Class 9 English: Sample Question Paper- 8 (With Solutions) PDF Download

(Section - A)

Q.1. Read the passage given below carefully and answer the questions that follow.
1. Chocolate diamonds are actually brown diamonds and, compared to the well-known white diamond, they aren't worth much. Diamonds are produced in mines. The best known diamond mines are in Australia, South Africa and Russia. The largest diamond mine was discovered in 1976 in the desert of Australia near a little creek named lake Argyle. Diamonds are created under very extreme conditions of pressure and high temperature. It is a general misunderstanding that there exists only white colourless diamonds. Actually, diamonds exist in many different colours.
2. In all the diamond mines of the world, almost 80% of all diamonds produced are brownish in colour. Because they were found in such large quantities compared to the other coloured diamonds, they were considered as low-value diamonds, only good for the industrial sector. But a famous man called Le Vian came with a marketing campaign to increase the popularity of the chocolate diamond. Instead of calling it brown diamond, he gave it popular name like caramel, chocolate, cinnamon and cognac. Since his marketing campaign, chocolate diamonds are becoming very popular.
3. The value of a diamond is based on its shape, brightness and colour. Because white diamonds are rare, their value is based on the fact that there are not many white diamonds around. But if you look at the shape and brightness, then the brightest diamond in this world known to man are brown diamonds. Before the development of the Argyle diamond mine in Australia in 1986, most brown diamonds were considered worthless for jewellery; they were even not assessed on the diamond colour scale, and were predominantly used for industrial purposes. However, marketing strategies changed in the 1980s and brown diamonds became popular gems. The change was mostly due to supply of the Argyle mine, with its 35 million carats (7,000 kg) of diamonds per year, makes about one-third of global production of natural diamonds; 80% of Argyle diamonds are brown. The percentage of brown diamonds is lower in other mines, but it is almost always a significant part of the total production.      (339 words)
Answer the following questions on the basis of the passage you have read.  
(i) When marketing strategies changed in the 1980s, brown diamonds............
(a) became popular gems
(b) unpopular
(c) white diamonds
(d) chocolate diamonds
Ans. (i) (a) Became popular gems
(ii) Where was the largest diamond mine discovered?
(a) In the desert of Australia
(b) In Russia
(c) South Africa
(d) None of these
Ans. (ii) (a) In the desert of Australia
(iii) What is the correct order of the information given below?
I. Le Vian called Brown diamonds as chocolate diamond.
II. Development of Argyle mine in 1986,
III. Brown diamonds were considered worthless for jewellery before the 1980's,
IV They became popular with the Argyle mine producing 7000 kg of diamonds per year.
(a) III, II, I, IV
(b) III, I, II, IV
(c) II, III, I, IV
(d) IV, II, III, I
Ans. (iii) (a) III, II, I, IV
(iv) Under what conditions are diamonds created?
(a) High pressure and high temperature
(b) Low temperature and moderate pressure
(c) High pressure and low temperature
(d) Low pressure and low temperature
Ans. (iv) (a) High pressure and high temperature
(v) The value of a diamond is based on
I. colour 
II. brightness
III. size 
IV. quantity
(a) I and III
(b) I and II
(c) III and IV
(d) II and IV
Ans. (v) (b) I and II
(vi) Argyle diamond mine in Australia was developed in the year.
(a) 1896
(b) 1986
(c) 1972
(d) 1980
Ans. (vi) (b)
(vii) ..........in 'para 3' means the same as 'strategies'.
Ans. (vii) Techniques
(viii) Only white colourless diamonds exist in the world. (True/False)
Ans. (viii) The statement is false. As stated in the passage there are diamonds in many different colours.

Q.2. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow :
1. Manufactured goods worth crores of rupees are being imported every year. There is a dearth of food. Our industries are yet in infancy. We need engineers to man them. We need mechanized farming to increase the output of corn. All this is only possible if we give a technical turn to our education and if skilled labour is made available. At present there are very few technical institutions in the country. And the reason is not far to seek. Most of our young men have a sort of prejudice against all types of manual labour. They prefer a job in some office to doing work with their hands. They think that manual labour is degrading. Unemployment, therefore, stares them in the face. The jobs of clerks in offices too, are limited.
2. Education in arts or crafts will serve a very useful purpose. It will help our youth to make an independent living. They can set up their own little workshops. This type of education will also solve the unemployment problem to some extent. We must, however, guard against one thing. Technical education in order to be of real use should be based on a good literary education at least up to matriculation standard. It has been seen that an educated craftsman has better chances of success in life than an illiterate one.
3. India is rich in mineral resources but most of them have not been tapped. The government is keen to utilise this wealth. More and more technical institutions are, therefore, being opened. A large number of technical hands are pouring out of our universities every year. It is a happy sign of the times but, unfortunately our industries have not been able to absorb this ever-increasing number of technical hands. Already the number of unemployed technical hands has gone up. It is feared that if some quick measures are not taken to develop our industries, the government will be forced to restrict admission to technical colleges.
4. The work of technical training should go hand in hand with the development of industries. In this alone lies the real solution of the problem. The government too is alive to this. It is hoped that more factories will be opened in the near future. It will be a criminal waste of country's intelligence if our young engineers are forced to migrate to foreign countries only because the country cannot provide them with proper means of living.
A. Answer the follow in g questions :
(a) What is the cause of unemployment in India ?
(b) How can education in art and craft help our youth to make an independent living ?
(c) How can technical education be of real use ?
(d) How can our government stop the migration of country's intelligence to foreign countries ?
Ans. (a) Young educated men think that manual labour is degrading. They prefer office jobs but, jobs in offices are limited.
(b) Education in art and craft will enable our youth to set up their own workshop, which will solve the problem of unemployment.
(c) Technical education can be of real use if it is based on a good literary education at least upto matriculation standard.
(d) Our government can stop the migration of the country's intelligence to foreign countries by providing employment to the engineers opening more and more factories.
B. Choose the correct alternative :
(a) Which word in Para 2 means the same as 'precaution' ?
(i) guard
(ii) illiterate
(iii) extent
(iv) standard
Ans. (i) guard
(b) Find the antonym of the word 'plenty' in Para 1. 
(i) degrading 
(ii) dearth 
(iii) limited 
(iv) None of the above
Ans. (ii) dearth
(c) Find the antonym of the word 'undeveloped' in Para 3.
(i) keen
(ii) developed
(iii) restrict
(iv) tapped
Ans. (iv) tapped
(d) Which word in Para 3 means the same as 'limited' ?
(i) restrict
(ii) absorb
(iii) utilise
(iv) None of the above
Ans. (i) restrict

(Section - B)

Q.3. You are Ritika/Ritvik of Class IX-B. You went to attend the birthday party of your friend Mohit at his home. The party was well organised and arrangements were superb. Look at the clues and write your impression of the party in the form of a diary entry in 100-150 words.

Ans.
Sunday, 17th O ctober, 20XX
10:50 pm
Dear Diary
What a grand celebration it was! How we all enjoyed Mohit’s birthday today! When I went to his house, music was playing in the party hall. Mohit and his parents were extremely happy to see me! Many of our common friends had already arrived. How happy everyone appeared!
What a dazzling out fit Mohit was wearing! Mohit’s father bought him a lovely cake which had his childhood picture. One of my friends and I splashed cake on Mohit’s face and had a joyful day.
We all wished Mohit ‘Happy birthday’. The stage was then set for dancing. Everyone present swayed to the magic of music and all of us danced with Mohit. After this, we all enjoyed a good feast. I can never for get this great day! It was one of the most thrilling days in my life time!
Ritvik
Or
Write a descriptive paragraph in 100-150 words based on the visual clue given below.

Ans. Albert Einstein is considered to be one of the greatest scientists and geniuses of all time. He was born in Germany in 1879, to a Jewish family. His father was an engineer and a salesman. Einstein wasn’t a very bright student. He even had problems with his speech. He was the one who discovered the scientific formula 'E = me²' which stands for energy and mass. He won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1921 for his work in Physics. He played an important role in the making of the Atomic Bomb that helped to put an end to World War II, Albert Einstein died of internal bleeding on 17th April, 1955, aged 76, which was marked with headlines around the world. But his story did not end there-his brain was removed by the pathologist to try to understand what made him so intelligent.

Q.4. The teacher asked the students to write a story for the school magazine. Anamika could not complete the story. Help her complete the story on the basis of the beginning of the story: 
I was lost in my thoughts while sitting in a train compartment. I was going to Shimla. Then an old woman got in. The old woman was very sad and was very weak. She was not able to walk properly. I started reading a magazine then suddenly I saw............
OR
Develop a story in about 150-200 words with the help of the following hints:
A foolish crow-found a piece of bread - a clever fox-felt greedy - praise the, crow - beautiful body - sweet voice - opened mouth - piece of bread fell down.
Ans.

A Jovial Traveller

The old woman w a s very sad and was very weak. She was not able to walk properly. I started reading a magazine then suddenly I saw that the old woman had fallen in the aisle and nobody seemed to pay any attention. I quickly asked a couple of people around to help her get on her feet and placed her on the berth. Someone gave her a glass of water. I checked her for any injuries. Luckily there were none. The heat and the exertion of travelling made her feel weak and so she fell down. Soon everybody settled down. Once the old lady was relaxed and settled down,, we gave her some biscuits to eat which boosted her up. She told us so many jokes and stories which left us spellbound. She proved to be a great entertainer. We never came to know when we reached our destination. Time just flew by. At Shimla station,, her son had come to pick her up and was surprised to see her being escorted by so many strangers. Both mother and son thanked all of us profusely.
OR

A Foolish Crow

One day a foolish crow who was very hungry was flying in search of food; While flying over a house, he saw a piece of bread on the verandah of the house. He immediately flew down to pick it up. He quickly grabbed it and flew away to a tree in the nearby village. A clever fox, who was also hungry saw the piece of bread in the beak of the crow. He felt greedy. He also wanted that bread and started planning as to how he could get it from the crow. He quickly devised a plan to take the bread from him. He started praising the crow's beautiful body and mellifluous voice. He said that no other bird had such a beautiful body as the crow and no one could sing as sweetly as the crow. The clever fox said that since the crow could sing so melodiously why not start singing so that the fox could hear it. The crow who was unaware of the fox's clever plans, was so overjoyed by listening to the fox's false praise that it started singing without thinking, he opened his mouth to sing and the piece of bread fell down straight into the mouth of the fox who ran away with it.
Moral : Don't get carried away by flattery.

Q.5. Below is a letter from Amart to his mother. Complete this letter with suitable words :
Dear Mom 
I hope all is well (a) ___ '____________ you. Everything is fine here. I am sorry I didn’t w rite earlier as I was busy with my examinations. They are now almost over. I am sure you will be glad to (b) _______________ that I have filled up the form for NDA. The entrance test is scheduled  (c)_______________the 14th of June and that very day I am going to the centre which is close to my hostel. Looking forward  (d) _______________ a reply from you soon.
Ans. 
(a) with
(b) know/learn
(c) on
(d) to

Q.6. The following passage has not been edited. There is an error in each line. Write the error as well as the corrections as shown in example.

Ans. 


Q.7. Rearrange the following words or phrases into meaningful sentences:
e.g. , : bravery/greatness/on one's/depends.
Greatness depends on one's bravery.
(a) is a / whoever / great soul / is / man / brave, / of
(b) end of / is to / the / life / true / never / know / ends / that / life.
(c) the fear itself / the / we / to fear / only / have / thing / is
(d) is/ stress /majorly / our/ lives/ affecting.
Ans. (a) Whoever is brave, is a man of great soul.
(b) The true end of life is to know that life never ends.
(c) The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.
(d) Stress is majorly affecting our lives.

(Section - C)

Q.8. Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow.
Said the Duck, "As I sat on the rocks, 
I have thought over that completely, 
And I bought four pairs of worsted socks 
Which fit my web-feet neatly.
(i) What was ‘that' mentioned by the duck which it thought about while it sa~t on the rock? 
(ii) Why did the duck buy these socks? 
(iii) Whose feet do the 'webbed feet' refer to? 
(iv) What were they both going to do?
Ans. (i) The duck, while sitting on the rock, thought about how to solve the problem of the Kangaroo getting cold by her wet and cold feet.
(ii) The duck bought these socks to protect the Kangaroo from getting cold.
(iii) The ‘webbed feet’ refer to the Duck’s feet.
(iv) They both were going together to go around the world three times with the Duck sitting at the end of the Kangaroo’s tail.
Or
While Einstein was solving the most difficult problems in physics, his private life was unravelling. Albert had wanted to marry Mileva right after finishing his studies, but his mother was against it. She thought Mileva,who was three years older than her son, was too old for him. She was also bothered by Mileva 's intelligence. “ She is a book like you ” , his mother said. Einstein put the wedding off.
(i) Why did Einstein’s mother oppose his marriage with Mileva?
(ii) Why did Einstein put the wedding off?
(iii) Did Einstein and Mileva ultimately marry?
(iv) What does 'She is a book like you' mean?
Ans. (i) Einstein’s mother opposed the marriage because Mileva was three years older than him and also very intelligent.
(ii) Einstein put off the wedding because his mother was against his marriage with Mileva.
(iii) Ultimately Einstein and Mileva got married. But their married life was not happy and they divorced after a few years.
(iv) It means that she is also studious and intelligent like Einstein.

Q.9. Answer the following questions in about 30-40 words each :
(a) What differences do you find in present school and the school described in the lesson 'The Fun They Had'?
(b) Why did Kezia's grandmother send her to the drawing room every Sunday afternoon?
(c) Why will the choice between two roads that seem very much alike make such a big difference many years later in the life of the poet ?
(d) How did Sue react when she learnt about Johnsy's belief regarding the falling leaves of the ivy creeper ?
(e) A month later, I was at my house watching them rebuild it. But this time it was different/ How was it different?
Ans. (a) In present day schools, students study together in a separate building and teachers are human beings whereas, in the mentioned lesson, the school was at home and the teacher was mechanical.
(b) Kezia's grandmother knew that she was afraid of her father and she felt that if she spoke to him more often, she would get rid of that fear. So, every Sunday afternoon she used to send her to the drawing room to have a nice talk with her father.
(c) A choice between the two roads that seemed very much alike made a big difference many years later in the poet's life'. Since this particular decision, this path opened up many different opportunities for him in future. The decision that he now makes will influence him and his life and his rest of the decisions, no matter the two roads are same, they still have varied options in them.
(d) Value points: Called it mere nonsense; falling of leaves quite natural in autumn; nothing to do with Johnsy's getting well.
(e) Value points:
• author wasn't alone
• two new friends
• now he focused on feelings of positivity, security
• wanted to be friendly with people around

Q.10. Answer one of the following questions in 100-1 50 words : 
Is the narrative ‘The Accidental Tourist, an exaggeration or a true narration of the writer’s plight while travelling by plane ?
Or
Why is Einstein remembered as a world citizen ?
Ans. The writer has simply used exaggeration as a "technique to add humour to his narrative. One can be clumsy, but cannot be so clumsy as to repeat the same mistake again and again. Either the writer suffers from dementia or severe attacks of amnesia to forget lavatories in the cinema or the number of his room in a hotel, repeatedly. His narration of the things contained in his bag and falling over an area about the size of a tennis court is also an exaggeration. Dropping a soft drink not once but twice on the same lady passenger is also unlikely. When on flight alone, his sitting quietly, not eating, drinking, or leaning to tie his shoelaces, never putting a pen anywhere near his mouth, sitting on his hands, keeping them from flying unexpectedly, throughout the journey, is entirely impossible. Thus, it may be a true narration to some extent but definitely exaggerated to add humour.
Or
Einstein was a great scientific genius. His contribution to science as well as for establishing peace and democracy in the world cannot be undermined. Einstein knew about the immense destructive capacity of an atomic bomb and could visualise its after effects especially by power hungry Nazis. When he learnt about the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin he wrote a letter to the American President to warn him about its dangers but instead of heeding to his concern, the Americans developed an atom bomb and used it against Japan. The extent of destruction it caused, shocked Einstein. He then made it his mission to strive for peace. He entered into politics and tried to use his popularity to end the race of arms buildup amongst different countries. He also wrote to the United Nations, proposing the concept of a World Government. He tried everything possible to maintain peace, harmony and democracy in the world and so he is remembered as a World Citizen’.

Q.11. Answer any one of the following questions in 100-150 words.
How did Olga save Lushkoff? What does one learn when he/she is being treated sympathetically?
Or
Grandfather is an animal lover. Whenever he comes across any attractive animal, he buys it at any cost. Do you think, it is advisable to keep a monkey like Toto as one of the pets in the house? Why or why not?
Ans. After two years, when Sergei met Lushkoff, he told Sergei that Olga had saved him. She had scolded and abused him. She would also look into his face and weep. Then she would chop the wood for him. She had changed his heart. The change was all due to her words and noble deeds. She used to do all his work and criticised him severely. She also cried looking at his miserable condition. Seeing all this, the beggar, Lushkoff mended his ways and stopped drinking. Through this way Olga had saved the life of Lushkoff.
I feel that if a liar or a criminal is treated sympathetically, it will definitely bring a change of heart in the person, as Olga’s noble deeds brought about a change in Lushkoff’s heart. Her motherly love, harsh words and kind deeds made him a good man.
Or
As described in the chapter The Adventures of Toto’, the grandfather had a feeling of love for animals. He had his private zoo where he kept a variety of pets including rabbit, squirrel, tortoise, goat, donkey and a monkey named Toto. Out of all, Toto was a nuisance in the house. He sometimes tore curtains, clothes, scratched wallpaper and even broke dishes by throwing them. He always tried to create problems for other animals. Though it is good to show your love for animals yet to have a pet like Toto is not advisable. Such an animal may harm the children or even eiders of the family and may break some precious and costly items around him.
Moreover, animals remain happy in their natural surroundings and to keep them captive is inhumane. We must not keep or catch them for our selfish motives. It is thus, suggested to keep animals in their natural habitat and not confine them as pets for our emotional needs.