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Adapted from "Old Man Traveling" by William Wordsworth in Lyrical Ballads by William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1798 ed.)
The little hedge-row birds,
That peck along the road, regard him not.
He travels on, and in his face, his step,
His gait, is one expression; every limb,
His look and bending figure, all bespeak
A man who does not move with pain, but moves
With thought—He is insensibly subdued
To settled quiet: he is one by whom
All effort seems forgotten, one to whom
Long patience has such mild composure given,
That patience now doth seem a thing, of which
He hath no need. He is by nature led
To peace so perfect, that the young behold
With envy, what the old man hardly feels.
—I asked him whither he was bound, and what
The object of his journey; he replied
"Sir! I am going many miles to take
"A last leave of my son, a mariner,
"Who from a sea-fight has been brought to Falmouth,
And there is dying in an hospital."
The underlined word “bound” most nearly means __________.
In the context of the sentence in which "bound" appears, we can see that the only answer choice able to replace “bound” is “going,” as the sentence says: “I asked him whither he was bound, and what / The object of his journey.” Here, “bound” means to be going to or to be walking to. We can also infer this as the line is in the form of a question and the old man's reply is “I am going many miles.” We can also reach this conclusion by eliminating the other possible answers. There is nothing in the poem to suggest the man has been “captured” or “tied,” and there is nothing to suggest the speaker wants to know where the man is coming from. We also cannot say “set,” as it would have to be coupled with “out” to mean anything close to “bound” in this context and even then would fail to be synonymous.
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What dire offence from amorous causes springs,
What mighty contests rise from trivial things,
I sing — This verse to Caryl, Muse! is due:
This, even Belinda may vouchsafe to view:
Slight is the subject, but not so the praise,
If She inspire, and He approve my lays.
… Sol thro’ white curtains shot a tim’rous ray,
And oped those eyes that must eclipse the day.
Now lapdogs give themselves the rousing shake,
And sleepless lovers just at twelve awake:
Thrice rung the bell, the slipper knock’d the ground,
And the press’d watch return’d a silver sound.
Belinda still her downy pillow prest,
Her guardian Sylph prolong’d the balmy rest.
Based on the context of the passage, what is “Sol”?
We know that “Sol” shoots rays through a curtain and opens eyes, so it stands to reason that the word means sun. (You could also note the common root word in “Sol” and “solar.”) While the other choices may wait outside windows and appear elsewhere in the poem, they certainly don’t shoot rays through curtains.
Passage adapted from The Rape of the Lock by Alexander Pope (1712)
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1 In silent night when rest I took,
2 For sorrow near I did not look,
3 I wakened was with thund’ring noise
4 And piteous shrieks of dreadful voice.
5 That fearful sound of “fire” and “fire,”
6 Let no man know is my Desire.
7 I, starting up, the light did spy,
8 And to my God my heart did cry
9 To straighten me in my Distress
10 And not to leave me succourless.
11 Then, coming out, behold a space
12 The flame consume my dwelling place.
13 And when I could no longer look,
14 I blest His name that gave and took,
15 That laid my goods now in the dust.
16 Yea, so it was, and so ‘twas just.
17 It was his own, it was not mine,
18 Far be it that I should repine;
19 He might of all justly bereft
20 But yet sufficient for us left.
21 When by the ruins oft I past
22 My sorrowing eyes aside did cast
23 And here and there the places spy
24 Where oft I sate and long did lie.
25 Here stood that trunk, and there that chest,
26 There lay that store I counted best.
27 My pleasant things in ashes lie
28 And them behold no more shall I.
29 Under thy roof no guest shall sit,
30 Nor at thy Table eat a bit.
31 No pleasant talk shall ‘ere be told
32 Nor things recounted done of old.
33 No Candle e'er shall shine in Thee,
34 Nor bridegroom’s voice e'er heard shall be.
35 In silence ever shalt thou lie,
36 Adieu, Adieu, all’s vanity.
37 Then straight I ‘gin my heart to chide,
38 And did thy wealth on earth abide?
39 Didst fix thy hope on mould'ring dust?
40 The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
41 Raise up thy thoughts above the sky
42 That dunghill mists away may fly.
43 Thou hast a house on high erect
44 Framed by that mighty Architect,
45 With glory richly furnished,
46 Stands permanent though this be fled.
47 It’s purchased and paid for too
48 By Him who hath enough to do.
49 A price so vast as is unknown,
50 Yet by His gift is made thine own;
51 There’s wealth enough, I need no more,
52 Farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store.
53 The world no longer let me love,
54 My hope and treasure lies above.
(1666)
In line 7, what best defines the underlined word "light"?
Two lines before, the speaker hears cries of "fire," and it becomes clear later that the speaker's house has burned down.
Passage adapted from Anne Bradstreet's "Upon the Burning of our House" (1666)
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1 In silent night when rest I took,
2 For sorrow near I did not look,
3 I wakened was with thund’ring noise
4 And piteous shrieks of dreadful voice.
5 That fearful sound of “fire” and “fire,”
6 Let no man know is my Desire.
7 I, starting up, the light did spy,
8 And to my God my heart did cry
9 To straighten me in my Distress
10 And not to leave me succourless.
11 Then, coming out, behold a space
12 The flame consume my dwelling place.
13 And when I could no longer look,
14 I blest His name that gave and took,
15 That laid my goods now in the dust.
16 Yea, so it was, and so ‘twas just.
17 It was his own, it was not mine,
18 Far be it that I should repine;
19 He might of all justly bereft
20 But yet sufficient for us left.
21 When by the ruins oft I past
22 My sorrowing eyes aside did cast
23 And here and there the places spy
24 Where oft I sate and long did lie.
25 Here stood that trunk, and there that chest,
26 There lay that store I counted best.
27 My pleasant things in ashes lie
28 And them behold no more shall I.
29 Under thy roof no guest shall sit,
30 Nor at thy Table eat a bit.
31 No pleasant talk shall ‘ere be told
32 Nor things recounted done of old.
33 No Candle e'er shall shine in Thee,
34 Nor bridegroom’s voice e'er heard shall be.
35 In silence ever shalt thou lie,
36 Adieu, Adieu, all’s vanity.
37 Then straight I ‘gin my heart to chide,
38 And did thy wealth on earth abide?
39 Didst fix thy hope on mould'ring dust?
40 The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
41 Raise up thy thoughts above the sky
42 That dunghill mists away may fly.
43 Thou hast a house on high erect
44 Framed by that mighty Architect,
45 With glory richly furnished,
46 Stands permanent though this be fled.
47 It’s purchased and paid for too
48 By Him who hath enough to do.
49 A price so vast as is unknown,
50 Yet by His gift is made thine own;
51 There’s wealth enough, I need no more,
52 Farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store.
53 The world no longer let me love,
54 My hope and treasure lies above.
(1666)
What is the best definition for the underlined word "succourless" as it is used in line 10?
The speaker's crying out to God in her distress gives us a clue to the meaning of succourless; "succour" (modern spelling) means help, aid, or relief.
Passage adapted from Anne Bradstreet's "Upon the Burning of our House" (1666)
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1 Those lines that I before have writ do lie,
Even those that said I could not love you dearer;
Yet then my judgment knew no reason why
My most full flame should afterwards burn clearer.
5 But reckoning Time, whose million'd accidents
Creep in 'twixt vows and change decrees of kings,
Tan sacred beauty, blunt the sharp'st intents,
Divert strong minds to the course of altering things;
9 Alas, why, fearing of Time's tyranny,
Might I not then say 'Now I love you best,'
When I was certain o'er incertainty,
Crowning the present, doubting of the rest?
13 Love is a babe; then might I not say so,
To give full growth to that which still doth grow?
(1609)
In the context of this poem, the word "million'd" (line 5) means ___________________.
The word "million'd" (line 5) is an adjective describing "accidents" (line 5). It implies that the quantity of these "accidents" brought about through Time (line 5) is a very large number. The point is not to say that there are precisely one million accidents, but rather that there are simply a lot of them. Therefore, "many" is the best approximation of the meaning of this word.
Passage adapted from Shakespeare's "Sonnet 115" (1609)
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In pious times, e’r Priest-craft did begin,
Before Polygamy was made a Sin;
When Man on many multipli’d his kind,
E’r one to one was cursedly confin’d,
When Nature prompted and no Law deni’d (5)
Promiscuous Use of Concubine and Bride;
Then Israel’s Monarch, after Heavens own heart,
His vigorous warmth did, variously, impart
To Wives and Slaves: And, wide as his Command,
Scatter’d his Maker’s Image through the Land. (10)
(1681)
Based on context, what is likely meant by “Priest-craft” (line 1)?
By saying that the events of the poem take place before “Priest-craft,” the author means to say that the events take place before religion began to prohibit polygamy. Specifically, he’s referring to Christianity, the opposite of paganism. Witchcraft, religious oligarchy, and prophecy are not supported by the context of the passage at all.
Passage adapted from “Absalom and Achitophel,” by John Dryden (1681)
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'Hard by yon Wood, now frowning as in Scorn,
'Mutt'ring his wayward Fancies he wou'd rove,
'Now drooping, woeful wan, like one forlorn,
'Or craz'd with Care, or cross'd in hopeless Love.
'One morn I miss'd him on the custom'd Hill, (5)
'Along the Heath, and near his fav'rite Tree;
'Another came; nor yet beside the Rill,
'Nor up the Lawn, nor at the Wood was he.
'The next with Dirges due in sad Array
'Slow thro' the Church-way Path we saw him born. (10)
'Approach and read (for thou canst read) the Lay,
'Grav'd on the Stone beneath yon aged Thorn.
(1751)
Based on context, what is the best definition for “rill” (line 7)?
Note the use of “Hill,” “Heath, “Tree,” “Lawn,” and “Wood” in similar contexts in the surrounding lines. Based on this repetition, we can surmise that a “rill” is a feature of a natural landscape and a place where the narrator might look for the poem’s missing character. The only choice that fits this context is “stream,” and a rill is indeed a small creek or brook.
Excerpt adapted from Thomas Gray’s Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard. (1751)
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'Hard by yon Wood, now frowning as in Scorn,
'Mutt'ring his wayward Fancies he wou'd rove,
'Now drooping, woeful wan, like one forlorn,
'Or craz'd with Care, or cross'd in hopeless Love.
'One morn I miss'd him on the custom'd Hill, (5)
'Along the Heath, and near his fav'rite Tree;
'Another came; nor yet beside the Rill,
'Nor up the Lawn, nor at the Wood was he.
'The next with Dirges due in sad Array
'Slow thro' the Church-way Path we saw him born. (10)
'Approach and read (for thou canst read) the Lay,
'Grav'd on the Stone beneath yon aged Thorn.
(1751)
Based on context, what is another word for “Lay” (line 11)?
We know that the Lay is something engraved on a stone in a churchyard (graveyard), so it stands to reason that that stone is a gravestone. It further stands to reason that the engraving is an epitaph, or commemorative phrase. Decree (edict), landscape, marriage, and bed all lack textual support in this passage.
Excerpt adapted from Thomas Gray’s Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard. (1751)
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On either side the river lie
Long fields of barley and of rye,
That clothe the wold and meet the sky;
And thro' the field the road runs by
To many-tower'd Camelot; (5)
And up and down the people go,
Gazing where the lilies blow
Round an island there below,
The island of Shalott.
(1833)
In line 3, what does “wold” likely mean?
Whatever “wold” is, we know from the previous line that barley and rye – agricultural crops – cover it. This narrows down the options to “meadows,” since none of the other choices make sense in context. And in fact, the definition of “wold” is a moor, field, or other open wild place.
Passage adapted from “The Lady of Shalott,” Poems by Alfred Tennyson (1833).
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Thou still unravish'd bride of quietness,
Thou foster-child of silence and slow time,
Sylvan historian, who canst thus express
A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme:
What leaf-fring'd legend haunts about thy shape (5)
Of deities or mortals, or of both,
In Tempe or the dales of Arcady?
What men or gods are these? What maidens loth?
What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?
What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy? (10)
Based on context, what are “dales”?
Whatever a “dale” is, we can see that it exists in Arcady, an ancient Greek model for paradise or utopia, but is not itself a paradise. We can also see that it is populated by “leaf-fring’d legend\[s\]” (line 5). Our best guess will lead us to choose a topographical feature as our answer: valley.
Passage adapted from John Keats’ “Ode on a Grecian Urn" (1820)
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Thou still unravish'd bride of quietness,
Thou foster-child of silence and slow time,
Sylvan historian, who canst thus express
A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme:
What leaf-fring'd legend haunts about thy shape (5)
Of deities or mortals, or of both,
In Tempe or the dales of Arcady?
What men or gods are these? What maidens loth?
What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?
What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy? (10)
Based on context, what are “timbrels” (line 10)?
We have few context clues for this word, but we do know that it is paired with “pipes” and that it appears in a scene on a Grecian urn. If we interpret “pipes” to mean antique woodwind instruments, it stands to reason that a timbrel is also a musical instrument. And indeed, timbrels are an early form of tambourine.
Passage adapted from John Keats’ “Ode on a Grecian Urn" (1820)
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So live, that when thy summons comes to join
The innumerable caravan, which moves
To that mysterious realm, where each shall take
His chamber in the silent halls of death,
Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night, (5)
Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave,
Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.
(1817)
Based on context, what is meant by “couch” (line 8)?
We can tell from context that this “couch” includes “drapery” (i.e. bedclothes) and that one “lies down to pleasant dreams” on it. Chaise longue is a very specific type of couch – too specific for this context – as is a loveseat. Grave, while it fits the poem’s broader theme, doesn’t fit the sleep metaphor.
Passage adapted from William Cullen Bryant’s “Thanatopsis” (1817)
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1 Thou still unravish'd bride of quietness,
Thou foster-child of silence and slow time,
Sylvan historian, who canst thus express
A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme:
5 What leaf-fring'd legend haunts about thy shape
Of deities or mortals, or of both,
In Tempe or the dales of Arcady?
What men or gods are these? What maidens loth?
9 What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?
What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy?
11 Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear'd,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone:
15 Fair youth, beneath the trees, thou canst not leave
Thy song, nor ever can those trees be bare;
Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss,
18 Though winning near the goal yet, do not grieve;
She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss,
For ever wilt thou love, and she be fair!
21 Ah, happy, happy boughs! that cannot shed
Your leaves, nor ever bid the Spring adieu;
And, happy melodist, unwearied,
For ever piping songs for ever new;
25 More happy love! more happy, happy love!
For ever warm and still to be enjoy'd,
For ever panting, and for ever young;
28 All breathing human passion far above,
That leaves a heart high-sorrowful and cloy'd,
A burning forehead, and a parching tongue.
31 Who are these coming to the sacrifice?
To what green altar, O mysterious priest,
Lead'st thou that heifer lowing at the skies,
And all her silken flanks with garlands drest?
35 What little town by river or sea shore,
Or mountain-built with peaceful citadel,
Is emptied of this folk, this pious morn?
38 And, little town, thy streets for evermore
Will silent be; and not a soul to tell
Why thou art desolate, can e'er return.
41 O Attic shape! Fair attitude! with brede
Of marble men and maidens overwrought,
With forest branches and the trodden weed;
Thou, silent form, dost tease us out of thought
45 As doth eternity: Cold Pastoral!
When old age shall this generation waste,
Thou shalt remain, in midst of other woe
48 Than ours, a friend to man, to whom thou say'st,
"Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know."
(1819)
Based on context, what does the word "cloy'd" (line 29) most likely mean?
"Cloyed" means sated to the point of discomfort, over-full. A good guess here is the idea of being "uncomfortable." This is able to be determined from the following context: it is included in a list of other descriptors that denote some sort of discomfort--"high-sorrowful" (line 29), "burning forehead" (line 30), and "parching tongue" (line 30).
Passage adapted from John Keats' "Ode on a Grecian Urn" (1819)
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1 'Tis hard to say, if greater want of skill
2 Appear in writing or in judging ill;
3 But, of the two, less dang'rous is th' offence
4 To tire our patience, than mislead our sense.
5 Some few in that, but numbers err in this,
6 Ten censure wrong for one who writes amiss;
7 A fool might once himself alone expose,
8 Now one in verse makes many more in prose.
9 'Tis with our judgments as our watches, none
10 Go just alike, yet each believes his own.
11 In poets as true genius is but rare,
12 True taste as seldom is the critic's share;
13 Both must alike from Heav'n derive their light,
14 These born to judge, as well as those to write.
15 Let such teach others who themselves excel,
16 And censure freely who have written well.
17 Authors are partial to their wit, 'tis true,
18 But are not critics to their judgment too?
(1711)
Judging by context, in line 5, "numbers" most closely means ________________.
"Numbers" in line 5 most closely means "many." Line 5 reads: "Some few in that, but numbers err in this." The "few" who err in "that" (poetry) are contrasted with the "numbers" of people who err in "this" (literary criticism). That is, "numbers" is set up as a contrast or antithesis to "few." Therefore, the best approximate meaning of "numbers" will be an antonym for "few," such as "many."
Passage adapted from Alexander Pope's poem An Essay on Criticism (1711).
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1 Suddenly I saw the cold and rook-delighting Heaven
2 That seemed as though ice burned and was but the more ice,
3 And thereupon imagination and heart were driven
4 So wild that every casual thought of that and this
5 Vanished, and left but memories, that should be out of season
6 With the hot blood of youth, of love crossed long ago;
7 And I took all the blame out of all sense and reason,
8 Until I cried and trembled and rocked to and fro,
9 Riddled with light. Ah! when the ghost begins to quicken,
10 Confusion of the death-bed over, is it sent
11 Out naked on the roads, as the books say, and stricken
12 By the injustice of the skies for punishment?
(1916)
Based on context, the word "riddled" (line 9) most likely means ___________________.
Though being "blinded" or "burned" are things that may come about through "light" (line 9), nothing in the poem indicates that the speaker is physically burned or is made unable to see. There is nothing that particularly suggests that the speaker is "full" with light, either.
Although the speaker does seem to be in a state of confusion to some extent, line 8, which precedes the use of the word "riddled," sounds much more like the description of someone "overwhelmed" than someone merely "confused": "Until I cried and trembled and rocked to and fro." "Riddled" does, indeed, mean to be "overwhelmed" by something.
Passage adapted from William Butler Yeats' "The Cold Heaven" (1916)
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1 Infer the wilds which next pertain.
2 Though travel here be still a walk,
3 Small heart was theirs for easy talk.
4 Oblivious of the bridle-rein
5 Rolfe fell to Lethe altogether,
6 Bewitched by that uncanny weather
7 Of sultry cloud. And home-sick grew
8 The banker. In his reverie blue
9 The cigarette, a summer friend,
10 Went out between his teeth—could lend
11 No solace, soothe him nor engage.
12 And now disrelished he each word
13 Of sprightly, harmless persiflage
14 Wherewith young Glaucon here would fain
15 Evince a jaunty disregard.
16 But hush betimes o’ertook the twain—
17 The more impressive, it may be,
18 For that the senior, somewhat spent,
19 Florid overmuch and corpulent,
20 Labored in lungs, and audibly.
(1876)
Judging by context, "persiflage" (line 13) most likely means ____________________.
As the context suggests, "persiflage" (line 13) does indeed mean "idle talk" or banter. It is clear that persiflage refers to some sort of speaking or linguistic communication because in lines 12-13 the poet writes that he "disrelished \[or disliked\]...each word / of...persiflage" (emphasis added). This shows that persiflage is something composed of and produced by words. Further, it is clear that persiflage consists of "idle" words because it is modified by the descriptors "sprightly" and "harmless" (line 13).
Passage adapted from Herman Melville's epic poem Clarel (1876).
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1 I WILL arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, 2 And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made: 3 Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee, 4 And live alone in the bee-loud glade.
5 And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow, 6 Dropping from the veils of the mourning to where the cricket sings; 7 There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow, 8 And evening full of the linnet's wings.
9 I will arise and go now, for always night and day 10 I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; 11 While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, 12 I hear it in the deep heart's core.
(1893)
Based on context, "wattles" (line 2) most likely means ___________________.
The speaker states that his cabin will be built ("made" at end of line 2) "of clay and wattles" (line 2). Even if one does not know exactly what "wattles" are, it is clear that they, like the clay, are something that is used to make this cabin.
"Wattles" cannot refer to a specific type of clay because the speaker says "clay and wattles," implying that they are two different things, not that one is a subcategory of the other.
Passage adapted from William Butler Yeats' "Lake Isle of Innisfree" (1893)
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1 MUCH have I travell’d in the realms of gold,
2 And many goodly states and kingdoms seen;
3 Round many western islands have I been
4 Which bards in fealty to Apollo hold.
5 Oft of one wide expanse had I been told
6 That deep-brow’d Homer ruled as his demesne;
7 Yet did I never breathe its pure serene
8 Till I heard Chapman speak out loud and bold:
9 Then felt I like some watcher of the skies
10 When a new planet swims into his ken;
11 Or like stout Cortez when with eagle eyes
12 He star’d at the Pacific—and all his men
13 Look’d at each other with a wild surmise—
14 Silent, upon a peak in Darien.
(1816)
Based on context, what does "ken" (line 10) most likely mean?
Lines 9-10 describe a stargazer or astronomer--someone who is watching the sky for planets and stars, perhaps with a telescope. When the speaker speaks of a planet swimming "into his ken," that is, into the stargazer's "ken," this must refer to the planet entering the stargazer's frame of vision. Indeed, "ken" means "view," or range of sight.
Passage adapted from "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer" by John Keats (1816)
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To the Dead in the Grave-Yard Under My Window
by Adelaide Crapsey (1878 - 1915)
In context, the meaning of the word “dumb” (line 14) is closest to ________________.
The poem says nothing about the dead being stupid, ignorant, or cacophonous. Their "dumb presence" seems to "iterate" (repeat) a certain message over and over, but it's that message that is repetitive: not their presence. The correct answer is "speechless".
Even if you didn't know this meaning of "dumb", you could home in on the correct answer through the process of elimination. (The tricky part would be to resist the temptation to choose "stupid" as your answer. If you see that the poem says nothing about stupidity, that would be a big clue that this question is looking for a secondary or tertiary meaning of the word "dumb".)
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To the Dead in the Grave-Yard Under My Window
by Adelaide Crapsey (1878 - 1915)
In context, the word “text” (line 15) most likely suggests ________________.
Looking at the complete thought that includes the word "text" (lines 14-16), we see that the speaker is questioning the dead, whose relentless silent presence seems to repeat a message that she's sick of hearing: "Lie still/ And rest; be patient and lie still and rest.” This has nothing to do with textbooks ("educational tracts".) The message is repetitive, but it is not a quarrel or a conversation. It is a command, but we know it isn't startling because the speaker tells us that she's heard it so many times before that it's "weary in \[her\] ears".
The correct answer is "a Biblical exhortation", where "text" means a small passage from the Bible on which a minister bases a sermon. "Lie still/ And rest; be patient and lie still and rest" is a sermon that the speaker hears continually from someone in authority, and now she seems to be hearing it again from the silent dead.
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