The Thief’s Story focuses on the changing relationship between Hari Singh and Anil, where trust and personal choices shape the direction of the story. With CBSE Class 10 English important questions provided by Physics Wallah, you can prepare for the key areas that are asked in the board exams.
The chapter builds through small but meaningful moments, especially where Hari Singh reflects on his actions. These parts are asked in the board exam and require a clear explanation. Going through these questions helps you stay focused on the important points and present your answers in a relevant way.
Footprints without Feet Chapter 2 The Thief’s Story MIQs
PW includes a set of CBSE Class 10 English important questions for The Thief’s Story that focus on key events, character behaviour, and the turning point of the chapter. These questions follow common exam patterns and help you prepare for both short and detailed answers.
The Thief’s Story: Most Important Short Question Answers
1. What was the thief's reaction when he took Anil's money?
Ans: As the thief got the money, he quickly crawled out of the room. When he was on the road, he began to run. He had the notes at his waist, holding them by the string of his pyjamas. Later on, he slowed down to walk and counted the notes. He thought that with those 600 rupees, he could lead a luxurious life like an oil-rich Arab, at least for a week.
2. What does he say about the different reactions of people when they are robbed?
Ans: In his short career as a thief, he has studied the reactions of many people when they are robbed of their belongings. He has observed that greedy people showed fear; the rich showed anger, and poor people showed acceptance.
3. How did Hari Singh justify to himself his stealing Anil's money?
Ans: Hari Singh justified stealing from Anil by saying that if he did not steal, Anil would waste the money on his friends. Moreover, Hari believed that since Anil had not been paying him any salary, it was another reason for him to rob Anil.
4. Why does Anil not hand over Hari Singh to the police?
Ans: Anil did not hand over Hari to the police because if he had done so, Hari would never have reformed. He would have gone back to his old ways of cheating and stealing from people, which Anil did not want. Thus, by doing so, he gave Hari another chance to reform.
5. What made Hari Singh come back to Anil?
Ans: Hari Singh returned to Anil because he realised that he had robbed the most trustworthy person he had ever met. Anil's kindness, love, and help that he had provided made him repent of his mistake and brought him back to him.
The Thief’s Story: Most Important Long Question Answers
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Trust and compassion can reform a person. Justify this statement in the light of the lesson 'The Thief's Story'.
Ans: Trust and compassion can indeed reform a person, as demonstrated in the story 'The Thief's Story'. Anil, the young man who hired Hari Singh as a domestic help, was the epitome of generosity and trust. He gave Hari Singh a key to his room, allowing him the freedom to come and go as he pleased. One day, Hari Singh stole six hundred rupees while Anil was sleeping and went to the railway station to catch a train and escape after the robbery. However, his conscience pricked him for robbing a man like Anil, who had trusted him and always treated him with kindness. He realised that Anil would be saddened not by the loss of money, but by the loss of trust and faith he had in Hari Singh. Hari did not want to lose the chance of getting an education and leading a respectable life, so he made the decision to return. In this way, the trust, love, and compassion shown by Anil ultimately reformed a thief.
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Fiction writers prefer creating grey characters rather than black and white. Analyse this in detail, with reference to both the characters of The Thief's Story.
Ans: Both the characters in 'The Thief's Story' are neither completely black nor white. They have their own qualities, out of which, some need improvement. We may consider both personas as grey. The narrator of the story was a thief of 15 years. He had worked for different employers. He used to change his place after cheating his owner. Now he made Anil, who was an easy-going person and a writer by profession, his friend. He kept faith in Hari Singh, giving him shelter in his own house, although he did not have any clear information about him. On the other hand, Hari Singh was artful and smart for his age. He did not feel shame in lying and stealing. One day, he stole Anil's money and went out of the room, but came back. His conscience stopped him from doing so. Even then, he made no effort to confess that he had given in to the temptation of stealing the notes. His heart had been changed due to the love, affection, and faith Anil had shown. In this way, we may conclude that grey characters are unpredictable and present a moral challenge to the readers.
The Thief’s Story Most Important Questions PDF by PW
The PDF by PW includes a set of selected questions from The Thief’s Story that focus on the types of questions commonly asked in board exams. It covers character-based questions, important incidents from the story, and extract-based practice as per the CBSE Class 10 English syllabus to help you understand the chapter better.
It also includes a variety of question formats so you can practise writing answers in a way that matches what is expected in exams. Below is the download link of the PDF:







