Which of the following options does not use the idiom/proverb appropriately?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → He carried a chip off the old block ever since the argument.
A chip off the old block means a child who is very like his or her father or mother in character or looks, just as a chip cut from a block of wood is of the same wood. It has nothing to do with an argument. The idiom for holding a grudge after a quarrel is to have (carry) a chip on one's shoulder.
Corrected: He has carried a chip on his shoulder ever since the argument.
Example: With his love of cricket, the boy is a chip off the old block.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: She thought deeply about a possible solution since she believed that where there's a will, there's a way. — Incorrect. Correct use: where there's a will, there's a way means that a determined person finds a way to succeed, which is why she kept looking for a solution.
Option 2: “A stitch in time saves nine”, chimed the mother when she saw her daughter mend a hole in the sweater. — Incorrect. Correct use: a stitch in time saves nine means that a small problem fixed at once saves much bigger trouble later; mending a small hole early stops it from growing.
Option 4: They broke the ice by warmly introducing the delegates attending the meeting. — Incorrect. Correct use: break the ice means to make strangers feel relaxed at the start of a meeting; warm introductions do this.
The following words have also been asked in other CUET (UG) English papers:
| Word | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| a stitch in time saves nine | 15-05 S1 | – | – | – | – |
| chip off the old block | – | 23-05 S2 | – | – | – |
| break the ice | – | – | – | 05-06 S2 | – |