Free Vocabulary MCQs with Answers

2865 Vocabulary MCQs from English, each with the correct answer and a written explanation of why it is correct. Free and unlimited, with no account needed.

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2865 questions · page 136 of 287

1351. To set one's face against __________?

  • A. To oppose with determination
  • B. To judge by appearance
  • C. To get out of difficulty
  • D. To look at one steadily

Explanation: To set one’s face against something means to oppose it firmly and determinedly. The idiom suggests adopting a resolute attitude against a person, plan, or action.

Correct answer: To oppose with determination

1352. To hit the nail right on the head _______?

  • A. To say something that is exactly right or completely true
  • B. To destroy one's reputation
  • C. To announce one's fixed views
  • D. To teach someone a lesson

Explanation: To hit the nail right on the head means to state something exactly or identify the precise point. The image comes from striking a nail accurately rather than missing it.

Correct answer: To say something that is exactly right or completely true

1353. To smell a rat _______?

  • A. To see signs of plague epidemic
  • B. To get bad small of a bad dead rat
  • C. To suspect foul dealings
  • D. To be in a bad mood

Explanation: To smell a rat means to suspect that something dishonest, suspicious, or improper is taking place. It refers to detecting trouble indirectly, not to literally smelling a dead rat.

Correct answer: To suspect foul dealings

1354. A man of straw _________?

  • A. A man of no substance
  • B. A very active person
  • C. A worthy fellow
  • D. An unreasonable person

Explanation: A man of straw is a person without real ability, influence, or substance. The phrase may also describe a person set up as a weak or nominal representative.

Correct answer: A man of no substance

1355. To leave someone in the lurch _________?

  • A. To come to compromise with someone
  • B. Constant source of annoyance to someone
  • C. To put someone at ease
  • D. To desert someone in his difficulties

Explanation: To leave someone in the lurch means to abandon them when they are in difficulty or need help. The idiom therefore implies desertion at a critical moment.

Correct answer: To desert someone in his difficulties

1356. To pick holes _________?

  • A. To find some reason to quarrel
  • B. To destroy something
  • C. To criticize someone
  • D. To cut some part of an item

Explanation: To pick holes means to find and point out faults or weaknesses, usually in someone’s work or argument. Option c is the broad meaning, while finding a reason to quarrel is only a possible consequence.

Correct answer: To criticize someone

1357. To put one's hand to plough __________?

  • A. To take up agricultural farming
  • B. To take a difficult task
  • C. To get entangled into unnecessary things
  • D. Take interest in technical work

Explanation: To put one’s hand to the plough means to begin or undertake a demanding task or course of action. The agricultural image supplies the idiom, but the intended meaning is not merely farming.

Correct answer: To take a difficult task

1358. To cry wolf __________?

  • A. To listen eagerly
  • B. To give false alarm
  • C. To turn pale
  • D. To keep off starvation

Explanation: To cry wolf means to raise a false alarm, referring to the boy in the fable who repeatedly claimed that a wolf was present when it was not.

Correct answer: To give false alarm

1359. To have an axe to grind ___________?

  • A. A private end to serve
  • B. To fail to arouse interest
  • C. To have no result
  • D. To work for both sides

Explanation: A person who has an axe to grind has a private interest or personal purpose to promote, often while pretending to be impartial.

Correct answer: A private end to serve

1360. To make clean breast of ________?

  • A. To gain prominence
  • B. To praise oneself
  • C. To confess without of reserve
  • D. To destroy before it blooms

Explanation: To make a clean breast of something means to confess it fully and frankly, without concealing details. The phrase is normally followed by “of,” as in “make a clean breast of the matter.”

Correct answer: To confess without of reserve