Question

In this sentence from "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell, what does the word zealous mean in these lines?

Even so zealous a hunter as General Zaroff could not trace him there, he told himself; only the devil himself could follow that complicated trail through the jungle after dark.

enthusiastic
evil
accurate
inhumane
unforgiving

Answer 1

The answer is the third choice: accurate. Even so accurate a hunter ... could not trace him there.

Answer 2

Answer: In these lines, the word "zealous" means enthusiastic.

Explanation: The word "zealous" is an adjective and it has been used in these lines to describe someone (more specifically, General Zaroff) as an enthusiastic person, that is to say as someone who does something with an eager enjoyment. In this case, what makes General Zaroff a zealous person is his enthusiasm for hunting. Therefore, "evil ", "accurate", "inhumane" and "unforgiving" are all incorrect options: the only correct one is "enthusiastic".