Exercises C2 : playing with words in English (answers)

These exercises are designed to sharpen your command of wordplay, puns, and idiomatic expression — the hallmarks of authentic C2 fluency explored in this course.

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Exercise 1 : Cracking the Pun

Choose the answer that best explains why each sentence is considered a pun or a piece of wordplay.

1. "I used to be a banker, but I lost interest."
   • A) It uses a metaphor comparing banking to a river.
   • B) It exploits the double meaning of 'interest' — financial interest and personal enthusiasm.
   • C) It is a sarcastic comment about the banking industry.
   • D) It uses alliteration to create a comic effect.
2. "Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana."
   • A) It compares time and fruit using a simile.
   • B) It uses onomatopoeia to evoke movement.
   • C) It plays on the dual grammatical function of 'flies' and 'like', subverting the expected syntactic pattern.
   • D) It rhymes 'arrow' and 'banana' for comic effect.
3. "I'm reading a book about anti-gravity. It's impossible to put down."
   • A) It uses hyperbole to describe an exceptionally good book.
   • B) It creates humour by exploiting 'put down' as both a phrasal verb meaning 'to stop reading' and a literal description of the book's weightlessness.
   • C) It relies on allusion to a famous scientific theory.
   • D) It uses personification by giving the book physical properties.
4. "I wondered why the cricket ball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me."
   • A) It uses an extended metaphor about confusion and revelation.
   • B) It relies on the ambiguity of 'hit me' — meaning both physical impact and sudden understanding — to deliver the punchline.
   • C) It is an example of understatement typical of British humour.
   • D) It uses assonance between 'bigger' and 'hit' to build comedic rhythm.

Correction

1. B) It exploits the double meaning of 'interest' — financial interest and personal enthusiasm.
2. C) It plays on the dual grammatical function of 'flies' and 'like', subverting the expected syntactic pattern.
3. B) It creates humour by exploiting 'put down' as both a phrasal verb meaning 'to stop reading' and a literal description of the book's weightlessness.
4. B) It relies on the ambiguity of 'hit me' — meaning both physical impact and sudden understanding — to deliver the punchline.

Exercise 2 : Idiom in Context

Match each idiomatic expression to the sentence that uses it correctly and naturally, as a native speaker would.

1. "To beat around the bush"
2. "To bite the bullet"
3. "To let the cat out of the bag"
4. "To steal someone's thunder"

• C) Her colleague stole her thunder by announcing the project results before she had a chance to present them herself.
• B) He accidentally let the cat out of the bag by mentioning the surprise party in front of the guest of honour.
• A) She beat around the bush for ten minutes before finally admitting she had forgotten his birthday.
• B) She bit the bullet and finally agreed to have the difficult conversation with her manager.

Correction

1. "To beat around the bush" – A) She beat around the bush for ten minutes before finally admitting she had forgotten his birthday.
2. "To bite the bullet" – B) She bit the bullet and finally agreed to have the difficult conversation with her manager.
3. "To let the cat out of the bag" – B) He accidentally let the cat out of the bag by mentioning the surprise party in front of the guest of honour.
4. "To steal someone's thunder" – C) Her colleague stole her thunder by announcing the project results before she had a chance to present them herself.

Exercise 3 : Wordplay in Action

Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that completes the pun, idiomatic expression, or piece of wordplay naturally and correctly.

1. "I'm on a seafood diet. I see food and I ___ it."
2. "She told him to break a leg before the performance, and he took it a little too ___ ."
3. "The bicycle couldn't stand on its own because it was ___ tired."
4. "When the cannibal arrived late to the dinner party, he got the ___ shoulder."

Correction

1. "I'm on a seafood diet. I see food and I eat it."
2. "She told him to break a leg before the performance, and he took it a little too literally."
3. "The bicycle couldn't stand on its own because it was two tired."
4. "When the cannibal arrived late to the dinner party, he got the cold shoulder."