07.11.2013 // Idioms / Rack Your Brains // by Natalya Belinskaya
The Big Cheese
Дождик... Слякоть... Ветер... Сырость... Примораживает... Оттаивает... Поздняя осень!
А мы ударим интеллектом по бездорожью и проискам погоды! Дадим работу голове и словарям, а заодно проверим — или приобретем — знания из самой трудной, пожалуй, но и самой интересной в любом языке сферы — идиом. Попробуйте, руководствуясь памятью или интуицией, выбрать правильное значение следующих идиом.
You want to know why I've got a bee in my bonnet?
(a) a headache
(b) a fly in my head
(c) a problem on my mind
(d) a difficulty with my hair
Correct answer: [ (c) a problem on my mind ]
Yes, tell me about it. I'm all ears.
(a) listening carefully
(b) listening quietly
(c) listening quickly
(d) listening completely
Correct answer: [ (a) listening carefully ]
You remember I told you about that car that cost me an arm and a leg?
(a) a fair amount of money
(b) a small amount of money
(c) a good amount of money
(d) a huge amount of money
Correct answer: [ (d) a huge amount of money ]
The one you bought from the man you called the big cheese?
(a) the man with big ears
(b) the man with the important job
(c) the man with the yellow teeth
(d) the man with the big smile
Correct answer: [ (b) the man with the important job ]
Well, he's not that at all. He's a bird brain.
(a) a fool
(b) a criminal
(c) a conman
(d) a devil
Correct answer: [ (a) a fool ]
You mean he's a bad egg?
(a) a disgusting person
(b) a dirty person
(c) a stupid person
(d) a dishonest person
Correct answer: [ (d) a dishonest person ]
Yes, exactly, because the car is rubbish and I went round to his garage like a bull in a china shop in the show room.
(a) shouting at him
(b) knocking everything over
(c) running up to him
(d) hitting everybody
Correct answer: [ (b) knocking everything over ]
And when I reached his office I saw he was not really awake because he'd been having a cat nap.
(a) a deep sleep
(b) a long sleep
(c) a short sleep
(d) a big sleep
Correct answer: [ (c) a short sleep ]
And really the only reason you were there was because you had a bone to pick with him?
(a) you wanted to have a discussion with him
(b) you wanted to have a chat with him
(c) you wanted to have a talk with him
(d) you wanted to have an argument with him
Correct answer: [ (d) you wanted to have an argument with him ]
Yes, that's right. I got my money back and as a result I opened up a whole new can of worms because other people got their money back, too.
(a) made a complete mess of his office
(b) exposed a lot of serious problems
(c) discovered some creatures on the carpet
(d) revealed a lot of new paper work
Correct answer: [ (b) exposed a lot of serious problems ]
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Правильно ответили на большую часть вопросов? Вы можете сдавать экзамен ESL элементарного уровня. Не получилось? Тоже хорошо: зато теперь вы точно обогатились новыми выражениями и на какое-то время отвлеклись от ненастья!
Note: ESL — English as a Second Language ("английский как второй язык") — это термин, использующийся в таких странах, как Англия, Соединенные Штаты, Канада, и других, где английский является основным.
