📝 Comprehension Questions and Answers

a) Who was searching for Tom?

Answer: Aunt Polly was searching for Tom.

b) What was Tom ordered to do on that Saturday?

Answer: Tom was ordered to whitewash the fence on that Saturday.

c) Who worked for Aunt Polly?

Answer: Jim worked for Aunt Polly.

d) What was Ben doing when Tom saw him?

Answer: Ben was eating an apple when Tom saw him.

e) How did Tom react on seeing Ben?

Answer: Tom did not pay attention to Ben and pretended as if he were absorbed in his work.

f) What was Ben tempted for?

Answer: Ben was tempted for whitewashing the fence.

g) What did he give Tom in return?

Answer: Ben gave Tom his apple in return.

2. How did Tom start his work?

Answer: Tom started his work lazily. He came out with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush, looked at the fence, dipped his brush, and started whitewashing the topmost plank of the fence. After doing this several times, he felt tired and bored.

3. What did Tom collect at the end of the day?

Answer: By the afternoon, Tom collected twelve marbles, a piece of chalk, a tin soldier, a couple of tadpoles, a kitten, the handle of a knife, and six firecrackers.

4. Write whether the following statements are True or False

a) Jim came with a bag.

Answer: ❌ False (He came with a tin pail.)

b) Tom said that it was very enjoyable to whitewash the fence.

Answer: ✅ True

c) Billy Fisher gave Tom a kite.

Answer: ✅ True

d) At the end of the day the fence had been whitewashed twice.

Answer: ❌ False (It had been whitewashed thrice.)

5. Frame sentences of your own with the following

Phrase: get hold of

Example Sentence: We must try to get hold of the thief quickly.

Phrase: catch hold of

Example Sentence: The teacher managed to catch hold of the runaway student.

Phrase: fly down

Example Sentence: The bird will fly down from the tree when you call it.

Phrase: come up

Example Sentence: A good idea came up during the meeting.

Phrase: search for

Example Sentence: I had to search for my lost keys all morning.

 Grammar and Usage

Activity 1: Identify the adjectives and write them separately

i) Sentence: The night was warm yesterday.

Adjective(s): warm

ii) Sentence: These dishes are prepared with fresh tomatoes.

Adjective(s): These, fresh

iii) Sentence: A few people were absent from the meeting.

Adjective(s): few

iv) Sentence: He has enough money to buy this plot of land.

Adjective(s): enough, this

v) Sentence: All the boys played well.

Adjective(s): All

vi) Sentence: I ordered a half plate of chowmein.

Adjective(s): half

vii) Sentence: That almirah is full of Shakespearean plays.

Adjective(s): That, full, Shakespearean

viii) Sentence: This is the baby's first birthday.

Adjective(s): This, first

ix) Sentence: You can buy any book you like.

Adjective(s): any

x) Sentence: Some girls of this school took part in the dance competition.

Adjective(s): Some, this

xi) Sentence: Whose pen is there on the table?

Adjective(s): Whose

xii) Sentence: Those are her toys.

Adjective(s): Those, her

xiii) Sentence: Neither pen writes well.

Adjective(s): Neither

xiv) Sentence: Every girl wore a beautiful traditional dress for the party.

Adjective(s): Every, beautiful, traditional

xv) Sentence: They spent their money in buying books.

Adjective(s): their

xvi) Sentence: Which box is yours?

Adjective(s): Which

Activity 2: Form the proper adjectives and use them in sentences

Proper Name: Assam

Proper Adjective: Assamese
Example Sentence: We enjoyed the Assamese dance performance.

Proper Name: Hyderabad

Proper Adjective: Hyderabadi
Example Sentence: Hyderabadi biryani is famous all over the world.

Proper Name: Punjab

Proper Adjective: Punjabi
Example Sentence: He wore a Punjabi suit to the wedding.

Proper Name: Manipur

Proper Adjective: Manipuri
Example Sentence: She is learning the Manipuri language.

Proper Name: Rajasthan

Proper Adjective: Rajasthani
Example Sentence: Rajasthani folk music is very beautiful.

Activity 3: Change the form of narration (Direct and Indirect Speech)

Definition

Narration means reporting what someone has said.

Direct Speech: The exact words of the speaker are written inside quotation marks.
Example: He said, “I am tired.”

Indirect Speech: We report the meaning of the speaker’s words without quotation marks.
Example: He said that he was tired.

Examples

i)

Direct Speech: Sankar said to me, “I have lost my pen.”
Indirect Speech: Sankar told me that he had lost his pen.

ii)

Direct Speech: Runa said, “My brother likes chocolates.”
Indirect Speech: Runa said that her brother liked chocolates.

iii)

Direct Speech: I said to her, “I visited Jaipur last year.”
Indirect Speech: I told her that I had visited Jaipur the previous year.

iv)

Direct Speech: Sristijeeta said, “I get up at 6 o'clock in the morning.”
Indirect Speech: Sristijeeta said that she got up at 6 o'clock in the morning.

v)

Direct Speech: They said to us, “We will play a match today in the school playground.”
Indirect Speech: They told us that they would play a match that day in the school playground.

vi)

Direct Speech: Mr. Bora said to me, “I have been learning the violin for two years.”
Indirect Speech: Mr. Bora told me that he had been learning the violin for two years.

vii)

Direct Speech: My mother said, “You must do your homework.”
Indirect Speech: My mother said that I must do my homework.

viii)

Direct Speech: Rashmi said to me, “I shall meet Kangkana tomorrow.”
Indirect Speech: Rashmi told me that she would meet Kangkana the next day.

ix)

Direct Speech: Joya said, “My mother cooks very well.”
Indirect Speech: Joya said that her mother cooked very well.

x)

Direct Speech: The teacher said, “Water flows downward.”
Indirect Speech: The teacher said that water flows downward. (Universal truth – tense remains unchanged.)