Question

read the paragraph and dictionary entry.
a recent editorial suggested the candidates ignored the issues of greatest interest to the citizens. this caused a majority of voters to purposely neglect voting. the low voter turnout at the polls yesterday supports the idea that the voters are jaded.

dictionary
jaded (jā′did)

1. adj. overworked, exhausted, weary
2. adj. bored, tired, or uninterested from having too much of something
3. adj. hardened due to negative experience or living to excess; indifferent

when paul first read this paragraph in the newspaper, he thought the word jaded meant “busy.” he looked it up in a dictionary to see if he was correct.

in the context of this paragraph, is paul’s understanding of the meaning of jaded correct?
options (paraphrased due to blurriness): 1. no, because people were simply uninterested in the election. 2. no, because people had a negative experience with the candidates. 3. yes, because people were overworked and therefore too tired to vote. 4. yes, because people had stopped voting as a result of numerous elections.

Explanation:

To determine if Paul's understanding (that "jaded" means "busy") is correct, we analyze the context and dictionary definitions:

1. The paragraph says candidates ignored citizens' key issues, leading voters to purposely neglect voting (low turnout).
2. Dictionary definitions of "jaded" relate to being weary, bored/uninterested from excess, or hardened/indifferent (not "busy").
3. Option 1: "No, because people were simply uninterested in the election" matches the context (voters neglected voting due to disinterest, so "jaded" here means uninterested, not busy). Other options: Option 2 focuses on negative experience (not directly about "busy"), Option 3 claims "overworked" (not supported, voters neglected voting on purpose, not from being tired), Option 4 mentions "numerous elections" (not in the paragraph).

Answer:

1. No, because people were simply uninterested in the election.