NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English Chapter 5 - The Hundred Dressess

Oral Comprehension Check 

1. Where in the classroom does Wanda sit and why? 

Ans: Wanda used to sit in Room Thirteen, in the last row, in the seat next to the last. She sat down to hide her dirty feet. Her feet were usually caked in dry mud and stinky. So she sat there to avoid being mocked by her classmates.

2. Where does Wanda live? What kind of a place do you think it is? 

Ans: Wanda lived at Boggins Heights. It seems that the place is far away from the school and must be surrounded by a lot of dry mud. This indicates that it was not a very rich locality. 

3. When and why do Peggy and Maddie notice Wanda’s absence? 

Ans: Peggie and Maddie noticed Wanda’s absence on Wednesday, i.e., after three days. They waited for a long time but she didn’t come. Both of them wanted to be with her so that they could have a lot of fun. 

4. What do you think “to have fun with her” means? 

Ans: Wanda was a quiet and shy girl who was ashamed of her cakey and muddy feet. The girls enjoyed making fun of her. It gave them a lot of pleasure therefore, they wanted “to have fun with her”. 

Oral Comprehension Check 

1. In what way was Wanda different from the other children? 

Ans: Wanda was different from other children. She had no friends. No one accompanied her to school or back home, she was alone. She used to wear a blue faded dress that did not fit her properly. Unlike other children, she did not talk to other children and they didn’t talk to her. 

2. Did Wanda have a hundred dresses? Why do you think she said she did? 

Ans: No, Wanda did not have a hundred dresses because she wore the same faded blue dress to school every day which shows that she was poor. She had developed an inferiority complex. In order to hide this complex and impress the other girls, she always said that she had a hundred dresses.

3. Why is Maddie embarrassed by the questions Peggy asks Wanda? Is she also like Wanda, or is she different? 

Ans: Maddie was embarrassed by the questions Peggy asked Wanda because she too, was poor like Wanda. She usually wore clothes that were handed down by someone else. She did not feel sorry for Wanda. But she was worried that everyone might tease her if they came to know. She thought she was different from Wanda in the sense that she would never falsely boast of having a hundred dresses. Though she was not as poor as Wanda, she was afraid that other children might mock her too. 

Oral Comprehension Check 

1. Why didn’t Maddie ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda? What was she afraid of? 

Ans: Maddie didn’t ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda because Peggie was her best friend and she believed that Peggie would never do anything wrong. Moreover, she was afraid that she might become a laughing stock due to her poor dresses. 

2. Who did Maddie think would win the drawing contest? Why? 

Ans: Maddie thought that Peggy would win the drawing contest because Peggy was good at drawing as compared to others. She could copy any picture from a magazine, or draw any film star’s face very well. 

3. Who won the drawing contest? What had the winner drawn? 

Ans: Wanda won the drawing contest. The winner of the drawing contest received praise from the judges and was applauded by her fellow classmates. 

Thinking about the Text 

1. How is Wanda seen as different by the other girls? How do they treat her? 

Ans: Wanda is seen as a poor and lonely girl and hence, different by the other girls. The girls do not treat her well and make fun of her poverty. They tease her by commenting on her faded dress. 

2. How does Wanda feel about the dresses game? Why does she say that she has a hundred dresses?

Ans: Wanda didn’t show any feelings regarding the dresses game. But it is most likely that she was deeply hurt. It could have been one of the reasons why her family left the place and moved to the city. She was a girl who came from a very poor family and had to travel a long distance which made her feet dirty. To grab the attention of her friends she told them that she had a hundred dresses without realizing that they were making fun of her. 

3. Why does Maddie stand by and not do anything? How is she different from Peggy? (Was Peggy’s friendship important to Maddie? Why? Which lines in the text tell you this?) 

Ans: Maddie always stood by and never did anything because she was afraid of being targeted next if she spoke in her favor. She herself was poor and therefore, felt that if she speaks against the other students, they will target her next. Unlike her, Peggy was a rich girl. This is why Maddie was able to think from Wanda’s point of view, but Peggy could not. Maddie was Peggy’s best friend. She adored her and was in awe of Peggy. She admired her and this can be seen in her talk and praises. She says that Peggy is the most liked girl in the room and that she can draw better than anyone else. But her admiration didn’t give her the courage to go against her. Some of the lines from the text to highlight the importance of Peggy’s friendship for Maddie are as follows: 

(i) Peggy, who had thought up this game, and Maddie, her inseparable friend, were always the last to leave. 

(ii) She was Peggy’s best friend, and Peggy was the best-liked girl in the whole room. 

(iii) Peggy could not possibly do anything that was really wrong, she thought. 

(iv) Oh, Maddie was sure Peggy would win. 

4. What does Miss Mason think of Wanda’s drawings? What do the children think of them? How do you know? 

Ans: Miss Mason appreciated the paintings that Wanda drew. She was impressed by Wanda’s creativity as she had painted a hundred paintings portraying a wide range of variety. The children also admired and appreciated her drawings. Everybody stopped and whistled or murmured to show their admiration. After the announcement by Miss Mason that Wanda was the winner, children burst into applause, and even the boys were glad to have a chance to whistle and stamp on the floor. Also, when Peggy and Maddie entered the room, they too were surprised. They could recognize that the designs were similar to those which Wanda had described to them. And in the end, Peggy exclaimed, “…and I thought I could draw.” Her statement highlights that she recognized and admired Wanda as a good artist.

Thinking about the Language 

I. Combine the following to make sentences like those above.

1. This is the bus (what kind of bus?) It goes to Agra. (Use which or that) 

2. I would like to buy (a) shirt (which shirt?). (The) the shirt is in the shop window. (Use which or that) 

3. You must break your fast at a particular time (when?). You see the moon in the sky. (Use when) 

4. Find a word (what kind of word?). It begins with the letter Z. (use which or that). 

5. Now find a person (what kind of person). His or her name begins with the letter Z. (use whose) 

6. Then go to a place (what place?). There are no people whose name begins with Z in that place. (Use where) 

Ans: 1. This is the bus which goes to Agra. 

2. I would like to buy the shirt that is in the shop window. 

3. You must break your fast when you see the moon in the sky. 

4. Find a word that begins with the letter Z. 

5. Now find a person whose name begins with the letter Z. 

6. Then go to a place where there are no people whose name begins with Z. 

II. 1. Can you say whose point of view the italicized words express? 

(i) But on Wednesday, Peggy and Maddie, who sat down front with other children who got good marks and who didn’t track in a whole lot of mud, did notice that Wanda wasn’t there. 

(ii) Wands Petronski. Most of the children in Room Thirteen didn’t have names like that. They had names easy to say, like Thomas, Smith, or Allen. 

Ans: 

(i) In the given sentence, the italicized words express the point of view of Peggy and Maddie. 

(ii) In the given sentence, the italicized words express the point of view of the narrator. 

III. Look at this sentence. The italicized adverb expresses an opinion or point of view. 

Obviously, the only dress Wanda had was the blue one she wore every day. (This was obvious to the speaker.) 

Other such adverbs are apparently, evidently, surprisingly, possibly, hopefully, incredibly, luckily. Use these words appropriately in the blanks in the sentences below. (You may use a word more than once and more than one word may be appropriate for a given blank.) 

1. ____________, he finished his work on time. 

2. ____________, it will not rain on the day of the match. 

3. _____________, he had been stealing money from his employer. 

4. Television is ___________ to blame for the increase in violence in society.

5. The children will _____________ learn from their mistakes. 

6. I can’t ________________ lend you that much money. 

7. The thief had _____________ been watching the house for many days. 

8. The thief ______________ escaped by bribing the jailor. 

9. _________________, no one had suggested this before. 

10. The water was ________________ hot. 

Ans:

1. Surprisingly, he finished his work on time. 

2. Hopefully, it will not rain on the day of the match. 

3. Evidently, he had been stealing money from his employer. 

4. Television is evidently to blame for the increase in violence in society. 

5. The children will hopefully learn from their mistakes. 

6. I can’t possibly lend you that much money. 

7. The thief had apparently been watching the house for many days. 

8. The thief possibly escaped by bribing the jailor. 

9. Surprisingly, no one had suggested this before. 

10. The water was incredibly hot.

The Hundred Dresses Part 1 NCERT Solutions – Chapter Summary

NCERT Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 5 Questions

NCERT Solutions are all about providing students with relevant answers. These answers also clear various doubts of students, which might arise after reading the text. In the English syllabus of Class 10, the 5th chapter in the First Flight book is ‘The Hundred Dresses’. This chapter contains Part 1 of the entire story.

NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English Chapter The Hundred Dresses Part 1 is presented in three different sections. The style and length of answers in each section will vary.

The three sections in NCERT Solutions For Class 10 English The Hundred Dresses 1 are:

• Oral Comprehension Check

• Thing About the Text

• Thinking About the Language

Questions of The Hundred Dresses 1 Class 10 NCERT Solutions under ‘Oral Comprehension Check’ are discussed as follows.

Question1: From the first question, you’ll learn the following things about Wanda Petronski. 

• She used to occupy the corner seat of most benches. 

• All the seats around her were usually occupied by rough boys. 

• She was poor, nervous, and insecure, and thus did not want to socialize with the other students and hence, chose to isolate herself. 

Question 2: The second question gives a description of Boggins Heights where Wanda used to live in. The area was under-developed and covered in mud. Mostly occupied by poor people, Boggins Heights didn’t have any properly constructed roads and resembled a slum. 

Question 3: In the third question, Peggy and Maddie wanted to make fun of Wanda after school hours that is when they found out that Wanda was absent. The rest of the students did not even bother to notice. 

Question 4: From the fourth question, you’ll understand that “have fun with her” here means making fun of Wanda for her flaws and imperfect appearance. Wanda used to be ridiculed by other students of the class for her insecurity and her hundred dresses.

Question 5: Question five elucidates how Wanda Petronski was different from the other students of the class: 

• She was born in America after her parents came from Poland to settle down.

• She was ridiculed by other students since her name was different from others and was difficult to pronounce. 

• Being insecure about wearing the same dress every day, she lied that she had a hundred dresses. 

Question 6: This question clarifies that Wanda didn’t have a hundred dresses. After being made fun of for wearing the same dress and dirty shoes every day, she lied, claiming that she had a hundred dresses and sixty pairs of shoes.

Questions 7 and 8: From the next two questions, we find out why Maddie was embarrassed by the questions that Peggy asked Wanda and why she didn’t stop her from doing so. She felt bad for Wanda because she was poor too and understood how she was feeling. 

Maddie didn’t stop Peggy from making fun of Wanda for the following reasons: 

• Peggy was popular in school. 

• Maddie was afraid that if she asked Peggy to stop, Peggy could start making fun of her. 

Question 9: Question nine reveals that Maddie thought Peggy would win the drawing competition as she was good at drawing and most of the people in school were fond of her.

Question 10: From the tenth and last question, we finally come to know that out of all the girls, Wanda emerged victorious in the drawing contest. She had drawn the pictures of all the hundred dresses that she had claimed to own. She received applause from her class for the splendid artwork. 

Questions in NCERT Solutions Class 10 English Hundred Dresses 1 are in the section ‘Thinking About the text’. Most of the questions of this section like Wanda’s experience in class and how she used to be mistreated by Peggy are covered in the section mentioned above. 

However, from the fourth question, we learn that Miss Mason was really impressed by Wanda’s drawing and found it to be beautiful. She believed that Wanda deserved to be awarded separately for her work. The students of her class applauded her as well.   

The next few questions in NCERT Solutions Class 10 English First Flight Ch 5 is regarding ‘Thinking about the language’. These are objective type questions that require you to pay attention to various words, phrases, etc. used in the text.

Why is NCERT Solutions Best for CBSE English Exams?

NCERT solutions strictly follow the CBSE guidelines. All the chapters of your English syllabus are included in these solutions. For example, Class 10 English The Hundred Dresses Part 1 Solutions carries all the necessary explanations, information, and details about the story. Here are some other reasons why you must refer to NCERT for studying English lessons:

• It contains simple and easy-to-remember answers.

• The answers have been drafted in a way that would instill the habit of thinking and realizing the text in the students.

• A detailed guide on the grammatical aspect of the chapters.

• A combination of descriptive, short, as well as one-word question-answers so that nothing is missed out from the chapters.

To help students achieve good results in board exams, Vedantu offers free access to all English notes and study materials. You can find the NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English Chapter The Hundred Dresses 1 on the App. Furthermore, the subject-experts on the Vedantu App are always available to address your doubts.