What does the word 'stubborn' suggest about the butcher?
On a wet Tuesday in March, the main street of my home town looks like a mouth with missing teeth. The baker closed in January; the shoe shop has been papered over since Christmas. Only the charity shops, the vape shops and a single stubborn butcher keep their lights on. We are told this is progress: that people now buy everything online and the street has simply been outgrown. But a street is more than a place to buy things. It is where a child first sees a neighbour's face turn kind, where news is exchanged over counters, where a town learns what it is. When we lose it we lose, quietly, the habit of being a community, and no delivery van can bring that back to our doors.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. The butcher refuses to give up even though others have closed
- Step 1: 'Stubborn' means unwilling to give way.
- Step 2: In context the butcher is still trading when others have shut, which suggests determination.
Answer
The butcher refuses to give up even though others have closed.
Why not the others: The butcher is rude to customers who come into the shop: 'stubborn' refers to persistence, not manners. The butcher has failed to change the shop in any way: the word points to determination in staying open, not to a lack of change. The butcher dislikes the other shops on the street: no rivalry is mentioned.
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