Read the sentence, looking for clues
The main clues here are that Montresor is "vengeful" and that he sealed his friend
inside a wall.
Predict an answer
The right answer will be a verb that describes what Montresor did to this unlucky
friend of his; it'll be something like "trapped."
Select the choice that most closely matches your
prediction
(E) immures, or "encloses within
walls" is the correct answer. Even without knowing that specific meaning, you might
be able to make an educated guess, because the root, "mur," comes from the Latin for
"wall", as in murals, or paintings made
on walls. (A) quaffs means "drinks." (B)
preserves, which means "keeps safe"
or "protects" is an unlikely result of being sealed inside of a wall. (C) taunts, or "insults" is too mild to match the
clues. (D) condones means "approves of
wrongdoing"; someone else might condone Fortunato being trapped inside of a wall, but since Montresor
himself trapped his friend in the wall, he's not condoning his own actions.
Check your answer
In Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado," the vengeful Montresor immures his friend Fortunato by sealing him up
inside a wall.
TAKEAWAY: If you're not familiar with the meaning of a word, see if you can
identify its root to figure out what it means.
