Exercise 5
A blimp is a small airship. It doesn’t have a metal frame to give it shape. But a blimp does have a strong bag that is filled with gas. The gas makes the blimp float. When the gas is taken out, the blimp collapses.
1.In this paragraph, the word collapses means
A. falls down
B. flies off
C. works out
D. takes over
Trees are important. Their roots help hold soil in place and keep it from being washed away by rains. Tree roots also help hold moisture in the ground and keep it from drying out.
2. In this paragraph, the word moisture means
A. cloth
B. dampness
C. morning
D. safety
There is a huge copper mine in Utah. The mine is an open pit. It is about 1/2 mile deep and more than 2 miles wide at the top. This mine has yielded more copper than any other mine.
3. In this paragraph, the word yielded means
A. bowed
B. stretched
C. supplied
D. divided
Baby geese are called goslings. The mother goose does not have to
teach them how to behave like geese. The goslings can swim and dive
without instruction.
4. In this paragraph, the word instruction means
A. frogs
B. books
C. lessons
D. crowns
Larry Nyce builds tiny railroads. He makes the trains himself instead
of purchasing them from a store. He lays the tracks on tiny wooden
railroad ties. He makes tiny trees from sticks and little mountains
from rocks.
5. In this paragraph, the word purchasing means
A. selling
B. buying
C. riding
D. carrying
One kind of lizard changes colors to match the thing it is standing
on. These lizards can be green like leaves. They can be brown like tree
bark. If you put one on an apple, the lizard will not turn scarlet. It
can match only the colors in its outdoor home.
6. In this paragraph, the word scarlet means
A. shiny
C. red
B. spotted
D. juicy
The Inca people lived 500 years ago. Today some people remember
the old Incan ways by dressing in Incan costumes. They wear hats with
feathers on top and gold chains hanging down.
7. In this paragraph, the word costumes means
A. clothes
B. kings
C. parades
D. faces
The polar bear is a large bear with white fur. The polar bear’s color
helps it. The white fur blends with the white snow. The bear can
sneak up on a seal without being seen.
8. In this paragraph, the word sneak means
A. spill
B. arrange
C. creep
D. hang
Answers
- falls down
- dampness
- supplied
- lessons
Exercise 4
How can you tell a vegetable from a fruit? In 1893 the Supreme Court
passed judgment on the subject. If it is consumed with the main course
of a meal, it’s a vegetable. If it is served as a dessert or snack, it’s a fruit.
1.In this paragraph, the word judgment means
A. properties
B. decision
C. award
D. umpire
Ice cream was first made in China. The explorer Marco Polo described
eating dishes of ice flavored with fruit. Italians liked it so much they
changed the name to Italian ices. The French added cream and renamed
it ice cream.
2. In this paragraph, the word flavored means
A. given warmth
B. given taste
C. given cream
D. given dishes
Dragonflies are usually seen flying through the air. This happens during
the last stage of a dragonfly’s life. It can only fly for a few weeks. It spends
most of its life under water. Before becoming an adult, it lives underwater as a nymph.
A nymph looks like a mature dragonfly, but it does not have wings.
3. In this paragraph, the word adult means
A. baby
B. tame
C. young
D. full-grown
Mistletoe has thick green leaves and white berries. It is never found
growing on the ground. This plant does not grow in soil. It grows on
the limbs of trees.
4. In this paragraph, the word limbs means
A. clouds
B. roots
C. branches
D. flowers
The pygmy marmoset lives in Brazil’s forests. It is the smallest monkey. Its head and body are about 6 inches long. You can barely feel its fur because its coat is so fine.
5. In this paragraph, the word barely means
A. coldly
B. lively
C. hardly
D. sweetly
The cone snail has a beautiful marbled shell. Many people like to collect
the shell. They must be careful of a living cone snail because it has poisoned
barbs. The snail’s stab is fatal.
6. In this paragraph, the word barbs means
A. rounded tips
B. sharp points
C. golden crowns
D. dull edges
Libby Riddles wanted to win a famous sled-dog race in Alaska. She knew
conditions would be brutal, but the blizzards and freezing weather did not
stop her. She became the first woman to win the race.
7. In this paragraph, the word brutal means
A. simple
B. ordinary
C. easy
D. cruel
The Leaning Tower of Pisa is in Italy. The ground on one side of the tower is so soft that the side is sinking. This makes the tower lean a tiny bit more each year. People are trying to save it from falling.
8. In this paragraph, the word sinking means
A. rising higher
B. walking with
C. dropping lower
D. touching against
Answers
- decision
- given taste
- full grown
- branches
- hardly
- sharp points
- cruel
- dropping lower
Exercise 3
Dreaming is an important part of sleep. Dreams occur during a period of rapid eye movement. The eyes move quickly during this stage of sleep. If awakened during this period, a person can clearly recall the dream.
1.In this paragraph, the word recall means
A. remember
B. forget
C. escape
D. cure
The zebra belongs to the horse family. It has black and white stripes. The
zebra spends time grazing on the African plains. Then it goes to watering
holes. The lion is its enemy. The zebra bites and kicks to protect itself.
2. In this paragraph, the word grazing means
A. drifting in air
B. walking by mountains
C. feeding on grasses
D. swimming in streams
A tornado is a very fierce storm. This funnel-shaped cloud does not last long. But it sucks up everything in its path. The strong winds can be very destructive.
3. In this paragraph, the word fierce means
A. friendly
B. dangerous
C. sticky
D. small
The wolf is a large member of the dog family. It is
a good hunter. Hoofed animals are its normal prey.
The wolf inhabits areas that have few people.
4. In this paragraph, the word normal means
A. curious
B. usual
C. delicious
D. unusual
Ping-Pong is another name for table tennis. Ping-Pong and
tennis are very much alike. In both games a ball is hit over a net.
The name Ping-Pong came from the noise made when the ball was
hit by a paddle.
5. In this paragraph, the word alike means
A. different
B. sounds like
C. the same
D. hard
Dingoes are wild dogs in Australia. No one knows how they
got there. The people who moved to the area long ago might
have had dogs. Dingoes may be descendants of these dogs.
6. In this paragraph, the word descendants means
A. details
B. parents
C. offspring
D. worlds
The praying mantis is a fierce insect. It ceases to move so that
it looks like part of a plant. The mantis uses its front legs to trap
its prey. It usually catches insects, small frogs, and lizards.
7. In this paragraph, the word ceases means
A. quits
B. feeds
C. inspects
D. whistles
The giraffe is the tallest animal in the world. It can grow to
a height of 20 feet. Giraffes tower over people and cars.
8. In this paragraph, the word tower means
A. run from
B. knock down
C. stand tall
D. work hard
Answers
- remember
- feeding on grasses
- dangerous
- usual
- the same
- offspring
- quits
- stand tall
Exercise 2
Most animals that live in the sea have layers of fat to keep them warm.
Sea otters have thick, furry coats instead. Their coats are so effective against the cold that they stay warm even in cold water.
- In this paragraph, the word effective means
A. chilly
B. successful
C. hot
D. wet
Before airplanes, trains were common. They moved people and freight long distances. As years went by, air and highway travel became easier.
Then train use declined.
2. In this paragraph, the word declined means
A. grew
B. rose
C. dropped
D. rushed
Henry Ford didn’t invent the factory, but he improved it. Ford used conveyors that brought parts to the workers as they stood in their places.
3. In this paragraph, the word conveyors means
A. types of small airplanes
B. skilled workers
C. means of carrying things
D. mattresses
The oldest false teeth are almost 3,000 years old. They were found on the
body of a deceased person in an old grave. The teeth were strung together
with gold wire.
4. In this paragraph, the word deceased means
A. dead
B. healthy
C. old
D. rich
Long ago a bride’s father gave all her shoes to her new husband. This
indicated that the father no longer had to care for the bride. Today we
recall this custom by tying shoes to a wedding car.
5. In this paragraph, the word indicated means
A. behaved
B. prayed
C. pained
D. meant
In spite of its name, banana oil isn’t derived from bananas. It is made
from chemicals that are mixed in a laboratory. The smell of the oil is like
the smell of a banana.
6. In this paragraph, the word derived means
A. taken
B. grown
C. slippery
D. pasted
The bits of paper thrown during parades are called confetti. This word means “candy.” Once people threw candy during festive and merry events.
Now we throw paper.
7. In this paragraph, the word festive means
A. smooth
B. tasty
C. Jolly
D. worn
Astronauts have a big problem when traveling in space. In space, water does not pour. Drops of water just float around. Astronauts must use special
methods for getting clean. They can’t take regular baths or showers. They
must wash with special equipment.
8. In this paragraph, the word methods means
A. brushes
B. ways
C. ideas
D. tubs
Answers
- Successful
- dropped
- means of carrying things
- dead
- meant
- taken
- jolly
- ways
Exercise 1
Some people fear alligators, but there are not many authentic cases of
alligators attacking people. Most reports have not been backed by facts.
1. In this paragraph, the word authentic means
A. long
C. real
B. thin
D. lengthy
You will find few birds in the deepest, darkest part of a forest. Birds like a habitat near the edge of the forest. There is more food for them there.
2. In this paragraph, the word habitat means
A. sunshine
B. home
C. cage
D. insect
You know that the “home on the range” is “where the deer and
the antelope play.” However, no animal in North America fits the true
classification of antelope.
3. In this paragraph, the word classification means
A. friendliness
B. particular group
C. kind of music
D. surrounding land
Some people who are good at archery like to enter contests. They aim
their arrows at a target. It is divided into colored rings. An arrow that hits
the center circle is worth 10 points.
4. In this paragraph, the word archery means
A. running
B. public speaking
C. swimming
D. arrow shooting
The honeysucker, or honey possum, eats the nectar found in large
flowers. To do this it sticks its long, thin nose into a flower. Then it uses
its long, rough tongue to get the sticky food.
5. In this paragraph, the word nectar means
A. fruit
B. sweet liquid
C. roots
D. green leaves
Long ago, a feast was more than just fancy food on a table. People
dressed in fine clothing. Guests were often entertained with music,
dancing, and juggling.
6. In this paragraph, the word entertained means
A. starved
B. invited
C. seated
D. amused
People have always feared the blasts of hot lava and ashes from a volcano. The power of a volcano has caused many disasters. In 1991, the explosion of a volcano in the Philippine Islands demolished an air force base. The
base was completely covered with hot ash.
7. In this paragraph, the word demolished means
A. built
B. destroyed
C. visited
D. landed
A boomerang is made so that it returns to the person who throws it. A
boomerang has two arms and a curve in the middle. This shape makes the
boomerang spin. This spinning causes the boomerang to circle back to the
person who threw it.
8. In this paragraph, the word curve means
A. leg
B. belt
C. well
D. bend
Answers
- real
- home
- particular group
- arrow shooting
- sweet liquid
- amused
- destroyed
- bend