The ladder below the platform
An original account of an invented weather-station inspection.
The inspection team crossed the platform to a hatch in the floor. Nia placed one foot on the ladder below, but immediately stepped back. While the others climbed down to the lower room, she remained beside the opening and offered to record their observations from above.
The team leader explained that the ladder had been checked that morning. Nia looked down again and gripped the rail. She was still reluctant to descend, pausing for several seconds before lowering herself onto the first rung. Eventually, she followed the others, although she moved slowly and kept both hands firmly on the ladder.
In this passage, explain the meaning of “reluctant”.
528 exam-style questions on WJEC GCSE English Language 3.1 Section A (20%) – Reading, covering 3.1.1 Understanding description, narration and exposition texts, 3.1.2 Range of continuous and non-continuous texts, 3.1.3 Short and extended response question types, and 3.1.4 Editing task at word, sentence and text level. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.