In this section, you have short passages. After each passage, you will find some items based on the passage. Read the passage carefully and answer the items based on it. You are required to select your answers based solely on the contents of the passage and the opinion of the author.
Passage:
I was abruptly awakened by a noisy scuffle. The sun, a mere fringe over the horizon, immediately chased away the grey half-darkness. I was too sleepy to notice what was happening. Yuri was rolling over on the ground. I ran up to him but was struck dumb. With his right hand he was holding a cobra by the neck. Two sharp fangs showed from its jaws. The battle was over in a few minutes. A hollow hissing and convulsive jerks were then only reminders of a just-ended tussle. The catcher half-opened the lid of the box and calmly put the quarry in.
When the writer saw Yuri holding a cobra by the neck, he was ‘struck dumb’. This means that he was
- Aextremely delighted.
- Bvery much helpless.
- Crather surprised.
- Dabsolutely shocked.
Explanation
'Struck dumb' is an idiom meaning rendered speechless, usually by shock or amazement. Seeing Yuri calmly holding a cobra by the neck left the writer too shocked to speak. It does not mean delight, helplessness, or mild surprise. Hence option (d), 'absolutely shocked', is correct.