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Question
Notice these expressions in the text. Infer their meaning from the context.
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honing our seafaring skills
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ominous silence
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Mayday calls
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pinpricks in the vast ocean
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a tousled head
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Solution
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honing our seafaring skills: this refers to the efforts made by the author and his wife, to perfect or sharpen their seafaring skills.
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ominous silence: the silence here refers to impending danger.
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Mayday calls: Mayday calls are radio-telephonic words which signal aircraft or ships stuck in a disastrous situation.
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pinpricks in the vast ocean: this phrase expresses the search for two small islands in the vast ocean.
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a tousled head: this refers to hair in disarray or the disarranged hair of the author’s son, Jonathan
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