Eager to swim last June, Dana was reluctant this time; she stood at the edge for ten minutes and finally shook her head. What does "reluctant" mean here?

Marco had promised to sing at the assembly. On the morning of the show he was reluctant. He asked twice whether someone else could take his place. What does "reluctant" mean here?

In "The reluctant volunteer finally raised her hand," "reluctant" stands before the noun "volunteer," so it describes her. What does it tell you about her?

(1) The coach asked Nina to try the high dive. (2) Nina was reluctant. (3) She climbed two steps, stopped, and asked to come down. (4) The pool closed at six. Sentence 3 is the clue. What does "reluctant" mean here?

Priya was reluctant to lend her camera; she asked twice whether he would be careful, and only then handed it over. What does "reluctant" mean here?

Ravi is meticulous: he lines up his pencils, checks each answer twice, and erases a smudge before turning in a page. What does "meticulous" mean here?

My brother throws his clothes in a pile, but my sister is meticulous, folding each shirt along the same crease. What does "meticulous" mean here?

Mrs. Ortiz is a meticulous editor. She reads every page three times. She once caught a missing comma in a headline that four other readers had passed over. What does "meticulous" mean here?

In "The jeweler meticulously set each tiny stone," "meticulously" comes before the verb "set," so it tells how he worked. How did he work?

In "Kara is meticulous about her lab notes, unlike her hurried lab partner," the contrast with the partner is the clue. What does "meticulous" mean here?

The visiting team was formidable; they had not lost a match in three seasons, and our captain admitted we would need our best game. What does "formidable" mean here?

(1) The cliff rose straight out of the water. (2) Climbers called it formidable. (3) Only two people had ever reached the top, and both needed ropes and a full day. What does "formidable" mean here?

In "A formidable storm battered the coast for two days, tearing off roofs," "formidable" stands before "storm," so it describes the storm. What kind of storm was it?

"The final exam was formidable: three hours long, with essay questions no class had practiced." The examples after the colon are the clue. What does "formidable" mean here?

Ms. Yeboah looked small behind the desk. Then she asked her first question, and the room went quiet. Her students called her formidable. What does "the room went quiet" suggest about her?

The notice "No parking on Fridays after school events" was ambiguous; half the drivers thought it meant every Friday, and the rest thought it meant game nights only. What does "ambiguous" mean here?

(1) The coach texted, "Bring your gear tomorrow." (2) The message was ambiguous. (3) Half the team brought cleats, and the rest brought swimsuits. What does "ambiguous" mean here?

In "The ending remained ambiguous: half the audience thought the hero lived, and the rest were sure he died," "ambiguous" follows "remained" and describes the ending. What does it mean?

(1) The instructions said to turn the dial left. (2) Jamal called them ambiguous. (3) Left could mean counterclockwise or the left side of the panel. (4) The kit had two batteries. Sentence 3 is the clue. What does "ambiguous" mean here?

"Her answer was ambiguous, so the judges asked her to say plainly whether she agreed." What the judges did next is the clue. What does "ambiguous" mean here?

The young oak proved resilient: hail stripped every leaf in May, and by August it carried a full green crown again. What does "resilient" mean here?

(1) Mia's shop closed after one year. (2) Her friends said she was resilient. (3) Within three months she had opened a smaller shop two streets away. What does "resilient" mean here?

In "Her resilience surprised the crew: she was back at work a week after the accident," "resilience" is the subject of "surprised," so it names a quality of hers. What quality?

Unlike the thin glass pane, which shattered at the first hit, the plastic sheet was resilient and bounced back into shape. What does "resilient" mean here?

"The team was resilient: they lost their first two games, then won six in a row." The example after the colon is the clue. What does "resilient" mean here?

Ana was skeptical of the advertisement's promise; she asked the seller for proof and refused to order until she had read three reviews. What does "skeptical" mean here?

(1) The inventor said his machine ran on air alone. (2) The scientists were skeptical. (3) They asked to test it themselves before printing a single word about it. What does "skeptical" mean here?

In "She listened skeptically to the sales pitch, then asked for proof of every claim," "skeptically" follows the verb "listened," so it tells how she listened. How did she listen?

Dev read that the lake never freezes. He is skeptical: he owns photographs of skaters on that lake, and he has written to the guidebook's publisher. What does "skeptical" mean here?

In "Raul was skeptical, but the video convinced him," the word "but" signals that "skeptical" means the same thing as "convinced."

We worried about running out of chairs, but the hall had ample seating; forty guests arrived and twenty seats stayed empty. What does "ample" mean here?

(1) Nadia packed ample water. (2) The hike ran two hours longer than planned. (3) Each of the four hikers still had half a bottle left at the car. (4) The trail began at a wooden gate. Sentence 3 is the clue. What does "ample" mean here?

Last year we had scarcely enough paint for one wall, but this year's donation gave us ample paint for the whole building. What does "ample" mean here?

In "The garden gave us ample tomatoes: we ate all we wanted and still filled three boxes for the neighbors," "ample" sits before "tomatoes," so it describes them. What does it mean?

"The shelter had ample blankets, so nobody shivered that night." What follows "so" is the clue. What does "ample" mean here?

Copying four hundred names by hand was tedious; after an hour Sam's attention wandered and he checked the clock every few lines. What does "tedious" mean here?

(1) The volunteers sorted screws by size. (2) The job was tedious. (3) They took turns every twenty minutes so nobody had to stare at the trays all afternoon. What does "tedious" mean here?

The first half of the tour was tedious, but the cave at the end was thrilling. What does "tedious" mean here?

"Cleaning the tiny gears was tedious: turn, wipe, check, and repeat two hundred times." The steps after the colon are the clue. What does "tedious" mean here?

The meeting was tedious; it dragged on for three hours over one small item, and by the end everyone was yawning. What does "tedious" mean here?