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Idioms and Phrases Questions with Answers

What a fixed expression means in use, rather than what its words separately say. This page pools every idioms and phrases question on the site (263 of them, from 46 exams, weighted towards Banking, Management, Defence) so you can drill the topic on its own instead of meeting four of them inside a full paper.

5% of the pool is graded hard on this site’s own scale and 17% easy, which is gentler than the average topic in this section.

Questions
263
Practice set
25 in 25 min
Difficulty
44/206/13
Negative marking
None
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Idioms and Phrases questions with solutions

6 from the 263-question pool, worked in full.

  1. 1. What does the idiom "to beat around the bush" mean?

    • A. To search a garden
    • B. To avoid talking about something directly ✓
    • C. To exercise outdoors
    • D. To speak very loudly

    Solution. "To beat around the bush" means to avoid speaking directly about an issue.

  2. 2. Choose the meaning of the idiom: "To foot the bill"

    • A. To pay the cost of something ✓
    • B. To walk instead of taking transport
    • C. To refuse a request
    • D. To submit a complaint

    Solution. 'To foot the bill' means to pay the cost of something, often an unwelcome expense.

  3. 3. What does 'to hit the nail on the head' mean?

    • A. To repair something quickly
    • B. To make a loud noise
    • C. To describe exactly what is causing a situation ✓
    • D. To fail at a task completely

    Solution. The idiom means to identify a problem or fact with complete accuracy.

  4. 4. Choose the meaning of the idiom: "A blessing in disguise".

    • A. A gift that is returned unopened
    • B. Something that seems bad or unlucky at first but eventually results in something good ✓
    • C. A favour that is never repaid
    • D. An event that is disguised to look important

    Solution. "A blessing in disguise" refers to something that initially appears unfortunate but turns out to be beneficial in the end.

  5. 5. Choose the meaning of the idiom "to get to the bottom of".

    • A. To give up on something
    • B. To start something new
    • C. To postpone a decision
    • D. To find the real cause of something ✓

    Solution. "To get to the bottom of" means to discover the real cause or truth behind something.

  6. 6. Choose the meaning of the idiom: "To break even".

    • A. To make a large profit
    • B. To incur neither profit nor loss ✓
    • C. To go bankrupt
    • D. To double one's investment

    Solution. "To break even" means to reach a point where total costs and total revenue are equal, with no net profit or loss.

Exams that set Idioms and Phrases

7 categories, led by Banking, Management, Defence.

Also set by INET, IPMAT Indore, JIPMAT, KMAT Karnataka, LIC AAO, LPUNEST, MAH MBA CET, MAT, MH CET Law, MH CET Law (3-Year LLB), MICAT, MIT-WPU CET, NABARD Grade A, NCHM JEE, NDA, NIACL AO, NIFT, NMAT, RBI Assistant, RBI Grade B, SBI Clerk, SBI PO, SEBI Grade A, SIDBI Grade A & B, SNAP, SRMJEEE, SSC CGL, SSC CHSL, SSC CHT, SSC CPO, SSC MTS, SSC Stenographer, TANCET MBA, Territorial Army. Browse all exams.

Idioms and Phrases: frequently asked questions

How many idioms and phrases questions are there?

263, from the 46 exams here whose syllabus sets the topic. 17% are graded easy and 5% hard, which makes idioms and phrases one of the more tractable topics in this section, against a 17% average.

Which exams ask idioms and phrases questions?

46 of the exams on this site, weighted towards Banking (14), Management (11), Defence (6). Every question in this pool comes from one of their own mock tests, so the list below is the honest answer to whether the topic is worth your time.

Is idioms and phrases hard?

5% of these 263 questions are graded hard and 17% easy, making it one of the more tractable topics in this section, against a 17% average.

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