Class 7 English - An Alien Hand - Chapter The Tiny Teacher NCERT Solutions | 2. Complete the following sentences. (i

1. The story of an ant’s life sounds almost untrue. The italicised phrase means
 (i) highly exaggerated.
(ii) too remarkable to be true.
(iii) not based on facts.

2. Complete the following poem with words from the box below. Then recite the poem.
Soldiers live in barracks
And birds in ———————,
Much like a snake that rests
In a ———————. No horse is able
To sleep except in a ———————.
And a dog lives well,
Mind you, only in a ———————.
To say ‘hi’ to an ant, if you will,
You may have to climb an ———————.
hole kennel nests anthill stable

In what ways is an ant’s life peaceful?

   _The queen ant has a pair of wings, which she casts off before she begins to lay eggs.
   _Eggs hatch and become grubs, grubs change into cocoons, and cocoons break to bring              forth complete ants.

   _The life of an ordinary ant in the anthill is a book which many of us seldom open.

What jobs are new ants trained for?
 

How long does it take for a grub to become a complete ant?
 

1. (i) What problems are you likely to face if you keep ants as pets?
    (ii) When a group of bees finds nectar, it informs other bees of its location, quantity, etc.                   through dancing. Can you guess what ants communicate to their fellow ants by touching             one another’s feelers?

Name some other creatures that live in anthills.
 

Mention three things we can learn from the ‘tiny teacher’. Give reasons for choosing these items.

Why do the worker ants carry the grubs about?
 

How does Tilloo manage to find his way to the ‘forbidden passage’?
 

The enclosure in which Kari lived had a thatched roof that lay on thick tree stumps. Examine the illustration of Kari’s pavilion on page 8 and say why it was built that way. ephant to learn?

1. From the first paragraph
(i) pick out two phrases which describe the desert as most people believe it is;
(ii) pick out two phrases which describe the desert as specialists see it. Which do you think is          an apt description, and why?

What are some of the signs of approaching winter referred to in the text?
 

Whom does Golu ask, “Why don’t you ever fly like other birds?”
 

Write ‘True’ or ‘False’ against each of following statements.
(i) Mr Purcell sold birds, cats, dogs and monkeys.
(ii) He was very concerned about the well-being of the birds and animals in his shop.
(iii) He was impressed by the customer who bought the two doves.
(iv) He was a successful shopowner, though insensitive and cold as a person.
 

Why did Abbu Khan’s goats want to run away? What happened to them in the hills?
 

Where did the lady find the bear cub? How did she bring it up?
 

“He had the distinction of being the only member of the party to have bagged any game...” The phrase in italics means
(i) Grandfather was the most distinguished member of the party.
(ii) Grandfather was the only sportsperson in the party.
(iii) Grandfather was the only successful member of the hunting party.
Mark the right answer.
 

What did Tilloo hope to see once he emerged from his underground home?
 

Abbu Khan pushed Chandni into a small hut. This shows that he
(i) was cruel.
(ii) loved her and wanted to save her life.
(iii) was selfish.

What made Grandfather decide to transfer Timothy to the zoo?
 

On which planet do Tilloo and his parents live?

What changes had occurred, which forced people to live in underground homes?

Whom does Golu ask, “Why don’t you ever fly like other birds?”
 

Finding good twigs for Kari took a long time. Why?
 

Write ‘True’ or ‘False’ against each of the following statements.
(i) Timothy and Grandfather went to Lucknow in a special compartment.
(ii) The compartment in which Grandfather and Timothy travelled had no other passenger.
(iii) Timothy and Grandfather travelled in a first class compartment.
(vi) All passengers in the compartment thought that Timothy was a well-fed and civilised tiger.
 

Describe the stranger who came to the pet shop. What did he want?
 

Write ‘True’ or ‘False’ against each of the following.
(i) Soapy did not want to go to prison.
(ii) Soapy had been to prison several times.
(iii) It was not possible for Soapy to survive in the city through the winter.
(iv) Soapy hated to answer questions of a personal nature.
 

What did the crocodile do to show that it was a real crocodile?