Students can find the best My English Book 8th Standard Question Answer and 8th Class English Chapter 2.4 Excuses (A Skit) Question Answer Warming Up English Workshop Answers Pdf for exam preparation.
Std 8 English Chapter 2.4 Excuses (A Skit) Question Answer Pdf
8th Class English Chapter 2.4 Excuses (A Skit) Questions and Answers
Chit Chat
Form groups and chat about the following.
Question 1.
Do you come to school on time, everyday?
Answer:
Yes, I do come to school on time. However, on rare occasions, I do get late to school by a few minutes.
Question 2.
What do you feel, when you are late?
Answer:
When I am late, I am scared as to what the teacher would say. I prefer being early to school rather than being late, to avoid embarrassment.
Question 3.
What action is taken in school, on late-corners?
Answer:
When we are late to school we are asked to run an entire round of the school playground. We are also given an additional assignment to do as a penalty.
Question 4.
Do you give excuses for your late-coming? Are they true or fake?
Answer:
I’m usually straight-forward about my reasons for being late to school. I prefer to speak the truth and stick to it.
Question 5.
Why is punctuality so important in life?
Answer:
In my opinion, the person who is on time or before time always has a benefit over someone who is late. When a person is on time to his place of study or work, he has time to settle down and get mentally prepared for the day ahead. He is composed and better equipped to handle the challenes that lie before him. When a person is in haste, he tends to make mistakes and may not be able to handle his work in an efficient manner. Hence, being punctual is a virtue and also strength of a person.
[Note: The above answers are for reference.
Students are expected to attempt the above activity on their own.]
8th English 2.4 Excuses (A Skit) Warming Up Answers
Question 1.
Enjoy the jokes!
a. Teacher : Asif, why are you crawling into the class?
Asif : I am sorry teacher. But yesterday you warned me not to walk into the class. So…….
b. Teacher : Sharvari, you are regularly late to school. Don’t you feel ashamed? Why do you come to school so late?
Sharvari : I am sorry, Madam. But on my way to school there is a road sign that says, ‘Go Slow’. And ma’am you have instructed us to always follow what road signs say.
Can you pick out the words in the joke that were used as excuses for late-coming?
Answer:
a. not to walk into class, so I crawled.
b. ‘Go slow’, so I walked slowly.
Now discuss within groups and share some simple jokes about teachers and students. Try and write one or two such jokes in your own words in the above format.
[Students are expected to attempt the above activity on their own.]
Question 2.
Reported Speech
Speech or dialogues can be reported in two ways — Direct and Indirect.
When exact words of the speaker are reported, we call it Direct Speech. When exact words of the speaker are not reported, but just its contents we call it Indirect Speech.
Direct Speech: Amar said, “I shall come to meet you tomorrow, Sanket.”
Indirect Speech: Amar told Sanket that he would go to meet hìm the next day.
Note down the changes you observe in the Indirect Speech.
(1) …………………
(2) …………………
(3) …………………
(4) …………………
Answer:
(1) No inverted commas are used in Indirect speech.
(2) The Indirect Speech is reported by a third person.
(3) The word, ‘tomorrow’ changes to ‘the next day’.
(4) The word ‘that’ is used in Indirect Speech.
• In what sense was Ritesh ‘early’?
Answer:
second period
• What was the first reason why Ritesh was delayed?
Answer:
he heard a scream from the main road
• What made Ritesh go back to the shop?
Answer:
he had left his bag at the shop in the mad rush
• When did the dog finally leave the school-bag?
Answer:
he offered it biscuits given by the shopkeeper
• How did Ritesh describe the same dog, the second time?
Answer:
a puppy, but big in size
• Why did Ritesh refuse to take part in the story—writing competition?
Can you believe his last excuse for refusing to take part?
Answer:
Ritesh refused to take part in the story-writing competition because, in his opinion, he wouldn’t know what to write as he was not good at making up stories. Also, him agreeing to take part in the competition would prove the fact that he had made up tie story for coming late.
2.4 Excuses (A Skit) English Workshop Answers Pdf
Question 1.
Complete the following by inserting the correct words from the extract.
Question 1.
The heavy load would not ………
Answer:
The heavy load would not budge.
Question 2.
The police arrived to _______ the crime.
Answer:
The police arrived to investigate/deal with the crime.
Question 3.
My friend ……. me to eat chocolates in the classroom.
Answer:
My friend lured me to eat chocolates in the classroom.
Question 4.
I was ……. to find my lost notebooks.
Answer:
I was relieved to find my lost notebooks.
Question 5.
The injured child kept _______ with pain.
Answer:
The injured child kept groaning with pain.
Question 6.
He stole the cash and …….. in the dark night.
Answer:
He stole the cash and vanished in the dark night.
Question 2.
Rearrange the order of the following events as per the narrator.
(1) The dog began to follow Ritesh to school.
(2) The groaning man joined the thief and ran away.
(3) A huge dog was sitting on Ritesh’s school-bag.
(4) Ritesh heard a scream from the main road.
(5) A thief came running out of the shop.
(6) A man, groaning with pain, was lying near the pavement.
(7) The dog refused to move.
(8) The dog itself found its owner.
Answer:
(4) Ritesh heard a scream from the main road.,
(6) A man, groaning with pain, was lying near the pavement.,
(5) A thief came running out of the shop.,
(2) The groaning man joined the thief and ran away.,
(3) A huge dog was sitting on Ritesh’s school-bag.,
(7) The dog refused to move.,
(1) The dog began to follow Ritesh to school.,
(8) The dog itself found its owner.
Question 3.
Question 1.
Were the excuses given by Ritesh for his late arrival, true? Give reasons for your response.
Answer:
The excuses given by Ritesh for his late arrival were untrue because:
i. Each time the teacher asked if it was the end of his excuse, he cooked up another lie.
ii. Ritesh often changed his version of the facts because he was unable to remember the lie that he had stated before. For example: the man lying and groaning starts to run, him describing the dog differently at two different time, him saying he had left his shop in the shop even though he had never entered the shop.
Question 2.
Did the teacher believe Ritesh’s stories? How do you know that?
Answer:
No, the teacher did not believe Ritesh’s stories. This is because:
- The manner in which the teacher reacted when Ritesh entered the class late, is an evidence that Ritesh often comes late to class and makes up an excuse every time.
- The teacher asks sarcastic questions to Ritesh, which reveals her irritation towârds Ritesh’s habit of cooking up excuses for coming late.
- Finally, it is confirmed that Ritesh is lying when his description of the dog changes and he calls it a puppy.
Question 3.
Why did the teacher suggest that Ritesh should enter the story-writing contest?
Answer:
The teacher suggested that Ritesh should enter the story-writing contest because:
- Ritesh was good at making things up. This quality of his would make him a good story writer.
- He had cooked up an almost believable yet creative story as an excuse for coming late to school.
- She wanted him to know that the story that he had made up as an excuse for coming late was false and she had known it since the beginning.
Question 4.
What according to you is the best way to correct children, who are regularly late to school?
Answer:
The following methods can be tried to correct children late to school:
- Inform the parents that their child is often late to school, ask the reason and ask them to ensure that their child is sent on time.
- Provide constructive punishments like giving them an additional assignment or task to do in the school.
- Make them wait for the same amount of time that they are late by, by making them sit in the library and completing additional assignments.
Question 4.
Report the following in Indirect Speech.
Question 1.
Ritesh: May I come in Madam?
Answer:
Ritesh asked the teacher whether he could come in.
Question 2.
Mrs. Sen: Ritesh, you are too early for the second period.
Answer:
Mrs. Sen told Ritesh that he was too early for the second period.
Question 3.
Ritesh: I had left my bag at the shop.
Answer:
Ritesh said that he had left his bag at the shop.
Question 4.
Ritesh: I am sorry Ma’am!
Answer:
Ritesh apologised to his teacher.
Question 5.
Mrs Sen : There’s a story – writing competition.
Answer:
Mrs. Sen informed that there was a story-writing competition.
Ask the students to bring different types of notices published in English news papers. Observe the language, vocabulary and structure used.
Chapter 2.4 Excuses (A Skit) Question Answer Extra Questions
Simple Factual
Question 1.
Fill in the blanks with appropriate words from the extract.
i. According to his teacher, Ritesh was ‘early’ for the ………..
Answer:
second period
ii. The first reason for Ritesh being late to school was that ………..
Answer:
he heard a scream from the main road
iii. When he heard the scream, Ritesh went to the main road and ………..
Answer:
saw a person lying near the pavement and groaning in pain
iv. Ritesh had to go back to the shop because …………
Answer:
he had left his bag at the shop in the mad rush
[“Characters: Ritesh ……..
………. what to do.”]
Complex Factual
Question 2.
State whether the following statements are True or False. Correct the False statements.
i. Ritesh admitted to his teacher that he had started late from home to reach the school.
ii. When Ritesh reached the man, who was groaning in pain, another man ran out of an alley with a gun in his hand.
iii. The man on the pavement began to get up and run with the thief.
iv. Ritesh was successful in catching the thieves and taking them to the police.
Answer:
i. False. Ritesh told his teacher that he had started well in time from home to reach the school.
ii. False. When Ritesh reached the man, who was groaning in pain, another man ran out of a store with a packet in his hand.
iii. True
iv. False. Ritesh was unsuccessful in catching the thieves as they just vanished around the corner of the road.
Vocabulary
Question 3.
Use the following words / phrases to make meaningful sentences.
i. nothing short of
ii. sure enough
iii. to deal with
iv. vanished
Answer:
i. The wedding celebration was nothing short of a disaster due to the sudden rains.
ii. I had called the plumber on my way home, and sure enough he was there.
iii. Parents usually find it difficult to deal with their teenage children.
iv. I wanted to thank the girl who helped me, but she had vanished.
Grammar
Question 4.
Do as Directed:
i. And of course, you had to investigate!
(Pick out the Verb and state whether it is Finite on Non-finite)
Answer:
investigate — Non-finite Verb
ii. They just vanished around the corner.
(Identify whether the underlined part of the sentence is a Phrase or a Clause)
Answer:
around the corner — Phrase
iii. I realized that I had left my bag at the shoe in the mad rush.
(Frame a Wh-question to get the underlined part of the sentence as the answer)
Answer:
What did you realise?
Simple Factual
Question 5.
The one who fmally found the puppy’s owner was the ……..
Answer:
the puppy itself
Question 6.
Complete the web diagram by stating Ritesh’s description of the dog, the first time.
Answer:
huge, hairy, brown
[“Mrs. Sen: Interesting! …………
……….. making up stories.”]
Vocabulary
Question 7.
Arrange the given words in an alphabetical order.
brown, budge, began, biscuits, bag
Answer:
bag, began, biscuits, brown, budge
Question 8.
Pick out two compound words from this extract.
Answer:
- shopkeeper
- story-writing
Question 9.
Write the antonyms for the following from the extract.
i. tiny
ii. boring
iii. refuse
iv. serious
Answer:
i. huge
ii. interesting
iii. offer
iv. funny
Grammar
Question 10.
Do as Directed:
i. I couldn’t leave without my school-bag. (Pick out the Modal Auxiliary from the given sentence)
Answer:
couldn’t — Modal Auxili
ii. entry
(Use the given word as a noun and as a verb by forming suitable sentences)
Answer:
a. The king’s royal entry caused everyone in the court to rise. (Verb)
b. The last entry in the journal was made by Ms. Sheetal Patil. (Noun)
Open-ended / Personal Response
Question 11.
Ritesh’s last excuse for not entering the contest is not believable. State your opinion.
Answer:
Ritesh’s last excuse for not entering the contest is not believable according to me, because:
- He possessed the art of cooking up instant imaginative excuses to get out of a situation;
- His story was almost convincing due to its minute details.
- He could have written a story by entering the contest due to this talent, but he wanted to prove to the teacher that his excuse was real and that he was innocent.
Activities
Speaking
Question 12.
Narrate an incident to your class where you have given an excuse and gotten away with it. Did you think it was a good idea to give the excuse or to tell the truth?
[Students are expected to attempt the above activity on their own.]
Writing
Question 13.
Imagine there is t story-writing competition in your school.
Frame a notice about the same, to be put up on a notice-board. Cover the following points.
i. Name of the Competition
ii. At what levels
iii. Date, Time and Venue
iv. Duration fixed for writing the story
v. Points to be considered while judging winners
vi. Prizes
vii. Contact person for participant entries
Answer:
The Royal Intelligensia High School
Vile Parle, Mumbai —400086
NOTICE
Story Writing Competition — 2020
23rd January, 2020
The school invites students from Class VIII to X to participate in the story-writing competition, which is to be held on the 2nd of February, 2019. The competition would be held on the said day from 10:00 am. to 11:00 a.m. in the school auditorium. The theme of the story to be written and the writing sheet would be provided by the school. Students are supposed to carry their own pens/pencils.
The stories would be judged on the following criteria:
a. Catchy Title (10 points)
b. Attractive beginning (10 points)
c. Creative use of language (20 points)
d. Imaginative ability (20 points)
e. Detailing of characters and events (10 points)
f. Flow of ideas (20 points)
g. Interesting climax (10 points)
Attractive prizes will be awarded to the three best stories selected by the judges.
- First Prize: ₹ 5000 and citation
- Second Prize: ₹ 3000 and citation
- Third Prize: ₹ 2000 and citation
Contact Ms. Ratna Patwardhan in the school office, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on’ weekdays for filling in the entry forms.
Last date for receiving entries: 28th January 2020, 3:00 p.m.
Principal
Language Study : Practice Questions
Question 14.
Do as Directed.
i. Complete the words by using correct letters:
a. pe_iod
b. vani_hed
c. gro_led
d. bu_ge
e. reli_ved
f. pav_ment
g. inve_tigate
h. g_oaning
Answer:
a. period
b. vanished
c. growled
d. budge
e. relieved
f. pavement
g. investigate
h. groaning
ii. Give the meanings of the following phrases and use them in sentences of your own:
to account for – is the explanation for
a. The housekeeper had to account for every penny he used.
b. mad rush – trying to do something hurriedly due to a time constraint
Every morning, the students are in a mad rush to get to their class on time.
c. nothing short of-nothing less than
The carnival trip was nothing short of a magical adventure for the kids.
d. quite a handful – quite a bit
Little Ashwini was quite a handful for her mother to handle.
e. sure enough – as expected I was hoping to find the house keys on the table and sure enough they were there.
f. to deal with – to handle
Ramesh had to deal with the outcome of his mischievousness.
iii. Put the words in the alphabetical order:
a. suddenly, student, scream, school
b. pavement, packet, passers, person
Answer:
a. school, scream, student, suddenly
b. packet, passers, pavement, person
iv. Punctuate the following:
a. amazing quite a handful for you to deal with and all at once what did you do then mrs sen said then why are you late
Answer:
a. “Amazing ! Quite a handful for you to deal with and all at once! What did you do then?”
b. Mrs Sen said “then why are you late ?”
v. Make four words (minimum 3 letters) using the letters in the given words:
a. pavement
b. vanished
Answer:
a. tame, pant, mean, event
b. side, sein, sand, shine
vi. Write related adjectives for the following noun:
Answer:
passionate, dedicated, inspiring
vii. Complete the word chains. Add four words, each beginning with the last letter of the previous word:
a. Verbs
investigate, ___, ___, ___, ____
Answer:
b. Nouns
pavement, ___, ___, ____
Answer:
c. Adjectives
lonely, ___, ___, ___,
Answer:
a. Verbs
investigate, escape, encourage, end, dare
b. Nouns
pavement, free, eagerness, sacrifice, ear
c. Adjectives
lonely, young, glad, dynamic, capable
viii. Add a prefix or suffix to make new words and use the root words in your own sentences:
a. second
b. half
Answer:
| Word with Prefix | Word with Suffix |
| a. millisecond | secondly |
| b. behalf | halfway |
Sentences
a. Vijay lost to Suraj in the race by only a second.
b. Neeraj spent half the summer playing video games.
ix. Add a subordinate clause to expand the sentences meaningfully:
a. I was halfway down the narrow lane.
b. There was this person lying near the pavement.
Answer:
a. I was halfway down the narrow lane that leads to the market.
b. There was this person lying near the pavement who was groaning with pain.
x. Spot the error and rewrite the correct sentence:
a. I realized that I will left my bag at the shop.
Answer:
I realized that I had left my bag at the shop
Excuses (A Skit) Glossary
| Word | Meaning |
| budge (v) | Move (जागेवरून हलणे) |
| Groaning (v) | making painful sounds (कण्हणे) |
| growled (v) | angry sounds made by animals (गुरगुरणे) |
| investigate (v) | carry out an organised search to discover truth about some incident (चौकशी करणे, तपास करणे) |
| lured (v) | attracted to do something (लालूच दाखवणे, आमिष दाखवणे) |
| pavement (n) | a footpath on the sides of the road (पदपथ) |
| relieved (adj) | no longer worried (निश्चिंत होणे) |
| vanished (v) | disappeared (नाहीसे होने) |
| Phrase | Meaning |
| accounts for | is the explanation for (च्या स्पष्टीकरणासाठी) |
| in a mad rush | trying to do something hurriedly due to a time constraint (वेळेअभावी अतिशय घाई होणे) |
| nothing short of | nothing less than (च्याहून कमी नाही) |
| quite a handful | quite a bit (पुरेसे) |
| sure enough | as expected (अपेक्षेप्रमाणे) |
| to deal with | to handle (हाताळणी करणे) |
Excuses (A Skit) पाठाचा परिचय
‘Excuses! (A Skit) ‘ या उपहासात्मक लघुनाट्यात लेखकाने शिक्षेपासून वाचण्यासाठी कारणे देणाऱ्या लहान मुलांच्या प्रवृत्तीबाबत भाष्य केले आहे. रितेश हा विदयार्थी या पाठातील मुख्य पात्र आहे. एके दिवशी रितेश नेहमीप्रमाणेच शाळेत उशिरा येतो. त्याच्या शिक्षिका ( श्रीमती सेन) ‘तू दुसऱ्या तासिकेसाठी खूपच लवकर आला आहेस!’ असे उपहासपूर्ण बोलून त्याला उशिरा येण्याबद्दल दटावतात. त्यांच्या या प्रश्नाला उत्तर म्हणून रितेश आपल्या उशिरा येण्याच्या कारणांची मालिकाच सांगू लागतो.
‘शाळेत येण्यासाठी तो वेळेत निघाला होता; मात्र वाटेत मुख्य रस्त्यावरून त्याला एका व्यक्तीची किंकाळी ऐकू आली, त्यानंतर तो पदपथावर पडलेल्या त्या व्यक्तीला पाहण्यासाठी गेला.’ अशा नाट्यपूर्णरीतीने तो आपले म्हणणे पटवण्याचा प्रयत्न करतो. त्यानंतर रितेशने रचून सांगितलेल्या दुसऱ्या घटनेत रितेशला एक माणू दुकानामधून हातात पाकीट घेऊन पळताना दिसतो. त्याच्यामागे दुकानदार ‘चोर, चोर’ असे ओरडत धावत असतो. पदपथावर एवढा वेळ वेदनेने ओरडणारा माणूसही उठून बसतो आणि त्या चोरासह पळू लागतो. रितेश त्यांना गाठेपर्यंत ते दोघेही दिसेनासे होतात.
शिक्षिका रितेशला, ‘त्यानंतर काय घडले?’ असे विचारतात. त्यानंतर पुढचे कारण देण्यासाठी तो चटकन एक नवीन किस्सा रचतो. तो सांगतो, ‘मी त्या दुकानात दप्तर (शाळेची बॅग ) विसरलो होतो, ते घेण्यासाठी मी पुन्हा मागे वळलो, तर दुकानात माझ्या दप्तरावर एक तपकिरी रंगाचा मोठा कुत्रा बसलेला दिसला. तो कुत्रा बॅगवरून हटायला तयार नव्हता. जेव्हा मी त्याला बिस्किट दिले तेव्हा तो बॅगेवरून दूर झाला.’
त्यानंतर तो कुत्रा आपल्या मागेमागे आल्याचे रितेश शिक्षिकेला सांगतो; पण हे सांगताना तो कुत्र्याचा उल्लेख ‘एक लहानसे पिल्लू’ असा करतो. शिक्षेपासून वाचण्यासाठी वेगवेगळे खोटे किस्से सांगताना तो हे विसरतो, की आधी ज्याचा उल्लेख आपण ‘एक भला मोठा कुत्रा’ अशारीतीने केला होता, नंतर त्याचा उल्लेख आपण चुकून ‘लहानसे पिल्लू’ असा केला आहे.
रितेशचे खोटे बोलणे लक्षात आल्यावर शिक्षिका त्याला टोकतात. त्यावर ‘तो कुत्रा नव्हता, तर ते आकाराने मोठे असलेले एक कुत्र्याचे पिल्लू होते.’ असे खोटे बोलून रितेश वेळ मारून नेतो. त्यानंतर ‘आपण कुत्र्याच्या पिल्लाच्या मालकाला शोधण्यासाठी गेलो होतो; पण कुत्र्याच्या पिल्ल्याने स्वतःच आपल्या मालकाला शोधले असे रितेश शिक्षिकेला सांगतो. आतापर्यंत रितेश एकामागोमाग एक थापा मारत आहे हे शिक्षिकेच्या लक्षात आले होते; पण त्या थापा मारताना त्याने त्या आपल्याला पटतील अशा रीतीने सांगितल्या, हेदेखील शिक्षिकेला जाणवले होते.
सहजपणे प्रसंग रचणे आणि ते वास्तवदर्शीपणे मांडणे या रितेशच्या गुणाचे शिक्षिका कौतुक करतात. उपाहासाने त्या रितेशला कथालेखन स्पर्धेत सहभागी होण्याचे सुचवतात. त्यांच्या या सूचनेला रितेश नकार देतो. ‘मला गोष्टी रचता येत नाही’ असे सांगून आपण निरागस आहोत, आपल्याला खोटे बोलता येत नाही हेच त्याला शिक्षिकेसमोर सिद्ध करायचे असते.