Idioms and Phrases

Before you begin

Formulas you will need

Key formulas A small set of idioms recurs across AAI shifts: led up the garden path, show the ropes, take a leaf out of someone's book, hold the fort, hold the reins, see red, pay through the nose
In fit-the-context questions the other half of the sentence tells you the required meaning
Contrast words such as but reverse the expected sense
Sometimes the tense, not the meaning, decides the answer

How to use this worksheet. In fit-the-context questions, read the rest of the sentence first and work out what meaning is needed before you look at the idioms. Jack has been here for years demands an idiom about experience, and that alone settles the question.

Section A · Level 1

Common idioms and their meanings

Ten questions. Never read an idiom literally.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To let the cat out of the bag

It means to reveal a secret, usually by accident.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
A blessing in disguise

Something that seems unfortunate but proves beneficial later.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
Once in a blue moon

It means very rarely.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To burn the midnight oil

It refers to studying or working late, from the days of oil lamps.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To turn a deaf ear

It means to ignore what is being said.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To break the ice

It means to ease the initial awkwardness in a social situation.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
A wild goose chase

It describes a pointless pursuit of something unattainable.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To smell a rat

It means to sense that something is not right.

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
At the eleventh hour

It means at the last possible moment, but not too late.

Q10

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To make both ends meet

It means to earn just enough to cover expenses.

Section B · Level 2

The idioms the AAI paper reuses

Ten questions. These exact idioms recur across shifts.

Q11

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To hold the fort

It means to take responsibility while the person normally in charge is away.

Q12

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To pay through the nose

It means to pay an excessive price for something.

Q13

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To see red

It means to become suddenly and intensely angry.

Q14

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To turn over a new leaf

It means to reform and make a fresh start.

Q15

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To take a leaf out of someone's book

It means to imitate someone's good practice.

Q16

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To lead someone up the garden path

It means to mislead someone deliberately.

Q17

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To show someone the ropes

It means to train a newcomer, from the days of sailing ships.

Q18

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To hold the reins

It means to be in charge of something.

Q19

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
All hell broke loose

It describes sudden uproar and confusion.

Q20

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
To catch someone's eye

It means to attract attention, usually briefly.

Section C · Previous year questions

Straight from the AAI ATC papers

Ten questions. Every one is a real previous year question.

Q21PYQ 2025 · Shift 1

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
Bite the bullet

To bite the bullet is to endure something unpleasant and get it done. The phrase comes from battlefield surgery before anaesthetic.

Q22PYQ 2025 · Shift 1

Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.
Cold feet

To get cold feet is to lose one's nerve before doing something. Option 3 is a literal reading, which is exactly what an idiom question is testing you not to do.

Q23PYQ 2021 · Shift 3

Identify the option in which the idiom correctly fits the context.

A mystery writer deliberately misleads the reader, which is exactly led up the garden path. Paying through the nose is about cost and holding the fort is about responsibility — neither fits.

Q24PYQ 2021 · Shift 3

Identify the option in which the idiom correctly fits the context.

Long experience is what qualifies someone to show you the ropes. The clue is the first half of the sentence — always read it before judging the idiom.

Q25PYQ 2021 · Shift 3

Identify the option in which the proverb correctly fits the context.

Advertising promises mislead, so led down the garden path is the right fit. Note that options 1 and 3 are also grammatically odd, which is a secondary clue.

Q26PYQ 2023 · Evening

Identify the option in which the idiom correctly fits the context.

Copying Rick's good habit is taking a leaf out of his book. Option 1 misuses the idiom, which is get something off one's own chest, not someone else's.

Q27PYQ 2023 · Evening

Identify the option in which the idiom correctly fits the context.

The word but signals a contrast: although she is nominally the boss, the secretary is really in control, that is holds the reins. Watch for contrast words, since they tell you what the idiom must mean.

Q28PYQ 2021 · Shift 2

Select the most appropriate phrase to fill in the blank.
Anil wanted to make up with Shikha after the argument, so at the party he tried desperately _______ but she chose to ignore him.

He wanted her to notice him, which is to catch her eye. The blank follows tried, so it also needs an infinitive — grammar narrows it to two options before meaning decides.

Q29PYQ 2021 · Shift 2

Select the most appropriate idiom to fill in the blank.
As soon as the decision to raise the price of petrol and diesel was announced, _______ in the Parliament.

The main clause is in the past (was announced), so the idiom must be past too: all hell broke loose. Here the tense decides the answer, not the meaning — all four options carry the same sense.

Q30PYQ 2023 · Morning

What does the phrase lay two to one mean?
“…will lay two to one on the number 666 against any other number…”

Two to one describes betting odds, so the phrase means to place a bet. The surrounding lottery context makes it clear even if the phrase is new to you.

Formulas you will need

Common idioms and their meanings

The idioms the AAI paper reuses

Straight from the AAI ATC papers

Answers

↓ Free download — Idioms and Phrases PDF

Seven questions from one chapter in a single year.