WAEC SSCE WASSCE 2004 Comprehension passages
Read the passage below carefully and answer the questions on it.
Mysterious window that every morning I was shocked by what he saw, or rather did not see. He rubbed his eyes vigorously in an attempt to clear his blurred sight. But that did not help him. His slumped in his chair totally dejected. He could not find his car where he had parked it the night before.
He found himself in a predicament. It was not that he particularly liked the car, but he desperately needed it. How was he to go to work without it? He was living in a secluded neighborhood far from the city. Very few public vehicles plied that route.
He remembered very vividly his experiences the previous week and we could guess the problems he would face now that he was deprived of his car. That was when he repeatedly failed to give a lift to Mr. Bediako, the only neighbor who owned a car. He was not a hard-hearted man who would cherish denying a man in distress a favour but the deplorable condition his car was in made him behave that way.
India that week, Mr. Antwi found many faults with the car; Most seriously, he could not easily start it, and it was extremely difficult to stop it. One morning, he will lock entered the car and turn the ignition key; the car would not start.
After many attempts, the engine finally coughed and roared to life, but the car would not move. When it eventually did, grudgingly, he realized that the brakes would not work efficiently and so he had to drive at a snail’s pace to his workplace.
That morning, Mr. Antwi such behind his table drenched in sweat and was in no mood to tolerate laziness by his employees. When Rose arrived late, he exploded in anger and would not accept any of her excuses. He drove her out of the office to the utter surprise of Rose who was shocked by this extraordinary behavior of her employer. She returned 30 minutes later only to find her boss drooping in his seat with his head resting on the table.
“Sir, why all this? What can be the cause?” Rose asked, her hand on his head. Mr. Antwi raised. His head slowly, his eyes very sad. He was clearly in a fix. “Pardon me Rose,” he pleaded. “I Shouldn't have treated you the way I did.”
“Forget about it, boss. We should be going home now. it's closing time,” Rose declared, worried.
“How can I Rose? My car has broken down and I won't demean myself by again going through the experience I had at the bus stop this morning. I have grown out of that habit.”
Questions
a) For each of the following words underlined in the passage, give another word or phrase that means the same and which can replace it in the passage:
(i) particularly
(ii) secluded
(iii) deplorable
(iv) exploded
(v) in a fix
(vi) demean
b) Give two reasons two reasons why Mr. Antwi would find it difficult to get to work without his car?
c) Why was it strange that Mr. Antwi did not give Mr. Bediako a lift?
d) Why did Mr. Antwi refuse to accept Rose’s excuses when she came to work late?
e) What, would you conclude, was the relationship between Mr. Antwi and Rose?
f) Quote two words or expressions to indicate Mr. Antwi’s mood that day.
g) …denying a man in distress that favour….
(i) What is the grammatical name name for this construction?
(ii) What is this grammatical function?
h) … the engine finally coughed...
What literary device is used in this expression?
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