Question

Read the excerpt below and answer the question. He sat by the clock in the villa, when his mother was not near, and checked his time. He was incredulous and then proud to find that he could hold his breath without strain for two minutes. Choose the best synonym for the word incredulous as it is used in this excerpt from Doris Lessing’s short story "Through the Tunnel."

Answer 1

Incredulous means suprised or that you find something unbelieveable. In this context a good synonym would be "shocked" or "stunned."

Answer 2

"Incredulous" means that a person is skeptical about something, or that he finds something hard to believe. In this case, the character is incredulous about his ability to hold his breath without strain for two minutes. This means that he finds this fact difficult to believe, as it is so amazing to him.