs: crime

This worksheet includes 12 phrasal verbs that are used when talking about crime, punishment, and the law. You might also like the lesson “Phrasal verbs: investigating (crimes and mysteries)“. The first activity introduces 6 phrasal verbs (e.g. get away with, break into, let someone off). Students work out their meanings from the sentences given and then match them to their meanings. As a practice exercise, students choose the correct alternative to different questions and then discuss the questions in pairs or small groups. Next, students complete an activity that introduces 6 other phrasal verbs (e.g. look into, tip off, stake out): they match sentences with similar meanings and work out the meaning of the phrasal verbs. They practise by completing 3 statements with the correct phrasal verb and explain whether or not they agree with the statements. To test their knowledge, students complete a multiple-choice activity including all 12 phrasal verbs. The last activity is a speaking activity: students are given 3 prompts they use as a debate. A few suggestions are given on where to see these verbs in real-life contexts. This ESL worksheet, together with the conversation cards can be used in various classes in order to practise these crime-related phrasal verbs. It would be a great addition to our video-based lesson plans about crime, punishment, and other legal topics.