Expressions Quiz: Intelligence

You can do this quiz online or print it on paper. It tests comprehension of common English expressions used when talking about how intelligent people are.

Read each sentence and choose the answer with the closest meaning to the words in italics.

1. They say the new guy has a good head on his shoulders.

is handsome
is charming
is intelligent
a) is handsome b) is charming c) is intelligent

2. If we put our thinking caps on we can work this out.

use our brains
use our computers
use our headsets
a) use our brains b) use our computers c) use our headsets

3. You're insulting our intelligence if you think we believe in conspiracy theories.

fooling us
being foolish
treating us like fools
a) fooling us b) being foolish c) treating us like fools

4. If drivers aren't on the ball, they can cause accidents.

feeling well
highly alert
fast asleep
a) feeling well b) highly alert c) fast asleep

5. Are you sure she didn't understand? She's nobody's fool, you know.

such a fool
not foolish at all
fairly easy to fool
a) such a fool b) not foolish at all c) fairly easy to fool

6. Charles isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, is he?

is very intelligent
is fairly intelligent
isn't very intelligent
a) is very intelligent b) is fairly intelligent c) isn't very intelligent

7. My sister's a smart cookie, but she didn't do well at school.

a clever person
a slow learner
a hard worker
a) a clever person b) a slow learner c) a hard worker

8. My grandkids always know when I'm kidding them. No flies on them, that's for sure.

they're easily fooled
they're not easily fooled
they like fooling around
a) they're easily fooled b) they're not easily fooled c) they like fooling around

9. The brains behind this year's best TV series is the writer, not the director.

the producer managing
the banker financing
the thinker creating
a) the producer managing b) the banker financing c) the thinker creating

10. We all knew grandpa was losing his marbles.

losing his mental ability
losing his consciousness
losing his valuables
a) losing his mental ability b) losing his consciousness c) losing his valuables

Your score is:

Correct answers:

Contributor: Matt Errey. Matt is the author of several books including 1000 Phrasal Verbs in Context and Common English Idioms for learners, and Matt's ESL Games and Quizzes for teachers.