Function of Specific Words: Fiction/Drama Practice Test

In the following dramatic excerpt, Jun is being questioned by his aunt, Mrs. Park, after he quits a stable office job to join a touring theater troupe. They speak in her living room beside a neatly folded stack of laundry.

MRS. PARK: Your mother called me crying.

JUN: She cries when the rice boils over.

MRS. PARK: Don’t make her small.

JUN: I’m not. I’m just saying she’s afraid of mess.

MRS. PARK: And you? You’re not afraid?

JUN: I’m tired of being afraid in a chair.

MRS. PARK: A chair is respectable.

JUN: A chair is a cage with good posture.

MRS. PARK: You had benefits.

JUN: I had a badge.

MRS. PARK: A badge means you belong somewhere.

JUN: It means I’m claimed.

What is the function of the word claimed in Jun’s final line?

In the following dramatic excerpt, a new teacher, Ms. Sato, meets with Principal Hanley after a student protest. The school hallway outside the office is still loud.

HANLEY: Sit. You look like you’ve walked through a hurricane.

SATO: I walked through teenagers.

HANLEY: Same thing. Why did you let them stay in the courtyard?

SATO: Because they were finally speaking to us instead of at us.

HANLEY: They were chanting your name.

SATO: They were chanting for air.

HANLEY: Don’t get lyrical with me.

SATO: Then don’t ask me to be quiet.

HANLEY: You’re new here. You don’t yet understand the machinery.

SATO: I understand machines. You oil them so they don’t scream.

HANLEY: Our job is order.

SATO: Your job is order. My job is students.

HANLEY: (leans back) You think you’re brave.

SATO: I think you’re comfortable.

What is the function of the word comfortable in Ms. Sato’s final line?