A: Can we bring dictionaries to the test?

    B: No.

    A: Can you give us some tips?

    B: Okay, class, pick up your ears. This topic will be included in the test.

    Note: This idiom means to “begin listening attentively.” People also say “prick up your ears.” This derives from the ability of dogs, horses or other animals to lift their ears to hear more clearly. The allusion was known by 1626, when Francis Bacon used it in his “Essays.”