Day: October 13, 2009

Opposites

Some words in English have direct opposite meanings. These words are also known as Antonyms. Study the following words and their opposite                                                   

Black                 White                                 Buy                 Sell

Day                    Night                                  Far                Near

Light                   Dark                                   Short             Tall

In                        Out                                     Clean             Dirty

Up                     Down                                   Sweet           Sour / Bitter

Top                    Bottom                               Beautiful              Ugly

Over                   Under                                  Soft                    Hard

Throw                 Catch                                  Rough                 Smooth

Pull                      Push                                    True                     False

High                    Low                                     Right                   Wrong

Fat                      Thin                                     First                       Last

Heavy                 Light                                     Old                       Young

Dry                     Wet                                     Polite                      Rude

Poor                    Rich                                     Slow                      Fast

Careful                Careless                               Hot                         Cold

Love                     Hate                                    Dwarf                     Giant

Open                    Shut                                      Good                      Bad

Give                     Take                                       Sink                      Float

Add                     Subtract                              Empty                      Full

Begin                   End                                       Back                       Front

Laugh                   Cry                                       Shallow                   Deep

Happy                Unhappy / Sad                    Before                         After

Old                      New                                    Strong                       Weak

One                    Many                                  Wild                            Tame

Stand                   Sit                                        Ripe                           Raw

Yes                     No                                       Kind                           Cruel

Warm                 Cool                                    Win                              Lose

Big                      Small                                   Sharp                           Blunt

Boy                     Girl                                      Cheap                         Costly

Man                  Woman                                Remember                  Forget

Brother            Sister                                    Reward                          Punish

Son                Daughter                                 Like                               Dislike

Father              Mother                                 Loose                             Tight

Husband           Wife                                     Profit                             Loss

Uncle               Aunt                                     Present                          Absent

King                Queen                                  Friend                           Enemy

Prince             Princess                               Winter                          Summer

He                    She                                       Asleep                          Awake

Cock               Hen                                      Horse                            Mare

Ox / Bull          Cow                                     Peacock                        Peahen

Dog                  Bitch

There are some of the commonly used opposites.

Exercise 1 :- Fill in the blank in the following sentences with the opposites of the underlined words:

  1. Charlie is rich but Jonny is _______.
  2. Rita came first in the race but sheela came _______.
  3. The day is warm but the night is ________.
  4. My glass is full but your’s is ________.
  5. Mr. Hardy buys and ________ property.
  6. I have only one pencil but she has ________.
  7. We should not be sad but ________.
  8. The night is dark but the day is full of ________.
  9. You pull the cart and I will ________ from behind.
  10. Answer the question with a yes or ________.

Exercise 2 :- Fill in the blanks choosing appropriate opposite words given below:

Big,                     Tall,                    Up,                      Top,                         Bottom,                                                       Down,                 old,                     Shallow,              Hot,                         Deep,                          Cold,                   Small,                 Short,                  Fast,                         Float,                                                       Add,                   Subtract,            Sink,                   Young,                     Slowly.

  1. Tea is _______ but an icecream is _______.
  2. The see-saw goes _______ and _______.
  3. Children love to slide from _______ to _______.
  4. Water on this side of  the pool is _______ but on the other side it is _______.
  5. You should learn to _______ and _______.
  6. A paper boat will _______ on water but a stone will _______.
  7. A bicycle moves _______ but a car moves _______.
  8. The _______ should look after the _______.
  9. Elephant is _______ but a mouse is _______.
  10. Giraffe is _______ but a rabbit is _______.

Pairs of Words

Pairs of Words

There are some words in English that often go in pairs. Let us study some of them:

  1. Day and Night
  2. Sun and Moon
  3. Black and White
  4. East and West
  5. North and South
  6. Morning and Evening
  7. Rich and Poor
  8. Up and Down
  9. In and Out
  10. Here and There
  11. Bread and Butter
  12. Door and Window
  13. Needle and Thread
  14. Hammer and Nail
  15. Table and Chair
  16. Bat and Ball
  17. Look and Key
  18. Teacher and Student
  19. King and Queen
  20. Mother and Father
  21. Sister and Brother
  22. Uncle and Aunt
  23. Male and Female
  24. Doctor and Patient
  25. Boy and Girl
  26. Ladies and Gentleman
  27. Buy and Sell
  28. Loss and Gain
  29. Throw and Catch
  30. Cup and Saucer
  31. Wait and See
  32. Short and Sweet

Exercise 1 :- Fill in the blank spaces by choosing the right pair:

  1. A see-saw goes ______ and ______.
  2. I will______ the ball and you ______ it.
  3. Bring your______ and ______ for the game.
  4. Always serve tea in a ______ and ______.
  5. Arrange the ______ and ______ in the classroom.
  6. I have to sew this piece of cloth. Please give the ______ and the ______.
  7. Mr. Brown owns a vegetable shop. He______ and ______ vegetables.
  8. Look at the blackboard. Do not look______ and ______.
  9. A good message is ______ and ______.
  10. The ______ and the ______sat on the throne.

Words

CHOOSE THE RIGHT WORD.

There are some universal saying that are always true look at the following sentences:

  1. The sun shines during the day.
  2. The moon shines at night.
  3. The stars twinkle at night.
  4. The sun rises in the east.
  5. The sun sets in the west.
  6. Fish live in water.
  7. Birds fly in the sky.
  8. Cows give us milk.
  9. Cows eat grass.
  10. The whale is the largest water animal.
  11. Peacocks dance in the rainy season.
  12. The sunflower always faces the sun.
  13. A crow is black.
  14. The sky is blue.
  15. A week has seven days.
  16. There are twelve months in the year.
  17. The earth is round.
  18. The earth revolves round the sun.
  19. The moon revolves round the earth.
  20. Two and two make four.
  21. There are but two sides of a coin.
  22. There are millions of stars in the sky.
  23. Plants gives us fresh air.
  24. Plants help to bring rain.
  25. We cannot live without air.

There are numerous such saying which are true. We cannot quote them all here. Here are some exercises where you have to choose/ pick the right word .

Exarcise 1 :- Choose the right words from the brackets and fill in the blank spaces . The first one has been done for you;-

  1. Fish line in water. (in water/on land)
  2. Birds ______ in the sky.(swim/ fly)
  3. We see with our ______ . (eyes/ears)
  4. We smell with our ______ . (ears/nose)
  5. We hear with our ______ . (ears/eyes)
  6. We taste with our ______ . (tongue/lips)
  7. We need ______ and _____ to line. (air and water/milk and bread)
  8. _______ are good for our health. (fruits/chocolates)
  9. Sugar is ______ . (sweet/sour)
  10. Butter and cheese are made of _______ . (milk/water)
  11. Bread is made of _______ . (floor/flour)
  12. Apples are _______ . (red/blue)
  13. A dog is a faithful ______ . (animal/bird)
  14. Lion is a ________ animal. (domestic/wild)
  15. Ships sail on _____ . (water/land)
  16. A rainbow has ________ colours. (seven/ten)
  17. We must eat _______ food. (fresh/stale)
  18. We should not play with _______ . (fire/toys)

Exarcise 2 :- Here are some sentences with almost similar sounding words. Fill in the blanks with the right word .

  1. Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a _____ of water. (pale/pail)
  2. Baa, Baa Black _______ . (ship/sheep) Have you any ______ . (wool/cool)
  3. My grandmother told me a _______ . (tail/tale)
  4. The monkey has a long ______. (tail/tale)
  5. The hen lays _______. (eggs/legs)
  6. Birds lay eggs in ______. (nests/vests)
  7. Ship _____ in water. (sail/rail)
  8. A lion lines in a _____. (den/pen)
  9. Goat’s baby is called a ______ . (kid/lid)
  10. _______ gives us wool. (Ship/Sheep)
  11. Mother cooks foods in a _______. (pen/pan)
  12. Birds have ______ (rings/wings)
  13. He plays in a _______ . (band/hand)
  14. We ______with our hands. (clap/tap)
  15. We ______ with our feet. (clap/tap)

English Alphabetical Order

Alphabetical Order

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z are the 26 letter of the English alphabet. We use these letter to form words. The A B C D order is also called the alphabetical order of English. In a dictionary or an encyclopedia words are arranged in this order. It helps to locate the meaning easily. In a telephone directory or an attendence register also names of people are given in this order.

Exercise 1 – Write 5 words each beginning with the alphabets given below:

A B C D E F K L

Exercise 2 – Arrange these names in alphabetical order:

Anita, Rita, Bill, Sam, Mary, Johiv, Kate, Charies, Liz, Harry, Tom.

Exercise 3 – Write the names of these birds in alphabetical order:

Crow Cuckoo Cock Crane

Pengeein Parrot Peacock Pigeon

Exercise 4 – Make any ten words using the letter of the word:

COMPOSITION

Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner

Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner is a disturbing, powerful, intense, gripping and provocative novel. It stirs a number of emotions. Once you start reading it, you cannot put it down. The degeneration of Afghanistan, the displacement and migration of people bring back memories of the partition of India. The pain/the struggle, strike a chord even in people who were not directly affected by the partition. We have all grown up listening to stories of how our grandparents fled, escaped, leaving everything behind, hoping to return to their motherland one day. But that day never came. How people adapt to new places, people, situations, occupations is a remarkable thing about mankind. We know this by example. In Hosseini’s novel too, we find Afghan families adapting to the changed situation, earning bread and butter in anyway possible.

Besides this we get involved with the characters and their destinies. At a very early stage in the novel we realize there is more to Hasan’s and Amir‘s father’s relationship. We are angry at Amir’s cowardice and subsequent ill-treatment of his loyal, childhood mate Hasan. It proves how jealousy corrodes the goodness within. That one mistake changes/affects the lives of so many people. We feel sorry for Hasan who has to live life like a hazara and endure all kinds of unimaginable insults. The story would have been different, had young Amir protested and saved Hasan from abuse. Hosseini’s portrayal of childhood with its vulnerabilities, fears, jealousies, tensions, is terrific.

All this in the backdrop of the turbulent Afghanistan – the end of monarchy, invasion by the Russian forces and the rise of the Taliban regime. But it is the personal story of the two childhood friends – Amir and Hasan that binds the story together. And the message ‘there is a way to be good again’ is something we all need to imbibe.