Answers: 1- A. Occured. 2- A. Solely. 3- B. Ordinary.
1) I pressed start and then a strange silence, not a steady, busy hum, ensued.
What is the meaning of the word ensued as it is used in this sentence?
The meaning of "ensued " as used in the sentence is "occurred". Ensued means to "occur" or "take place"
2) What connotation does exclusively have, as it is used in the following sentence from "Everyday Things"? This way, American manufacturers let their buyers know that they used Chinese graphite exclusively.
"exclusively" means "solely", which means "only involving", or "involving nothing else", solely, as exclusively means limited, or not to something else.
3) What is the connotation of mundane as it is used in the following sentence from "Everyday Things"? It is amazing how such a tradition has a profound effect on something as mundane, yet important, as pencil production.
"Mundane" literally means "ordinary" or "normal".
