IDIOMS/PHRASES
  l  Nowadays, the salesmen take us       l  I was straining every nerve to         l  I don’t make a lot of money; it is
     for a ride.                             catch what they were saying.              just enough to keep the wolf
     The best option is to deceive           The best option is to make ut-            from the door.
     someone.                                most efforts.                             The best option is escape star-
189. (2) to move heaven and earth :     197. (2) to flog a dead horse : to             vation.
     to do everything you possibly can       waste your effort by trying to do    205. (3) soft option : a choice which
     in order to achieve something           something that is no longer pos-          is thought to be easier because
  l  I would move heaven and earth           sible                                     it involves less effort, difficulty,
     to get an apartment here.            l  He was warned again and again,            etc.
     The best option is to try every-        but now I think there is no use        l  The instructor took the soft op-
     thing possible.                         flogging a dead horse.                    tion and gave the boy a passing
                                             The best option is to attempt             grade.
190. (4) to smell a rat : to suspect
                                             to do the impossible.                     The best option is easy and agree-
     that something is wrong about a
                                        198. (2) to show a clean pair of heels :       able option.
     situation
                                             to escape by superior speed; to      206. (2) a little gush of gratitude : a
  l  I don’t think this was an acci-
                                             outrun.                                   feeling of thankfulness
     dent. I smell a rat.
                                          l  Sam showed them all a clean pair       l  I felt a little gush of gratitude
     The best option is to be suspi-         of heels as he raced for the fin-         when I met her at the airport.
     cious.                                  ishing line.                              The best option is friendly feel-
191. (3) a bolt from the blue : an           The best option is to escape.             ing.
     event or a piece of news which     199. (3) to die in harness : to die       207. (2) to lose ground : to lose an
     is sudden and unexpected; a             while in service (job/work)               advantage for yoursel; to become
     complete surprise
                                          l  My friend, Rashi, died in har-            less popular
  l  She seemed to be very involved          ness.                                  l  Good restaurants are losing
     in her job, so her resignation          The best option is to die while           ground to less expensive, more
     came as a bolt from the blue.           in service.                               informal places that have opened
     The best option is an unexpect-    200. (3) to feather one’s nest : to            all around the city.
     ed event.                               make oneself rich, especially in          The best option is to become less
192. (3) cold comfort : the fact that        a way that is wrong and dishon-           popular
     something that would normally           est                                  208. (4) to fall back on : to go to
     be good does not make you hap-       l  Ravish feathered hi s nest                somebody for support ; to have
     py because the whole situation          through his connection with big           something to use when you are
     is bad                                  business houses.                          in difficulty
  l  It was cold comfort to the stu-         The best option is to profit in a      l  I fall back on old friends in time
     dent that others had failed as he       dishonest way.                            of need.
     had done.                          201. (2) a bolt from the blue : a com-         The best option is to seek sup-
     The best option is slight satis-        plete surprise                            port out of necessity.
     faction.                             l  She seemed to be very involved       209. (1) to make one’s blood boil :
193. (2) to be all at sea : confused         in her job, so her resignation            to make somebody extremely an-
     and not knowing what to do              came as a bolt from the blue.             gry
  l  I’m all at sea with these new           The best option is unexpected.         l  Whenever my son criticizes his
     rules and regulations.             202. (3) sailing in the same boat : to         father, it makes my blood boil.
     The best option is lost and con-        be in the same difficult situation        The best option is to make some-
     fused.                               l  Everyone’s got too much work;             body furious.
                                             we’re all sailing in the same boat.  210. (4) to speak one’s mind : to say
194. (2) to take to one’s heels : to
     run away from somebody/some-            The best option is being in the           exactly what one thinks, in a
     thing                                   same difficult situation.                 very direct way
  l  As soon as the thief saw the po-   203. (1) gift of the gab : the ability to   l  One should speak out one’s
                                             speak easily and to persuade              mind rather than agree with ev-
     lice, he took to his heels.
                                             other people with your words              erything that is said.
     The best option is to run away.
                                          l  My brother really has the gift of         The best option is to express
195. (4) to bite the dust : to fail; to      gab. He can convince anyone of            one’s thoughts.
     be defeated or destroyed; to die        anything.                            211. (2) to make a mountain of a
  l  The soldier was too young to bite       The best option is ability to             molehill : to make an unimpor-
     the dust. (to die)                      speak well.                               tant matter seem important
     None of the above                  204. (2) to keep the wolf from the          l  You are making a mountain of
196. (1) to strain every nerve : to try      door : to have enough money to            a molehill. You wrote one bad
     as hard as you can to do some-          avoid going hungry; to stop               essay; it doesn’t mean you’re go-
     thing                                   somebody feeling hungry                   ing to fail.
                                                       SEE–759