IPMAT Indore 2024 · Verbal Ability · Question 16

IPMAT Indore 2024 previous year question on Idioms and Phrases, with the answer and a step-by-step solution.

Idioms and PhrasesVocabularyMultiple choiceMedium

Complete the following sentence by choosing the most appropriate word/phrase from the options given below.

In his address to the candidates contesting the student council elections the Principal said, “If you want others to take you seriously then you must __________ on issues like gender bias and inclusivity.”

  1. A
    rule the roost
  2. B
    walk the talk
  3. C
    read the lines
  4. D
    go around the bend
Pick an option, then check.
Answer & solution

Answer: Option B

The idiom. To walk the talk means to act in accordance with what one says — to back words with deeds.

Why it fits. The context is election candidates who want “others to take [them] seriously”. Credibility comes from matching conduct to promises, which is exactly this idiom.

Why the others fail:

(a) rule the roost — to be the dominant person in a group. It describes power, not credibility, and sits oddly in advice about being believed.

(c) read the lines — not an idiom. (Read between the lines is, and means to infer something unstated — a different idea and a different form.)

(d) go around the bend — to go mad. Clearly wrong in register and sense.

Answer: Option 2

Shortcut. Match the idiom to the purpose named in the sentence. The stated goal is “if you want others to take you seriously” — that is about credibility, so look for the credibility idiom.

Sorting the options by what they are about does the work instantly: (a) dominance, (c) inference, (d) insanity, (b) credibility. Classifying idioms by theme is far faster than translating each one.

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