Mythology

Name: _________________________________________________________ Date: ________________

Part Three The Great Heroes Before the Trojan War

Chapter 9 Perseus Chapter 10 Theseus Chapter 11 Hercules Chapter 12 Atalanta

1. What was the Medusa, and how did Perseus kill it?

2. How did Perseus use Medusa’s head to help his mother?

3. Theseus was raised in a city away from his father, King Aegeus of Athens. How did the King know that  

    Theseus was his son when they finally met?

4. What was the Minotaur, and how did Theseus kill it?

5. How did Theseus change the government when he became King of Athens?

6. Who was the strongest man on earth, and the great hero of Greece except for Athens?

7. Why did Hercules perform his twelve labors?

8. Briefly describe one of the twelve labors of Hercules.

9. Whom did Atalanta tell her father she would marry?

10. Whom did Atalanta marry, and how did he win her?

Pre-reading Vocabulary Worksheets - Mythology

Introduction Part I: Using Prior Knowledge and Context Clues

Below are the sentences in which the vocabulary words appear in the text. Read the sentence.  Use any clues you can find in the sentence combined with your prior knowledge, and write what you think the underlined words mean on the lines provided.

1. The scudding waves so near your soft curls.

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2. ...to sail on it would be a contemptible flight from danger.

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3. He spent a large part of his life expiating one unfortunate deed after another.

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4. Sometimes he punished himself when others were inclined to exonerate him.

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5. It would have been ludicrous to put him in command of a kingdom.

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6. He was helped by Athena to drive them out of their coverts, and as they flew up he shot them.

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7. One of the poems ascribed to Hesiod describes the race and the golden apples.

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8. ...who loved adventure as much as the most dauntless hero.

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Part II: Determining the Meaning Match the vocabulary words to their dictionary definitions.

____ 1. scudding                    A. absurd, incongruous

____ 2. contemptible              B. skimming along swiftly and easily

____ 3. expiating                    C. attributed to

____ 4. exonerate                    D. fearless, not intimidated

____ 5. ludicrous                    E. to free from blame

____ 6. coverts                        F. despicable

____ 7. ascribed                      G. making amends, atoning

____ 8. dauntless                    H. thick underbrush offering shelter for game