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Idioms & Phrases

SSC CHSL · English Language

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Core Concept

Read this first — the foundation of the topic

→Core Concept

An idiom is a group of words with a meaning different from the literal meaning of individual words. The meaning is established by common usage over time. You cannot guess the meaning by breaking down the words

💡Key Rules for SSC CGL

Body parts idioms are most frequently asked (hand, eye, foot, heart) 2. Animal idioms come second in frequency (cat, dog, horse, fish) 3. Color idioms appear regularly (red, blue, green, black) 4. Food-related idioms are common in recent papers Shortcut Formula #1 - The BEAC Method: B - Body parts (70% weightage) E - Emotions/feelings (60% weightage) A - Animals (50% weightage) C - Colors (40% weightage) Study in this priority order for maximum score.

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Exam Patterns

What examiners ask — read before attempting PYQs

📋SSC CGL asks idioms in three ways

1

Identify this is a body part idiom (bite)

2

Eliminate literal meaning (option a and c)

3

Consider context - 'bullet' suggests something difficult/dangerous

4

Option b fits the brave/difficult context Answer: b) To face a difficult situation bravely Worked Example 2: Question: Fill in the blank: 'After losing his job, he was down in the _____' a) dumps b) water c) ground d) hole Step-by-step solution:

1

Recognize 'down in the' pattern

2

Context suggests sadness/depression

3

'Down in the dumps' is a standard idiom meaning sad

4

Other options don't form valid idioms Answer: a) dumps Shortcut Formula #3 - Opposite Elimination: Many wrong options are opposite in meaning to the correct answer. If you know an idiom means something positive, eliminate all negative options immediately

→Most Common Trap - Literal Interpretation

90% of students fail by taking idioms literally

💡Remember

'Break a leg' means 'good luck', not to actually break your leg. Always think figuratively, never literally

💡Advanced Tip

Recent SSC papers favor modern workplace idioms like 'think outside the box', 'move the goalposts', 'touch base'. These are scoring easy points if you prepare them

⚡Time-saving strategy

If you don't know an idiom, choose the option that sounds most natural in conversation. Idioms are spoken language, so they follow speech patterns.

🔑 Key Points

Idioms cannot be understood by breaking down individual words - meaning is fixed by usage
Body part idioms (hand, eye, foot) appear in 70% of SSC CGL idiom questions
BEAC Method: Body-Emotions-Animals-Colors priority for maximum score efficiency
Never interpret idioms literally - 'break a leg' means good luck, not injury
Animal idioms (cats and dogs, horse, fish) are second most frequent in exams
Context Clue Formula: Eliminate literal, wrong tone, grammatical errors, obvious options
Color idioms (red herring, green thumb, black sheep) appear in 40% questions
Modern workplace idioms increasingly tested in recent SSC papers
Opposite Elimination: Wrong options often have opposite meaning to correct answer
Fill-in-blank questions test complete phrases - memorize full expressions not parts

📌 Exam Facts

Body part idioms constitute 70% of all SSC CGL idiom questions
'Break the ice', 'spill the beans', 'piece of cake' are top 3 most asked idioms
Animal idioms appear in exactly 2-3 questions per SSC CGL Tier-1 paper
Color-based idioms have 40% appearance rate in vocabulary section
'To bite the bullet' means to face a difficult situation bravely
'Down in the dumps' means feeling sad or depressed
Workplace idioms like 'think outside the box' increased 300% in recent papers
SSC asks idioms through direct meaning (60%), fill blanks (25%), usage (15%) pattern

Questions Asked in Previous Exams

Real questions from SSC papers — 2015 to 2024

Exam Q 12019Previous Year Pattern

Choose the idiom/phrase that best matches the meaning of the underlined expression: 'After months of hard work, the team finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel when they received funding approval.'

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🚀 60-Second Revision

Remember: Body parts idioms are 70% of questions - prioritize hand, eye, foot expressions
Formula: BEAC method - Body, Emotions, Animals, Colors in descending priority
Trap: Never take idioms literally - think figurative meaning always
Strategy: Eliminate options that sound too obvious or grammatically wrong
Focus: Recent papers favor workplace idioms - 'move goalposts', 'touch base'
Quick tip: Choose most natural-sounding option when unsure - idioms follow speech patterns
Time-saver: Wrong options often have opposite meaning to correct idiom

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