The Hobbit, Chapter 2: Roast Mutton quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. At what time does the dwarves' note ask Bilbo to meet them at the Green Dragon Inn?

   • Half past ten sharp
   • Correct answer: Eleven o'clock sharp
   • Twelve o'clock sharp
   • Ten o'clock sharp

   The note says 11 a.m. sharp, and Bilbo, who reads it at ten minutes to eleven, arrives just on the stroke of eleven.

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2. 2

   Question 2. Which dwarf lends Bilbo a hood and cloak for the journey?

   • Correct answer: Dwalin
   • Balin
   • Thorin
   • Bombur

   Dwalin has a spare dark-green hood and cloak in his luggage; they are too large for Bilbo and make him look rather comic.

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3. 3

   Question 3. What signal does Thorin tell Bilbo to give if he cannot come back from the light?

   • Call three times like a cuckoo and once like a wood-pigeon
   • Whistle twice like a blackbird and once like a nightingale
   • Croak once like a raven and twice like a carrion-crow
   • Correct answer: Hoot twice like a barn-owl and once like a screech-owl

   Thorin asks for two barn-owl hoots and one screech-owl hoot, though Bilbo cannot hoot like any kind of owl.

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4. 4

   Question 4. Why does Bilbo's attempt to steal William's purse fail?

   • The purse is too heavy for Bilbo to lift
   • William feels Bilbo's hand in his pocket
   • Correct answer: The purse squeaks and asks who he is
   • Bert spots Bilbo hiding behind the tree

   Trolls' purses are the mischief: this one squeaks out a question as it leaves the pocket, and William turns and grabs Bilbo.

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5. 5

   Question 5. How do the trolls capture the dwarves one by one?

   • They chase the dwarves through the woods with torches
   • They trap the dwarves in a pit dug beside the fire
   • Correct answer: They wait in the shadows and pop a sack over each one's head
   • They tie the dwarves together with rope while they sleep

   After Balin is caught, the trolls hide in the shadows with sacks and catch each dwarf as he comes up to look at the fire.

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6. 6

   Question 6. Why does Gandalf keep the trolls arguing instead of fighting them?

   • Correct answer: He knows dawn will turn them to stone if they stay above ground
   • He hopes they will grow tired and fall asleep beside the fire
   • He wants the dwarves to have time to cut their way out of the sacks
   • He is waiting for Elrond's people to arrive and help him fight

   Trolls must be underground before dawn; by stalling them until the light comes, Gandalf defeats them without a fight.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What is the main source of humor in the note the dwarves leave for Bilbo?

   • It is full of spelling mistakes made by the hurried dwarves
   • Correct answer: It describes a dangerous quest in stiff business language
   • It is written in riddles that Bilbo has to puzzle out
   • It is signed with a rude nickname the dwarves gave Bilbo

   The note reads like a contract, with pay, travelling expenses and even funeral expenses, which makes a perilous adventure sound like an ordinary job.

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8. 8

   Question 8. Which of these events actually happen before the company reaches the trolls' fire?

   • Bilbo washes up the dishes before Gandalf arrives.

     Happened

     Bilbo puts on an apron, boils water and washes up, and Gandalf walks in only later, while Bilbo is sitting down to a second breakfast.

   • Bilbo arrives at Bywater without a pocket-handkerchief.

     Happened

     Bilbo reaches Bywater just on the stroke of eleven and finds he has come without a pocket-handkerchief.

   • Thorin rides a white horse at the head of the company.

     Didn't happen

     It is Gandalf who comes up on a white horse after they set out; the chapter never puts Thorin on a white horse.

   • Oin and Gloin manage to light a fire in the rain.

     Didn't happen

     Even Oin and Gloin, who are specially good at it, cannot get a fire going on that wet night.

   • Fili and Kili are nearly drowned when a pony bolts.

     Happened

     A pony takes fright and bolts into the river, and before he can be got out again Fili and Kili are nearly drowned.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of these events actually happen during and after the fight with the trolls?

   • Tom loses one of his front teeth in the fight with Thorin.

     Happened

     Thorin's burning branch catches Tom in the teeth, and Tom loses one of his front ones.

   • Bilbo gives the owl signal to warn the dwarves.

     Didn't happen

     Bilbo cannot hoot like any kind of owl, and the dwarves set off toward the light after waiting in vain for him to come back or hoot.

   • Bert is hit in the eye by Thorin's burning branch.

     Happened

     Thorin snatches up a big branch that is on fire at one end, and Bert gets that end in his eye.

   • The dwarves free themselves from the sacks before dawn.

     Didn't happen

     The dwarves stay tied up in the sacks until the trolls have turned to stone, and only then are the sacks untied.

   • The company buries the trolls' pots of gold near the river.

     Happened

     In the afternoon the company carries away the trolls' pots of gold and buries them secretly not far from the track by the river.

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10. 10

    Question 10. What does 'purloined' mean as used in: 'pinched the very mutton off the spits, purloined the beer'?

    • Shared it
    • Poured it out
    • Spilled it
    • Correct answer: Stole it

    Purloined means stole, usually sneakily, which is what a skilled burglar would have done with the trolls' beer.

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does 'waylaid' mean as used in: 'they had frightened everyone away from the district, and they waylaid strangers'?

    • Gave directions to lost travelers
    • Correct answer: Ambushed travelers on the road
    • Hid from strangers passing by
    • Invited strangers to supper

    To waylay is to stop or ambush someone on a journey, which is why Elrond's people warned Gandalf about the trolls.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What does 'inquisitive' mean as used in: 'the less inquisitive you are as you go along, the less trouble you are likely to find'?

    • Slow and easily tired
    • Lost and confused
    • Correct answer: Curious and full of questions
    • Loud and careless

    Inquisitive means curious; the cautious dwarves argue that poking into strange lights invites trouble.

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