NCERT Solutions for Class 7 English (Honeycomb) Chapter 4 The Ashes that Made Trees Bloom; Chivvy

NCERT
SOLUTIONS
CLASS - 7TH

aglase .co

Book : Honeycomb Ncert Solutions | Chapter-4 English-1

Class : 7th
Subject : English-1
Chapter : 4
Chapter Name : The Ashes That Made Trees Bloom

Q1 Why did the neighbours kill the dog?

Answer. The neighbours dragged the dog around their garden to �nd a treasure for
themselves. When the dog stopped near a pine tree and started scratching the ground,
they dug happily hoping to �nd a treasure. When they saw that there was nothing in
there except a dead kitten, they became furious at the dog. They kicked it and beat it to
death. They killed it because it did not help them �nd a Treasure.

Page : 60 , Block Name : Comprehension Check

Q2 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.
(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.
(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. (i) The old farmer and his wife loved the dog as if it was their own baby.
(ii) When the old couple became rich, they lived comfortably and were generous towards
their poor neighbours.
(iii) The greedy couple borrowed the mill and the mortar to make a pile of gold.

Page : 60 , Block Name : Comprehension Check

Q1 The old farmer is a kind person. What evidence of his kindness do you �nd in the �rst
two paragraphs.

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Book : Honeycomb Ncert Solutions | Chapter-4 English-1

Answer. The old farmer was a kind person. He loved his dog as if it was his own baby. He
fed it with �sh with his own chopsticks and all the boiled rice it wanted. He was patient
and kind to everything that had life, and often dug up a sod on purpose to give food to
the birds.

Page : 63 , Block Name : Working With The Text

Q2 What did the dog do to lead the farmer to the hidden gold?

Answer. The dog came running to the farmer, putting its paws against his legs and
motioning with its head to some spot behind. He thought it was only playing and did not
mind it. However, the dog kept on whining and running to and fro for some minutes.
Then the farmer followed it a few yards to a place where it began scratching the ground.
The farmer thought there was a bone or a bit of �sh buried there and therefore, struck
his hoe in the earth. However, what he found was a pile of gold.

Page : 63 , Block Name : Working With The Text

Q3 (i) How did the spirit of the dog help the farmer �rst?
(ii) How did it help him next?

Answer. (i) The spirit of the dog asked the farmer to cut down the pine tree over its grave,
and make from it a mortar for rice pastry and a mill for bean sauce. The farmer did so.
Some time close to the New Year, the farmer wanted to make some rice pastry. When the
rice was boiled, his wife put it into the mortar and he pounded the mass into dough.
When the pastry was ready for baking, the whole mass turned into a heap of gold coins.
Similarly, when beans were ground in the hand-mill, gold started dropping from it like
rain and in a few minutes, the tub under the mill was �lled with gold.
(ii) Informing the farmer about how his wicked neighbours had burned the hand mill, the
spirit of the dog asked him to take the ashes of the mill and sprinkle them on withered
trees to make them bloom. The old man did so and found to his delight that the words of
the spirit were indeed true. The bare cherry tree in his garden sprouted blossoms when a
pinch of the ashes were sprinkled on it. Later, he was rewarded by the daimio for making
an old withered cherry tree blossom once again.

Page : 63 , Block Name : Working With The Text

Q4 Why did the daimio reward the farmer but punish his neighbour for the same act?

Answer. The daimio rewarded the farmer for making an old withered cherry tree blossom
once again. Like the farmer, his greedy neighbour also sprinkled ashes over a withered

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Book : Honeycomb Ncert Solutions | Chapter-4 English-1

cherry tree. However, the result this time was different. The tree did not blossom, while
the wind blew the dust into the noses and eyes of the daimio and his wife. This was the
reason why the greedy neighbour was punished.

Page : 64 , Block Name : Working With The Text

Q1 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 �nd 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. (i) Where is Anil?
(ii) Where is Anil sitting?
(iii) What is Anil doing?

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Book : Honeycomb Ncert Solutions | Chapter-4 English-1

(iv) Where is Anil's friend sitting?
(v) Who is writing on the blackboard?
(vi) What are some children doing?

Page : 64 , Block Name : Working With Language

Q2 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 near by.

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.

Page : 65 , Block Name : Working With Language

Q3 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.

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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 where 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 when to keep your mouth shut,” the
teacher advised Anil.

Page : 65 , Block Name : Working With Language

Q4 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 dif�cult at �rst 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 �rst 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.

Page : 66 , Block Name : Working With Language

Q5 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 inde�nite articles and ‘the’ is the
de�nite article. ‘A’ is used before a singular countable noun. ‘An’ is used before a
word that begins with a vowel.

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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.

Page : 66 , Block Name : Working With Language

Q6 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 an apple or a banana?
B : I’d like an apple, please.
A : Take the red one in the fruit bowl. You may take an orange also, if you like.
B : Which one?
A : The one beside the banana.

Page : 66 , Block Name : Working With Language

Q1 Do you remember an anecdote or a story about a greedy or jealous person and

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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 �g 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 �gs.
“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 �ne �gs 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 �lled 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 �gs 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 �gs. 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. There was a farmer. He had a hen. He loved his hen very much. It was a
gifted hen because it laid one golden egg everyday. The farmer used to go to the
market and sell that egg. It was the source of his livelihood and happy life. His
earning from the golden egg began to grow. Now he was living a good life. But as he
grew rich, his greed also grew. One day he thought that their may be some treasure
of gold in the hen's stomach. If he got all the gold, he would be richer. So he
decided to get it one day. He cut out the hen's stomach. But he found nothing
inside the stomach except some blood and �esh. The hen was dead. Then the
farmer realized what he had done. But now he was helpless. He himself killed the
source of his all happiness due to his greed.

Page : 67 , Block Name : Speaking and Writing

Q2 Put each of the following in the correct order. Then use them appropriately to
�ll 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 �nd his books a little hard to understand

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________________________________.

Answer. 1. he writes both in English and Hindi
2 many books in English and only few short stories in Hindi
3. My Hindi is much better than my English

Page : 68 , Block Name : Speaking and Writing

Q3 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. Last week I read a story from Panchtantra. It was a simple story of only
two characters. In the story there was a hermit. He was very kind and pious. He
devoted all his time in his prayer. One day he was having his bath in the river. Then
he began to offer his prayer to the sun god. While he was praying he saw an ant
drowning in the water. The hermit thought to save it. The ant bit in the palm of the
hermit. It was a painful bite. But the hermit again tried to save it. Again and again
it tried to save it. But the ant bit him repeatedly. A man was watching all this from
a distance. Finally he saw that the hermit brought the ant out of water. The man
was surprised at the patience of the hermit. He asked the hermit why he did so. The
hermit replied that it is the nature of the ant to bite any one. But a hermit's nature
is to do welfare to all. So he saved the ant. One can't change one's nature. It is
really a nice story. All should read it.

Page : 68 , Block Name : Speaking and Writing

Q1 Discuss these questions in small groups before you answer them.
(i) When is a grown-up likely to say this? Don’t talk with your mouth full.
(ii) When are you likely to be told this? Say thank you.
(iii) When do you think an adult would say this? No one thinks you are funny.

Answer. 1. The grown-ups are likely to tell the children not to talk while their
mouth is full of food.
2 The children are likely to be reminded to Say thank you when they receive a gift

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or a favour from someone.
3. Adults are likely to tell children, 'no one thinks you are funny' when the children
are too shy to speak or perform before the others.

Page : 70 , Block Name : Working With The Poem

Q2 The last two lines of the poem are not prohibitions or instructions. What is the
adult now asking the child to do? Do you think the poet is suggesting that this is
unreasonable? Why?

Answer. The adult is now asking the child to think independently. The poet �nds
this entirely unreasonable because the young child has not been trained to use his
mind. He has only been trained to follow the instructions given by the adults.

Page : 70 , Block Name : Working With The Poem

Q3 Why do you think grown-ups say the kind of things mentioned in the poem? Is
it important that they teach children good manners, and how to behave in public?

Answer. The adults constantly give instructions to their children for various
reasons. They try to train them to behave in a decent, well-mannered and
Sophisticated way. This, however, robs away their childlike innocence.

Page : 70 , Block Name : Working With The Poem

Q4 If you had to make some rules for grown-ups to follow, what would you say?
Make at least �ve such rules. Arrange the lines as in a poem.

Answer. Don't dictate and impose your rules. Your ways and thinking is different
from ours and so are the times. Don't talk over the phone while eating. Please
spend some time with us.

Page : 70 , Block Name : Working With The Poem

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