The Little Engine That Could quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. What is the little train carrying in her cars?

   • Coal and logs for the big factories in the city
   • Correct answer: Toys and good food for the boys and girls
   • Letters and packages for the people in town
   • People asleep in their beds on the way to town

   The little train is full of toys and good food. There are toy animals, dolls, a toy clown, toy engines, airplanes, tops, picture puzzles and books. There are oranges, apples, milk, spinach, peppermint drops and lollipops too. It is all for the good little boys and girls on the other side of the mountain.

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2. 2

   Question 2. Why does the Shiny New Engine say no to the toys?

   • He is so tired that he must rest his wheels
   • He has never been over the mountain before
   • Correct answer: He thinks he is too fine to pull a toy train
   • His own wheels are stuck and they will not turn

   The Shiny New Engine is a Passenger Engine. He brags about his sleeping cars, his dining-car and his parlor cars with soft arm-chairs. He thinks the toys are not good enough for him. He snorts, "I carry the likes of you? Indeed not!" Then he steams off to the roundhouse.

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3. 3

   Question 3. What has the Big Strong Engine just pulled over the mountain?

   • Sleeping cars, a dining-car and parlor cars
   • A long train of coal for homes in the city
   • Big golden oranges and bottles of milk
   • Correct answer: Costly machines that print books and papers

   The Big Strong Engine is a Freight Engine. He has just pulled a big train of "costly machines" that "print books and newspapers for grown-ups to read." He thinks this makes him very important. He bellows, "I won’t carry the likes of you!" The sleeping cars belong to the Shiny New Engine, and the oranges and milk are on the little train.

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4. 4

   Question 4. The Freight Engine "puffed off indignantly" to the round-house. What does indignantly mean?

   • In a slow way, as if very sleepy
   • In a glad way, full of cheer
   • In a quiet way, full of shame
   • Correct answer: In an angry way, as if insulted

   Indignantly means in an angry way, as if someone has insulted you. The Big Strong Engine thinks he is far too important to pull a train of toys, so he is cross that they even asked. He is not sleepy, glad or ashamed.

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5. 5

   Question 5. Why does the rusty old engine say he cannot help?

   • Correct answer: He is so tired that he must rest his wheels
   • He thinks toys are not worth his time at all
   • He is only used for switching in the yard
   • He is scared of the tall and steep mountain

   The rusty old engine is worn out. He sighs, "I am so tired. I must rest my weary wheels." Then he rumbles off to the roundhouse saying "I can not" again and again. He does not say no because he is proud, like the first two engines. He says no because he is tired.

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6. 6

   Question 6. What does the toy clown wave to stop the engines?

   • His hat
   • His scarf
   • Correct answer: His flag
   • His lantern

   The toy clown waves his flag, and the engines stop. He waves it for the Big Strong Engine and the rusty old engine, and the Little Blue Engine stops when she sees it. The clown keeps looking for help and keeps cheering the toys up.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What does the Little Blue Engine tell the toys about herself before she agrees to help?

   • She is very strong and has pulled many big trains
   • Correct answer: She is not very big and has never been over the mountain
   • She is very old and her wheels are much too tired
   • She is very busy and must hurry right back to the roundhouse

   The Little Blue Engine is honest. She says, "I’m not very big." She tells them she is used "only for switching in the yard," which means moving train cars from track to track in the rail yard. She has never been over the mountain. Even so, she decides to try.

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8. 8

   Question 8. The toys worry the children will have "no wholesome food to eat." What does wholesome mean?

   • Sweet and sugary, made only for treats
   • Old and stale, kept much too long
   • Correct answer: Good for you and helping you stay well
   • Very costly, sold only in fancy shops

   Wholesome means good for you and helping you stay healthy. The milk for breakfast, the apples and the fresh spinach are wholesome food. Sweet treats like lollipops are on the train too, but wholesome means healthy, not sugary.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Why does the Little Blue Engine decide to help?

   • She wants to show the big engines she is the best
   • Correct answer: She sees the doll's tears and thinks of the children
   • The toys promise to give her some of the lollipops
   • The clown tells her she will be in trouble if not

   The little engine sees "the tears in the doll’s eyes." She thinks of the good little boys and girls on the other side of the mountain who will have no toys and no wholesome food unless she helps. The dolls have told her they must get over the mountain "before the children awake." She helps because she cares about them.

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10. 10

    Question 10. What words does the Little Blue Engine say over and over as she climbs the mountain?

    • I hope I can
    • I know I can
    • Correct answer: I think I can
    • I'm sure I can

    She says "I think I can" nine times as she climbs, after saying it three times when she decides to help. That is 12 times in all. Many readers hear the words as the puff and chug of a train. She never says she is sure. She only thinks she can, and she keeps going.

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11. 11

    Question 11. The rusty old engine says, "I must rest my weary wheels." What does weary mean?

    • New and shiny and very bright
    • Correct answer: Very tired from hard work
    • Small and light to carry
    • Bent and broken in bits

    Weary means very tired, usually from a lot of work. The rusty old engine says he is so tired just before he talks about his weary wheels. He does not say his wheels are broken. He says they need rest.

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12. 12

    Question 12. As she puffs down the mountain, what does the Little Blue Engine smile and seem to say?

    • I think I can
    • I can not
    • Hurrah, hurrah
    • Correct answer: I thought I could

    At the end, the little engine "smiled and seemed to say" a new line: "I thought I could." It comes six times. Going up, she said "I think I can." Now that the job is done, her words look back on it. The old engine said "I can not," and the clown and toys cried "Hurrah, hurrah."

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13. 13

    Question 13. Teachers often use this story to talk about which idea?

    • Always waiting for the biggest helper to come along
    • Staying home when a job looks much too hard to do
    • Being proud of how big and how strong you are
    • Correct answer: Trying hard and believing you can do a hard job

    The story is read as a lesson about trying hard and believing in yourself. The biggest engines say no, but the smallest one tries and gets the train over the mountain. Teachers also use it to talk about kindness, because she helps for the sake of the children.

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14. 14

    Question 14. Which of these events actually happened in the story?

    • The little train is carrying coal and logs to a city.

      Didn't happen

      The little train is carrying toys and good food for the boys and girls on the other side of the mountain. There is no coal and there are no logs.

    • The toy clown jumps out of the train and spots the engines coming.

      Happened

      The clown jumps out of the train when it stops. He spots each engine as it comes along and asks the toys to call for help.

    • The Shiny New Engine pulls the little train halfway up the mountain.

      Didn't happen

      The Shiny New Engine does not pull the train at all. He says no and steams off to the roundhouse.

    • The Big Strong Engine says he is a Freight Engine.

      Happened

      He bellows that he is a Freight Engine and that he is very important. Then he says he won't carry the toys.

    • The rusty old engine says he is too proud to pull a train of toys.

      Didn't happen

      The rusty old engine is not proud. He says he is so tired and must rest his weary wheels.

    • The Little Blue Engine says she has never been over the mountain.

      Happened

      She tells the toys she is not very big, is used only for switching in the yard, and has never been over the mountain.

    • The Little Blue Engine says she is sure she can pull the train.

      Didn't happen

      She never says she is sure. She says she thinks she can, again and again.

    • The toy clown jumps back aboard when the little engine starts to pull.

      Happened

      When the train slowly starts off, the clown jumps aboard, and the dolls and toy animals smile and cheer.

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