Question

he moved through the crowd, shaking numerous hands. then, accompanied by johns father, the tall man walked to the opposite side of the room. john did not follow them, but he observed every movement. when they finally seated themselves, the surrounding guests sat in the nearest chairs. this left john approximately 25 feet away. he watched in frustration while the murmured conversations around him covered the words he was straining to hear. johns father said something and lincoln laughed. anxiously, john leaned forward and, at that moment, abe lincoln happened to glance in his direction. john supposed he looked as if he were about to fall out of his seat. lincoln smiled, reached out his hand, and motioned john across the room. which sentence has the same meaning as \the murmured conversations around him covered the words he was straining to hear,\ in the story? 1. john couldnt follow the guests conversations because they all talked at once. 2. john couldnt hear what his father and lincoln were saying because others were talking between them. 3. the guests were trying to keep john from hearing what his father and lincoln said. 4. a curtain was dropped between the stage and the audience, so john missed what his father and lincoln were saying.

Explanation:

The original sentence means that the conversations around John made it hard for him to hear what he wanted to. Option 2 says John couldn't hear his father and Lincoln because others were talking (which is similar to the original's idea of surrounding conversations covering the words). Option 1 is about guests talking at once (not the same as covering specific words). Option 3 implies guests' intention (not in original). Option 4 is about a curtain (not in original).

Answer:

1. John couldn't hear what his father and Lincoln were saying because others were talking between them.