He 20th Century technology time line

These words are all related to guns. Match them to their definitions.
____ 1. cocked 
a. the tube-shaped part of the gun
____ 2. safety 
b. the part you pull to ire the gun
____ 3. barrel 
c. a device on a gun that you look
through
____ 4. trigger 
d. ready for shooting
____ 5. sight 
e. the part of the gun that prevents 
accidental iring
C.
Reading strategy
The italicized text in this reading indicates people talking (direct speech). Look 
quickly through the passage, and find all of the sentences with italicized words. 
Answer the question.
What is the name of the man who is teaching Pollan how to hunt? 
II. READ
Read the text. Mark the words you don’t know, but don’t stop reading to look 
them up.
I touched Angelo on the shoulder and pointed toward the pigs. What should I 
do? This time my gun was cocked, of course, and now, for the irst time, I took 
off the safety. Should I shoot? No, you wait, Angelo said. See—they’re coming 
down the hill now. I followed the pigs with the barrel of my gun, trying to get 
one of them in my sight. My inger rested lightly on the trigger, and it took all 
the self-restraint I could summon not to squeeze, but I didn’t have a clear 
shot—too many trees stood in the way. Take your time, Angelo whispered. They 
will come to us. And so they did, following the streambed down to the road 
directly in front of us, moving toward us in an excruciatingly slow parade. I have 
no idea how long it took the pigs to pick their way down the steep hill, whether 
it was minutes or just seconds. At last the irst animal, a big black one, stepped 
out into the clearing of the dirt road, followed by another that was just as big 
but much lighter in color. The second pig presented its lank. Now! Angelo 
whispered. This is your shot!
Source: The Omnivore’s Dilemma, by Michael Pollan, New York: Penguin Books, 
2006, p. 351

---

118 | Better Reading English
III. COMPREHENSION CHECK
Mark the sentences T (True) or F (False).
____ 1. They are hunting pigs.
____ 2. Pollan shoots a pig right away.
____ 3. There were a lot of trees in the area.
____ 4. The pigs were walking on lat ground.
____ 5. Angelo told Pollan to shoot the black pig.
IV. VOCABULARY BUILDING
A.
Understanding from context
Read the words and definitions. Then write each word in one of the following 
sentences.
self-restraint 
self-control
summon 
call urgently
excruciating 
painful
steep 
sharply rising, vertical
parade 
a formal walk or march
squeeze 
press together, usually with the fingers
clearing 
an opening in the trees
lank 
the side of an animal’s body
1. The penguins moved through the snow in one long 
________________________.
2. It was dark under the trees but sunny in the 
_____________________________.
3. We were not happy about walking up the _____________________ 
mountain.
4. Walking up the mountain was ____________________________.
5. They ____________________________ the fruit until the juice comes out.
6. The child was nervous when he heard his mother _________ him from the 
house.
7. The horse had a large black spot on its ____________________________.
8. Adults have more ____________________________ than children do.

---

Eating In, Eating Out | 119
V. UNDERSTANDING GRAMMAR: 
-ing PHRASES
A.
Read about -ing phrases
The -ing form (also called the present participle) is sometimes used to combine 
ideas. The sentence:
I followed the pigs with the barrel of my gun, trying to get one of them in 
my sight.
can be rewritten as two sentences:
I followed the pigs with the barrel of my gun. I tried to get one of them in 
my sight.
The writer’s version is better because it avoids repeating the subject, and the 
two actions it closely together.
Note: When using participial phrases, writers must be careful that the 
subject of the participle is the subject of the sentence. A sentence like this:
I followed the pigs with the barrel of my gun, picking their way down the hill is 
INCORRECT because followed and picking have different subjects.
B.
Identify participial phrases
Read the sentences. Underline the -ing form and its subject in each sentence.
1. They cooked all evening, roasting potatoes, beef, and vegetables.
2. She climbed the steep mountain, breathing hard and sweating.
3. He wrote about the modern food system, describing in detail the 
operations of a large farm.
C
. Use the grammar
Combine the sentences using a participial phrase.
1. We bought the dinner. We paid for the meal, the drinks, and the tip.
2. She worked on a modern small-scale farm. She raised chickens and grew 
organic vegetables.
3. She took care of the chickens. She allowed them to wander free and eat 
insects.
4. They walked through the forest. They moved slowly as they listened for the 
sounds of the animals.

---

120 | Better Reading English
VI. READ IT AGAIN
Read the passage again. Answer the question.
The writer is nervous and excited on his irst hunt. What words in the passage 
give you a clue about how he feels?
CHRISTMAS MORNING BREAKFAST
I. PRE-READING
A.
Background information
This passage comes from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. This story about 
four sisters was published in 1880, but it has remained popular throughout the 
years. In this chapter, the girls have opened their Christmas presents and have 
been waiting for their mother, Mrs. March, to come home before they start 
breakfast.
B.
Words to know before you read
Match the words to their definitions.
____ 1. huddle 
a. place one thing on top of another
____ 2. suffer 
b. quickly, without thought
____ 3. exclaim 
c. thing
____ 4. impetuously 
d. crowd together
____ 5. article 
e. brave
____ 6. pile 
f. say enthusiastically
____ 7. heroic 
g. experience something bad
C.
Reading strategy
Quickly scan the following text for names. Write the names of the four sisters.
___________________
___________________
___________________
___________________

---

Eating In, Eating Out | 121
II. READ
Read the text. Mark the words you don’t know, but don’t stop reading to look 
them up.
“Merry Christmas, little daughters! I’m glad you began at once, and hope you 
will keep on. But I want to say one word before we sit down. Not far away from 
here lies a poor woman with a little newborn baby. Six children are huddled into 
one bed to keep from freezing, for they have no ire. There is nothing to eat 
over there, and the oldest boy came to tell they were suffering hunger and 
cold. My girls, will you give them your breakfast as a Christmas present?”
They were all unusually hungry, having waited nearly an hour, and for a 
minute no one spoke, only a minute, for Jo exclaimed impetuously—
“I’m so glad you came before we began!”
“May I go and help carry the things to the poor little children?” asked Beth 
eagerly.
“I shall take the cream and the mufins,” added Amy, heroically giving up 
the article she most liked.
Meg was already covering the buckwheats, and piling the bread into one 
big plate.
“I thought you’d do it,” said Mrs. March, smiling as if satisied. “You shall 
all go and help me, and when we come back we will have bread and milk for 
breakfast, and make it up at dinnertime.”
Source: Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott
III. COMPREHENSION CHECK
Mark the sentences T (True) or F (False).
____ 1. When Mrs. March comes in, the girls are sitting at the table.
____ 2. The poor woman has ive children.
____ 3. Mrs. March learned about the family’s problem from the oldest son.
____ 4. The sisters are not hungry.
____ 5. Beth really wants to help take the food to the poor family.
____ 6. Amy’s favorite breakfast food is cream and mufins.
____ 7. Jo gets the food ready to take to the family.
____ 8. The sisters will have bread and milk for dinner.

---

122 | Better Reading English
IV. VOCABULARY BUILDING
A.
Adjectives and adverbs
Read the words in the chart. Write the correct form for each word to complete 
the following sentences.