Finally, Gorchakov realized that (7) ______; he had to make a decision. He chose to (8) ______ and accepted the harsh terms, even though it wounded his pride. After the treaty was signed, he had to (9) ______, receiving criticism from his own government. Yet he knew that the agreement was (10) ______, as it bought Russia time to rebuild. He decided to (11) ______ and not dwell on past grievances. Only (12) ______ did he doubt his choices, but he remained steadfast. His ability to (13) ______ allowed him to anticipate his opponents’ moves. In the end, he learned that in diplomacy it was often necessary to (14) ______, and he treated the past as (15) ______, letting bygones be bygones. Choose from: A. a blessing in disguise; B. beat around the bush; C. bite the bullet; D. burn one’s bridges; E. cut the Gordian knot; F. face the music; G. have an axe to grind; H. hit the nail on the head; I. keep one’s cards close to one’s chest; J. let sleeping dogs lie; K. once in a blue moon; L. read between the lines; M. sit on the fence; N. the ball was in his court; O. throw down the gauntlet; P. water under the bridge.

Перевод задания: Вставьте в пропуски подходящие идиомы из списка.

1. (7) the ball was in his court — решение зависело от него.
2. (8) bite the bullet — смириться с неприятным и принять это.
3. (9) face the music — принять критику или последствия.
4. (10) a blessing in disguise — благо, оказавшееся скрытым за неприятностью.
5. (11) let sleeping dogs lie — не ворошить прошлое.
6. (12) once in a blue moon — крайне редко.
7. (13) read between the lines — читать между строк.
8. (14) keep one’s cards close to one’s chest — держать свои намерения при себе.
9. (15) water under the bridge — дело прошлое.

Заполненный текст:

Finally, Gorchakov realized that the ball was in his court; he had to make a decision. He chose to bite the bullet and accepted the harsh terms, even though it wounded his pride. After the treaty was signed, he had to face the music, receiving criticism from his own government. Yet he knew that the agreement was a blessing in disguise, as it bought Russia time to rebuild. He decided to let sleeping dogs lie and not dwell on past grievances. Only once in a blue moon did he doubt his choices, but he remained steadfast. His ability to read between the lines allowed him to anticipate his opponents’ moves. In the end, he learned that in diplomacy it was often necessary to keep one’s cards close to one’s chest, and he treated the past as water under the bridge, letting bygones be bygones.

Перевод: Наконец Горчаков понял, что решение зависит от него: ему нужно было сделать выбор. Он решил смириться с неприятным и принял суровые условия, хотя это и уязвило его гордость. После подписания договора ему пришлось принять критику собственного правительства. И всё же он знал, что соглашение оказалось благом, скрытым за неприятностью, поскольку оно дало России время на восстановление. Он решил не ворошить прошлое и не зацикливаться на прежних обидах. Лишь изредка он сомневался в своём выборе, но оставался твёрд. Способность читать между строк помогала ему предугадывать действия противников. В конце концов он понял, что в дипломатии часто необходимо держать свои намерения при себе, а прошлое считать делом минувшим.