English for Today by Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (Dr GAB)
SCALE THROUGH, SAIL THROUGH or SCRAPE THROUGH?
She ~scaled through~ her exam and got A’s in all her courses (nonstandard).
She *sailed through* her exam and got A’s in all her courses (standard).
To sail through is to succeed very easily in something, especially a test.
She’s not so brilliant so she only managed to ~sail through~ her final exam (nonstandard).
She’s not so brilliant so she only managed to *scrape through* her final exam (standard).
To scrape through is to succeed in something but with a lot of difficulty.
Note that while a person can be said to have scaled a hurdle, the expression “scale through” is nonexistent in English:
She ~scaled through~ the hurdles in just a year. ❌
She *scaled* the hurdles in just a year. ✔️
GAB
