NCERT Class 8 English Chapter 1 The Ant and the Cricket
NCERT Solutions for Class 8 English Honeydew (Poem) Chapter 1 The Ant and the Cricket
Working with the poem
Question 1.
The cricket says, “Oh! what will become of me? ” When does he say it, and why?
Answer:
The cricket says this during the winter when he has no food. He says so because he is uncertain of his future.
Question 2.
i. Find in the poem the lines that mean the same as “Neither a borrower nor a lender be ”(Shakespeare).
Answer:
But we ants never borrow; we ants never lend.
ii. What is your opinion of the ant’s principles?
Answer:
The ant’s principles are clear and practical. He does not believe in either lending or borrowing.
Question 3.
The ant tells the cricket to “dance the winter away ”. Do you think the word ‘dance ’ is appropriate here? If so, why?
Answer:
Yes, the word ‘dance’ is appropriate here because the cricket had spent the summer time singing, and making merry. So, the grasshopper can spend the winter dancing.
Question 4.
i. Which lines in the poem express the poet’s comment? Read them aloud.
Answer:
The lines in the poem that expresses the poet’s opinions are as follows:
Folks call this a fable. I’ll warrant it true:
Some crickets have four legs, and some have two.
ii. Write the comment in your own words.
Answer:
If you know a fable in your own language, narrate it to your classmates.
(Encourage the students to write in their own words.)
MCQs Multiple Choice Questions
Question 1.
What type of creature cricket was ?
(a) intelligent
(b) hypocrate
(c) silly
(d) honest
Answer:
(c) silly
Question 2.
“Oh!” What will become of me?” Who said so ?
(a) ant
(b) cricket
(c) poet
(d) trees
Answer:
(b) cricket
Question 3.
‘Dance the winter away’. Who said to whom ?
(a) Cricket to Ant
(b) Poet to Cricket
(c) Ant to Cricket
(d) Poet to Ant
Answer:
(c) Ant to Cricket
Question 4.
I’m your servant and friend. What does ‘T’ refer to ?
(a) cricket
(b) ant
(c) poet
(d) rain
Answer:
(b) ant
Question 5.
The word ‘crumb’ here means
(a) a piece of pie
(b) a piece of wood
(c) a piece of bread
(d) a piece of stone
Answer:
(c) a piece of bread