Read the following sentences and try to guess the meaning of the idioms.

1.      It is raining cats and dogs.

a)      It is raining heavily
b)      Cats and dogs are falling from the sky.
c)      It is not raining

2.      When I told my mom I had failed my exam, she had a cow!

a)      She bought a cow
b)      She was very happy
c)      She was very upset

3.      When you clear the decks

a)      You get ready for an important action and remove everything that might get in your way
b)      You postpone things
c)      You remove everything on the decks

4.      When you straddle the fence

a)      You are impatient
b)      You are indecisive
c)      You are angry

5.      Something that is as rare as hen’s teeth is

a)      Very rare or non-existent
b)      Found everywhere
c)      Very strange

6.      When you ask someone to pick up the pace, you ask him / her to

a)      Postpone things
b)      Speed things up
c)      Stop something

7.      When you roll the dice

a)      You take a chance on something
b)      You are gambling
c)      You ask someone to do something for you

8.      If you are paid peanuts

a)      You earn peanuts, not money
b)      Your salary is very high
c)      Your salary is very low

9.      When you ask someone to get the lead out, you ask him / her

a)      To wait
b)      To hurry up
c)      To stop

10.  It is a dog-eat-dog world

a)      Only the most competent survive in this world
b)      Dogs eat dogs in this world
c)      This is a strange world

Answers

1.      It is raining heavily
2.      She was very upset
3.      You get ready for an important action and remove everything that might get in your way
4.      You are indecisive
5.      Very rare or non-existent
6.      Speed things up
7.      You take a chance on something
8.      Your salary is very low
9.      To hurry up
10.  Only the most competent survive in this world