phrasal verb · neutral
give way to
/ɡɪv weɪ tuː/give·WAY·to
task2speaking
to be replaced by something, or to collapse/break because of pressure
Examples
“Traditional shops are gradually giving way to online retailers.”
“The old bridge gave way after the heavy rains.”
“Old customs often give way to new attitudes in a modernising society.”
Band 8 sentence
“In many historic centres, small family-run shops have given way to multinational chains, changing the character of the area.”
Collocations
- give way to + noun (new technology, modern attitudes)
- give way under (pressure, load)
Word family
give way to base formgave way to pastgiving way to gerund/participle
Common mistakes
give place to→give way to
give way→give way to
Say it for a higher band
5be replaced by→6yield to→7+give way to
Synonyms
be replaced by
yield to
Easily confused
yield to
“The committee finally yielded to public pressure.”
Related words
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