A Funny Man: NCERT Class 7 English Poem (Poorvi)

etmantra3 Nov 20266 min read

What would you do if a stranger came down your street with a shoe on his head? This cheerful nonsense poem by Natalie Joan turns everything upside down, and students love its silly pictures and bouncy rhymes. It is also a good way to learn phrasal verbs and the fun of limericks.

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From NCERT’s new English book Poorvi for Class 7, unit “Wit and Humour”. Unit 2.

What your child learns

New words from the poem: manners, polite, present, currant, staggered, hopped
Phrasal verbs such as walk down, take out, sit down, take after and look after
Rhyme scheme and alliteration in a humorous poem ('sounding sight', 'hopped home')
Writing a five-line limerick with the rhyme scheme AABBA

What the poem is about

One day the poet sees a strange man walking down her street. He wears a shoe on his head and hats on his feet. He is very polite: he lifts the shoe to greet her, smiles, and offers 'Your Highness' a rose. But the rose is really a currant bun, which he holds up to her nose. The surprised poet stumbles back against a wall. Then the man sings a song and sits down on the ground, and his song sounds just as odd as everything else about him.

At last the poet asks him why he wears two hats on his feet. He does not answer. He simply turns round and hops home on his head. The poem has no lesson to teach; it is meant to make us laugh. The poet mixes up the senses on purpose, talking about a sight that sounds funny and a smell that looks funny, and she repeats the word 'funny' again and again to keep the playful mood.

New words, with Hindi meanings

manners: the way a person behaves with others, polite or rude (हिंदी: तौर-तरीक़े, शिष्टाचार)
polite: speaking and behaving in a kind, respectful way (हिंदी: विनम्र)
sight: something that you see (हिंदी: नज़ारा, दृश्य)
present: to give something to someone in a formal way (हिंदी: भेंट करना)
Your Highness: a respectful way to speak to a king, queen, prince or princess (हिंदी: महामहिम, हुज़ूर)
currant: a small dried grape without seeds, like a tiny raisin (हिंदी: छोटी किशमिश)
bun: a small, round, soft bread, often sweet (हिंदी: बन, मीठी डबलरोटी)
staggered: walked or moved in an unsteady way, almost falling (हिंदी: लड़खड़ाया)
hopped: moved by small jumps (हिंदी: उछलते हुए गया, फुदका)
nonsense: something silly that does not make sense, often said for fun (हिंदी: बेतुकी बात)

Talk about it

Ask these aloud after reading or watching. Let your child answer in English if they can, or mix in their home language. Both help.

What was strange about the way the funny man was dressed?
What did the funny man offer the poet, and what did he really give her?
Why did the poet stagger back against the wall?
What did the funny man do when the poet asked about his hats?
What is the funniest thing you have seen someone do? Why did it make you laugh?

Answers for parents

He wore a shoe on his head and hats on his feet, the opposite of the usual way.
He said he would present her with a rose, but he took out a currant bun and held it to her nose.
She was so surprised by the bun pretending to be a rose that she stumbled backwards. It was a shock, and a funny one.
He did not answer at all. He turned the other way and hopped home on his head.
For example: At a wedding, my uncle danced with a plate on his head and the plate did not fall. Everyone laughed because nobody expected him to do it.

Grammar corner: Phrasal verbs

A phrasal verb is a verb joined with a small word like down, out, up, after or off. The two words work together as one, and the meaning is often new: 'take after' means to look like someone in your family. The same verb with a different small word can mean something quite different.

The clown took off his big red hat and bowed to the children.
My little brother takes after our grandfather; they both laugh very loudly.
Please look after my umbrella while I buy a currant bun.

Practice at home

Fill in the blank with the right phrasal verb (take up / take off / look after): The funny man wanted to ___ his hats before he went to sleep.
Arrange these ways of moving from slowest to fastest: sprint, walk, jog.
Find the alliteration (words starting with the same sound): The silly singer sat on a soft sofa.

Answers: 1. take off · 2. walk, jog, sprint · 3. silly, singer, sat, soft, sofa (all begin with /s/)

Try this

Play 'Funny Man says'. One person is the funny man and gives silly orders that are the wrong way round: 'Put your socks on your hands!', 'Say good night at breakfast!', 'Walk backwards to the door!' Everyone acts them out. Then try to describe each silly act in one English sentence, using a phrasal verb if you can, such as 'I sat down on the floor' or 'I took off my watch'.

Tip for parents

Ask your child to tell you the poem in Hindi first, as if it were a funny story about a strange neighbour: जूता सिर पर, टोपी पैरों में, गुलाब की जगह बन. Then ask them to say each funny act again in English, one sentence at a time; mixing Hindi and English words is fine at the start. Laugh along, praise every try, and share a funny incident from your own childhood in Hindi so your child can retell it in English.

Questions parents ask

What is the poem A Funny Man about?

It is a nonsense poem about a polite but very strange man who wears a shoe on his head and hats on his feet, offers a currant bun as a rose, and hops home on his head. It is written to make readers laugh.

Who wrote the poem A Funny Man?

The poem is by Natalie Joan. The poet tells it as something she saw and heard herself.

Is A Funny Man in the new NCERT book?

Yes. It is Chapter 5 of NCERT's new Poorvi book for Class 7, in Unit 2, Wit and Humour. Its grammar section teaches phrasal verbs, and its writing task is a limerick.

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Every chapter of Poorvi, NCERT’s new Class 7 book, with notes in English and Hindi, say-it-aloud practice with a score, listening, grammar, speaking and writing with feedback. ₹1,599 for the whole year.

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