Which of the following idioms are correct in meaning?
(A). Pay off old scores means to pay the amount back.
(B). Pass the buck means shirk responsibility.
(C). Plough the sands means to work hard.
(D). Play ducks and drakes means to squander money.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:-
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → (B) and (D) only
(A) Pay off old scores means to pay the amount back. — Incorrect. Pay off old scores means to take revenge on someone for a wrong done in the past; it has nothing to do with repaying money.
Correct form: Pay off old scores means to take revenge.
Example: He used the meeting to pay off old scores with his rivals.
(B) Pass the buck means shirk responsibility. — Correct. Pass the buck means to shift the responsibility or blame onto someone else. The "buck" was a marker placed before the player whose turn it was to deal in a game of poker.
Example: When the project failed, the manager tried to pass the buck to his team.
(C) Plough the sands means to work hard. — Incorrect. Plough the sands means to work uselessly, to labour at something that can bring no result, as nothing grows in ploughed sand.
Correct form: Plough the sands means to work uselessly.
Example: Trying to reform that lazy officer is like ploughing the sands.
(D) Play ducks and drakes means to squander money. — Correct. Play ducks and drakes (with money) means to waste it carelessly. The name comes from the game of skimming flat stones across water, throwing them away for fun.
Example: The young heir played ducks and drakes with his father's fortune.
The following words have also been asked in other CUET (UG) English papers:
| Word | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| pay off old scores | 23-05 S2 | – | – | – | – |
| plough the sands | – | – | – | 24-05 S1 | – |