Reading Comprehension Questions and Answers

Answer: D

The flamingoes are not ordinary visitors because they have been the honoured guests of King Lakho.

The passage opens: 'Legends will tell you that flamingoes are no ordinary visitors to Kachchh. They were the honoured guests of King Lakho and he had forbidden the hunting of flamingoes'. That is the reason given.

The birds are said to come 'from various parts of the world', not from Australia alone. Their beauty and any medicinal value are not mentioned.

Answer: B

Flamingo City is known as one of the biggest breeding grounds of the Greater Flamingo.

The passage describes it as 'an island in the middle of the Rann of Kachchh, known the world over as one of the biggest breeding grounds of the Greater Flamingo'.

Hunting was forbidden by King Lakho, so it was not a hunting ground. The passage says nothing of its beauty, and calling it the biggest island in the world is not stated.

Answer: C

The increased salinity was caused by the construction of dams on rivers that flow into the region.

The second paragraph says Maharaj Kumarshi Himmatsinghji 'traces the problem of increased salinity in the Rann waters to the construction of dams on rivers that flow into the region', and so asks that some water be made to flow into the Rann.

Flamingoes are the victims of the salinity, not its cause. Tourists and hunting expeditions are not mentioned at all.

Answer: B

The Emperor called the doctor because he was feeling tired and sleepy.

The first paragraph says he was tired and sleepy and could not keep his eyes open, and he said: 'Perhaps I'm sick ... Get my doctor!' His state is what made him call.

The medicinal leaves came from the doctor and were not what the Emperor asked for. The hot water came later in the story, and a discussion about his health is not what he wanted. He wanted help with the sleepiness.

Answer: C

The Emperor was angry because the tea leaves were not tasty.

The passage says: 'They didn't taste nice at all. The Emperor refused to have them and became angry at the doctor.' The taste caused the anger.

Mud is never mentioned. He did chew the leaves, so 'he couldn't chew them' is wrong, and he did not call them inedible. He disliked the taste.

Answer: D

Both A and B are incorrect.

Statement A says the doctor dropped the tea leaves into the bath water on purpose, but the passage says 'Some of the tea leaves that the doctor was carrying fell into the hot water', which was an accident. Statement B says that the Emperor started feeling sleepy after tasting the tea water, but after the tea he 'stopped feeling sleepy' and was 'fully awake'.

Each of the other options accepts at least one of these false statements.

Answer: C

The doctor gave the Emperor some tea leaves to help him stay awake.

The doctor took 'some dry, dark leaves' from his bag and said 'They are called tea leaves.' The Emperor was tired and sleepy, and the tea made him 'fully awake'.

Neem and giloy leaves are not in the passage. 'Sleepy' is the Emperor's problem and not what the tea was meant to cause, so the last option is the reverse of what happened.

Answer: D

The statement that is not true is 'After drinking it, he started feeling weak and lifeless'.

The passage says that after the tea he stopped feeling sleepy, was fully awake and 'felt youthful and strong again'. So he felt strong, not weak and lifeless.

The other three are true. The servant brought hot water and the Emperor put a few tea leaves in it, he tasted the water, and 'there was a big smile on his face'.

Answer: B

The wings are called sorrowful because the bird is sad as it is caged.

The speaker compares the pretty bird in the gilded cage with a free bird, and says of the caged one 'Your poor bit thing behind its bars is only half alive!' The sorrow belongs to the bird, which is shut in, and the wings that flutter inside the cage show it.

Nothing in the poem says the wings are broken or that the bird is hungry. The statement that a cage-bird cannot sing as the speaker's bird does is a separate point about the lost song, and not the reason for the word 'sorrowful'.

Answer: C

The speaker's bird can do many things because the bird is free.

It is 'free to build and thrive', sings with 'a true wood-note', and can 'wheel and soar with the sunshine on his wings'. Each ability comes from not being in a cage.

The bird is not caged, and 'sorrowful' belongs to the cage-bird. Being talented is not mentioned, and the poem credits freedom for the bird's abilities, not any special talent.