Ques 1: Read the given passage carefully.
It is a sunny August afternoon outside, but conveyer belt number 3 in the arrival lounge of the domestic terminal of New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport is full of army men in uniform. It is on this belt that the luggage from a special Indian Airlines flight for the armed forces from Srinagar is scheduled to arrive.
A motley crew of army men waits for the belt to move, as other passengers pass them by, without a second glance. Adity Varma, 27, cannot help saying, ''We don't have that respect and admiration for our army anymore. India remembers her soldiers only during war,'' he says.
Though passionate about the forces, he knew when he was 16 that he would not wear the uniform.
'It's not the same army any more, everything has changed,' he says. Army families across the country share Varms's sentiment. Disillusionment, disappointment, resentment, bittersweet nostalgia, a fierce sense of pride and possessiveness, they today battle many contrasting emotions when it comes to the organization that was their universe.
From senior officers getting caught in corruption and scandals to children growing up without their fathers, with every controversy, a bit more of the army's halo is chipped away. It is a battle between an organisation holding onto its values and traditions and a world where the only value is change. And the army is losing on every front.
Choose the most appropriate options from those given below.
(a) The other passengers passed them by without giving a second glance because .............
(i) we do not have respect and admiration for our army anymore.
(ii) we remember the army only during wars.
(iii) with every scandal the army's halo is chipped away
(iv) All of the above
(b) At the age of only 16 Aditya Varma had decided.........
(i) that he would join the army.
(ii) he would marry before joining the army.
(iii) that he would never join the army.
(iv) he would join the army very soon.
(c) In the passage the word 'motley' means..........
(i) dull.
(ii) scruffy.
(iii) diversified in colour
(iv) unkempt.
(d) The organisation was their universe because
(i) earlier a lot of facilities were provided.
(ii) army means everything to them.
(iii) it was easy to get into the army
(iv) they had an easy life and good salary
(e) The army is losing its importance on every front because of..........
(i) the corruption prevailing in the army.
(ii) lack of commitment.
(iii) no ethics and values left.
(iv) All of the above
Ans: (a) (iv) of the above
(b) (iii) that he would never join the army.
(c) (iii) diversified in colour.
(d) (ii) army means everything to them.
(e) (iv) All of the above,
Ques 2: Read the given passage carefully.
Agatha Christie was probably the most successful writer in history. She wrote 78 crime novels, six other novels, 150 short stories, four non-fiction books and 19 plays. That represents two billion books sold, more than William Shakespeare! Christie became a writer by accident.
She was bored when her husband was away in the First World War. Agatha was working in a hospital dispensary (which is where she learned all the information about poisons that she used in her books).
She decided to write a novel to pass the time. She chose a detective novel because she loved reading them. Her first novel, the Mysterious Affair at Styles, was an instant success.
Each book had a new ingenious plot. Readers loved the books, particularly because Christie always gave the readers all the information they needed to find the solution. Christie loved travelling.
When she became rich she could go all over the world. She used the travels in her writing. Agatha Christie died in 1976, but her stories are still immensely popular. Many have been adapted for film or television.
Choose the most appropriate options from those given below.
(a) Christie was a ..........
(i) famous singer.
(ii) famous writer.
(iii) famous dancer.
(iv) famous actress.
(b) She knew a lot of things about poisons because ..........
(i) her father was a doctor.
(ii) she was ill.
(iii) her husband was a doctor in First World War.
(iv) None of the above
(c) The title of her first book was...........
(i) The Mysterious Affair at Styles.'
(ii) 'War.'
(iii) The Mysterious Prison.'
(iv) The Body in the Library.'
(d) The readers like her novels because ..........
(i) they could find who was guilty.
(ii) her books contained great love stories.
(iii) the story was easy to understand.
(iv) her stories were full of action.
(e) When she became rich she ..........
(i) travelled a lot.
(ii) ate a lot.
(iii) drank a lot.
(iv) spent a lot.
Ans: (a) (ii) famous writer.
(b) (iv) None of the above
(c) (i) The Mysterious Affair at Styles'.
(d) (i) they could find who was guilty
(e) (i) travelled a lot.
Ques 3: Read the given passage carefully,
'Mum!' I shouted. Are you okay?' I saw her little tent shuddering in the gale and listened closely for her response. Her voice was almost casual: 'Oh, yes, I'm fine.' That's my mother. It was the first night of our cycling trip through the interior of Iceland?a region so remote and inhospitable that for centuries, according to legend, it was abandoned.
The weather was decidedly hurricane-like, but Mum wasn't concerned. Months ago, I told her about my plan to pedal across Iceland. 'It will be really difficult,' I said. "The roads are unpaved and often washed out and the wind is blowing constantly sometimes so hard that it pushes you off the road." There was silence for a moment.
Then she asked, 'Can I come?' 'Sure,' I replied. "But like the rest of us, you have to train to do two 160 kilometres a day back-to-back," 'Wow,' she said, 'I could never do that.' I had more faith in my mother's physical abilities than she did. I'd seen her raise six children and put in long hours doing physical labour on our small farm. 'Sure you can,' I told her, 'Start tomorrow.
' What really concerned me was what I perceived to be her frustrating humility, I thought her too self-deprecating about her intellect just because she had not completed college.
I felt she underestimated her attractiveness just because she was not the type to wear make up or fancy clothes. As I had grown into adulthood, the life I'd chosen seemed light-years away from Mum's quiet existence, still caring for her children and her children's children.
Sometimes, on a visit home, I'd describe some recent trip I'd taken and her blue eyes would shine with interest. So, I couldn't help thinking this trek might revitalise Mum, who had started to slow down in her 50s. It might spice up what I saw as her humdrum life. And it might be a boost to her tentative and retiring persona.
Mum trained furiously, months in advance. As the trip roster was pared down to Mum, my good friend Alien and me, she stood as the most dedicated. Soon she was riding 80-100 Ion per day and was as strong a rider as Alien or I.
Complete the statements.
(a) The narrator describes roads across Iceland as .........
(b) The narrator had faith in his mother's physical abilities because .........
(c) In his adulthood the narrator realised that his life was ........
(d) The narrator and his friend were sure about Mum's preparation when .........
(e) The word in the passage which means the same as 'noticed/became aware of is ......
Ans: (a) unpaved and washed out.
(b) he had seen her raise six children put in long hours doing physical labour on their small farm.
(c) far away from his mother's quiet existence.
(d) she was riding 80-100 km per day and was as strong a rider as them.
(e) perceived.
Ques 4: Read the given, poem carefully.
Be the Best of Whatever You Are If you can't be a pine on the top of the hill, We can't all be captains, we've got to be crew, Be a scrub in the valley, but be There's something for all of us here, The best little scrub by the side of the rill; There's big work to do and there's lesser to Be a bush if you can't be a tree. do, And the task you must do is the near.
If you can't be a bush be a bit of the grass, And some highway happier make; If you can't be a highway then just be a trail, If you can't be a muskie then just be a bass? If you can't be the sun be a star; Be the liveliest bass in the lake! It isn't by size that you win or fail- Be the best of whatever you are! Douglas Malloch
Complete the following statements.
(a) Being the best little scrub tree is as good as being a...............
(b) 'Be the liveliest bass in the lake!' Here bass means...........
(c) 'We can't all be captains, we 've got to be crew' means...........
(d) The message of the poem is................
(e) The tone of the poem is.....................
Ans: (a) bush.
(b) an edible fish.
(c) we should also be willing to serve.
(d) we must always be our best in whatever we do.
(e) inspirational.
Ques 5: You are Aman. Write an E-mail in about 120 words to your friend Rajat inviting him to lunch at Hotel Park Plaza.
Ans: To:
rajat729@rediffmail.com
sachin@gmail.com
kapil@gmail.com
Hi Rajat How have you been doing? I hope that things are great at your end. It was nice bumping into you last week. Butalas! We both didn't have enough time to catch up. It's my birthday the next week. I would like to invite you for lunch at 1:00 pm on 15th June at Hotel Park Plazaon the Grand Trunk Road. I believe that it is near your place. Aakash and Rohit will also come to join us at the lunch. They both are very excited to hear about you and are looking forward to get in touch with you. Please do join us. It would be like old times. The four of us sitting together and spending some leisure time. No excuses! You have to come!
Your dear friend
Aman
Ques 6: You are Sunil Verma. Based on your reading of the Unit 3, 'Science' together with your own ideas, write an article on the topic 'Science and Human Happiness'. You may consider the visual stimuli given below,
Ans: Science and Human Happiness By Sunil Verma Science has made rapid progress in the modem age. It has changed our ways of living and thinking. It has reduced space and time. There is no sphere of life where science has not influenced us. Science has given us electricity. It has made travelling very comfortable.
Telephones and mobiles are a source of convenience and ease. Radio and television are a source of recreation. They enhance our knowledge. Machines have saved us from unnecessary toil. They have saved our time and energy. Even agriculture has undergone a radical change.
Thus, it is clear that wonderful and effective inventions through science have made human life healthier and happier than before. Hence, Mr A K Smith has written "In the sky above on the Earth below and down to the depths of the ocean has gone the triumphant car of science."
Ques 7: Your new 'Bicycle has been Stolen' from the school cycle stand. Write a notice in not more than 80 words of the loss, giving necessary details. Promise a suitable reward for the finder. Say where you can be contacted.
Ans: ST JOHNS SCHOOL, LUDHIANA NOTICE 22nd July, 20XX Bicycle has been Stolen A 'Hero' black Atlas bicycle with carrier, electronic headlight and horn has been stolen from the school bicycle stand yesterday. Its token number is 275.
The bicycle can easily be recognised as it has the electronic items and foam graffition it. Anyone who has seen it or knows anything about it should please contact the undersigned in class IX-A during recess. Any relevant information deserves a treat from my side in the canteen. Naman R.No. 17 IX-A
Ques 8: Read the headlines and complete the report by filling in the blanks with grammatically appropriate structures,
(a) Countdown begins The countdown to Indian Idol-5 ______.
(b) 17 Names Announced India's foremost and the biggest singing based talent hunt show ______ its exceptional top 17 singing sensations.
(c) Hunt for 'Desh Ki Awaaz' One among them ______ as 'Desh Ki Awaaz'.
Ans: (a) has begun
(b) announced
(c) would be crowned
Ques 9: In the passage given below, one word has been omitted in each line. Write the missing word along with the word that comes before and the word that comes after it in your answer sheet.
Before Missing After
(a) Egyptian pyramids served tombs for kings ___ ____ ____
(b) and queens, but they also places of ongoing ___ ____ ____
(c) religious activity. After a ruler died, his her ___ ____ ____
(d) body carefully treated and wrapped to ___ ____ ____
(e) preserve it a mummy. According to ancient ___ ____ _____
(f) Egyptian belief, the pyramid, the mummy ___ _____ ____
(g) was placed, provided a place the monarch ___ ____ ____
(h) to pass after life. ___ ____ ____
Ans: Before Missing After
(a) served as tombs
(b) also had places
(c) his or her
(d) body was carefully
(e) it as a
(f) pyramid, where the
(g) place for the
(h) pass into after life
Ques 10: Read the following conversation between customer and shopkeeper and complete the paragraph. Customer Can I have a packet of biscuits?Shopkeeper Sorry, I have only chocolates,Customer When will biscuits be available? Shopkeeper I can give them to you tomorrow. The customer asked the shopkeeper
(a) ____ a packet of biscuits. The shopkeeper said that he only had chocolates. The customer wanted to know
(b)_______? The shopkeeper said that
(c)______.
Ans: (a) if he could have
(b) when biscuits would be available
(c) he could give them to him the following day
Ques 11: Read the given extract carefully and answer the questions that follow, Not marble, nor the gilded monuments of princes, shall outlive this powerful rhyme.
(a) Who has composed these lines?
(b) What does 'outlive' mean?
(c) Who are these lines addressed to?
Ans: (a) William Shakespeare.
(b) 'Outlive' means 'Survive'.
(c) These lines are addressed to the poet's friend.
Ques 12: Answer the following questions in about 30-40 words.
(a) Why didn't Luigi, the driver, approve of the two boys?
(b) Mrs Packletide was a good shot. Comment.
(c) What does the phrase, Terrible fish' symbolise in the poem, 'Mirror'?
(d) What does Mrs Jordan describe as 'a fatal mistake'?
What is the irony in the comment she makes on Mrs Slater's defense?
Ans: (a) The two boys' shabby appearance put the suspicious Luigi off. He felt much better fruit would be available in Verona. Hence, he asked the narrator and his friend not to buy strawberries from the two untidily dressed boys with tangled hair.
(b) Driven by envy, Mrs Packletide decided to hunt a tiger. This shows that she was bold and courageous. But she was not at all a seasoned hunter. Her aim went wrong because she killed the goat instead of the tiger.
(c) The woman has been turning to the mirror to admire her beauty. But now she is agitated because of her lost youth and she is unable to digest reality. She tries to run away from it. Now, that she has grown old, she feels like a terrible fish out of water.
(d) Mrs Jordan describes it as a fatal mistake of not calling another doctor when Dr Pringle was out. The irony in the comment to Mrs Slater reply is that she mentions that there are many cases of persons remaining alive even after they were thought to be dead and later on in the drama, grandfather actually becomes 'restored to life'.
Ques 13: 'For now the postmaster understood AU's heart and his very soul. After spending but a single night in suspense, anxiously waiting/or news of his daughter, his heart was brimming with sympathy/or the poor old man who had spent his nights in the same suspense/or the last five years.' At the end of the story, the postmaster accepts his fault and shows sympathy towards Alt. Imagine you are the postmaster.
You have just realised what the pain of being away from your loved ones is. You and Lakshmi Das have just placed Miriam's letter on All's grave. Write a letter to Miriam telling her about her father's love for her and how he died.
or
"In today's manipulative world, it does not work to have talent only, you also need to understand how to utilise it properly." Comment in the context of the poem, 'The Frog and the Nightingale'.
Ans: H. No 46 Bank Lane, Punjab 26th November, 20XX Dear Miriam I'm an unknown person to you and you will sureiy be astonished after receiving this letter from me. Let me disclose that I'm the postmaster of the village that is your native place. With great sorrow, I inform you that your father is no more.
He died a few days ago. He loved you very much. It was his daily routine to come to the post office in the early morning. He always had a hope of receiving your letter. But his luck did not help him. He died waiting for your letter.
You wrote him a letter, but it was very late. Lakshmi Das, the clerk and I have placed it on his grave to give peace to his departed soul. Now, I request you to come here and visit his grave so that he can get eternal peace. Yours sincerely, The Postmaster or It is apparent that the nightingale is full of the natural talent of singing.
All the creatures in the bog applause her songs, but the frog criticises her. However, she rightly assesses her song as having no divinity, but an element of originality, thus exhibiting her critical acumen. Though she is a talented singer, she does not know how to use her talent in a correct manner.
She is ridiculed,exploited and tortured by the heartless and cruel trainer, who asks her to puff out her lungs with passion to follow the latest fashion of the stage. Surely, the nightingale was too gullible to understand her own talent and falls into the cunning clutches of the sinister frog. Her sad end could have been avoided if she knew how to use her talent.
Ques 14: Why do you think Anne started writing a diary? (Diary of a Young Girl)
or
Benevolent aspects of nature thrilled Helen, but soon she learnt that nature can be ferocious also. Comment. (The Story of My Life)
Ans: Anne had just turned thirteen and she listed the birthday presents which she had received, including the diary,which she said was 'possibly the nicest of all.' When Anne first begins writing in her diary as a 13 years old girl, she feels that her friends and family all misunderstand her.
Thus, she first turns to the diary as a new friend and confidant, counting on the diary to be the sympathetic, non-judgmental ear she has been unable to find elsewhere. Once she goes into hiding in the annexed, Anne feels even more misunderstood.
She thinks her mother is cold and callous and feels that the other adults consider her a nuisance. The diary offers Anne much solace in the annexe because she is in need of companionship. Anne lovingly calls her diary 'Kitty'.
or
Helen recalls that she and Miss Sullivan took shelter under the cool and comforting shade of a tree. The weather was very humid and hot. With her teacher's assistance, Helen sat amidst the branches of a tree and enjoyed herself. Miss Sullivan went home to bring lunch and Helen was alone. Suddenly the weather changed.
She was filled with fear as the wind became stormy and the branches swayed vigorously and lashed about her. She clung to a branch with all her might to avoid a possible fall. All this was new and strange for her.
She learnt the lesson that under the softest touch hide treacherous claws. An imperceptible fear gripped her, but her inherent love for nature helped her to overcome that fear.
Ques 15: Throw some light on the character of Margot Frank. (Diary of a Young Girl)
or
Draw a pen-portrait of Dr Alexander Graham Bell. (The Story of My Life)
Ans: Margot is Anne Frank's elder sister. She is three years older than Anne and is very studious. She appears very obedient and compromising. She is humble and eager to please the adults; and thus she is a natural favorite with the elders in the hideout. From Anne's diary, we learn that Margot and she often clashed.
It seems that Margot was unable to provide any emotional support to Anne. She is also a poor eater and is often checked by Mrs van Daan about it, but Margot does not react to such remarks, which may be because that she wants to avoid any type of confrontation or she simple is too pleased with her own self that she doesn't want to change,
or
Dr Bell is known as a great scientist and kind-hearted person. He always helped Helen to climb the ladder of success. Helen dedicated her autobiography to Dr Bell.
She first met him when she was six years old and her parents brought her to him for advice on how to teach her. Dr Bell advised them to contact the Perkins Institute for the Blind.
He remained a friend of Helen and he accompanied her and Miss Sullivan on a trip to the World's Fair. He was deeply committed to the education of the hearing impaired. He founded the Volta Bureau for the deaf. He was a teacher of the deaf and this passion and his professional expertise made him develop and invent the telephone.
