Na m e : ___ _
Directions:Date:Define the underlined idioms on the lines below. Use the back of this page as needed.Hey Smartie! Idioms are groups of words that
have a different meaning compared to the other
words in a passage.Jacob’s tennis match was to begin in an hour. He had massive butterflies in his stomach. He
decided to take a walk in the woods near his house. Suddenly, he saw a black and white face
peeking out from behind a bush. Realizing that it was a skunk, Jacob ran, but the skunk
followed in hot pursuit. Jacob stepped on the gas, faked to the left, and sprinted the other way.
But it was too late—the skunk beat Jacob home.
“Go away you pesky skunk!” whispered Jacob to his new shadow, not wanting to warrant a
spraying. “I have to get ready for my match, and I don’t need a stinky mascot.”
“Oh, if it’s not Jacob, running off at the mouthas usual. Who are you talking too?” It was
Drake Malfog, Jacob’s opponent and least favorite person. Jacob wanted to scream something
rude at Drake, but he didn’t want to startle the skunk. “Cat got your tongue, Jacob? Well, see
you on the tennis court, when I whip you into shape.” When Jacob looked back the skunk was
out of sight. Jacob was relieved and hurried into the house, grabbed his gear, and headed to the
tennis courts.
City stadium was bursting at the seams. Drake was already on the tennis court. Jacob won the
toss and picked up a ball to serve. Suddenly he began to sneeze and his eyes burned. Someone
had sprinkled the balls with hot pepper. “Need a tissue?” yelled Drake from across the
court. Jacob was about to protest when he saw a now familiar sight—that little skunk
directly behind Drake. Jacob decided to let nature run it courseand served
the ball.
A smell like no other immediately filled the air surrounding Drake Malfog. “A skunk!”
shouted Drake. “I’ve been sprayed!” he moaned, chasing himself in circles. Before
anyone could respond, Drake was running toward the showers, and Jacob was shooing
the little skunk to safety on the other side of the fence.
Drake did return to the court an hour later and finished the match. He lost to Jacob
6-0, 6-0. The newspaper’s headlines the next morning read: Jacob Wins a Real Stinker.