The line "Now she's been dead nearly as many years / As that girl lived" mainly tells the reader that —

Nearly a whole lifetime has passed since the mother's death

The mother died while she was still the little girl in the photograph

The poet is exactly the same age as the girl in the photograph

The mother is only now about to grow old and die

The mother's smile in the second stanza is called "wry." In the context of the poem, this word best tells us that her smile was —

Twisted and bitter-sweet, mixing amusement with the pain of what was lost

Bright, cheerful and entirely carefree

Confused, as if she could not recognise the photograph

Proud and boastful about her good looks

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CBSE Class 11 Science English · Ch 2: A Photograph (poem)

CBSE Class 11 Science English · Ch 2: A Photograph (poem) is an online chapter test in the CBSE Class 11 Science pattern, covering A Photograph (poem). Attempt it on SeatBeat with a timer like the real exam, then see a detailed solution for every question and your score and weak-topic analysis.

Questions

Minutes

Marks

None

Negative marking

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Topics in this test

Topic	Subject	Questions
A Photograph (poem)	English	30

Difficulty: 7 medium · 23 hard

A Photograph (poem) MCQ questions with answers

The first 3 of 30 questions. Unlock the series for the rest, each with a solution.

Q1. The line "Now she's been dead nearly as many years / As that girl lived" mainly tells the reader that —
- A. The mother died while she was still the little girl in the photograph
- B. Nearly a whole lifetime has passed since the mother's death
- C. The poet is exactly the same age as the girl in the photograph
- D. The mother is only now about to grow old and die
Solution
The mother has now been dead for almost as long as she was once alive, showing that a very long stretch of time — nearly a whole lifetime — has passed since her death.
Q2. The mother's smile in the second stanza is called "wry." In the context of the poem, this word best tells us that her smile was —
- A. Twisted and bitter-sweet, mixing amusement with the pain of what was lost
- B. Bright, cheerful and entirely carefree
- C. Confused, as if she could not recognise the photograph
- D. Proud and boastful about her good looks
Solution
'Wry' means twisted or bitter-sweet; her smile at the lost childhood was half-amused and half-pained, not purely happy.
Q3. Read these statements about the time-frame of the three stanzas: (I) Stanza 1 shows the mother as a young girl before the poet was born. (II) Stanza 2 shows the grown-up mother laughing at the old snapshot. (III) Stanza 3 shows the present, when the mother is dead. Which statements are correct?
- A. I and II only
- B. II and III only
- C. I, II and III
- D. I and III only
Solution
The poem moves through three separate times — the mother's girlhood, her later life laughing at the photo, and the present after her death — so all three statements are correct.

Frequently asked questions

How many questions are in the CBSE Class 11 Science English · Ch 2: A Photograph (poem)?

30 questions for 30 marks, to be answered in 20 minutes.

Is there negative marking in the CBSE Class 11 Science English · Ch 2: A Photograph (poem)?

No — wrong answers are not penalised in this test.

Which topics does the CBSE Class 11 Science English · Ch 2: A Photograph (poem) cover?

A Photograph (poem) (30 questions).

Is the CBSE Class 11 Science English · Ch 2: A Photograph (poem) free?

It is part of the CBSE Class 11 Science Test Series 2027 — Chapter-wise + Full Tests (22 tests, ₹199). You can first try Biology · Ch 1: The Living World for free.

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