Children pause their play, startled by the clamor.

Meaning: The children stop playing because they are surprised by the loud noise.

Choice of Words: Pause means to stop doing something temporarily. Play refers to the activity children engage in for enjoyment. Startled means surprised or shocked. Clamor refers to a loud and confused noise. Together, they describe children stopping their play because of the loud noise.

Alternative Expressions

The children stopped playing because they were startled by the noise.

Meaning: This sentence means the same as the first sentence, but it uses different words.

Choice of Words: The children are young people, usually under the age of 18. Stopped means to cease doing something. Playing is an activity that children enjoy, like running, jumping, or pretending. Because is a word that explains why something happened. They were startled means they were surprised or frightened. By the noise means by the loud sound.

The kids froze in their tracks when they heard the racket.

Meaning: This sentence means the same as the first two sentences, but it uses different words and imagery. It paints a picture of the children being so surprised or frightened by the noise that they stopped moving.

Choice of Words: The kids are young people, usually under the age of 18. Froze means to become motionless. In their tracks means in the place where they were standing or walking. When is a word that tells us when something happened. They heard means they perceived sound with their ears. The racket is a loud noise.

Related Expressions