Directions (1-5): Each question has two blanks with one blank to be filled by an idiom and other to be filled by a word. Choose the option which correctly mentions the idiom and the word to fill the blanks.
Q1. The landmark Cold War nuclear Weapons agreement might ____________________ if Russia, as announced by the US Secretary of State during a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting, does not come into ____________________ with the treaty within 60 days.
(a) throw cold water; problem
(b) end up in smoke; compliance
(c) carry the ball; assessment
(d) smell a rat; Europe
(e) burn your boots; The United States
Q2. Sameera had become very uncomfortable and ____________________ when visiting her parents after losing the final match in tennis to an/a ____________________ and suffered chronic tension.
(a) couch potato; difference
(b) a dark horse; treatment
(c) a house of cards; division
(d) beyond the pale; equality
(e) ill at ease; underdog
Q3. After two hours spent ________________ in the snow, I realized we were on a ______________________.
(a) wandering; wild goose chase
(b) researching; hard of hearing
(c) wanting; house of cards
(d) gaining; maiden speech
(e) working; couch potato
Q4. A hospital in Srinagar has ____________________ the plea of a Sikh girl who had offered her kidney to save her terminally ill Muslim friend, accepting the ____________________ raised by the prospective donor’s father.
(a) driven home; acrimony
(b) dressed down; history
(c) called in question; sacrifices
(d) curried favour; money
(e) turned down; demurs
Q5. The Senate’s refusal last year to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty may have been a ____________________. The US is certainly not interested in ____________________ her pursuit for Nuclear weapons.
(a) drop in the bucket; undermining
(b) feather in one’s cap; enervating
(c) weal and woe; vindicating
(d) straw in the wind; terminating
(e) leaps and bounds; blaming
Solutions
S1. Ans. (b)
Sol. Idioms:
throw cold water means discourage;
end up in smoke means to fail;
carry the ball means to be in charge;
smell a rat means to suspect foul dealings;
burn your boots means do something that makes it impossible to return to the previous situation;
Words:
Compliance [noun] means ‘the action or fact of complying with a wish or command’;
The tone of the sentence suggests that Russia is being warned in relation to her compliance with an agreement related to Nuclear Weapons. Among the given idiom, the idiom ‘end up in smoke’ which means ‘to fail’, provides the correct context to the blank, and among the given words, ‘compliance’ is the correct word to fill the blank.
Among the given options, option (b) is the correct answer.
S2. Ans. (e)
Sol. Idioms:
Couch potato means a person who prefers to watch television;
A dark horse means an unknown entry;
A house of cards means an insecure scheme;
Beyond the pale means unreasonable or unacceptable;
Ill at ease means uneasy;
Sameera had lost her final match and it is given that she was very uncomfortable. Among the given options, the idiom ‘ill at ease’ and the word ‘underdog’ provide the correct context to the sentence.
Hence, option (e) is the correct answer.
S3. Ans. (a)
Sol. Idioms:
Wild-goose chase means a pointless search;
Hard of hearing means to be deaf;
House of cards means an insecure scheme;
Maiden speech means first speech;
Couch potato means a person who prefers to watch television;
Words:
Wandering means ‘travelling aimlessly from place to place; itinerant’ ;
Researching means ‘investigate systematically.’;
Wanting [adjective] means ‘lacking in a required or necessary quality’;
Gaining means ‘obtain or secure (something wanted or desirable)’;
Working means ‘functioning or able to function’;
Among the given options, the word ‘wandering’ and the idiom ‘wild-chase goose’ provide the correct context to the blanks of the sentence.
Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.
S4. Ans. (e)
Sol. Idioms:
Driven home means emphasise;
Dressed down means giving a scolding;
Called in question means challenge;
Curried favour means seek favourable attention;
Turned down means reject;
Words:
Demurs [noun] means ‘the action of objecting to or hesitating over something’;
Acrimony [noun] means ‘bitterness or ill feeling’;
The phrase ‘raised by the prospective donor’s father’ suggests that donor’s father raised objection to her daughter offering to donate her kidney, and hence, the hospital, accepting the plea of her father has rejected the plea of a Sikh girl who had offered her kidney.
Among the given options, the idiom ‘turned down’ and the word ‘demurs’ provide the correct context to the blanks.
Hence, option (e) is the correct answer.
S5. Ans. (d)
Sol. Idioms:
Drop in the bucket means a very insignificant amount;
Feather in one’s cap means a new and additional distinction;
Weal and woe means good times and bad times;
Straw in the wind means an indication of what might happen;
Leaps and bounds means rapidly;
Words:
Enervating [enervate, verb] means ‘make (someone) feel drained of energy or vitality’;
Vindicating [vindicate, verb] means ‘clear (someone) of blame or suspicion’;
Terminating [terminate, verb] means ‘bring to an end’;
Blaming [blame, verb] means ‘feel or declare that (someone or something) is responsible for a fault or wrong’;
The Senate has refused to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. It means that the US is not interested in stopping her pursuit for Nuclear weapons.
Among the given options, the idiom ‘straw in the wind’ and the word ‘terminating’ provide the correct context to the blanks.
Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.
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