Fog — Practice

Question 1

To what is the fog compared in the poem?

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: to a cat.

Question 2

What does the fog look over as it sits?

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: over the harbour and the city.

Question 3

Is the comparison in 'Fog' a simile or a metaphor? Why?

Accepted Answer

It is a metaphor, because the fog is spoken of directly as a cat (not 'like a cat').

✦ Answer: a metaphor — the fog is directly presented as a cat.

Question 4

How is the fog like a cat in the poem?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — It comes silently and softly, 'on little cat feet', like a cat padding in on quiet paws.

Step 2 — It sits still on 'silent haunches' watching the harbour and city, then 'moves on' quietly — just as a cat sits, watches and leaves at will.

✦ Answer: both arrive silently, sit still and watchful, and move away quietly and freely.

Question 5

What is the central idea of 'Fog'?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — The poem captures a natural phenomenon, fog, through a single vivid comparison to a cat.

Step 2 — Its purpose is not to teach a moral but to make us see fog freshly and delight in the precise, imaginative image.

✦ Answer: it beautifully captures fog through one imaginative image (a cat), celebrating fresh observation.

Question 6

How does Carl Sandburg achieve so much in just six lines?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — He uses a single, perfectly chosen extended metaphor — fog as a cat — that fits in every detail.

Step 2 — Vivid imagery ('little cat feet', 'silent haunches') and gentle personification make the picture come alive.

Step 3 — The extreme brevity and economy force every word to work, so the poem feels complete and memorable despite its shortness.

✦ Answer: one apt metaphor, vivid imagery and personification, and tight economy make the tiny poem powerful and memorable.

Question 7

'The fog comes / on little cat feet.' Explain the image and why it is effective.

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — The poet imagines the fog arriving as quietly and softly as a cat walking in on its small, silent paws.

Step 2 — This captures how fog appears gradually and noiselessly, without anyone noticing its approach.

Step 3 — The image is effective because it is fresh, precise and instantly recognisable — one comparison conveys the fog's silent, gentle arrival perfectly.

✦ Answer: fog is likened to a cat's silent, soft approach — a fresh, exact image that captures how quietly fog arrives.

Practice — Fog

Sign in to save attempts to your dashboard and track your accuracy over time

Find a verified tutor

Join a live course

Browse coaching centres

About

Categories

Support

Documentation

Get Study Tips & Updates

Download Our App

Download for iOS

Download for Android

Popular Cities