In the Waiting Room Quizzes

In the Waiting Room Quiz

1 What is a pith helmet associated with?
Horseback riding

Concussion recovery

Outdoor adventuring and safaris

Hockey
2 What is the poem's rhyme scheme?
ABABCDCD

It does not have a rhyme scheme

ABACDCEFE

ABBA CDDC
3 Who is the poem's speaker?
Martin Johnson

An old man

A dentist

A young girl
4 Which image does the speaker NOT encounter in the magazine?
A dead man

A volcano

Naked women

A lion chasing its prey
5 What are arctics, in the poem's context?
A type of cold-weather bird

Explorers of the North Pole

A type of winter shoe

People from the arctic circle
6 Fill in the blank : "But I felt: you are an ____"
Individual

Infant

Orphan

I
7 Fill in the blank: "How--I didn't know any word for it--how____"
Grand

Unlikely

Obnoxious

Ridiculous
8 In which year does this poem take place?
2004

1918

1848

1976
9 Which of the following prompts the speaker to feel panicked?
Her aunt's cry of pain

The snowfall outside

The lamps turning on

The picture of the volcano
10 How many stanzas are in this poem?
3

7

5

4
11 Which image metaphorically describes the speaker's fear and panic?
Black waves

Lightning and thunder

Rushing wind

A hole opening in the ground
12 What does the word "timid" most closely mean?
Delicious

Undecided

Fearful

Insistent
13 Which of the following phrases contains assonance prominently?
"trousers and skirts and boots"

"The War was on. Outside,"

"dressed in riding breeches,"

"black, and full of ashes;"
14 Which magazine does the speaker read?
The New Yorker

Time

National Geographic

Life
15 Which of the following is a major theme of the poem?
Class inequality

Individual identity

Friendship

Technology
16 What types of stanzas are in this poem?
Quatrains

There is no standard stanza length

Sestets

Quintets
17 How old is the speaker?
Seventy-eight

Almost seven

Fourteen

Middle aged
18 What does the word "rivulet" mean?
Toothbrush

Stream

Reverie

Hair ribbon
19 What were Osa and Martin Johnson known for?
Sailing around the world

Writing novels

Field linguistics

Exploring and photography
20 Fill in the blank: "I read it right straight through. / I was too ____ to stop."
Shy

Polite

Tired

Entranced
21 In which city does the poem take place?
San Francisco, California

Worcester, Massachusetts

Manchester, England

Montreal, Canada
22 Who is the speaker with?
Her imaginary friend

Her aunt

Her mother

Her twin
23 What sound produces alliteration in the phrase "while I waited I read"?
R

T

E

W
24 Which war is Bishop most likely referencing at the end of the poem?
The Spanish-American War

The U.S. Civil War

World War 2

World War 1
25 Where is the speaker?
God's waiting room

A doctor's waiting room

A therapist's waiting room

A dentist's waiting room

In the Waiting Room Questions and Answers

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Study Guide for In the Waiting Room

In the Waiting Room study guide contains a biography of Elizabeth Bishop, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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Essays for In the Waiting Room

In the Waiting Room essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of In the Waiting Room by Elizabeth Bishop.

Waiting for Adulthood: Aging in “In the Waiting Room” and “At the Fishhouses”