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Macbeth: WBCHSE Class 11 English MCQs
Get summaries, questions, answers, solutions, extra MCQs, PDF for William Shakespeare’s Macbeth: WBCHSE Class 11 English Literature textbook A Realm of English (B) Selection, which is part of the Semester I syllabus for students studying under WBBSE (West Bengal Board-Uccha Madhyamik). These solutions, however, should only be treated as references and can be modified/changed.
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
1. At the beginning of the events, what was Macbeth’s title?
A. Thane of Cawdor
B. King of Scotland
C. Thane of Fife
D. Thane of Glamis
Answer: D. Thane of Glamis
2. Who was the King of Scotland when Macbeth defeated the rebel army?
A. Malcolm
B. Banquo
C. Duncan
D. Macduff
Answer: C. Duncan
3. What was the first prophecy given to Macbeth by the witches that came true?
A. He would become King of Scotland.
B. He would be named Thane of Cawdor.
C. His children would become kings.
D. He would have a long and peaceful life.
Answer: B. He would be named Thane of Cawdor.
4. According to the witches’ prophecy, who would be the father to a line of kings?
A. Macbeth
B. Duncan
C. Macduff
D. Banquo
Answer: D. Banquo
5. What vision does Macbeth see on his way to murder the king?
A. The ghost of his father
B. A floating, bloody dagger
C. The three witches chanting
D. A crown hovering over the bed
Answer: B. A floating, bloody dagger
6. Why did Lady Macbeth say she could not kill King Duncan herself?
A. She was afraid of the dark.
B. She heard a noise and got scared.
C. The sleeping king resembled her own father.
D. She wanted Macbeth to prove his courage.
Answer: C. The sleeping king resembled her own father.
7. After Duncan’s murder, where did his eldest son, Malcolm, flee?
A. Ireland
B. Norway
C. England
D. France
Answer: C. England
8. At the royal banquet, whose ghost did Macbeth see sitting in his chair?
A. Duncan’s ghost
B. Banquo’s ghost
C. The first witch’s ghost
D. Macduff’s son’s ghost
Answer: B. Banquo’s ghost
9. The term “Compunction” is defined as:
A. a feeling of guilt that prevents wrong-doing
B. a title given to a royal official
C. excessive or inordinate desire
D. a messenger sent on a mission
Answer: A. a feeling of guilt that prevents wrong-doing
10. What did the first spirit, an armed head, warn Macbeth to beware of?
A. The Thane of Glamis
B. The son of Banquo
C. The Thane of Fife
D. The army from England
Answer: C. The Thane of Fife
11. What did the second spirit, a bloody child, prophesy to Macbeth?
A. That he should fear no man born of a woman.
B. That he would die in the next battle.
C. That his castle would be taken easily.
D. That he should flee to Ireland for safety.
Answer: A. That he should fear no man born of a woman.
12. The third spirit, a crowned child with a tree, told Macbeth he would not be vanquished until what happened?
A. His wife passed away.
B. Birnam wood came to Dunsinane Hill.
C. All of Banquo’s sons were dead.
D. He confessed to the murder of Duncan.
Answer: B. Birnam wood came to Dunsinane Hill.
13. The term “Somnambulism” refers to:
A. sleep-walking
B. a brief fight
C. what exists in the imagination
D. being unable to be captured
Answer: A. sleep-walking
14. How was the prophecy of Birnam wood moving to Dunsinane fulfilled?
A. The witches used their magic to move the forest.
B. A great storm uprooted the trees.
C. An earthquake caused a landslide.
D. Malcolm’s soldiers used tree boughs for camouflage.
Answer: D. Malcolm’s soldiers used tree boughs for camouflage.
15. Who fled to England to join Malcolm’s army against Macbeth?
A. Fleance
B. Macduff
C. Donalbain
D. A Scottish nobleman
Answer: B. Macduff
16. How was Macduff not “born of a woman” in the ordinary sense?
A. He was created by magic.
B. He was untimely taken from his mother’s womb.
C. He was an orphan raised by wolves.
D. The prophecy was a trick and had no meaning.
Answer: B. He was untimely taken from his mother’s womb.
17. What does the word “Equivocations” mean?
A. A brief, intense fight
B. A feeling of intense guilt
C. Respect and admiration
D. Use of language with double meanings
Answer: D. Use of language with double meanings
18. What happened to Banquo’s son, Fleance, when the assassins attacked?
A. He was captured.
B. He managed to escape.
C. He was killed with his father.
D. He fought off the assassins.
Answer: B. He managed to escape.
19. What did Macbeth hear a voice cry out after he had murdered Duncan?
A. “You will be king!”
B. “Beware Macduff!”
C. “Macbeth shall sleep no more.”
D. “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.”
Answer: C. “Macbeth shall sleep no more.”
20. Who becomes the new, lawful king of Scotland at the end of the story?
A. Macduff
B. Fleance
C. Donalbain
D. Malcolm
Answer: D. Malcolm
21. Which of the following was NOT a prophecy made by the witches to Macbeth?
A. He would be the Thane of Glamis.
B. His successors would be kings.
C. He would be the Thane of Cawdor.
D. He would be the king of Scotland hereafter.
Answer: B. His successors would be kings.
22. Which of the following statements about the prophecies for Banquo is NOT true?
A. He would be lesser than Macbeth and greater.
B. He would reign as the king of Scotland.
C. He would be not so happy, but much happier than Macbeth.
D. His successors would be the kings.
Answer: B. He would reign as the king of Scotland.
23. Which of the following was NOT a reason for Macbeth’s initial reluctance to murder King Duncan?
A. He was the king’s host and should protect him.
B. He was afraid of the king’s drunken grooms.
C. He was the king’s subject and a close relative.
D. He knew Duncan was a just and merciful king.
Answer: B. He was afraid of the king’s drunken grooms.
24. Which of the following statements about Lady Macbeth is NOT true?
A. She feared her husband was too full of human kindness.
B. She successfully murdered King Duncan while he slept.
C. She could not kill the king because he resembled her father.
D. She smeared the king’s grooms with blood to frame them.
Answer: B. She successfully murdered King Duncan while he slept.
25. Which of these events did NOT happen immediately after the discovery of King Duncan’s murder?
A. Malcolm, the king’s eldest son, fled to England.
B. The drunken grooms confessed to the crime.
C. Macbeth was crowned the new king of Scotland.
D. Donalbain, the king’s youngest son, fled to Ireland.
Answer: B. The drunken grooms confessed to the crime.
26. Which of the following characters was NOT killed by or on the orders of Macbeth?
A. Banquo
B. Duncan
C. Fleance
D. Macduff’s children
Answer: C. Fleance
27. Which of the following was NOT a prophecy given to Macbeth by the spirits during his second visit to the witches?
A. He should beware of the Thane of Fife.
B. He could not be harmed by any man born of a woman.
C. His own lineage would continue to rule Scotland for generations.
D. He would never be vanquished until Birnam Wood moved to Dunsinane Hill.
Answer: C. His own lineage would continue to rule Scotland for generations.
28. Which of these statements about the events in the story is NOT true?
A. Macbeth sees the ghost of the murdered Banquo at a royal banquet.
B. Banquo secretly helps Macbeth in his plot to murder King Duncan.
C. Lady Macbeth suffers from sleep-walking due to guilt and dies.
D. Malcolm, Duncan’s son, eventually becomes the rightful king of Scotland.
Answer: B. Banquo secretly helps Macbeth in his plot to murder King Duncan.
29. Which of the following statements about the final conflict is NOT true?
A. Macbeth surrendered to Macduff and was displayed as a tyrant.
B. The prophecy of Birnam Wood moving was fulfilled by soldiers carrying branches.
C. Macduff revealed he was untimely taken from his mother’s womb.
D. The conflict ended with Macduff severing Macbeth’s head.
Answer: A. Macbeth surrendered to Macduff and was displayed as a tyrant.
30. Which of the following was NOT an ingredient mentioned as being part of the witches’ dreadful charm?
A. The tongue of a dog
B. The finger of a dead child
C. The feather of an eagle
D. The scale of a dragon
Answer: C. The feather of an eagle
31. Macbeth’s initial title at the beginning of the events was the Thane of __________.
A. Cawdor
B. Fife
C. Glamis
D. Scotland
Answer: C. Glamis
32. The witches prophesied that Banquo would be lesser than Macbeth and __________, not so happy, but much __________.
A. weaker, sadder
B. greater, happier
C. poorer, richer
D. younger, wiser
Answer: B. greater, happier
33. Lady Macbeth could not murder the sleeping King Duncan herself because he resembled her __________.
A. brother
B. father
C. son
D. uncle
Answer: B. father
34. After King Duncan’s murder, his eldest son, Malcolm, sought refuge in the __________ court.
A. Irish
B. Norwegian
C. Scottish
D. English
Answer: D. English
35. At the banquet, Macbeth was terrified by the sight of the ghost of __________.
A. Duncan
B. Banquo
C. Fleance
D. the first witch
Answer: B. Banquo
36. The first spirit, which appeared as an armed head, warned Macbeth to beware of the Thane of __________.
A. Cawdor
B. Ross
C. Fife
D. Glamis
Answer: C. Fife
37. The third spirit told Macbeth he would never be vanquished until __________ moved to Dunsinane Hill.
A. the English army
B. a great flood
C. Birnam wood
D. the entire Scottish nobility
Answer: C. Birnam wood
38. The word __________ means a feeling of guilt that prevents one from doing something wrong.
A. Compunction
B. Phantasm
C. Inordinate
D. Equivocation
Answer: A. Compunction
39. Malcolm instructed his soldiers to carry boughs from the wood to __________ their true numbers.
A. signal
B. conceal
C. build with
D. burn
Answer: B. conceal
40. Macduff revealed that he was not born naturally but was __________ from his mother’s womb.
A. magically created
B. divinely sent
C. untimely taken
D. adopted at birth
Answer: C. untimely taken
41. The term __________ refers to the use of language with double meanings.
A. Somnambulism
B. Phantasm
C. Compunction
D. Equivocations
Answer: D. Equivocations
42. After being overcome in their final fight, Macbeth’s __________ was presented to the new king, Malcolm.
A. crown
B. head
C. sword
D. shield
Answer: B. head
43. Due to the remorse of her guilt, the Queen began to suffer from __________.
A. a raging fever
B. a strange madness
C. somnambulism
D. an incurable disease
Answer: C. somnambulism
44. The second spirit, in the likeness of a bloody child, told Macbeth to have no fear of any man born of a __________.
A. king
B. witch
C. woman
D. ghost
Answer: C. woman
45. King Duncan’s younger son, __________, fled to Ireland after his father’s death.
A. Malcolm
B. Fleance
C. Macduff
D. Donalbain
Answer: D. Donalbain
46. (I) Macbeth was initially hesitant to murder King Duncan.
(II) He was the king’s host, subject, and close relative.
A. I is a contradiction of II.
B. I is independent of II.
C. II is the cause for I.
D. II is an example of I.
Answer: C. II is the cause for I.
47. (I) The witches prophesied that Macbeth would become the Thane of Cawdor.
(II) Envoys from the king arrived and conferred the title of Thane of Cawdor upon Macbeth.
A. I is a contradiction of II.
B. II is the fulfillment of I.
C. I is independent of II.
D. II is the cause of I.
Answer: B. II is the fulfillment of I.
48. (I) Lady Macbeth could not bring herself to murder the sleeping King Duncan.
(II) The king’s face resembled that of her own father.
A. I is independent of II.
B. I is a contradiction of II.
C. II is the reason for I.
D. I is an example of II.
Answer: C. II is the reason for I.
49. Statement 1: The second spirit, in the form of a bloody child, told Macbeth that he should never be vanquished until the wood of Birnam would come to Dunsinane Hill.
Statement 2: The third spirit, in the form of a crowned child, told Macbeth to have no fear of any man born naturally of a woman’s womb.
A. Both the statements are true.
B. Both the statements are false.
C. Statement 1 is true, and Statement 2 is false.
D. Statement 1 is false, and Statement 2 is true.
Answer: B. Both the statements are false.
50. (I) Macbeth saw the ghost of Banquo sitting in a chair at the banquet.
(II) The queen and the nobles also saw the ghost and were terrified.
A. I is the cause for II.
B. I is independent of II.
C. I is true, but II is false.
D. I is false, but II is true.
Answer: C. I is true, but II is false.
51. (I) The prophecy about Birnam Wood moving to Dunsinane seemed impossible to Macbeth.
(II) Malcolm’s soldiers used boughs from the wood as camouflage, creating the appearance of a moving forest.
A. I is a contradiction of II.
B. I is independent of II.
C. II is an explanation for the fulfillment of I.
D. I is the cause for II.
Answer: C. II is an explanation for the fulfillment of I.
52. (I) Macbeth believed he bore a charmed life and could not be killed by any man born of a woman.
(II) Macduff revealed that he was untimely taken from his mother’s womb.
A. I is independent of II.
B. II is a contradiction that nullifies I.
C. I is the cause for II.
D. II is an example of I.
Answer: B. II is a contradiction that nullifies I.
53. (I) Duncan’s two sons, Malcolm and Donalbain, fled Scotland after their father’s murder.
(II) Suspicion for the murder fell upon Macbeth.
A. I is the result of II.
B. I is independent of II.
C. I is a contradiction of II.
D. II is the result of I.
Answer: D. II is the result of I.
54. (I) Macbeth decided to kill Banquo and his son Fleance.
(II) He feared the witches’ prophecy that Banquo’s descendants would be kings.
A. II is the reason for I.
B. I is an example of II.
C. I is independent of II.
D. I is a contradiction of II.
Answer: A. II is the reason for I.
55. (I) Lady Macbeth accused her husband of cowardice and fickleness.
(II) Macbeth had resolved to proceed no further with the plan to murder the king.
A. I is independent of II.
B. I is a contradiction of II.
C. II is the cause for I.
D. I is an example of II.
Answer: C. II is the cause for I.
56. Statement 1: The witches prophesied that Banquo would be lesser than Macbeth and greater.
Statement 2: The witches prophesied that Banquo himself would reign as the king of Scotland.
A. Statement 1 is true, but Statement 2 is false.
B. Statement 1 is false, but Statement 2 is true.
C. Both the statements are true.
D. Both the statements are false.
Answer: A. Statement 1 is true, but Statement 2 is false.
57. (I) Macbeth grew careless of life and longed for death.
(II) His wife passed away and he was alienated from his nobility.
A. I is independent of II.
B. I is a contradiction of II.
C. I is an example of II.
D. II is the cause for I.
Answer: D. II is the cause for I.
