Question

7 propel
(prə-pěl)
-verb

• my brother gave me a shove, which propelled me into the lake fully clothed.
• when the wind failed to propel the boat, we lowered the sails and turned on the motor.

__ propel means a. to support. b. to move forward. c. to raise.
8 rational
(răshə-nəl)
-adjective

• mr. tibbs isnt rational; in addition to believing he came from another planet, he does crazy things like shoveling snow in his pajamas.
• the belief that breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck isnt rational. the only bad luck it could really bring is stepping on a sharp piece of broken glass.

__ rational means a. helpful. b. kind. c. reasonable.
9 retort
(rĭ-tôrt)
-noun

• sue, who is slender, boasted, \thin is in.\ so pat, who is heavy, gave this retort: \well, fat is where its at.\
• when shelleys balding boyfriend made fun of her frizzy hair, her retort was, \jealous?\

__ retort means a. a wish. b. an answer. c. a fact.
10 retrieve
(rĭ-trēv)
-verb

• my dog floyd refuses to retrieve a thrown frisbee. instead of running to bring it back, he only tilts his head and gives me a questioning look.
• i cant retrieve my sweater from the library until tomorrow, since the library had closed by the time i realized the sweater was missing.

__ retrieve means a. to remember. b. to touch. c. to get back.

Explanation:

Question 7:

To determine the meaning of "propel", we analyze the example sentences. In the first example, a shove propelled the speaker into the lake, and in the second, wind failing to propel the boat means it couldn't move forward. Option A ("to support") doesn't fit, and option C ("to raise") is incorrect. So "propel" means "to move forward".

For "rational", the examples show Mr. Tibbs does crazy things (so not rational) and a belief about bad luck from breaking a mirror isn't rational (as it's not reasonable). Option A ("helpful") and B ("kind") don't relate to the context of reason. So "rational" means "reasonable".

Looking at the examples for "retort", Pat responds to Sue's boast, and Shelley responds to her boyfriend's teasing. A "retort" is a reply or answer. Option A ("a wish") and C ("a fact") don't match the context of a response. So "retort" means "an answer".

Answer:

B. to move forward.

Question 8: