Question

Read the passage below from “Marigolds” and answer question.

Miss Lottie’s house was the most ramshackle of all our ramshackle homes. The sun and rain had long since faded its rickety frame siding from white to a sullen gray. The boards themselves seemed to remain upright not from being nailed together but rather from leaning together, like a house that a child might have constructed from cards. A brisk wind might have blown it down, and the fact that it was still standing implied a kind of enchantment that was stronger than the elements. There it stood and as far as I know is standing yet—a gray, rotting thing with no porch, no shutters, no steps, set on a cramped lot with no grass, not even any weeds—a monument to decay.

Which quote from the passage above provide clues to the meaning of the word ramshackle?

“…from white to sullen gray.”
“There it stood and as far as I know is standing yet -”
“…on a cramped lot with no grass, not even any weeds –“
“…like a house that a child might have constructed from cards.”

Answer 1

Like a house that a child might have constructed from cards.......would be your answer 

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Answer: The right answer is “…like a house that a child might have constructed from cards” (D).

Explanation: "Ramshackle" is an adjective that can be used to describe something that is about to collapse, that lacks stability, or that has been built without much care. Options A and B do not refer to this feature of the house, but to its fading color and to the fact that it was still miraculously standing. Option C does say that the house had been built on a cramped and barren lot, but these descriptions do not imply that the house was about to fall down. Option D is, therefore, the right choice, since, in it, the dwelling is being compared to a house made out of cards by a child - which can collapse with just a breath.