Q3
EnglishIdioms, Phrasal Verbs & Proverbs
Which of the options gives the right meaning of the following sentence? He bit off more than he could chew.
- a.He ate more than he could digest.
- b.He took up more work than he could handle.
- c.He tried to explain what he did not understand.
- d.He did not know how much he could endure.
Answer: (B) He took up more work than he could handle.
'To bite off more than one can chew' means to take on a task or responsibility that is bigger than one can manage, which is exactly option B. Option A reads the idiom literally (eating and digestion), while C (explaining what one does not understand) and D (endurance) are unrelated to the idea of over-commitment. Idioms with a similar sense are 'to have too much on one's plate', 'to spread oneself too thin' and 'to be out of one's depth'; the opposite idea is expressed by 'to cut one's coat according to one's cloth'.