How We Kept Thanksgiving at Oldtown
by Harriet Beecher Stowe from Oldtown Folks
Chapter XXVII Passage: Harriet Beecher Stowe, best known for writing "Uncle Tom’s Cabin," wrote another novel in 1869 called "Oldtown Folks." The novel tells about life in a New England village called Oldtown. This passage tells about the preparations for Thanksgiving. Students will answer questions on the meaning of some of the words and phrases in the passage.
Reading Comprehension Passage
How We Kept Thanksgiving at Oldtown
by Harriet Beecher Stowe from Oldtown Folks
Reading Comprehension Questions
Vocabulary List
Vocabulary List
Each of the vocabulary words below are used in the reading passage. As you read the passage, pay attention to context clues that suggest the word’s meaning.
- sublime
- rampant
- evinced
- adorned
- boundless
- liberties
Context Clues
Context Clues
Using context clues from the sentences in the passage, underline the correct meaning of the word in boldface.
1) "The making of pies at this period assumed vast proportions that verged upon the sublime."
a. highly valued b. lime flavored c. millions d. extremely tasty
2) "The pie is an English institution, which, planted on American soil, forthwith ran rampant and burst forth into an untold variety of genera and species."
a. quickly b. slowly c. in one direction d. out of control
3) "Not merely the old traditional mince pie, but a thousand strictly American seedlings from that main stock, evinced the power of American housewives to adapt old institutions to new uses."
a. hid b. showed c. challenged d. stole
4) "Pies adorned with all sorts of fanciful flutings and architectural strips laid across and around, and otherwise varied…"
a. covered b. decorated c. cooked d. eaten
5) "…attested the boundless fertility of the feminine mind, when once let loose in a given direction."
a. limited b. limitless c. timeless d. timely
6) "Then chasing us all out of the kitchen when our misinformed childhood ventured to take too many liberties with sacred mysteries."
a. bites b. samples c. ideas d. freedoms