Martin Luther King Jr. "I Have a Dream" speech worksheet with vocabulary exercise.

Let's solve this exercise step by step.

We are given an excerpt from Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech, with blanks to fill in using the provided list of words:

Words to use:
freedom / Alabama / table / men / children / skin / sit down / brothers / character / injustice / nation / racists / Mississippi / slaves / hands / equal / justice / oppression / owners / sisters

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Step 1: Understand the context

This is a famous speech delivered on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington. It calls for civil rights and racial equality in the United States. The tone is hopeful and visionary, imagining a future where racism and segregation no longer exist.

We’ll now go sentence by sentence and fill in the blanks logically using the word bank.

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Sentence 1:

> "I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
> I have a dream that one day this __________ will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all __________ are created __________.'"

- The first blank refers to the entire country → nation
- The second blank: “all ___ are created ___” — this is a quote from the Declaration of Independence → men, equal

✔ So far:
nation, men, equal

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Sentence 2:

> "I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former __________ and the sons of former slave __________ will be able to __________ together at the __________ of brotherhood."

- “Sons of former ___” — referring to people who were once enslaved → slaves
- “Sons of former slave ___” — likely the people who owned them → owners
- “Will be able to ___ together” — they should be able to sit down (a metaphor for integration)
- “At the ___ of brotherhood” — table (as in “the table of brotherhood”)

✔ Fill in: slaves, owners, sit down, table

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Sentence 3:

> "I have a dream that one day even the state of __________, a state sweltering with the heat of __________, sweltering with the heat of __________, will be transformed into an oasis of __________ and __________."

- This refers to a specific Southern state known for segregation and resistance to civil rights — Mississippi
- “Sweltering with the heat of ___” — two things: injustice and oppression (commonly used together)
- Then it becomes an “oasis of ___ and ___” — freedom and justice

✔ Fill in: Mississippi, injustice, oppression, freedom, justice

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Sentence 4:

> "I have a dream that my four little __________ will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their __________ but by the content of their __________."

- “My four little ___” — MLK had four daughters → children
- “Color of their ___” → skin
- “Content of their ___” → character (famous line!)

✔ Fill in: children, skin, character

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Sentence 5:

> "I have a dream that one day, down in __________, with its vicious __________, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of 'interposition' and 'nullification' -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join __________ with little white boys and white girls as __________ and __________."

- First blank: Alabama (specifically mentioned later)
- “With its vicious ___” → racists (people opposing civil rights)
- “Join ___ with little white boys…” → hands (hand-in-hand)
- “As ___ and ___” — referring to siblings, so brothers and sisters

✔ Fill in: Alabama, racists, hands, brothers, sisters

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Final Answer:

Now let’s plug in all the answers:

> « I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
> I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."
>
> I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
>
> I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
>
> I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
>
> I have a dream today!
>
> I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as brothers and sisters.
>
> I have a dream today! »

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Summary of Answers:

1. nation
2. men
3. equal
4. slaves
5. owners
6. sit down
7. table
8. Mississippi
9. injustice
10. oppression
11. freedom
12. justice
13. children
14. skin
15. character
16. Alabama
17. racists
18. hands
19. brothers
20. sisters

✔ All words from the list are used exactly once.

This completes the exercise!