Idioms & Phrases Model Practice Questions - Set 2

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Friends, in each of the following questions, an idiomatic expression and its four possible meanings are given. Find out the correct meaning of the idiomatic expression and mark the letter of that meaning as your answer.

To make a clean breast of

1. to gain prominence
2. to praise oneself
3. to confess without reserve
4. to destroy before it blooms
5. none of the above

To end in smoke

1. to make completely understand
2. to ruin oneself
3. to excite great applause
4. to overcome some one
5. to produce no concrete or positive result

To leave someone in the lurch

1. to come to compromise with some one
2. constant source of annoyance to someone
3. to put someone at ease
4. to desert someone in his difficulties
5. none of the above

To cry wolf

1. to listen eagerly
2. to give false alarm
3. to turn pale
4. to keep off starvation
5. none of the above

A man of straw

1. a man of no substance
2. a very active person
3. a worthy fellow
4. an unreasonable person
5. none of the above

To be above board

1. to have a good height
2. to be honest in any business deal
3. to have no debts
4. to try to be beautiful
5. none of the above

To catch a Tartar

1. to trap a wanted criminal with great difficulty
2. to catch a dangerous person
3. to meet the disaster
4. to deal with a person who is more than one's match
5. none of the above

A black sheep

1. an unlucky person
2. a negro
3. an ugly person
4. a partner who takes no share of the profit
5. a member of a family or group who is regarded as a disgrace to it

To smell a rat

1. to see signs of plague epidemic
2. to get bad smell of a dead rat
3. to suspect foul dealing
4. to be in a bad mood
5. none of the above

To have an axe to grind

1. a private end to serve
2. to fail to arouse interest
3. to have no result
4. to work for both sides
5. none of the above

To pick holes

1. to find some reason to quarrel
2. to destroy something
3. to criticize someone
4. to cut some part of an item
5. none of the above

To hit the nail on the head

1. to do the right thing
2. to destroy one's reputation
3. to announce one's fixed views
4. to teach someone a lesson
5. none of the above

To drive home

1. to fine one's roots
2. to return to place of rest
3. back to original position
4. to emphasize
5. none of the above

To beg the question

1. to refer to
2. raise a point that has not been dealt with
3. to raise objections
4. to be discussed
5. none of the above

To keep one's temper

1. to become angry
2. to be in good mood
3. to preserve one's energy
4. to be aloof from
5. none of the above

Read Set 1 of Idioms & Phrases Practice Exercises from here

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