The Portrait of a Lady MCQs with Answers NCERT Class 11 English Lesson 1

“The Portrait of a Lady” Class 11 English Chapter 1 MCQs based on Khushwant Singh’s story have been compiled to help students practice effectively. Class 11 students can prepare for Chapter 1 from the NCERT Hornbill book using these multiple-choice questions. Each question includes four options with the correct answer provided for easy learning.

Students can also attempt a free online quiz on The Portrait of a Lady MCQs to test their understanding. All the questions are designed according to the latest CBSE exam pattern to ensure complete exam readiness.

Class 11 English Hornbill The Portrait of a Lady Lesson 1 Multiple Choice Questions with Solutions

1. Who is the author of The Portrait of a Lady?
   a) Khushwant Singh
   b) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
   c) R.K. Narayan
   d) Ruskin Bond
   Answer: a) Khushwant Singh
2. What does the author describe in this story?
   a) His school life
   b) His grandmother’s life and their relationship
   c) His parents’ marriage
   d) His village
   Answer: b) His grandmother’s life and their relationship
3. How did the author’s grandmother look?
   a) Young and energetic
   b) Fat and short
   c) Old, short, fat, and slightly bent
   d) Tall and beautiful
   Answer: c) Old, short, fat, and slightly bent
4. What was the constant expression on the grandmother’s face?
   a) Anger
   b) Sadness
   c) Calm serenity
   d) Mischief
   Answer: c) Calm serenity
5. What did the grandmother always carry with her?
   a) A walking stick and a rosary
   b) A handbag
   c) A diary
   d) A bunch of keys
   Answer: a) A walking stick and a rosary
6. How did the grandmother spend her day in the village?
   a) Talking to neighbors
   b) Feeding sparrows and praying
   c) Reading newspapers
   d) Watching television
   Answer: b) Feeding sparrows and praying
7. What was taught at the village school?
   a) Science and maths
   b) The alphabet and scriptures
   c) History and geography
   d) English grammar
   Answer: b) The alphabet and scriptures
8. What made the grandmother unhappy about city schooling?
   a) She didn’t like English
   b) There was no teaching about God and scriptures
   c) The teachers were rude
   d) The school was far
   Answer: b) There was no teaching about God and scriptures
9. What did the grandmother do when the narrator went abroad?
   a) She cried loudly
   b) She refused to talk to him
   c) She said goodbye silently and prayed
   d) She celebrated
   Answer: c) She said goodbye silently and prayed
10. What happened when the author returned after five years?
    a) She had changed completely
    b) She remained the same as before
    c) She forgot him
    d) She scolded him
    Answer: b) She remained the same as before
11. 11–20: Analytical Questions
12. What does the grandmother’s rosary symbolize?
    a) Discipline
    b) Religion and devotion
    c) Superstition
    d) Anger
    Answer: b) Religion and devotion
13. Why did the grandmother stop talking to the author in the later years?
    a) She was ill
    b) She disapproved of his modern education
    c) She was busy
    d) She went to the village
    Answer: b) She disapproved of his modern education
14. What did the grandmother do during her last hours?
    a) Watched TV
    b) Talked to everyone
    c) Prayed and told her beads
    d) Slept
    Answer: c) Prayed and told her beads
15. How did the sparrows react to the grandmother’s death?
    a) They chirped loudly
    b) They flew away happily
    c) They sat quietly and mourned
    d) They pecked at food
    Answer: c) They sat quietly and mourned
16. What emotion does the story mainly evoke?
    a) Humor
    b) Sentimentality and nostalgia
    c) Anger
    d) Fear
    Answer: b) Sentimentality and nostalgia
17. What type of relationship did the author share with his grandmother?
    a) Distant
    b) Close and affectionate
    c) Formal
    d) Professional
    Answer: b) Close and affectionate
18. What was unique about the grandmother’s appearance?
    a) She was always laughing
    b) Her face reflected peace and spirituality
    c) She wore modern clothes
    d) She was tall
    Answer: b) Her face reflected peace and spirituality
19. How does the story end?
    a) With the author leaving for abroad
    b) With the grandmother’s peaceful death and sparrows’ mourning
    c) With the grandmother’s laughter
    d) With the author’s wedding
    Answer: b) With the grandmother’s peaceful death and sparrows’ mourning
20. What is the main theme of the story?
    a) Generation gap
    b) Love, faith, and spirituality
    c) Science and logic
    d) Modernization
    Answer: b) Love, faith, and spirituality
21. The grandmother’s death can be described as—
    a) Violent
    b) Sudden yet peaceful
    c) Painful
    d) Unnatural
    Answer: b) Sudden yet peaceful
22. 21–30: Inference and Symbolism
23. What does feeding sparrows symbolize?
    a) Her loneliness
    b) Her love for all living beings
    c) Her poverty
    d) Her habit
    Answer: b) Her love for all living beings
24. Why did the grandmother dislike music?
    a) She couldn’t hear well
    b) She thought it was indecent
    c) She didn’t understand it
    d) She had bad memories with it
    Answer: b) She thought it was indecent
25. How was the grandmother’s death symbolic?
    a) It showed the end of an era of spirituality and simplicity
    b) It was ordinary
    c) It represented modern life
    d) None of these
    Answer: a) It showed the end of an era of spirituality and simplicity
26. What was the grandmother’s attitude toward education?
    a) She believed it should be religious
    b) She supported science
    c) She didn’t care about it
    d) She wanted foreign education
    Answer: a) She believed it should be religious
27. What shows that the grandmother was deeply religious?
    a) She prayed all day and used a rosary
    b) She went shopping daily
    c) She gave sermons
    d) She fasted frequently
    Answer: a) She prayed all day and used a rosary
28. What did the grandmother celebrate before her death?
    a) The author’s return from abroad
    b) A family wedding
    c) Her birthday
    d) A festival
    Answer: a) The author’s return from abroad
29. Why did the sparrows refuse to eat the crumbs after her death?
    a) They were full
    b) They were mourning
    c) They didn’t like the food
    d) They flew away
    Answer: b) They were mourning
30. What literary device is used in “Her face was a winter landscape”?
    a) Simile
    b) Metaphor
    c) Alliteration
    d) Hyperbole
    Answer: b) Metaphor
31. What was the grandmother’s main daily routine?
    a) Cooking and chatting
    b) Spinning the wheel and praying
    c) Watching TV
    d) Traveling
    Answer: b) Spinning the wheel and praying
32. What does the story mainly highlight about Indian culture?
    a) Materialism
    b) Spiritual bonding and family values
    c) Politics
    d) Business
    Answer: b) Spiritual bonding and family values
33. 31–40: Character and Theme
34. The story’s tone is—
    a) Emotional and nostalgic
    b) Humorous
    c) Tragic
    d) Angry
    Answer: a) Emotional and nostalgic
35. What shows the grandmother’s self-control?
    a) Her silence and calmness
    b) Her anger
    c) Her laughter
    d) Her singing
    Answer: a) Her silence and calmness
36. What is the grandmother compared to in the story?
    a) A statue of peace
    b) A mountain
    c) A doll
    d) A fairy
    Answer: a) A statue of peace
37. What was the grandmother’s reaction to the narrator learning music?
    a) She encouraged him
    b) She was angry and stopped talking to him
    c) She ignored it
    d) She didn’t notice
    Answer: b) She was angry and stopped talking to him
38. How does the author portray his grandmother’s death?
    a) Peaceful and natural
    b) Painful and fearful
    c) Dramatic
    d) Violent
    Answer: a) Peaceful and natural
39. The grandmother’s spinning wheel represents—
    a) Her love for art
    b) Her patience and discipline
    c) Modernity
    d) Business
    Answer: b) Her patience and discipline
40. What aspect of the grandmother’s character stands out the most?
    a) Her spirituality and inner strength
    b) Her humor
    c) Her strictness
    d) Her pride
    Answer: a) Her spirituality and inner strength
41. How does the author describe his childhood bond with her?
    a) Close and emotional
    b) Distant
    c) Tense
    d) Competitive
    Answer: a) Close and emotional
42. What was the grandmother’s final act before dying?
    a) Singing
    b) Praying silently
    c) Talking to her family
    d) Writing
    Answer: b) Praying silently
43. What can the story be best categorized as?
    a) Autobiographical sketch
    b) Fiction
    c) Essay
    d) Poem
    Answer: a) Autobiographical sketch
44. 41–50: Higher-order and Contextual
45. How does Khushwant Singh depict the passage of time?
    a) Through the narrator’s growing distance from his grandmother
    Answer: a
46. What universal theme does the story convey?
    a) The purity of relationships beyond age and change
    Answer: a
47. Why is the story titled The Portrait of a Lady?
    a) Because it paints a vivid image of the grandmother’s character and values
    Answer: a
48. What did the grandmother pray for daily?
    a) The well-being of her family
    Answer: a
49. How does the grandmother’s silence serve as a metaphor?
    a) It reflects acceptance, faith, and detachment from worldly life
    Answer: a
50. What emotion dominates the narrator’s tone while describing his grandmother?
    a) Love and admiration
    Answer: a
51. What does the story teach about modernization?
    a) It can create emotional distance between generations
    Answer: a
52. The sparrows’ behavior at the end symbolizes—
    a) Nature’s mourning for a pure soul
    Answer: a
53. What can students learn from the grandmother’s life?
    a) Simplicity, faith, and unconditional love
    Answer: a
54. What is the story’s overall message?
    a) True spirituality and love remain timeless even as life changes
    Answer: a