Many workers are not happy because they live a hand-to-mouth life.

Step 1: Analyze the question The question asks what the sentence means, especially the idiom "hand-to-mouth life."

Step 2: Explain the concept "Hand-to-mouth" is an idiom. It describes a life in which a person earns just enough money to buy food and meet immediate needs, with nothing left over for savings or comfort. Whatever goes into the hand (income) goes straight to the mouth (food and basic needs).

Step 3: Work through the options

• A. They work hard with their hands. This reads the idiom literally. The sentence is about poverty, not manual labour.
• B. They are voracious and avaricious. These words mean extremely hungry and greedy for wealth. Nothing in the sentence suggests greed. The workers are struggling.
• C. They are barely surviving. This matches the idiom. Their income only just covers basic needs, which explains why they are unhappy.
• D. They have rejected the use of spoons. This is a humorous literal reading and makes no sense in context.

Step 4: Answer Option C is correct. The idiom means living with barely enough to survive.

Step 5: Exam tip When you see an idiom in JAMB English, don't read it word for word. Ask yourself, "What situation is this describing?" Wrong options often trap you with the literal meaning (like A and D). Other examples: "a drop in the ocean" means a very small amount, and "to make ends meet" means to have just enough money to live.