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Last Chance! Trivia Quiz
Last and chance are both words which could have several different meanings. Can you fill in the blanks in the text with the right word so that it makes sense?
Sharon, the shoemaker, woke up and looked out of the window. She thought she would take the of a walk in the sunshine. The red sky suggested that the fine weather probably wouldn't long; there would be a good of rain later. But she might be lucky and on some mushrooms for her breakfast while she was out.
She reached work just before the rain started, and prepared her tools for the day's work. She would need, amongst other things, a measuring tape, a cutting knife and board, an awl, a hammer, a rasp, some pliers and several s in different shapes and sizes. By a lucky she had a piece of red leather. There was just enough to out for the two pairs of shoes which had been ordered, because there was not much of finding another piece of exactly the same colour.
As she was putting everything, away the customer of the day popped in on the off that their shoes were ready, which they were. At it was time for Sharon to go home again. There was plenty of night's take-away left for her supper; it should for another night, too. She thought there was a good of meeting some of her friends that evening, so she went out to the Saloon to see who was there, being glad that the rain had stopped so she wouldn't get wet on the way.
The word 'last' can be used as a noun, an adjective, an adverb, or a verb. As a noun, an adjective or an adverb, the word comes from the Old English 'latost' which is of Germanic origin, and related to 'late'. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the following definitions of the adjective: 'coming after all others in time or order', 'lowest in importance or rank', 'most recent in time', 'immediately preceding in order', and 'only remaining'. The adverb is defined as 'the occasion before the present', or 'after all others in sequence'. The noun refers to the final person or thing, or the only remaining part of something. As a different noun, meaning a model for shaping a boot or shoe, the word comes from the Old English 'laeste' from a Germanic word meaning 'follow'. As a verb, the word comes from the old English 'laestan', which is of the same Germanic origin as the shoemaker's model. The word is defined as 'continuing for a specified period of time', or 'remaining operational or usable for a length of time', or having sufficient provisions or resources for a certain length of time.
The word 'last' appears in many phrases. A 'last-ditch' attempt is a final, and possibly desperate, attempt to achieve a goal. 'Last minute', or 'last-gasp', refer to doing something as late as possible. The Last Post is a British bugle call played at the end of the day, or at a funeral. The 'last word' is either a definitive pronouncement on a topic, or the most modern example of something.
A Middle English word, coming from the Old French 'cheance' based on the Latin 'cadere' meaning 'to fall, 'chance' is used as both a noun and a verb. As a noun, the Oxford English Dictionary defines chance as 'a possibility of something happening', 'the probability of something happening', 'an opportunity', or 'the occurrence of events in the absence of any obvious cause'. As a verb, the word is defined as 'to do something by accident', 'to find or see something by accident', or, more informally, as 'to risk something'.
Positive phrases using the word 'chance' are 'a good chance', 'a fighting chance', 'stand a chance', and 'a fair chance'. If something is referred to as 'a fat chance', 'a ghost of a chance', 'a cat in hell's chance', or 'Buckley's chance', it is not very likely to happen. 'To take a chance' or 'to chance one's arm' could be risky.
The 'Last Chance Saloon' was a popular name for a bar in a border area of North America, where it might not be possible to obtain alcohol on the next part of a journey. The expression is also seen in the UK, when signs offer the last chance to buy petrol before joining a motorway, for example.
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor looney_tunes before going online.
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