Lesson 1.3 The Three Questions
Lesson 1.3 > The Three Questions
Section -I
Glossary
- proclaimed – announce officially
- absorbed – take in or soaked up
- renowned – famous, eminent, distinguished, prominent
- affairs – event, incident
Read and Understand
A. Choose the correct answer from the options given below.
1. The king wanted to know the answers for ______________ questions.
- three
- five
- nine
Ans ; three
2. The hermit lived in a _________________ .
- cottage
- palace
- wood
Ans ; wood
3. _____________ widely renowned for his wisdom.
- hermit
- messengers
- warriors
Ans ; hermit
B. Fill in the blanks.
1. The answer for the first question was to have a ___________________ to fix the proper time for everything.
Ans ; council of wise men
2. ___________________ were referred to know the right time for every action.
Ans ; Magicians
3. The king decided to consult a ___________________ .
Ans ; hermit
C. Identify the speaker.
1. Who said these words?
i. “They all answered his questions differently”.
Learned men.
ii. How can I learn to do the right thing at the right time?
The King.
iii. “Now rest awhile – and let me work a bit”?
The hermit.
D. Give short answers for the following in 50 words.
1. What were the king’s questions?
The king’s questions were :
- what was the right time for every action,
- who were the most necessary people
- what was the most important thing to do
2. Was the king satisfied with the answers? Why?
No, the king was not satisfied with the answers because all the answers were different.
3. Why was the king advised to go to the magicians?
There were certain somethings about which one had at once to decide whether to undertake them or not. In order to decide that, one must know beforehand what was going to happen. It was only magicians who knew that. So the king was advised to go to the magicians.
4. Whose advice did the people say would be important to the king in answer to the second question?
Some said that the advice of his councilors would be important. Others mentioned the priests and some others, the doctors. Some said that the advice of the warriors would be important.
Section -II
Glossary
- moaning – sob, cry
- crouched – bend, stop (down)
- threshold – doorstep , entrance
- seized – snatch , grab, hold of suddenly and forcibly
- unfastened – undo, disconnect, untie, disjoin
- revived – restore to life or consciousness
- ambush – surprise attack, trap, entrap, pounce on
A. Write ‘True or False’ for the following statement.
- The bearded man was an enemy of the king. ( True )
- The king and the hermit refused to help the wounded man. ( False )
- The wounded man asked for the king’s forgiveness. ( True )
- The king promised to restore the property of the bearded man. ( True )
B. Match the words in column ‘A’ with their meanings in column ‘B’.
| Column ‘A’ | Column ‘B’ |
| Physician | bring back |
| Restore | surprise attack |
| Repent | medical practitioner |
| Ambush | regret |
| Ans ; 1 – C, 2 – A, 3 – D, 4 – B | |
C. Give short answers for the following.
1. Who came running out of the wood? What happened to him?
A bearded man came running out of the wood. He was severely wounded by the king’s guards.
2. How did the king and the hermit restore the life of a wounded man?
The king washed the wound and bandaged it with his handkerchief and the hermit’s towel. The blood did not stop flowing. So the king again and again removed the blood-soaked bandage and washed and re-bandaged the wound. At last the blood stopped flowing. Thus he was revived.
3. Why did the king sleep through the night?
The king was so tired from his walk and from the work he had done. So he fell asleep. He slept through the night.
4. What were the changes in the behaviour of the wounded man at the end?
The wounded man was moved by the king’s act of saving him. So he requested the king to forgive him for his attempt to kill him. He wanted to serve the king as his most faithful slave. He would ask his sons to do the same
D. Answer the following in 100 words.
1. What were the answers to the three questions? What is the message of the hermit?
The most important time was when the king was digging the beds. The hermit was the most important person. To do him good was his most important business. Afterwards, the most important time was when the king was attending to the wounded man. If the king had not bound his wounds, the bearded man would have died without making peace with him. So he was the important man. What the king did for him was his most important business. Thus the king got the answers for his three questions. The message is that ‘now’ is the most important time and the most necessary person is the one with whom you are. The most important thing is to do that person good.
2. Why did the bearded man ask for the king’s forgiveness? What did the king do to show his forgiveness?
The bearded man planned to avenge himself on the king because the king executed his brother and seized his property. But he was severely wounded by the king’s guards when he came out from his hiding place to find the king. Not knowing anything about his attempt to kill him, the king saved his life by attending to him. He took great care in washing and bandaging his wound. The act of mercy on the part of the king moved the wounded man’s heart. So he asked for the king’s forgiveness. The king forgave him. He arranged for his servants and his own doctor to attend him. He promised to restore his property.
Vocabulary
Commonly Confused Words.
The error with this pair results from mispronunciation and failure to distinguish between a noun and a verb.
Example:-
Advice/Advise
The c in advice is pronounced with the sound of /s/. Advice is a noun meaning
“recommendation regarding a decision”.
The s in advise is pronounced with he sound of /z/. Advise is a verb meaning “to
recommend”.
1. Complement : It is something that completes something else.
Compliment : It is a nice thing to say.
2. Empathy : It is the ability to understand another person’s perspective or feelings.
Sympathy : It is a feeling of sorrow for someone else’s suffering.
3. Inquiry : Inquiry and enquiry both mean “a request for information.” It is the standard American English spelling.
Enquiry : It is the British spelling.
4. Stationary : It means unmoving.
Stationery : It refers to letter writing materials and especially to high quality paper.
5. Effect : An effect is a result or a consequence. (usually a noun) Effect may also function as a verb meaning “to bring about something.”
Affect : An affect is to have an impression, influence, or effect on something. (usually a verb).
6. Lie : Use lie when the object is laying itself down.
Lay : Use lay when the object is being laid down.
7. Rise : Use rise when the object is lifting itself.
Raise : Use raise when the object is being risen by another force.
Exercise
Complete the following sentences using appropriate confusable words.
1. The sugar had a negative _______ on the science experiment. (effect / affect)
Ans ; effect
2. I am going to _______ down for an hour. (lie / lay)
Ans ; lie
3. The gas prices continue to _______. (raise / rise)
Ans ; rise
4. She always gives me good _______. (advice / advise)
Ans ; advice
5. The war had no _______ on oil prices. (affect / effect)
Ans ; effect
Anagram.
An anagram is a word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of another word or phrase. Anagrams can be useful by helping a learner become aware of both spelling and spelling patterns.
Example:-
- are – ear
- god – dog
- note – tone
- earth – heart
- care – race
- won – now
- meat – team
- slip – lips
Exercise:-
- bowl – blow
- march – charm
- study – dusty
- snail – nails
- plum – lump
- chin – inch
- flow – wolf
- eat – tea
Antigram.
Anagrams are words or phrases created by rearranging the letters of another word or phrase. An anagram becomes an antigram when it is opposite in meaning to the original word or phrase.
Example:-
- Santa – Satan
- Epitaphs – Happiest
- United – untied
- Harmfulness – Harmless fun
Exercise:-
- Earliest – Arise late
- Festival – Evil fast
- Funeral – Real fun
- Violence – Nice love
STEP TO SUCCESS
Read the English folk tale given below and fill up the blank spaces with suitable words.
There were once three tortoises – a father, a mother and a baby. On one fine morning during spring, they decided that they would like to go for a picnic. They picked the place where they would go: a nice wood at some distance, and they
began to put their things together. They got tins of cheese, vegetable, meat and fruits. They were ready for the picnic. They set out carrying their baskets after eeighteen months they sat down for rest. They enjoyed the picnic very much.
CONNECTING TO SELF
Steps to gain wisdom
Wisdom is a virtue that isn’t innate, but can only be acquired through experience.
| Gaining Experience |
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| Learning from Wise People |
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| Putting Wisdom Into Practice |
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