Comprehension
The snow was falling, and the Cat's fur was stiffly pointed with it, but he was imperturbable. He sat crouched, ready for the death-spring, as he had sat for hours. It was night but that made no difference, all times were as one to the Cat when he was in wait for prey. Then, too, he was under no constraint of human will, for he was living alone that winter. Nowhere in the world was any voice calling him; on no hearth was there a waiting dish. He was quite free except for his own desires, which tyrannized over him when unsatisfied as now. The Cat was very hungry. almost famished, in fact. For days the weather had been very bitter...and the Cat's long hunt had availed him nothing. But he waited with the inconceivable patience and persistency of his race; besides, he was certain. The Cat was a creature of absolute convictions, and his faith in his deductions never wavered. The rabbit had gone in there between those low-hung pine boughs. The Cat had seen her enter...so he sat down and waited, and he waited still in the white night, listening angrily to the north wind starting in the upper heights of the mountains with distant screams, then swelling into an awful crescendo of rage, and swooping down with furious white wings of snow like a flock of fierce eagles into the valleys and ravines. The Cat was on the side of a mountain, on a wooded terrace. Above him, a few feet away towered the rock ascent as steep as the wall of a cathedral. He had often looked with wonder at the rock, and miauled bitterly and resentfully as man does in the face of a forbidding Providence. At his left was the sheer precipice. Behind him...was the frozen perpendicular wall of a mountain stream. Before him was the way to his home. When the rabbit came out she was trapped; her little cloven feet could not scale such unbroken steeps. So the Cat waited. The tangle of trees and bushes clinging to the mountain-side with a stern clutch of roots, the prostrate trunks and branches, the vines embracing everything with strong knots and coils of growth, had a curious effect, as of things which had whirled for ages in a current of raging water, only it was not water, but wind, which had disposed everything in circling lines of yielding to its fiercest points of onset. It was as if ice needles pricked his skin through his beautiful thick fur, but he never faltered and never once cried. He had nothing to gain from crying, and everything to lose; the rabbit would hear him cry and know he was waiting.
Question: 1
Which of the following suggests a synonymous meaning to the words 'Providence‘ and 'Crescendo‘ respectively ?
Which of the following suggests a synonymous meaning to the words 'Providence‘ and 'Crescendo‘ respectively ?
Updated On: Jul 15, 2026
- Nemesis, Apex
- Zenith, Nadir
- Laxity, Prudence
- Short-sightedness, Upsurge
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The Correct Option is A
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The correct option is (A) : Nemesis, Apex.
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This question asks for words matching the sense of Providence and Crescendo as they are used in the passage, in that order. Let's look at how the passage actually uses each word before checking the options.
The Cat had often looked with wonder at the rock, and miauled bitterly and resentfully as man does in the face of a forbidding Providence, where the rock is an unyielding, obstructing force standing in his way, an opposing power he resents but cannot overcome. Crescendo appears in the description of the north wind starting with distant screams, then swelling into an awful crescendo of rage, describing the wind's fury building up to its highest, most intense point.
- Nemesis, Apex: Nemesis fits a forbidding, opposing force that stands against someone the way the rock stands against the Cat, and Apex fits the peak point that the wind's rage builds toward in the crescendo of rage.
- Zenith, Nadir: Zenith could describe a high point, but it does not carry the sense of an opposing, forbidding force the way Providence is used here, and Nadir means the lowest point, which is the opposite of what crescendo describes as the wind's fury builds upward, not downward.
- Laxity, Prudence: Laxity means carelessness and Prudence means caution, neither of which relates to a forbidding, opposing force or to a rising peak of intensity.
- Short-sightedness, Upsurge: Short-sightedness does not match the forbidding, resented power described for Providence, even though Upsurge is closer to the rising sense of crescendo on its own.
Only the first option supplies a fitting word for both terms as the passage actually uses them, an opposing force for Providence and a peak for Crescendo.
Therefore, the correct answer is Nemesis, Apex.
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Question: 2
The passage has been adorned with numerous figure of speeches. Which of the following combinations is correct ?
The passage has been adorned with numerous figure of speeches. Which of the following combinations is correct ?
Updated On: Jul 15, 2026
- Irony and Sarcasm
- Alliteration and Pun
- Simile and Personification
- Metaphor and Onomatopoeia
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The Correct Option is C
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The correct option is (C) : Simile and Personification.
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This question asks which pair of figures of speech is actually present in the passage. Let's check the passage for evidence of each figure named in the four options.
- Irony and Sarcasm: irony involves an outcome contrary to what is expected, and sarcasm involves mocking, cutting remarks. The passage describes the Cat's patient hunt in a straightforward, serious tone, with no mocking or ironic twist of that kind.
- Alliteration and Pun: a pun is wordplay built on double meaning, which does not appear here, and while a stray alliterative phrase might exist by chance, the passage is not built around repeated consonant sounds or wordplay as a technique.
- Simile and Personification: the passage compares the rock ascent to the wall of a cathedral and the wind's snow to a flock of fierce eagles, both direct comparisons using as and like, which are similes. It also gives the wind human and animal qualities, distant screams, swelling into an awful crescendo of rage, furious white wings, which is personification, giving a non living force lifelike behaviour and emotion.
- Metaphor and Onomatopoeia: a metaphor would describe one thing directly as another without like or as, but the passage's comparisons use as and like, making them similes rather than metaphors, and there is no clear instance of onomatopoeia, a word imitating a sound, driving the passage.
The passage's comparisons are built using as and like, which are the hallmark of simile, and the wind is repeatedly given human sounding rage and movement, which is personification.
Therefore, the correct answer is Simile and Personification.
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Question: 3
The passage best demonstrates which one of the following motifs of Cat‘s Life ?
The passage best demonstrates which one of the following motifs of Cat‘s Life ?
Updated On: Jul 15, 2026
- To satisfy the pangs of hunger
- To survive the harsh winters
- A never ending wait
- To hunt for Rabbit
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The Correct Option is C
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The correct option is (C) : A never ending wait.
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A motif is a recurring theme or idea that runs through a piece of writing, so this question is asking which idea the passage keeps returning to, rather than which single event it describes. Let's weigh each option.
- To satisfy the pangs of hunger: the Cat's hunger is real and mentioned, since the Cat was very hungry, almost famished, but it is a condition driving the story, not the recurring motif the passage keeps circling back to describe.
- To survive the harsh winters: the cold and snow are part of the setting, described in detail, but the passage's focus stays on the Cat's stillness and patience rather than on survival against winter as a recurring theme in itself.
- A never ending wait: the passage repeats this idea again and again. The Cat sat crouched, ready for the death spring, as he had sat for hours, he waited with the inconceivable patience and persistency of his race, and so the Cat waited. This waiting is described, returned to, and stretched out across nearly the entire passage, making it the clearest recurring motif.
- To hunt for Rabbit: the rabbit is the specific object of the hunt, but the passage's real emphasis falls on the drawn out act of waiting for her to appear, not on the act of hunting itself, which barely happens within the passage.
The passage is built almost entirely around describing the Cat's stillness and patience as time drags on, which is the idea it keeps returning to rather than any single motivation like hunger or the rabbit itself.
Therefore, the correct answer is A never ending wait.
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Question: 4
The Author‘s description of “...he was under no constraint of human will, for he was living alone...” implies :
The Author‘s description of “...he was under no constraint of human will, for he was living alone...” implies :
Updated On: Jul 15, 2026
- Cat‘s absolute freedom from everything
- Cat‘s no association with human beings
- Cat‘s loneliness
- Cat‘s tyrannical demeanour
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The Correct Option is C
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The correct option is (C) : Cat‘s loneliness.
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This question asks what the description of the Cat being under no constraint of human will, since he was living alone that winter, implies about the Cat, beyond its literal surface meaning. Let's check each option.
- Cat's absolute freedom from everything: the very next line rules this out, since it says he was quite free except for his own desires, which tyrannized over him when unsatisfied. The passage explicitly says his freedom is not absolute, since his own hunger and desire still control him.
- Cat's no association with human beings: this restates the literal fact of the sentence, that no human is around him, but it stays on the surface and does not capture the emotional weight the passage builds around this fact.
- Cat's loneliness: the surrounding lines deepen this idea past the literal absence of humans, saying that nowhere in the world was any voice calling him, and on no hearth was there a waiting dish. These details paint a picture of isolation and solitude, not just a neutral fact about no human being present, which is what makes loneliness the implication the passage is building toward.
- Cat's tyrannical demeanour: the word tyrannized in this passage describes the Cat's own desires ruling over him, not the Cat acting tyrannically toward anyone else, so this option misreads who the tyranny belongs to.
The passage moves past the bare fact of no human presence into a description of an empty home and no one waiting for him, which points toward loneliness rather than a simple statement of being unaccompanied.
Therefore, the correct answer is Cat's loneliness.
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Question: 5
The lines, “...but he never faltered and never once cried. He had nothing to gain from crying, and everything to lose...”, suggest that the Cat is :
The lines, “...but he never faltered and never once cried. He had nothing to gain from crying, and everything to lose...”, suggest that the Cat is :
Updated On: Jul 15, 2026
- Reflective
- Apologetic
- Resilient
- Frustrated
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The Correct Option is C
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The correct option is (C) : Resilient.
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The question asks what the lines about the Cat never faltering and never once crying, having nothing to gain from crying and everything to lose, suggest about the Cat's character. Let's check each option.
- Reflective: being reflective means thinking deeply or looking back on something. These lines describe the Cat pushing through discomfort without wavering, not sitting in thought or reflection.
- Apologetic: nothing in these lines suggests regret or an apology for anything. The Cat is simply enduring the cold in silence, with no hint of feeling sorry.
- Resilient: the Cat never faltering and never once crying, despite the biting cold and hunger, shows the Cat holding steady under real hardship, and the reason given, nothing to gain and everything to lose by crying, shows a deliberate, controlled toughness rather than a passing mood. This steady endurance under pressure is exactly what resilience means.
- Frustrated: frustration would show itself as irritation or an outward reaction to being blocked, but these lines describe silent endurance, not any sign of frustration breaking through.
The Cat's refusal to falter or cry, paired with the clear reasoning behind staying silent, points to quiet strength and steady endurance rather than reflection, apology, or frustration.
Therefore, the correct answer is Resilient.
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Top CLAT Questions
- In the realm of contemporary literature, the interplay between character and setting is a nuanced dance that shapes the narrative’s essence. The setting, often described with painstaking detail, becomes more than a backdrop; it becomes a character, influencing the plot and character development.
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[Extracted, with edits, from “Justice and the Two Ideas of India”, by G. Mohan Gopal, Frontline] - Everything she wanted was here, at Carignano, in Kasauli. Here, on the ridge of the mountain, in this quiet house. It was the place, and the time of life, that she had wanted and prepared for all her life-as she realized on the first day at Carignano, with a great, cool flowering of relief - and at last she had it. She wanted no one and nothing else. Whatever else came, or happened here, would be an unwelcome intrusion and distraction. This she tried to convey to the plodding postman with a cold and piercing stare from the height of the ridge onto his honest bull back. Unfortunately, he did not look up at her on the hilltop but stared stolidly down at the dust piling onto his shoes as he plodded on. A bullock-man, an oafish ox, she thought bitterly. She stepped backwards into the garden and the wind suddenly billowed up and threw the pine branches about as though to curtain her. She was grey, tall and thin and her silk sari made a sweeping, shivering sound and she fancied she could merge with the pine trees and be mistaken for one. To be a tree, no more and no less, was all she was prepared to undertake.
What pleased and satisfied her so, here at Carignano, was its barrenness. This was the chief virtue of all Kasauli of course-its starkness. It had rocks, it had pines, it had light and air. In every direction there was a sweeping view - to the north, of the mountains, to the south, of the plains. Occasionally an eagle swam through this clear unobstructed mass of light and air, that was all. And Carignano, her home on the ridge, had no more than that. Why should it? The sun shone on its white walls. Its windows were open the ones facing north opened on to the blue waves of the Himalayas flowing out and up to the line of ice and snow sketched upon the sky, while those that faced south looked down the plunging cliff to the plain stretching out, flat and sere to the blurred horizon.
Yes, there were some apricot trees close to the house. There were clumps of iris that had finished blooming. There was the kitchen with a wing of smoke lifting out of its chimney and a stack of wood outside its door. But these were incidental, almost unimportant.
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The 19th century ushered in a new era of literary giants. Jane Austen’s novels, such as Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility, provide incisive social commentary through the lens of wit and romance. Austen’s heroines, like Elizabeth Bennet and Elinor Dashwood, remain beloved literary figures known for their intelligence and resilience. The Romantic era brought forth poets like William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who celebrated * 8 UG the beauty of nature and the emotional intensity of the individual. Wordsworth’s ‘‘I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud’’ and Coleridge’s ‘‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’’ are testament to the power of the written words to evoke profound emotions and imagery. Moving towards 20th century, English literature continued to evolve. Virginia Woolf’s ground-breaking novel Mrs. Dalloway explored the inner thoughts and lives of its characters with a modernist narrative style. Dystopian visions, as seen in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four provided stark warnings about the dangers of totalitarianism and the erosion of individual freedom.
Today, English literature is a global phenomenon, transcending borders and languages. Indian authors like Arundhati Roy, with her novel The God of Small Things, have won prestigious international literary awards. The book not only explores intricate family dynamics but also delves into the broader socio-political landscape of India. In summary, English literature is a testament to the enduring power of storytelling and the written word. It encompasses an array of authors, themes, and styles that continue to captivate and inspire readers across the world. - On the evening of the 10th, General Dyer arrived at Amritsar, and the Deputy-Commissioner handed over the civil power to him. He issued a proclamation by word of mouth that no meetings should be held. Two days later, after there had been no sort of riot, nor murder, General Dyer heard that a meeting was to be held at the Jallianwala Bagh. He proceeded there with about fifty troops, half British, half Indian, and a certain number of Ghurkas, armed with their kukris. The Jallianwala Bagh is an open space, half a mile square, which has one entry wide enough for three persons. The troops got in and lined up on a mound of debris. The walls, seven feet high, and the surrounding houses enclosed the people. There were, too, three alleys through which the people might have been able to pass. Within thirty seconds of the troops getting in, General Dyer gave orders to fire, and the crowd of people, estimated at anything from 5,000 to 20,000, who were sitting on the ground peacefully listening to the mob oratory, were fired on. The result of the troops’ fire into the mass of people we do not know. But we do know that Dyer’s own estimate of the casualties resulting from ten minutes continual individual firing, was 400 to 500 killed and 1,500 wounded. The people were not able to escape. They were people who had not offered any violence and who had not been warned. These people were shot down. After ten minutes, the ammunition was exhausted and the troops marched off, and they left 1,500 wounded there. There were men lying there for two days, dying of thirst, eating the ground, bleeding to death and nobody to look after them. Those who lived nearby came and carried away some of the wounded from the heap of dead and dying, but the unfortunate country people died there miserably of their wounds. This is what is done in 1919 in British India…
Centuries hence you will find Indian children brought up to this spot, just as they visit now the Cawnpore Well, and you can imagine the feelings of these Indians for generations over this terrible business.
[Col. Wedgwood, MP, speaking in the British Parliament, 22 December 1919]
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