Read the excerpt from Early Victorian Tea Set. Desire for the drink increased in the eighteenth century, but government taxes kept the price high, so a vigorous smuggling trade developed to avoid the excise duty. The phrase " " acts as a synonym context clue to help the reader understand "excise duty."

"government taxes kept the price high".

Explanation:

The phrase "government taxes kept the price high" acts as a synonym that helps the readers to understand the term "excise duty". The price of commodity is determined by the percentage of tax levied upon it. The term "excise duty" is a tax levied by the government upon certain goods such as alcohol, energy, petrol, etc, so as to limit the consumption of these products.Goods that are levied excise duties usually have higher prices. Thus, the phrase "government taxes kept the price high" is synonymous to the term "excise duty" in the context.

By providing an emotional image (ive read this passage so lol)