WASSCE English Language · Paper 1 style

Idioms

One sample question with the full working. 3 more in the app, with instant feedback and repair sessions for the traps below.

'To let the cat out of the bag' means to

Areveal a secret
Bfree an animal
Cbe careless with goods
Dstart a quarrel

Show the answer and working

Answer: A

Reveal a secret.

Trap B Misinterprets sentence meaning: Paraphrase the sentence in your own words; identify negation, conditionals and figurative language before choosing.

Trap C Picks a meaning that fits the context but not the words: Test the option by substitution: does it mean the same as the underlined words, not just make sense in the story?

Trap D Picks a near neighbour of the right form: Name the exact category the stem needs (third conditional; /əʊ/; 'call off' = cancel; clause of concession) and check each option against that name, not against how close it looks.

Traps in Idioms

Misinterprets sentence meaning
Paraphrase the sentence in your own words; identify negation, conditionals and figurative language before choosing.
Picks a meaning that fits the context but not the words
Test the option by substitution: does it mean the same as the underlined words, not just make sense in the story?
Picks a near neighbour of the right form
Name the exact category the stem needs (third conditional; /əʊ/; 'call off' = cancel; clause of concession) and check each option against that name, not against how close it looks.
Picks the opposite meaning
Paraphrase the expression in your own words first, then look for the option with the same direction of meaning.

Practise Idioms (3 questions)Send to your class on WhatsApp