Important Questions for CBSE Class 8 English It So Happened Chapter 1 - How The Camel Got His Hump

A. Very Short Answer Questions (1 Mark) 

1. Write the Meaning of the following words.

i. Howling Desert – Desert where howling sounds of animals and wind is heard

ii. Puffing up - Arising

iii. Idleness - A state of inaction

iv. Remonstrated - To protest or complain

2. Fill in the blanks with an appropriate word.

i. When the world had begun, the __ animals, humans ___ worked for. 

ii. The camel did nothing but said __ humph ___.

iii. Even the __ clever Djinn __ was at his wit’s end.

iv. The animals in the desert were __ a horse, a camel, a dog, and an ox ___.

3. What did the camel do? 

Ans: The camel only spoke “humph” and did not do any other work. All other animals were frustrated due to his attitude.

4. What does the camel eat? 

Ans: The camel ate thorns, prickles, and sticks. 

5. What would the camel do when nobody spoke to him? 

Ans: The camel would say “Humph!” when nobody spoke to him. Nobody spoke to him because he was lazy and didn’t do any work.

B. Short Answer Questions (2 Marks) 

1. How did speaking the word “Humph” repeatedly affected the camel? 

Ans: Speaking the word “Humph” irritated the Djinn, therefore he turned it into the hump on the camel’s back. 

2. What tasks were the dog and the ox assigned? 

Ans: The ox used to plow the fields and the dog was also given the task of fetching and carrying things. 

3. What did the dog say to the camel? 

Ans: The dog came to the camel with a stick in his mouth and asked him to fetch and carry things like others. 

4. What did the horse say to the camel? 

Ans: One Monday morning, the horse came to the camel with a saddle on his back and asked him to join and trot like the rest of them.

5. What did the ox say to the camel? 

Ans: The ox approached the camel with a yoke on his neck and asked him to join the rest of them. 

C. Short Answer Questions (3 Marks) 

1. Why in earlier times, the animals were domesticated? 

Ans: In earlier times, animals were domesticated for varied purposes. For example, some of the animals, like donkeys, were used to carry loads, oxen were used to draw carts and plough the field. 

2. What did the three animals do after hearing the response of the camel? 

Ans: The three animals- the horse, the dog, and the ox had approached the camel to ask him to work with them but the camel only said “humph!”. This made all of them angry and then they approached the man with his complaint. 

3. What did the man tell the horse, the ox, and the dog? 

Ans: The man has told the horse, the ox, and the dog that his Humph-thing is not useful to any of the men. It does not work like this in the desert and therefore, they all will have to work double-time to complete the work. 

4. How did the three animals react to knowing that they will have to do extra work?

Ans: The three animals reacted angrily when they were told that they will have to do extra work, because of the camel. All three of them held a panchayat on the edge of the desert. The camel came there chewing cud, and laughed at them and said “Humph!” again.

5. When the panchayat did not work, who did the three animals go to and why?

Ans: When the panchayat did not work, the three animals went to the Djinn. They did so because they knew that Djinn is in charge of all deserts, that rolled in a cloud of dust, and therefore, he would help them.

D. Long Answer Questions (5 Marks) 

1. What did the horse tell the Djinn? 

Ans: The horse was among the three domestic animals working in the desert. He and the other two animals, the dog, and the ox, were upset because they were the only ones working and even the man had asked them to work overtime. So, the horse went to complain about the camel, to the Djinn of All Deserts, that an animal living in the middle of the Desert with a long neck and long legs, has not done any work since Monday morning. He further added that the camel only says “Humph”. 

2. What did the Djinn do after hearing the horse? 

Ans: After hearing the horse’s complaint, the Djinn assures the horse that he will take care of it. He then goes to the camel and finds him looking leisurely at his reflection in the water. He scolds the camel for his laziness due to which he has been given three extra works since Monday morning. The camel ignores him and responds by saying “humph” despite his continuous talk. So, at last, the Djinn performs a magic spell and grows a hump on the camel’s back.

3. What was the reaction of the camel to seeing the hump on his neck? 

Ans: The camel was very upset on seeing the hump on his back. He was really proud of his neck but now he didn’t like the change. The Djinn told the camel to work from now on. The camel was confused about working with a hump on his back. But, then the Djinn told him that the hump has a specific purpose; as he has missed three working days since Monday, so now he shall work for three days without eating, as he can live on its hump now. 

4. Did the camel listen to the Djinn and start working? 

Ans: Yes, the camel listened to the Djinn and started working since the day he was punished with the hump. He became afraid and helpless too and had no choice but to work. The camel joined the other three domestic animals, namely, the horse, the dog, and the ox but he misbehaves with them and hasn't learned how to behave. He now always wears a hump on his back.

5. Write in brief about a camel. 

Ans: Camels get the required moisture from desert plants and they are capable of surviving for up to ten months without drinking water. Their hump is full of fat. During scarcity of food, this hump provides nourishment to the camel. Their hump shrinks when they do not eat anything for several days. Camel’s mouth is so tough that even the sharpest thorns cannot pierce through it. In the wild, camels live in small groups of thirty animals. In winters, they keep themselves warm with their shaggy winter coats and in the summer, shorter and tidier coats keep them cool.