A FUNNY MAN

by

Page 1: Let us do these activities before we read

Look around you for things or people that make you laugh. Write them in the bubbles.

Answer (examples):

  • My pet dog chasing its own tail đŸ¶
  • Cartoons on TV
  • A friend telling a silly joke
  • Funny-shaped vegetables
  • Clowns at a circus đŸ€Ą
  • Someone slipping on a banana peel (only funny if no one is hurt)

Page 3: Let us discuss

  1. I) Work in pairs. Identify the true statements.
  2. The poet says that she had never heard such an amusing song.
  3. The funny man was quite ill-mannered.
  4. The funny man wore two hats on his feet. ✅
  5. The funny man hopped on his head to reach home. ✅
  6. The funny man gave a rose to the poet.
  7. The funny man smiled at the poet. ✅

Answer: True statements are 3, 4, and 6.

  1. II) Identify the words from the poem from these meanings.
  2. a small seedless raisin → currant
  3. moved unsteadily → staggered

III) Complete the sentences with a reason.

  1. The tone of the poem is humorous and light-hearted because it shows a silly man doing everything backwards to make the reader laugh.
  2. The rhyme scheme of the poem is This gives a musical, rhythmic quality to the poem.
  3. The poet has frequently repeated the word ‘funny’ in order to emphasise how strange and unusual the man and the situation are.
  4. IV) Choose the correct answer.
  5. The poem uses vivid imagery to create a humorous and nonsensical
  6. The structure of the poem is in dialogue
  7. The phrases “sounding sight” and “hopped home” are examples of alliteration.
  8. V) Rewrite the line in correct order.

Given: “But never had I seen before / Such a funny sounding sight.”
Answer: But I had never before seen such a funny sounding sight.

Page 4: Let us discuss (continued)

V-2) Why has the poet used phrases like “funny sounding sight” and “funny feeling sound”?

Answer: The mixed-up phrases show the poet’s amused confusion. By swapping senses (seeing vs. hearing vs. feeling), the poet highlights how the funny man’s nonsense turns the world upside down and even confuses the senses.

  1. VI) Real-world situations where people do similar things for fun

Answer:

  • Clowns at a circus or party wear silly clothes and do goofy acts to make people laugh.
  • Street performers/mimes do unusual acts (e.g., freeze like statues, juggle) to entertain crowds.
  • Magicians perform tricks that seem to break logic for entertainment.
  • Comedy actors behave in silly ways in shows and films to create humour.

Pages 4 & 5: Let us think and reflect

Extract 1

“He said, ‘Allow me to present / Your Highness with a rose.’ / And taking out a currant bun / He held it to my nose. / I staggered back against the wall / And then I answered, ‘Well!’”

  1. i) Why does he address the poet as “Your Highness”?
    Answer: To be overly polite in a humorous way—part of his silly act of treating an ordinary person like royalty.
  2. ii) Choose a phrase indicating a polite request.
    Answer: “Allow me to present.”

iii) Choose the option showing a “currant bun.”
Answer: Needs images; a currant bun is a small sweet bread roll with dried currants/raisins.

  1. iv) When the poet says “Well!”, it expresses surprise because

    Answer: He promised a rose but held a currant bun to her nose—an unexpected, silly act.

Extract 2

“You never heard in all your life / Such a funny feeling sound. / ‘My friend, why do you wear two hats / Upon your feet?’ I said. / He turned the other way about, / And hopped home on his head.”

  1. i) Line showing the sound was unique:
    Answer: “You never heard in all your life.”
  2. ii) The poet calls him “my friend” because

    Answer: She stays friendly and curious, engaging kindly despite his odd behaviour.

iii) What does his reaction tell us about him?
Answer: Instead of answering, he does another ridiculous thing—hops home on his head—showing he is playful and prefers mystery and fun over straight answers.

  1. iv) The last line makes readers feel
 cheerful.
    Answer: The image of a man hopping away on his head is amusing and leaves a smile.
  2. II) Answer the following questions
  3. Most appealing trait of the funny man and why?
    Answer: His playfulness—he ignores ordinary rules to surprise and delight (e.g., hopping away on his head), making him fun and unpredictable.
  4. How do his unusual actions affect the poem’s mood?
    Answer: They create a light-hearted, humorous, nonsensical mood, like a happy dream where normal rules don’t apply.
  5. Alternative title with reason.
    Answer: “The Topsy-Turvy Man.” “Topsy-turvy” means upside-down/confused, fitting a man who wears hats on his feet and hops on his head.
  6. Why include dialogues?
    Answer: Dialogues make the scene lively and engaging, reveal reactions, and heighten the humour.
  7. What is the poet conveying by highlighting his unusual behaviour?
    Answer: The value of humour, imagination, and not taking life too seriously—it’s refreshing to break routine and enjoy a bit of nonsense.

Page 6: Let us learn

  1. I) Match the phrasal verbs
  • take up → (iii) begin to study/practise/do something
  • take after → (v) resemble (often a family member)
  • take in → (i) understand/comprehend
  • take over → (ii) assume control/responsibility
  • take off → (iv) become successful/popular quickly

Fill in the blanks with suitable phrasal verbs:

  • The new technology is set to take over traditional methods of communication.
  • I tried hard to take in what the writer wanted to say but was unsuccessful.
  • Arjun decided to take up painting as a hobby.
  • The smartphone quickly took off in the market.
  • Sheela takes after her father; they have the same smile.
  1. II) Match verbs with suitable adverbs/prepositions and give meanings
Column 1 Column 2 Column 3 (Meaning)
look after look after: take care of
look for look for: search for
run away run away: escape
run into run into: meet unexpectedly
put on put on: wear clothes
put off put off: postpone/delay
break down break down: stop working (machine)
break up break up: end a relationship
call off call off: cancel
call on call on: visit someone

Page 7: Let us learn & Let us listen

  1. II) Frame sentences with any five phrasal verbs
  • look after: Please look after my plant while I am on vacation.
  • run into: I was happy to run into my old teacher at the market.
  • put off: We had to put off the picnic because of the rain.
  • break down: Our car broke down on the way to the city.
  • call off: The match was called off due to bad weather.

III) Arrange the words in increasing order of pace (from the box)

Box: sprint, trot, jog

Answer: jog → trot → sprint

Let us listen (audio-based)

  1. I) You will listen to a girl narrate a personal incident and select the related picture.

Answer: Requires listening to the audio to choose the correct picture (1/2/3/4).

Page 8: Let us listen & Let us speak

  1. II) Listen again and arrange events in order of occurrence.

Answer: Requires listening to the audio to order:

  • Ate lunch
  • Took off shoes
  • Put shoes in the room
  • Laughed at the mistake
  • Placed the plate in the room
  • Prepared for the presentation
  • Put the plate in the kitchen

Let us speak — Tell the joke (in pairs)

Joke script:
Narrator: A man is talking to God.
Man (respectful): “God, how long is a million years?”
God (calm): “For me, it’s about a minute.”
Man: “How much is a million rupees?”
God: “It’s less than a rupee for me.”
Man (quickly): “God, may I have a rupee?”
God: “Wait a minute.” 😉

Pages 8 & 9: Let us write

  1. I) Identify the rhyme scheme of the limerick

There was an Old Man with a beard, (A)
Who said, “It is just as I feared!” (A)
Two Owls and a Hen, (B)
Four Larks and a Wren, (B)
Have all built their nests in my beard! (A)

Answer: AABBA

  1. II) Write your own limerick (same structure)

Answer (example):
There was a young boy from Pune, (A)
Who ate ice cream with a big spoon. (A)
He’d slurp it up fast, (B)
To make the joy last, (B)
Then nap in the warm afternoon. (A)

Pages 9 & 10: Let us explore

  1. I) Take any story to read and share (e.g., Birbal)

Answer (short summary):
Birbal — “The Pot of Wit”: Emperor Akbar asked Birbal for a pot full of wit. Birbal brought a small watermelon from his garden, calling it a “pot of wit” and saying it could only be enjoyed unbroken. Akbar understood: true wit is smart thinking, not a physical thing.

  1. II) Identify the funny man’s acts with modern-day activities

Answer:

  • Like a clown or street performer, he dresses oddly and does unexpected things to entertain.
  • Similar to performance art, he breaks normal rules to make people think and laugh.
  • His silly behaviour appears in children’s comedy shows, designed to spark laughter.

III) Sukumar Ray and Abol Tabol

Answer:
Sukumar Ray, a famous Bengali poet and illustrator, wrote delightful nonsense verses in Abol Tabol (“Weird and Random”). The book features strange creatures and funny, imaginative situations (e.g., the Hanshjaru, a duck-porcupine mix). Children and adults love these poems for their creativity and fun.

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