I. Look at the following sentence. There | Class 9 English - Beehive Chapter The Little Girl, The Little Girl NCERT Solutions

Answer the following questions in one or two sentences.
1. Why was Kezia afraid of her father?
2. Who were the people in Kezia’s family?
3. What was Kezia’s father’s routine
      (i) before going to his office?
      (ii) after coming back from his office?
      (iii) on Sundays?
4. In what ways did Kezia’s grandmother encourage her to get to know her father better?

Given below are some emotions that Kezia felt. Match the emotions in Column A ​with the items in Column B. 

Discuss these questions in class with your teacher and then write down your answers in two or three paragraphs each.
1. Kezia’s efforts to please her father resulted in displeasing him very much. How did this happen?
2. Kezia decides that there are “different kinds of fathers”. What kind of father was Mr Macdonald, and how was he different from Kezia’s father?
3. How does Kezia begin to see her father as a human being who needs her sympathy?

Some verbs of reporting are given in the box. Choose the appropriate verbs and fill in the blanks in the following sentences. were complaining shouted replied remarked ordered suggested
(i) “I am not afraid,”_____ the woman.
(ii) “Leave me alone,” my mother .______
(iii) The children______ that the roads were crowded and noisy.
(iv) “Perhaps he isn’t a bad sort of a chap after all,” ______the master.
(v) “Let’s go and look at the school ground,______” the sports teacher.
(vi) The traffic police______ all the passers-by to keep off the road.

Underline the verbs of reporting in the following sentences.
(i) He says he will enjoy the ride.
(ii) Father mentioned that he was going on a holiday.
(iii) No one told us that the shop was closed.
(iv) He answered that the price would go up.
(v) I wondered why he was screaming.
(vi) Ben told her to wake him up.
(vii) Ratan apologised for coming late to the party.

Study the use of the word big in the following sentence.
He was so big — his hands and his neck, especially his mouth... Here, big means large in size. Now, consult a dictionary and find out the meaning of big in the following sentences. The first one has been done for you.
(i) You are a big girl now. older
(ii) Today you are going to take the biggest decision of your career.
(iii) Their project is full of big ideas.
(iv) Cricket is a big game in our country.
(v) I am a big fan of Lata Mangeskar.
(vi) You have to cook a bit more as my friend is a big eater.
(vii) What a big heart you’ve got, Father dear.

Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.

When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?

Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A.?
 

II. This story about a frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous? (Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them are listed below.)
1. (i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions)
    (ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition) 

2. (i) The person he wants to marry
   (ii) The person he actually marries

3. (i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror
    (ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm
Write short paragraphs on each of these to get your answer.

Now use these adverbs to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.
(i) The report must be read so that performance can be improved.
(ii) At the interview, Sameer answered our questions , shrugging his shoulders.
(iii) We all behave when we are tired or hungry.
(iv) The teacher shook her head when Ravi lied to her.
(v) I forgot about it.
(vi) When I complimented Revathi on her success, she just smiled and turned away.

(vii) The President of the Company is busy and will not be able to meet you.
(viii) I finished my work so that I could go out to play.

II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).
1. How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?
2. What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santosh’s concern for her team-mates?
3. What shows her concern for the environment?
4. How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?
5. Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?

Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have been fun?

I. Discuss in pairs and answer each question below in a short paragraph (30– 40 words).
1. How many characters are there in the narrative? Name them. (Don’t forget the dog!).
2. Why did the narrator (Jerome) volunteer to do the packing?
3. How did George and Harris react to this? Did Jerome like their reaction?
4. What was Jerome’s real intention when he offered to pack?
5. What did Harris say after the bag was shut and strapped? Why do you think he waited till then to ask?
6. What “horrible idea” occurred to Jerome a little later?
7. Where did Jerome finally find the toothbrush?
8. Why did Jerome have to reopen the packed bag?
9. What did George and Harris offer to pack and why?
10. While packing the hamper, George and Harris do a number of foolish and funny things. Tick the statements that are true.
(i) They started with breaking a cup.
(ii) They also broke a plate.
(iii) They squashed a tomato.
(iv) They trod on the butter.
(v) They stepped on a banana.
(vi) They put things behind them, and couldn’t find them.
(vii) They stepped on things.
(viii) They packed the pictures at the bottom and put heavy things on top.
(ix) They upset almost everything.
(x) They were very good at packing.

I. Answer these questions.
1. “At last a sympathetic audience.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does he say it?
(iii) Is he sarcastic or serious?

2. Why does the intruder choose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on?

3. “I said it with bullets.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) What does it mean?
(iii) Is it the truth? What is the speaker’s reason for saying this?

4. What is Gerrard’s profession? Quote the parts of the play that support your answer.

5. “You’ll soon stop being smart.”
(i) Who says this?(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
(iii) What according to the speaker will stop Gerrard from being smart?

6. “They can’t hang me twice.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?

7. “A mystery I propose to explain.” What is the mystery the speaker proposes to explain?

8. “This is your big surprise.”
(i) Where has this been said in the play?
(ii) What is the surprise?

III. Answer the following questions in not more than 100–150 words each.
1. Compare and contrast the atmosphere in and around the Baudhnath shrine with the Pashupatinath temple.
2. How does the author describe Kathmandu’s busiest streets?
3. “To hear any flute is to be drawn into the commonality of all mankind.” Why does the author say this?

Bismillah Khan’s first trip abroad was to (Afghanistan, U.S.A., Canada).

Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.

Why was Margie doing badly in geography? What did the County Inspector do to help her?

How does Tommy describe the old kind of school?

(III).                                  Punctuation
Use capital letters, full stops, question marks, commas and inverted commas wherever necessary in the following paragraph.

an arrogant lion was wandering through the jungle one day he asked the tiger who is stronger than you you O lion replied the tiger who is more fierce than a leopard asked the lion you sir replied the leopard he marched upto an elephant and asked the same question the elephant picked him up in his trunk swung him in the air and threw him down look said the lion there is no need to get mad just because you don’t know the answer

II. Here are some words with silent letters. Learn their spelling. Your teacher will dictate these words to you. Write them down and underline the silent letters.
knock          wrestle          walk              wrong
knee            half               honest          daughter
hours           return           hornet           calm
could           sign               island           button

Dictionary work
• The sound of the shehnai is auspicious.
• The auspicious sound of the shehnai is usually heard at marriages. The adjective auspicious can occur after the verb be as in the first sentence, or before a noun as in the second. But there are some adjectives which can be used after the verb be and not before a noun. For example:
• Ustad Faiyaz Khan was overjoyed. We cannot say: *the overjoyed man.

Look at these entries from the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2005).

Consult your dictionary and complete the following table. The first one has been done for you.

Use these words in phrases or sentences of your own.

Why did Einstein write a letter to Franklin Roosevelt?
 

Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A.?