Question

Choose the exact meaning of the idiom/phrase.
To eat a humble pie
 a) To eat food that is cheap and simple
 b) To eat slowly
 c) To swallow one’s pride and admit that one is wrong
 d) To defy authority

Answer 1

Hint: A phrase refers to an expression whose meanings cannot be inferred from the meanings of the words that make it up. For example- ‘be up’ refers to being out of bed.

Complete answer:
In the given question, the phrase ‘to eat a humble pie’ refers to ‘make a humble apology and accept humiliation.’
Let us thus analyze the options given to us in this question:
Option (a.), 'to eat food that is cheap and simple', refers to eating food that is not costly and is relatively easy to cook.
Therefore, option (a.) is incorrect as it is not at all similar to what the definition of ‘to eat a humble pie’ says.
Option (b.), ‘to eat slowly', refers to eating something not quickly.
Therefore, option (b.) is incorrect as it is not similar to the meaning of ‘to eat a humble pie’.
Option (c.), ‘to swallow one’s pride and admit that one is wrong’, refers to ‘to set aside one's feelings of pride and adopt a more humble or appropriate stance and apologize.’
Therefore, option (c.) is correct as it is synonymous with that of ‘to eat a humble pie’s’ definition.
Option (d.), ‘to defy authority’, refers to ‘resist or confront with a resistance person(s) who exercises (administrative) control over others.’
Therefore, option (d.) is incorrect as it is not similar to what ‘to eat a humble pie’ means.

Note:
In this type of question, the student must always recall that phrases should not be taken literally, as they seldom mean what the words in the phrase collectively portray to mean. Let’s now look at an example where the given phrase ‘to eat a humble pie’ is used- "He will have to eat humble pie at training after being sent off for punching".