NCERT Solutions for Class 7 English
Fire: Friend and Foe NCERT Solutions for Class 7 English Honeycomb Chapter 8
Fire: Friend and Foe NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers
Fire: Friend and Foe Comprehension check
Question 1.
Mark the correct answer in each of the following.
i. Early man was frightened of
(a) lightning and volcanoes.
(b) the damage caused by them.
(c) fire.
Answer:
(c) fire.
ii. (a) Fire is energy.
(b) Fire is heat and light.
(c) Fire is the result of a chemical reaction.
Answer:
(c) Fire is the result of a chemical reaction.
Question 2.
From the boxes given below, choose the one with the correct order of the following sentences.
i. That is fire.
ii. A chemical reaction takes place.
iii. Energy in the form of heat and light is released.
iv. Oxygen combines with carbon and hydrogen.
Answer:
iv. ii. iii. i.
Fire: Friend and Foe Working with the text
Answer the following questions.
Question 1.
What do you understand by the “flash point ” of a fuel?
Answer:
Every fuel has a particular temperature at which it begins to bum. This temperature is called the “flash point” or “kindling temperature” of the fuel.
Question 2.
i. What are some common uses of fire?
Answer:
Some common uses of fire include cooking our food, warming our homes in winter and generating electricity
ii. In what sense is it a “bad master”?
Answer:
Fire is a “bad master” because if fire gets out of control, it can be very dangerous.Each year thousands of homes and shops are damaged by fire. Vast areas of forest are also destroyed and hundreds of people are killed or injured.
Question 3.
Match items in Column A with those in Column B.
Solved
- fuel -wood; cooking gas; coal
- oxygen – air
- heat – lighted matchstick; smouldering paper; burning coal
Question 4.
What are the three main ways in which a fire can be controlled or put out?
Answer:
The three main ways in which a fire can be controlled or put out are as follows:
- We can take away the fuel. If the fire has no fuel to feed on, no burning can take place.
- The second way of putting out a fire is to prevent oxygen from reaching it. No supply of oxygen means no fire.
- The third way of putting out a fire is to remove the heat. If the temperature can be brought down below the flash point, the fuel stops burning. Sometimes, water is sprayed on a fire to control it.
Question 5.
Match the items in Box A with those in Box B.
Solved
- To bum paper or a piece of wood, we heat it before it catches fire.
- Small fires can be put out with a damp blanket.
- When water is spread on fire, it absorbs heat from the burning material and lowers the temperature.
- A carbon dioxide extinguisher is the best thing to put out an electrical fire.
- Space left between buildings reduces the risk of fire.
Question 6.
Why does a burning candle go out when you blow on it?
Answer:
A burning candle goes out when we blow on it because by blowing, we remove the hot air around the flame bringing down its temperature below the flash point. This is how the candle goes out.
Question 7.
Spraying water is not a good way of putting out an oil fire or an electrical fire. Why not?
Answer:
Water should also not be sprayed on fires caused by electrical appliances. The person spraying water might receive an electric shock and be killed. A carbon dioxide extinguisher is the best thing to fight an electrical fire.
Question 8.
What are some of the things you should do to prevent a fire at home and in the school?
Answer:
Some of the things we should do to prevent a fire at home and in the school are as follows:
- We should leave space between buildings to reduce the fire risk. Every new building, especially a public place, must ensure observance of fire prevention norms.
- We should always have a fire extinguisher ready in case there is a fire, and must learn how to use it.
- We should handle the flammable products with care and under adult supervision.
- Overloaded wires should be replaced with new ones frequently, and the electric fuse should be
checked very often. - Schools must organize a fire safety week where children are taught about the prevention of fire at home and school.
- The cooking gas pipes should be checked for leakages very frequently.
Fire: Friend and Foe Working with language
Question 1.
Find ten examples of verbs in the simple present tense in the text Fire: Friend and Foe’ and write them down here. Do not include any passive verbs.
- combines
- comes
- blow
- heat
- use
- means
- stops
- absorbs
- receive
Question 2.
Fill in the blanks in the sentences below with words from the box. You may use a word more than once.
Solved
- Gandhiji’s life was devoted to the cause of justice and fair play.
- Have you insured your house against fire?
- Diamond is nothing but carbon in its pure form.
- If you put too much coal on the fire at once you will smother it.
- Smoking is said to be the main cause of heart disease.
- When asked by an ambitious writer whether he should put some fire into his stories, Somerset Maugham murmured, “No, the other way round”.
- She is a carbon copy of her mother.
- It is often difficult to smother a yawn when you listen to a long speech on the value of time.
Question 3.
One word is italicized in each sentence. Find its opposite in the box and fill in the blanks. Solved
- You were required to keep all the doors open, not shut.
- PUPIL: What mark did I get in yesterday’s Maths test?
TEACHER: You got what you get when you add five and five and subtract ten from the total. - Run four kilometres a day to preserve your health. Run a lot more to destroy it.
- If a doctor advices a lean and lanky patient to reduce his weight further, be sure he is doing it to increase his income.
- The world is too much with us; late and soon, getting and spending we lay waste our powers.
Question 4.
Use the words given in the box to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.
Solved
- The cat chased the mouse across the lawn.
- We were not allowed to cross the frontier. So we drove along it as far as we could and came back happy.
- The horse went past the winning post and had to be stopped with difficulty.
- It is not difficult to see through your plan. Anyone can see your motive.
- Go along the yellow line, then turn left. You will reach the post office in five minutes.
Fire: Friend and Foe Speaking and writing
Question 1.
First re-order the items in each unit to make a meaningful sentence. Next, re-order the sentences to make a meaningful paragraph.
Use correct punctuation marks in the paragraph.
i. and eighteen fire tenders struggled/the fire began on Monday/to douse the blaze till morning
ii. in a major fire/over 25 shops/were gutted
iii. but property/was destroyed/worth several lakhs/no casualties were reported.
Answer:
i. The fire began on Monday and eighteen fire tenders struggled to douse the blaze till morning.
ii. Over 25 shops were gutted in a major fire.
iii. No casualties were reported but property worth several lakhs was destroyed.
Massive fire in the scrap shops in Tangarh
A fire was caused in the scrap shops in the Tangarh area of Rajasthan. The fire reportedly began on Monday morning around 9 a.m. due to short circuit in one of the shops. It spread to the other shops in the area, leading to a huge explosion. More than 25 shops were gutted in the major fire. Although no casualties were reported, yet property worth several lakhs was destroyed. Eighteen fire tenders struggled to douse the blaze till morning. Eyewitnesses say that the short circuit caused an explosion in the oil cannisters that were lying in the adjacent shops and caused the huge fire.
Question 2.
Read the following newspaper report given in the box below.
(Encourage the students to read the given report.)