let’s revise(class xth b) qq chapter - 6 : story writing let’s revise a story is one of the...

Section A : Reading Skills

Chapter - 1 : Unseen Passages

Let’s ReviseThe word ‘Comprehension’ means understanding. Reading comprehension is defined as the level of understanding of a text. This understanding comes from the interaction between the words that are written and how one applies one’s knowledge and imagination outside the text/message.

Steps to be followed :1. Read the passage thoroughly. Go through the passage once, without wasting too much time. Don’t be concerned

about the words or phrases you don’t understand at first look.2. Underline the words and sentences which you don’t understand.3. Read all the questions once.4. After reading the passage, mark the parts where you feel the answer has been mentioned.5. Write the answer in your own words clearly and precisely.

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Section B : Writing Sills

Chapter - 1 : Application Writing

Let’s ReviseAs the name suggests, applications are formal and official in nature and purpose. They are impersonal and written for a specific purpose. The language used should be polite and firm.

Tips to Knowl It should be in the correct format.l It should be short and to the point.l It should be relevant and well presented.l It should be free of any grammatical or spelling mistakes.l One should be polite, even if he is complaining.l Read the information given in the question carefully.l Write the body of the application as per the information given.l Write the address of the receiver correctly.l Write the subject of the application.l When you write an application to the principal, write the address of the school only.

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Chapter - 2 : Letter Writing

Let’s ReviseTypes of Letter : Letters are of two types :1. Formal Letter—includes letters of application, business letters, letters to Editors and official letters.2. Informal Letters—includes letters to friends, relatives and acquaintances.Elements of letters :In all kinds of letters there are six points to keep in mind—1. Heading (consisting of writer’s address and date)2. Salutation or greeting.3. Content or body of letter.

2 ] Oswaal CBSE Section-wise Notes & Summary, ENGLISH, Class-VII

4. Complimentary clause.5. Signature.6. Superscription of the envelope.

Tips to Knowl Read the information given in the question.l Write the body of the letter as per the information given.l Write the address of the Sender and the Receiver correctly.l Write the date and the subject of the application.l Keep the letter short and to the point.

1. Formal Letters Format of Letter St. Anthony’s Boys Academy,

Agra

12th April, 2017

To,

The Commissioner of Police (Traffic),

Police Lines,

Agra

Subject : To display of traffic police outside our school

Dear Sir, I wish to draw your attention to the problem of traffic jam which is a daily feature in front of our

school. Since, there are other schools in the vicinity, there is a traffic jam everyday in the morning and afternoon. School buses, vans, cars and auto rickshaws bringing the children to and from school get stuck for hours, thus causing great inconvenience to the general public. Kindly, deploy traffic police in front of the school so that there is a smooth flow of traffic and no over-crowding of vehicles at the school gate can take place. Kindly treat the matter as urgent and do the needful.

Thanking you, Yours Faithfully, K. Gopalan Principal

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Chapter - 3 : Paragraph Writing

Let’s ReviseA paragraph is a short composition. Several sentences are written on a particular topic, theme or idea.Characteristics of a Paragraph :(1) Central Idea, (2) Utility, (3) Logical, (4) Division, (5) Length

Tips to Know 1. Understand the topic.2. Provide suitable title.3. Write to the point and be precise.4. The tense and the person should remain same throughout the paragraph.5. Add relevant examples.6. Make it interesting.

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Sender’s address

Receiver’s name/rankand his/her address

Date

Objective of letter

Salutation

Main body of letter

Subscription

Name and Signature

Oswaal CBSE Section-wise Notes & Summary, ENGLISH, Class-VII [ 3

Chapter - 4 : Message Writing

Let’s Revise

A message can be defined as some information, news, advice, request etc. sent by the messenger to the recipient, who is not present in the scene or cannot be contacted directly.

A message is conveyed carrying all the relevant details in an appropriate style and format.

Tips to Know1. Sender’s or Receiver’s address is not included.

2. A brief salutation should be given.

3. Time and Date must be written.

4. The entire content is placed in a box.

5. No detail is to be included on your own.

6. It should not exceed fifty words.7. Message can be written in an informal or a formal note.

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Chapter - 5 : Notice Writing

LET’S REVISEA notice is used to convey information about forthcoming events, celebrations or to issue instructions.

Tips to KnowAn effective notice should have the following points :

• Nameoftheorganisation,institution.

• Dateofissuingthenotice.

• Arelevantheading.

• Detailsoftheschedule(time,venue,duration,etc.)

• Nameanddesignationofthepersonissuingthenotice.

Important points while writing a Notice :

• Anoticeshouldnotexceed50words.

• Anoticeshouldalwaysbewritteninabox.

• Onlyimportantandrelevantinformationshouldbeprovided.

• Presenttenseandfuturetimereferencesareused.

• Anotice iswritten in thirdperson, therefore,useof firstperson (I,We)andsecondperson (You)shouldbeavoided.


Format of Notice

K.D. School, Kota

Notice

May12,20xx

EDUCATIONAL TRIP

All the students of class VII and VIII are hereby informed that the school has decided to

organiseaneducationaltourtoJaipurandnearbyplacesfrom20th May to 25th May. The

charges are `5000.Interestedstudentsarerequestedtokindlygetthemoneydeposited

by 15th May in the office. The students are also supposed to get consent letter from their

parents along with a medical certificate.

Aditya Saxena

(ClassXthB)

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Chapter - 6 : Story Writing

Let’s Revise

A story is one of the oldest and famous form of written composition. It is a creative art that requires a lot of imagination, humour and usage of perfect language.

Tips to Know1. Every story should have a well woven outlined theme or plot.

2. An interesting and relevant title brings out curiosity among the readers.

3. A story is always set in a specific setting indicating time, place etc. clearly.

4. Charactersarethelifelineofanystory.Theyshouldbeinteresting.

5. A well planned story has a good beginning, interesting middle part and nice ending.

6. A good story shows a dilemma or conflict between two sides i.e. good and bad through its characters to serve its purpose.

7. A good story should be fascinating and well organized. The ideal events should be arranged sequentially with interesting twists and turns to maintain an element of surprise in the story.

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Chapter - 7 : Diary Entry

Let’s ReviseDiary writing is a form of composition that is extremely personal and therefore it is informal. A person writes or records his/her personal experiences, feelings, emotions, day to day happenings or any other events of life.

Tips to Know1. Language should be informal and personal.

2. Personalpronounsareused.

Name of the institution

Date

ContentofNotice

Name and Designation of the person issuing the notice.


3. Although there is no fixed time for writing it yet it can be written at night so that there is a mention of entire days happenings.

4. Always write truthfully. The diary will always listen to you, It will not judge you, it will never reveal your secrets. So, you can write without worrying whatever you want to.

5. Format of a diary entry is quite simple and flexible. Date, day and time are mentioned at the beginning. A diary canbegivenaname,whichispurelyoptional.LikeDearDiary/DearKittyetc.

6. At the end one signs off with one’s name or signature.

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Chapter - 8 : Dialogue Completion

Let’s ReviseA dialogue is a literary technique of writing which employs two or more characters engaged in a conversation with each other.

• Readtheconversationthoroughly.

• Pickouttheappropriateoptionwhichisgivenbelow.

• Setitaccordingtothesituation.

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Chapter - 9 : Speech Writing

Let’s RevisePurpose—To express views before the public.

Format—

(1)Salutationorgreetings.

(2) Disclosureoftopic

(3) Narrationoffacts,presentationofdata,relevantexamples,etc.

(4) Sensibledeviationfromthetopic.

(5) Drawconclusioninaninnovativeandimaginativeway.qq

Chapter - 10 : Article Writing

Let’s ReviseAn article is a written composition in which we discuss about a social issue,event, fact, description of a place or thing etc.

Sample Article :“Youdon’tapproveofthewaysinwhichpeoplewastewater”.Tospreadawarenessamongstudents,writeanarticleon ‘conserve water’ to be published in the school magazine.


Never forget to write the heading, which should be eye- catching

Give your idea or suggestive measures

Conserve WaterWater, water everywhereNot a single drop to drink.These lines are proving true as the scarcity of water is catching on around the world. This is the result of man’s undue harvesting of the natural resource.We need water not only for our personal needs, but also for agriculture and industries. When there is plenty of water, we tend to waste it by leaving the taps running. Our carelessness leads to a lot of waste.We have to conserve each and every drop of water which is being wasted today.Afforestation schemes need to be launched on a big scale. Eco-clubs should be established in all the schools of the country to spread awareness among the students about the need to save environment. Only then we can ensure a safe future for our coming generations, otherwise, the day is not far when we may witness another world-war not for land, but for water.

Beginning should be such so as to draw reader’s attention

Expose the topics by giving reasons, how water is wasted

Suggestion on how to save/ conserve water

Conclusion (either hope or warning)

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Chapter - 11 : E-Communication (Electronic Mail)

Let’s ReviseLetters are now being gradually replaced by emails. Emails are much faster and cheaper. And they go straight to the person who want to receive your message. The only requirement is that both you and the person should have computer and an internet or wi-fi connection.

Guidelines for writing an email :

1. There is no need to write postal address and date—only the email identity is given.

2. The main point of the message is given in the subject line.

3. We can start the email with Dear….. Hello or Hi , or just Sir/ Madam , or even without any such solution.

4. The message is kept short and to the point.

5. The massage is divided into paragraphs. Bullets may be used to highlight some points.

6. Formal endings like yours sincerely are to be avoided. We can end the e-mail by just writing our name.

7. Contractions and short forms are acceptable.

Format of an e-mailFrom

To

Date

Subject

Salutation

Content

(Name)

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Section C : Grammar

Chapter - 1 : Sentence

Let’s Revise A group of words which makes complete sense is called a sentence. If they are in a jumbled order then they become meaningless.Example :• A Mary has lamb little (not a sentence)• Mary has a little lamb. (Sentence)• Chased the cat rat the (not a sentence) • The cat chased the rat. (Sentence)Point to remember :• A sentence always begin with a capital letter.• The words in a sentence must be kept in their proper order.• A sentence usually ends with a full stop (.) or a mark of interrogation (?).Types of Sentences : Sentence can be written in different ways to convey different meanings. On the basis of the way a sentence is

written, there are four different kinds of sentences. They are : (1) Assertive Sentence (2) Interrogative Sentence (3) Imperative Sentence (4) Exclamatory SentenceAssertive Sentence An assertive sentence states a fact. Example : (i) My father works in Mumbai. (ii) She did not do well in the test.Interrogative Sentence An interrogative sentence is one that asks a question. It ends only with the question mark (?) Example : (i) Why are you so late ? (ii) Which is your house ?Imperative Sentence An imperative sentence is one that expresses a command, a request, advice or a suggestion. Example : (i) Do not tell a lie. (ii) Let us go for a walk.Exclamatory Sentence An exclamatory sentence is one that shows surprise, joy, sorrow or happiness. Example : (i) What a lovely flower it is ! (ii) Hurrah! we have won the match.

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Chapter - 2 : Noun

Let’s ReviseA noun is a word which tells the name of a person, place or thing. Noun have some kinds which are :• Proper Noun• Common Noun


• Collective Noun• Abstract Noun

• Material Noun.Proper Noun A proper noun is a noun which gives name to a particular place, person or a thing to differentiate it out from the

others of its class. Example : (i) Delhi is the capital of India. (ii) The Taj Mahal is made of white marble.Common Noun A common noun is a noun which names a person, place or a thing of whose kind there are many others. Example : (i) The cow is a very useful animal. (ii) The farmer is ploughing his field.Collective Noun A collective noun is a noun that names a group or a collection of persons, animals or things as a complete group

as a whole. Example : (i) Our class is going for a picnic. (ii) The army is on the march.Abstract Noun An abstract noun is a noun that names a feeling or a quality. Example : (i) There was a robbery in the bank. (ii) We must respect our teachers.Material Noun A material noun is a noun which names a substance or a material from which things are made. Example : (i) This chair is made of wood. (ii) Sugar is made from sugarcane juice.

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Chapter - 3 : Noun Number

Let’s Revise Number

A noun can be singular or plural.

A noun that denotes one person, place, or thing etc. is called a singular noun.

Example—bat, child, hand, etc.

A noun that denotes more than one person, place or things, etc. is called a plural noun.

Example—bats, children, hands, etc.

Formation of plurals

(a) By adding ‘s’ to the singular forms.

Singular Plural book books door doors house houses

(b) By adding ‘es’ to the singular forms of nouns ending in ch, s, sh, ss.

Singular Plural

watch watches

ass asses


bus buses

bush bushes quiz quizzes (c) Nouns ending in ‘y’ after a consonant, form their plurals by dropping ‘y’ and adding ‘ies’. Singular Plural army armies story stories country countries (d) Nouns ending in ‘y’ after a vowel form plurals by adding ‘s’ only. Singular Plural bay bays play plays joy joys (e) Nouns ending in ‘f’ or ‘ fe’ change into ‘ves’. Singular Plural leaf leaves wolf wolves loaf loaves wife wives knife knives Exceptions to this rule are words like roof, chief, belief, etc. whose plurals are formed by adding ‘s’. (f) Nouns ending in ‘o’ usually form a plural by adding ‘es’. Singular Plural tomato tomatoes potato potatoes mango mangoes (g) Some nouns become plural by the change of vowels or by adding ‘n’, ‘en’, ‘ren’. Singular Plural man men foot feet ox oxen child children (h) Some nouns have the same form in singular and plural : Singular Plural fish fish sheep sheep hair hair (i) For compound words : Singular Plural mother-in-law mothers-in-law houseman housemen brother-in-law brothers-in-law

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Chapter - 4 : The Noun : Gender

Let’s Revise There are four Genders in English :

1. The names of male animals or persons are said to be of the Masculine Gender;

eg. man, boy, lion, hero, king, father.

2. The names of female animals or persons are said to be of the Feminine Gender;

eg. woman, girl, lioness, heroine, queen, mother,


3. The name, of things which indicate either the masculine or the feminine are said to be of the Common Gender : eg., baby, child, cousin, servant, parent, friend, pupil, person, student, orphan, monarch, relation, teacher, deer, sheep, calf, neighbour.

4. The names of things that are neither male nor female (i.e., things without life) are said to be of the Neuter Gender : eg. book, table, chair, tree, pen, stone.

[Neuter means i.e., neither male nor female.]

Ways of Forming the Feminine of Nouns There are three ways of forming the Feminine of Nouns :

I. By a change of word

Masculine Feminine Masculine Feminine

Bachelor Maid, Spinster Hart Roe

Boar Sow Horse Mare

Boy Girl Husband Wife

Brother Sister King Queen

Buck Doe Lord Lady

Bull (or ox) Cow Man Woman

Bullock Heifer Monk (or friar) Nun

Cock Hen Nephew Niece

Colt Filly Papa Mamma

Dog Bitch Ram Ewe

Drake Duck Sir Madam

Drone Bee Son Daughter

Earl Countess Stag Hind

Father Mother Swain Nymph

Gander Goose Uncle Aunt

Gentleman Lady Wizard Witch

II. By Adding -ess to the Masculine1. The following Feminines are formed by simply adding -ess to the Masculine :


Author Authoress Mayor Mayoress

Baron Baroness Patron Patroness

Count Countess Peer Peeress

Giant Giantess Poet Poetess

Heir Heiress Priest Priestess

Host Hostess Prophet Prophetess

Jew Jewess Shepherd Shepheredess

Lion Lioness Steward Stewardess

Manager Manageress Viscount Viscountess

2. The following feminines are formed by adding -ess to the Masculine, after omitting the vowel of the last syllable of the Masculine :


Actor Actress Inspector Inspectress

Ambassador Ambassadress Instructor Instructress

Benefactor Benefactress Prince Princess

Conductor Conductress Songster Songstress

Emperor Empress Sorcerer Sorceress

Enchanter Enchantress Tempter Temptress


Founder Foundress Tiger Tigress

Governor Governess Traitor Traitress

Hunter Huntress Waiter Waitress

3. By adding -ess to the Masculine in a less regular way :


Abbot Abbess Master (boy) Miss (girl)

Duke Duchess Mr Mrs

God Goddess Marquis Marchioness

Lad Lass Schoolmaster Schoolmistress

III. By Placing a Word Before or After Masculine Feminine Masculine Feminine

Male-calf Female-calf Man-servant Maid-servant

Cock -sparrow Hen- sparrow Milkman Milkmaid

He- goat She-goat Merman Mermaid

Grandfather Grandmother Peacock Peahen

Greatuncle Greataunt Washerman Washerwoman

Landlord Landlady

Study the following Masculines and Feminines :


Administrator Administratrix Prosecutor Prosecutrix

Bridegroom Bride Signer Signora

Czar Czarina Sultan Sultana

Executor Executrix Testator Testatrix

Fox Vixen Viceroy Vicereine

Hero Heroine Widower Widow

Collective Nouns, even when they denote living beings, are considered to be of the Neuter Gender; as,

The jury has given its verdict.

The committee has changed its opinion.

Animals and young children may be either distinguished by their sex or regarded as of neither sex and spoken of in the Neuter Gender, When speaking of a very young child we may say—

The child knows his (or her) own mind.

Or

The child knows its own mind.

But it is ridiculous to say—

Look at John. How merrily it is playing!

We must say—

Look at John. How merrily he is playing!

Gender of Personified Objects : Sometimes objects without life are spoken of as if they were persons. They are then regarded as males or females.

1. Things remarkable for strength, firmness, or energy are regarded as males;

eg. Sun, Time, Death, Winter, Summer, Thunder, Ocean.

Then the sun shot his bright rays.

Death always knows his victim.

2. Things remarkable for beauty, gracefulness, gentleness are regarded as females; eg. Moon, Earth, Nature, Spring. Hope, Virtue, Charity, Mercy, Faith, Peace.

The moon shed her light on the bank.


Spring has her own charms and delights.

Love Virtue; she alone is free.

Peace hath her victories no less renowned than war.

NOTE : A ship is always spoken of as she; as,

The ship fought her way through the stormy waves.qq

Chapter - 5 : Pronoun

Let’s ReviseA. Defining a Pronoun

Ø A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun.

Monica is a brilliant girl. She is the favourite of all the teachers. All of them admire her.

Here, the words she and her stand for the noun Monica. The word them stands for teachers. So she, her and them are pronouns.

Ø The noun which a pronoun stands for is called its antecedent.

In the example given above, the noun Monica is the antecedent of the pronouns she and her. The noun teachers is the antecedent of the pronoun them.

B. Kinds of Pronouns

The following diagram shows the various kinds of pronouns:

PRONOUN

Personal Interrogative Emphasising Distributive Relative

Demonstrative Reflexive Possessive Indefinite

Ø Personal pronouns Pronouns that stand for persons or things (In the example above, she, her and them are personal pronouns.)

Ø Demonstrative pronouns Pronouns used to point out the object or objects they refer to

This is a large house. Those are beautiful flowers.

Ø Interrogative pronouns Pronouns used to ask questions

Who brought these flowers? What do you need?

Ø Reflexive pronouns Pronouns like myself, yourself; when used as the receiver of an action

I hurt myself. They blamed themselves.

Ø Emphasising pronouns Pronouns used to convey emphasis

You yourself chose these shoes. She herself called me.

Ø Possessive pronouns Pronouns that show possession

These gloves are mine. That suit is yours.

Ø Distributive pronouns Pronouns that refer to persons or things one at a time.

Each of these men Either of the two bags

Ø Indefinite pronouns Pronouns that stand for some noun understood or implied

All were satisfied. Many were invited but a few came.

The words none, all, some, several both, many, few, each, either, neither, anyone, everyone, someone, everybody, nobody, are usually used as indefinite pronouns.

Ø Relative pronouns Pronouns that relate a noun to a group of words that follow

We admire the man who does his duty sincerely.

The medicine which the doctor had suggested proved effective.


C. Personal Pronouns

There are three persons: first person, second person and third person. The first person is the person speaking; the second person is the, person spoken to; and the third person is the person (or thing) spoken about. The various forms of personal pronouns are:

Person Used as a sub.

Used asan obj.

Possessive form

Reflexive or Emphasising form

Remarks

I (sing.) I me mine myself used for both

(plu.) we us ours ourselves mas. and fem.

II (sing.) you you yours yourself used for both

(plu.) you you yours yourselves mas. and fem.

III (sing.) he him his himself masculine

(sing.) she her hers herself feminine

(sing.) it It Its itself neuter

(Plu.) they them theirs themselves all gendersD. Interrogative Pronouns Who, whom, whose, which and what are interrogative pronouns. Ø used for people who, whom, whose, which Ø used for things what, which Who has made this painting? Whom did you want to meet? Whose is this pair of gloves? What do you want? Ø Whom, being very formal, is now rarely used. Who is the preferred pronoun even where whom is grammatically

correct : Who did you want to meet ?E. Reflexive and Emphasising Pronouns Both reflexive and emphasising pronouns have the same form: myself ourselves yourself yourselves himself herself itself themselves Ø Reflexive pronouns are used as the receiver of an action : How did you hurt yourself? She blamed herself for her problems. Ø Emphasising pronouns are used to convey emphasis : I myself locked the door. He himself signed the letter.F. Indefinite Pronouns Ø Indefinite pronouns do not stand for any specific person or thing. Ø Indefinite pronouns may be of two kinds : of pronouns some (of the books), both (of the children) much (of the work), none (of my neighbours) compound pronouns everyone everybody somebody anybody nothing something no one someone Ø all the books all is an adjective all of the books all is a pronoun Ø Singular somebody, something, anybody, nobody, nothing, anyone, etc. Ø Plural both, few, many, several

Ø Singular or Plural all, most, none, any, some


G. Relative Pronouns Who (whose, whom), which and that are the words most frequently used as relative pronouns. As is also sometimes

used as a relative pronoun. Ø As a rule, who (whose, whom) is used for persons only. It has the same form whether it refers to a singular or a plural noun or a noun of masculine, feminine or

common gender: The farmer who had no work immediately started ploughing the field. (singular) Two shopkeepers who had offered attractive discounts did brisk business. (plural) The Principal called the parents of those children whose result was poor. (common gender) The girl narrated her story to an old lady whom she met on the way. (feminine gender) The use of whom needs a bit of care. Look at these two examples: People who do not love others ........ (the relative pronoun as subject, hence who) People whom others do not love ....... (the relative pronoun as object, hence whom) Sometimes whose may also be used for things without life: The car whose headlights were on ......... Actually this sentence should have been written as: The car the headlights of which were on ......... But the first sentence looks more elegant. Ø Which is used for things without life and for animals : The house which had been lying vacant for a long time has been sold off. The tiger which had turned a man-eater could not be located. Ø That is used for both persons and things : This is the man that I have been speaking of. (person) I have lost the watch that my father presented me on my last birthday. (thing) More on the use of that Ø We use that after adjectives in the superlative degree: Kapil is the best fast bowler that we have produced. Even the most foolish person that ever lived could teach us something. Ø We use that after the words ‘all’, ‘some’, ‘any’, ‘none’, ‘nothing’, ‘(the) ‘only’ : All that glitters is not gold. Nothing that I did pleased my father. Ø Suppose in a sentence we have two nouns, one denoting a person and the other a thing. Which relative

pronoun shall we use ? We would naturally prefer to use that : Both the car and its driver that now appeared looked shabby. (thing) (person) Ø What refers to things only. Its antecedent is not expressed. It actually means that which or the thing which : What cannot be cured must be endured. (= that which) We have found what we have been looking for. (= the thing which) Ø The word as is also sometimes used as a relative pronoun. It is used after the word such and sometimes after the

word some : He is such a leader as the country needs today, His problem is the same as yours. Using relative pronouns Ø who ... for persons which ... for non-living things and animals that ... for both persons and things Ø that ... after adjectives in the superlative degree ... after words like all, some, any, none, nothing Ø what ... that which; what has no antecedent Ø such and same ... followed by as


H. Omission of the Relative Pronouns We can often leave out the relative pronoun when it is in the objective case : This is the pen with which I wrote the letter. This is the pen I wrote the letter with. (Which is omitted and the position of the preposition with is changed.) The man about whom you are enquiring is a friend of mine. The man you are enquiring about is a friend of mine. (Whom is omitted and the position of the preposition about is changed.) Where have you parked the car by which you came? Where have you parked the car you came by ? (Which is omitted and the position of the preposition by is changed.)I. Position of the Relative Pronouns_ The relative pronoun should be placed as near as possible to the noun or the pronoun it refers to; otherwise

sometimes the sentences we write might look absurd. Look at this sentence: Vijay was called by the Principal, who had cheated in the examination. In this sentence, the relative pronoun who refers to Vijay, so it should have been placed quite close to the word Vijay.

We should have written this sentence like this: Vijay, who had cheated in the examination, was called by the Principal. Take another example: The manager warned the lazy clerk, who was very strict. This sentence also does not make sense. We should have written: The manager, who was very strict, warned the lazy clerk.J. A Joining Sentence with Relative Pronouns We can use relative pronouns to join sentences. Look at these examples: 1. I have found the purse. I had lost it. I have found the purse which I had lost. 2. An old lady looked after the child. I know the lady. An old lady whom I know looked after the child, or I know the old lady who looked after the child.

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Chapter - 6 : Question Tags

Let’s ReviseQuestion Tags

The teacher was talking to the class about Anshu, who had made a beautiful painting. The teacher said,

“She has made a beautiful painting, hasn’t she?

And almost everybody said, “Yes, Ma’am, she has.”

When the teacher announced a prize for Anshu, Sneha said, “We are proud of her, aren’t we?”

“You haven’t learnt painting in any school, have you?’ the teacher asked Anshu.

Anshu said, “No, Ma’am, I haven’t.”

Now look at these three sentences:

1. She has made a beautiful painting, hasn’t she?

2. We are proud of her. aren’t we?

3. You haven’t learnt painting in any school, have you?

Each of these sentences has two parts: a statement (She has made a beautiful painting) and a short question (hasn’t she?). This short question has been tagged on to the statement, so it is called a question tag.

Why do we use question tags ? In response to the question tag—hasn’t she?—the children said, “Yes Ma’am, she has.” It means that the children had confirmed what the teacher said.


Similarly, when the teacher says, “You haven’t learnt painting in any school, have you?” Anshu confirms that she hasn’t.

Ø A question tag is a short question placed at the end of a statement, usually in informal English.

Ø A question tag is used to get a statement confirmed.

How to Form Question Tags – 1

She has made a beautiful painting, hasn’t she?

Ø The question tag consists of only two words: hasn’t she ? It has the same subject as the statement (she). We can use a pronoun of the same person as the subject.

Ø If the main sentence has an auxiliary verb, the auxiliary verb is repeated in the question tag:

She has made a beautiful painting, hasn’t she?

If the main sentence does not have any auxiliary verb, we use do/does/did in the question tag:

She won the first prize, didn’t she? (no auxiliary verb in the main sentence)

Ø The tense remains the same.

Ø If the statement is positive, the question tag is negative. If the statement is negative, the question tag is positive:

We are proud of her, aren’t we ?

(pos. statement) (neg. ques. tag)

You haven’t learnt painting in any school, have you?

(neg. statement) (pos. ques. tag)

Ø In negative question tags, we usually use short forms of the negatives haven’t, aren’t.

Let us take some more examples.

A. 1. Madhu is proud, isn’t she?

2. You will give me your notes, won’t you?

3. He learnt painting in France, didn’t he?

4. Mukul drives smoothly, doesn’t he?

B. 1. They cannot come so early, can they?

2. It is not fair to leave him behind, is it?

3. She does not tell lies, does she?

4. I don’t owe you any money, do I?

Important We must not write such a sentence as:

Madhu is proud, isn’t it? X Write : isn’t she? ü

You will help me, isn’t it? X Write : won’t you ü

How to Form Question Tags-2

1. I am

The question tag for I am is aren’t I ?

I am right, aren’t I ?

2. Imperatives (a) After positive commands, will you ? and won’t you ? can both be used: Please come in, won’t you? Post this letter on your way to the post office, will you? (b) After negative commands, we use will you?: Don’t forget to wake me up, will you?

3. Let us

After let us, we use shall we? :

Let us sit in the sun, shall we?

Let us wait for the rain to stop, shall we?


Question tags

Ø Positive statement ... negative question tag

Negative statement ... positive question tag

Ø No change of tense

Ø Auxiliary in a statement ... auxiliary repeated in the tag

No auxiliary ... do/does/did in the tag

Ø I am ... the tag is: aren’t I

Ø Positive commands ... the tag is; will you/won’t you

Negative commands ... the Tag is; will you

Ø Let us ... the tag is: shall weqq

Chapter - 7 : Verbs and Tenses

Let’s Revise• A verb is a word that denotes an action or predicts a fact.

Examples :

Fish swim in water. (action)

Mumbai is a port city. (fact)

Verbs can be principal or auxiliary.Principal verbs denote an action whereas auxiliary verbs help the main verbs.

Kinds of Principal verb :

(i) Transitive Verbs are those Verbs which represent an action that does not stop with the verb but passes to some noun or pronoun.

Example : Sachin hit the ball.

(ii) Intransitive verbs are those Verbs which represents an action that stops with the subject and does not pass further on.

Example : The baby is sleeping.

Form of Principal verbs :

Present Past Participle Climb Climbed Climbed Like Liked Liked Love Loved Loved Walk Walked Walked Bear Bore Born Blow Blew Blown Give Gave Given Get Got Got Awake Awoke Awoke Run Ran Run Split Spilt Spilt Bring Brought Brought Bleed Bled Bled Cost Cost Cost Read Read Read Spread Spread Spread


Tense The Tense denote the time of an action and extent of its completeness. There are basically three tenses with each having four sub categories.

Present Past Future Simple I play I played I will play Continuous I am playing I was playing I will be playing Perfect I have played I had played I will have played Perfect continuous I have been playing I had been playing for I will have been for

One hour an hour playing for a hour1. Simple Present Tense

(a) To express fact or truth.

e.g., The Earth revolves around the sun.

(b) To express habits & routines.

e.g., I go to school at seven everyday.

(c) To express something which has a pre-fixed time.

e.g., The next train from Delhi arrives at 10:00 am.

2. Present Continuous

(a) To express an action taking place in the present moment.

e.g., I am studying just now.

(b) To express a temporary action which may not be happening at the time of speaking.

e.g., These days he is reading Harry Potter.

3. Present Perfect Tense (a) An action got over just now. e.g., I have just eaten lunch. (b) An action happened in the past but effect more in the present. e.g., I have eaten all the biscuits (i.e., there is nothing left for you now)4. Present Perfect Continuous Tense (a) An action started in the past and still going on. e.g., I have been studying since morning.5. Simple Past Tense (a) To express something which had finished before the time of speaking. e.g., We went to the market yesterday. (b) To express some past habits. e.g., My grandmother often skipped dinner.6. Past Continuous Tense (a) To express an action in progress at some point of time before the time of speaking. e.g., He was watching a match yesterday evening.7. Past Perfect (a) To express an action completed before a given time in the past. e.g., The news came after he had reached office.8. Past Perfect Continuous Tense (a) To express an action which began before a definite moment in the past and had continued upto that moment

to which the speaker is refusing to. e.g., He had been practicing for two hours when his friend reached his house.

9. Simple Future Tense

(a) To express an action which will take place in the future.

e.g., The school will remain closed tomorrow and day after.

10. Future Continuous Tense

(a) To express an action which will be in progress at a given moment in the future.

e.g., Next week we will be completing the paint of this house.


11. Future Perfect

(a) To express an action to have completed before a given moment in the future.

e.g., By the end of this month, I will have completed your course.

12. Future Perfect Continuous

(a) To express an action that will begin before a fixed moment in the future and will continue upto that moment and will continue upto a point of time in future as well.

e.g., By the end of this month, you will have been working here for five months.

qq

Chapter - 8 : Agreement of the Verb with the Subject

Let’s ReviseRule 1. When two singular nouns refer to the same person or thing and have only one article or other qualifying word

preceding them, the verb is singular. Examples— (i) The poet and scholar is dead. (ii) My secretary and typist has just resigned. (iii) Rabindranath Tagore, a great poet and novelist, was a versatile genius.Rule 2. When two singular nouns are practically synonymous (having the same idea), the verb is singular. Examples— (i) His power and influence is beyond imagination. (ii) Courtesy and gentlemanliness is the basis of a civilized society.Rule 3. When two singular nouns, though not synonymous, express a single idea, the verb is singuiar. Examples— (i) Bread and butter is their staple food. (ii) Slow and steady wins the race. (iii) The ebb and flow of the tides is over. Rule 4. When the same singular noun is qualified by two contrasted adjectives so that two separate persons or things

are thereby denoted, the verb is plural. Example— (I) Mental and physical strength are required to face the challenges of life.Rule 5. When a collective noun is used as a common noun, showing division, the verb is plural. Examples— (i) The Ministry are divided in their opinion. (ii) A number of beautiful toys were displayed. (iii) The crew of the aircraft were hijacked. (iv) The majority of the members have resigned.Rule 6. When a collective noun acts as one unit, the verb is singular. Examples— (i) The crowd moves forward. (ii) The audience was restless. (iii) A series of lectures has been delivered. (iv) The committee has issued its report.Rule 7. When the plural noun is a proper name for some collective unit, the verb is singular. Examples— (i) The United Nations has its headquarters in the U.S.A. (ii) The Andamans is a group of islands. (iii) The Arabian Nights is an interesting book.

Rule 8. When a plural noun denotes a period of time, an amount, a quantity considered as a whole, the verb is singular.


Examples— (i) Ten rupees is not a large sum. (ii) Three-quarters of the earth is water. (iii) Six miles is a long distance.Rule 9. When the nouns are singular in meaning through plural in form, the verb is singular. Examples— (i) The news is very encouraging, (ii) Mathematics is a tough subject. (iii) Billiards is an expensive game. (iv) Measles is a dangerous disease.Rule 10. A singular or plural verb is used with such nouns as ‘pains’, ‘means’ according to the sense in which they are

used. Examples— (i) Great pains have been taken. (ii) All possible means have been tried. (iii) The means you have adopted is sufficient.Rule 11. Two nouns connected by ‘and not’, ‘as well as’, ‘with’, ‘together with’, ‘besides’, ‘in addition to’, ‘like’ are

followed by a verb in the singular when the former of the two nouns is in the singular. Examples— (i) The house with all its furniture and fittings is for sale.

(ii) The gold as well as silver is loved by we Indians.

(iii) Runa like Anuradha is a good singer.

(iv) Milk besides butter is supplied by the dairy.

(v) Sheela and not her mother was present.

Rule 12. A plural verb is preferred with those nouns which are plural in meaning, though singular in form, such as ‘number’, ‘plenty’, variety’, ‘rest’, ‘enemy’, ‘pair ’, ‘dozen’.

Examples—

(i) Plenty of men are cowards.

(ii) The enemy within are very dangerous.

(iii) A variety of dances were performed.

(iv) Two dozen bananas are bought.

Note : The correctness of placing plural verb after such nouns as ‘number’, ‘plenty’ and ‘variety’ depends entirely on the context. Unless these are used in a distributive sense, the verb must be singular.

Examples—

(i) Plenty of milk is supplied to the orphanage.

(ii) There is a number of complaints against her.

Rule 13. When two nouns or pronouns are joined by ‘not only... but also’ the verb agrees with the second noun or pronoun.

Examples—

(i) Not only the officer but also the soldiers are enjoying.

(ii) Not only the soldiers but also the officer was enjoying.

Rule 14. Two or more singular nouns or pronouns connected by ‘either... or’, ‘neither ...nor’ require a singular verb.

Examples—

(i) Either Ravi or Rohan has broken the vase.

(ii) Neither she nor I was in Delhi.

(iii) Either I or you are in the wrong.

(iv) Neither praise nor blame affects him.

Rule 15. ‘Either’ and ‘neither’ must be followed by singular verbs. Example—

(i) Tell me if either of the applicants is suitable.


Rule 16. When nouns joined by ‘or’, ‘nor’ are of different numbers, the verb must be plural and must follow the plural noun.

Examples— (i) Rajesh or his friends have done this. (ii) Either the student or his parents have been careless. (iii) Neither the Principal nor the teachers were present.Rule 17. Any noun qualified by ‘each’ and ‘every’ must be followed by a singular verb. Examples— (i) Every one of the students carries a badge. (ii) Each one of these mangoes is rotten. (iii) Every man and woman has the right to vote (iv) Each boy and each girl was given a card.Rule 18. A verb should agree with the subject and not with the complement. Examples— (i) Our only guide in the dark night was the stars. (ii) The stars were our only guide.Rule 19. When the subject of the verb is a relative pronoun the verb agrees in number and person with the antecedent

of the relative pronoun. Examples— (i) You, who are my friend, should stand by me in crisis. (ii) I, who am your friend, will always help you. (iii) He, who was my best friend, let me down.Rule 20. The following words take verbs in the plural :— both, few, a few, many, several Examples— (i) Both the brothers are absent, (ii) Few of the students know English, (iii) Many of us have been called for the interview. (iv) Several of the rioters have been arrested.

qq

Chapter - 9 : The Adverb

Let’s ReviseKinds of Adverbs :There are six kinds of Adverb : 1. Adverb of Manner. 2. Adverb of Place. 3. Adverb of Time. 4. Adverb of Number. 5. Adverb of Degree. 6. Interrogative Adverb.1. Adverb of Manner—tells how or in what manner an action is done or performed. Example : 1. Mother walks slowly. 2. They talk loudly. 3. The man left his native place permanently. Adverb of Manner answers the question— ‘how ?’2. Adverb of Place—tells where or at what place an action is done. Example : 1. We play outside. 2. He went there. 3. They stayed inside during the rains. Adverb of Place answers the question— ‘where ?’3. Adverb of Time—tells when or at what time an action is done. Example : 1. I will do this work today. 2. We will go to Chennai tomorrow. 3. The guests arrived late.


Adverb of Time answer the question— ‘when ?’4. Adverb of Number—tells how often an action is done. Example : 1. I never tell a lie. 2. We have visited the Taj twice. 3. They frequently come to our home. Adverb of Number answer the question— ‘how often ?’5. Adverb of Degree—tells how much or to what extent a thing is done. Example : 1. He is totally confused. 2. I am very happy. 3. What you said is partly true. Adverb of Degree answers the question— ‘how much ?’6. Interrogative Adverb—is used to ask questions. Example : 1. Why are you so sad ? 2. How do you feel today ? 3. When did the peon ring the bell ??

qq

Chapter - 10 : Prepositions

Let’s ReviseA Preposition is a word placed before a noun or a pronoun to show its relation to some other word, to indicate

place, position and time.Examples—He is ruined for life.Prepositions sometimes follow the words they govern, particularly, the relative pronoun that is never governed by

a preposition preceding it.Examples—(i) This book I cannot part with.(ii) Where do you come from?(iii) He is the man that I spoke of.Meanings and uses of certain prepositions:

1. About :(a) Concerning—I knew nothing about athletics.(b) Around—She wrapped the wool about her finger.(c) Close to, nearby—It is about 7 o’clock. She is about to die.

2. Against :(a) Opposed to—The students complained against the teacher.(b) Close to—Put the almirah against the wall.(c) Provision for—Health insurance can provide against the loss of income.

3. After :(a) Behind in place or time—He came after me. He came after the appointed time.(b) In search or pursuit of—They ran after the thief. He hankers after riches.(c) In imitation of, in accordance with—He is a man after my liking.(d) He is named after his grandfather.(e) Notwithstanding—After all, he is a clever boy.

4. At :(a) Place—He lives at Bogra.(b) Time—He came at 6 o’clock.(c) Value—The house is priced at Rs. 5,00,000.(d) Degree—The train runs at a high speed.


(e) Occupation—He is at work.(f) Direction—The dog ran at me.(g) Consequence—You will do it at your risk.

5. Before :(a) In front of—Vijay stood before me.(b) Priority of time—He will come before this.(c) Priority of choice—I wish for death before dishonour.

6. Behind :(a) At the back of—He sat behind me.(b) Lateness in time or place—You are behind time, You are behind the class.

7. Beside :(a) By the side of—He stood beside me.(b) Out of—He is beside himself with joy.

8. By :(a) Nearness in place or time—Sit by me. He will come by noon.(b) Agency—The work was done by me.(c) According to—It is ten o’clock by my watch.(d) Manner—I caught him by the leg. Pay me by installments.(e) Measure—Cloth is sold by the metre. He is taller by four inches.(f) Appeal—I swear by God.

9. For :(a) in the place of—He acted for my father.(b) in exchange for—I bought it for fifty rupees.(c) In favour of, on behalf of—I shall vote for you. I speak for my class.(d) On account of—He did it for me. I am sorry for you.(e) For the purpose of—She is not fit for the job. He gasped for breath.(f) In point of—He is intelligent for his age He is brave for a boy.(g) In the direction of—He left for Delhi.(h) In spite of— For all his wealth, he is unhappy.(i) During—I have known Rahul for three years.(j) To the extent of—He can be trusted for the job.

10. From :(a) Starting-point, origin, cause—He comes from home. He acted from a wicked motive. He died from the injury.(b) Separation, distinction—I do not know him from his brother.

11. In :(a) Place—He lives in Kolkata.(b) Time—He will come in an hour.(c) State—He is in danger. He died in poverty.(d) Point of reference—He is firm in his opinions.

12. Of :(a) Proceeding from, origin, cause—He comes of a noble family. He died of fever.(b) Possession—This is the house of Charles.(c) Material—This is a chain of gold.(d) Apposition—He lives in the city of Chennai.(e) About—I do not know anything of it.(f) Separation—He is devoid of intelligence.

13. On, Upon :(a) Contact—Kolkata stands on the Hooghly river Sit on the bench.(b) Time—Come on Monday. He was born on that day.


(c) Dependence, in accordance with—He acted upon my advice.(d) Just after, in consequence of—On hearing this, they all fled.(e) Because of—He congratulated me on my success.(f) Concerning—He has written a book on politics.

14. Over :(a) Above—The sun looks over the earth.(b) More than—He is over fifty years old.(c) On the other side of—He lives over the road.

15. Since and For are Prepositions of time. For indicates a period of time in the past, since indicates a specific point of time in the past to the present and is

preceded by a verb in some perfect tense:(i) We lived in Delhi for ten long years.(ii) We have been living in Delhi since 1996.(iii) The city has been under curfew since the riots started.(iv) The country has been under military rule for sixteen years.

16. Through :(a) Passing from one end of an opening or a passage to the other : He passed through the wood.(b) From the beginning to the end of an activity or situation : He is too old to sit through a long concert.

17. To :(a) Direction towards—He has gone to Chennai.(b) Adaptation—He is a boy to my mind. It does not stand to reason.(c) Comparison—As three is to nine, so is four to twelve.(d) Purpose—I went to see him.(e) Result—Water has turned to ice. He was crushed to death. I learnt to my surprise that he had gone away.

18. Under :(a) Less than—The price is under ten rupees.(b) In subordination to—The volunteers are under me. The case is under trial.(c) Below—He stood under the tree.(d) Represented by—He travelled under a disguise.

19. With :(a) Accompanied by—I went there with my father.(b) Point of reference—He is popular with the people. He found fault with me.(c) Instrument—He did it with his own hand.(d) In spite of— With all his faults, I respect him.

Distinction between :(a) By and With : By is put before the agent; as—The lady was attacked by a thief. With is put before an instrument with which anything is done, as—Do not rub with this eraser.

(b) In and After : In is used in the sense of after the lapse of a period of time; as—I shall come back in an hour (after the lapse of an hour).

After is used with a period of past time; as—I returned after an hour.(c) In and Into: In denotes presence or existence within; as—I was in the house.

Into denotes motion inward and change of condition; as—She went into the house. Translate the passage into English.

(d) Between and Among : Between is used with reference to two persons or things; as—Divide the sweets between Rama and Shyama. Among is used with reference to more than two; as—The old lady distributed rice among the beggars.

(e) Since and From : Since denotes a point of time with reference to past time and can never be used for present or future time; as—I have been suffering from fever since Monday last.

From is used with reference to past, present and future time; as—She was absent from Monday to Saturday. I shall go to school from tomorrow.

(f) In and At : In is used with reference to a large place, extensive operations, indefinite space or time; as—My mother lives in England. I was born in 1948.


At is used when speaking of small towns and villages and exact time; as—He lives at Alopibagh in Allahabad. She returned at 3 p.m.

(g) For and Since : For is used before a Noun denoting a period of time; as—We have not seen him for five days. Since is used before a Noun denoting a point of time; as—I have been suffering from toothache since Tuesday

last

qq

Chapter - 11 : Adjectives Degree of Comparison

Let’s ReviseAn adjective is a word that adds to the meaning of a noun or a pronoun.

Example :

(i) Ravi is a fast bowler. (Adjective)

(ii) Sheela is very Beautiful. (Adjective)

Adjectives are of many kinds :

Delhi is an old city. (Adjective of Quality)

There is no milk in the jug. (Adjective of Quality)

There are three boys in the class. (Adjective of Quality)

This book is mine. (Demonstrative Adjective)

Where are your books ? (Possessive Adjective)

Which is your house ? (Interrogative Adjective)

We go an a holiday every year. (Distributive Adjective)

Adjectives have the following Degrees of comparison :

Ramesh is a tall boy. (Positive Degree as it tells only the quality of one person)

Ramesh is taller than Ravi. (Comparative Degree as it compares between two Nouns)

Ramesh is the tallest boy in the class. (Superlative Adjective as it shows one

noun to have the quality ‘the most’.)

Formation of Degree

(a) Usually adjective form the comparative degree by adding ‘er’ or ‘r ’ and superlative degree by adding ‘est’ or ‘st’. Positive Comparative Superlative Tall Taller Tallest Sweet Sweeter Sweetest High Higher Highest Safe Safer Safest White Whiter Whitest (b) Some adjectives form their degrees by repeating the last consonant and adding ‘er ’ and ‘est’. Positive Comparative Superlative Thin Thinner Thinnest Red Redder Reddest (c) Adjectives ending in ‘y’ form their degree of comparison by changing ‘y’ into ‘i’ and adding ‘er’ and ‘est’. Positive Comparative Superlative Busy Busier Busiest Happy Happier Happiest (d) Some adjectives form their comparative and superlative degrees by adding more and most. Positive Comparative Superlative Beautiful More beautiful Most beautiful Intelligent More intelligent Most intelligent


(e) Some words have different words. Positive Comparative Superlative Good Better Best Bad Worse Worst

qq

Chapter - 12 : Articles

Let’s ReviseA, An (Indefinite Articles) ‘A’ is used before consonant sounds and ‘an’ before vowel sounds. Example : A man, a teacher, an MBBS, a doctor, a European city, an X-Ray, an umbrella. Uses : 1. To give them the meaning of one. Give me a red pen. 2. When something is not particular or specific. Please get me a cake from the bakery.The (Definite Article) Uses : 1. To make something specific. e.g., The books which I gave you were from this shop. 2. With superlative adjectives. e.g., The brightest star in the sky. 3. With the name of : (a) Rivers The Ganga (b) Seas and oceans The Red Sea, The Indian Ocean (c) Mountain ranges The Himalayas (d) Holy books The Gita (e) Monuments The Taj Mahal (d) With names of countries with the The U.S.A., the U.K. word ‘united’ or ‘republic’

qq

Chapter - 13 : Modal Auxiliaries

Let’s ReviseAuxiliary verb is a word that helps the main verb of a sentence to form its tense, mood or voice.

Kind of modals

1. May/Might (a) To express permission. ( May I take your book) (b) To express possibility. ( It may rain today) (c) To express a wish. (May God bless you)2. Can/Could (a) To express ability. (I can lift this box.) (b) Could is used to make a request instead of would. (Could you help me with this question.)3. Must (a) To express obligation. ( You must bathe daily.) (b) To express a strong belief. (We must top the charts) (c) To express a strong moral duty. (We must respect elders.)


4. Need To express a necessity in interrogative and negative sentences. (We need not go there.)5. Ought Ought is used to express moral obligations. (We ought to study daily.)6. Shall/Should (a) With second and third person to express compulsion and determination. (You shall respect your elders.) (b) To express a condition. (Should you go out in the rain, you would be wet.)7. Will/Would (a) For asking a favour. (Will you lend me your notes.) (b) To express a wish. ( Would you have something to eat.) (c) To express a habit. (As a teacher, Moni would be very strict with her students.) (d) To show determination. (I will not cheat.) (e) To express a condition. (Had he come early he would not have missed the train.)8. Have/Had (a) To get a job done. (She had her house painted.) (b) To express an obligation. (I have to teach him daily.)

qq

Chapter - 14 : Linking Word or Conjuction

Let’s ReviseLinking words or conjunction means joining together. Therefore, a conjunction is a word that joins words, phrases, clauses or sentences together

Kinds of conjunctions (a) Coordinate conjunction or of the same word i.e., of equal rank. Examples : (For, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) Two and two makes four. He is poor yet honest. You as well as he are guilty. (b) Sub-ordinate conjunction or of different orders i.e., of unequal ranks. Examples : (because, since, as, though, when, whereas) He shall come if I write to him. I must help him as he is my friend. She is prettier than her sister.

qq

Chapter - 15 : Punchuation and Capital Letters

Let’s RevisePunctuation divides one sentence from another sentence or one part of a sentence from another by means of points,

stops or marks.

A. Marks of PunctuationThe principal stops or marks of punctuation

1. Full stop ( . ) 2. Comma ( , ) 3. Semi colon ( ; ) 4. Colon ( : ) 5. Dash ( — ) 6. Hyphen ( - ) 7. Question Mark ( ? ) 8. Exclamation Mark ( ! ) 9. Apostrophe ( ‘ ) 10. Brackets ( ) 11. Inverted Commas ( “ ” )


1. The Full Stop indicates the close of a complete sentence. lt is used : (i) To mark the end of an Assertive or Imperative sentence; as, Courage is a great quality. Help the poor. (ii) After initials and abbreviations; as, C.K. Chacko, M.A., M.P., M.L.A., B.A., B.T.2. The Comma represents Ihe shortest pause. It is used : (i) To mark off words in apposition ; as Swami Dayanand Saraswati, the founder of Arya Samaj, was a great Vedic scholar. (ii) After the Nominative of Address ; as Friends, Roman, countrymen, lend me your ears. (iii) To separate two or more parts of speech that come together ; as He is wise, prudent, intelligent and tactful. Wheat, rice, sugarcane, tea and cotton are grown in India. (iv) After an Absolute construction ; as The sun having set, we all returned home. (v) To separate each pair of words of the some class or kind ; as By night or by day, at home or abroad, he is a constant source of anxiety to his father. (vi) After an Adverb phrase in the beginning of a sentence ; as In fact, Dr. Tagore was a great scholar. At last, he came round to my views. (vii) To separate words or phrases or clauses ; as He could not, however, succeed in the test. His behaviour, to say the least, was intolerable. (viii) To mark off the qualifying phrase; as Kashmir, the Switzerland ot India, is very beautiful. (ix) Before and after infinitives; as I am, to tell you the truth, thoroughly sick of work. (x) To mark off a direct quotation from the rest of the sentence ; as The priest said, “God is great.” (xi) To avoid the repetition of a verb ; as Leela is a dancer; Sheela, a singer. Mohan is a doctor; Sohan, an engineer. (xii) To separate an Adverb clause from the Principal clause ; as If you work hard, you will succeed. When the cat is away, the mice play. (xiii) To separate certain words from the rest of the sentence; as Yes, I did it. No, I am not rich. Here is your pen, please. I am quite well, thank you. Well, I shall have coffee. (xiv) To separate date from the year ; as July 23, 1997.3. The Semi colon indicates a greater pause than a comma. It is used: (i) To separate larger clauses from one another ; as He has left the village for good; for he wanted to go abroad to make a fortune. (ii) To give a greater emphasis to different clauses ; as As Caesar loved me, I weep for him; As he was fortunate, I rejoice at it;


As he was valiant, I honour him; But as he was ambitious, I slew him. (iii) To divide certain coordinate clauses ; as

Reading maketh a full man; speaking a ready man; writing an exact man.

4. The Colon marks a longer pause than a Semi Colon. It is chiefly used :

(i) To introduce a quotation ; as

Bacon says : He who lives in solitude is either a beast or an angel.

(ii) To separate two contrasted sentences ; as

Man proposes : God disposes.

To err is human : to forgive divine.

(iii) Before enumeration ; as

The chief towns of the Punjab are : Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ludhiana.

5. The Dash is used to convey a sudden change of thought; as

(i) “The Penalty”, said Shylock, “now let me see—Ha ! I’ll tell what we can do.”

(ii) To postmaster - a fat, amiable fellow - also broke out laughing.

6. The Hyphen is much shorter than a dash. It is used to form compound words; as,

Commander-in-chief, sister-in-law, man-of-war, forget-me-not, bathing-place, one-fourth.

7. Question Mark is used after sentences which ask questions; as

What is your name ?

Where were you born ?

8. Exclamation Mark is used after words or sentences which express sudden feeling or emotion ; as

What a charming land !

Bravo ! well done.

9. The Apostrophe is used

(i) to show possession; as

Mohan’s book is on the table.

The girl’s father and mother are here.

(ii) It is used in a contracted word ; as

I’ve = I have; I’m = I am

Don’t = Do not; ‘it’s = It is.

10. Brackets are used to enclose a word, phrase, or clause; as

(i) At the age of ten (such is the power of genius) he could read Sanskrit fluently.

(ii) Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase) awoke one night from a deep dream of peace.

11. Inverted Commas are used to indicate the exact words of a speaker or a quotation; as

a speaker or a quotation; as

Guru Nanak Dev says, “Truth is great”

The wolf said to the lamb, “Why are you making the water muddy ?”

B. Capital Letters Capital letters are used at the beginning of :1. The first word of every sentence; as Mahatma Gandhi was the great leader of India. He led the country to freedom. He taught us the lesson of truth and non-violence.2. The first word of every line of a poem ; as She lived unknown, and few could know. When Lucy ceased to be : But she is in her grave, and, oh, The difference to me !


3. All Proper Nouns, Adjectives derived from them ; as India, Indian, Gandhi, Gandhian.4. The first word of a quotation ; as Guru Nanak Dev says, “Truth is great.”5. All Nouns and Pronouns that are used in reference to God ; as O Lord, boundless are Thy blessings.6. The letters ‘I’ and ‘O’ are written in Capital7. Letters denoting abbreviation are written in Capital ; as M.A. (Master of Arts); B.A. (Bachelor of Arts)8. The names of the days of the week and the months of the year.9. The names of books, newspapers and magazines ; as The Gita, The Bible, The Indian Express, The Illustrated Weekly, The Modern Review, The Aryan Heritage.10. Important historical events ; as The Great War, The French Revolution, The American War of Independence.11. Titles and designations of persons ; as The President of India ; The Deputy Commissioner, Agra ; The Inspector General of Police, etc.

qq

Chapter - 16 : Direct and Indirect Speech

Let’s Revise Whatever we speak is our speech. We may report the words of a speaker in two ways :(1) We may quote his actual words. This is called Direct Speech.(2) We may report what he said without quoting his exact words. This is called Indirect (or Reported) Speech.

Direct Speech Examples : (i) I say, “I am a student.” (ii) This sentence has 2 parts. (a) The part outside the quotation mark has a subject and a verb. As this part is reporting something, it is called the

Reporting Verb. (b) The part within the quotation mark are the actual words of the person whose speech is reported and therefore

it is called the Reported Speech. Some facts about Direct Speech : (i) The reporting verb has to be followed by a comma (,). (ii) The reported speech has to be within inverted commas (“ “). (iii) The first word in the reported speech starts with a capital letter.

Indirect Speech Examples : (i) I say that I am a student. (ii) In this sentence, the substance of someone’s speech has been reported in the words of the reporter, so it

is an Indirect Speech. Some facts about Indirect Speech : (i) The reporting verb is followed by a conjunction (that, etc.) and not a comma. (ii) The reported speech is not within inverted commas. (iii) In reported speech, the pronoun, tenses and other words are changed to suit the reporter.

Rules for Changing speech 1. If reporting verb is in Present or Future tense, the tense of the reported speech does not change at all. (i) He says, “Coffee is ready” (Direct) He says that coffee is ready. (Indirect) (ii) The principal will say, “Tomorrow is a holiday.” (Direct) The principal will say that tomorrow is a holiday. (Indirect) 2. If reporting verb is in Past tense, then the Present tense of the reported speech change into their corresponding

Past tense.


(i) They said, “Anybody can solve the sum.” (Direct) They said that anybody could solve the sum. (Indirect) (ii) The mother said, “Reena may wear a saree.” (Direct) The mother said that Reena might wear a saree. (Indirect) (iii) Ravi said, ”It has been raining since morning.” (Direct)Ravi said that it had been raining since morning. (Indirect)3. If the reporting verb is in Past tense then. (i) The teacher said, “The lion hide in a cave.” (Direct) The teacher said that the lion had hidden in a cave. (Indirect) (ii) Kamal said, “It had been raining for two days.” (Direct) Kamal said that it had been raining for two days. (Indirect) (iii) Vinay said, ”Sampat will write a book.” (Direct) Vinay said that Sampat would write a book. (Indirect)

qq

Chapter - 17 : Active and Passive Voice

Let’s ReviseActive Voice The form of the verb which shows the importance of its subject in the active action is called an Active Voice. Examples : (i) Kishore sings a song. (ii) Sachin plays cricket.Passive Voice The form of the verb which shows the importance of the action rather than the subject is called the Passive Voice. Examples : (i) A song is sung by Kishore. (ii) Cricket is played by Sachin.General rules to express a passive voice : 1. The passive voice is formed by using proper forms of the verb with the third form of the verb 2. The object takes the place of the subject. 3. The subject is either not mentioned or mentioned at the end as just an agent of the action done. 4. The tense of the verb is not changed, only its form is changed. 5. Mostly the preposition ‘by’ is used to show the subject as an agent of the action. Other preposition like–to, with,

in, etc., can also be used.qq

Chapter - 18 : Vocabulary

Let’s Revise

1. Antonyms Words with opposite meanings are called antonyms.

Some words and their antonyms are given below :

Words Antonyms Words Antonyms

1. Absence Presence 31. Haste Delay

2. Accept Reject 32. Hope Despair

3. Admire Mock 33. Humble Vain, Proud

4. Admit Deny 34. Kindness Cruelty

5. Adversity Prosperity 35. Knowledge Ignorance


6. Arrival Departure 36. Major Minor

7. Attack Defend 37. Natural Artificial

8. Attract Repel 38. Optimist Pessimist

9. Awkward Graceful 39. Oral Written

10. Begin End, Finish 40. Ordinary Special

11. Bold Timid 41. Part Whole

12. Borrow Lend 42. Peace War

13. Busy Idle 43. Please Annoy, Offend

14. Care Neglect 44. Poor Wealthy

15. Coarse Smooth 45. Profit Loss

16. Collect Scatter 46. Prohibit Permit

17. Completely Partly, Partially 47. Private Public

18. Conceal Reveal 48. Punishment Reward

19. Create Destroy 49. Raise Lower

20. Cruel Kind, Gentle 50. Severe Mild

21. Differ Agree 51. Sink Float

22. Enmity Friendship 52. Smile Frown

23. Entrance Exit 53. Strict Lenient

24. Expand Contract 54. Superior Inferior

25. Familiar Strange 55. Support Oppose

26. Fertile Barren 56. Swift Slow

27. First Last 57. Teach Learn

28. Follow Lead 58. Temporary Permanent

29. Gloomy Cheerful 59. Urban Rural

30. Guilty Innocent 60. Virtue Vice

2. Synonyms Words having the same or nearly the same meaning are called synonyms. There are no true synonyms in the English language; all words have slightly different meanings. We should be aware of the shades of difference in the meanings of synonyms. Some words and their synonyms are given below. Words Synonyms Words Synonyms 1. Admit Confess 26. Hide Conceal 2. Allow Permit 27. Honour Prestige 3. Ancient Old 28. Miserly Stingy 4. Anger Fury, Wrath 29. Mistake Error 5. Begin Start, Commence 30. Nice Decent 6. Brief Concise 31. Pain Agony 7. Build Construct 32. Precious Valuable 8. Coarse Rough 33. Repent Regret 9. Danger Peril 34. Respect Esteem 10. Decrease Reduce, Lessen 35. Rich Wealthy 11. Depend Rely 36. Rude Insolent 12. Disappointment Despair 37. Scold Rebuke, Chide 13. Difficult Hard, Tough 38. Silent Quiet 14. Do Act, Perform 39. Sorrow Grief 15. Enemy Foe 40. Stationary Still, Motionless 16. Excess Surplus 41. Stubborn Obstinate


17. Faithful Loyal 42. Sufficient Adequate, enough 18. Famous Renowned, Eminent 43. Suitable Appropriate 19. Fatigue Tiredness 44. Teach Instruct 20. Force Compel 45. Useful Beneficial, advantageous 21. Forgive Pardon 46. Wander Roam 22. Glow Shine, Glisten 47. Wish Desire 23. Hate Despise, Detest, Scorn 48. Wonderful Marvellous 24. Happiness Joy, Delight, Mirth 49. Worry Anxiety 25. Help Aid, Assistance 50. Zeal Enthusiasm

3. One Word Substitution or Single Words for Group of Words

It is sometimes desirable to express the idea of a phrase or a group of words by using a single word : 1. A hundred years = Century 2. A child whose parents are dead = Orphan 3. Life story of a person written by himself = Autobiography 4. Life history of a person written by another = Biography 5. Science of life and living things= Biology 6. Aircraft with two pairs of wings, one above the other = Biplane 7. List of the days, weeks, months, of a particular year = Calendar 8. That which makes it difficult to recognize the presence or real nature of something = Camouflage 9. Group of military operations with a set purpose, usually in one area = Campaign 10. Grounds of a school, or university, where the main buildings are located = Campus 11. Soldiers who fight on horseback = Cavalry 12. Incapable of making mistakes or doing wrong = Infallible 13. Person with no belief in religion (especially in what it is considered to be the true religion) = Infidel 14. That can be spread by touch = Contagious 15. That can be spread by means of germs carried in the atmosphere or in water = Infectious 16. Yearly return of the date of an event = Anniversary 17. That may be easily set on fire = Inflammable 18. Allowing light to pass through, so that objects behind can be distinctly seen = Transparent 19. That cannot be seen through = Opaque 20. Helping neither side in war or quarrel = Neutral 21. Fit to be eaten = Edible 22. Official in charge of a museum = Curator 23. One who does not believe in the existence of God = Atheist 24. A person trained for competing in physical exercises and outdoor games = Athlete 25. A traveller through outer space = Astronaut 26. One who studies the science of the sun, moon, stars, and planets = Astronomer 27. One who collects postage-stamps = Philatelist 28. A person who helps others, especially those who are poor or in trouble = Philanthropist 29. A place where birds are kept = Aviary 30. A place where bees are kept = Apiary 31. An artificial pond or tank for keeping and showing living fish = Aquarium 32. One who goes on a journey to a holy place = Pilgrim 33. A man who remains unmarried = Bachelor 34. A woman who remains unmarried = Spinster 35. A woman whose husband is dead = Widow


36. A man whose wife is dead = Widower 37. One who abstains from alcoholic drinks = Teetotaler 38. A person who visits other countries for pleasure = Tourist 39. That which can he easily be understood = Intelligible 40. A person who always looks at the bright side of things = Optimist 41. A person who always looks at the dark side ot things = Pessimist 42. A person who writes the life of another person = Biographer 43. A plant or animal that draws sustenance from another = Parasite 44. A person who does no work and lives on others = Drone 45. The dead body of a human being = Corpse 46. The dead body of an animal = Carcass 47. A child born after the death of its father = Posthumous 48. The act of killing oneself = Suicide 49. A person who represents his country’s economic, political and other interests in another country = Ambassador 50. An operation performed on a dead body to find the cause of death = Postmortem 51. A gathering of worshippers = Congregation 52. A person who is a great lover of his country = Patriot 53. A person who is sent to preach his religion, especially among people who are ignorant of it = Missionary 54. A person who loves wealth for its own sake and is not inclined to spend it =Miser 55. A person who spends extravagantly = Spendthrift 56. A person who gets goods secretly and illegally into or out of a country = Smuggler 57. A person who smuggles alcoholic liquor or sells it illegally = Bootlegger 58. A person who sends goods to another country = Exporter 59. A person who brings in goods from a foreign country = Importer 60. Sudden happening which makes quick action necessary = Emergency 61. A person who goes away from one’s own country to another to settle there = Emigrant 62. A person who comes as a settler into another country = Immigrant 63. Going back from the reach of memory = Immemorial 64. Not yet fully developed = Immature 65. That which is sure to happen - Inevitable 66. Difficult or impossible to read = Illegible 67. (A child) born of parents who were not married = Illegitimate 68. Unable to read or write = Illiterate 69. Not favouring one more than another = Impartial 70. That which cannot be seen = Invisible 71. That which cannot be heard = Inaudible 72. That which cannot be believed = Incredible 73. That which cannot be solved = Insolvable 74. That which cannot be conquered = Invincible 75. That which cannot be explained = Inexplicable 76. That which cannot be divided = Indivisible 77. That which cannot be blotted out or effaced = Indelible 78. That which cannot be recalled or altered = Irrevocable 79. That which cannot be done without = Indispensable 80. That which cannot be approached = Inaccessible 81. That which cannot be destroyed = Indestructible 82. That which cannot be perceived by the senses = Imperceptible 83. (One) who cannot be elected OR selected under the rules = Ineligible 84. One who is all-powerful = Omnipotent 85. One who knows everything = Omniscient


86. One who is present everywhere = Omnipresent 87. One who is unable to pay one’s debts = Insolvent; bankrupt 88. One who believes implicitly in fate = Fatalist 89. A person indifferent to both pleasure and pain = Stoic 90. One who plays a game for pleasure and not professionally = Amateur 91. The want of government in a country = Anarchy 92. Government by officials = Bureaucracy 93. Government by nobles = Autocracy 94. Government of the people, for the people and by the people = Democracy 95. Government carried on by the people or its elected representatives = Republic 96. Custom of having more than one wife at the same time = Polygamy 97. Custom of having more than one husband at the same time = Polyandry 98. Having two wives or husbands living = Bigamy 99. Practice of being married to only one person at a time = Monogamy 100. A person who can use both hands with equal ease = Ambidextrous.

4. Homophones or Words Often Confused1. Accept — to agree, to take : We do not accept credit cards. Except — apart/aside from : Every student except Nilima was present in the class.2. Accident — something unexpected, usually tragic in nature : My car was damaged in an accident. Incident — some ordinary event : Tell us some interesting incidents of your life.3. Advice (noun) — help/instruction : We must follow the advice of our teachers. Advise (verb) — guide : The teacher advised me to be punctual in the class.4. Angel — messenger of God : The black boy saw an angel in a dream. Angle — Intersection point : A right angle has ninety degrees.5. Bail — security : The accused was released on bail. Bale — bundle : Fifty bales of cotton are lying on the platform.6. Bare — uncovered, naked : The dog laid its bare sharp teeth. Bear — to tolerate : I cannot bear so much pain.7. Berth — a bed on a train or a boat : We got two berths reserved in the Rajdhani Express. Birth — childbirth : What is your date of birth?8. Beside — next to, by the side of : We sat beside the window and talked. Besides — in addition to, as well as : Besides being a distinguished scholar, she is also a good dancer.9. Brake — control : The driver applied the brakes in time. Break — crack : This vase is made of glass. It can break easily.10. Cattle — cows, bulls, buffaloes, etc. : The cattle are grazing in the field. Kettle — a container or device in which water is boiled having a lid, spout & handle : The kettle is full of hot

tea.11. Check — to look at something carefully to ensure that it is right : The teacher has checked all the note-

books. Cheque — an order to a bank to pay a stated sum : My father sent me a cheque for two thousand rupees.12. Cite — to quote : She cited many examples to prove her point. Sight — view : The train left the station and soon disappeared from sight.13. Coarse — rough : Villagers often wear garments made of coarse cloth. Course — path : The river is changing its course. — a series of lessons : We had finished all our courses by the end of January.14. Complement — one which completes the other : Point out the complement of the verb in this sentence. Compliment — to express regards : I complimented Ravina on her fine performance.15. Dairy — a place where milk and milk products are stored and sold : We buy milk from a government dairy. Diary — a daily record of events & experiences : Reading someone else’s personal diary is not desirable.


16. Die — expire : Very few people die of tuberculosis now. Dye — colouring : The shirt was dyed green.17. Dose — prescribed quantity : Take three doses of this medicine daily. (of medicine) Doze — to have a light sleep : He had no work to do, so he dozed off for a while.18. Feat — an action that shown great skill or courage : The pilot amazed everyone with his daring feats. Feet — paw, Forepaw : Tight shoes have caused blisters on my feet.19. Farther — comparative degree of ‘far’, suggests distance : Whose house is farther from the school—yours or

Geetu’s? Further — suggests position : Please read further.20. Heal — to cure : Deep wounds take longer to heal. Heel — the back part of human foot : The heel of this shoe is completely worn out.21. Hear — listen : The old man cannot hear clearly. Here — at this place : I shall wait for you here.22. Idle — without work : Time is precious; so “don’t sit idle” Idol — image : Many Hindus worship idols.23. Later — comparative degree of ‘late’; suggests time : Varun reached the station later than Ila. Latter — suggests position : Rashmi and Uma are sisters; the latter of the two sings better.24. Loose — the opposite of ‘tight’ : Children should always wear loose clothes. Lose — misplace : Where did you lose your bag?25. Peace — emotional calm : A nation can progress only during peace time. Piece — part : I want a piece of paper to write a letter on.26. Plain — not pretty : She is a plain-looking girl. — This piece of ground is quite plain. Plane — a flat, level surface : This house is at a higher plane. — aircraft : We will be boarding the plane soon.27. Pray — wish or hope strongly for a particular situation : We should pray to God to make us better hu-

man beings. Prey — victim : Be contented. Don’t fall a prey to greed.28. Principal — head/leader : Our Principal believes in strict discipline. Principle — a basic rule : We should never give up our principles.29. Quiet — silent, peaceful, still : Children, please keep quiet. Quite — comparatively : I found the questions quite easy.30. Rain — shower : Heavy rains often cause floods. Reign — rule : The Mughal empire progressed a great deal during Akbar’s reign.31. Root — the part of a plant : A tree gets nourishment through its roots. Route — direction : Our school bus does not go by this route.32. Sail — A means of transport : Soon the ship sailed away and got out of sight. Sale — the activity of selling product : I purchased this pair of shoes at a sale.33. Soar — to fly high : The kite soared over the treetops. Sore — painful : She is suffering from a sore throat. Sour — sharp and bitter (taste) : Lemons have a sour taste.34. Sole — the undersurface of a person’s foot : The sole of my right shoe has got cracks in it. Soul — the spiritual part of a human being : The Soul cannot be destroyed by water and fire.35. Stationary — still, not moving : The pole star remains stationary in the sky. Stationery — writing and other office material : Computer stationery has become very expensive.36. Steal — take anther person’s property without permission : The thief could not steal anything from the

house. Steel — a hard strong metal : Steel is a very useful metal.37. Story — a plot or story line : I like to read adventure stories. Storey — a part of a building : My room is on the upper storey of the house.


38. Tail — the hind most part of an animal : The monkey uses its tail to hang from branches.

Tale — story : Children are fond of fairy tales.

39. Their — belonging to a person of unspecified sex : They live in their own house.

There — used to indicate the fact : We went to the ground but did not find anybody there.

40. Vain — fruitless : All our efforts to get a suitable house proved vain.

Vein — a blood vessel : Veins carry impure blood to the heart.

41. Way — track : She lost her way in the forest.

Weigh — find out how heavy : How many kilograms does this box weigh?

42. Wait — remain in readiness for a purpose : I had to wait for fifteen minutes for the bus.

Weight — the heaviness of a person or thing : Her doctor told her to reduce her weight.

43. Waste — misuse : Time is precious; don’t waste it.

Waist — The lower part of human body below the ribs and above the hips : The soldier tied a belt round his waist.

44. Weather — The state of the atmosphere : The weather is very pleasant. Let us go for a picnic.

Whether — It is a conjunction : I am not sure whether I shall be able to come.

45. Yoke — frame or bar : The horse was put into the yoke.

Yolk — the yellow part of an egg : Yolk is very nutritious.qq

Section D : Literature Honeycomb-Prose

Chapter - 1 : Three Questions —Leo Tolstoy

Let’s Revise“Three Questions” is a value based intellectual story written by the renowned Russian writer—Leo Tolstoy.

The story is divided into two parts, both are inter-related and of practical importance.

PART - IOnce there was a king who thought, that to be a successful ruler he must know the answer to three questions. The questions were—

What is the right time to begin something ?

Which people should take advice from ?

What is the most important thing for him to do ?

For this he sent messengers in all directions to find people who could answer all the three questions. He promised to give a reward of a large sum to whoever could successfully answer his questions.

Many wise men tried their luck. They gave many answers. Some said that the king should follow time-table, others said that he should consult wise men or magicians and some said that the king should do whatever seemed necessary to him at the moment. These all were the answers to his first question.

Answers to the second question were also strange; some gave importance to his councillors, others to the priests, some to the doctors and the rest to his soldiers.

For the reply to his third question, the wise men gave importance to science, war and religious worship.

The opinions were varied and they it did not satisfy the king. He wanted to consult a hermit who lived in the jungle alone. The hermit used to meet only ordinary people. Hence the king dressed up like a normal man, he left behind his bodyguards and horse and went alone to the hermit’s hut. The hermit was an old and weak man. At that time he was busy digging the ground. The king greeted and asked him his three questions but the hermit did not reply. The king took the spade from the hermit and offered his help. The king continued digging the ground till evening. In the evening the king again requested the hermit to answer his questions, but at that very moment someone came running towards the hermit’s hut.


PART - IIThe king and the hermit saw a bearded man running towards them. The man’s hands were pressed against his bleeding stomach. As he reached the king, he fainted and fell on the ground. He had a large wound in his stomach. The king nursed his wound, controlling the flow of blood by tying his handkerchief over the wound. The hermit and the king took the man inside the hut. The tired king also fell asleep. When the king woke up, the bearded man asked the king to forgive him.

The king did not recognize him, but he was the king’s enemy who wanted to take revenge for his brother who was killed by the king, who had also taken away his brother’s property. So the man had vowed to kill the king while returning from the hermit’s place.

But the king’s bodyguards found him and wounded him. He would have died if the king had not helped him.

He felt grateful to the king who had saved his life. He promised to serve the king as a faithful servant. The king was pleased to turn his enemy into a friend. He forgave him and returned all his property.

The king then went up to the hermit. He again asked for answers to his three questions. The hermit told him that he had already got his answers by then. He further explained to the king that by digging the beds for him, the king had escaped his enemy’s attack. So the most important time was when he was digging the beds. The hermit himself was the most important person. So to do good for him was the king’s most important business. Afterwards, when the man ran to them, the most important time was when the king was nursing him, because if he had not dressed his wounds, the man wound have died without making his peace with the king. So the man was the most important person, and what the king did for him was his most important business.

The hermit concluded that the most important time is ‘now’ because it is the only time when we have the power to act. The most important person at a particular moment is we ourselves because future is unknown to all of us and there is always an uncertainty about meeting anyone else. The most important job is to do good to others because we have been sent into this world for this noble cause.

Word-MeaningsMessenger – One who brings a message; Pleasures – Cheer, zeal, merrymaking; Timetable – Time schedule; Avoid – Keep away; Council – A group of people chosen to give advice to the king or to make rules; Councillors – Members of the council; Hermit – A person who lives alone and leads a simple life, saint; Priests – Holymen, who prayers in temples; Religious worship – An act of worship performed individually; Seek – get, attempt to find; Affairs – Things, matters, business; Beds – Small patches of ground for plants; Greeted – Sign of welcome; Heavily – With a lot of force or effort; Fainted – Lost consciousness; Removed – Take off, get rid of; Spade – A tool with a sharp edge for digging ground; Stretching – Straighten or extend one’s body; Seized – Taken by force; Faithful – True and loyal; Business – Occupation, trade; Pitied – To feel sorry, compassionate; Bearded man – Having a beard; Swore – To make a promise; Sowing – To plant seed by scattering it on or in the earth; Escaped – Run away, get away; On his knees – To low down bending one’s knees; Caring for – Look after; Made peace with – To establish peace; Revenge – The action of hurting someone in return for an injury or wrong suffered at their hands; Property – Assets; Hiding – To keep out of sight; Recognized – Identified; Made peace with – Compromise.

qq

Chapter - 2 : A Gift of Chappals

—Vasantha Surya

Let’s Revise PART - IThis is an exquisite story written about the fantasies of children, expressing their simplicity, whims, their feelings, and their act of charity.It deals with a young girl Mridu growing up in Chennai staying with Topi her grandmother and Thatha her grandfather. One afternoon Topi takes Mridu to her aunt Rukku Manni’s house to meet her cousins Lalli, Ravi and Meena. Ravi dragged her to the backyard. There inside a torn football lay very small kitten, lapping up milk, kept inside a half-shell of a coconut. Meena said they had found the kitten outside their gate that morning. But it was kept as a secret. Amma had a fear that Patti (their grandmother) would leave the home, if she knew about the cat in the house. Ravi had


succeeded by tact in getting a little milk for the kitten. The children nicknamed the kitten as Mahendran. Ravi said that the cat belonged to the Pallava dynasty and that he also knows about cat worship in Egypt.Lalli was learning violin from the music teacher in the other room. The children heard some strange noises. She wasn’t doing well, although the music master was trying his best to make her learn.

PART - IIMridu went up to the window. She saw Lalli sitting with her violin. In front of her there was the bony music teacher. He had a mostly bald head. He was wearing a gold chain around his neck, and a diamond ring on his hand. The children again got busy in their childish pranks but were distracted by the sound of the beggar outside the gate. Ravi and Meena went out and saw the beggar standing. The mother told Ravi to, send him away. She was busy chatting with Tapi. The begger’s voice irritated her. She complained that he was coming there everyday.Ravi and Meena persuaded the beggar to go to some other house. The beggar requested a lot and asked them to let him rest under a tree in their house for sometime even if they did not want to give him alms. The beggar told them that the sun was very hot and the tar on the road was also melting. He even showed the blisters to the children which had formed due to walking on the hot road. Filled with pity, the children thought of giving a pair of chappals to him. They started searching for a suitable pair of slippers and then finally found one on the verandah. They didn‘t know to whom did those slippers belong, so they gave those slippers to the beggar. The beggar took them and went away happily, blessing them.But when the music teacher came out, after giving music leason to Lalli, he found his chappals missing. He asked Lalli about them but she also did not know anything about them. Lalli told her mother about them, then Rukumanni gave Gopal Mama’s hardly-worn slippers to the music teacher. She apologized to the master on behalf of her son, Ravi. The master’s eyes were lit up with joy. He put them on and called children naughty monkeys. The children hesitatingly revealed her the truth. They told her that they had done so only to help the poor beggar and since no other slipper would have been suitable for the beggar’s feet, they gave him the slippers of the music teacher. On hearing the act of charity done by the children, Rukumanni started laughing. She went inside the house. She thanked god that Gopumama’s chappals were there. But she laughed to think how much upset he would be on his return. She declared that she would take all the blame on herself.

Word-MeaningsScrawny – Thin, skinny toes; Paati – Grandmother (in Tamil); Throw her off the scent – Befool, mislead her so that she won’t understand the real purpose; Thatha – Grandfather (in Tamil); Tescended from – A descendent of, or coming from the same family; Stowaway – Someone who hides himself/herself in a ship or an aircraft to travel unnoticed; Glided – Moved along smoothly; Veshti – Dhoti (in Tamil); Stumbled – Followed haltingly ; Beringed – The music master is wearing a ring; Snooze – Short sleep; Kept my body and soul together – Managed to stay alive; Blisters – Boils/bubbles on the skin from burns or rubbing; Unappreciative – Disapproving; Lurking around – Waiting quietly (without attracting attention); Clattered off – Noisily (with the noise or clatter of chappals/Slippers); Protested – Disapproved; Dragged – Pull along forcefully; Descendant – Inheritor; Alms – Charity to the poor; Harassed – Give trouble, torment; Sacking – Made up of a sack; Lapping – Licking; Half-shell – Half rounded portion of a coconut; Set out – To start a journey; Twing – A woody shoot; Sparkling – Shining brightly; Scream – To yell, to shout; Creature – Living being; Shell – Hard outlining cover; Breed – Race; Emblem – Sign, symbol; Expectantly – Hopefully; Shrieked – An expression of excitement, pain or terror; Alert – To be cautious of a potential danger; Scurried around – Move fast with short quick steps; Whizzing – Move quickly through the air; Howled – Cried, screamed; Derailing – Cause to run off tracks, faulting; Crept – Moving slowly; Jutting out – Extending out; Gleam – Shine brightly; Effortlessly – Without making any effort; Leaned – Be in or moving into a sloping position; Gaze – Look steadily; Choke – Overwhelm and make someone speechless with emotion; Generosity – The quality of being kind and generous; Feeble – Lacking physical strength; Rumble – Make a continuous deep sound; Withered – Become dry, sunk; Apparently – Clearly; Booming out – Resonant sound, loud voice; Betel leaf – Piper leaf, a kind of plant whose leaves are shaped as paan; Shabby – In a poor condition; Sturdy – Strongly built; Beamed – Smiled with joy; Odd-looking – Shabby; Glanced – To see; Groan – To make a deep inarticulate sound in response to pain or despair; Brashly – Cheekily or smartly; Sores – Painful, tender; Snapped – Break ; Hardly worn – Not worn; Flung – Throw forcefully; Muttering – Speak softly, to murmur; Vendor – Salesperson, merchant; Incarnate – Come to life, in person; Lit up – Shine with joy; Groaned – Said painfully; Grimly – Severely; Crouched – Sitting by bending legs; Railing – Hedge; Blubbering – Speaking loudly; Tightening – Making tight; Shaking out – Rubbing hard to remove dust; Sighed – Took a deep breath sadly; Sternly – Severely; Settle – Establish, get set; Squawk – Sound of fear; Fringe – Border; Concentration – Keen attention; Awkwardly – Not decently; Awful – Horrible; Screech – An unpleasant sound; Out of wits – Confused; Howled – Cried; Etcetera – So on; Remind – To remember something important to do; Suspicious – Doubtful; Mane – The hair around the neck of lion, cat; Expectantly – Hopefully; Giggled – Chuckled; Impressed – Started to have admiration and respect for somebody; Torn – Being apart into pieces

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Chapter - 3 : Gopal and The Hilsa-Fish

Let’s ReviseThis is an interesting story depicted through a comic story, understood through pictures with dialogues under-written for help to make the students read with interest.

The story goes on that it was the season for Hilsa-Fish. The fishermen caught a lot of them. They sold them in the market. They could think nothing beyond it. In the palace also, the courtiers discussed the matter. A courtier showed the king a big fish he had caught. The king lost his temper. The courtier became silent and sad. The king realised his mistake. He told that even Gopal couldn’t stop anyone from talking about Hilsa. Gopal protested. He said he could do that. The king then challenged him to bring a big fish to the palace without anyone asking a word about it.

Since Gopal accepted the challenge, he started working accordingly. He became half-shaven and covered himself with ash. When his wife asked him the reason about his peculiar look, he said that he was dressing up to buy a Hilsa Fish. His wife thought he had gone mad.

Gopal reached the Court. He told the guards that he wanted to see the king. They didn’t allow him to enter. Gopal began dancing and crying loudly. They reported the matter to the king. The king ordered to bring him to the court. Gopal introduced himself before the king. The king asked him why he was dressed up in that fashion ?

Gopal explained that when he was coming to the palace not a single man spoke about the Hilsa-fish. Everyone got attracted toward his peculiar look. They didn’t mind the fish. The king remembered the challenge he had thrown to Gopal. He congratulated Gopal on his achieving the impossible.

The moral of the story is with the help of common sense and wits, anything that seems to be impossible can be achieved.

Word-MeaningsChallenge – To prove something ; Smearing – Smudge, daubing ; Disgraceful – Shameful ; Ridiculous – Amazing, absurd, humorous ; Achieved – To get ; Fishmongers – Traders in fish ; Believe – Trust ; Your Majesty – Your lordship/used as reverie ; Huge – Quite big ; Downcast – Depressed, down with shame ; Guilty – At fault ; Challenge – A call to somebody to do something ; Matter – Affair ; Later – afterwards ; Possibly – Probably ; Rags – Torn clothes ; Mad – Insane; Comical – Ludicrous ; Hush – Silence, to keep quiet ; Mystic – Difficult to explain, strange, spiritual ; Crazy – Fanciful, foolish ; At once – Instantly ; Out with it – Leave it ; Forgotten – Faded from memory ; Strangely – In an odd manner ; seems – Appears ; Interested – Concerned ; A soul – Any person ; Congratulations – Good wishes ; Achieved – Obtained ; To lose temper – Getting angry ; Half-shaven – Having beard on half of face ; Dress up – To wear clothes; Lost his mind – To become mad

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Chapter - 4 : The Ashes That made Trees Bloom —William Ellot Griffis

Let’s RevisePart I

There was an old good hearted couple who lived during the old days of daimios. They had a pet dog whom they had named Muko and the couple loved him a lot. Muko was kept like a child by them. In return, the dog was very faithful to them.

The old man was a rice farmer and worked from sunrise to sunset in his field. He was always accompanied by Muko to the fields.

The dog was playing in the field one day. It found a place and started scratching there. The old man found a pile of gold there, on digging the ground. Thus, the couple became rich. In the same village an old wicked man too lived. He too heard about the change in fortune of the couple. The next day, the wicked man coaxed the dog with food but he was not followed by the dog to his garden. On this, the man grew angry and dragged the dog. Out of fear, the dog ran and


than suddenly stopped under a pine tree. The man thought that the dog was standing there to indicate hidden treasure. Out of curiosity and anxiety, he started digging. Unlike the good old couple, he found a dead kitten which was smelling very hard. On seeing the kitten, the man grew very angry and killed the dog.

On hearing his dog’s death, his owner became very sad and mourned bitterly. That night, he went to put flowers and bamboo sticks on the tomb of his dog, according to the custom. After coming home, he dreamt about his dead dog. His dog’s spirit asked him to cut the pine tree and make mortar from it for his rice pastry and a mill for his bean sauce. The man followed his dog’s advice. Gold coins dropped from his mortar and hand mill. The old good hearted couple again gained a lot. On hearing about it, the wicked old man also followed the same process. But instead of finding gold coins, he found a foul mass of worms. This, made the wicked old man angry and he chopped the mill into pieces and used it as firewood.

Part IIThe dog’s spirit was seen by the old man in a dream. The spirit asked the man to take the ashes of the mill burnt by the wicked old man and sprinkle them on the withered trees. The old man again did what the spirit said. On doing it, the trees bloomed and the air was filled with a sweet smell. The people believed it to be magic.

Once, the road near the village was to be passed by the daimios. The good old man climbed up a withered tree. When the doimios, procession passed, he sprinkled the ashes over the tree and the tree blossomed and the air was perfumed. The daimio was delighted on seeing this. He stopped his procession and decided to reward the old man and also invited him to his castle.

The wicked man followed suit. The next time when the daimios passed, he sprinkled the ash but instead of blooming the tree, the ashes flew in the noses and eyes of the daimio and his wife started sneezing and they began choking. The whole pomp, dignity and splendor of the procession was spoiled. The greedy neighbour was caught by the people and badly beaten till he died. Thus, the wicked greedy man was heavily punished and on the contrary, the generous old, good hearted man lived with his wife in ease and comfort.

Word-MeaningsGleamed – Shine brightly/glittered; Furious – Extremely angry; Blaze – Fire; Ashes – Powdery residue left after burning/burnt dust; Scolded – Rebuke; Dwelt – Inhabit, to live; Daimios – Wealthy landowners (in 19th century Japan); Snug – Comfortable, warm and cozy; In being with a soul – Like a human child (showing emotion); Coaxed – Persuaded, enticed; Dainties – Tasty food, something good to eat; Covetous – Greedy; Crone – Old woman (old man’s wife); Carcass – Dead body; Mortar – Bowl; Pounding – Crushing, grinding; Stingy – Miserly, unwilling to give or spend; Withered – Bare and dry, dying; Turned up their noses – Treated him with contempt, looked hatefully; Train – Procession; Prostrate – Lying on the ground facing downwards; Palanquin – Royal van/cart; Gleefully – Happily, in a joyous manner; Dame – A woman; Tidbits – A small piece of tasty food; Chopsticks – A pair of small, thin stick of wood, ivory or plastic used as eating utensil by Japanese and Chinese people.; Hoe – A long handled gardening tool; Solace – Peace; Soil – The surface of the ground covered with the grass; Whining – Give or make long, high-pitched complaining cry or sound; Smothered – Kill someone by covering their nose and mouth so that they suffocate; Petted – Cuddled; Dragged – Hauled, pull along forcefully; Hag – A witch especially one in the form of an ugly old woman; Turned up their noses – To treat with disrespect; Sprouted – Developed, gave forth; Competent – Having the necessary ability; Tumbled – Fall suddenly; Ditch – A narrow channel dug in the ground; Choking – Act of suffocating; Lively – With zeal; Plentifully – A lot; Section – Part; Mourning – Lamenting; Incense – scented sticks; Dough – a ball of flour; Envious – Jealous; Foul – Dirty; Gathering up – Collecting; Impertinence – Rude action; Competent – Strong; Caught sight of – A glimpse of someone or something; Pretended – Showed falsely.

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Chapter - 5 : Quality—Galsworthy

Let’s ReviseIt is a story about a skilled German shoemaker Mr. Gessler, who is settled in London. He was a perfect artist and perfectionist who considered his work as an art.

The writer starts the story by narrating the incident of his with Mr. Gessler, a shoemaker. He had a boots shop in West England, which was then a fashionable market. Gessler Brothers was the only sign of glamour in the shop, it was not a ready-made boot shop. Gessler made boots only on specific orders. And they never failed to fit. His boots lasted long.


His boots had a high standing for their quality. During a conversation, when the writer said that the shoe-making involved a lot of hardwork, Gessler replied by calling it a form of art.

It was not very frequent that the writer visited Gessler. This was not because his boots were bad, but it was because they lasted very long. Once the writer wanted a pair of Russian Leather boots. Gessler showed his piece of gold brown leather. He promised to deliver the boots after a fortnight. After a few days, the writer went to Gessler’s shop to make a complaint about the last pair of shoes which he had bought from him. Gessler became preplexed and just told him that he would try his best to repair those shoes.

On another occasion the writer entered Gessler’s shop wearing a pair of shoes bought at a large firm. Gessler told that those were not his boots. He put a finger on the place where the left boot was not comfortable. He spoke bitterly that big firms made poor quality boots. He also spoke about the hard times of his trade. Even his own business was going down.

The writer was so deeply moved that he ordered for many pair of shoes. For next two years he couldn’t go to Gessler’s shop. When he come to Gessler’s shop next time he came to know that Gessler’s elder brother had died. He again ordered many pairs of boots.

He was also upset to see Mr. Gessler who seemed to have grown older by 15 years. And he again ordered many pairs of boots. Soon he went abroad.

When he returned to his country after a year, he went to Gessler’s shop to thank him for the new boots which he had parceled to him. But he found that the name of the shop was not there. The shop was taken over by some Englishman, who informed the writer that Gessler had passed away due to starvation. This happened due to his inability to cope up with the fast paced modern way of life. As he took quite sometime in preparing boots, no one bothered to give him orders. He never made any advertisement. He used the best leather. He never gave himself any time to eat. Finally, no one praised his art, as art is not everything for life. Finally, there was no option left for him but to die. He was a character, who believed in really good quality of boots.

Word-MeaningsGuttural sound – Harsh and grating sound; Murmer – Speak softly; Awfully – Very much; Id is an ardt – It is an art; Terribly – Greatly; Essence – Gist; Whence – Where from; Apron – Loose garment; Awakened – Got up; Wand dem – Want them; Conveniently – At ease; Fordnight – Fortnight, a period of 15 days; Brudder – Brother; Creaked – Made a sound; Statement – A definite or clear expressions of something in speech or writing; Id shouldn’d have greaked – It shouldn’t have creaked; God, dem – Got them; Dey – They; Demselves – Themselves; Hanting for – Trying to recall; Mentioned – Said about, referred to; Zend dem – Send them; Zome boots – Some boots; Birdt – Birth; Noding – Nothing; Absent-mindedly – Thoughtlessly; Fenetrating – Passing through; Dose – Those; Id ‘urds’ you dere – It hurts you there; Verms – Firms; Given away – Broken; Lofe – Love; Bresently – At present; Ill-omened – Unlucky; Impression – Print; Handling – Controlling; Breddy – Pretty; Brudder – Brother; Wan – Withered, looking pale; Wear out – To make useless by long or hard usage; Abroad – Out of the country; Pinched – Thin; Worn – Old; Genuinely – Really; Zlack – Slack, not busy; Given up – Forgotten; Flew – Went hostily; Splendidly – Beautifully; Expect – Hope; Flowery – Emotional; By-street – A side street off the main thorough fore; Awfully – Boldly; Omen – An event regarded as a portent of bad on evil; Penniless – Used to denote no money at all

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Chapter - 6 : Expert Detectives —Sharada Dwivedi

Let’s ReviseThis is an exciting story about two detectives in the making, with a talent for spotting evidence, more imaginary than real. Nishad and Maya are two children who represent a special dimension of the children’s world of curiosity and creativity.

Nishad, a boy of seven and his ten-year old sister Maya were playing one day and their marble rolled into Mr. Nath’s room, who was a patient of their mother. Nishad had the occasion of seeing Mr. Nath. The children thought him to be a suspicious character. They felt that the man was a crook and had earned his money wrongly. They wanted to know why Mr. Nath was so thin and lonely. May be because he was afraid of being handed over to the cops. According to Nishad he looked simple, ordinary, possibly not a crook. The man was an ordinary patient of their doctor mother. At times, they thought him to be really poor and innocent.


The patient was only visited by one man and that too, on Sundays only. Mr. Nath was served tea and lunch by a boy called Ramesh. Nishad and Maya had their own reasons to believe that Mr. Nath was a crook. Whereas their mother knew that Mr. Nath was a very polite man. Children, unfortunately, found no clue. Maya prepared a list of things to confirm Mr. Nath’s character. There were many things which needed to be known like Mr. Nath’s first name, why the other tenants considered him mad, strange and unfriendly, why no one went to meet him, etc. The children had many doubts, inspite of Nishad having a positive attitude also. On the other hand, Maya strongly wished to find out the truth about Mr. Nath. Nishad wanted to befriend him to clarify the fact, but Maya stopped him. The end of the story seems vague as the intention of Nishad is not clarified.

Word MeaningsStashed away – Hidden away, kept or laid aside for future ; Peek – Look quickly and secretively ; Crook – Criminal (informal), thief, wicked ; By appointment to – Officially chosen (by someone important) ; Alias – An alternate name, a false or assumed identity ; Accomplice – A helper in crime ; Retorted – Witty reply ; Accompanied – Go somewhere with ; Interrupted – Stop by saying or doing something hindering ; Stubbornly – Determined not to change one’s position, inflexible ; Sighed – Emit a long, deep, audible breath ; Housebreaker – Someone breaking into and entering another’s house ; Fury – Extreme strength in an action or a natural phenomenon ; Downpour – A heavy fall of rain ; Roaring – Flourishing ; Cupped – Formed into the curved shape of a cup ; Questioningly – An expression of inquiry that invites or calls for a reply ; Tenants – Renters, a person who pays rent for the use of a room ; Loot – A private property taken from an enemy in war ; Glared – Stare in an angry or fierce way ; On the run – Trying to escape from the police ; Probably – Perhaps ; Shoot-out – Exchange of fire ; Thrust – Threw ; Disappointed – Hopeless ; Patting – To touch gently several times with your hand as a sign of affection ; Detective – One who investigates secretly ; Roaring rolls of thunder – Thundering of clouds ; Mannerless – Having no manners ; Generous – Liberal ; Bothering – Take trouble ; Protested – Opposed ; Nasty bear – A large heavy mammal, especially belonging to a dog family ; Stubbornly – Firmly ; Cops – Police

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Chapter - 7 : The Invention of Vita-Wonk —Roald Dahl

Let’s ReviseIt is a very interesting story based on science fiction, depicting fantastic ideas. Mr. Willy Wonka was a scientist. He wanted to help mankind by making people look young. He invented an exotic potion called Wonka-Vite. It was very strong and effective, that the age of the people was reduced to minus and they started disappearing. One person even became 87 (–87). The poor fellow had to wait for 87 years to come back. Willy Wonka decided to invent a new thing to undo the harm. For this he had to make people old.

For this, he wanted to know what is the oldest living thing in the world ? Or what lives longer than anything else? His assistant Charlie named tree. But the question emerged which tree ? It was certainly not the fir, oak or cedar. It was a tree called Bristlecone that grew in Nevada, USA. Such trees were 4000 years old. Wonka got into his great glass Elevator and rushed all over the world.

He made a list of things he needed like—Whiskers of ancient cats, teeth of old animals, tail of a 51-years-old horse, etc. He tracked down very old animals and took a bit of something from each one of them. In the end he boiled and mixed everything and tested the products in his inventing room. He produced a oily black liquid from these things. He produced one tiny scoopful of black liquid and gave four drops to a brave twenty-year-old boy, Oompa-Loompa to see what happened.

“What was the result” ? Charlie asked.

Mr. Wonka said that the effect of the medicine was swift and fantastic. The moment that young man gulped down those drops he began growing old and wrinkled. His hair dropped off and his teeth also started falling out. In an instant, the twenty year old boy became an old man of seventy-five. In this way a new potion of ‘Vita-Wonk’ was invented by Mr. Willy Wonka.

Word MeaningsFir – A tree with needle-like leaves and cones ; Oak – A family of large trees with a hard wood. Te Chinar in Kashmir is a kind of an oak tree ; Cedar – An evergreen tree with hard, red, sweet-smelling wood used for making boxes, Pencils, fences etc. ; Pine – An evergreen tree with needle-shaped leaves and cones ; Flea – A small insect living on the skin of animals, for their blood ; Fantastic – Fanciful ; Shrivelling – Wrinkle or contract ; Volunteer – One who works on his own will ; Rolled up my sleeves – To prepare for hard work/get ready ; Crumpets – A thick fat savoury cake with a soft


porous texture ; Grimalkin – A cat ; Knucklebones – A bone corresponding to a knuckle ; Cattaloo – Blend of cattle and buffalo ; Bobolink – A North-American bird that can sing ; Curlicue – A decorative curl ; Stinging – Wound or piercing a wound/hurting ; Slug – A tough-skinned terrestrial insect ; Swallowed – Cause or allow to pass down the throat ; Dendrochronologist – A specialist who studies the annual rings of trees to know the exact age ; Clippings – Small pieces ; Venomous – Poisonous ; Spit – Throw out from the mouth.

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Chapter - 8 : Fire Friend and Foe —Roald Dahe

Let’s ReviseThe people in the early stage did not know about fire but they had seen the destruction caused by it. Long before they learn the uses of fire, they had seen the lightning and volcanoes. Thus, they had become afraid of it as they thought it to be powerful and dangerous.

What is fire ? How does it break out ? Simple, fire is the result of a chemical reaction. Carbon and hydrogen comprise the fuel. When oxygen, carbon and hydrogen combine together, a reaction takes place. But heat is needed for the fuel to catch fire.

Fire is produced by three things– fuel, oxygen and heat. Which are the most common fuels ? The most common fuels are good coal, cooking gas and petrol. When we mildly blow burning paper, it bursts into flames but fuel and oxygen do not catch fire by themselves. A lighted match provides heat. The flash point or kindling temperature of the fuel is the particular temperature at which the fuel begins to burn. Fire is known as a good servant but it is also known as a very cruel master. As long as it is under control, fire is useful. Fire is used in various forms for a variety of purposes like cooking food, warming our houses, producing electricity, etc. Uncontrolled fire causes a lot of destruction like burning homes, forests, killing people, etc.

Fire can be put out by three ways. The first way is, if fuel is taken away, no burning can take place. The second way is, putting out the fire so as to stop the supply of oxygen. Small fires are even stopped by throwing wet blankets on it as this checks the oxygen supply. Carbon dioxide is also sprayed to cut off oxygen supply. The third method is, remove heat or bring down the temperature.

Water spray cannot put out a fire caused by oil. On the contrary, water spray would prove to be dangerous if used at the fire. The water would carry the burning oil with it and hence spread the fire. Similarly, water should not be used in an electric fire as it may cause electric shocks.

Today, every town has its own fire-fighting squads. In earlier times, people used to form chains to carry water from tanks to the house that was on fire. But today, firemen are highly trained to provide assistance during fire disasters. Inspite of the harms caused by it, fire plays a very important role in our lives. Its discovery has lead us to a leading settled life. In fact, fire is worshipped till now in many parts of the world.

Word MeaningsSmouldering – Burning slowly with flame ; Add fuel to the flames (idiom) – Say or do something that makes people react more strongly and fiercely ; Smothered – Suffocated (from lack of air), put out ; Extinguish – Put out, Control ; Cope with – Deal with, manage ; Frightened – Scared, afraid ; Damaged – Getting hurt, ruin, harm, destruction ; Bursts – Explodes ; Particular – Special, definite ; Flash Point – A point at which flames appear ; Kindling temperature – Burning point of temperature ; Instance – Example ; Blow – To give air ; Float – Come up on the surface ; Extinguisher – Something that puts out the fire ; Blaze – Flame of fire ; Observance – Following ; Norms – Rules ; Brigade – Team ; First aid – Primary care ; Gradually – By and by ; Settled – Established ; Combines – Joins together ; Firemen/Firefighter – A person trained to put out fire ; Settled mode – Certain

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Chapter - 9 : A Bicycle in Good Repair —Jerome K. Jerome

Let’s ReviseThe common man’s car is a bicycle as it is the cheapest mode of conveyance and transport. But it needs to be kept in proper working order.

Once, the narrator’s friend suggested to go for a long ride on the bicycle and the narrator agreed to it. They decided to go on a lovely day but on the decided day, his friend arrived late. His friend then examined the bicycle, lifted its front wheel and shook it hard and then finally declared that the bicycle’s front wheel moved from side to side. The narrator did not have any faith in his friend’s actions and comments, but he did not have the strength to oppose his friend. The narrator’s friend even said that his bicycle was a defective one and he asked for a hammer to repair it.

By the time the author returned with the needed tools, his friend had already taken out the bicycle’s wheel and the rest of the bicycle’s parts lay on the path. Then the man’s attention went to the bearings and all the protests of the narrator fell on deaf ears and he let out many tiny balls on the path. Both the men took about half an hour just to find one of those balls and so finally when they recovered it, the narrator kept all those balls in his hat at the doorstep, to keep them safely.

His friend then started tackling the bicycle’s chain, and either made it too tight or too loose. Then he turned his attention towards the gear box. As soon as he opened the box, he lost the screws. The narrator felt helpless when all this mischief was going on and thus, he let his friend have his own way.

When it was a time to get the front wheel back between the fork, because of a sort of regular warfare, then suddenly the man became aware of the fact that he had forgotten to put the balls which were rolling in the middle of the path. The narrator’s friend was of such a good and cheerful nature that he started laughing. He then put lesser balls in the front wheel and thus it started wobbling more than ever and so started refixing it again with the gear box.

The bicycle had a will of its own and it had enough mischief for the day. It refused to cooperate with the man who was bullying it. Then there was a regular fight between the machine and the man. The man struggled with the bicycle until according to him the work was completed, and he started looking tired and dirty and was bleeding. Thus, the narrator took him to the back of the kitchen to clean himself.

Word MeaningsWhacking – Beating, striking, giving hard blows ; Wobble – Move unsteadily from side to side/shake ; Twiddling – Turning ; Remnant – Remaining parts ; Grovelled – Crawled on ground/searched ; Ravages – Damages ; Lunatic – Mad person ; Muddle on – Mix up things/play badly ; Topsy turvy – Upside down, chaotic ; Inexplicable – That can’t be explained, mysterious ; Degenerated into – Were reduced to/grew worse ; Dishevelled – Disordered/messy/untidy ; Iunatic – Mad ; Stiffly – Hard/with difficulty ; Besides – In addition to ; Get off – Start ; Gravel – Small stones ; Confess – Admit/accept ; Solemnly – In a serious tone ; Unscrewed – Unfastened the screw, open ; Whisper – Tell in low voice ; Mischief – Harm ; Gave up – Left ; Knack – Habit/talent/still ; Turning up – Found out ; Tightened – Close fitted ; Loosened – Made loose ; At length – At last ; Position – Condition ; Rough and tumble – A situation without rules or regulation ; Trust to – Have faith in ; Fascinates – Surprises, attracts ; Encourage – Give support, confidence, or hope to (someone) ; Refix – Put in position again ; Subsequent – Next ; Proceedings – Events, actions ; Sharply – Painfully ; Bleeding – With blood oozing out ; Punishment – An infliction of a penalty as retribution for an offence ; Scruff of the neck – Back to the neck ; Providence – Fate, luck ; Slid – Slide ; Bullying – Harassment

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Chapter - 10 : The Story of Cricket —Ramachandra Guha

Let’s ReviseAs a game, cricket got its recognition by the seventeenth century but it’s history dates back about five hundred years ago in England. Right from the seventeenth century, many changes have taken place in cricket. Initially, there were only five day games called test matches. The usually specified length of the pitch is twenty two yards but the shape and size of the ground is not specific.


In 1744, the first written laws of cricket were introduced which provided many norms for the game. To decide the disputes, provisions for two umpires were made. The size of the stumps, weight of the ball and the distance between the two stumps were fixed. In the 1760s, the first cricket club was formed in Hambledone and in 1887, the Marylebone Cricket Club was formed. To make the game more convenient and protective, many new definitions were introduced. After 1848, pads, gloves and helmets came into use.The place of origin of cricket in India is Mumbai (then Bombay). The first community to play cricket were the Parsis. The first Indian cricket club was founded by them in Bombay in 1848 which was known as Oriented Cricket Club. The prominent initiators were the Tatas and Wadias.There are many forms in modern cricket such as test matches, one day international, etc. In 1932, India entered the world of test cricket. Many countries like England, Australia, West-Indies, etc. also started taking part in test matches.The most prominent role in popularizing cricket, even in the rural areas, was played by the television. A global market for cricket was created by the satellite television and multinational T.V. channels. South-Asia became the centre of gravity of cricket because India had the largest viewship. Dubai became the headquarter of the ICC, instead of London.About hundred and fifty years back, the Indian cricketers had to fight and struggle to find an open space to play and practice. But today, in the global market, the Indian players are the best paid and most famous cricketers. And the most important factor behind this is globalization.

Word MeaningsDimensions – Length, breadth etc. ; Codified – Standardised with rules and regulations ; Deception through the air – The ball is no longer rolled along the ground bat sent through the air. Hence the possible variety or ‘deception’ in bowling ; Compatriots – Fellow countrymen ; Intellectual – Knowledgeable person, scholar ; Rivalry – Enmity ; Decade – A period of ten years ; Imitating – To cope, mimick ; Evolved – Develop, progress step by step ; Recognisable – Familiar, identifiable ; Peculiarities – Oddness ; Pitch – Playing field ; Vulcanised – Hardened rubber ; Unimaginable – Not able to imagine ; Enthusiastic – Excited, eager ; Prejudiced – Under favour, biased ; Statesman – A skilled, experienced and respected political leader ; Contemporaries – Belonging to the same time ; Sovereign – An independent nation ; Caribbean – It is a region that consists of the Caribbean Sea ; Amateur – Part-time, unpaid, non-professional; Curving – Bent ; Making contact – Hitting the ball ; Oddities – Strange features ; Umpires – Refrees ; Pace – Speed ; Protective – Safe guarding; Founded – Set up ; Funded – Financed ; Sponsored – Provide Funds for an activity ; Elite – Upper class people ; Dominated – Controlled, ruled ; Contests – Matches, competition ; Coverage – Telecast ; Expanded – Enlarged; Audience – Viewers ; Satellite – An electronic device that is sent into space and moves around the earth or another planet ; Centre of Gravity – Centre of attraction ; Symbolised – Indicated ; Overshadowed – Proved better, exceeded

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Poetry

Chapter - 1 : The Squirrel—Mildred Bowers Armstrong

Let’s Revise The Poet’s imagination about the appearance and physical features of the squirrel is narrated in a simple but exquisite manner.

The stanza begins with a physical description of the squirrel. The squirrel is grey coloured and therefore the poet says, that he wears “an overcoat of gray”. His tail is twisted like a question mark. Further, the poet describes the food that the squirrel enjoys. He loves to eat nuts. The poet loves the game of hide and seek between him and the squirrel. If he went too close to the squirrel, it would run and hide in the other direction.

Word MeaningsOvercoat – A long warm coat ; Tease– To make fun of, bully/irritate ; Wore – Put on ; Question mark – Mark of question(?); Interrogation – Question ; Other way – Opposite direction.

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Chapter - 2 : The Rebel—D. J. Enright

Let’s ReviseThe poem perfectly matches the title of the poem. The poet narrates in a very simple language, the adverse nature of a rebel. It consists of 15 couplets.The rebel is a person who goes against set rules and laws. He does not like to follow them. The poet says that when everyone has short hair, a rebel would let his hair grow long. And when everyone has long hair a rebel would cut his hair short.The poet further tells us that when everyone in the class is talking and interacting with each other, the rebel would sit absolutely quiet and when everyone is sitting quietly, the rebel would create a lot of disturbance in the class.Similarly, when everyone comes to school in uniform, the rebel would wear some fancy, colourful clothes. And when everyone is playfully and colourfully dressed, the rebel would dress up very soberly.As expected from a rebel, when he is in the company of dog lovers he would say he prefers cat and when he is with cat lovers he would express his love for dogs by praising them.When everyone around him is praising and appreciating the sun, the rebel would talk about the need and importance of rain. If everyone around him is happy with rain, he would feel sad that there is no sun.If everyone is going for a meeting in the presence of others, the rebel would stay at home and prefer to read a book and study. And when all are staying at home he would go out and meet people and not study.True to his name when everyone agrees to take something he would refuse or say no and when all refuse, a rebel would say yes and ask for more.The poet feels that it is good to love rebels but no one would like to be a rebel herself/himself.The poet comprises in a couplets that in our society we do have rebels but they are not suitable or able to adjust with everyone. One should be flexible and easily accessible in one’s temperament and behaviour towards others.

Word MeaningsSoberly – Dull, not bright/in a simple manner ; Preference – A liking for ; Short hair – Closely cropped ; Rebel – A person who goes against established rules ; During – Throughout the course or duration ; Disturbance – The interruption to a set and peaceful condition ; Uniform – Prescribed dress ; Fantastic – Odd, strange ; Praising – Speaking nicely about; Greet – Welcome ; Regrets – Feels sorry ; Yes, please – Agrees/answers in the affirmative

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Chapter - 3 : The Shed—Frank Flynn

Let’s ReviseThe shed is a small room for storing things. The poet tells us that at one end of the garden in this house there is a shed. It is not used regularly as the door is closed and there is a cobweb hanging at the door. The hinges of the door have become rusty and when the door shakes because of the wind, there is a creaking sound. The poet hears this sound while lying in the bed. He plans to open the door one day and see what is there inside it.

The poet tells us that at the side of the shed there is an old window covered with dust. There are three panes of glass in the window which are cracked. The poet always feels that there is someone inside who is looking through the window whenever he goes through that way. The poet states that one day he would peep through the window.

The poet tells us that his brother says that there is a ghost inside the shed who hides under the rotten floorboards. And if the poet ever went in, he would jump and chop off his head. Still the poet feels that one day he would peep inside and see who is there.

The poet says that in reality there is no ghost in the shed and his brother has told him these lies only to keep the shed as his own hiding place. He says that nobody is looking out of the window and nobody is making noise. Even the spider has gone away from the web. He decides once again to walk into the shed but there is no hurry to implement this plan at the moment.


Word MeaningsOld – Ancient ; Web – Spider’s web ; Hinges – Joints ; Panes – A sheet of glass ; Listen – Hear ; Peep – Peek ; Rotten – In a state of decay ; Shed – A small covered space for dumping goods, keeping, cattle, vehicles ; Bottom – Lower part ; Spider’s web – Cobweb ; Rusty – Old and covered in rust ; Creak – Make a sharp sound ; Dusty – Covered with dust; Cracked – Broken ; Often – Generally ; Staring – Looking through ; Ghost – Spirit ; Hides – A covered place ; Chop off – Cut, behead ; Den – A place to hide ; Staring – Looking hard ; Sponge – Queer

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Chapter - 4 : Chivvy—Michael Rosen

Let’s Revise‘Chivvy’ means urging someone continuously to do something. Generally grown-ups have the habit to keep telling children what to do or what not to do, so that they can learn good manners. They tell children not to speak when there is food in their mouth. They tell children not to stare at others or point fingers at them. They even tell them not to pick i.e., clean their nose. Usually children don’t like their instructions.

The children are also told to sit straight and say please. They are even told to be less noisy and shut the door when they leave the room. The grown ups tell the children not to drag their feet and keep a hanky with them. They tell children to keep their hands out of their pockets.

The grown ups tell the children to pull up their socks and to stand up straight. They tell the children to say thank you and not to interrupt when others are speaking. They tell children not to keep their elbows on the table. They teach children how to behave in a cultured manner yet at the same time they want them to learn to think independently.

Word MeaningsGrown-ups – Elder people ; With your mouth full – While eating ; Stare – Look fixedly ; Point – Indicate towards anything ; Pick your nose – Clean your nose ; Drag – Trail on the ground ; Hankie – Handkerchief ; Socks – Stockings; Straight – Upright ; Interrupt – In between ; Funny – Humorous ; Off – Away ; Make up your mind – Take a decision ; Shut – Close ; Elbows – Point where our hand bends

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Chapter - 5 : Trees—Shirley Bauer

Let’s ReviseThis poem is in praise of trees. The trees are man’s best friend. Trees are for birds. The trees are for children also. They give us wood to make houses and swings. It is because of the trees that wind blows through. The trees are meant for children to play hide and seek. The grown ups also enjoy their tea parties under their shade.Kites also get entangled in trees. It gives us cool shade in summers but not in winters. The tree even gives us fruits like apples and pear. When the tree is cut, its wood is called timber which is very useful. To man, mother find trees very good to make a painting whereas fathers feel that there are a lot of leaves to gather in autumn.

Word MeaningsGrow – To become larger ; Tree houses – Small shelters over trees ; Swing – To move forward and backward ; Hide – To put where it cannot be seen ; Hide and seek – A game of children ; Blow – Rush ; Lovely – Attractive ; Shade – Cool and dark under a tree ; Pears – Fruit ; Chop down – To-cut ; Rake – Gather ; Fall – Autumn season ; Timber – Wood used for furniture

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Chapter - 6 : Mystery of the Talking Fan—Maude Rubin

Let’s ReviseThe poet is telling us about an electric fan that made a lot of noise. The poet says that he couldn’t understand why there was so much noise or what the fan was trying to say. One day an electrician came and put oil in the noisy motor of the fan. After that, the movement of the fan became smooth and silent. The mystery of why the fan was talking got solved.

Word MeaningsOnce – One-time only ; Talking – Speaking, producing sound ; Electrical – Concerning electricity ; Chatter – To murmur; Whirling – Rotating ; Mystery – Secret ; Spoiled – Ended ; Still – Noiseless, quiet ; Quite – Completely ; Hear – Listen; Doesn’t matter – Not an issue ; As water – As quiet as water

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Chapter - 7 : Dad and the Cat and the Tree—Kit Wright

Let’s ReviseThe poet is talking about one morning when a cat climbed a tree too high and got stuck there. It couldn’t get down without help and dad was ready to help it. It was a tall tree which was shaky and when mother tried to warn him to be careful he just didn’t listen to her. He told her that, to climb the tree and bring a cat down was an easy job for a great climber like him.Dad brought a ladder from the garden shed. The ladder was not steady and it slipped and the father fell in the flower bed. It also did not led the dad to stop. He just got ready again by brushing off the dirt from his trousers, shirt and face. He informed mother that he had a plan B and wanted mother to stand out of the way. Mother just told him to be careful. He rather thought that this was a joke and he swing himself up on a branch and the branch gave way.Dad fell down again and mother told father not to do it again or he would break his neck. Dad also brushed this aside and winking at me he said he had a plan C. This time he climbed up the garden wall and did not fall. He jumped from the wall and landed on the bend in the tree right on top of the cat.The cat gave out a yell and jumped on the ground. It did not even get injured whereas dad was still stuck up on the tree.

Word MeaningsScoffed – Ridicule ; Winking – To blink with one eye ; Yell – To shout ; Sprang – To jump or release ; Smirking – Crooked smile ; Guess – Imagine ; Leap – To jump ; Landed – Fell ; Crook – Bend ; Trunk – Stem ; Right – Exactly ; Yell – Cry ; Pleased as punch – Very happy ; Smug – Self-satisfied ; Stuck up – Trapped ; Stuck – Trapped ; Right – Unsteady ; For goodness’sake – In the name of God ; Child’s play – Easy work ; Ladder – Staircase ; Shed – Storehouse ; Slipped – Slid ; Landed – Dropped, fell ; Bed – An area on ground in garden for growing flowers ; Brushing of – Shaking off ; Out of the way – Far from a town or city ; Funny – Interesting ; Swung up – Jumped or clamped ; Wallop – To hit something hard ; Deck – Floor ; Rubbish – Nonsense qq

Chapter - 8 : Meadow Surprises—Lois Braindt Phillips

Let’s ReviseA meadow is a green field which can hold many surprises for us. The beauty of such a place can be seen by only those people who have a very keen eye and sharp ears.The poet advises us to walk very softly through the green grass and to try to enjoy the music of the stream flowing by. He also tells us to see the butterfly resting upon a flower and sipping its juice. The poet also say that it is possible that we may frighten a rabbit and make it run away. One can also blow a dandelion flower and let its fluffy parts fly in the air.The poet says that green fields have houses like burrows in the ground or bird’s nest or ant hills under the tall grasses. The poet also emphasis upon the fact that all this can be seen only by those people who look for it kindly or when we lend our ears to them.


Word MeaningsButterfly – A coloured insect ; Meadows – Grasslands ; Velvet – Soft ; Brook – Small stream ; Unfold – Open up ; Drinking straws – The hollow dry-sticks ; Sip – Drink ; Nectar – Divine drink, Elixir ; Scare – Frighten ; Rabbit – Hare; Still – With no movement ; Hops – Jumping on one foot ; Dandelion – A common yellow flower ; Parachutes – A device like an umbrella used by airmen ; Explore – Discover ; Burrows – Holes in the earth ; Amazing – Surprising ; Mound – Pile of earth

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Chapter - 9 : Garden Snake—Muriel Sonne

Let’s ReviseThe poet says that he saw a snake and ran away as he was frightened. He had heard people saying that some snakes are dangerous but his mother said that garden snakes are harmless. They ate insects. She told him to stand aside and make way for the garden snake to pass. She also said that there was no need to tremble with fear or run away.

Word MeaningsEats up – Gobbles ; Garden snake – A snake living in the garden ; Ran away – Left fast ; Dangerous – Harmful ; Insects – Worms ; Wiggles – Move from side to side ; Aside – On one side ; Watch – See ; Harmless – Gentle ; They say – People are of the opinion

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An Alien Hand

Chapter - 1 : The Tiny Teacher

Let’s ReviseOne of the smallest animals that we have seen is the ant. Though small it is a very hard working and intelligent animal. It is wiser than any fly or earthworm. In fact the story of an ant life sounds almost untrue. The behaviour of an ant infact teaches us a lot. An ant can be black or red. They live very comfortably in large and high homes called ‘nests’ or ‘ant hills’. In each home there are hundreds of room and paths. The queen ant lays eggs in some of these rooms. The young ones are called ‘grubs’ and are kept in the other room used as nurseries. There are separate rooms for workers and soldiers. Some rooms are used as a storehouse. They live in peace and work intelligently and bravely.The head of the family is the queen ant, whose life is about 15 years. It has a pair of wings which it bites off after its wedding flight and after that it only lays eggs.The grubs come out when the eggs hatch. The workers clean and feed them. They are carried about for airing and sun bath daily. In a couple of weeks the grubs become cocoons which break after about three weeks. From this, perfect ants appear which have to be trained to do their duties. The ants talk to other ants through their feelers as they pass on messages through them.In an ant hill, ants do not live alone but some other creatures like beetles and green fly also live there. Some of these give of a sweet smell while some give sweet juices. The green fly gives them milk.From this small teacher, a lot can be learnt by the human beings. We can learn hard work, sense of duty, discipline, cleanliness, loyalty and care for the young ones from the ants.

Word MeaningsUnbelievably – Cannot be believed ; Intelligent – Full of wisdom ; Various – Many ; Ant hill – Ant house ; Surface – Upper layer ; Tiny – Small ; Feeler – Touch organs ; Greets – Welcome ; Grubs – Young ones ; Barracks – Living place for soldiers ; Caste off – Shed ; Bring forth – Present ; Seldom – Sometimes ; Bite them off – Cast them off ; Drone – Big ant ; Hatch – To breed ; Discipline – Order ; Loyalty – Faithfulness

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Chapter - 2 : Bringing up Kari

—Dhan Gopal Mukerji

Let’s ReviseThe narrator, a nine-year-old-child took care of Kari, a five-month-old elephant. The elephant grew tall, fast and lived in a shed with a straws-roof.Kari had even once saved the life of a boy when he was drowning in the river. He ate 40 pounds of twigs in a day. Every morning the boy took him to the river for a bath where his body was rubbed with ash sand for an hour. Kari also liked to roll in water for a long time. He was led by the ear to the border of the jungle where he liked to eat the tasty and wet smelling leaves of the banyan tree.On a spring day in March, the narrator heard the call of Kari and went to the river bank. There he saw some creature who was trying to save itself from drowning. Kari pushed the narrator into the water to save the boy while Kari stood on the bank for help. When Kari saw the narrator being carried away by the current, he ran into the water. He spread out his trunk around the boy’s neck and pulled both of them back to bank.Kari was like a small child who was naughty and had to be trained to be good. Once, he got some bananas to eat from someone and developed a liking for them. He started taking fruit from the table and one day all the bananas disappeared from the table. The narrator and the servants were blamed to have eaten them as he could not convince his family that he was innocent. Then narrator, one day saw Kari picking up the fruits with its trunks, through the window and then eating it. He pulled him by the ear and took him to his parents. He was scolded for it and then Kari never stole anything again as he accepted the punishment for his mischief quietly.Dhat was a signal to sit down and Mali meant to walk. Kari was a quick learner and in three weeks he had learnt what to do when narrator say Dhat or Mali. Kari took almost five years to learn the master call which is a strange hissing and howling sound as if a snake and a tiger are fighting with each other. It was necessary for Kari to learn such a sound because if someone got lost, the only thing to do there was to give the master call and he would instantly come to help.

Word MeaningsKeeper – One who keeps; Twigs – Branch; Sensitive – One who feels; Tiptoe – Tip of the toe; Thatched – Made up of straws; Nevertheless – Although; Ebony – A kind of black wood; Squeal – Cry; Hatchet saw – Small axe; Luscious – Juicy; Mutilated – Destroyed, torn; Saplings – Tiny plants; Cathedral – Tube; Trumpet – Cry of an elephant; Planted – Holding strongly; Dragging – Pulling; Drift – Take away; Ponderous – Thoughtful; Lasso – Noose; Ripe – Prepared; Chiding – Scolding; Blamed – Accused; Smashed – Turned into pulp; Frightened – Scared; Sneak – Enter without noise; Astonishment – Amazement; Strewn – Scattered; Whipped – Strike with stick; Squealed – Cried; Gradually – Slowly; Ladder – Stair.

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Chapter - 3 : The Desert

Let’s Revise A place without water and vegetation is generally called a desert. It is popularly believed that it is an area of endless sand with no greenery, an area which is dry, hot and without shade. This is a wrongly held belief because it can be a beautiful place which is a home to many people, animals and plants. Even the desert blooms with flowers when it rains in the desert.A desert is not just a sandy wetland but it can have many mountains and even a green land called an oasis. An oasis develops around a spring or a well. A desert can be hot like Thar or cool like Ladakh. Mounts of sand are called sand dunes which are blown about by strong winds.Water is required by all living things including plants and animals but desert creatures and plants need less water. The camels, is one such animal which can go on for days without water because it sweats very little. The camels can tolerate high body temperatures as well.Even small desert plants can store water in their thick stems like that of cactus. They can even absorb water from light rains.A common feature of all deserts is dryness and variation in temperature. As there is no moisture in the air, the deserts heat up rapidly during the day and cool off rapidly at night.Desert are a pair of nature’s plan and they have their own importance so they should not be called useless.


Word MeaningsPatch – Sport, piece ; Vast – Expanded ; Stretch – Chain ; Shelter – Cover ; Bloom – Flourish ; Wasteland – Useless land; Oasis – Green patch in the midst of desert ; Island – Piece of land surrounded by water from all side ; Blows – Sweeps; Heaps – Mounds ; Typical – Special ; Borrow – Going underground ; Adopt – Change ; Absorb – Take in completely ; Rapidly – Quickly ; Variations – Changes ; Dense – Thick

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Chapter - 4 : The Cop and the Anthem—O. Henry

Let’s ReviseSoapy, a young man, had left his parents and become a vagabond. He spent all his days in Madison Square alone which was all right in summer as he made his bed warm with three newspapers. There were many others like him living there.One day he started feeling uneasy that what would happen in winter which was now approaching. The park bench felt cold and he needed a cozy place. He never thought of going to warmer places outside the country. He just needed three months in the prison on Blackwell’s Island. He was sure of getting food and a bed once there every night. There he would be safe from the cold wind and also from the fear of the police. During winter he had been to the prison a number of times.Hence, he decided to go to prison somehow because if he went to some other place he would have to pay for his room and meals. Prison was a better option as he would be his own master and at some other place he might have to wash their clothes or answer personal questions.Soapy decided upon an easy way to reach the prison and that was to go and eat at a restaurant. After his meal if he told them that he had no money they would call a cop to arrest him. The next morning the judge would send him to jail. Since, his face was clean and his coat was ok he went to a restaurant but the waiters blocked his entry.Then he went to shop with a glass window and threw a big stone through the glass. A cop reached but he did not think that Soapy had done it because he had not tried to run away. Instead the cop ran after another man whom he saw running. Soapy was shocked that he had failed twice.He went to another restaurant and ate a huge meal. After finishing he said he had no money to pay, so he was thrown out instead of being given to the police. His dream of going to the jail was again shattered.Next, he began shouting and dancing on the street as if he had drunk too much. The cop ignored him, thinking that he was a noisy college boy.After that he stole a man’s umbrella from outside a shop door. The man followed him a while but gave up as he himself was carrying a stolen umbrella.Finally, he came to a quiet street and stopped outside his childhood home. There was a sudden change of heart and he felt sorry for wasting his life in such a manner. He decided that he would pull himself out of the dirt in which he was and will get a job. At that moment a cop came and arrested him for hanging around. Soapy was sent to Blackwell’s prison for three months by the judge, the next day.

Word MeaningsIrony – Direct opposite of ; Embarrassing – Feeling ashamed ; Decision – Judgement ; Cop – Policeman ; Purpose – Aim, goal ; Spirit – Soul ; Proud – Having pride ; Trick – A clever way of doing something ; Law – Rule of (government) ; Vain – Meaningless, useless ; Pleasant – Giving happiness or satisfaction ; Hurried away – Moving away quickly ; Street – Road in a town or village ; Arrest – To catch legally (done by police) ; Hanging around – Moving here and there doing nothing; Argue – Debate ; Island – A landmass surrounded by water ; Moments – Brief (short) period of time ; Worthless – Of no value ; Turning back – Ignoring ; Realise – Feel, understand ; Bay – Part of the see enclosed by a wide curve of coast

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Chapter - 5 : Golu Grows a Nose—Rudyard Kipling

Let’s ReviseThere was a time when elephants did not have a trunk. Golu, a baby elephant, only had a bulgy nose. He could only move it from side to side but could not use it to pick up things.He had a lot of questions to ask. He asked his aunt Ostrich why he didn’t fly like other birds or his tall uncle Giraffe why his skin had spots. He asked the Hippopotamus why he had red eyes. He asked the Monkey why melons tasted like melons.


One day Golu went to the Mynah bird and asked what Crocodiles have for dinner. The bird sent him to the Limpopo river to find out. He took a lot of sugar canes, bananas and melons with him and went to the river. He met a Python there from whom he got no reply when he put up his question. Golu moved towards the river bank where he saw a log of wood which was infact the cunning Crocodile. The Crocodile said that he would give the reply to the questions which Golu asked in his ear. When Golu went near him he caught him by the nose and told him that he would eat the Elephant that day. The crocodile started dragging the Elephant into the stream.When Golu cried for help, the Python came coiled itself around Golu’s stomach and they both pulled over very hard. At each pull, Golu’s nose grew longer and finally he was free.His nose grew cool in two days but it did not shrink. Infact it turned into a trunk which proved to be very advantageous. First Golu hit a stinging fly dead with it and then plucked some grass and put it into his mouth. Infact it even helped him to dig up some mud and throw on his head. He was very thankful to the Python for its help.

Word MeaningsBulgy – Irregular swelling ; Wiggle – Moving from side to side ; Politely – Gently ; Wink – Close and open one eye quickly; Crocodile tears – Insincere sorrow ; Afraid – Frightened ; Whisper – To speak in a very low tone, to tell privately or secretly ; Snout – Projecting nose ; Scream – Cry out in loud voice ; Haunches – Hips ; Sweep – Push away; Advantage – Something useful ; Pluck – Pulling sharply ; Stuffed – Ate excessively

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Chapter - 6 : I Want Something in a Cage—L. E. Greeve

Let’s ReviseMr. Purcell owned a pet shop and cats and dogs and monkeys. He even sold fish food and bird seeds. He kept the birds and other small creatures closed in cages and they moved about like mad in circles, making a lot of noise. Mr. Purcell was used to that.Mr. Purcell would sit on a high stool behind the counter each morning and read the morning paper, sitting or frowning along with it. It was a rough day and a wind was blowing. There was a bell at the door which rang when a customer came. That morning it didn’t ring but a stranger came and stood in front of the owner.The man had short hair cut and was wearing a cheap ill fitted suit. He was looking all around at the cages as he said he wanted something in a cage-may be something small. He pointed to a cage with two white doves and Purcell demanded five dollars and fifty cents. The man was sad because he wanted those birds but he had only five dollars. Purcell agreed and handed over the cage to him. The man asked Purcell if he was not disturbed by all the noise that the birds made but Purcell did not notice the noise.The man told that he had gained those five dollars after ten years of hard labour in the prison at the rate of fifty cents a year. Then he walked out of the store and just outside he held the cage and set the doves free one by one. After that he dropped the cage and walked away.Purcell was confused as to why the man had let the birds loose. He felt insulted because while he was robbing the pets of their freedom, the stranger had spent all his earning in buying and then liberating them.

Word MeaningsConstant – Not changing, regular ; Twittering – Chirping ; Strange – Unusual ; Lingered – Moved here and there ; Musty – Smell of old buildings ; Genial – Cheerful ; Rustling – Soft sound ; Squeals – High sustained cry ; Squeaks – Sharp cry ; Frantic – Wild with excitement, fear and pain ; Bewildered – Confused, puzzled ; Brisk – Active, lively ; Emphatic – Important ; Proprietor – Owner ; Smirk – Smile in an unfamiliar way ; Monotonous – Unchanging, dull; Nasty – Dirty, unpleasant ; Perplexity – Confusion ; Desperately – Recklessly ; Vaguely – Indistinctly, uncertainly ; Insane – Mad, senseless

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Chapter - 7 : Chandni—Zakir Hussain

Let’s ReviseAn old man called Abbu Khan lived alone in Almora. His only companions were his few pet goats. He gave them very funny names. He would take them out for grazing in day time and talked to them like one’s own children. At night he would put a string around the neck of each goat.

Abbu was unlucky as one by one his goats broke the string, freed themselves and disappeared into the hills as they loved their freedom. Though they ran away whenever they could but they were eaten by an old wolf who lived in the hills. Abbu was not only sad but was also puzzled, as to why inspite of all the good food and affection did his goats ran straight into the jaws of death. For them freedom meant struggle, hardship and even death.

Finally, when all the goats had left Abbu, he decided not to keep any goats as pets. But he felt very lonely so he bought a young goat with the hope that it would begin to love him and never want to go to the hills.

The young goat which Abbu got this time was white as snow and was very friendly so he called her Chandni. He narrated stories to her about friends and like this several years passed so Abbu thought that she would never leave him. But Chandni had a different plan. She found the hill tops very charming and hated the rope that tied her. She stopped eating the green leaves and lost her appetite. She refused to listen to Abbu’s stories and looked madly at the hills. Finally, she opened her heart to him and said that she would die if she was not allowed to go to the hills. Abbu warned her of the risk that was involved because of the dangerous wolf who would eat her up. But she was ready to face this danger and fight the wolf also.

When Abbu heard this he got very angry and pushed her into a small hut and shut the door. Still Chandni managed to escape through the small window that night.

When she reached the hill she felt welcomed. Infact it was the happiest day in her life as she was amused by the tall grass, the flowers and the wind. She wanted to enjoy her freedom alone and refused to join the group of wild goats also. When the sun set behind the hills, she heard a strange sound coming from the bushes. She realized that it was the grunt of the dangerous wolf and felt scared but decided to put a good fight.

When the wolf came near her and started staring at her greedily she was ready to fight like a brave soldier. The fight began and continued throughout the night. As day break, she lay bathed in blood ready to be eaten up by the wolf. A bird sitting on the top of the tree thought that the wolf had won the battle but a wise old bird firmly declared that Chandni was the winner.

Word MeaningsDisappear – Go out of sight, vanish ; Freedom – State of being free ; Breed – Kind or variety of an animal ; Unfortunate – Unlucky ; Hardship – Difficulties ; Struggle – Fight ; Mystery – Something hidden ; Gleaming – Shining ; Temperament – Natural behaviour ; Anguish – Severe suffering ; Interest – Concern ; Affection – Kind feeling, love ; Frankly – Openly; Obstinate – Stubborn ; Embrace – Accept ; Amuse – Make time pass pleasantly ; Devour – Eat greedily ; Assembly – Group of persons ; Treacherous – Unreliable

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Chapter - 8 : The Bear Story—Axel Munthe

Let’s ReviseA lady lived in her manor house with a pet bear at the border of a forest. She had found it in the forest, small and hungry and brought it up with the help of the old cook. Though the little creature grew up in size and strength but it remained gentle, friendly and obedient. He was well-known to the three ponies in the stable and the children loved to ride on his back. The three dogs also loved to play with him and tease him. He had never tasted meat and ate the same food as the dogs. Sometimes in autumn he climbed the trees and ate a few ripe apples. When he attacked the bee hives he was also punished at night and on Sunday he was put on a chain.On Sunday, the lady used to go to her sister’s house which was a good one hour walk through the forest. The bear was put on chain to be on the safer side. One Sunday, when she was half way through the forest, she saw the bear panting and coming at her in full speed. She got angry and since she was already late for lunch there was no time to take him


back. He was not ready to go back even when she threatened to hit him with her umbrella. He turned round and walked back when she actually hit him with her umbrella.When she returned in the evening she found him sitting in the same place. As she was still very angry she scolded him severely and threatened to chain him for two more days.At this moment the cook rushed out from the kitchen and told the mistress that the bear had been very meek and gentle the whole day and kept looking at the gate for her return.

Word MeaningsSlain – To kill, murder; Amiable – Kind-hearted; Amicably – Peacefully; Shaggy – Hairy; Shuffle – Walk without lifting the feet; Stump of a tail – Remaining part of a tail when rest has been lost; appetite – Hunger; Wistful – Feeling of regretful longley; Clumsy – Awkward; Ill-tempered – One who gets angry very soon; Menacing – Threatening; Cunning – Clever, skilful; Sniffing – To smell in short inhalations; Solitary – Lonely

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Chapter - 9 : A Tiger in the House—Ruskin Bond

Let’s ReviseGrandfather discovered Timothy, the tiger, in the Terai jungle. One day when he was going through the jungle with a hunting party he noticed a little tiger hiding under a banyan tree.He got it home and initially brought it up on milk alone. As it couldn’t digest it, it was given meat, pigeons and rabbits. Timothy‘s two companions in the house were– Toto, the monkey and a mischievous puppy who used to pull his tail. Initially the tiger was scared of the puppy but finally it allowed the dog to sit on its back.It enjoyed a lot to move silently and closer towards the narrator. It soon grew to the size of a hunting dog and people started keeping a safe distance from it on the road. Just like a cat, it had clean habits. At night it slept in the cook’s quarters.But as Timothy grew up, it became rather dangerous and infact grandmother declared that it would kill the cook one day. It had to be chained more often as it had started going after a cat or a pet dog. Grandfather decided to transfer it to the zoo and the zoo authorities received the well fed tiger gladly.The grandparents went to Lucknow after six months to meet some relatives. Grandfather had decided to meet Timothy and went straight to the cage where he had been kept. He said hello to him and put his hands around its head. He patted and tickled it and even hit it lightly when it growled. The leopard in the next cage growled at it and terrified it.One of the keepers asked grandfather what he was doing and he told him that he had gifted the tiger six months back. He was slapping and striking him lovingly and finally it was time for him to say goodbye to him. Another keeper was watching all this with alarm as he remembered that grandfather had bought a tiger to the zoo some time back. He told him that Timothy had died two months ago because of pneumonia. The tiger in that cage had been trapped only the previous month and was very dangerous. The tiger was still licking grandfather arm which he withdrew slowly from the cage and left silently from the zoo.

Word MeaningsStrolling – Leisurely walk ; Intricate – Complicated ; Absurd – Strange ; Dashes – Violent movements ; Ridiculously – Humourously ; Amusement – State of being pleased (amused) ; Pretending – Making excuse ; Dignity – Real worth; Snarling – Growling (sound) ; Delighted – Greatly pleased ; Stroke – Pass the hand again and again over a surface ; Slink – Go away stealthily ; Relish – To enjoy ; Scornful – Full of hatred ; Stalk – Approach qq

Chapter - 10 : An Alien Hand—Jayant Narlikar

Let’s ReviseThe Viking Mission to Mars was sent with the chief objective to get pictures and samples of soil to find out if there were signs of life there.Tilloo and his parents lived in artificial conditions beneath our planet. They were not allowed to go on the surface because the air was too thin to breathe and the temperature was very low.


Tilloo’s father was a part of a team that used to go to work through a secret passage. Tilloo was very curious to know about it and see the sky but the route was forbidden for the boy and his mother.One day Tilloo’s father was enjoying a short nap at home when Tilloo managed to pick his security card and go along the forbidden passage. The card helped him open the door and he marched upwards. But soon he was caught and sent home because the invisible mechanical devices photographed him and sent his pictures to the Central Bureau.Then his father explained everything to him. He told him that he could stay alive on the surface because he carried oxygen with him to keep himself warm. He was able to walk easily because of his special boots. He said that there was a time when their forefathers lived naturally on the surface. There was a small change in the climate which upset the balance of nature on the planet and all birds, fish and animals cost their existence. Man managed to stay alive underground in artificial conditions. They produced power from sunlight and Tilloo’s father’s job was to keep the machines on the surface in working condition. Next day Tilloo’s father found a crowd watching the big T.V screen which showed that something from the other planet was heading towards them. Everyone wondered about the strangers in that spacecraft.The president announced that it had been reported that two spacecrafts were approaching them. They had to decide how to deal with them. Number one suggested that they could easily destroy those spacecrafts that were approaching them. They had to decide how to deal with them. Number one suggested that they could easily destroy those spacecrafts but that was unwise. He said that they could let them land as they were unmanned and had only instruments.Number two agreed with the wait and watch policy of not revealing their presence and number three supported it.At that moment news came that the first alien spacecraft had landed and even Tilloo watched the funny thing on the T.V screen in the control. He noticed a moment that a mechanical hand came out and touched the soil. At this moment Tilloo lost self control and pressed the red button. There was some excitement but father restored it to its neutral position but the mechanical hand stopped working. On earth a press conference was held and the scientist told that a sudden defect had developed in the mechanical hand which had been made to work again. They had collected soil samples but the scientists were disappointed as the Viking Mission had found no life on mars.

Word MeaningsForbidden – Not allowed ; Barred – Stopped ; Snatching – Seizing suddenly ; Underestimate – Lower estimate of ; Escorted – Protected by authority ; Intruder – Person who intrudes ; Beckon – Call someone’s attention to come near; Anxious – Troubled ; Hostile – Unfriendly ; Passive – Inactive ; Hitch – Pull up with a jerk ; Malfunction – Faulty ; Wistful – Longing

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let’s revise(class xth b) qq chapter - 6 : story writing let’s revise a story is one of the...

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