22 multiple-choice (MCQ / objective) questions from this chapter, in the common exam-style shapes. Every question comes with an explanation along with the answer, so you remember why the option is correct, not just which one it is.
1 Direct Questions
Direct Questions
- 1 markWho wrote “The Last Lesson”?
(A) Selma Lagerlöf(B) Alphonse Daudet(C) Anees Jung(D) William Douglas - 1 markDuring which war is the story set?
(A) The Franco-Prussian War(B) The Napoleonic Wars(C) The First World War(D) The Hundred Years’ War - 1 markWhat topic did Franz fear being questioned on?
(A) Verbs(B) Punctuation(C) Adjectives(D) Participles - 1 markHow does the classroom feel different from usual when Franz arrives?
(A) It is empty(B) It is unusually noisy(C) It is as quiet as Sunday morning(D) It smells of paint - 1 markWhat is unusual about M. Hamel’s clothing that day?
(A) He wears no coat at all(B) He wears a Prussian uniform(C) He wears his everyday clothes(D) He wears his fine green coat, frilled shirt and black silk cap - 1 markWhere has the order come from that only German will now be taught?
(A) Lorraine(B) Paris(C) Berlin(D) Alsace - 1 markWhat does M. Hamel write on the blackboard at the very end?
(A) Long live Alsace(B) Vive La France!(C) Au revoir(D) Adieu, mes amis - 1 markWhich sentence uses the past perfect tense?
(A) “M. Hamel had said that he would question us on participles.”(B) “M. Hamel says that he will question us on participles.”(C) “M. Hamel is questioning us on participles.”(D) “M. Hamel will have questioned us on participles.” - 1 markIn the NCERT “Working with Words” exercise, which language does the word “veranda” come from?
(A) Japanese(B) Portuguese (via Hindi)(C) Arabic(D) Norwegian
2 Assertion-Reason
Assertion-Reason
- 1 markAssertion (A): M. Hamel’s forty years of teaching French at this school are coming to an end.
Reason (R): Only German is now to be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine, and the new master comes tomorrow.
(A) A and R are both true, and R correctly explains A(B) A and R are both true, but R does not explain A(C) A is true, but R is false(D) A is false, but R is true - 1 markAssertion (A): Franz’s feelings towards M. Hamel do not change at any point in the story.
Reason (R): Franz forgets all about M. Hamel’s ruler once he realises that M. Hamel is going away.
(A) A and R are both true, and R correctly explains A(B) A and R are both true, but R does not explain A(C) A is true, but R is false(D) A is false, but R is true
3 Match the Following
Match the Following
- 1 markMatch List I with List II.
List I: (i) Franz (ii) M. Hamel (iii) Old Hauser (iv) Wachter
List II: (a) The blacksmith who calls after Franz from the bulletin-board (b) The narrator, a schoolboy (c) The village elder who cries while spelling with the babies (d) The schoolmaster for forty years
(A) i-b, ii-c, iii-d, iv-a(B) i-a, ii-b, iii-c, iv-d(C) i-b, ii-d, iii-c, iv-a(D) i-d, ii-b, iii-a, iv-c - 1 markMatch List I with List II.
List I: (i) Grammar lesson (ii) Writing lesson (iii) History lesson (iv) Dismissal
List II: (a) M. Hamel writes “Vive La France!” and dismisses the class (b) “France, Alsace” copies given out (c) M. Hamel reads and explains the rule (d) Babies chant “ba, be bi, bo, bu” after the history lesson
(A) i-b, ii-c, iii-a, iv-d(B) i-a, ii-b, iii-c, iv-d(C) i-c, ii-d, iii-b, iv-a(D) i-c, ii-b, iii-d, iv-a
4 Statement-Based Questions
Statement-Based Questions
- 1 markConsider the following statements.
Statement I: The former mayor and former postmaster are among those sitting on the back benches.
Statement II: They have come to be tested on French grammar alongside the schoolchildren.
(A) Both statements are true, but Statement II does not explain Statement I(B) Statement I is true, Statement II is false(C) Statement I is false, Statement II is true(D) Both statements are true, and Statement II explains Statement I - 1 markConsider the following statements.
Statement I: The new copies M. Hamel gives out are written in a careless, hurried hand.
Statement II: They read “France, Alsace, France, Alsace” and look to Franz like little flags.
(A) Both statements are true, but Statement II does not explain Statement I(B) Both statements are true, and Statement II explains Statement I(C) Statement I is false, Statement II is true(D) Statement I is true, Statement II is false
5 Arrange in the Correct Order
Arrange in the Correct Order
- 1 markArrange these events in the order they happen in the story.
1. Franz reaches M. Hamel’s garden out of breath
2. Franz thinks of skipping school
3. Wachter calls out to Franz
4. Franz starts for school very late
(A) 4-2-3-1(B) 2-4-1-3(C) 1-2-3-4(D) 4-3-2-1 - 1 markArrange these events in the order they happen in the story.
1. The babies chant their “ba, be bi, bo, bu”
2. M. Hamel announces the last lesson
3. The grammar lesson is read
4. The class receives the “France, Alsace” writing copies
(A) 1-2-3-4(B) 2-4-3-1(C) 2-3-4-1(D) 3-2-4-1
6 Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the Blanks
- 1 markOld Hauser’s primer was described as “______ at the edges.”
(A) thumbed(B) painted(C) torn(D) folded - 1 markM. Hamel calls French “the most beautiful language in the world — the clearest, the most ______.”
(A) musical(B) logical(C) difficult(D) ancient
7 Odd One Out
Odd One Out
- 1 markThree of these are villagers sitting on the back benches. Which one is not?
(A) Old Hauser(B) The former postmaster(C) The former mayor(D) Wachter the blacksmith
8 Passage-Based Questions
Passage-Based Questions
Passage
I started for school very late that morning and was in great dread of a scolding, especially because M. Hamel had said that he would question us on participles, and I did not know the first word about them. For a moment I thought of running away and spending the day out of doors. It was so warm, so bright! The birds were chirping at the edge of the woods; and in the open field back of the sawmill the Prussian soldiers were drilling. It was all much more tempting than the rule for participles, but I had the strength to resist, and hurried off to school.
- 1 markAccording to the passage, what specifically tempts Franz to skip school?
(A) A festival in the village(B) A message from M. Hamel(C) The warm, bright day, the birds, and the Prussian soldiers drilling(D) An invitation from Wachter
9 True / False
True / False
- 1 markConsider the following statements.
(i) M. Hamel has taught at this school for forty years.
(ii) The new master arrives on the very same day as the announcement.
(A) Both are true(B) Both are false(C) Only (i) is true(D) Only (ii) is true
Answer Key and Explanations
Direct Questions
- (B) “The Last Lesson” was written by the French novelist and short-story writer Alphonse Daudet (1840-1897).
- (A) The story is set during the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), in which France was defeated by Prussia.
- (D) Franz dreads a scolding because M. Hamel had said he would question the class on participles.
- (C) Instead of the usual bustle, the school is “as quiet as Sunday morning.”
- (D) M. Hamel wears clothes he usually keeps only for inspection and prize days.
- (C) M. Hamel announces that the order has come from Berlin.
- (B) Too choked to speak, M. Hamel writes “Vive La France!” on the blackboard as large as he can.
- (A) “Had said” is the past perfect: the saying happened before the events being narrated, an “earlier past” inside a story told in the past. This is the model sentence in the book’s “Noticing form” exercise.
- (B) “Veranda” came into English from Hindi, which took it from Portuguese; the other options are the origins of other words in the same list: “tycoon” (Japanese), “zero” (Arabic) and “ski” (Norwegian).
Assertion-Reason
- (A) Both are true, and R is the cause the story itself gives: M. Hamel announces that only German is to be taught and the new master comes tomorrow, so this is the last French lesson. The background, from the book’s note about the author, is that France was defeated by Prussia and Alsace and Lorraine “have passed into Prussian hands”.
- (D) A is false: Franz’s feelings for M. Hamel change once he learns of the last lesson. R is true: “the idea that he was going away, that I should never see him again, made me forget all about his ruler and how cranky he was.”
Match the Following
- (C) Franz is the narrator (b), M. Hamel the schoolmaster (d), Hauser the crying elder (c), and Wachter the blacksmith (a).
- (D) Grammar is read and explained by M. Hamel (c), writing uses the flag-like copies (b), the babies chant after history (d), and the class is dismissed after “Vive La France!” (a).
Statement-Based Questions
- (B) Statement I is true. Statement II is false: they have come to thank M. Hamel for his service and to show respect for their country, not to be examined.
- (C) Statement I is false: the copies are written “in a beautiful round hand.” Statement II is true and correctly describes them.
Arrange in the Correct Order
- (A) Franz starts out late (4), is tempted to skip school (2), is called out to by Wachter (3), and finally arrives out of breath (1).
- (C) M. Hamel first announces the last lesson (2), then teaches grammar (3), then writing (4), and finally history followed by the babies’ chant (1).
Fill in the Blanks
- (A) The book describes the primer as “thumbed at the edges,” worn soft from years of handling.
- (B) M. Hamel calls French “the most beautiful language in the world — the clearest, the most logical.”
Odd One Out
- (D) Wachter appears only earlier, at the bulletin-board, calling after Franz; he is not described as sitting on the back benches.
Passage-Based Questions
- (C) The passage names the warm bright day, the chirping birds and the drilling Prussian soldiers as what tempts Franz.
True / False
- (C) (i) is true, stated directly. (ii) is false: the new master comes tomorrow, not that same day.
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