1. What is the correct version of the idiom 'for all intensive purposes'?
A)For all intense purposes
B)For all intents and purposes
C)For all internal purposes
D)For all intended purposes
2. What does the idiom 'beg the question' actually mean?
A)To avoid a topic
B)To demand an explanation
C)To ask a question
D)To assume the truth of the conclusion
3. What is the correct way to say 'nip it in the butt'?
A)Nip it in the bud
B)Nip it in the back
C)Nip it in the body
D)Nip it in the base
4. What is the correct version of 'one in the same'?
A)One of the same
B)One and the same
C)One at the same
D)One into the same
5. What does 'I could care less' actually imply?
A)You care a lot
B)You care not at all
C)You care a little
D)You are neutral
6. What is the correct phrase for 'escape goat'?
A)Scapegoat
B)Escape goat
C)Scraping goat
D)Scaped goat
7. What is the correct version of 'tow the line'?
A)Tied the line
B)Tall the line
C)Toe the line
D)Tough the line
8. What is the correct phrase for 'champing at the bit'?
A)Champing at the bit
B)Chasing at the bit
C)Chewing at the bit
D)Chomping at the bit
9. What is the correct version of 'deep-seeded'?
A)Deep-sited
B)Deep-seeded
C)Deep-seated
D)Deep-sided
10. What is the correct way to say 'damp squib'?
A)Damp skib
B)Damp squib
C)Damp squid
D)Damp squad
11. What is the correct version of 'mute point'?
A)Mute point
B)Mutant point
C)Mood point
D)Moot point
12. What is the correct version of 'take for granite'?
A)Take for granite
B)Take for grand
C)Take for granted
D)Take for grunted
13. What is the correct version of 'peace of mind'?
A)Pace of mind
B)Peas of mind
C)Peace of mind
D)Piece of mind
14. What is the correct version of 'baited breath'?
A)Basic breath
B)Bathed breath
C)Bated breath
D)Baited breath
15. What is the correct version of 'sneak peak'?
A)Snake peek
B)Sneak peak
C)Sneak pike
D)Sneak peek
16. The phrase 'bite the bullet' originated from what?
A)A hunting ritual
B)A duel
C)Surgery without anesthesia
D)Soldier training
17. What is the origin of 'break the ice'?
A)Fishing in winter
B)Ships trapped in frozen rivers
C)Ice skating
D)Social gatherings
18. The idiom 'let the cat out of the bag' refers to what?
A)Fraudulent market sellers
B)A royal decree
C)A cat escape
D)A sailor tradition
19. What does 'saved by the bell' likely refer to?
A)Boxing matches
B)Premature burial
C)School bells
D)Church bells
20. The phrase 'read the riot act' comes from?
A)The French Revolution
B)American protest
C)British law
D)A Shakespeare play
21. What is the origin of 'turn a blind eye'?
A)A pirate legend
B)A royal decree
C)Admiral Nelson
D)Medieval punishment
22. The idiom 'show your true colors' comes from?
A)Naval signaling
B)Textile weaving
C)Knights jousting
D)Painting portraits
23. The phrase 'flash in the pan' originated from?
A)Gold mining
B)Musket firing
C)Meteor showers
D)Cooking techniques
24. The idiom 'die-hard' was originally used for?
A)Soldiers in battle
B)Gold miners
C)Criminals
D)Religious martyrs
25. What is the origin of 'cost an arm and a leg'?
A)Black market prices
B)Taxes
C)War injuries
D)Portrait painting
26. The phrase 'toeing the line' comes from?
A)Foot races
B)Parliament debates
C)Dance choreography
D)Naval discipline
27. The idiom 'sour grapes' comes from?
A)A Greek play
B)Roman winemaking
C)Medieval agriculture
D)Aesop's Fables
28. The phrase 'red tape' refers to?
A)Protest signs
B)Royal guards
C)Military maps
D)Legal document binding
29. The phrase 'stealing someone's thunder' originated from?
A)Naval warfare
B)The theater
C)Political debates
D)A thunderstorm
30. The idiom 'fly off the handle' refers to?
A)A broken door
B)A loose axe head
C)A carriage mishap
D)Birds escaping
31. Which play popularized the idiom 'wild-goose chase'?
A)Twelfth Night
B)Macbeth
C)Romeo and Juliet
D)Hamlet
32. Shakespeare introduced which phrase in 'The Merchant of Venice'?
A)Time flies
B)Heart of gold
C)All that glitters is not gold
D)Love is blind
33. In which play did the phrase 'break the ice' appear?
A)The Taming of the Shrew
B)Othello
C)King Lear
D)Julius Caesar
34. The phrase 'faint-hearted' is attributed to which play?
A)Richard III
B)Henry VI
C)The Tempest
D)A Midsummer Night's Dream
35. Which play contains the phrase 'the world is my oyster'?
A)As You Like It
B)The Merry Wives of Windsor
C)Hamlet
D)Macbeth
36. What phrase from 'Othello' describes jealousy?
A)Cold shoulder
B)Green-eyed monster
C)Dead of night
D)A bitter pill
37. Which play gave us 'seen better days'?
A)Coriolanus
B)Hamlet
C)Romeo and Juliet
D)Timon of Athens
38. The phrase 'wear my heart upon my sleeve' is from?
A)Twelfth Night
B)Much Ado About Nothing
C)Othello
D)King Lear
39. Which phrase appears in 'Hamlet'?
A)Neither rhyme nor reason
B)A bad apple
C)By hook or by crook
D)Dog eat dog
40. What phrase meaning 'everything is fine' is from 'All's Well That Ends Well'?
A)All is fair in love and war
B)The best is yet to come
C)All's well that ends well
D)Better late than never
Answer Key
1-B
2-D
3-A
4-B
5-B
6-A
7-C
8-A
9-C
10-B
11-D
12-C
13-C
14-C
15-D
16-C
17-B
18-A
19-B
20-C
21-C
22-A
23-B
24-A
25-D
26-D
27-D
28-D
29-B
30-B
31-A
32-C
33-A
34-B
35-B
36-B
37-D
38-C
39-A
40-C