Question

Choose the correct meaning of the given phrase.
“A Herculean task”
A) Work to be easily done
B) Work requiring a great effort
C) Work undone
D) Soft and light work
E) manual labour

Answer 1

Hint:A phrase is a group of words that express a concept and is used as a unit within a sentence. Eight common types of phrases are: noun, verb, gerund, infinitive, appositive, participial, prepositional, and absolute.

Complete answer:
Option A) Work to be easily done – is an incorrect answer because the meaning of ‘work to be easily done’ is work can be carried out without any efforts. Thus, this is an incorrect answer.

Option B) Work requiring a great effort – is the correct answer because the meaning of ‘Work requiring a great effort’ means a lot of effort is required to do the task or doing work which requires great effort or strength and the meaning of “A Herculean task” is the same or similar. Thus, this is the correct answer.

Option C) Work undone – is an incorrect answer because the meaning of ‘work undone’ means work that is not finished or not performed and this is not the meaning of the phrase “A Herculean task”. Thus, this is an incorrect answer.

Option D) Soft and light work – is an incorrect answer because the meaning of ‘soft and light work’ is ‘used to say that people can do things more quickly and easily when they work together’ and this is not the meaning of the phrase “A Herculean task”. Thus, this is an incorrect answer.

Option E) manual labour – is an incorrect answer because the meaning of manual labour is ‘physical work done by humans or replacing machines for carrying out any work’ and this is not the meaning of the phrase “A Herculean task”. Thus, this is an incorrect answer.

Hence, the correct answer is Option ‘B’.

Note: The meaning of the “A Herculean task” is ‘requiring the great strength of a Hercules; very hard to perform: Digging the tunnel was a herculean task’. So, Option B is the most appropriate answer as compared to any other option.