Question

Reading

Read the selections, and choose the best answer to each question.

Selection 1: The Elves and the Shoemaker
adapted from the Brothers Grimm

1 There was once a shoemaker who worked very hard but still could not earn enough to live on. Eventually, he had only enough leather left to make one pair of shoes.
2 The shoemaker cut out the leather, readying it for the next day, and went to bed. In the morning, he sat himself down to his work—when, to his great wonder, there stood the shoes upon the table, already made. The shoemaker did not know what to think.
3 That same day, a customer came in, and the shoes suited him so well that he willingly paid a higher price than usual for them. The poor shoemaker used the money to buy enough leather to make two more pairs. In the evening, he cut out his work and went to bed early, but when he got up in the morning, the work was done. This went on for some time. Before long, the shoemaker’s business was thriving, and he became affluent.



The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.

Part A
What is the meaning of affluent in paragraph 3 of Selection 1?
A. exhausted
B. wealthy
C. frustrated
D. appreciative
Part B
Which context clue from paragraph 3 best supports the answer in Part A?
A. “The poor shoemaker”
B. “the work was done”
C. “went on for some time”
D. “business was thriving”

Answer 1

Part A: B. wealthy

Part B: D. “business was thriving” — this phrase shows his shop was doing well financially, which supports the meaning “wealthy.”