Question 194
HardOriginal questionOh! But he was a hand at the grind-stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, , old sinner! Hard and sharp as , from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and as an oyster. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his pointed nose, his cheek, stiffened his ; made his eyes red, his thin lips blue; and spoke out shrewdly in his grating voice. A frosty was on his head, and on his eyebrows, and his wiry chin. He carried his own low temperature always about with him; he iced his office in the dog-days; and didn't thaw it one degree at Christmas.
External heat and cold had little influence on Scrooge. No warmth could warm, no wintry weather chill him. No wind that blew was bitterer than he, no falling snow was more intent upon its purpose, no pelting rain less open to . Foul weather didn't know where to have him. The heaviest rain, and snow, and hail, and sleet, could boast of the advantage over him in only one respect. They often "came down" , and Scrooge never did.
"He carried his own low temperature always about with him." This means that
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
The next sentences say external heat and cold had "little influence" on him, and he "iced his office" even in the hottest days.
His coldness is part of his nature, not something the weather causes.
Worth noting
The passage is not about his health or his office's heating. The coldness is a picture of his character.
- Concept
- Interpreting a figurative statement
- Typical timeTypical
- 55 s
- Your timeYours
- —
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