NCERT Solutions Class 6 English (HoneySuckle) Unit 10 The Banyan Tree

Q.1: Complete the following sentences.
1 The old banyan tree “did not belong” to 
grandfather, but only to the boy, because 
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
2 The small gray squirrel became friendly when _______________ ______________________________________________________________
3 When the boy started to bring him pieces of cake and biscuit, 
the squirrel ____________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ 
4 In the spring, the banyan tree _________________________________, and ________________________________ would come there. 
5 The banyan tree served the boy as a _____________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 
6 The young boy spent his afternoons in the tree _____________ _________________________________________________________________________

Ans : 1 The old banyan tree “did not belong” to 
grandfather, but only to the boy, because 
The grandfather at sixty-five could no longer climb it. 
2 The small gray squirrel became friendly when  he found that the boy did not arm himself with catapult or air-gun. 
3 When the boy started to bring him pieces of cake and biscuit, the squirrel  grew quite bold and was soon taking morsels from the author’s hand
4 In the spring, the banyan tree  was full of small red figs, and  birds of all kind would come there.
5 The banyan tree served the boy as a library.
6 The young boy spent his afternoons in the tree  when it was not too hot. 

Q.2: Answer the following questions.
1 “It was to be a battle of champions.”(8)
(i) What qualities did the two champions have? Pick out words and phrases from the paragraph above this line in the text and write them down.
 
(ii) What did the cobra and the mongoose do, to show their readiness for the fight?
2 Who were the other two spectators? What did they do? (Did they watch, or did they join in the fight?) (10)
3 Read the descriptions below of what the snake did and what the mongoose did. Arrange their actions in the proper order. (11, 16) 
 
4 (i) What happened to the crow in the end? (16) 
(ii) What did the myna do finally? (17)

Ans : 1 (i) 

(ii) To show its readiness for the fight, the cobra hissed defiance, its forked tongue darting in and out. It raised three of its six feet off the ground, and spread its broad, spectacled hood. The bushing of its tail and the standing up of the long hair on its spine showed that the mongoose was also ready for the fight. 
2 The other two spectators were a crow and a myna. They settled on a cactus to watch 
the outcome. But they did not just watch. They tried to join the fight by hurling themselves  at the cobra. 
3  

4 (i) In the end, the crow was flung nearly twenty feet across the garden by a blow from the cobra’s snout. The crow fluttered about for a whole and then lay still.


(ii) Finally, the myna dropped cautiously to the ground, hopped about, peered into the bushes from a safe distance, and then, with a shrill cry of congratulation, flew away. 

Q.3: 1. The word ‘round’ usually means a kind of shape. What is its meaning in the story?
2. Find five words in the following paragraph, which are generally associated with trees. But here, they have been used differently. Underline the words.
Hari leaves for work at nine every morning. He works in 
the local branch of the firm of which his uncle is the owner. 
Hari’s success is really the fruit of his own labour. He is 
happy, but he has a small problem. The root cause of his 
problem is a stray dog near his office. The dog welcomes 
Hari with a loud bark every day.

Ans : 1. In the story the word ‘round; means the different stages of the flight between the cobra and the mongoose.
2. Leaves, branch, fruit, root and bark 

Q.4: The words in the box are all words that describe movement. Use them to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.
 
1 When he began to trust me, the squirrel began ______________
 into my pockets for morsels of cake.
2 I saw a cobra _________________out of a clump of cactus.
3 The snake hissed, his forked tongue __________________ in and out.
4 When the cobra tried to bite it, the mongoose ______________________ aside.
5 The snake ________________________ his head ________________________to strike at the crow.
6 The birds _______________ at the snake.

Ans : 1 When he began to trust me, the squirrel began delving into my pockets for morsels of cake. 
2 I saw a cobra gliding out of a clump of trees. 
3 The snake hissed, his forked tongue darting in and out. 
4 When the cobra tried to bite it, the mongoose sprang aside. 
5 The snake whipped his head back to strike at the crow. 
6 The birds dived at the snake. 

Q.5: Find words in the story, which show things striking violently against each other.
1 The cobra struck the crow, his snout th ________ ing against its body. (15)
2 The crow and the myna c __ll __ __ __ __ in mid-air. (13)
3 The birds dived at the snake, but b __ __ __ __ d into each other instead. (14)

Ans : 1 The cobra struck the crow, his snout thudding against its body. (15) 
2 The crow and the myna collided in mid - air. (13) 
3 The birds dived at the snake, but bumped into each other instead. (14)