Choose the correct meaning for the idiom To play to the gallery from the given options:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → To behave with the aim to appeal to popular taste
The idiom play to the gallery means to behave in a way meant to win the approval of the public, usually by showing off rather than doing what is serious or right. It comes from the theatre: the gallery held the cheapest seats, and actors who played to the gallery overacted to win applause from the crowd there.
Example: The minister's promise of free gifts was only playing to the gallery.