Select the option that best expresses the meaning of the idiom: 'A white lie'
- (a)An offensive way of describing something
- (b)To do something completely impossible
- (c)A lie that is absolutely and universally true
- (d)A lie that you tell to avoid hurting someone
Correct — D, a lie that you tell to avoid hurting someone. A 'white lie' is a harmless or trivial untruth, usually told out of politeness or kindness to spare another person's feelings — for example, praising a gift you actually dislike. The idiom is defined by its benign, considerate motive, not by being offensive, impossible, or (contradictorily) true.
- (a)An offensive way of describing something — That describes a slur or derogatory remark; a white lie is meant to be kind, not offensive.
- (b)To do something completely impossible — Unrelated to lying; a white lie is a spoken untruth, not an impossible action.
- (c)A lie that is absolutely and universally true — Self-contradictory — a lie is by definition untrue, so it cannot be 'universally true'.
Idiom: a 'white lie' is a small, harmless lie told to be polite or to avoid hurting someone's feelings.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Choose the meaning of the idiom 'to break the ice':
- (a)to cause an accident
- (b)to start a conversation in a tense or new social setting
- (c)to end a friendship
- (d)to waste time
Answer(b) to start a conversation in a tense or new social setting.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The idiom 'once in a blue moon' means:
- (a)very rarely
- (b)every night
- (c)suddenly
- (d)permanently
Answer(a) very rarely.