Black Beauty

CHAPTERS 1–5

Vocabulary

Jumbled words

I Unjumble ten adjectives to describe personality and feelings.

1 ihfolos foolish
________________
2 lrecu ________________
3 antgnrio ________________
4 vebar ________________
5 rduop ________________
6 dba-mepreetd ________________
7 luguhohttf ________________
8 slcearse ________________
9 naspleat ________________
10 r y n a g ________________

Definitions

II Match each word in the box to its definition.

to rear stable reins groom saddle carriage riding whip to gallop neigh hay

1 saddle
________________: a leather seat that goes on a horse's back
2 ________________: a piece of leather attached round a horse's neck to control the horse
3 ________________: to run very fast (used for horses)
4 ________________: a person whose job is to look after horses
5 ________________: the noise a horse makes
6 ________________: dry grass
7 ________________: to stand up from the ground on the back legs (used for horses)
8 ________________: a vehicle with four wheels which is pulled by a horse or
several horses
9 ________________: a building to keep horses in
10 ________________: a long thin piece of leather that is used to hit horses in order to make
them move faster

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www.mcelt.com/readers www. evansbooks.co.uk
Phrases

III Choose the correct preposition, in, on, into, away or off to complete these sentences.

1 on business.
The master has gone away _____
2 I could see a horse _____ the distance.
3 His voice faded _____ until I could not hear him.
4 She knocked _____ the door but no one answered.
5 The boy fell into the river and was carried _____ by the water.
6 He entered the warm house and took _____ his scarf.
7 I was very tired and sank _____ bed immediately.
8 The horse reared up and knocked _____ the man's hat.
9 It was late, so we decided to set _____ for home.
10 The groom broke the horse _____ and taught him to wear a saddle and reins.

Questions

IV Answer these questions.

1 Why did the horse doctor shoot Rob Roy?

Because he had a broken leg.
_______________________________________________________________________________
2 What happened to Squire Gordon's son at the hunt?
_______________________________________________________________________________
3 Why was Ginger bad-tempered?
_______________________________________________________________________________
4 Why was the wooden bridge dangerous?
_______________________________________________________________________________
5 How did James get Black Beauty out of the burning stable?
_______________________________________________________________________________
6 How many horses died in the stable fire?
_______________________________________________________________________________
7 Why did Squire Gordon ask for Dr White?
_______________________________________________________________________________
8 Why did John call Joe Green a ‘stupid boy’?
_______________________________________________________________________________
9 Why did Ginger start to kick York?
_______________________________________________________________________________
10 Why did Black Beauty often froth at the mouth?
_______________________________________________________________________________

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© Marshall Cavendish Education and Evans Brothers Ltd, 2007
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 CHAPTERS 6–10

Vocabulary

Word search

I Find ten words for parts of the body in the word search. Write them below.

N E C K O N E D

O A Y R I N T H

S E H I P S E A

E J R B L Y B S

F O R E H E A D

S I P R I Y C N

K N E E G E K O

F T O N G U E N

1 nose
________________
2 ________________
3 ________________
4 ________________
5 ________________
6 ________________
7 ________________
8 ________________
9 ________________
10 ________________

Phrases

II Complete each phrase with a word from the box.

tears charge breath sorry beg feet knees speed full bad

1 beg
I ___________ your pardon.
2 in ___________ of
3 fell onto my ___________
4 pay the ___________ price
5 get into this ___________ state

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 6 burst into ___________
7 at top ___________
8 get into ___________ habits
9 helped him to his ___________
10 held my ___________

Phrases in context

III Now complete each sentence with a phrase from II. Change the form if necessary.

1 at top speed
The horse galloped along the road _____________________.
2 I _____________________ and hoped that the kind man would choose me.
3 He didn't want to _____________________ for the horse, because it was old and sick.
4 If you spoil a horse, you can let it _____________________.
5 ‘_____________________,’ said the old man, ‘I think your carriage is broken.’
6 When the cab driver helped the woman, she _____________________.
7 My feet hurt so badly that I _____________________.
8 Reuben Smith was _____________________ the stables while the master was away.
9 The girl looked at the thin horse and asked, ‘How did you _____________________?’
10 When the man fell over, I _____________________.

Comprehension

True / False

IV Are these sentences true (T) or false (F)?

1 Reuben Smith was very unpopular with everyone. F

___
2 Filcher always gave Black Beauty plenty of oats and bran. ___
3 Jerry had a wife, two children and another horse called Captain. ___
4 Jerry agreed to take Mrs Briggs to church on Sundays. ___
5 Ginger stayed at Earshall for a year after Black Beauty had left. ___
6 Black Beauty was glad when Ginger died. ___
7 Jerry didn't want to take the woman and her child to hospital. ___
8 Jerry and his family moved to another country. ___
9 Nicholas Skinner was a cruel owner. ___
10 At the end of the book, Black Beauty was happy. ___

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 Answers

Chapters 1–5
I 1 foolish; 2 cruel; 3 ignorant; 4 brave; 5 proud; 6 bad-tempered; 7 thoughtful; 8 careless;
9 pleasant; 10 angry
II 1 saddle; 2 reins; 3 to gallop; 4 groom; 5 neigh; 6 hay; 7 to rear; 8 carriage; 9 stable;
10 riding whip
III 1 on; 2 in; 3 away; 4 on; 5 away; 6 off; 7 into; 8 off; 9 off; 10 in
IV 1 Because he had a broken leg; 2 He fell off his horse, broke his neck and died; 3 Because
she had been badly treated in the past; 4 Because it was broken in the middle; 5 He tied a
scarf over Black Beauty's face; 6 two; 7 Because Mrs Gordon was very ill; 8 Because he
didn't put a warm cloth on Black Beauty and he gave him cold water; 9 Because York
wanted to tighten her harness; 10 Because the mouth reins hurt his tongue and jaw.

Chapters 6–10
I Words running vertically: nose, joint, rib, eye, back
Words running horizontally: neck, hip, forehead, knee, tongue
II 1 beg; 2 charge; 3 knees; 4 full; 5 sorry; 6 tears; 7 speed; 8 bad; 9 feet; 10 breath
III 1 at top speed; 2 held my breath; 3 pay the full price; 4 get into bad habits; 5 I beg your
pardon; 6 burst into tears; 7 fell to my knees; 8 in charge of; 9 get into this sorry state;
10 helped him to his feet
IV 1 F; 2 F; 3 T; 4 F; 5 T; 6 T; 7 F; 8 F; 9 T; 10 T

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© Marshall Cavendish Education and Evans Brothers Ltd, 2007
www.mcelt.com/readers www. evansbooks.co.uk