NCERT Textbook: From the Diary of Anne Frank | English Class 10 PDF Download

 Page 1


BEFORE YOU READ
Anneliese Marie ‘Anne’ Frank (12
June 1929 – February/March
1945) was a German – born
Jewish girl who wrote while in
hiding with her family and four
friends in Amsterdam during the
German occupation of the
Netherlands in World War II. Her
family had moved to Amsterdam
after the Nazis gained power in
Germany but were trapped when
the Nazi occupation extended into
the Netherlands. As persecutions
against the Jewish population
increased, the family went into
hiding in July 1942 in hidden rooms in her father Otto Frank’s
office building. After two years in hiding, the group was betrayed
and transported to the concentration camp system where Anne died
of typhus in Bergen-Belsen within days of her sister , Margot Frank.
Her father , Otto, the only survivor of the group, returned to Amsterdam
after the war ended, to find that her diary had been saved. Convinced
that it was a unique record, he took action to have it published in
English under the name The Diary of a Young Girl.
The diary was given to Anne Frank for her thirteenth birthday
and chronicles the events of her life from 12 June 1942 until its
final entry of 1 August 1944. It was eventually translated from its
original Dutch into many languages and became one of the world’s
most widely read books. There have also been several films,
television and theatrical productions, and even an opera, based on
the diary. Described as the work of a mature and insightful mind,
the diary provides an intimate examination of daily life under Nazi
occupation. Anne Frank has become one of the most renowned and
discussed of the Holocaust victims.
“This is a photo as I would wish
myself to look all the time. Then
I would, maybe, have a chance
to come to Hollywood.”
– Anne Frank, 10 October 1942
Reprint 2024-25
Page 2


BEFORE YOU READ
Anneliese Marie ‘Anne’ Frank (12
June 1929 – February/March
1945) was a German – born
Jewish girl who wrote while in
hiding with her family and four
friends in Amsterdam during the
German occupation of the
Netherlands in World War II. Her
family had moved to Amsterdam
after the Nazis gained power in
Germany but were trapped when
the Nazi occupation extended into
the Netherlands. As persecutions
against the Jewish population
increased, the family went into
hiding in July 1942 in hidden rooms in her father Otto Frank’s
office building. After two years in hiding, the group was betrayed
and transported to the concentration camp system where Anne died
of typhus in Bergen-Belsen within days of her sister , Margot Frank.
Her father , Otto, the only survivor of the group, returned to Amsterdam
after the war ended, to find that her diary had been saved. Convinced
that it was a unique record, he took action to have it published in
English under the name The Diary of a Young Girl.
The diary was given to Anne Frank for her thirteenth birthday
and chronicles the events of her life from 12 June 1942 until its
final entry of 1 August 1944. It was eventually translated from its
original Dutch into many languages and became one of the world’s
most widely read books. There have also been several films,
television and theatrical productions, and even an opera, based on
the diary. Described as the work of a mature and insightful mind,
the diary provides an intimate examination of daily life under Nazi
occupation. Anne Frank has become one of the most renowned and
discussed of the Holocaust victims.
“This is a photo as I would wish
myself to look all the time. Then
I would, maybe, have a chance
to come to Hollywood.”
– Anne Frank, 10 October 1942
Reprint 2024-25
2. Here are some entries from personal records. Use the definitions
above to decide which of the entries might be from a diary, a
journal, a log or a memoir .
(i) I woke up very late today and promptly got a scolding from
Mum! I can’t help it — how can I miss the FIFA World Cup
matches?
Ans: 
(ii) 10:30 a.m. Went to the office of the Director
01:00 p.m. Had lunch with Chairman
05:45 p.m. Received Rahul at the airport
09:30 p.m. Dinner at home
Ans: 
(iii) The ride to Ooty was uneventful. W e rested for a while every
50 km or so, and used the time to capture the magnificent
landscape with my HandyCam. From Ooty we went on to
Bangalore.
What a contrast! The noise and pollution of this once-beautiful
city really broke my heart.
Ans: 
(iv) This is how Raj Kapoor found me — all wet and ragged
outside R.K.Studios. He was then looking for just someone
like this for a small role in Mera Naam Joker, and he cast
me on the spot. The rest, as they say, is history!
Ans: 
49
From the Diary of Anne Frank
Activity
1. Do you keep a diary? Given below under ‘A’ are some terms we
use to describe a written record of personal experience. Can
you match them with their descriptions under ‘B’? (You may
look up the terms in a dictionary if you wish.)
B
– A book with a separate space or page for each
day, in which you write down your thoughts
and feelings or what has happened on that day
– A full record of a journey, a period of time, or
an event, written every day
– A record of a person’s own life and experiences
(usually, a famous person)
– A written record of events with times and
dates, usually official
A
(i) Journal
(ii) Diary
(iii) Log
(iv) Memoir(s)
Reprint 2024-25
Page 3


BEFORE YOU READ
Anneliese Marie ‘Anne’ Frank (12
June 1929 – February/March
1945) was a German – born
Jewish girl who wrote while in
hiding with her family and four
friends in Amsterdam during the
German occupation of the
Netherlands in World War II. Her
family had moved to Amsterdam
after the Nazis gained power in
Germany but were trapped when
the Nazi occupation extended into
the Netherlands. As persecutions
against the Jewish population
increased, the family went into
hiding in July 1942 in hidden rooms in her father Otto Frank’s
office building. After two years in hiding, the group was betrayed
and transported to the concentration camp system where Anne died
of typhus in Bergen-Belsen within days of her sister , Margot Frank.
Her father , Otto, the only survivor of the group, returned to Amsterdam
after the war ended, to find that her diary had been saved. Convinced
that it was a unique record, he took action to have it published in
English under the name The Diary of a Young Girl.
The diary was given to Anne Frank for her thirteenth birthday
and chronicles the events of her life from 12 June 1942 until its
final entry of 1 August 1944. It was eventually translated from its
original Dutch into many languages and became one of the world’s
most widely read books. There have also been several films,
television and theatrical productions, and even an opera, based on
the diary. Described as the work of a mature and insightful mind,
the diary provides an intimate examination of daily life under Nazi
occupation. Anne Frank has become one of the most renowned and
discussed of the Holocaust victims.
“This is a photo as I would wish
myself to look all the time. Then
I would, maybe, have a chance
to come to Hollywood.”
– Anne Frank, 10 October 1942
Reprint 2024-25
2. Here are some entries from personal records. Use the definitions
above to decide which of the entries might be from a diary, a
journal, a log or a memoir .
(i) I woke up very late today and promptly got a scolding from
Mum! I can’t help it — how can I miss the FIFA World Cup
matches?
Ans: 
(ii) 10:30 a.m. Went to the office of the Director
01:00 p.m. Had lunch with Chairman
05:45 p.m. Received Rahul at the airport
09:30 p.m. Dinner at home
Ans: 
(iii) The ride to Ooty was uneventful. W e rested for a while every
50 km or so, and used the time to capture the magnificent
landscape with my HandyCam. From Ooty we went on to
Bangalore.
What a contrast! The noise and pollution of this once-beautiful
city really broke my heart.
Ans: 
(iv) This is how Raj Kapoor found me — all wet and ragged
outside R.K.Studios. He was then looking for just someone
like this for a small role in Mera Naam Joker, and he cast
me on the spot. The rest, as they say, is history!
Ans: 
49
From the Diary of Anne Frank
Activity
1. Do you keep a diary? Given below under ‘A’ are some terms we
use to describe a written record of personal experience. Can
you match them with their descriptions under ‘B’? (You may
look up the terms in a dictionary if you wish.)
B
– A book with a separate space or page for each
day, in which you write down your thoughts
and feelings or what has happened on that day
– A full record of a journey, a period of time, or
an event, written every day
– A record of a person’s own life and experiences
(usually, a famous person)
– A written record of events with times and
dates, usually official
A
(i) Journal
(ii) Diary
(iii) Log
(iv) Memoir(s)
Reprint 2024-25
50
First Flight
WRITING in a diary is a really strange experience for
someone like me. Not only because I’ve never written
anything before, but also because it seems to me
that later on neither I nor anyone else will be
interested in the musings of a thirteen-year-old
schoolgirl. Oh well, it doesn’t matter. I feel like
writing, and I have an even greater need to get all
kinds of things off my chest.
‘Paper has more patience than people.’ I thought
of this saying on one of those days when I was feeling
a little depressed and was sitting at home with my
chin in my hands, bored and listless, wondering
whether to stay in or go out. I finally stayed where I
was, brooding: Yes, paper does have more patience,
and since I’m not planning to let anyone else read
this stiff-backed notebook grandly referred to as a
‘diary’, unless I should ever find a real friend, it
probably won’t make a bit of difference.
Now I’m back to the point that prompted me
to keep a diary in the first place: I don’t have a
friend.
Let me put it more clearly, since no one will
believe that a thirteen-year-old girl is completely
alone in the world. And I’m not. I have loving parents
and a sixteen-year-old sister, and there are about
thirty people I can call friends. I have a family,
loving aunts and a good home. No, on the surface I
seem to have everything, except my one true friend.
All I think about when I’m with friends is having a
good time. I can’t bring myself to talk about anything
but ordinary everyday things. We don’t seem to be
able to get any closer, and that’s the problem. Maybe
it’s my fault that we don’t confide in each other. In
any case, that’s just how things are, and
unfortunately they’re not liable to change. This is
why I’ve started the diary.
To enhance the image of this long-awaited friend
in my imagination, I don’t want to jot down the
facts in this diary the way most people would do,
but I want the diary to be my friend, and I’m going
to call this friend ‘Kitty’.
listless
with no  energy or
interest
confide
to tell personal
things privately to a
person that one
trusts
Reprint 2024-25
Page 4


BEFORE YOU READ
Anneliese Marie ‘Anne’ Frank (12
June 1929 – February/March
1945) was a German – born
Jewish girl who wrote while in
hiding with her family and four
friends in Amsterdam during the
German occupation of the
Netherlands in World War II. Her
family had moved to Amsterdam
after the Nazis gained power in
Germany but were trapped when
the Nazi occupation extended into
the Netherlands. As persecutions
against the Jewish population
increased, the family went into
hiding in July 1942 in hidden rooms in her father Otto Frank’s
office building. After two years in hiding, the group was betrayed
and transported to the concentration camp system where Anne died
of typhus in Bergen-Belsen within days of her sister , Margot Frank.
Her father , Otto, the only survivor of the group, returned to Amsterdam
after the war ended, to find that her diary had been saved. Convinced
that it was a unique record, he took action to have it published in
English under the name The Diary of a Young Girl.
The diary was given to Anne Frank for her thirteenth birthday
and chronicles the events of her life from 12 June 1942 until its
final entry of 1 August 1944. It was eventually translated from its
original Dutch into many languages and became one of the world’s
most widely read books. There have also been several films,
television and theatrical productions, and even an opera, based on
the diary. Described as the work of a mature and insightful mind,
the diary provides an intimate examination of daily life under Nazi
occupation. Anne Frank has become one of the most renowned and
discussed of the Holocaust victims.
“This is a photo as I would wish
myself to look all the time. Then
I would, maybe, have a chance
to come to Hollywood.”
– Anne Frank, 10 October 1942
Reprint 2024-25
2. Here are some entries from personal records. Use the definitions
above to decide which of the entries might be from a diary, a
journal, a log or a memoir .
(i) I woke up very late today and promptly got a scolding from
Mum! I can’t help it — how can I miss the FIFA World Cup
matches?
Ans: 
(ii) 10:30 a.m. Went to the office of the Director
01:00 p.m. Had lunch with Chairman
05:45 p.m. Received Rahul at the airport
09:30 p.m. Dinner at home
Ans: 
(iii) The ride to Ooty was uneventful. W e rested for a while every
50 km or so, and used the time to capture the magnificent
landscape with my HandyCam. From Ooty we went on to
Bangalore.
What a contrast! The noise and pollution of this once-beautiful
city really broke my heart.
Ans: 
(iv) This is how Raj Kapoor found me — all wet and ragged
outside R.K.Studios. He was then looking for just someone
like this for a small role in Mera Naam Joker, and he cast
me on the spot. The rest, as they say, is history!
Ans: 
49
From the Diary of Anne Frank
Activity
1. Do you keep a diary? Given below under ‘A’ are some terms we
use to describe a written record of personal experience. Can
you match them with their descriptions under ‘B’? (You may
look up the terms in a dictionary if you wish.)
B
– A book with a separate space or page for each
day, in which you write down your thoughts
and feelings or what has happened on that day
– A full record of a journey, a period of time, or
an event, written every day
– A record of a person’s own life and experiences
(usually, a famous person)
– A written record of events with times and
dates, usually official
A
(i) Journal
(ii) Diary
(iii) Log
(iv) Memoir(s)
Reprint 2024-25
50
First Flight
WRITING in a diary is a really strange experience for
someone like me. Not only because I’ve never written
anything before, but also because it seems to me
that later on neither I nor anyone else will be
interested in the musings of a thirteen-year-old
schoolgirl. Oh well, it doesn’t matter. I feel like
writing, and I have an even greater need to get all
kinds of things off my chest.
‘Paper has more patience than people.’ I thought
of this saying on one of those days when I was feeling
a little depressed and was sitting at home with my
chin in my hands, bored and listless, wondering
whether to stay in or go out. I finally stayed where I
was, brooding: Yes, paper does have more patience,
and since I’m not planning to let anyone else read
this stiff-backed notebook grandly referred to as a
‘diary’, unless I should ever find a real friend, it
probably won’t make a bit of difference.
Now I’m back to the point that prompted me
to keep a diary in the first place: I don’t have a
friend.
Let me put it more clearly, since no one will
believe that a thirteen-year-old girl is completely
alone in the world. And I’m not. I have loving parents
and a sixteen-year-old sister, and there are about
thirty people I can call friends. I have a family,
loving aunts and a good home. No, on the surface I
seem to have everything, except my one true friend.
All I think about when I’m with friends is having a
good time. I can’t bring myself to talk about anything
but ordinary everyday things. We don’t seem to be
able to get any closer, and that’s the problem. Maybe
it’s my fault that we don’t confide in each other. In
any case, that’s just how things are, and
unfortunately they’re not liable to change. This is
why I’ve started the diary.
To enhance the image of this long-awaited friend
in my imagination, I don’t want to jot down the
facts in this diary the way most people would do,
but I want the diary to be my friend, and I’m going
to call this friend ‘Kitty’.
listless
with no  energy or
interest
confide
to tell personal
things privately to a
person that one
trusts
Reprint 2024-25
51
From the Diary of Anne Frank
Oral Comprehension Check
1. What makes writing in a diary a strange experience for Anne Frank?
2. Why does Anne want to keep a diary?
3. Why did Anne think she could confide more in her diary than in people?
Since no one would understand a word of my
stories to Kitty if I were to plunge right in, I’d better
provide a brief sketch of my life, much as I dislike
doing so.
My father, the most adorable father I’ve ever seen,
didn’t marry my mother until he was thirty-six and
she was twenty-five. My sister, Margot, was born
in Frankfurt in Germany in 1926. I was born on 12
June 1929. I lived in Frankfurt until I was four. My
father emigrated to Holland in 1933. My mother,
Edith Hollander Frank, went with him to Holland
in September, while Margot and I were sent to
Aachen to stay with our grandmother. Margot went
to Holland in December, and I followed in February,
when I was plunked down on the table as a birthday
present for Margot.
I started right away at the Montessori nursery
school. I stayed there until I was six, at which time
I started in the first form. In the sixth form my
teacher was Mrs Kuperus, the headmistress. At the
end of the year we were both in tears as we said a
heartbreaking farewell.
In the summer of 1941 Grandma fell ill and had
to have an operation, so my birthday passed with
little celebration.
Grandma died in January 1942. No one knows
how often I think of her and still love her. This
birthday celebration in 1942 was intended to make
up for the other, and Grandma’s candle was lit along
with the rest.
The four of us are still doing well, and that brings
me to the present date of 20 June 1942, and the
solemn dedication of my diary.
Oral Comprehension Check
1. Why does Anne provide a brief sketch of her life?
2. What tells you that Anne loved her grandmother?
plunked down (an
informal word)
put down in a casual
way
Reprint 2024-25
Page 5


BEFORE YOU READ
Anneliese Marie ‘Anne’ Frank (12
June 1929 – February/March
1945) was a German – born
Jewish girl who wrote while in
hiding with her family and four
friends in Amsterdam during the
German occupation of the
Netherlands in World War II. Her
family had moved to Amsterdam
after the Nazis gained power in
Germany but were trapped when
the Nazi occupation extended into
the Netherlands. As persecutions
against the Jewish population
increased, the family went into
hiding in July 1942 in hidden rooms in her father Otto Frank’s
office building. After two years in hiding, the group was betrayed
and transported to the concentration camp system where Anne died
of typhus in Bergen-Belsen within days of her sister , Margot Frank.
Her father , Otto, the only survivor of the group, returned to Amsterdam
after the war ended, to find that her diary had been saved. Convinced
that it was a unique record, he took action to have it published in
English under the name The Diary of a Young Girl.
The diary was given to Anne Frank for her thirteenth birthday
and chronicles the events of her life from 12 June 1942 until its
final entry of 1 August 1944. It was eventually translated from its
original Dutch into many languages and became one of the world’s
most widely read books. There have also been several films,
television and theatrical productions, and even an opera, based on
the diary. Described as the work of a mature and insightful mind,
the diary provides an intimate examination of daily life under Nazi
occupation. Anne Frank has become one of the most renowned and
discussed of the Holocaust victims.
“This is a photo as I would wish
myself to look all the time. Then
I would, maybe, have a chance
to come to Hollywood.”
– Anne Frank, 10 October 1942
Reprint 2024-25
2. Here are some entries from personal records. Use the definitions
above to decide which of the entries might be from a diary, a
journal, a log or a memoir .
(i) I woke up very late today and promptly got a scolding from
Mum! I can’t help it — how can I miss the FIFA World Cup
matches?
Ans: 
(ii) 10:30 a.m. Went to the office of the Director
01:00 p.m. Had lunch with Chairman
05:45 p.m. Received Rahul at the airport
09:30 p.m. Dinner at home
Ans: 
(iii) The ride to Ooty was uneventful. W e rested for a while every
50 km or so, and used the time to capture the magnificent
landscape with my HandyCam. From Ooty we went on to
Bangalore.
What a contrast! The noise and pollution of this once-beautiful
city really broke my heart.
Ans: 
(iv) This is how Raj Kapoor found me — all wet and ragged
outside R.K.Studios. He was then looking for just someone
like this for a small role in Mera Naam Joker, and he cast
me on the spot. The rest, as they say, is history!
Ans: 
49
From the Diary of Anne Frank
Activity
1. Do you keep a diary? Given below under ‘A’ are some terms we
use to describe a written record of personal experience. Can
you match them with their descriptions under ‘B’? (You may
look up the terms in a dictionary if you wish.)
B
– A book with a separate space or page for each
day, in which you write down your thoughts
and feelings or what has happened on that day
– A full record of a journey, a period of time, or
an event, written every day
– A record of a person’s own life and experiences
(usually, a famous person)
– A written record of events with times and
dates, usually official
A
(i) Journal
(ii) Diary
(iii) Log
(iv) Memoir(s)
Reprint 2024-25
50
First Flight
WRITING in a diary is a really strange experience for
someone like me. Not only because I’ve never written
anything before, but also because it seems to me
that later on neither I nor anyone else will be
interested in the musings of a thirteen-year-old
schoolgirl. Oh well, it doesn’t matter. I feel like
writing, and I have an even greater need to get all
kinds of things off my chest.
‘Paper has more patience than people.’ I thought
of this saying on one of those days when I was feeling
a little depressed and was sitting at home with my
chin in my hands, bored and listless, wondering
whether to stay in or go out. I finally stayed where I
was, brooding: Yes, paper does have more patience,
and since I’m not planning to let anyone else read
this stiff-backed notebook grandly referred to as a
‘diary’, unless I should ever find a real friend, it
probably won’t make a bit of difference.
Now I’m back to the point that prompted me
to keep a diary in the first place: I don’t have a
friend.
Let me put it more clearly, since no one will
believe that a thirteen-year-old girl is completely
alone in the world. And I’m not. I have loving parents
and a sixteen-year-old sister, and there are about
thirty people I can call friends. I have a family,
loving aunts and a good home. No, on the surface I
seem to have everything, except my one true friend.
All I think about when I’m with friends is having a
good time. I can’t bring myself to talk about anything
but ordinary everyday things. We don’t seem to be
able to get any closer, and that’s the problem. Maybe
it’s my fault that we don’t confide in each other. In
any case, that’s just how things are, and
unfortunately they’re not liable to change. This is
why I’ve started the diary.
To enhance the image of this long-awaited friend
in my imagination, I don’t want to jot down the
facts in this diary the way most people would do,
but I want the diary to be my friend, and I’m going
to call this friend ‘Kitty’.
listless
with no  energy or
interest
confide
to tell personal
things privately to a
person that one
trusts
Reprint 2024-25
51
From the Diary of Anne Frank
Oral Comprehension Check
1. What makes writing in a diary a strange experience for Anne Frank?
2. Why does Anne want to keep a diary?
3. Why did Anne think she could confide more in her diary than in people?
Since no one would understand a word of my
stories to Kitty if I were to plunge right in, I’d better
provide a brief sketch of my life, much as I dislike
doing so.
My father, the most adorable father I’ve ever seen,
didn’t marry my mother until he was thirty-six and
she was twenty-five. My sister, Margot, was born
in Frankfurt in Germany in 1926. I was born on 12
June 1929. I lived in Frankfurt until I was four. My
father emigrated to Holland in 1933. My mother,
Edith Hollander Frank, went with him to Holland
in September, while Margot and I were sent to
Aachen to stay with our grandmother. Margot went
to Holland in December, and I followed in February,
when I was plunked down on the table as a birthday
present for Margot.
I started right away at the Montessori nursery
school. I stayed there until I was six, at which time
I started in the first form. In the sixth form my
teacher was Mrs Kuperus, the headmistress. At the
end of the year we were both in tears as we said a
heartbreaking farewell.
In the summer of 1941 Grandma fell ill and had
to have an operation, so my birthday passed with
little celebration.
Grandma died in January 1942. No one knows
how often I think of her and still love her. This
birthday celebration in 1942 was intended to make
up for the other, and Grandma’s candle was lit along
with the rest.
The four of us are still doing well, and that brings
me to the present date of 20 June 1942, and the
solemn dedication of my diary.
Oral Comprehension Check
1. Why does Anne provide a brief sketch of her life?
2. What tells you that Anne loved her grandmother?
plunked down (an
informal word)
put down in a casual
way
Reprint 2024-25
52
First Flight
Saturday, 20 June 1942
Dearest Kitty,
Our entire class is quaking in its boots. The
reason, of course, is the forthcoming meeting in
which the teachers decide who’ll move up to the
next form and who’ll be kept back. Half the class is
making bets. G.N. and I laugh ourselves silly at the
two boys behind us, C.N. and Jacques, who have
staked their entire holiday savings on their bet.
From morning to night, it’s “You’re going to pass”,
“No, I’m not”, “Yes, you are”, “No, I’m not”. Even G.’s
pleading glances and my angry outbursts can’t calm
them down. If you ask me, there are so many
dummies that about a quarter of the class should
be kept back, but teachers are the most
unpredictable creatures on earth.
I’m not so worried about my girlfriends and
myself. We’ll make it. The only subject I’m not sure
about is maths. Anyway, all we can do is wait. Until
then, we keep telling each other not to lose heart.
I get along pretty well with all my teachers. There
are nine of them, seven men and two women. Mr
Keesing, the old fogey who teaches maths, was
annoyed with me for ages because I talked so much.
After several warnings, he assigned me extra
homework. An essay on the subject, ‘A Chatterbox’.
A chatterbox — what can you write about that? I’d
worry about that later, I decided. I jotted down the
title in my notebook, tucked it in my bag and tried
to keep quiet.
That evening, after I’d finished the rest of my
homework, the note about the essay caught my eye.
I began thinking about the subject while chewing
the tip of my fountain pen. Anyone could ramble on
and leave big spaces between the words, but the
trick was to come up with convincing arguments to
prove the necessity of talking. I thought and
thought, and suddenly I had an idea. I wrote the
three pages Mr Keesing had assigned me and was
satisfied. I argued that talking is a student’s trait
and that I would do my best to keep it under control,
old fogey
an old-fashioned
person
ramble on
talk or write
aimlessly for long
convincing
argument
a statement made in
such a manner that
people believe it
quaking in its boots
shaking with fear
and nervousness
Reprint 2024-25