🧠 Vocabulary Booster (20 words) — सरल हिंदी अर्थ

Tip: Read the Word then the Meaning. Try to use 3 in your own sentence! ✍️

📝 Summary (English) — ~250 words

In “Paper Boats,” the speaker—seen as a child—launches a little fleet of paper boats day after day into a running stream. He carefully writes his name and the name of his village in big, bold letters on each boat, hoping that someone, somewhere in a faraway land, will discover it and learn who he is. With affection, he loads the boats with shiuli flowers from his garden—“blooms of the dawn”—and wishes that the gentle current will carry those fragrant gifts safely to a distant shore by night.

As he sets his boats afloat, he looks up at the sky and imagines the puffy white clouds as playmates that send down bulging sails to race alongside his tiny vessels. This playful image links the earth, the water, and the sky into one seamless world of imagination. When night falls, he buries his face in his arms and dreams that the boats continue their journey under the midnight stars. In his dream, the “fairies of sleep” sail within the boats, and the cargo they carry is not goods, but baskets filled with beautiful dreams.

The poem blends reality and fancy with a soft, wishful tone. A simple childhood activity—floating paper boats—turns into a symbol of sending hopes, identity, and kindness out into the world. Nature imagery (stream, clouds, stars, flowers) makes the scene vivid while the repeated routine (“day by day”) highlights the child’s faith. Ultimately, the poem celebrates innocence, imagination, and the quiet belief that our small offerings—names, flowers, dreams—can travel beyond us and touch unknown hearts. 🌧️⛅✨

📝 सारांश (Hindi) — ~250 शब्द

“पेपर बोट्स” कविता में एक बालक रोज़ बहती हुई धारा में कागज़ की नावें छोड़ता है। वह हर नाव पर बड़े अक्षरों में अपना नाम और अपने गाँव का नाम लिखता है, ताकि कोई अनजान देश में उसे पाए और उसके बारे में जाने। वह अपनी नावों में बाग़ के शिउली फूल भी रख देता है—जो भोर में खिलते हैं—और कामना करता है कि ये सुगंधित उपहार रात तक सुरक्षित किसी दूर किनारे तक पहुँच जाएँ।

नाव छोड़ते समय वह आकाश की ओर देखता है और कल्पना करता है कि सफ़ेद बादल उसके मित्र हैं, जो फूले हुए पाल भेजकर उसकी छोटी नावों के साथ-साथ दौड़ लगाते हैं। इस तरह धरती, पानी और आकाश—तीनों मिलकर उसके खेल और कल्पना की एक दुनिया बना देते हैं। रात होने पर वह अपनी बाँहों में चेहरा छुपाकर सपने देखता है—कि उसकी नावें तारों भरी आधी रात में भी आगे तैरती जा रही हैं। सपनों की परियाँ उन नावों में सवार हैं और उनका “सामान” किसी वस्तु का नहीं, बल्कि टोकरी-भर सपनों का है।

कविता वास्तविकता और कल्पना को बहुत कोमल, आशावादी स्वर में मिलाती है। कागज़ की नाव बहाना—यह मासूम सा काम—अपनी पहचान, शुभकामना और प्रेम को दुनिया तक भेजने का प्रतीक बन जाता है। प्रकृति की छवियाँ (धारा, बादल, तारे, फूल) दृश्य को जीवंत बनाती हैं और “दिन-ब-दिन” जैसा दोहराव बच्चे के विश्वास को उभारता है। संदेश स्पष्ट है—हमारे छोटे-छोटे उपहार, नाम और सपने भी दूर तक जा सकते हैं और किसी अनजाने हृदय को छू सकते हैं। 🌸⛵⭐

🎯 One-Word Answers (10) — simple English

1. Who floats the paper boats? — Child/Poet
2. Where are the boats set afloat? — Running stream
3. What is written on the boats? — Name
4. Which flowers are loaded? — Shiuli
5. When should the flowers reach land? — Night
6. What in the sky looks like sails? — Clouds
7. Who sails in dreams? — Fairies
8. What do the fairies carry? — Dreams
9. What time do boats float “on and on”? — Midnight
10. What does the child hope to share? — Identity

✍️ Very Short Answer (10) — 2–3 lines • simple English

1. Why does the child write his name on the boats?
   He hopes someone far away will find a boat and know who he is and where he lives.
2. Why shiuli flowers?
   They are fresh “blooms of the dawn,” a gentle gift he wishes to send to a distant land.
3. How do clouds join the play?
   The child imagines clouds as friends who set “white bulging sails” to race with his boats.
4. What happens at night in his dream?
   The paper boats keep floating under stars, carrying sleep-fairies with baskets full of dreams.
5. Which words show routine?
   “Day by day” shows he does this every day with patience and joy.
6. What is the tone of the poem?
   Gentle, hopeful, and playful—full of childlike imagination.
7. How is nature used?
   Stream, clouds, stars, and flowers create a soft, magical setting around a simple activity.
8. What is he really sending out?
   Along with paper boats, he sends identity, goodwill, and dreams.
9. What does “lading” mean here?
   It means the cargo or load—the dreams carried by the sleep-fairies.
10. What lesson do we get?
    Small acts with pure intention can travel far and touch unknown hearts.

🧩 Short Answer (10) — 3–4 lines • simple English

1. Explain how the poem mixes reality and imagination.
   The real act is floating paper boats in a stream; imagination turns clouds into sail-mates and fairies into sailors who carry dreams. This blend makes a simple play feel magical and meaningful.
2. Why does the child include the village name?
   He wants to connect with strangers kindly and proudly share his roots. It shows a wish to be known and to make friends beyond boundaries.
3. What do the shiuli flowers symbolise?
   Purity, freshness, and goodwill. Sending dawn-flowers suggests sending hope and blessings to the unknown.
4. Describe the mood at night.
   Quiet and dreamy. Under the midnight stars, boats drift on and the mind fills with soft, safe dreams—guided by “fairies of sleep.”
5. How do the repeated words build rhythm?
   “Day by day” and “on and on” create a gentle, flowing rhythm, like water itself, showing patience and continuity.
6. What is the central theme?
   Innocence and imagination—using a small act to send identity, love, and dreams into the wider world.
7. How do clouds become “bulging sails”?
   Through personification and comparison: white clouds look like filled sails, so the child imagines them racing with his boats.
8. Why is the stream important?
   It is the pathway that carries the boats—and symbolically, his hopes—towards distant places and people.
9. What does “fairies of sleep” add to the poem?
   It adds comfort and wonder, showing how dreams can travel like cargo to nurture the child’s inner world.
10. What message can students take?
    Let your imagination be kind and wide. Even your small creations can carry your name, hopes, and goodness far beyond you. 🌟