Question

he moved through the crowd, shaking numerous hands. then, accompanied by john’s 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 lowered the words he was straining to hear. john’s father said something and lincoln laughed. anxiously, john leaned forward in his seat for a 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 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 phrase "murmured conversations around him covered the words he was straining to hear" means John couldn't hear his father and Lincoln because other people's talking (the murmurs) made it hard. Option 1 says he couldn't follow guests' convos because they all talked at once, but the original is about not hearing his father/Lincoln due to surrounding talks. Option 2 matches: others' talking (murmurs) between them (John and the speakers) made him unable to hear. Option 3 says guests tried to stop him, which isn't in the story. Option 4 says a curtain was the issue, but the story has no curtain. So Option 2 is correct.

Answer:

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