Class 10 English Chapter 1 A Letter to God The answer to each chapter is provided in the list so that you can easily browse throughout different chapters NCERT Class 10 English Chapter 1 A Letter to God and select need one.
Class 10 English Chapter 1 A Letter to God
Also, you can read the SCERT book online in these sections Solutions by Expert Teachers as per SCERT (CBSE) Book guidelines. These solutions are part of SCERT All Subject Solutions. Here we have given Assam Board Class 10 English Chapter 1 A Letter to God Solutions for All Subjects, You can practice these here.
A Letter to God
Chapter – 1
ENGLISH
Multiple Choice Questions & Answers
1. Lencho’s house was situated-
(i) in a city
(ii) in a valley
(iii) on the crest a low hill.
(iv) on beach
Ans. (iii) On the crest a low hill.
2. What covered the Lencho’s field after hail-
(i) salt
(iii) ice
(ii) hailstones
(iv) none of above
Ans. (ii) Ice.
3. The word ‘amiable’ means-
(i) fat
(ii) friendly
(iii) holy man
(iv) serious
Ans. (ii) Friendly.
4. What the Frozen Pearls are compared with –
(i) pearls
(ii) salt
(iii) hailstone
(iv) none of these
Ans. (iii) Hailstone.
5. Lencho predicted-
(i) Rain
(ii) Cyclone
(iii) Strom
(iv) None of above
Ans. (i) Rain.
6. Lencho’s soul filled with-
(i) tears
(ii) sadness
(iii) joy
(iv) none
Ans. (ii) Sadness.
7. The Post master managed-
(i) 100 pesos
(ii) 70 pesos
(iii) 30 pesos
(iv) 75 pesos
Ans. (ii) 70 pesos.
8. Lencho had faith in-
(i) God
(ii) Postmaster
(iii) His sons
(iv) His wife
Ans. (i) God.
9. The woman was preparing-
(i) lunch
(ii) supper
(iii) breakfast
(iv) nothing
Ans. (ii) Supper.
10. The air was-
(i) fresh and sweet
(ii) polluted
(iii) dusty
(iv) humid
Ans. (i) Fresh and sweet.
11. Rain drops are compared with-
(i) new coins
(ii) silver coins
(iii) gold coins
(iv) 5 Rupees coins
Ans. (i) New coins.
12. Leacho saw towards North-East-
(i) a temple
(ii) a mountain
(iii) a mountain of clouds
(iv) a valley
Ans. (iii) A mountain of clouds.
13. Pesos means-
(i) Latin America
(ii) Currency of Latin America
(iii) Australian currency
(iv) Coins
Ans. (ii) Currency of Latin America.
14. Locust is-
(i) a bird
(ii) an insect
(iii) mountain
(iv) none
Ans. (ii) An insect.
Oral comprehension check – 1
1. What did Lencho hope for?
Ans: Lencho hoped for a shower for his crops.
2. Why did Lencho say the raindrops were like ‘new coins’?
Ans: He said so because the raindrops would bring coins.
3. How did the rain change? What happened to Lencho’s fields?
Ans: The rain changed into a hailstorm. Lencho’s field was totally destroyed.
4. What were Lencho’s feelings when the hail stopped?
Ans: Lencho’s soul was filled with sadness because the hail left nothing. He thought he and his family would go hungry that year.
Oral comprehension check – 2
1. Who or what did Lencho have faith in? What did he do?
Ans: Lencho had faith in God. He wrote a letter to God.
2. Who read the letter?
Ans: The postmaster read the letter.
3. What did the postmaster do then?
Ans: The PostMaster did not want to break Lencho’s faith. He collected money from his employees and gave a part of his salary and sent it to Lencho with a signature God.
Oral comprehension check – 3
1. Was Lencho surprised to find a letter for him with money in it?
Ans: No, Lencho was not at all surprised to find a letter for him with money in it. Because he had deep faith in god. He knew that God would help him.
2. What made him angry?
Ans: He asked 100 pesos from God. When he opened the latter he found 70 pesos in it, which made Luncho angry.
Thinking about the text:
1. Who does Lencho have complete faith in? Which sentences in the story tell you this?
Ans: Lencho has complete faith in God.
The sentence is : “If you don’t help me, my family and I will go hungry this year”.
2. Why does the postmaster send money to Lencho? Why does he sign the letter ‘God’?
Ans: The postmaster never saw a letter that in his whole career he didn’t want to break Lencho’s faith in god. So, he sent money to Lencho and wrote a single word signature: God.
3. Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him?
Ans: No, Lencho did not try to know who had sent him the money. He had deep faith in God; he was certain that it was God who sent him the money.
4. Who does Lencho think has taken the rest of the money? What is the irony in the situation? (Remember that the irony of a situation is an unexpected aspect of it. An ironic situation is strange or amusing because it is the opposite of what is expected.)
Ans: Lencho was angry when he counted the pesos. There were only 70 pesos and he asked for 100 pesos. He thinks that the remaining 30 pesos were stolen by the employees of the post office. Lencho called them a bunch of crooks.The irony is that the employees of the office did a noble task. They deserve appreciation. But they are called ‘Crooks’.
5. Are there people like Lencho in the real world? What kind of person would you say he is? You may select appropriate words from the box to answer the question.
Greedy naive stupid ungrateful
selfish comical unquestioning
Ans: Yes, People like Lencho can still be seen in this real world. Such a man is ‘naive’, ‘stupid’ and ‘comical’.
6. There are two kinds of conflict in the story : between humans and nature and between humans themselves. How are these conflicts illustrated?
Ans: The first conflict is that the rain was welcome for the field. But it turned into a hailstorm and destroyed the field. Second conflict is that the employees gave Lencho money but he called them ‘Crooks’.
Thinking about Language:
1. Look at the following sentence from the story.
Suddenly a strong wind began to blow and along with the rain very large hailstones began to fall.
‘Hailstones’ are small balls of ice that fall like rain. A storm in which hailstones fall is a ‘hailstorm’. You know that a storm is bad weather with strong winds, rain, thunder and lightning.
There are different names in different parts of the world for storms depending on their nature. Can you match the names in the box with their description below, and fill in the blanks? You may use a dictionary to help you.
Gale, whirlwind, cyclone
Hurricane, tornado, typhoon
1. A violent Tropical Storm in which strong winds move in a circle :——c—-
2. An extremely strong wind : —a—
3. A violent Tropical Storm with very strong winds:——p——
4. A violent storm whose centre is a cloud in the shape of a funnel :——n—–
5. A violent storm with very strong winds, especially in the western Atlantic Ocean :——r—–
6. A very strong wind that moves very fast in a spinning movement and causes a lot of damage :——l—–
Ans: 1.Cyclone 2. gale. 3. Typhoon 4. Tornado 5. Hurricane 6. Whirlwind.
2. Notice how the word ‘hope’ is used in these sentences from the story :
(a) I hope it (that hailstorm) passes quickly.
(b) There was a single hope : help from God. In the first example, ‘hope’ is a verb which means you wish for something to happen. In the second example it is a noun meaning a chance for something to happen.
Match the sentences in column A with the meaning of ‘hope’ in column B.
| A | B |
| 1. Will you get the subject you want to study in college? I hope so. | -A feeling that something good will probably happen. |
| 2. I hope you don’t mind my saying this, but I don’t like the way you are arguing. | -Thinking that this would happen (It may or may not have happened.) |
| 3. This discovery will give new hope to HIV/AIDS sufferers. | -Stopped believing that this good thing would happen. |
| 4. We were hoping against hope that the judges would not notice our mistakes? | -Wanting something to happen. (and thinking it quite possible.) |
| 5. I called early in the hope of speaking to her before she went to school. | -Showing concern that what you say should not offend or disturb the other person : a way of being polite. |
| 6. Just when everybody had given up hope, the fisherman came back, seven days after the cyclone. | -wishing for something to happen, although this is very unlikely. |
Ans: A feeling that something good will probably happen.
Ans: Showing concern that what you say should not offend or disturb the other person : a way of being polite.
Ans: Thinking that this would happen (It may or may not have happened.)
Ans: Wishing for something to happen, although this is very unlikely.
Ans: Wanting something to happen. (and thinking it quite possible.)
Ans: Stopped believing that this good thing would happen.
3. Relative Clauses
Look at these sentences
(a) All morning Lencho – who knew his fields intimately – looked at the sky.
(b) The women, who was preparing supper, replied, “Yes, God willing “.
The italicised parts of the sentence give us more information about Lencho and the women. We call them relative clauses. Notice that they begin with a relative pronoun who. Other common relative pronouns are whom, whose, and which.
The relative clauses in (a) and (b) above are called non-defining, because we already know the identity of the person they describe. Lencho is a particular person, and there is a particular woman he speaks to. We don’t need the information in the relative clauses to pick these people out from a large set. A non-defining relative clause usually has a comma in front of it and a comma after it (some writers use a dash (-) instead, as in the story). If the relative clause comes at the end, we just put a full stop.
Join the sentences given below using who, whom, whose, which, as suggested.
1. I often go to Mumbai. Mumbai is the commercial capital of India. (which)
2. My mother is going to host a TV show on cooking. She cooks very well. (Who)
3. These sports persons are going to meet the president. Their performance has been excellent. (Whose)
4. Lencho prayed to God. His eyes see into our minds. (whose)
5. This man cheated me. I trusted him. (whom)
Ans: 1. I often go to Mumbai which is the commercial capital of India.
2. My mother, who cooks very well, is going to host a TV show on cooking.
3. The sports persons whose performance has been excellent are going to meet the president.
4. Lencho prayed to God whose eyes see into our minds.
5. This man whom I trusted cheated me. Sometimes the relative pronoun in a relative clause remains ‘hidden’ . For example, look at the first sentence of the story.
(a) The house – the only one in the entire valley – sat on the crest of a low hill. We can rewrite this sentence as:
(b) The house – which was only one in the entire valley – sat on the crest of a low hill.
In (a), the relative pronoun which and verb was are not present.
4. Using Negative for Emphasis
We know that sentences with words such as no, not or nothing show the absence of something, or contradict something. For example:
(a) This year we will have no corn. (Corn will be absent)
(b) The hail has left nothing. (Absence of a crop)
(c) These aren’t rain drops falling from the sky, they are new coins. (contradicts the common idea of what the drops of water falling from the sky are) But sometimes negative words are used just to emphasise an idea. Look at these sentences from the story:
(d) Lencho…….. had done nothing else but see the sky towards the north-east. (He had done only this)
(e) The man went out for no other reason than to have the pleasure of feeling the rain in his body. (He had only this reason)
Lencho showed not the slightest surprise on seeing the money. (He showed no surprise at all.)
Now look back at example (c). Notice that the contradiction in fact serves to emphasise the value or usefulness of the rain to the farmer. Find sentences in the story with negative words, which express the following ideas emphatically.
1. The trees lost all their leaves.
2. The letter was addressed to God himself.
3. The postman saw this address for the first time in his career.
Ans: 1. Not a leaf remained on the trees.
2. It was nothing less than a letter to God.
3. Never in his career as a postman had he known that address.
5. Metaphors.
The world’s metaphor comes from the Greek wording ‘transfer’ . Metaphors compare two things or ideas : a quality or feature of one thing is transferred to another thing. Some common metaphors are
* the leg of the table :- The leg supports our body. So the object that supports a table is described as a leg.
* the heart of the city :- The heart is an important organ in the centre of our body. So these words are used to describe the Central Area of a city.
In pairs, find metaphors from the story to complete the table below. Try to say what qualities are being compared. One has been done for you.
| Object | Metaphor | Quality of Feature compound |
| Cloud | Huge Mountains of clouds | The mass or ‘hugeness’ of mountains |
| Raindrops | – | – |
| Hailstones | – | – |
| Locusts | – | – |
| – | – | An epidemic (a disease) that spreads very rapidly and leaves many people dead |
| – | An ox of a nan | – |
Ans: Raindrops – coins, new coins – Valuable because they help to produce good crops and get money.
Hailstones – frozen pearls – water is frozen and dazzles.
Locusts – a plague of Locusts – destruction of crops.
Plague – a fatal disease – An epidemic (a disease) that spreads very rapidly and leaves many people dead.
Lencho – An ox of a man – works like an animal.
Speaking
6. Have you ever been in great difficulty, and felt that only a miracle could help you? How was your problem solved? Speak about this in class with your teacher.
Ans: Once I was late for my exam the school bus was left and I forgot to bring my admit card. I was very upset and didn’t know what to do. I prayed to God, only 5 minutes left for examination. I was about to cry then suddenly I saw my neighbour. I used to call him, Prem bhaiya. He was screaming my name near my class. I was in the back. I came and he gave me the Admit card. I thanked him and hugged him. He told me that my mother saw the card he gave to him. I feel very happy. God is always there for you, thank God.
7. Listening
Listen to the letter (given under ‘In this lesson) read out by your teacher/on the audio tape. As you listen, fill in the table given below.
Bhatt House
256,Circuit Road
Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
25 January, 2006
Dear Arti,
How are you? I’m sorry I haven’t written for a very long time. I think I last sent you a birthday card in the month of September 2005.
We have just moved house(see our new address above). This is our new home. Sarah has just about started going to school. We have admitted her to ‘Little Feet” as this is very close to our new home.
I’m sitting here by the windowsill, writing to you. There is a slight drizzle outside and I’m reminded of the good times we had together at Bangalore last year.
Do write back. Love,
Gaya
| The writer apologises(says sorry) because. | – |
| The writer has sent this to the reader. | – |
| The writer sent it in the month of. | – |
| The reason for not writing earlier. | – |
| Sarah goes to | – |
| Who is writing to whom? | – |
| Where and when were they last together? | – |
Ans: The writer apologises (says sorry) because → she hasn’t written to her friend Arti for a very long time.
The writer has sent this to the reader → after sending a birthday card in September 2005 last.
The writer has sent it in the month of → January 2006.
The reason for not writing earlier → The writer shifted to Kanpur.
Sarah goes to a school named ‘Little Feet’.
Who is writing to whom? → Jaya is writing to Arti.
Where and when were they last together →They were together in Bangalore last year.
Short Type Questions and Answers
1. Why did Lencho tell his sons that they would go hungry that year?
Ans:- when the storm had passed, he stood in the middle of the field and said to his sons that they would go hungry that year. Because corn was totally destroyed. The hailstorm had Destroyed Lencho’s field completely.
2. Why did Lencho write a second letter to God?
Ans:- In the second letter to God, Lencho wrote that he had asked for a hundred pesos, but he received only seventy pesos.So, he requested God to send the rest of the amount immediately. But he requested God not to send the money this time through mail because the post- office employees were dishonest.
3. What did the postmaster do after he had received Lencho’s letter ?
Ans:- The postmaster collected seventy pesos from his employees and gave a part of his salary and sent the money to Lencho, by writing one word ‘God’ as a signature.
4. What did Lencho do throughout the morning? What did he see in the north – east ?
Ans:- Throughout the morning Lencho sat in his house and waited for the rain to come. As Lencho had been observing the sky towards the north east, he could see huge mountains of clouds approaching. Apparently, he had predicted that they would definitely get some rain.
5. Lencho’s soul was filled with sadness, why?
Ans:- Because of the hailstorm Lencho field was destroyed and nothing left. Not a leaf remains on the trees. The flowers are gone. The field was totally destroyed by the hailstorm.
6. Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him?
Ans: No, Lencho does not try to find out who had sent the money to him. This is because he never suspected that it could be anybody else other than God who would send him the money. His faith in God was so strong that he believed that God had sent him the money.
7. What did Lencho write in his letter to God?
Ans:- Lencho wrote a letter to God because he had a deep faith in God and he believed that God would definitely help him by giving him 100 pesos so that he could again sow the seeds to get crops and food for his family.
8. Why did Lencho go out when the big drops of rain were falling?
Ans:- Lencho went out when the big drops of rain were falling because he was a farmer and he had been eagerly waiting for the rain to come. Lencho compares the raindrops to new coins the raindrops help him to grow and harvest the crops, which results in more prosperity
9. Why did Lencho go out when the big drops of rain were falling?
Ans:- Lencho stepped out in the rain to feel the raindrops.The air was fresh and sweet. He exclaimed with delight that they were not raindrops falling from the sky, they were new coins.
10. What did Lencho write in his letter to God?
Ans:- Lencho wrote in his letter to God asking God to give him a hundred pesos in order to sow his field again and to live until the crops come.
11. What did Lencho hope for?
Ans:- Lencho hoped for a shower for his crops.
12. Where was Lencho’s home situated?
Ans:- Lencho’s house, the only house in the entire valley, was situated on a low hilltop.
A. Choose the correct options for the following:-
1. Lencho was __ of a man working like an animal in the fields.
(i) a yak
(ii) a buffalo
(iii) an ox
(iv) a horse
Ans:- (iii) an ox
2. From which direction were the clouds approaching?
(i) south-east
(ii) north- west
(iii) north- south
(iv) north – east
Ans:- (iv) north – east.
3. Send me the rest, since I need it very much.
(i) Relaxing
(ii) Remaining part
(iii) Remaining idle
(iv) Something extra.
Ans:- (iii) Remaining idle.
4. For how long did the hail rain on the whole valley?
(i) two hours
(ii) an hours
(iii) thirty minutes
(iv) a day
Ans:- (ii) an hours
5. The following ___ Lencho came a bit earlier than usual.
(i) Monday
(ii) Saturday
(iii) Sunday
(iv) Thursday
Ans:- (iii)Sunday.
6. Pesos means-
(i) Latin America
(ii) Currency of Latin America
(iii) Australian currency
(iv) Coins
Ans. (ii) Currency of Latin America.
7. The woman was preparing-
(i) lunch
(ii) supper
(iii) breakfast
(iv) nothing
Ans. (ii) Supper.
8. The house — the only one in the entire valley — sat on the crest of a low hill.
(i) Wide
(ii) whole
(iii) flat
(iv) none of the above
Ans:- (ii) whole
9. What was the only thing that the earth needed?
(i) a snowfall
(ii) a hurricane
(iii) a shower
(iv) a tornado
Ans:- (iii) a shower
10. Which crop did Lencho grow in his fields?
(i) a corn
(ii) maize
(iii) barley
(iv) rice
Ans:- (i) a corn
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