Level 8 Chapter 2 - Meanings of To Blow

Complete the sentences.

Fill in all the gaps with the right form of the verb. Click on the ? button if there is one, for extra information. Press "Check" to check your answers. Use the "Hint" button to get a free letter if an answer is giving you trouble. Note that you will lose points if you ask for hints!

To Blow (& prepositions)

This verb has a surprising number of meanings, even when it is used alone:

The wind blows.
In a hurricane it can blow over buildings and even blow away things which are not attached.

You can blow into, up or down, depending on the direction and the nature of the container:
He blew smoke down his straw to see if it would cloud his lemonade.
The gas in a bottle of champagne will blow out the cork if you are not careful.

To blow up has three meanings:

To enlarge a photo.
I can't see Dad properly in this group photo. Maybe we could have it blown up.

To destroy with explosives:
I hate this style of architecture: the best way to improve the building would be to blow the place up!

To inflate.
We'll blow up the balloons just before the party. If we do it now they'll go down and nothing looks less joyful than a half-inflated balloon.

To blow out can mean to extinguish:
Have you seen those trick candles? Every time you blow them out they come back on again.

With a reflexive it is used for the wind again:
When the storm had blown itself out the sea calmed.

To blow in
Used when someone visits by surprise.
Nobody expected John to blow in like that. We all thought he was in Hong Kong.

In the exercise you need to write in the verb in the correct tense plus, sometimes the right preposition....




It was John's birthday last week. There were so many candles on his cake he couldn't them all at once.
I'm afraid we can't launch the boat today. The sea's running high and it's a gale.
So this is your inflatable boat. I hope you have a pump. I wouldn't like to have to it without one!
Red Adair's speciality was putting out oil well fires. Usually he would use an explosive which literally the flame.
With Photoshop it's easy to your pictures until you can see every tiny detail.
Well! Look who's just ! It's Peter, all the way from Philadelphia. What are you doing here, Peter?
In yesterday's storm several trees were and a furniture delivery truck was on the motorway.
They are going to the old building. They can use explosives because there are no other buildings in the immediate neighbourhood and demolition will be much cheaper that way.
Every time you go up a few steps you end up puffing and like a stranded whale. It's time you did some serious exercise to get that weight down.
The storm will probably itself overnight. I bet it's fine tomorrow morning.
"Can I help you officer?" "Yes sir. We're doing random drink-driving tests. Just this little tube, will you?"
I hate balloons. You never know when one's going to explode in your face;
Smokers should be careful in the country. Always your matches before you throw them away and stand on your cigarette ends. You don't want to start a fire.
For goodness sake tidy your desk. The CEO's just from Tokyo on a surprise visit and he'll be here any minute.
In the film "Blowup" a photographer noticed something funny in a corner of his photo. He it and discovered he had photographed a murder.
Another police station was by a suicide bomber in Iraq yesterday with considerable loss of life.
I've often tried a trumpet but I've never managed to get a note out of one.
Peter lit his cigar, a cloud of fragrant smoke and then a perfect smoke ring which little Mary watched in awe.