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CLASS 11 · WOVEN WORDS · CHAPTER 3

The Rocking-horse Winner

Original student-friendly answers to the story's textbook activities.

13 worked answersOriginal sample responses
Open the official NCERT chapter ↗← All chapters

13 worked answers · short steps first, explanations when you need them

Understanding the Text

Textbook pages Understanding the Text

Question Understanding the Text 1

Why is Paul restless at the start, and how does he show it?

Steps only

Connect the house's money anxiety to Paul's frantic rides in search of luck.

Answer

Paul is disturbed by the family's money worries and rides wildly to find the luck he hopes will help them.

Question Understanding the Text 2

Why is Paul's mother not satisfied with receiving £1,000 each year for five years?

Steps only

Mention her debts, expensive tastes, and continuing dissatisfaction.

Answer

She is in debt and wants more money at once; her desire for luxury remains unsatisfied.

Question Understanding the Text 3

Why does Paul's mother become anxious about him as he grows older?

Steps only

Link Paul's racing obsession and declining health with his mother's fear.

Answer

Paul grows tense and unwell from racing, so his mother senses danger and becomes anxious.

Question Understanding the Text 4

How does Paul's final bet make his family rich but cost him his life?

Steps only

Explain the win, the money earned, and Paul's collapse after his final ride.

Answer

Malabar wins and earns the family a fortune, but Paul's desperate ride makes him ill and he dies.

Talking about the Text

Textbook pages Talking about the Text

Question Talking about the Text 1

Discuss the view that luck is necessary for success in life.

Steps only

Offer a balanced view and point out that Paul's winnings do not make him truly successful.

Answer

Luck can help, but effort and judgement matter too; Paul's money brings no happiness because his obsession costs his life.

Question Talking about the Text 2

Why does Paul's mother want wealth but disapprove of betting on horses?

Steps only

Contrast her desire for wealth with her fear of gambling's harm.

Answer

She wants money and luxury but rejects betting because gambling has harmed her family before.

Question Talking about the Text 3

What are the voices Paul hears, and do they lead him to success in the real sense?

Steps only

Read the voices as money anxiety and compare Paul's winnings with the tragic result.

Answer

The voices represent endless money anxiety. Paul earns wealth but cannot end the desire or save himself.

Appreciation

Textbook pages Appreciation

Question Appreciation 1

How do the communication channels work between (a) Paul and his mother, (b) Paul and Bassett, (c) Paul and his uncle, (d) Bassett and the uncle, and (e) Paul's mother and the uncle?

Steps only

Summarise each pair's relationship and note which information is kept from Paul's mother.

Answer

Paul hides his betting from his mother but shares it with Bassett and his uncle; Bassett informs the uncle, while the adults do not fully involve the mother.

Question Appreciation 2

How does the rocking-horse connect with Paul's success at the races?

Steps only

Contrast the toy's stillness with Paul's belief that riding it reveals winners.

Answer

The motionless toy seems to reveal winning horses to Paul and symbolises his desperate, obsessive search for luck.

Question Appreciation 3

The ending is ironic. How might the story feel different if Paul had survived?

Steps only

Contrast a hopeful recovery with the actual irony of wealth arriving after Paul's death.

Answer

If Paul lived, the ending might offer hope; his death instead makes the family's fortune deeply ironic.

Language Work

Textbook pages Language Work

Question Language Work 1

Explain 'A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush' literally and in the story, and give a similar proverb from your language.

Steps only

Explain the certain bird, then connect it to not risking known winnings.

Answer

It is better to keep a certain gain than chase a larger uncertain one. Oscar applies it to Paul's betting.

Question Language Work 2

Explain 'sure as eggs', 'spinning yarns', and 'turned to dust', and use them in sentences.

Steps only

Give each meaning and a sentence that makes it clear.

Answer

Sure as eggs: certain. Spinning yarns: telling stories. Turned to dust: failed. Use each naturally in a sentence.

Question Language Work 3

Give the meanings of smile, grin, grimace, and sneer.

Steps only

Distinguish a friendly smile, broad grin, discomfort grimace, and scornful sneer.

Answer

Smile: friendly happiness; grin: broad smile; grimace: pain or disgust; sneer: scorn.

Questions and activities were checked against the official NCERT chapter PDF ↗. Answers are written in original wording; no literary passage or illustration is reproduced.

Learnivelle is not affiliated with NCERT.

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