**The Wise Parrot — Story Summary**
A rich merchant keeps a bright, talkative parrot in a golden cage. The parrot entertains him but secretly wishes to fly free. When the merchant travels, the parrot asks him to tell wild parrots in the jungle that it sends greetings. One wild parrot drops dead upon hearing this message—showing the merchant's parrot how to escape. When the merchant returns and describes this to his pet, the parrot also falls and pretends to die. The merchant places it on the windowsill, and the parrot flies away to freedom.
**Key Words**
**Important Grammar: Present Perfect Tense**
Form: Subject + has/have + past participle verb
Example: I have visited Delhi (action completed in recent past)
Use: For actions in the past that affect the present
**Collective Nouns** (groups of things)
Flight of parrots, flock of sheep, swarm of bees, army of wolves, bouquet of flowers, pack of keys
**Don't Confuse**: The parrot didn't really die—it cleverly pretended to show the merchant what happened. True wisdom here = using intelligence, not showing off strength.
Q1. Why did the merchant keep the parrot in a cage of gold?
Answer: B — The merchant kept the parrot in a gold cage to show that it was very dear to him and valuable, even though this comfort did not make the parrot truly happy.
Q2. What does the word 'distressed' mean in the sentence 'The merchant was distressed at this'?
Answer: B — Distressed means feeling very sad, worried, or upset; in the story, the merchant was distressed when he saw the parrot fall from the tree.
Q3. What message did the caged parrot ask the merchant to give to the wild parrots?
Answer: C — The parrot asked the merchant to tell the wild parrots that it sends them greetings from inside the cage where it lived.
Q4. Why did the wild parrot in the jungle fall to the ground when the merchant told it about the caged parrot?
Answer: B — The wild parrot was wise and clever—it fell to show the merchant's parrot that pretending to fall was a way to escape from the cage.
Q5. Fill in the blank: The parrot _____________ (want) to taste the joy of flying in the sky.
Answer: C — The simple past tense 'wanted' is correct because this is a past action that the parrot expressed during their conversation.
Q6. What is the correct collective noun for a group of parrots?
Answer: B — A flight of parrots is the correct collective noun used in the story when the merchant saw the parrots in the forest together.
Q7. How did the merchant's own parrot finally escape from the cage?
Answer: C — The clever parrot pretended to die like the wild parrot had, and when the merchant placed it on the windowsill, it flew away to freedom.
Q8. Which parrot in the story showed real wisdom and why?
Answer: B — The wild parrot was wise because instead of telling the merchant's parrot what to do, it showed through its own example how to escape cleverly.
Q9. What does 'windowsill' mean in the sentence 'placed it on the windowsill'?
Answer: B — The windowsill is the flat horizontal part at the bottom of a window, where the merchant placed the parrot before it flew away.
Q10. What is the main lesson or value we learn from this story?
Answer: C — The story teaches us that the merchant truly loved the parrot but had to learn that real love means letting it be free and happy, not keeping it trapped in a beautiful cage.
Where did the merchant keep his parrot?
The merchant kept the parrot in a cage of gold in his home.
What did the parrot really want from the merchant?
The parrot wanted to be free and fly in the open sky.
What message did the parrot send to the wild parrots?
The parrot asked the merchant to tell the wild parrots that it sends greetings from its cage.
What happened when the merchant told the wild parrots about the caged parrot?
One wild parrot dropped like a stone from the tree and fell to the ground.
Why did the pet parrot fall to the ground in its cage?
The pet parrot pretended to fall to show the merchant how it could escape by lying still on the ground.
What does the word merchant mean?
A merchant is a person who buys and sells goods to earn money.
What does the word distressed mean?
Distressed means very sad, worried, or upset about something that happened.
How did the parrot finally escape from its cage?
The parrot pretended to fall and die, then when placed on the windowsill, it flew away into the sky.
Why was the other parrot called wise in the story?
The wild parrot was wise because it showed the merchant's parrot how to escape without saying anything directly.
What lesson does this story teach us?
True love means wanting someone's happiness even if it means letting them go free.
Name the two main characters in the story 'The Wise Parrot'. [1 mark]
One is a person who travels for business; the other is a bird that wants freedom. Look at the beginning of the story.
The parrot said, 'I want to taste the joy of flying in the sky.' Why did the parrot say this instead of asking for expensive gifts? [2 marks]
The parrot had tasted all fruits and had comfort. What it really needed was freedom and natural joy, not material things.
Explain how the wild parrot in the jungle showed wisdom even without speaking to the merchant's parrot. Give one reason. [3 marks]
The wild parrot used an action (falling) to send a message. This showed the caged parrot how to trick the merchant and escape. Actions teach better than words sometimes.
The merchant thought his parrot had died. But the parrot was actually very clever. Describe what the parrot did to escape and why this was wise. [5 marks]
The parrot learned from the wild parrot's example of falling. It pretended to die so the merchant would place it on the windowsill. From there, it could finally fly to freedom. This shows using intelligence to solve a problem.
Match the words with their meanings: 1. Merchant — a) A person who sells goods 2. Distressed — b) Soft and young 3. Tender — c) Very sad and worried [2 marks]
Look at the New Words section in the chapter. Merchant is a person who trades. Distressed describes how the merchant felt when he saw the bird fall. Tender describes the fruits the parrot ate.
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