NCERT Solution for Class 7th English Honeycomb Chapter 4 The Ashes that Made Trees Bloom

Comprehension Check

Page No. 60

Question:- 1. Why did the neighbours kill the dog?

Answer:- In a moment of anger, the neighbours killed the dog. They expected the dog to help them in finding a treasure, but instead the dog led them to a foul-smelling dead kitten.

Question:- 2. Mark the right item.

(i) The old farmer and his wife loved the dog

(a) because it helped them in their day-to-day work.

(b) as if it was their own baby.

(c) as they were kind to all living beings.

Answer:-  (b) as if it was their own baby.

 (ii) When the old couple became rich, they

(a) gave the dog better food.

(b) invited their greedy neighbours to a feast.

(c) lived comfortably and were generous towards their poor neighbours.

Answer:- (c) lived comfortably and were generous towards their poor neighbours.

 (iii) The greedy couple borrowed the mill and the mortar to make

(a) rice pastry and bean sauce.

(b) magic ash to win rewards.

(c) a pile of gold.

Answer:- (c) a pile of gold.

Working with the Text

Answer the following questions.

Question:- 1. The old farmer is a kind person. What evidence of his kindness do you find in the first two paragraphs.

Answer:- According to the first paragraph, the old farmer treated the dog as if it were his own child. He used to use his chopsticks to feed the dog small pieces of fish, and used to gave him as much cooked rice as he wants.

According to the second paragraph, the old man would purposefully turn up a sod to feed the birds.

Question:- 2. What did the dog do to lead the farmer to the hidden gold?

Answer:- The dog ran up to the farmer and pressed its paws against his legs to bring him to the hidden gold. It continued pointing in the direction of a location behind him. The old guy initially assumed the dog was just playing, but when it continued to run and whine, he followed it to the location.

Question:- 3. (i) How did the spirit of the dog help the farmer first?

Answer:- The dog’s spirit appeared in the farmer’s dream and instructed him to chop down the pine tree and use it to create mortar and a hand mill. With the mortar and mill it delivered the farmer heaps of gold.

 (ii) How did it help him next?

Answer:- For the second time in the farmer’s dream, the dog’s spirit appeared and urged him to collect the ash from the mortar and mill and sprinkle it on the withered trees, and they would blossom.

The farmer performed this in front of the daimio (landlord), and he was lavishly rewarded.

Question:- 4. Why did the daimio reward the farmer but punish his neighbour for the same act?

Answer:- The withered cherry tree flourished after the farmer sprinkled ash on it. Daimio was overjoyed by the miracle and gave the farmer a reward. The ash was poured over the cherry tree by his neighbour, yet nothing occurred to the tree. However the fine ash particles fell in the daimio’s and his wife’s eyes. They started sneezing and coughing.

The grandeur of the parade was ruined and ththe neighbour was punished by the landlord’s men.

Working with Language

Question:- 1. Read the following conversation.

RAVI : What are you doing?

MRIDU : I’m reading a book.

RAVI : Who wrote it?

MRIDU : Ruskin Bond.

RAVI : Where did you find it?

MRIDU : In the library.

Notice that ‘what’, ‘who’, ‘where’, are question words. Questions that require information begin with question words. Some other question words are ‘when’, ‘why’, ‘where’, ‘which’ and ‘how’.

Remember that

• What asks about actions, things, etc.
• Who asks about people.
• Which asks about people or things.
• Where asks about place.
• When asks about time.
• Why asks about reason or purpose.
• How asks about means, manner or degree.
• Whose asks about possessions.

Read the following paragraph and frame questions on the italicised phrases.

Anil is in school. I am in school too. Anil is sitting in the left row. He is reading a book. Anil’s friend is sitting in the second row. He is sharpening his pencil. The teacher is writing on the blackboard. Children are writing in their copybooks. Some children are looking out of the window

(i)

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

(v)

(vi)

(vii)

Answer:-

1. Where is Anil?
2. Which row is Anil sitting in?
3. What is he doing?
4. Which row is Anil’s friend sitting in?
5. What is his friend doing?
6. Who is writing on the blackboard?
7. What are the children doing?

Question:- 2. Write appropriate question words in the blank spaces in the following dialogue.

NEHA : ____did you get this book?

SHEELA : Yesterday morning.

NEHA : ____ is your sister crying?

SHEELA : Because she has lost her doll.

NEHA : ____room is this, yours or hers?

SHEELA : It’s ours.

NEHA : ____do you go to school?

SHEELA : We walk to school. It is nearby.

Answer:-

NEHA: When did you get this book?

SHEELA: Yesterday morning.

NEHA: Why is your sister crying?

SHEELA: Because she has lost her doll.

NEHA: Whose room is this, yours or hers?

SHEELA: It’s ours.

NEHA: How do you go to school?

SHEELA: We walk to school. It is nearby.

Question:- 3. Fill in the blanks with the words given in the box.

(i) My friend lost his chemistry book. Now he doesn’t know____ to do and ____to look for it.

(ii) There are so many toys in the shops. Neena can’t decide ____one to buy.

(iii) You don’t know the way to my school. Ask the policeman____ to get there.

(iv) You should decide soon ____to start building your house.

(v) Do you know____ to ride a bicycle? I don’t remember ____and ____I learnt it.

(vi) “You should know ____to talk and ____to keep your mouth shut,” the teacher advised Anil

Answer:-

(i) My friend lost his chemistry book. Now he doesn’t know what to do and where to look for it.

(ii) There are so many toys in the shops. Neena can’t decide which one to buy.

(iii) You don’t know the way to my school. Ask the policeman how to get there.

(iv) You should decide soon when to start building your house.

(v) Do you know how to ride a bicycle? I don’t remember when and where I learnt it.

(vi) “You should know when to talk and where to keep your mouth shut,” the teacher advised Anil.

Question:-  4. Add im- or in- to each of the following words and use them in place of the italicised words in the sentences given below.

(i) The project appears very difficult at first sight but it can be completed if we work very hard.

(ii) He lacks competence. That’s why he can’t keep any job for more than a year.

(iii) “Don’t lose patience. Your letter will come one day,” the postman told me.

(iv) That’s not a proper remark to make under the circumstances.

(v) He appears to be without sensitivity. In fact, he is very emotional.

Answer:-

(i) The project appears impossible at first sight but it can be completed if we work very hard.

(ii) He is incompetent. That’s why he can’t keep any job for more than a year.

(iii) “Don’t be impatient. Your letter will come one day,” the postman told me.

(iv) That’s an improper remark to make under the circumstances.

(v) He appears to be insensitive. In fact, he is very emotional.

Question:-  5. Read the following sentences.

It was a cold morning and stars still glowed in the sky. An old man was walking along the road.

The words in italics are articles. ‘A’ and ‘an’ are indefinite articles and ‘the’ is the definite article. ‘A’ is used before a singular countable noun. ‘An’ is used before a word that begins with a vowel.

Use a, an or the in the blanks.

There was once_________play which became very successful. _________famous actor was acting in it. In _________ play his role was that of _________aristocrat who had been imprisoned in _________castle for twenty years. In _________last act of _________play someone would come on _________stage with_________ letter which he would hand over to _________prisoner. Even though_________ aristocrat was not expected to read_________ letter at each performance, he always insisted that_________ letter be written out from beginning to end.

Answer:- There was once a play which became very successful. A famous actor was acting in it. In the play his role was that of an aristocrat who had been imprisoned in a castle for twenty years. In the last act of the play someone would come on the stage with a letter which he would hand over to the prisoner. Even though the aristocrat was not expected to read the letter at each performance, he always insisted that the letter be written out from beginning to end.

Question:-  6. Encircle the correct article.

Nina was looking for ( a / the) job. After many interviews she got (a / the ) job she was looking for.

A : Would you like (a/an/the) apple or (a/an/the) banana?

B : I’d like (a/an/the) apple, please.

A : Take (a/an/the) red one in (a/an/the) fruit bowl. You may take (a/an/the) orange also, if you like.

B : Which one?

A : (A/An/The) one beside (a/an/the) banana.

Answer:-

A : Would you like (a/an/the) apple or (a/an/the) banana?

B : I’d like (a/an/the) apple, please.

A : Take (a/an/the) red one in (a/an/the) fruit bowl.

You may take (a/an/the) orange also, if you like.

B : Which one?

A : (A/An/The) one beside (a/an/the) banana.

Speaking and Writing

Question:-  1. Do you remember an anecdote or a story about a greedy or jealous person and the unhappy result of his/her action? Narrate the story to others in your class.

Here is one for you to read.

Seeing an old man planting a fig tree, the king asked why he was doing this. The man replied that he might live to eat the fruit, and, even if he did not, his son would enjoy the figs.

“Well,” said the king, “if you do live to eat the fruit of this tree, please let me know.” The man promised to do so, and sure enough, before too long, the tree grew and bore fruit.

Packing some fine figs in a basket, the old man set out for the palace to meet the king.

The king accepted the gift and gave orders that the old man’s basket be filled with gold.

Now, next door to the old man, there lived a greedy old man jealous of his neighbour’s good fortune. He also packed some figs in a basket and took them to the palace in the hope of getting gold.

The king, on learning the man’s motive, ordered him to stand in the compound and had him pelted with figs. The old man returned home and told his wife the sad story. She consoled him by saying, “You should be thankful that our neighbour did not grow coconuts.”

Answer:- Do it Yourself.

Question:-  2. Put each of the following in the correct order. Then use them appropriately to fill the blanks in the paragraph that follows. Use correct punctuation marks.

• English and Hindi/both/in/he writes
• and only/a few short stories/many books in English/ in Hindi
• is/my Hindi/than my English/much better

Ravi Kant is a writer, and________________________. Of course, he is much happier writing in English than in Hindi. He has written ________________________________ _______________________________________. I find his books a little hard to understand.________________________.

Answer:-  Ravi Kant is a writer, and he writes both in English and Hindi. Of course, he is much happier writing in English than in Hindi. He has written many books in English and only few short stories in Hindi. I find his books a little hard to understand my Hindi is much better than my English.

Question:-  3. Are you fond of reading stories? Did you read one last month? If not, read one or two and then write a paragraph about the story. Use the following hints.

• title of the story
• name of author
• how many characters
• which one you liked
• some details of the story
• main point(s) as you understand it

Tell your friends why they should also read it.

Answer:- Do it Yourself.