Question

Read this excerpt from Robert Stawell Ball’s Great Astronomers:

Though every child may now know more of the actual truths of the celestial motions than ever Ptolemy knew, yet the fact that his work exercised such an astonishing effect on the human intellect for some sixty generations, shows that it must have been an extraordinary production. We must look into the career of this wonderful man to discover wherein lay the secret of that marvellous success which made him the unchallenged instructor of the human race for such a protracted period.

Based on the context of the excerpt, what does the word protracted most clearly mean?

A.
seeming to be truthful
B.
weighing an excessive amount
C.
extending in a specific direction
D.
continuing for a long time
E.
being exceptional or talented

Answer 1

D. continuing for a long time

Answer 2

The answer is: D.  continuing for a long time.

The adjective protracted means lasting for a long time or for a longer time than expected or usual.

In the excerpt from "Great Astronomers," by Irish astronomer Robert Stawell Ball, the speaker makes reference to Greek astronomer Claudius Ptolemy's and his legacy. Ptolemy was born around the year 85 A. D. As a consequence, the author acknowledges how Ptolemy's studies have influenced humanity for "sixty generations."