English word games - advanced level
EFL / ESL - level B2 - C1
Sports idioms - an interactive quiz
English
is full of idioms taken from the world of sport. Here is an absurd
(but not illogical) conversation between Max Profit, marketing manager
of an expanding
company, and Tim Idity, a young employee who has just joined the
firm. The dialogue uses the 12 following sporting idioms.An
absolute knock-out! – first past the
post – on
your marks – be
first off the mark –
kick off –
one step ahead of the rest. – a
leap in
the dark – jumping
the gun – hit the
rest of
them for six – diving in at
the deep end – keep the wind
in
our sails – have
the ball at our feet
Put these idioms into the dialogue, so that it makes sense, and reads like a logical bit of conversation. Be grammatical, it will help you find the right solution. Several of the expressions above can only go in one place - in grammatical terms. This quiz is difficult, but not at all impossible, if you pay attention to grammar and proper sentence structures.
Technique : when you have decided where an expression can go, select it with our mouse and slide it into the dialogue below - or else just retype it in a box. To get going, slide the expression above Kick off, or retype it, into the first box.
Max:
We'll
the advertising campaign on June 1st!
Tim: That's early! Won't we be by a few weeks, Sir ?
Max: Of course, but we must
Tim: But it'll be , won't it?
Max: Rubbish, young man! We'll !
Tim: But won't we be ?
Max: No, young man! We've just got to , and stay !
Tim: And be !
Max: Of course! Our new model's going to !
Tim: !
Max: That's the spirit, lad ! So !
Tim: That's early! Won't we be by a few weeks, Sir ?
Max: Of course, but we must
Tim: But it'll be , won't it?
Max: Rubbish, young man! We'll !
Tim: But won't we be ?
Max: No, young man! We've just got to , and stay !
Tim: And be !
Max: Of course! Our new model's going to !
Tim: !
Max: That's the spirit, lad ! So !
Which sports or activities do these idioms come from? And which from which? Here are some clues: athletics, football, boxing, sailing, horse-racing, cricket......
Try to rewrite this dialogue in simple ordinary English, without using any idioms !
Answers
Max: We'll kick off the advertising campaign on June 1st!
Tim: That's early! Won't we be jumping the gun by a few weeks, Sir ?
Max: Of course, but we must be first off the mark.
Tim: But it'll be a leap in the dark, won't it?
Max: Rubbish, young man! We'll have the ball at our feet !
Tim: But won't we be diving in at the deep end ?
Max: No, young man! We've just got to keep the wind in our sails, and stay one step ahead of the rest !
Tim: And be first past the post !
Max: Of course! Our new model's going to hit the rest of them for six !
Tim: An absolute knockout !
Max: That's the spirit, lad ! So on your marks !
Max: We'll kick off the advertising campaign on June 1st!
Tim: That's early! Won't we be jumping the gun by a few weeks, Sir ?
Max: Of course, but we must be first off the mark.
Tim: But it'll be a leap in the dark, won't it?
Max: Rubbish, young man! We'll have the ball at our feet !
Tim: But won't we be diving in at the deep end ?
Max: No, young man! We've just got to keep the wind in our sails, and stay one step ahead of the rest !
Tim: And be first past the post !
Max: Of course! Our new model's going to hit the rest of them for six !
Tim: An absolute knockout !
Max: That's the spirit, lad ! So on your marks !
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