After the sentence below, a list of possible interpretations is given. Choose the interpretation that you…

Step 1: Analyze the question The question tests your understanding of idioms. The expression is "get under your skin," and you must pick the option that best matches its meaning in the sentence.

Step 2: Explain the concept The idiom to get under someone's skin means to irritate, bother, or annoy someone, often in a way that stays on your mind. It has nothing to do with the physical skin. The "skin" stands for your feelings and emotional state, so someone "getting under" it means they are affecting your mood.

Step 3: Work through the options

• A. infect you: This is the literal, physical meaning, like a germ entering the body. It is not what the idiom means here.
• B. defeat you: Being "under your skin" does not suggest winning or losing. Wrong.
• C. bully you: Bullying involves intimidation or force. The idiom is about irritation, not intimidation, though a bully could cause the annoyance. Not the best fit.
• D. annoy you: This matches the idiom exactly. "Please don't let them annoy you" is the same message as "Please don't let them get under your skin."

Step 4: Answer The correct answer is D. annoy you.

Step 5: Exam tip For idiom questions, don't translate word for word. Ask yourself, "What feeling or situation does this phrase describe?" Learn common body-part idioms together:

• get under your skin: annoy
• pull your leg: tease or joke with you
• keep an eye on: watch carefully

Keep practising idioms, because they appear almost every year in WASSCE, NECO, and JAMB English. You are doing well!