Question

Read the following story and do the exercises that follow.

Last night somebody broke into our neighbor’s house. He stole everything he found. The neighbors Mr. and Mrs. Umar, saw him while he was running away but they couldn’t catch him. This morning an inspector arrived to make an inquiry.

The Inspector posed certain questions to Mr. Umar.

The Inspector	The thief broke into the house at around 10 p.m. What were you doing then?
Mr. Umar	I was watching a movie with my wife. Then I went to the kitchen to prepare tea.
The Inspector	How many minutes did you spend in the kitchen?
Mr. Umar	I think 10 or 15 minutes… I’m not sure….
The Inspector	Did you prepare tea?
Mr. Umar	Yes
The Inspector	OK. Thanks.

The Inspector also asked Mrs. Umar some questions:

The Inspector	What were you doing at around 10 pm yesterday?
Mrs. Umar	I was watching a movie while drinking my coffee.
The Inspector	Coffee? But your husband prepared tea.
Mrs. Umar	Tea? No… We didn’t drink tea last night.
The Inspector	OK. What was he doing in the kitchen?
Mrs. Umar	He was thirsty. He wanted to drink water.
The Inspector	Hmmm. What happened then?
Mrs. Umar	A friend of his called him and he went out to help him.
The Inspector	So, you were alone at home, weren’t you?
Mrs. Umar	Yes, I was. I called him immediately but he didn’t answer.

The inspector was suspicious about Mr.Umar, so he asked him to come to the station for further questioning.

The Inspector	You weren’t at home when the thief broke into your neighbour’s house. Where were you?
Mr. Umar	I went out to help a friend of mine
The Inspector	Who is that friend?
Mr. Umar	Ehhhh… he is just a friend.
The Inspector	Hmmm. Who is that friend?
Mr. Umar	I told you already. He is just a friend.
The Inspector	If you cannot prove that you were with a friend, we can arrest you. At the end of the questioning session, Mr.Umar told the inspector the truth. “Last night, somebody called me, but he wasn’t my friend. I had borrowed some money from him and he had given me time till last night to return it. But I did not do so. So, he called me and asked me to meet him outside the house. That’s why I went out. I did not tell my wife as I did not want her to know about it. When I went out, I saw a stranger entering my neighbour’s house but I did not stop as I was in a hurry to meet the moneylender.

Answer the questions after reading the story.

1. Did Mrs. Umar see the thief?
2. What was Mrs. Umar doing when the thief broke into the house?
3. Was Mr. Umar watching movie with his wife when the thief broke in the house?
4. What was Mr. Umar doing in the kitchen?

Frame suitable questions for the following statements.

1. Mr. Umar was at home when the event occurred
2. Yes, Mr. Umar saw the thief entering the neighbour’s house.
3. Mrs. Umar was watching the movie while her husband was drinking water.
4. The thief broke into the house while they were watching a movie.

Answer 1

1. No, Mrs. Umar did not see the thief.
2. Mrs. Umar was drinking coffee and watching TV.
3. No, Mr. Umar had gone out of the house to meet a friend when the thief broke into a neighbor’s house.
4. He was drinking water in the kitchen.

Frame Questions:

1. Where was Mr. Umar when the event occurred?
2. Did Mr. Umar see the thief entering the neighbor’s house?
3. What was Mrs. Umar doing when her husband was drinking water?
4. When did the thief break into the house?