Choose the correct answer. People told me over and over how much more _ they were of life, how they wanted to learn.

The sentence requires an adjective to describe how people felt about life. The phrase 'were of life' suggests a state of being or feeling. Among the options, 'appreciative' is the adjective that fits grammatically and contextually, meaning they felt grateful or valued life. The other options are a verb ('appreciate'), a past participle/adjective ('appreciated'), and a noun ('appreciation'), none of which fit the grammatical structure as well as 'appreciative'.

The correct answer is: appreciative