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CBSE Class 11 Important Question for English Chapter 1
By Swati Singh
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Updated on 6 Sep 2025, 15:04 IST
Important Questions for CBSE Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 – The Portrait of a Lady. These Class 11 English Hornbill important questions in PDF format help students prepare systematically for their examinations. Designed by subject-matter experts, the questions are presented in a simple and easy-to-understand manner, giving learners a clear idea of the story. The PDF also offers a strong conceptual understanding of the chapter and familiarizes students with the types of questions likely to appear in exams. The Portrait of a Lady Class 11 Important Questions PDF can be downloaded for free from Infinity Learn.
Important Questions For Class 11 English
Class 11 marks a significant turning point in a student’s academic journey, bridging the gap between secondary education and higher studies. At this stage, students are introduced to more advanced concepts that form the foundation for deeper learning across various subjects. To support this transition, the Important Questions for Class 11 English PDF are available for free on the website. Consistent practice with these questions helps students strengthen their understanding of key concepts and prepare more effectively for exams.
The Portrait of a Lady Class 11 Questions with Answers
Who is the author of The Portrait of a Lady?
Answer: Khushwant Singh.
How does the author describe his grandmother’s face?
Answer: Wrinkled, calm, and serene, like the “winter landscape in the mountains.”
What was the grandmother’s routine in the village?
Answer: She fed the author, accompanied him to school, and fed the animals.
Which subject did the village school teach apart from writing?
Answer: Scriptures.
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What did the grandmother carry to school?
Answer: Stale chapattis for village dogs.
How did the grandmother spend her time in the city?
Answer: By spinning the wheel, reciting prayers, and feeding sparrows.
Why was the grandmother unhappy in the city?
Answer: Because she could no longer help the author with studies or accompany him to school.
What was taught in the city school?
Answer: English, science, music, and Western education.
What was her reaction to music lessons in school?
Answer: She disapproved of them and thought they were meant for “harlots and beggars.”
How did the grandmother celebrate the author’s return from abroad?
Answer: By singing songs of homecoming and beating the drum.
Why was the grandmother’s life in the city different from village life?
Answer: In the city, she couldn’t accompany her grandson to school or help with studies, which left her feeling lonely.
Describe the grandmother’s relationship with animals.
Answer: She was compassionate and often fed dogs in the village and sparrows in the city.
Why did the author find it hard to believe his grandmother was once young?
Answer: Because she always appeared old, wrinkled, and dignified; she seemed timeless.
What was the grandmother’s reaction when the narrator decided to go abroad?
Answer: She did not show emotion, only silently prayed and saw him off at the station.
Why did the grandmother stop speaking before her death?
Answer: She believed her end was near and wanted to spend her final moments in prayer.
How did the sparrows react to the grandmother’s death?
Answer: They sat quietly in and around the house, mourning silently, and did not chirp.
Why was the grandmother disturbed by English education?
Answer: Because it had no teachings of God or scriptures, which she valued most.
How does the story highlight the bond between grandmother and grandson?
Answer: Through shared routines, silent understanding, and deep emotional connection despite differences.
What does the grandmother’s feeding of sparrows signify?
Answer: Her love for nature, kindness, and spiritual purity.
What was the grandmother’s view of Western science and music?
Answer: She disapproved, finding them worldly and unspiritual.
How does Khushwant Singh describe his grandmother’s appearance and character?
Answer: She is described as short, fat, wrinkled, and always dignified. Her calmness, devout faith, and inner strength defined her personality.
Compare the grandmother’s role in the village and in the city.
Answer: In the village, she actively engaged in the narrator’s education and social activities. In the city, her role became passive, confined to prayers and spinning the wheel.
How did the grandmother show her religiosity throughout her life?
Answer: By constantly reciting prayers, reading scriptures, disapproving worldly pleasures, and spending her last hours in devotion.
Explain the significance of the sparrows in the story.
Answer: The sparrows symbolized grief and respect; their silence at her death highlighted her saintly aura and universal love.
How does The Portrait of a Lady depict the theme of change and continuity?
Answer: The narrator’s life shifts from village to city to abroad, but the grandmother’s values and devotion remain constant.
Why is the story titled The Portrait of a Lady?
Answer: Because it is a tribute to the grandmother, portraying her life, values, and impact on the narrator.
How did the grandmother prepare herself for death?
Answer: She stopped talking, devoted herself to prayer, and accepted death with peace and dignity.
What does the grandmother symbolize in the story?
Answer: Tradition, spirituality, unconditional love, and sacrifice.
Discuss the contrast between modern education and traditional values in the lesson.
Answer: Modern education focused on science, English, and music, while the grandmother valued spirituality and scriptures, creating a gap in understanding.
What lessons can we learn from the grandmother’s life?
Answer: Devotion, selflessness, simplicity, and acceptance of life and death with grace.
Extra Practice Questions
Why does the author call his grandmother “the happiest when left alone”?
How did the grandmother differ from modern grandmothers?
Describe the grandmother’s relationship with prayer.
How did the grandmother’s daily routine show her discipline?
Why was the narrator worried when he returned from abroad?
Explain the narrator’s emotions after the grandmother’s death.
How does the grandmother reflect Indian culture and traditions?
Why did the sparrows refuse food after her death?
What role did animals play in the grandmother’s life?
How is the grandmother’s simplicity emphasized in the story?
Why is the grandmother called “a picture of peace”?
Explain the grandmother’s reaction to music lessons.
How does the author create an image of timelessness about his grandmother?
What qualities of the grandmother made her admirable?
How does the story highlight the generation gap?
Why did the grandmother not express emotions openly?
What did the narrator mean by “a turning point in our friendship”?
What was the grandmother’s greatest strength?
Why did the narrator feel the end was near for his grandmother?
What does the grandmother’s life teach about simplicity and faith?
How did her death leave a deep impact on the narrator?
In what ways is the story autobiographical?
Why is the grandmother remembered even after her death?
What is the central theme of the story?
How did the grandmother contribute to the narrator’s early education?
Why was she unhappy with science?
What is the significance of silence in the story?
How does Khushwant Singh use imagery to describe his grandmother?
Why does the story end with the sparrows?
What makes the grandmother an unforgettable character?
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CBSE Class 11 Important Question for English Chapter 1 FAQs
Who wrote The Portrait of a Lady?
Khushwant Singh
Who is the central figure in the story?
The author’s grandmother
How does Khushwant Singh describe his grandmother’s appearance?
She is old, wrinkled, fat, short, and always calm, like a “winter landscape.”
Why couldn’t the author believe his grandmother was once young?
Because she had always appeared old and dignified, without any youthful features.
What was the grandmother’s routine in the village?
Feeding the author, accompanying him to school, reading scriptures, and feeding stray dogs.
Why was the grandmother unhappy with the city life?
She could not accompany the author to school, help with studies, or adjust to modern education.
What subjects did the city school teach that disturbed the grandmother?
Science, English, and music.
Why did the grandmother disapprove of music?
She thought it was for harlots and beggars, not respectable people.
How did the grandmother spend her time in the city?
Reciting prayers, spinning the wheel, and feeding sparrows.
How did the grandmother react when the narrator went abroad?
She was silent, prayed continuously, and only kissed him goodbye.
What did the grandmother do when the narrator returned from abroad?
She celebrated by singing songs of homecoming and playing the drum.
How did the grandmother prepare herself for death?
She stopped talking, focused entirely on prayers, and accepted her end peacefully.
How did the sparrows behave when the grandmother died?
They sat silently in and around the house, did not chirp, and refused food, mourning her death.
What do the sparrows symbolize in the story?
Grief, respect, and the universal love the grandmother commanded.
Why is the story titled The Portrait of a Lady?
Because it is a tribute to the author’s grandmother, portraying her life, values, and influence.
What does the grandmother symbolize?
Spirituality, tradition, unconditional love, and simplicity.
What is the main theme of the story?
The bond between grandmother and grandson, generational differences, spirituality, and acceptance of change.
What qualities of the grandmother made her admirable?
Her faith, simplicity, devotion, compassion, and strength of character.
How is the generation gap shown in the story?
Through differences in outlook: the grandmother valued scriptures and prayer, while the grandson’s city education focused on science, English, and music.
What is the significance of the grandmother’s peaceful death?
It reflects her saintly nature and acceptance of life’s natural cycle.