Google
English-Test.net
Find penpals and make new friends today!
 
to rely on; to extend business credit
found
trust
reward
divide
TOEIC preparation test: Free online word games: Verb Adjective Noun Adverb Game Answer
Dictionaries   TOEIC   TOEFL   GMAT   SAT   GRE   MCAT   PCAT   ASVAB   Interviews
Tests   Grammar   Articles   Stories   Shop   Services   Lesson Plans   Community
Home   Top 100   Start your FREE email English course now!   Audio Lessons
 
Username
Password
 Remember me? 
Search   FAQ   Memberlist   Profile   Private messages   Register   Log in 

Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book'



 
ESL/EFL Worksheets and Handouts for Students Printable, photocopiable, clearly structured
Designed for teachers and individual learners
For use in a classroom, at home, on your PC
ESL Forums | English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
The use of "oddly sudden" | Use past progressive tense
Message Author
Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book' Mon Feb 26, 2007 7:32 am  Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book'		  
Hi,

Could you please help me again with the following?

Quote:
The monkeys never fight unless they are a hundred to one, and few in the jungle care for those odds.
"I will go to the west wall," Kaa whispered, "and come down swiftly with the slope of the ground in my favor. They will not throw themselves upon my back in their hundreds, but—"
"I know it," said Bagheera. "Would that Baloo were here, but we must do what we can.

1. Does 'and few in the jungle care for those odds' mean: and few in the jungle are willing to accept such bad a disadvantage.

2. Could I suggest 'Would that Baloo were here' = if Baloo were here? If so, why and how could it be?

Quote:
"Even ssso! Down hoods all!" said half a dozen low voices (every ruin in India becomes sooner or later a dwelling place of snakes, and the old summerhouse was alive with cobras). "Stand still, Little Brother, for thy feet may do us harm."
Mowgli stood as quietly as he could, peering through the open work and listening to the furious din of the fight round the Black Panther—the yells and chatterings and scufflings, and Bagheera's deep, hoarse cough as he backed and bucked and twisted and plunged under the heaps of his enemies.

3. Does 'Down hoods all!' mean: put all your hoods down!?

4. Does '... plunged under the heaps of his enemies' mean: ... threw himself earnestly (into the fighting) under many layers of the monkeys?

Quote:
Then from the ruined wall nearest the jungle rose up the rumbling war-shout of Baloo. The old Bear had done his best, but he could not come before. "Bagheera," he shouted, "I am here. I climb! I haste! Ahuwora! The stones slip under my feet! Wait my coming, O most infamous Bandar-log!" He panted up the terrace only to disappear to the head in a wave of monkeys, but he threw himself squarely on his haunches, and, spreading out his forepaws, hugged as many as he could hold, and then began to hit with a regular bat-bat-bat, like the flipping strokes of a paddle wheel. A crash and a splash told Mowgli that Bagheera had fought his way to the tank where the monkeys could not follow. The Panther lay gasping for breath, his head just out of the water, while the monkeys stood three deep on the red steps, dancing up and down with rage, ready to spring upon him from all sides if he came out to help Baloo.

5. Is 'nearest' a 'superlative preposition'? How could it be so?

6. Does 'only to disappear to the head in a wave of monkeys' mean: only to become covered (with monkeys) all over but his head in a wave-formed crowds of the monkeys?

7. Does 'the monkeys stood three deep on the red steps' mean: the monkeys stood three circles deep on the red steps (of the water tank)?

Many thaks again.

Haihao
Haihao
I'm a Communicator ;-)


Joined: 26 Oct 2006
Posts: 1380
Location: Japan
Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book' Mon Feb 26, 2007 12:49 pm  Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book'		  
.
1. Does 'and few in the jungle care for those odds' mean: and few in the jungle are willing to accept such a bad disadvantage. -- Yes.

2. Could I suggest 'Would that Baloo were here' = if Baloo were here? -- Yes.
If so, why and how could it be? -- Maybe I don't understand this question, Haihao. 'Would that...were' is a reasonably common formulaic subjunctive.

3. Does 'Down hoods all!' mean: put all your hoods down!? -- Not exactly; 'All of you, put down your hoods!'. I presume you know that a cobra has a hood which it spreads when it is alarmed or angry.

4. Does '... plunged under the heaps of his enemies' mean: ... threw himself earnestly (into the fighting) under many layers of the monkeys? -- Yes.

5. Is 'nearest' a 'superlative preposition'? How could it be so? - Yes; why not? 'The ruined wall [which was the] nearest [to] the jungle.'

6. Does 'only to disappear to the head in a wave of monkeys' mean: only to become covered (with monkeys) all over but his head in a wave-formed crowds of the monkeys? -- ...All over but his head in a flowing wave of monkeys.

7. Does 'the monkeys stood three deep on the red steps' mean: the monkeys stood three circles deep on the red steps (of the water tank)? -- Yes.
.
_________________
Canadian-American native speaker
who teaches English for a living at Mister Micawber's
ESL cafe: Interview with Mr. Micawber
Mister Micawber
Language Coach
Mr. Micawber

Joined: 17 Jul 2005
Posts: 4281
Location: Yokohama, Japan
Learn how to explore English words! Subscribe to free email English courseEnglish grammar exercises — improve your English knowledge and vocabulary skillsAre you a native speaker of English? Then you should read this!Learn to use the present simple with the help of this short story
Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book' Mon Feb 26, 2007 13:30 pm  Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book'		  
Hi Mr. Micawber,

Many many thanks again and again I have got everything I wanted with both of my hands full!

Quote:
Maybe I don't understand this question, Haihao. 'Would that...were' is a reasonably common formulaic subjunctive.

I am sorry, Mr Micawber, this was simply my lack of confidence in determining 'Would that...were' = 'if ... were'

Quote:
I presume you know that a cobra has a hood which it spreads when it is alarmed or angry.

In fact I only knew that a cobra had a hood but didn't know it spread when it was alarmed or angry.

Quote:
Yes; why not? 'The ruined wall [which was the] nearest [to] the jungle.'

I took it too rigidly thinking 'near' could be only a preposition here for 'near the jungle'. Now I understand it could act as well as an adjective.

Thanks again.

Haihao
Haihao
I'm a Communicator ;-)


Joined: 26 Oct 2006
Posts: 1380
Location: Japan
Display posts from previous:   
The use of "oddly sudden" | Use past progressive tense
ESL Forums | English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book' All times are GMT + 2 Hours
Page 1 of 1
Latest topics on ESL EFL Forums
Board games and small plastic pieces • 'Telephonic contact' vs 'Telephonic conversation' • meaning of "the second Sunday backwards" • Idiom: 'get a word in edgewise' • Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book' • front and reverse side of a sheet of paper? • Is this correct: "They have got divorced?" • Past progressive: I was trying to call you at 6 last night. What were you doing? • meaning of "I am being a duck" • Come again can mean 'say it again'? • Need some help with the English Newsletter - Potatoes! • What's wrong with this sentence: My baby sister Athirah, the apple of my eyes... • usage of 'wipe out' • Expression: 'I don't get so many emails that I would inadvertantly delete one' • What does euphemistic mean? (English language newsletter): • Where do you come from? vs Where are you from? • Help with grammar: How it's punctuated? • My intention is he + subjunctive? • Some more questions from 'The Jungle Book'

Discover English-test.net
Expression: A little salt on my food • Meaning of "kick up a fuss" • Question after although: Although it is late... • 'looks like' vs 'looks as' • Reported speech: The mother accused her son of not having done what she had said • TOEIC practice test: Vocabulary Quizzes: Example of Verbs • TOEIC practice test: Online word games: Free Verb Game • Define discount, look into, assist, assort, rank • Parts of speech test: Noun verb adjective • Pronoun test: Business Expressions (1) • English grammar quiz: Tourism after 9/11 • Patrick Troughton audio books, CDs, tapes, used cassettes, audio download

 
 You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Provided by phpBB ©2001-2008 phpBB Group
Subscribe to FREE email English course written by Alan Townend
First name E-mail