Choose the correct meaning of the given idiom/phrase from the options:
"Throw cold water on something"
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
Correct Answer
To discourage
Explanation
The question asks for the correct figurative meaning of the common idiom "Throw cold water on something". Idioms should not be interpreted literally; instead, think about the psychological effect of the action described.
Imagine someone has a burning passion, a fiery new idea, or an enthusiastic plan. If you suddenly splash cold water on them, you immediately extinguish their excitement, dampen their spirits, and shock them out of their enthusiasm. Therefore, in a conversational or business context, throwing cold water on an idea or plan means to criticize it, find flaws in it, or act highly pessimistic to discourage people from pursuing it.
Let's look at why the other options are incorrect:
"To cool down" is a literal interpretation of lowering a physical temperature, which ignores the figurative nature of the idiom.
"To wash something" is a literal description of using water for cleaning.
"To celebrate" is the exact opposite of the idiom's negative, dampening effect.
Because the phrase represents ruining enthusiasm or dampening someone's spirits, Option 1 is the correct choice.
Key Points
A similar common idiom with the exact same meaning is "to rain on someone's parade." Both expressions use water to symbolize extinguishing someone's fiery enthusiasm or happiness.
When answering idiom questions on exams, you can safely eliminate options that describe the literal physical actions of the words (such as physically washing or cooling an object), as idioms almost always carry a purely figurative meaning.