C1 English Verbs: Social, Physical & Possession

This final section of our C1 verbs covers a wide range of advanced actions. It includes vocabulary for Social Actions & Influence like intervene and provoke, verbs for physical and figurative Movement such as drift and soar, words for visceral Physical Actions & Sensations like crush and stab, and verbs related to Giving, Taking & Possessing such as deprive and inherit.

Jump to a section:

Word	Example Sentence	IPA (UK)
to abuse	He was accused of abusing his power for personal gain. Word Partners: abuse power/authority	/əˈbjuːz/
to bless	Fortunately, the project was blessed with good weather.	/bles/
to boast	The city boasts some of the finest museums in the country. Word Partners: boast an impressive collection, boast a fine example of	/bəʊst/
to bow	The company was forced to bow to public pressure and change its policy. Word Partners: bow to pressure	/baʊ/
to grip	The country was gripped by recession. Word Partners: be gripped by fear/recession	/ɡrɪp/
to indulge	It's my birthday, so I'm going to indulge myself.	/ɪnˈdʌldʒ/
to interfere	I wish my mother wouldn't interfere in my private life.	/ˌɪntəˈfɪə(r)/
to intervene	The central bank may have to intervene to support the currency.	/ˌɪntəˈviːn/
to lobby	They are lobbying the government for changes to the law.	/ˈlɒbi/
to neglect	The building has been badly neglected.	/nɪˈɡlekt/
to opt	Many students now opt for vocational training rather than a university degree. Word Partners: opt for/against	/ɒpt/
to persist	If the symptoms persist, you should consult a doctor. Word Partners: symptoms persist, rumours persist	/pəˈsɪst/
to prevail	In the end, justice will prevail. Word Partners: justice prevails, common sense prevails	/prɪˈveɪl/
to provoke	The article was intended to provoke a reaction.	/prəˈvəʊk/
to rally	The union is trying to rally support for the strike. Word Partners: rally behind/around, rally support	/ˈræli/
to regain	The government has struggled to regain the trust of the people.	/rɪˈɡeɪn/
to reign	For months, chaos reigned throughout the city.	/reɪn/
to render	The new evidence may render the old verdict invalid.	/ˈrendə(r)/
to renew	The talks are aimed at renewing diplomatic ties.	/rɪˈnjuː/
to resemble	She closely resembles her older sister. Word Partners: closely/strongly resemble	/rɪˈzembl/
to reside	The real power resides with the board of directors. Word Partners: power resides with	/rɪˈzaɪd/
to sacrifice	She sacrificed her career to raise her children.	/ˈsækrɪfaɪs/
to shed	The investigation shed new light on the case. Word Partners: shed light on	/ʃed/
to shrug	He just shrugged his shoulders and walked away. Word Partners: shrug one's shoulders	/ʃrʌɡ/
to span	The research project spanned five years and three continents.	/spæn/
to strive	We strive to provide excellent service.	/straɪv/
to supplement	She supplements her pension with freelance consultancy work.	/ˈsʌplɪment/
to tackle	We need to find a better way to tackle this problem.	/ˈtækl/
to tempt	I was tempted to resign, but I decided to stay.	/tempt/
to tolerate	The hospital has a zero-tolerance policy and will not tolerate aggressive behaviour.	/ˈtɒləreɪt/
to toss	She's been tossing and turning all night. Word Partners: toss and turn	/tɒs/
to trail	The opposition party is trailing in the latest opinion polls.	/treɪl/
to unveil	The government is preparing to unveil its new policy on renewable energy.	/ʌnˈveɪl/
to worship	Some people worship success above all else.	/ˈwɜːʃɪp/

Movement (Physical & Figurative)

Word	Example Sentence	IPA (UK)
to bounce	The company's stock price bounced back after a period of decline. Word Partners: bounce back	/baʊns/
to cease	The company has ceased trading. Word Partners: cease trading, cease fire	/siːs/
to clash	The government's plans clash with the promises they made during the election. Word Partners: clash with	/klæʃ/
to cling	He clung to the hope that she would return. Word Partners: cling to a belief/hope	/klɪŋ/
to commence	The clinical trials are scheduled to commence in September.	/kəˈmens/
to crawl	The week seemed to crawl by.	/krɔːl/
to creep	A sense of unease crept over me as I waited. Word Partners: creep in/into/over	/kriːp/
to descend	The peaceful protest quickly descended into chaos. Word Partners: descend into chaos/anarchy	/dɪˈsend/
to dip	Temperatures are expected to dip below freezing tonight.	/dɪp/
to displace	Thousands of people were displaced by the conflict.	/dɪsˈpleɪs/
to divert	The scandal was used to divert attention from the government's failings. Word Partners: divert attention	/daɪˈvɜːt/
to drain	The lengthy court case drained her emotionally and financially.	/dreɪn/
to drift	Over the years, the two old friends began to drift apart. Word Partners: drift apart	/drɪft/
to drown	His voice was drowned out by the sound of the helicopter. Word Partners: be drowned out	/draʊn/
to embark	The company is about to embark on a major new project. Word Partners: embark on	/ɪmˈbɑːk/
to escort	Security guards escorted the protesters from the building.	/ɪˈskɔːt/
to evacuate	Several villages were evacuated as the wildfire spread.	/ɪˈvækjueɪt/
to flee	He was forced to flee the country to escape persecution.	/fliː/
to gaze	He gazed thoughtfully out of the window.	/ɡeɪz/
to glance	She glanced nervously at her watch.	/ɡlɑːns/
to halt	Production at the factory has been halted due to a shortage of parts.	/hɔːlt/
to leap	You shouldn't leap to conclusions without knowing all the facts. Word Partners: leap at the chance/opportunity, leap to conclusions	/liːp/
to linger	The smell of smoke lingered in the air for days.	/ˈlɪŋɡə(r)/
to loom	A general election is looming on the horizon. Word Partners: loom large, loom on the horizon	/luːm/
to march	Time marches on, regardless of our wishes.	/mɑːtʃ/
to nod	The board nodded its approval of the new proposal.	/nɒd/
to plunge	The country was plunged into a deep recession. Word Partners: plunge into darkness/recession	/plʌndʒ/
to retreat	After their initial success, the company's share price began to retreat.	/rɪˈtriːt/
to rip	The scandal has ripped the party apart.	/rɪp/
to soar	Unemployment has soared to a record high.	/sɔː(r)/
to spin	The government tried to spin the story to make it look less damaging. Word Partners: spin a story	/spɪn/
to squeeze	Small businesses are being squeezed by the big multinationals.	/skwiːz/
to stumble	While researching her book, she stumbled upon a fascinating piece of history. Word Partners: stumble across/on/upon	/ˈstʌmbl/

Physical Actions & Sensations

Word	Example Sentence	IPA (UK)
to bleed	The company was bleeding money and on the verge of collapse.	/bliːd/
to grin	She had to grin and bear it. Word Partners: grin and bear it	/ɡrɪn/
to grind	The peace process has ground to a halt. Word Partners: grind to a halt	/ɡraɪnd/
to inject	The government injected funds into the struggling economy. Word Partners: inject funds/money/capital into	/ɪnˈdʒekt/
to screw	Someone has screwed up the arrangements.	/skruː/
to seal	The two leaders shook hands to seal the deal. Word Partners: seal a deal/an agreement	/siːl/
to shatter	The news shattered her illusions about the world. Word Partners: shatter hopes/dreams/illusions	/ˈʃætə(r)/
to shrink	Her confidence shrank as the interview progressed.	/ʃrɪŋk/
to sigh	She sighed with relief. Word Partners: sigh with relief	/saɪ/
to snap	He just snapped under the pressure.	/snæp/
to soak	The rain soaked through my coat.	/səʊk/
to suck	The town was sucked into a spiral of decline.	/sʌk/
to wipe	The entire village was wiped out by the earthquake. Word Partners: wipe out	/waɪp/

Giving, Taking & Possessing

Word	Example Sentence	IPA (UK)
to allocate	You should allocate the same amount of time to each question.	/ˈæləkeɪt/
to attain	She worked hard to attain her goals.	/əˈteɪn/
to deprive	The new law will deprive many people of the right to a fair trial. Word Partners: deprive someone of	/dɪˈpraɪv/
to discard	We must be willing to discard outdated ideas and practices.	/dɪsˈkɑːd/
to discharge	The factory was fined for discharging chemicals into the river. Word Partners: discharge from hospital, discharge chemicals/waste	/dɪsˈtʃɑːdʒ/
to dispose	How do you dispose of hazardous waste safely? Word Partners: dispose of	/dɪˈspəʊz/
to endure	The company has endured several economic downturns.	/ɪnˈdjʊə(r)/
to enrol	Over 500 students have enrolled in the new data science programme.	/ɪnˈrəʊl/
to entitle	This pass entitles you to free parking.	/ɪnˈtaɪtl/
to execute	The team was praised for the way they executed the plan.	/ˈeksɪkjuːt/
to exert	The protest group is trying to exert pressure on the government.	/ɪɡˈzɜːt/
to expire	His contract is due to expire at the end of the year. Word Partners: contract/visa/membership expires	/ɪkˈspaɪə(r)/
to incur	The company incurred huge losses during the recession.	/ɪnˈkɜː(r)/
to inhibit	A lack of confidence can inhibit performance.	/ɪnˈhɪbɪt/
to overwhelm	She was overwhelmed by the kindness of her neighbours.	/ˌəʊvəˈwelm/
to retrieve	The software can retrieve archived files from the database.	/rɪˈtriːv/
to stun	The team's victory stunned the crowd.	/stʌn/
to substitute	You can substitute butter for oil.	/ˈsʌbstɪtjuːt/

C1 English Verbs: Social, Physical & Possession

Movement (Physical & Figurative)

Physical Actions & Sensations

Giving, Taking & Possessing

First Words

Grammar Guide

Grammar Exercises

Reading Exercises

Listening Exercises

Vocabulary Exercises

Test Prep

Business English

Phrasal Verbs

Pronunciation

Games

Español / Castellano