Some proverbs/idioms are given below together with their meanings. Choose the…
2025
Some proverbs/idioms are given below together with their meanings. Choose the correct meaning of the proverb/idiom.
To catch a tartar
Answer: D. To deal with a person who is more than one's match — An idiom carries a fixed figurative meaning established by usage, separate from a literal reading of its individual words. "To catch a Tartar" is a classic…
- A.
To trap wanted criminal with great difficulty
- B.
To catch a dangerous person
- C.
To meet with disaster
- D.
To deal with a person who is more than one's match
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Correct answer: D
An idiom carries a fixed figurative meaning established by usage, separate from a literal reading of its individual words. "To catch a Tartar" is a classic English idiom: in traditional English usage, "Tartar" (Tatar) became a byword for a fierce, hard-to-handle opponent, drawn from the historical reputation of Tatar/Mongol-era conquering forces. So the idiom means to end up dealing with someone who turns out far more powerful or formidable than expected — i.e. more than one's match.
Checking each offered option against this established sense:
"To deal with a person who is more than one's match" matches the idiom directly: it is exactly the sense of unexpectedly facing someone tougher or more capable than oneself.
"To trap wanted criminal with great difficulty" narrows the idiom to a literal act of capturing a criminal, which the idiom does not convey.
"To catch a dangerous person" keeps only the literal verb 'catch' plus a generic sense of danger, dropping the idiom's real comparative sense.
"To meet with disaster" overstates the idiom into a claim about the eventual outcome (failure/calamity), which the idiom itself does not assert.
Independent English reference dictionaries (e.g. Collins English Dictionary, Dictionary.com) define "catch a Tartar" with this same sense — encountering or being forced to deal with an opponent who proves more than one's match — confirming the reading independently of the item's own wording.
Therefore, the correct meaning is: To deal with a person who is more than one's match.
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