Multiple choice

Sprightly

Directions: Some words in the verse below have been highlighted. Select the best meaning for the corresponding word.

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

 

  1. Energetic

  2. Lively

  3. Full of pleasure

  4. Quick

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Sprightly means lively, animated, or full of spirit and energy. Wordsworth describes the daffodils tossing their heads in a sprightly dance - they are moving with lively energy. While energetic is close, lively is the more precise synonym for sprightly.