Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word:
My mother loves my younger sister very much and the latter makes use of it. She always asks to buy her nice dresses, sweets. My sister likes only to play and is a poor pupil. My sister is just a bad naughty girl. I say this because I always _________.
a) Call the shots
b) Change horses in midstream
c) Call a spade a spade
d) Cry over spilled milk
e) Give someone the cold shoulder

Answer 1

Hint: The question is on idioms. An idiom is a phrase that has an underlying meaning related to the phrase. The meaning of an idiom is not the literal meaning of the phrase. For example, the idiom “the elephant in the room” does not really refer to the elephant in the room but refers to the most important matter at present. In the given question, the author is describing exactly what her sister is without sugar-coating her character.

Complete answer:
The correct answer is option c. To call a spade a spade means to describe someone exactly like how they are. Speaking the truth about something even if it sounds rude is the definition of calling a spade a spade.
Option a is wrong because to call the shots means to take decisions to influence a situation.
For example: Though Zack was the youngest member of the team, he was the one who called the shots because he was very smart.
Option b is wrong because to change horses in midstream means to change sides. In other words, it means to stop supporting someone you already were supporting and choose to side with someone else.
Example: People who change horses in midstream are the reason we have trust issues.
Option d means to have regret over something which has already happened but nothing can be done about it.
Example: When Sara got upset when she failed in one exam, her brother asked her not to cry over spilled milk but to prepare hard for the repeat exam.
Option e is wrong because giving someone the cold shoulder means to act unfriendly towards someone. Example: After his betrayal, she has been giving him the cold shoulder.

Note:
All idioms cannot be deciphered with common sense. While the meaning of some can be figured out, some of the idioms have meanings that are really different from the actual meaning. Therefore, the only way to learn idioms is by reading them up.