Reading Inventory 870

Anyhow, our house is tight and cozy. The proof was last night when the wind did damage to some of the other roofs of houses but not ours. Our house is probably the tightest in the settlement as Father is the best man with an axe and a drawknife. And it is all in the shaping of the logs that makes a tight house.

Our house is _____ .

• new

• roomy

• secure

• filthy

One fascinating animal that can be found only on Murre Island is the Rapul bat. Many of these long-eared, pale-gray bats live in the caves on Mount Rapul. After dark, they can be seen picking insects from bark and leaves.

These bats are _____ .

• agile

• vicious

• tiny

• interesting

The reddish brown patches on the giraffe's coat are special too. In a way, these markings are like human fingerprints. Each giraffe has its own pattern, and—while the markings darken with age—their shape never changes. This means that researchers can identify individual giraffes in the wild and study them over time.

The pattern on each giraffe is _____ .

• unique

• hidden

• perfect

• simple

Many Arctic animals have different coats in different seasons. In winter, their coats are white, so they are less easily seen against the snow. In summer, when the snow has melted, their coats are brown or grey, so they blend with rocks and plants.

Their coats _____ them.

• scratch

• please

• burden

• camouflage

Athena, despite Zeus' edict, flew down from Olympus to help the Greeks. This time she was intercepted by Apollo, who said: "No, sister, you must not. You are Zeus' favorite daughter, as everyone knows, and you should be the last to flout his commands. You see that I am keeping aloof from the battle, and so must you."

Athena must _____ her father.

• fight

• obey

• comfort

• ignore

One day they saw a bird with green grass in its beak, flying into the bare trees to build a nest. They watched as the bird soared high up into the cliffs to find lush leaves. The elders sent a few young men to climb up and see what lay beyond the cliffs. There they saw streams, green trees, and soft grasses. It was a land rich enough to feed cattle and people for a long time.

The bird had _____ them.

• aided

• robbed

• haunted

• united

It was Emi who suddenly spoke up, her face flushed, her voice rising. "Well, I'm not going with you if you do," she said defiantly. And she picked up her dishes, marched to the dishwashing area where she quickly washed her dishes in the tub of soapy water, and left the building. She hadn't even waited for dessert.

Emi was _____ .

• impressed

• firm

• apologetic

• thoughtful

All Mr. Platter's flowers were kept like captives—firmly tied to stakes; the slightest sway or wriggle was swiftly punished. A lop here or a cut there and the bullied plants gave in: uncomplaining as guardsmen, they would stand to attention in rows. His lawns, too, were a sight to behold as, weed-repelled and mown in stripes, they sloped down to the river.

His gardening was _____ .

• colorful

• ordinary

• structured

• disgraceful

All this rainy day I worked with the women as we made moccasins in the longhouse, and I did not lay eyes upon him. I looked around the camp whenever I had the excuse to fetch water or wood. But he is nowhere to be seen.

I could not _____ him.

• blame

• warn

• leave

• find

To be really good, your writing must be like a chain. The sentences and paragraphs must be linked together for strength and unity. Each sentence should have a connection to the one before it and, similarly, each paragraph should be a natural extension of the previous one. Making logical connections in your writing relies on good use of transitional words and phrases.

Sentences should be _____ .

• realistic

• verified

• vague

• related