Select the most appropriate idiom that can substitute the underlined words in the following sentence. The internal conflicts within the party were dismissed as an insignificant exaggeration.
a storm in a teacup
What the underlined words mean: ‘an insignificant exaggeration’ — something small that has been blown up out of proportion.
The answer. A storm in a teacup means a great deal of anger or excitement about a matter that is really trivial. The image is exact: a storm (great commotion) confined to a teacup (something tiny). Substituting it gives ‘The internal conflicts within the party were dismissed as a storm in a teacup.’
Why the others fail:
The cherry on the cake — a final touch that makes something already good even better. Nothing to do with exaggeration.
Rain cats and dogs — to rain very heavily. A weather idiom; it cannot describe a dispute.
A frog in the well — a person of narrow outlook who knows nothing of the wider world. This comments on ignorance, not on overstatement.
Takeaway: when an idiom must replace underlined words, state those words' meaning in plain English first, then test each idiom against that statement. The imagery of the idiom is a guide, never the test.
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