Question

cphs: literature & compt i - block (23.0616030)
characters, conflict, and idioms in \daughter of invention\ by julia alvarez
\daughter of invention\
from how the garcia girls lost their accents
her daughters would seek her out at night when she seemed to have a moment to talk to them: they were having trouble at school or they wanted her to persuade their father to give them permission to go into the city or to a shopping mall or a movie—in broad daylight, mami! laura would wave them out of her room. \the problem with you girls—\ the problem boiled down to the fact that they wanted to become americans and their father—and their mother, too, at first—would have none of it.
\you girls are going to drive me crazy!\ she threatened, if they kept nagging. \when i end up in bellevue, youll be safely sorry!\
she spoke in english when she argued with them. and her english was a mishmash of mixed-up idioms and sayings that showed she was \green behind the ears,\ as she called it.
if her husband insisted she speak in spanish to the girls so they wouldnt forget their native tongue, shed snap, \when in rome, do unto the romans.\
yoyo, the big mouth, had become the spokesman for her sisters, and she stood her ground in that bedroom. \were not going to that school anymore, mami!\
\you have to.\ her eyes would widen with worry. \in this country, it is against the law not to go to school. you want us to get thrown out?\
read the excerpt from \daughter of invention.\
yoyo didnt need much encouragement. she put her nose to the fire, as her mother would have said, and read from start to finish without looking up. when she concluded, she was a little embarrassed at the pride she took in her own words. she pretended to quibble with a phrase or two, then looked questioningly to her mother. lauras face was radiant. yoyo turned to share her pride with her father.
what does the underlined idiom tell the reader about yoyo?
she was cold as she wrote her speech, so she sai by the fire.
she was proud of the speech once she finished it.
she worked hard to finish her speech for the assembly.
she finished the speech in a very short amount of time.

Explanation:

The idiom "put her nose to the fire" implies Yoyo was focused and diligent (like putting effort into something, here her speech). The option "She worked hard to finish her speech for the assembly" matches this meaning, showing her dedication. Other options misinterpret the idiom: "cold as" is unrelated, "proud" doesn't fit the idiom's action, and "short time" is incorrect.

Answer:

She worked hard to finish her speech for the assembly.