Start here · the first lesson of Meaning / usage of idioms
Meaning / usage of idioms
Idioms, Phrasal Verbs, Foreign Phrases, One-word Substitution · for IPMAT Indore, IPMAT Rohtak and JIPMAT
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The idea
Indore has asked 2-8 idiom or phrasal-verb completions every year from 2019 to 2024 (34 located: 28 idioms, 6 phrasal verbs). The format never changes: a sentence with a blank and four phrases, of which only one is the exact, standard idiom with the right meaning. Rohtak and JIPMAT more often ask the meaning of an idiom printed in bold.
Textbook vs exam method
Textbook method
Memorise long idiom lists with their meanings.
Exam method
- Read the sentence and name the meaning needed. in plain words ("be lenient", "very rarely", "in trouble").
- Cut altered idioms. any option with one word changed from the standard form (beneath the weather, a spoon of her own medicine, past muster).
- Cut literal phrases. made from the idiom's words (nests and eggs).
- Check the meaning. of the real idioms left: a real idiom with the wrong meaning is the last trap (face the music vs play it by ear).