The following question has two parts. first, answer part a. then, answer part b.

part a

read these sentences from the text. he continued on, pondering what had occurred. as he was thinking deeply, he came to a realization. what does the word pondering most likely mean?

the prince was awakened suddenly by the crackling of dry leaves. a thief was scurrying away with his pack! he was too far away to catch, so the prince was forced to go on without it. (luckily, the gold coins were hidden safely inside his coat.) he continued on, pondering what had occurred. as he was thinking deeply, he came to a realization. “anything can happen when you sleep outside. when i become the ruler, i must make sure that everyone in my kingdom has a safe place to sleep.” then he laughed. “that fellow actually gave me a bit of wisdom! ”

a. trying to escape from

b. feeling motivated by

c. trying to understand

d. feeling embarrassed by

part b

which detail from the sentence provides the best clue to the meaning of the word pondering?

a. “continued on”

b. “had occurred”

c. “thinking deeply”