Problem Solution Essays EAP Worksheets - Free Printable

Let’s go step by step to solve this worksheet.

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Part A: Complete the sentences with the phrases below.

We are given these phrases:

a. to deal with
b. a growing need
c. response to
d. tackled by
e. a viable solution
f. in danger
g. these measures
h. failing many economies today

Now let’s match them to each sentence logically.

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Sentence 1: *Inflation is _______________ failing many economies today.*

→ “Failing many economies” is already at the end — so we need something that connects inflation to that outcome.
“Failing many economies today” sounds like it’s describing what inflation is doing → but wait, actually, looking again:
The phrase “failing many economies today” is option h, and it fits best as the *result* of inflation? No — actually, rereading:
Wait — the sentence says:
> Inflation is _______________ failing many economies today.

That doesn’t make sense if we put “failing many economies today” in the blank — because then it would be:
“Inflation is failing many economies today failing many economies today.” → redundant.

Actually — look again: The phrase list includes “failing many economies today” as option h — but maybe it’s meant to complete the idea that inflation is *causing* failure? Or perhaps the sentence is misread.

Wait — let’s read carefully:

Original sentence:
1. Inflation is _______________ failing many economies today.

But “failing many economies today” is one of the options (h). So if we plug in h:
→ “Inflation is failing many economies today failing many economies today.” → no, that’s wrong.

Ah! I think there’s a typo in my reading. Let me check the original image description again — but since I can’t see the image, I must rely on logic.

Actually — looking at standard usage:
Often we say: “Inflation is failing many economies today” — meaning inflation is causing economies to fail. But here, the blank is before “failing many economies today”, which suggests the blank modifies or completes the verb.

Wait — perhaps the sentence is:
“Inflation is _______________ , failing many economies today.” — with a comma? But in the text provided, there’s no comma.

Alternatively — maybe “failing many economies today” is NOT part of the sentence, but rather the phrase to fill in? That makes more sense.

Let me re-read the instruction:

> A. Complete the sentences with the phrases below.

And the phrases include:
h. failing many economies today

So for sentence 1:
“Inflation is _______________ ” — and we choose from the list.

If we pick h: “Inflation is failing many economies today.” → That works grammatically and logically.

Yes! So sentence 1 = h

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Sentence 2: *In today’s classroom, there is _______________ for ways to effectively engage students.*

→ We need a noun phrase that fits after “there is”.
Options:
b. a growing need → yes! “There is a growing need for ways...” → perfect.

So sentence 2 = b

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Sentence 3: *Such problems can be _______________ employing innovative solutions.*

→ After “can be”, we likely need a past participle or passive form.
Option d: “tackled by” → “can be tackled by employing...” → yes, that works.

Note: “employing innovative solutions” is the method, so “tackled by [method]” is correct.

So sentence 3 = d

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Sentence 4: *Governments now have _______________ the issue effectively.*

→ “have” + [something] + “the issue effectively”

Possible:
a. to deal with → “have to deal with the issue effectively” → yes, common structure.

Also possible: e. a viable solution → “have a viable solution the issue” → no, missing preposition.

c. response to → “have response to the issue” → should be “a response”, not just “response”.

g. these measures → “have these measures the issue” → no.

So only a fits: “have to deal with the issue effectively”

Sentence 4 = a

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Sentence 5: *_______________ have shown to be effective in the past.*

→ Subject needed. What has shown to be effective?

Option g: “these measures” → “These measures have shown to be effective...” → yes.

Also, note: “have shown” implies plural subject → “measures” is plural.

Sentence 5 = g

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Sentence 6: *Without a comprehensive plan, this project is _______________ of failing.*

→ “is _______________ of failing”

Common phrase: “in danger of failing”

Option f: “in danger” → “is in danger of failing” → perfect.

Sentence 6 = f

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Sentence 7: *A potential _______________ the issue is to increase teacher salaries.*

→ “A potential [noun] the issue”

We need a noun that takes “to” or “for”? Actually, “solution to the issue” is standard.

Option e: “a viable solution” → “A potential a viable solution the issue” → no, double article.

Wait — “a potential” + [noun] → so we need a noun without article.

Look at options:

e. a viable solution → has “a”, so if we use it: “A potential a viable solution...” → incorrect.

But maybe the phrase is meant to be used as-is? Perhaps the sentence expects “solution to”, but “solution to” isn’t an option.

Wait — option c: “response to” → “A potential response to the issue...” → yes! That works.

“A potential response to the issue is to increase teacher salaries.” → logical and grammatical.

Is there better? Option e: if we ignore the “a”, but we shouldn’t.

Actually, let’s check: Is “a viable solution” meant to be used as “viable solution” without the “a”? Probably not — the phrase includes “a”.

But in context, “a potential viable solution” would require dropping the “a” from the phrase — which we can’t do.

Whereas “response to” — if we take “response to” as the phrase, then: “A potential response to the issue...” → perfect.

Also, “increase teacher salaries” is a type of response, not necessarily a full solution — so “response” fits.

Sentence 7 = c

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Sentence 8: *A final _______________ will be to partner with another company in the sector.*

→ “A final [noun] will be to partner...”

What kind of thing is partnering with another company? It’s a solution or measure.

Option e: “a viable solution” → “A final a viable solution will be...” → again, double article.

Problem.

Unless... perhaps the phrase “a viable solution” is intended to replace the whole “final ___”, so we drop “a final” and just use the phrase? But the sentence starts with “A final”.

Alternative: Maybe “solution” alone is implied, but we don’t have that.

Wait — option g is already used.

Perhaps I made a mistake earlier.

Let’s list what we’ve used:

Used:
1. h
2. b
3. d
4. a
5. g
6. f
7. c

Left: e. a viable solution

Only one left — so sentence 8 must be e.

How to fit “a viable solution” into: “A final _______________ will be to partner...”

If we write: “A final a viable solution will be...” → grammatically wrong.

But perhaps the sentence is meant to be: “A final viable solution will be...” — implying we omit the “a” from the phrase? But the phrase is given as “a viable solution”.

This is tricky.

Another possibility: Maybe “a viable solution” is used as the entire predicate? But the sentence structure is “A final [blank] will be to partner...”

Perhaps it’s “A final step/solution/measure” — and “a viable solution” is the closest.

Maybe the worksheet allows us to adjust slightly? But instructions say “use the phrases below” — so probably exact match.

Wait — let’s read sentence 8 again:
“A final _______________ will be to partner with another company in the sector.”

If we put “a viable solution” in the blank:
“A final a viable solution will be to partner...” → still bad.

Unless... perhaps the phrase is “viable solution” without “a”? But it’s listed as “e. a viable solution”.

I think there might be an error in my earlier assignment.

Let me double-check sentence 7.

Sentence 7: “A potential _______________ the issue is to increase teacher salaries.”

If I use “a viable solution”: “A potential a viable solution the issue” → no.

But if I use “response to”: “A potential response to the issue” → good.

Then for sentence 8, if I use “a viable solution”, how?

Perhaps the sentence is: “A final viable solution will be...” — and we accept that the “a” in the phrase is redundant, or perhaps it’s a trick.

Another idea: Maybe “a viable solution” is meant to be used in place of “final ___”, so the sentence becomes: “A final a viable solution will be...” — which is awkward, but perhaps in context, it's accepted.

But let’s think differently.

What if sentence 7 is “e. a viable solution” and we interpret it as: “A potential viable solution to the issue” — but the phrase doesn't include "to".

The phrase is “a viable solution”, not “a viable solution to”.

Whereas “response to” includes “to”, so it fits sentence 7 perfectly.

For sentence 8, perhaps “a viable solution” is the answer, and we overlook the article clash, or maybe the sentence is poorly worded.

But let’s look at the remaining options.

After assigning:

1. h
2. b
3. d
4. a
5. g
6. f
7. c

Left: e

So sentence 8 must be e.

Perhaps the intended sentence is: “A final viable solution will be to partner...” — and the “a” in the phrase is not used, or it's a mistake in the worksheet.

In many such exercises, they expect you to use the phrase as is, even if it causes minor grammar issues, or perhaps I missed something.

Another thought: In sentence 8, “A final _______________ will be to partner...” — if we put “a viable solution”, it could be interpreted as “A final [thing called 'a viable solution'] will be...” — but that's stretching.

Perhaps "solution" is the key word, and "a viable" is descriptive.

I recall that in some contexts, "a viable solution" can be used as a compound noun phrase.

But to resolve this, let's consider that all other sentences are filled correctly, and e is left, so it must go to 8.

Moreover, "partnering with another company" is indeed a viable solution.

So despite the article issue, we'll assign e to 8.

Perhaps the sentence is meant to be: "The final a viable solution will be..." but it's "A final".

I think for the sake of completing, we'll go with:

Sentence 8 = e

But let's verify if any other combination works.

Suppose for sentence 7, we use e: "A potential a viable solution the issue" — worse.

Or for sentence 4: "Governments now have a viable solution the issue effectively" — no, missing preposition.

So no, c is best for 7, e for 8.

Perhaps in sentence 8, "a viable solution" is used, and the "a" is part of the phrase, so the sentence reads: "A final a viable solution will be..." which is ungrammatical, but maybe in the context of the exercise, it's accepted, or perhaps there's a typo in the worksheet.

Given that, I'll proceed.

So summary for Part A:

1. h
2. b
3. d
4. a
5. g
6. f
7. c
8. e

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Part B: Place the phrases from Exercise A into the table below according to their function. Add any other phrases you know for each function.

Table has two columns:
- To indicate a problem
- To indicate a solution

From the phrases we used:

Phrases indicating a problem:
- h. failing many economies today → describes a negative situation
- f. in danger → indicates risk/problem
- b. a growing need → while "need" can be neutral, in context of problems, it often signals an issue that needs addressing
- Also, "inflation" itself is a problem, but the phrase is "failing many economies today" which is the effect.

Typically, phrases that describe difficulties, risks, failures, needs (when urgent) are for problems.

Phrases indicating a solution:
- d. tackled by → method to solve
- a. to deal with → action to handle problem
- g. these measures → actions taken
- c. response to → reaction to problem, often a solution
- e. a viable solution → directly says solution

Also, "employing innovative solutions" is in sentence 3, but that's not in the phrase list for filling; the phrase list is only a-h.

For the table, we need to categorize the phrases a-h.

Let's list each phrase and decide:

a. to deal with → this is an action to address a problem → solution-oriented
b. a growing need → this indicates a problem exists that requires attention → problem
c. response to → this is how you react to a problem, often a solution → solution
d. tackled by → method of solving → solution
e. a viable solution → clearly a solution
f. in danger → indicates a problem/risk → problem
g. these measures → refers to actions taken to solve → solution
h. failing many economies today → describes a negative outcome → problem

So:

To indicate a problem: b, f, h
To indicate a solution: a, c, d, e, g

Now, the instruction says: "Add any other phrases you know for each function."

Since this is for a student, I should provide common examples.

For "To indicate a problem":
- a serious issue
- a major challenge
- under threat
- struggling with
- facing difficulties

For "To indicate a solution":
- a possible fix
- an effective strategy
- steps to resolve
- way forward
- remedy

But since the task is to place the given phrases and add others, in the answer, I'll list the categorization and suggest additional phrases.

However, for the final answer, since the user didn't specify to explain, but the rules say to work through first, and then give final answer.

Looking back at user options: ExplainAnswer: false, TeachTopic: false, GeneratePractice: false

So I should only provide the Final Answer, but the rules say: "Complete ALL reasoning and explanations BEFORE writing the Final Answer." and "Final Answer: [Provide only the final correct answer]"

But in this case, the "final correct answer" for the worksheet is the completed sentences and the table.

Since it's a multi-part task, I need to present both parts.

Perhaps the final answer is the filled-in sentences and the categorized table.

To keep it clean, I'll state the answers for Part A and Part B.

For Part B, since it asks to add other phrases, I'll include a few common ones.

But let's confirm Part A answers:

1. h
2. b
3. d
4. a
5. g
6. f
7. c
8. e

For Part B:

To indicate a problem: b, f, h
Additional phrases: a critical shortage, widespread concern, escalating crisis

To indicate a solution: a, c, d, e, g
Additional phrases: a practical approach, immediate action, long-term strategy

Now, for the final answer section, I'll box the results.

Since the user may expect the completed sentences, I'll write them out.

Final Answer:

Part A:
1. Inflation is failing many economies today.
2. In today’s classroom, there is a growing need for ways to effectively engage students.
3. Such problems can be tackled by employing innovative solutions.
4. Governments now have to deal with the issue effectively.
5. These measures have shown to be effective in the past.
6. Without a comprehensive plan, this project is in danger of failing.
7. A potential response to the issue is to increase teacher salaries.
8. A final a viable solution will be to partner with another company in the sector. *(Note: Grammatically, it should be "A final viable solution", but based on the phrase given, we use "a viable solution")*

Part B:
- To indicate a problem: b, f, h
Additional phrases: a pressing issue, significant obstacle, looming threat
- To indicate a solution: a, c, d, e, g
Additional phrases: effective remedy, strategic initiative, corrective action

But to make it neat for the student, perhaps simplify.

Since the worksheet might expect just the letters for Part A, and the categories for Part B.

I think for clarity, I'll provide the answers as per the task.

Final Answer:

Part A:
1. h
2. b
3. d
4. a
5. g
6. f
7. c
8. e

Part B:
- To indicate a problem: b, f, h
(Other examples: a serious challenge, under pressure, declining performance)
- To indicate a solution: a, c, d, e, g
(Other examples: a workable plan, proactive steps, sustainable fix)

Note: For sentence 8, although "a viable solution" causes a slight grammatical awkwardness with "A final", it is the only remaining phrase and fits the meaning. In practice, one might say "A final viable solution" omitting the extra "a", but based on the given phrases, we use it as is.