Question

from stories to tell children
children like to feel the joke coming, in this way; they love the anticipation of a laugh, and they will begin to dimple, often, at your first unconscious suggestion of humour. if it is lacking, they are sometimes afraid to follow their own instincts. especially when you are facing an audience of grown people and children together, you will find that the latter are very hesitant about initiating their own expression of fears to be indecorous. often at the funniest point you will see some small listener in an agony of endeavour to cloak the mirth which he—poor mite—(from stories to tell children by sara cone bryant)
what does the word indecorous mean as it is used in this passage?

1. disguised
2. dismissed
3. imitated
4. improper

Explanation:

To determine the meaning of "indecorous", we analyze the context. The passage talks about children and grown - ups being hesitant to show their amusement (mirth) out of fear of being indecorous. Let's analyze each option:

• Option 1 "disguised" means to hide or cover up, which doesn't fit the context of the fear related to showing mirth.
• Option 2 "dismissed" means to reject or send away, and it has no relation to the idea of being inappropriate in showing laughter.
• Option 3 "imitated" means to copy, which is not relevant to the context of the passage.
• Option 4 "improper" fits as the passage implies that the listeners are afraid that showing their mirth (laughter) would be inappropriate or not in line with what is considered proper.

Answer:

1. improper