Question

Choose the phrasal verb which best fills the blank from the four given options-
He was able to ____ all the troubles.
a- Pull at
b- Pull in
c- Pull through
d- Pull off

Answer 1

Hint:Phrasal verbs consist of two words- The main verb + another part of speech. They are used to form a short phrase. Hence, they are known as phrasal verbs.

Complete answer:
 As given in the hint, phrasal verbs indicate a different meaning than the verb alone.
Example- ‘Look’ is a verb while ‘Look after’ is a phrasal verb.
Mom asked me to look at the paper.
Mom asked me to look after my sister.
In (1), we can understand the usage of ‘look’ as being directed to face a certain direction while in (2), ‘look after’ indicates to take care of X’s sister.
In the given question- X was able to pull through all the troubles. Here, ‘pull through’ refers to surviving or coming through a difficult situation. ‘Pull’ is a verb and ‘through’ is a preposition.
Now, let’s examine the given options-
Option a- ‘Pull at’ refers to holding something and then pulling it constantly. Example- My teacher feels better when she pulls at her pen. ‘Pull at’ is different in meaning to the given context. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
Option b- ‘Pull in’ refers to stopping or parking transport. Example- The police officer asked me to pull in my car. ‘Pull in’ is different in meaning to the given context. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
Option c- ‘Pull-through’ refers to making through or surviving difficult situations. Example- My mother was able to pull through despite her illness. ‘Pull-through’ matches the context. Hence, it is the correct option.
Option d- ‘Pull off’ refers to succeeding despite problems and difficulties. Example- The team was able to pull off at the last over. ‘Pull off’ is different in meaning to the given context. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
So, the correct answer is “Option c”.

Note:
 Phrasal verbs can also be formed with the help of two-three words. Example- Verb + adverb + preposition; look forward to, put up with, etc.