Word Wonder - Textbook

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Last edited 11 days ago by Learn LoopHQ.

Chapter: 13. The Malgudi Cricket Club

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Word Wonder: Understanding Idioms from Sports

For Self-Learning:

Idioms are fascinating! They are special phrases where the meaning of the whole phrase is not what you would expect from the individual words put together. Think of it like a secret code: if you know the code, you understand the message, but if you don’t, it just sounds strange.

Many idioms come from specific areas, and sports are a great source! When we say “the ball is in her court,” we’re not talking about a literal ball or a tennis court. We’re using a phrase from tennis (where a player hits the ball into the opponent’s court, making it their turn to act) to mean it’s now someone else’s responsibility to make the next move or decision. These sports idioms add color and vividness to our language, helping us express ideas in a more interesting way. Learning them helps you understand English better, especially in everyday conversations and stories!

A. Match the idioms with their meanings.

down to the wire

b. the result will not be decided or known until the very end

across the board

c. involving everyone or everything in a company

drop the ball

a. to make a mistake and ruin something that you are responsible for

out of someone’s league

e. too good for someone

sticky wicket

d. a difficult situation

B. Use the idioms given in the table in sentences of your own. Make one sentence using each idiom.

down to the wire: The basketball game was down to the wire, with both teams scoring points in the final seconds.

across the board: The new rule about using recycling bins applies across the board to all students and staff.

drop the ball: Our team was doing great, but we dropped the ball on the last question of the quiz, losing the competition.

out of someone’s league: She felt that trying out for the national gymnastics team was completely out of her league right now.

sticky wicket: The politician found himself on a sticky wicket after his controversial comments were leaked to the press.

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