Mean Time Quizzes

Mean Time Quiz Mean Time

1 What is the poem's rhyme scheme?
ABAB CDCD

ABB CBB DBB

It does not have a consistent rhyme scheme

ABBA CDDC
2 When was this poem first published?
1762

1975

1993

2017
3 Where does the poem take place?
Inside the speaker's house

On an unnamed city's streets

In a hotel

In a supermarket
4 Why does the speaker believe that the rain is "unmendable"?
It is the beginning of hurricane season

She is practical and crafty, and sees the world through the lens of mending and fixing

She knows that the rain has already done irreparable damage

She is so sad that the world as a whole feels unfixable to her
5 Which of these lines contains alliteration?
"beyond all light"

"unmendable rain"

"stole light from my life"

"one hour from this day"
6 Which best describes the poem's conflict?
It is between the speaker and her girlfriend as they endure a breakup

It is between the town and the oppressive forces occupying it

It is between the speaker on the one hand, and time on the other

It is between the speaker and her siblings
7 How many stanzas does the poem contain?
5

6

3

4
8 Which best describes the poem's diction?
It is flowery and ornate

It is slightly archaic

It is full of jargon and specialized language

It is conversational and casual
9 Which is NOT a likely meaning of the poem's title?
Greenwich Mean Time

Ungenerous or unkind time

Average amount of time

Idle time occurring between two events
10 In which collection was this work published?
Mean Time

Little Red Cap

Collected Works of Carol Ann Duffy

The World's Wife
11 Which type of stanzas make up this work?
Couplets

Tercets

Sestets

Quatrains
12 In this poem, darkness is metaphorically used to represent what?
Privacy

Ignorance

Mystery

Sadness
13 Who is the poem's primary antagonist?
Time itself

The speaker's mother

The speaker

The speaker's ex-partner
14 Which best describes the speaker's mood?
Panicked

Thoughtful

Jubilant

Despondent
15 Which yearly event does the poem describe?
The resetting of clocks in fall

The winter solstice

The new moon

The first snow
16 Who is the poem's addressee?
The speaker's ex-partner

The speaker's client

The townspeople

The reader
17 What is the poem's meter?
Trochaic hexameter

Free verse

Iambic pentameter

Dactylic pentameter
18 The phrase "bleak streets" is an instance of what?
Onomatopoeia

Simile

Personification

Spondee
19 Who is the poem's speaker?
A young woman who has just heard about her father's death

A woman preparing for her wedding

A priest preparing to hear confessions

An unnamed person reflecting after the end of a relationship
20 What recent event has occurred for the poem's speaker?
A diagnosis of illness

The birth of a child

A breakup

A crisis of faith
21 Which of the following is a major theme of this work?
The challenges of writing

Solitude

Human/animal relationships

Heartbreak
22 What is most closely meant by the word "gnaw" as used in this poem?
Grab

Eat

Bite

Torment
23 What is most closely meant by the word "bleak?"
Sad

Poor

Uncomfortable

Small
24 Which two words are an example of slant rhyme?
day/say

mean/time

rain/gnaw

streets/mistakes
25 The poem's description of "endless nights" is an instance of what?
Enjambment

End rhyme

Hyperbole

Understatement

Mean Time Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Mean Time is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Ask Your Own Question

Study Guide for Mean Time

Mean Time study guide contains a biography of Carol Ann Duffy, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

Read the Study Guide for Mean Time…