READING 1 OF 23 focus words
Down at the jetty
Read for meaning first. Select a highlighted word if you want a closer look.
With no passengers aboard, the little boat needed ballast to sit steadily in the water. In the stern, the carpenter inspected the wooden yoke that joined the steering lines to the rudder.
A loose line could let the bow veer toward the jetty. They tightened it before testing the boat in open water.
Before you move on
Look away from the passage. Can you explain each focus word in your own words?
Original fictional passages for vocabulary practice.