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‘Zigzag!’ interrupted their nine-year old daughter Maya.
Isn’t that Uncle Somu’s prized giant green-and -gold fighting beetle. The one that spits deadly poison straight into its opponent’s eye?’
‘No , no,’ corrected her older brother Arvind, eyes shining in pure delight. ‘The beetle is called Spitfire. Zigzag must be Uncle Somu’s pet snake. The African sidewinder! You know, the one that slithers zigzag all over his house!’
Explanation:
When Dr. Krishan apologised to his wife for the miscommunication between him and Dr. Somu, his nine-year-old daughter Maya interrupted and started inquiring about Zigzag, her father, Dr. Krishan. She started by asking him if 'Zigzag' was the name of uncle Somu's favourite, a huge, 'green and gold coloured flying beetle'. She remembered that it would also spit deadly poison into its opponent's eyes.
When Maya was asking her father about her doubt, Arvind interrupted her, stating that she misunderstood the insect, as the insect she was referring to was a fighting beetle, which he corrected, saying the insect she was talking about was 'Spitfire.'
The spitfire is a huge predatory beetle that is found in the Antarctic Tropical Rainforest and is about 4 inches (10 cm) long.
Arvind also suggested that 'Zigzag' must be the name of uncle Somu's pet snake, the African sidewinder. Arvind assumed it was the name of the snake because it would zigzag all the way around Dr. Somu's residence.
African sidewinder
Two points eventually emerge from the conversation between Krishnan's family members. Dr. Somu was a person who was passionate about raising pets. Second, unlike ordinary birds and animals, Dr. Somu kept odd pets.
Meaning of difficult words:
S. No. | Words | Meaning |
1 | Prized | Extremely valuable and important |
2 | Opponent | Refers to the enemy of someone or something |
3 | Delight | Refers to extreme pleasure or joy |
4 | Slither | To slide smoothly from side to side |
Reference:
State Council of Educational Research and Training (2018). Term 1 English Standard-10. Zigzag - Asha Nehemiah (pp. 50-55). Published by the Tamil Nadu Textbook and Educational Services Corporation.
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