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ACT Reading 2.4 Humanities Passage 201 Views
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Description:
ACT Reading 2.4 Humanities Passage. Which of the following is the best definition for the word "pedantic"?
- Foreign Language / Arabic Subtitled
- Foreign Language / Chinese Subtitled
- Foreign Language / Korean Subtitled
- Foreign Language / Spanish Subtitled
- Reading / Meaning of Words from Context
- Product Type / ACT Reading
- Literary Vocabulary / Determine meaning of words and phrases: Informational text
- Literary Vocabulary / Determine meaning of words and phrases: Informational Text
- ACT Reading / Meanings of Words From Context
Transcript
- 00:04
Here's your Shmoop du jour, brought to you by Piano Teachers. You have to give them props
- 00:08
for not totally losing it every time they hear the song "Ladybird."
- 00:33
Which of the following is the best definition for the word "pedantic" in line 10?
- 00:40
If we don't already know the meaning of "pedantic," a little detective work will
- 00:43
help us narrow down our options.
Full Transcript
- 00:46
We wish we could just hire Magnum P.I., but he got canceled years ago.
- 00:49
Ask your parents about him.
- 00:50
In lieu of Magnum's help, we'll just have to check out the context in and around line 10.
- 00:55
We know from the passage that "pedantic" is used to describe Schumann's first piano
- 00:59
teacher, whose teaching is described as "inadequate."
- 01:02
The prefix "in" means "not" in this case, letting us know that this guy was not
- 01:07
adequate at all. So basically the dude wasn't winning any piano teacher of the year awards.
- 01:11
Knowing this allows us to nix choice (C). There's no way the author would describe
- 01:14
Schumann's first teacher in a positive way, and she certainly wouldn't call him "gifted."
- 01:18
Now let's see what choice (B) has up its sleeves...
- 01:21
Well, yeah, Schumann's teacher was old. We know this because the line in the passage
- 01:26
is: an "old, pedantic professor."
- 01:29
If "pedantic" meant "old," however, this would be a pretty unimaginative sentence.
- 01:34
It'd be like calling the guy an "old old professor."
- 01:38
We'll give the author the benefit of the doubt and assume she knows how to avoid redundancy.
- 01:41
Choice (B) is out of consideration.
- 01:43
Choices (A) and (D) are a little harder to choose between. Neither description is particularly
- 01:48
positive, which matches up with the idea that the teacher was "inadequate."
- 01:52
We're leaning toward choice (A), however. If the teacher were completely "useless,"
- 01:56
as (D) says, then we doubt Schumann would've been able to compose those dances at 7 or 8 years old.
- 02:01
"Pedantic" also sounds a whole lot like the word "pedagogue," which describes
- 02:05
a strict, super by-the-book teacher. This seals the deal for us, so we dub (A) the correct answer.
- 02:10
If we were this poor piano teacher, we'd sue the author for slander.
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