Question Bank — The Case of the Fifth Word

Section A — MCQs (10 questions, 1 mark each)

1. Why was Leroy called “Encyclopedia”?
   A. He solved cases for the police
   B. He read more books than anyone and never forgot a fact
   C. He was the son of the Chief of Police
   D. He had a photographic memory only for crimes

2. What did Chief Brown do when he could not solve a case?
   A. He worried all night
   B. He cleared his desk, put on his hat and went home to dinner
   C. He called other detectives
   D. He arrested suspects immediately

3. Assertion (A): Chief Brown never told anyone that his son solved cases for him.
   Reason (R): He knew no one would believe that an eighth-grader was the best detective.
   A. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
   B. Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A.
   C. A is true but R is false.
   D. A is false but R is true.

4. What was Nolan’s occupation in Idaville?
   A. Jewellery merchant
   B. Owner of a palm-tree nursery
   C. Police officer
   D. Prison guard

5. Assertion (A): The four words “Nom Utes Sweden Hurts” were meaningless to Mrs Brown.
   Reason (R): She interpreted them literally as grammatical terms, tribes and countries.
   A. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
   B. Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A.
   C. A is true but R is false.
   D. A is false but R is true.

6. Where did Encyclopedia say the jewellery was hidden?
   A. Under Nolan’s bed
   B. Under the fifth word (the young fir tree)
   C. In Davenport’s house
   D. In the kitchen cupboard

7. What did Nolan suffer from?
   A. A bad heart condition
   B. A broken leg
   C. Memory loss
   D. Severe asthma

8. Who did Nolan leave his nursery and everything he owned to in his will?
   A. Chief Brown
   B. Mrs Brown
   C. Daniel Davenport
   D. Tim Nolan’s clerk

9. The code on the calendar sheet was based on
   A. Names of countries
   B. Days of the week with “day” removed
   C. Names of trees
   D. Names of Indian tribes

10. Encyclopedia solved the case
    A. After dinner
    B. While they were still on the soup
    C. The next morning
    D. After searching Nolan’s house

Section B — Reference to Context (3 extracts, 4 marks each)

Extract 1

“Nom is a shortening of nominative, a grammatical term,” stated Mrs. Brown… “Utes are an American Indian tribe. Sweden is a country in northern Europe. Hurts is hurts.” She lifted her gaze to Encyclopedia and shook her head. “I can’t figure it out,” she confessed.

(i) Who is the speaker of the first line and to whom is she speaking?
(ii) What does “I can’t figure it out” reveal about the speaker’s understanding?
(iii) Identify the literary device used when Mrs Brown explains each word literally.
(iv) What does the word “confessed” suggest about Mrs Brown’s state of mind?

Extract 2

“See for yourself,” Encyclopedia urged. Chief Brown studied the four words: Nom Utes Sweden Hurts. He shook his head and passed the notebook to Mrs. Brown again. “Can you figure it out?”

(i) Who is being asked to “see for yourself”?
(ii) Why did Chief Brown shake his head?
(iii) Name the literary device in the phrase “figure it out”.
(iv) What inference can be drawn about Encyclopedia’s thinking process from this moment?

Extract 3

“The four words say so,” Encyclopedia answered. “They do?” said Chief Brown. “See for yourself,” Encyclopedia urged.

(i) What do the four words actually indicate according to Encyclopedia?
(ii) What does Chief Brown’s question “They do?” show about his state of mind?
(iii) Identify the literary device in the repetition of “They do?”
(iv) What does this short exchange reveal about the relationship between father and son?

Section C — Short Answer (5 questions, 3 marks each)

1. Why did Encyclopedia’s father never tell anyone about his son’s help in solving cases?
2. What made Chief Brown stare at his soup on Tuesday night?
3. How did Encyclopedia know there was a young fir tree in Nolan’s nursery?
4. Why did Nolan write the four words on a calendar sheet?
5. What does the story tell us about Encyclopedia’s character through the way he solved the case?

Section D — Long Answer (2 questions, 6 marks each)

1. “Encyclopedia was a knowledgeable eighth-grader who never forgot a fact that he read.” Write a character sketch of Leroy Brown in 100–120 words.
2. How does the story show that observation and logical thinking can solve even the most puzzling mysteries? Explain with reference to the case of the fifth word.

Section E — Language and Writing (2 questions, 4 marks each)

1. From the unit, fill in the blanks with the correct phrasal verbs: put on, cooled down, turned up, figure out, got away with.
   a. The stolen jewellery never __.
   b. Chief Brown could not __ the meaning of the four words.
   c. Nolan and Davenport ___ the jewellery for five years.

2. Write a short diary entry (80–100 words) as Encyclopedia Brown on the night he solved the case of the fifth word. Mention what he observed, the question he asked and how he felt.