Match the idioms given in List-I with their meanings given in List-II.
| LIST-I (Idioms) | LIST-II (Meanings) | ||
| A. | Build castles in the air | I. | The art of speaking |
| B. | To have the gift of the gab | II. | To keep starvation at bay |
| C. | Keep the wolf from the door | III. | To make visionary schemes |
| D. | Lead up the garden path | IV. | To cheat |
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → A-III, B-I, C-II, D-IV
| List-I | List-II | Explanation | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| A. Build castles in the air | III. To make visionary schemes | To dream up grand plans that have little chance of coming true. | Instead of studying, he keeps building castles in the air about becoming a film star. |
| B. To have the gift of the gab | I. The art of speaking | To be able to speak easily, confidently and persuasively ("gab" means talk). | The salesman has the gift of the gab and can sell anything. |
| C. Keep the wolf from the door | II. To keep starvation at bay | To earn just enough to avoid hunger and poverty; the wolf stands for hunger. | He took a second job to keep the wolf from the door. |
| D. Lead up the garden path | IV. To cheat | To mislead or deceive someone, usually by making him or her believe something false. | The agent led the buyers up the garden path with false promises. |
The following words have also been asked in other CUET (UG) English papers:
| Word | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| build castles in the air | – | 27-05 S1 | – | – | – |
| have the gift of the gab | 12-05 S1 25-05 S1 | – | – | – | – |