Question

By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the world. Which is the best definition of the word rude as it is used in the first stanza? A) impolite B) imaginary C) rough, unfinished D) technical, complicated

Answer 1

Answer:

C) rough, unfinished

Explanation:

This is the excerpt, the first stanza, from the Ralph Waldo Emerson's poem "Concord Hymn" that deals with the beginning of the Independence War against the British.

Now, the word "rude" of course, means impolite, but it can't be used in this context to describe a bridge.

If a bridge looked rude, that was probably due to some defying, scary or maybe even repulsive feeling it provoked.

The reason for a bridge to awake such feelings could be that the bridge is still rough and unfinished or damaged and maybe even partially destroyed.