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Worksheets"The Names" by Billy Collins
Total questions: 20
Worksheet time: 11mins
Why was the poem "The Names" written?
As a tribute to the victims and survivors of 9/11
To re-affirm that New York city is an amazing place to live
To bring attention to the immigrants who used to enter the United States at Ellis Island
To list all of the cities in the state of New York in alphabetical order
What can the reader notice about the people named in the poem? (Mark all that apply)
There are 26 of them in alphabetical order
They all start with the same letter
They represent many nationalities
They all first names
What do the 26 willows symbolize?
The nature in Central Park
Rivers in the Southern part of the United States
The victims of 9/11
None of these
Which of the following is an example of simile from the poem?
"I started with A, with Ackerman, as it happened,"
"I say the syllables as I turn a corner--"
"In the evening, --weakening light, the last swallows."
"Among thousands of flowers / Heavy with dew like the eyes of tears,"
Which of the following lines from the poem is a metaphor?
"Fiori inscribed on a yellow petal"
"A soft rain stole in,"
"Names wheeled into the dim warehouse of memory."
"Names of citizens, workers, mothers and fathers,"
Which of the following lines is an example of personification?
"A soft rain stole in, unhelped by any breeze,"
"A woman by a window puts a match to a candle,"
"Twenty-six willows on the banks of a stream."
"A name under a photograph taped to a mailbox."
When would "the palm of the night" be?
Just before a person goes to bed
Right before dawn
The middle of the night
2 a.m.
Why would there be a "name under a photograph taped to a mailbox"?
Someone is proud of their pet and has its picture taped to the mailbox for everyone in the neighborhood to see
The picture is of a missing person that someone is looking for
It's an advertisement for a JLo concert
Billy Collins put his photo and name under his mailbox so that the postman would know where to leave his mail.
What are the names "silent in stone"?
The name that identifies the person in a piece of art.
Names on a tombstone
The names of the School Board members listed on a plaque at the front of the building.
Names from a silent movie made in the 1920s.
What does the line "A blue name needled into the skin" mean?
The name of a student who uses blue ink pen on every assignment.
The name of a premature baby
A tattoo
None of these
A swallow is a type of...
bird
cucumber
dance move
bell ringer
According to the poem, "X" stands for what?
Where all the buried treasure is
The Roman numeral "10"
A wrong answer
The victims who were not found after the attack.
Which of the following are types of memorials or monuments to the victims of 9/11?
The entire poem
"Names silent in stone"
"A blue name needled into the skin."
All of these
Which of the following are places where the speaker of the poem sees the names of victims?
Under a tunnel
On the awnings of the city
In the air
All of these
What is a bough?
A type of bird
A cradle
A tree branch
A book
What is the speaker of a poem?
Where you can hear someone read the poem to you
The person who is talking in the poem (like a narrator)
The poet
The person who paid money for the poem to be written
What is a simile?
An exaggeration
A comparison which uses "like" or "as"
A comparison which does not use "like" or "as"
Giving a non-living option human traits
What is a metaphor?
An object that represents an idea or another object
A comparison which uses "like" or "as"
A comparison which does not use "like" or "as"
Giving an object human characteristics
What is a symbol?
An object which represents an idea or another object
A comparison which uses "like" or "as"
A comparison which does not use "like" or "as"
Giving an object human characteristics
What is personification?
An object which represents an idea or another object
A comparison which uses "like" or "as"
A comparison which does not use "like" or "as"
Giving human characteristics to objects
