The mechanic told the driver: 'Your engine is smoking. I would not drive that car if I were you.'
The idiom 'not my cup of tea' means what?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: B)Something the speaker does not enjoy
💡 Explicación
Idioms cannot be decoded word by word, so the learner has to store the whole expression. 'Not my cup of tea' comes from British tea-drinking culture and is widely used in informal English to decline something without giving a strong reason.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: B)Something the speaker does not enjoy
A)Something the speaker considers a dutyA duty is expressed with 'my job' or 'my responsibility', not with this phrase.
B)Something the speaker does not enjoy'Not my cup of tea' is an informal British borrowing used in Latin America too, and it describes a dislike without hostility.
C)Something the speaker is afraid ofThe idiom has no element of fear; 'afraid of' is expressed with a different set of words entirely.
D)Something the speaker has never heard ofIgnorance is expressed as 'I've never heard of it', and the speaker in the context knows the idiom well.
💡 Explicación
Idioms cannot be decoded word by word, so the learner has to store the whole expression. 'Not my cup of tea' comes from British tea-drinking culture and is widely used in informal English to decline something without giving a strong reason.
Pregunta 2
Pregunta 2 · D3Bloom: Apply
A farmer says his crop failed because of the dry season.
Which sentence uses the idiom correctly?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: A)The harvest went down the drain after three months without rain.
💡 Explicación
Idioms are fixed expressions: their prepositions cannot be replaced and their internal syntax cannot be extended. The three broken options show what happens when a learner treats the phrase as ordinary vocabulary and tries to insert a clause inside it.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: A)The harvest went down the drain after three months without rain.
A)The harvest went down the drain after three months without rain.'Go down the drain' means to be lost or ruined, which is exactly what happened to the harvest.
B)The harvest went down the drain where the teacher sits.The idiom has no relation to the location of a teacher, so the prepositional tail is ungrammatical.
C)The harvest went down the drain how the rain fell.The idiom is not a clause about the rain, and it cannot be followed by a manner clause beginning with 'how'.
D)The harvest went down the drain that rain fell.The relative clause with 'that' has no subject of its own inside this fixed expression.
💡 Explicación
Idioms are fixed expressions: their prepositions cannot be replaced and their internal syntax cannot be extended. The three broken options show what happens when a learner treats the phrase as ordinary vocabulary and tries to insert a clause inside it.
Pregunta 3
Pregunta 3 · D4Bloom: Analyze
A student says about the school debate: 'I was dying to hear what the other team would say.'
What does the idiom 'to be dying to' mean?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: C)To want something very much
💡 Explicación
The expression is a hyperbole: the speaker is not ill, only extremely eager. Learners who know the idiom can use it in informal speech to explain enthusiasm, and they can also recognise it in a reading passage.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: C)To want something very much
A)To be very tiredExtreme tiredness would be expressed by 'be exhausted', which names tiredness rather than desire.
B)To refuse to do somethingRefusal is expressed by 'refuse to' or 'be unwilling to', neither of which appears here.
C)To want something very much'Be dying to' plus an infinitive expresses strong desire, and hearing the debate was what the student wanted.
D)To be close to dyingThe literal reading about illness has no support in the context, which is about a school debate.
💡 Explicación
The expression is a hyperbole: the speaker is not ill, only extremely eager. Learners who know the idiom can use it in informal speech to explain enthusiasm, and they can also recognise it in a reading passage.
Pregunta 4
Pregunta 4 · D4Bloom: Understand
Two friends are talking about final examinations: 'We have to bite the bullet and study all night.'
What does the idiom 'to bite the bullet' mean?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: B)To accept something unpleasant with courage
💡 Explicación
The origin is a field operation without anaesthesia, where a soldier bit on a leather strap during surgery. In modern English the phrase names stoicism under necessity, which is why it appears in school and workplace conversations alike.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: B)To accept something unpleasant with courage
A)To avoid a difficult decision for everAvoiding the decision forever is the opposite of what the idiom expresses, which is acceptance.
B)To accept something unpleasant with courage'Bite the bullet' means to endure an unpleasant necessity, which is what studying all night after a whole term requires.
C)To eat a hard object by accidentThe literal reading of eating something hard is not intended; the expression comes from old military surgery.
D)To speak very loudly about a problemSpeaking loudly is described by 'speak up' or 'raise one's voice', which is a different phrase.
💡 Explicación
The origin is a field operation without anaesthesia, where a soldier bit on a leather strap during surgery. In modern English the phrase names stoicism under necessity, which is why it appears in school and workplace conversations alike.
Pregunta 5
Pregunta 5 · D4Bloom: Analyze
A news report describes a vote in the congress: only three deputies turned up.
The news report says the session was a ____, because nobody came.
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: B)farce
💡 Explicación
English uses nouns from theatrical and legal registers to characterise events metaphorically. A session with almost no deputies is a farce; a court case with no evidence is a travesty; both belong to the same family of figurative labels that an advanced reader should recognise.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: B)farce
A)shortage'Shortage' names a lack of quantity, but 'shortage' is not a word that describes a session as absurd.
B)farce'A farce' is a piece of theatre written for comic effect, and calling an empty session a farce is a sarcastic comment.
C)purchase'Purchase' names a commercial transaction and has no idiomatic use with 'session'.
D)harvest'Harvest' is the gathering of crops, and a congress session is not a farm activity.
💡 Explicación
English uses nouns from theatrical and legal registers to characterise events metaphorically. A session with almost no deputies is a farce; a court case with no evidence is a travesty; both belong to the same family of figurative labels that an advanced reader should recognise.
Pregunta 6
Pregunta 6 · D5Bloom: Apply
A carpenter explains that a screw, once rusted into the wood, cannot be removed easily.
Which phrase describes what happened to the screw?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: C)stuck in a rut
💡 Explicación
'In a rut' is one of the smallest idioms in English: two ordinary words that cannot be rearranged. It describes both a physical groove and, by extension, a habit or routine that a person cannot leave.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: C)stuck in a rut
A)stuck in a hut'A hut' is a small house, so the phrase would describe a building, not a screw.
B)stuck in a nut'A nut' is a piece of hardware, but 'stuck in a nut' is not an English expression.
C)stuck in a rut'In a rut' means to be trapped in an unchanging routine, and the screw is fixed in the same groove.
D)stuck in a rat'A rat' is a rodent and has no idiomatic use with 'stuck'.
💡 Explicación
'In a rut' is one of the smallest idioms in English: two ordinary words that cannot be rearranged. It describes both a physical groove and, by extension, a habit or routine that a person cannot leave.
Pregunta 7
Pregunta 7 · D5Bloom: Analyze
A journalist writes that the government has ignored every warning about the river pollution.
Which idiom best describes the government in the article?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: D)turned a deaf ear
💡 Explicación
English has separate idioms for refusing to hear and for pretending not to see, and learners often blend them because Spanish uses a single verb for both. This item asks the student to keep the two apart and to reject invented combinations.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: D)turned a deaf ear
A)turned a blind eye to it'Turn a blind eye' means to pretend not to see, which is close but requires a visible event rather than words heard.
B)turned a deaf eye and a blind ear to itJoining both idioms in one clause produces a blend that no speaker uses and that sounds like a translation.
C)turned a deaf year'A deaf year' is not an English expression and cannot follow 'turned'.
D)turned a deaf ear'Turn a deaf ear' means to refuse to listen, which matches warnings that were ignored.
💡 Explicación
English has separate idioms for refusing to hear and for pretending not to see, and learners often blend them because Spanish uses a single verb for both. This item asks the student to keep the two apart and to reject invented combinations.
Pregunta 8
Pregunta 8 · D5Bloom: Evaluate
A coach tells the team before the final: 'The match will be tough, but we can handle it.'
Which idiom in the coach's words expresses confidence in the team's ability?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: D)handle it
💡 Explicación
Every idiom here begins with the same verb, so the test isolates the particle. Only 'handle it' expresses the ability to cope, and the three distractors reuse the same verb in unrelated senses, which is the typical confusion in exam options.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: D)handle it
A)handle the sky'Handle the sky' is not an English idiom; the sky is not something a team can control.
B)hand it over'Hand it over' means to surrender something to another person, which is the opposite of managing it.
C)hang it up'Hang it up' means to stop an activity, as in hanging up the phone, and would end the effort.
D)handle it'Handle it' means to manage a difficult situation successfully, which is the sense of the coach's confidence.
💡 Explicación
Every idiom here begins with the same verb, so the test isolates the particle. Only 'handle it' expresses the ability to cope, and the three distractors reuse the same verb in unrelated senses, which is the typical confusion in exam options.
Pregunta 9
Pregunta 9 · D5Bloom: Understand
After the storm, the family found their garden in ruins and had to rebuild everything.
The idiom 'to pull one's fingers out' means what?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: A)To work hard instead of being lazy
💡 Explicación
The idiom comes from the military command to stop fiddling and start working. In British and Latin American English it is a fairly direct reminder to stop being lazy, and it appears frequently in workplace and school conversations.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: A)To work hard instead of being lazy
A)To work hard instead of being lazy'Pull one's fingers out' means to make an effort and stop being idle, which is what rebuilding required.
B)To examine one's hands carefullyThe literal reference to hands is figurative and does not describe an inspection of fingers.
C)To plant vegetables againPlanting vegetables would be described by verbs such as 'plant' or 'sow', which is a different activity.
D)To count the days until the storm returnsWaiting for the storm to return is described by waiting, and the phrase carries no idea of time.
💡 Explicación
The idiom comes from the military command to stop fiddling and start working. In British and Latin American English it is a fairly direct reminder to stop being lazy, and it appears frequently in workplace and school conversations.
Pregunta 10
Pregunta 10 · D5Bloom: Evaluate
Two classmates discuss a difficult exam they could not finish.
Which sentence uses an idiom in the way English speakers use it?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: C)We were out of our depth with the last section of the paper.
💡 Explicación
The idiom grew out of the image of a swimmer in water too deep to stand in, and it now describes any task that exceeds a person's competence. The item keeps the metaphor available but marks it as non-idiomatic in the answer.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: C)We were out of our depth with the last section of the paper.
A)We were out of our depth of the swimming pool.A preposition cannot be replaced: the phrase is 'out of', not 'out of of'.
B)We were out of our depths with the last section of the paper.'Depths' is plural here, while the idiom requires the singular form after 'one's'.
C)We were out of our depth with the last section of the paper.'Out of one's depth' describes being in a situation beyond one's ability, which fits an exam section they could not finish.
D)We were out of our depth at the bottom of the swimming pool.The swimming pool reading is the literal image behind the idiom, but it is not the idiomatic use.
💡 Explicación
The idiom grew out of the image of a swimmer in water too deep to stand in, and it now describes any task that exceeds a person's competence. The item keeps the metaphor available but marks it as non-idiomatic in the answer.
Pregunta 11
Pregunta 11 · D6Bloom: Apply
A worker says about her new job: 'The first month was hell.'
Which word completes the idiom correctly?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: D)hell
💡 Explicación
The exercise tests spelling inside a colloquial expression, because students often hear the phrase and then write a near-homophone. 'It was hell' is informal, dramatic and very common among Costa Rican students when they describe a demanding semester.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: D)hell
A)shell'Shell' is the hard outer layer of an egg, and 'a shell month' is not English.
B)heelA heel is the back part of the foot, so the word has no place in this expression.
C)hellum'Hellum' is not an English word at all and appears only as an invented distractor.
D)hell'Hell' is the correct word in this informal idiom, meaning a very difficult experience.
💡 Explicación
The exercise tests spelling inside a colloquial expression, because students often hear the phrase and then write a near-homophone. 'It was hell' is informal, dramatic and very common among Costa Rican students when they describe a demanding semester.
Pregunta 12
Pregunta 12 · D6Bloom: Analyze
A report says that one company controls most of the banana exports from the country.
Which idiom best describes that situation?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: A)has a stranglehold on
💡 Explicación
Idioms give abstract power a physical image. A stranglehold is an especially strong choice for market control, and recognising it lets a student understand economic journalism that uses vivid language instead of statistics.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: A)has a stranglehold on
A)has a stranglehold onA 'stranglehold' is a tight grip, and the metaphor of choking expresses total control over a market.
B)has a handshake onA handshake suggests cooperation or agreement, not domination.
C)has a sandbox onA sandbox is a children's play area and has no figurative meaning here.
D)has a staircase onA staircase is a set of steps and cannot describe control over exports.
💡 Explicación
Idioms give abstract power a physical image. A stranglehold is an especially strong choice for market control, and recognising it lets a student understand economic journalism that uses vivid language instead of statistics.
Pregunta 13
Pregunta 13 · D6Bloom: Evaluate
A teenager tells her grandmother that she will call her when she gets home at midnight.
Which sentence uses the idiom naturally?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: B)She promised to keep her grandmother posted.
💡 Explicación
'Keep someone posted' is one of the most useful idioms for family and school communication, since it means to share news as it happens. The options show the two classic learner errors: adding a particle and reversing the word order.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: B)She promised to keep her grandmother posted.
A)She promised to keep her grandmother in the post.The prepositional phrase has been broken, leaving the idiom ungrammatical.
B)She promised to keep her grandmother posted.'Keep someone posted' means to inform them regularly, and that is what the teenager is promising.
C)She promised to keep her grandmother posted up.The particle 'up' is not part of the idiom and cannot be added to it.
D)She promised to post her grandmother.Posting a person is not an English combination; posting applies to letters and parcels.
💡 Explicación
'Keep someone posted' is one of the most useful idioms for family and school communication, since it means to share news as it happens. The options show the two classic learner errors: adding a particle and reversing the word order.
Pregunta 14
Pregunta 14 · D6Bloom: Analyze
A historian explains why a nineteenth-century canal is still in use.
The canal is described as a ____ of nineteenth-century engineering because it works exactly as designed.
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: C)monument
💡 Explicación
A monument is normally described with 'a monument to' plus an achievement, and historians use it whenever a structure survives its original purpose. The item sets the correct collocation against a homophone and a broken prepositional phrase.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: C)monument
A)monumental of'Monumental of' is not an English phrase; the preposition 'to' is required.
B)moment'Moment' names a very short space of time and does not describe a lasting work of engineering.
C)monument'A monument to engineering' is the natural collocation, and the canal survives as a lasting example of that period.
D)monkey'Monkey' is an animal and cannot be modified to name a structure of historical importance.
💡 Explicación
A monument is normally described with 'a monument to' plus an achievement, and historians use it whenever a structure survives its original purpose. The item sets the correct collocation against a homophone and a broken prepositional phrase.
Pregunta 15
Pregunta 15 · D6Bloom: Understand
A friend says: 'Do not worry about the exam. You have done enough.'
Which phrase would mean the opposite of what the speaker says?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: D)You are in over your head
💡 Explicación
Idioms are graded in meaning: some intensify a positive state and some describe being overwhelmed. This item asks the learner to invert the force of the original message, which requires knowing the semantic field of each expression rather than translating it.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: D)You are in over your head
A)You have done enoughThis phrase repeats the speaker's own reassurance, so it cannot express the opposite.
B)You are on cloud nine'On cloud nine' means to be very happy, a different idea rather than the opposite of encouragement.
C)You are down to earth'Down to earth' means to be practical and sensible, which is neither the opposite nor a related idiom.
D)You are in over your head'In over your head' means to be in a situation more difficult than one can manage, which is the opposite of reassurance.
💡 Explicación
Idioms are graded in meaning: some intensify a positive state and some describe being overwhelmed. This item asks the learner to invert the force of the original message, which requires knowing the semantic field of each expression rather than translating it.
Pregunta 16
Pregunta 16 · D7Bloom: Evaluate
A supervisor tells a new employee: 'You will have to learn the ropes before you work alone.'
What does the idiom 'to learn the ropes' mean?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: A)To learn how a job is done
💡 Explicación
A useful family of idioms shares this sailing origin: 'know the ropes', 'a rope to hang on' and 'three sheets in the wind'. Knowing the shared origin makes the whole group memorable instead of a list of unrelated phrases.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: A)To learn how a job is done
A)To learn how a job is doneThe expression comes from sailing ships, where new crew were taught the ropes of the vessel, and it now means learning any job.
B)To learn to tie nautical knotsKnots are related to sailing, but the idiom does not name knots in modern English.
C)To learn how to climb a mastClimbing a mast was a task on a ship, yet the phrase has no reference to height or rigging.
D)To learn how to sew sailsSewing sails was sailmaking, a separate trade, and the idiom never described it.
💡 Explicación
A useful family of idioms shares this sailing origin: 'know the ropes', 'a rope to hang on' and 'three sheets in the wind'. Knowing the shared origin makes the whole group memorable instead of a list of unrelated phrases.
Pregunta 17
Pregunta 17 · D7Bloom: Analyze
A school principal announces that classes will start at seven instead of eight this term.
Which sentence reports the change correctly?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: D)Classes will now start an hour earlier
💡 Explicación
This item uses a common exam technique: the options differ by one word that carries the direction of the change. Reading for the direction, rather than for the topic, is what prevents a student from choosing the option that merely sounds plausible.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: D)Classes will now start an hour earlier
A)Classes will now start an hour laterStarting at seven instead of eight is not later, so this contradicts the notice.
B)Classes will now start an hour afterwards'Afterwards' refers to a sequence after another event, and it would reverse the change announced.
C)Classes will now start an hour heavier'Heavier' cannot describe an hour; it is a weight adjective and has no time meaning.
D)Classes will now start an hour earlierMoving from eight to seven means an earlier hour, which is the plain meaning of the announcement.
💡 Explicación
This item uses a common exam technique: the options differ by one word that carries the direction of the change. Reading for the direction, rather than for the topic, is what prevents a student from choosing the option that merely sounds plausible.
Pregunta 18
Pregunta 18 · D7Bloom: Evaluate
An article criticises a government plan that will not solve the water problem.
Which idiomatic phrase means that the plan will fail completely?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: B)will not cut the mustard
💡 Explicación
Idioms resist literal construction, so the learner must retrieve 'cut the mustard' as a whole. The three distractors replace the noun with an object that makes the image absurd, which exposes learners who build phrases from the individual words.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: B)will not cut the mustard
A)will not cut the smokeSmoke cannot be cut, so the option is not an English expression at all.
B)will not cut the mustard'Cut the mustard' is the standard phrase for failing to meet a required standard.
C)will not cut the grassGrass has no idiom of this kind; the expression cannot be invented word by word.
D)will not cut the cheeseCheese is a food and appears in no idiomatic combination with 'cut' here.
💡 Explicación
Idioms resist literal construction, so the learner must retrieve 'cut the mustard' as a whole. The three distractors replace the noun with an object that makes the image absurd, which exposes learners who build phrases from the individual words.
Pregunta 19
Pregunta 19 · D7Bloom: Analyze
A nurse tells a worried visitor that the patient will be fine after the operation.
Which phrase means that there is nothing to worry about?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: A)There is no need to fret
💡 Explicación
A common exam format offers a real word and three homophones of the key word, testing whether the student knows the meaning of the expression or only its spelling. Recognising that 'fret' is the only verb of worry among the four resolves the item.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: A)There is no need to fret
A)There is no need to fret'Fret' means to worry, so 'no need to fret' states that the worry is unnecessary.
B)There is no need to free'Free' means to release or to be at liberty, and it has nothing to do with worry.
C)There is no need to eatEating is unrelated to the reassurance the nurse is offering.
D)There is no need to freeze'Freeze' means to become very cold or to stop moving with water, and it does not express reassurance.
💡 Explicación
A common exam format offers a real word and three homophones of the key word, testing whether the student knows the meaning of the expression or only its spelling. Recognising that 'fret' is the only verb of worry among the four resolves the item.
Pregunta 20
Pregunta 20 · D7Bloom: Evaluate
A student reviews her exam results: 'I studied for hours, and thankfully I passed by a hair.'
What does the idiom 'by a hair' mean?
Elige una opción para comprobar tu respuesta.
Respuesta correcta: C)By a very small margin
💡 Explicación
Idioms that borrow a physical object work as units of measurement: 'by a hair', 'by a whisker', 'by a nose'. A student who knows the family can infer the degree from any member, which is faster than memorising each phrase separately.
Ver respuesta
Respuesta correcta: C)By a very small margin
A)By one whole pointOne whole point would be described as a point, not as a hair.
B)By a large marginA large margin is the opposite of what 'by a hair' says.
C)By a very small marginThe idiom compares the margin to a hair's width, so it means by a very small amount.
D)By a short haircutA haircut is not what the expression means, since it is a figurative measurement.
💡 Explicación
Idioms that borrow a physical object work as units of measurement: 'by a hair', 'by a whisker', 'by a nose'. A student who knows the family can infer the degree from any member, which is faster than memorising each phrase separately.
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