NCERT Solutions for Class 7 English Honeycomb Chapter 8 Fire: Friend and Foe are available here. These solutions are prepared by our subject expert to help students in their exams and homework. NCERT Solutions for Class 7 English Chapter 8 Fire: Friend and Foe questions and answers are very helpful for CBSE exam. Students of Class 7 can study the answers provided here to score well in their school exams.
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.
| a. (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) | b. (ii) (iii) (i) (iv) |
| c. (iv) (iii) (ii) (i) | d. (iv) (ii) (iii) (i) |
Answer: d. (iv) (ii) (iii) (i)
Working with the Text
Answer the following questions.
Question 1: What do you understand by the ‘flash point’ of a fuel?
Answer: Every fuel catches fire at a particular temperature. This temperature is called the ‘flash point’ of a fuel.
Question 2: (i) What are some common uses of fire?
(ii) In what sense is it a “bad master”?
Answer: (i) Some common uses of fire are:
- It is used to produce electricity
- It is used for cooking.
- It is also used to heat our home in winters.
(ii) Fire is “bad master” when it gets out of control. It can be dangerous and burn our houses, shops, vast forest areas and many more. It also kills and injures hundreds of people every year and causes destruction of huge properties.
Question 3. Match items in Column A with those in Column B.
| A | B |
| (i) fuel | Lighted matchstick |
| (ii) oxygen | Air |
| (iii) heat | Coal |
| Burning coal | |
| Wood | |
| Smoldering paper | |
| Cooking gas |
Answer:
| A | B |
| (i) fuel | Smoldering paper |
| Cooking gas | |
| Coal | |
| Wood | |
| (ii) oxygen | Air |
| (iii) heat | Lighted matchstick |
| Burning coal |
Question 4: What are the three main ways in which a fire can be controlled or put out?
Answer 4: The three main ways in which a fire can be controlled or put out are:
(i) By taking away the fuel. If the fire has no fuel to feed on, no burning can take place.
(ii) By preventing oxygen from reaching it
(iii) By bringing back the temperature below ‘flash point’ of the fuel
Question 5: Match the items in Box A with those in Box B
A
| (i) To burn paper or a piece of wood, (ii) Small fires can be put out (iii) When water is spread on fire, (iv) A carbon dioxide extinguisher is the best thing (v) Space left between buildings |
B
| • it absorbs heat from the burning material and lowers the temperature. • reduces the risk of fire. • with a damp blanket. • we heat it before it catches fire. • to put out an electrical fire. |
Answer:
| A | B |
| (i) To burn paper or a piece of wood, | we heat it before it catches fire. |
| (ii) Small fires can be put out | with a damp blanket. |
| (iii) When water is spread on fire, | it absorbs heat from the burning material and lowers the temperature. |
| (iv) A carbon dioxide extinguisher is the best thing | to put out an electrical fire. |
| (v) 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 you blow on it because when we blow air, we remove the hot air around the flame bringing down its temperature below the flash point.
Question 7: Spraying water is not a good way of putting out an oil fire or an electrical fire. Why not?
Answer: If water is sprayed onto an oil fire, then the oil will float to the top of the water and continue to burn. This can be very dangerous because water can flow quickly, carrying the burning oil with it and spreading the fire. In case of an electrical fire, the person spraying water might receive an electric shock and be killed. Therefore, spraying water is not a good way of putting out an oil fire or 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: We can do a few things to prevent fire at home and in the school. While constructing our buildings, we should leave space between them to reduce the risk of fire. Every home and school must ensure fire prevention norms.
Working with Language
Question 1: Read the following sentences.
To burn paper or a piece of wood, we heat it before it catches fire. We generally do it with a lighted match. Every fuel has a particular temperature at which it burns.
The verbs in italics are in the simple present tense. When we use it, we are not thinking only about the present. We use it to say that something happens all the time or repeatedly, or that something is true in general.
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
Answer:
| Combines | Call | Comes |
| Blow | Bursts | Gets |
| Means | Stops | Absorbs |
| Lowers | – | – |
Question 2: Fill in the blanks in the sentences below with words from the box. You may use a word more than once.
| carbon | cause | fire | smother |
(i) Gandhiji’s life was devoted to the __________ of justice and fair play.
(ii) Have you insured your house against __________?
(iii) Diamond is nothing but __________ in its pure form.
(iv) If you put too much coal on the fire at once you will __________ it.
(v) Smoking is said to be the main __________ of heart disease.
(vi) When asked by an ambitious writer whether he should put some __________ into his stories, Somerset Maugham murmured, “No, the other way round”.
(vii) She is a __________ copy of her mother.
(viii) It is often difficult to _________ a yawn when you listen to a long speech on the value of time.
Answer: (i) Gandhiji’s life was devoted to the cause of justice and fair play.
(ii) Have you insured your house against fire?
(iii) Diamond is nothing but carbon in its pure form.
(iv) If you put too much coal on the fire at once you will smother it.
(v) Smoking is said to be the main cause of heart disease.
(vi) When asked by an ambitious writer whether he should put some fire into his stories, Somerset Maugham murmured, “No, the other way round”.
(vii) She is a carbon copy of her mother.
(viii) 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 italicised in each sentence. Find its opposite in the box and fill in the blanks.
| spending | shut | destroy | subtract | increase |
(i) You were required to keep all the doors open, not __________.
(ii) PUPIL: What mark did I get in yesterday’s Maths test?
TEACHER: You got what you get when you add five and five and __________ ten from the total.
(iii) Run four kilometres a day to preserve your health. Run a lot more to __________ it.
(iv) If a doctor advises a lean and lanky patient to reduce his weight further, be sure he is doing it to
__________ his income.
(v) The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and __________ we lay waste our powers.
Answer: (i) You were required to keep all the doors open, not shut.
(ii) 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.
(iii) Run four kilometres a day to preserve your health. Run a lot more to destroy it.
(iv) If a doctor advises a lean and lanky patient to reduce his weight further, be sure he is doing it to
increase his income.
(v) 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.
| across | along | past | through |
(i) The cat chased the mouse _________ the lawn.
(ii) We were not allowed to cross the frontier. So we drove _________ it as far as we could and came back happy.
(iii) The horse went _________ the winning post and had to be stopped with difficulty.
(iv) It is not difficult to see _________ your plan. Anyone can see your motive.
(v) Go _________ the yellow line, then turn left. You will reach the post office in five minutes.
Answer: (i) The cat chased the mouse across the lawn.
(ii) We were not allowed to cross the frontier. So we drove along it as far as we could and came back happy.
(iii) The horse went past the winning post and had to be stopped with difficulty.
(iv) It is not difficult to see through your plan. Anyone can see your motive.
(v) Go along the yellow line, then turn left. You will reach the post office in five minutes.
Speaking and Writing
Question 1. Look at the following three units. 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.
Question 2. Read the following newspaper report given in the box below.
Fire Station Goes Up in Flames
A fire chief was embarrassed when a station without a smoke alarm went up in flames. The building and a fire engine were destroyed in the blaze. Nobody was injured in the fire that was tackled by 30 firefighters in six fire engines from neighboring towns.
Answer: Do it yourself.