Question Bank

Class:-12th Session:-2024-25
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 Index
SNO. NANE OF THE CHAPTER Page No.
Book Flamingo
1 The Last Lesson 1
2 Lost spring 6
3 Deep Water 10
4 The Rattrap 17
5 Indigo 25
6 Poets and Pancakes 32
7 The Interview 37
8 Going Places 42
Poetry Section
9 My Mother at Sixty-six 48
10 Keeping Quiet 53
11 A Thing Of Beauty 57
12 A Road Side Stand 65
13 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers 72
Book Vistas
14 The Third Level 76
15 The Tiger King 83
16 Journey to the End of the Earth 91
17 The Enemy 100
18 On the face of It 106
19 Memories of Childhood 113
English Core – Question Bank

THE LAST LESSON

READ THE GIVEN BELOW EXTRACT AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS CHOOSING THE
MOST SUITABLE ANSWER THAT THAT FOLLOWS

It was all much more tempting than the rule for participles, but I had the strength to resist, and hurried off to
school. When I passed the town hall there was a crowd in front of the bulletin-board. For the last two years
all our bad news had come from there — the lost battles, the draft, the orders of the commanding officer —
and I thought to myself, without stopping, “What can be the matter now?”
Then, as I hurried by as fast as I could go, the blacksmith, Wachter, who was there, with his
apprentice, reading the bulletin, called after me, “Don’t go so fast, bub; you’ll get to your school in plenty
of time!”
1. What is the name of the writer of the above unit?
a. Alphonse Daudet
b. Kamala Das
c. Jack Finney
d. William Shakespeare
2. What was the order of the commanding officer?
a. The people of Germany will start living in Alsace
b. M Hamel will leave France
c. German will be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorreine
d. The villages will compulsorily learn French
3. What is the tone of the blacksmith in calling after the narrator “Don’t go so fast, bub; you’ll get to your
school in plenty of time!”?
a. Funny
b. Sarcastic
c. Criticizing
d. Humiliating
4. Why was the narrator in a hurry while going to school?
a. Because he was late for school
b. Because the main gate will be closed if he is late
c. Because special event was going to be held today
d. Because it was the last lesson of M Hamel

A. Poor man! It was in honour of this last lesson that he had put on his fine Sunday clothes, and now I
understood why the old men of the village were sitting there in the back of the room. It was because they
were sorry, too, that they had not gone to school more. It was their way of thanking our master for his forty
years of faithful service and of showing their respect for the country that was theirs no more.
5. Why does the narrator refer to M. Hamel as ‘Poor man!’?
a) He empathizes with M. Hamel as he had to teach today.
b) He believes that M. Hamel’s “Sunday clothes” clearly reflected that he was not rich.
c) He feels sorry for M. Hamel as it was his last French lesson.
d) He thinks that M. Hamel’s patriotism and sense of duty resulted in his poverty.
6 Which of the following idioms might describe the villagers’ act of attending the last lesson most
accurately?
a) ‘Too good to miss’
b) ‘Too little, too late’
c) ‘Too many cooks spoil the broth’
d) ‘Too cool for school’
7. Choose the option that might raise a question about M. Hamel’s “faithful service”.

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English Core – Question Bank

a) When Franz came late, M. Hamel told him that he was about to begin class without him.
b) Franz mentioned how cranky M. Hamel was and his “great ruler rapping on the table”.
c) M. Hamel often sent students to water his flowers, and gave a holiday when he wanted to
go fishing.
d) M. Hamel permitted villagers to put their children “to work on a farm or at the mills” for
some extra money.
8. How did the villagers pay respect to M. Hamel’s 40 years service?
a) by paying him some money
b) by fighting for M. Hamel
c) by welcoming him with flowers
d) by attending the last lesson

What a thunderclap these words were to me!

Oh, the wretches; that was what they had put up at the town-hall! My last French lesson! Why, I hardly knew
how to write! I should never learn any more! I must stop there, then! Oh, how sorry I was for not learning
my lessons, for seeking birds’ eggs, or going sliding on the Saar! My books, that had seemed such a nuisance
a while ago, so heavy to carry, my grammar, and my history of the saints, were old friends now that I couldn’t
give up. And M. Hamel, too; the idea that he was going away, that I should never see him again, made me
forget all about his ruler and how cranky he was.
Poor man! It was in honor of this last lesson that he had put on his fine Sunday clothes…

9. Find out the word which does NOT mean the same as ‘Thunderclap’
a. Thwack
b. Smash
c. Whack
d. Throw
10. Find out the wrong sentence with reference to the above given passage
a. “Oh the wretches” could be an exclamation of pity or sympathy for people who are unfortunate or
unhappy
b. The Saar is a river in northeastern France and western Germany
c. M. Hamel was very poor still he was wearing new Sunday clothes
d. Franz was not very much interested in learning the French language
11. What among the following was not the thing done by Franz while he was attending the school?
a. Sliding
b. Seeking birds egg
c. Watering the plant
d. Studying French language
After the grammar, we had a lesson in writing. That day M. Hamel had new copies for us,written in a beautiful
round hand — France, Alsace, France, Alsace. They looked like little flags floating everywhere in the school-
room, hung from the rod at the top of our desks. You ought to have seen how every one set to work, and how
quiet it was! The only sound was the scratching of the pens over the paper. Once some beetles flew in; but
nobody paid any attention to them, not even the littlest ones, who worked right on tracing their fish-hooks,
as if that was French, too. On the roof the pigeons cooed very low, and I thought to myself, “Will they make
them sing in German, even the pigeons?”

12. What emotion does the line ‘...France, Alsace, France, Alsace. They looked like little flags floating
everywhere in the school-room…’ reflect ?
a. Patriotism and nostalgia
b. Love and hatred
c. Regret and anger
d. Sympathy and pity

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English Core – Question Bank

13. Franz thinks, ‘Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons? ‘What could this mean?
(a) he meant that they had grown up using French as their language. Now, taking it away from them
would be unfair and unkind. The language was as natural to them as cooing is to the pigeons. The
natural state of Alsace being a part of France will never change.

(b) It is difficult for people to accept a language which is imposed on them. French was their mother
tongue and they were comfortable using it as their own. It would not be easy to switch to a different
language.

(c) Adopting a new language causes pain and discomfort. It was not going to be easy for them to
adapt to the new situation—and adopt German that was forced on to them.

d) the pigeons can not learn a language so they will coo in French language only

14. “I was amazed to see how well I understood it.”

Select the option that does NOT explain why Franz found the grammar lesson “easy”.
a) Franz was paying careful attention in class this time.
b) M. Hamel was being extremely patient and calm in his teaching.
c) Franz was inspired and had found a new meaning and purpose to learning.
d) Franz had realized that French was the clearest and most logical language.
15.Franz was able to understand the grammar lesson easily because he was
a) receptive.
b) appreciative.
c) introspective.
d) competitive.
16. “I never saw him look so tall”. Which of the following best captures M. Hamel
on the last day of school?
a) cranky, miserable, dedicated, resigned
b) patient, dignified, emotional, courageous
c) calm, nostalgic, disappointed, patriotic
d) proud, reproachful, persistent, heroic
17. Franz saw a huge crowd assembled in front of the bulletin board, but did not
stop. How would you evaluate his reaction?
a) Franz was too little to care about the news of lost battles.
b) Nobody in Franz’s family was in the army, so it did not matter.
c) Bad news had become very normal, so he went about his task.
d) It was too crowded for Franz to find out what news was up on the board.
18. ‘The Prussian soldiers marching in Alsace’-how do you understand this?
a. It was their drilling time
b. War was about to begin
c. France was defeated in war and taken over by Germany
d. None of the above

19. The tendency of the people of Alsace highlighted in the unit “The Last Lesson’ is..
a. Procrastination
b. Arrogance
c. Cowardice
d. Tolerance
20. The last words of M Hamel, “VILE LA FRANCE” signify…
a. Orthodoxness
b. Patriotism

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English Core – Question Bank

c. Nostalgia
d. Indifference
21. Math the following
1. Alsace A. Germany, Poland and a part of Austria

2. M. Hamel B. Black Smith

3. Watcher C. A state on the French and German Border

4. Prussia D. A strict and cranky French Teacher

a. A-2, B-4, C-1, D-3

b. A-1, B-2, C-3, D-4
c. A-3, B-4, C-2, D-1
d. A-4, B-3, C-1, D-2
22. Find out the option which is NOT true with reference to M. Hamel
a. He loved fishing
b. He wore special cloths on inspection and prize distribution day
c. He was strict and cranky
d. He was a philanthropist
23. “Ah, that’s the great trouble with Alsace; she puts off learning till tomorrow.”
Which negative quality of the people of Alsace is being reflected here?
a. Frustration
b. Obnoxious
c. Procrastination
d. Linguistic Chauvinism
24. There was usually great bustle and noise when school began, but it was all very quiet.
Which of the following describes Franz’ emotions most accurately?
a) shock and indifference
b) disappointment and anxiety
c) confusion and distress
d) curiosity and anger
25. Assertion: Franz dreaded going to school.
Reason: He had not learned his lesson on participles.
(a) Both Assertion and Reason are true, and Reason is the correct explanation of Assertion.
(b) Both Assertion and Reason are true, but Reason is not the correct explanation of Assertion.
(c) Assertion is true, but Reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false, but Reason is true

26.: Assertion: M. Hamel wrote on the blackboard, “Vive La France.”

Reason: The Villages were sitting on the last bench of the classroom
(a) Both Assertion and Reason are true, and Reason is the correct explanation of Assertion.
(b) Both Assertion and Reason are true, but Reason is not the correct explanation of
(c) Assertion is true, but Reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false, but Reason is true.

27. Whom does M. Hamel blame for the students not learning French language?
a. Himself, Parents and Students
b. Society, Himself and School Administration
c. Students, School Administration and Parents
d. German and French people and the Government

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English Core – Question Bank

28. What does Franz’s regret teach us about opportunities?

a) They are plentiful
b) To appreciate them before they’re gone
c) They are overvalued
d) They rarely come
29. What does the silence in the village on the day of the last lesson signify in “The Last Lesson”?

a) A public holiday
b) The villagers’ indifference
c) A sense of mourning and loss
d) Preparation for a festival
30.How does the story reflect on the impact of political decisions on personal lives?

a) Shows them as unrelated

b) Highlights the profound and often immediate effects
c) Suggests that politics are always positive
d) Indicates that personal lives influence politics more

Answers

1- a 2-c 3-b 4-a 5-c 6-b

7-c 8-d 9-d 10-c 11-d 12-a

13-a 14-d 15-a 16-b 17-c 18-c

19-a 20-b 21-d 22-d 23-c 24-b

25-a 26-b 27-a 28-b 29-c 30-b

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English Core – Question Bank

Lost Spring
Stories of Stolen Childhood
-Anees Jung
Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow:

Extract-1“Why do you do this?” I ask Saheb whom I encounter every morning scrounging for gold in the
garbage dumps of my neighbourhood. Saheb left his home long ago. Set amidst the green fields of Dhaka,
his home is not even a distant memory. There were many storms that swept away their fields and homes, his
mother tells him. That’s why they left, looking for gold in the big city where he now lives.
“I have nothing else to do,” he mutters, looking away.
“Go to school,” I say glibly, realising immediately how
hollow the advice must sound.

1. Go to school,” I say glibly,

Select the option which conveys the meaning of ‘glibly’ as reflected in the above lines.
A. He was insincerely anxious to please.
B. The striker finished smartly for his first goal since august
C. A few of the other students glared reproachfully at me.
D. To the sick the doctors wisely recommend a change of air and scenery.

2. `Why do you do this?’ This question was asked by the author to

A. The bangle sellers B. Mukesh
C. Saheb D. Saheb’s mother

3. What do you infer from the following line used in the extract?
That’s why they left, looking for gold in the big city
A. Seemapuri has so much gold buried in its soil
B. They left their place because they were attracted by glamour of Delhi
C. They were attracted by natural beauty of Seemapuri
D. They were in desperate need for survival.

4. ‘Scrounge’ here does not mean the same as

A. to search
B. to hunt about
C. to look for something
D. to borrow

5 - What does the author analyse in the story?

A. Mukesh’s aim
B. Sahib’s condition
C. exploitation of poor children
D. rag picking and bangle making
6 State True or False
Saheb remembered his home in Dhaka with vivid details.

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English Core – Question Bank

Extract 2. “If at the end of the day we can feed our families and go to bed without an aching stomach, we
would rather live here than in the fields that gave us no grain,” say a group of women in tattered saris when
I ask them why they left their beautiful land of green fields and rivers. Wherever they find food, they pitch
their tents that become transit homes. Children grow up in them, becoming partners in survival. And survival
in Seemapuri means rag-picking. Through the years, it has acquired the proportions of a fine art. Garbage to
them is gold.

1. According to the author, rag picking has become, over the years,
A. profession B. fine art C. tradition D. culture
2. Garbage to the rag pickers is
A. money B. daily bread, a roof over their heads
C. gold D. silver

3. Select the option that has the same literary device as used in’ Garbage to them is gold’
A. “The sun was a toddler insistently refusing to go to bed: It was past eight thirty and still light.”—
...
B. I walked a million miles to get here.
C. Old Marley was as dead as a doornail.
D. “That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind

4. ‘say a group of women in tattered saris,

Select the option which conveys the meaning of’ tattered’ as reflected in the above lines.
A.The poor man was dirty, hungry and ragged.
B.The animals were sleek and their black fur shined in the sunlight
C. Many of them wore colourful national costumes
D. The player received a reprimand for breach of rules.

5. The colony of rag pickers is situated in

A. the south of Delhi B. Mongolpuri
C. Jehangirpuri D. Seemapuri
6 State True or False
Rag pickers sell garbage and get gold in return.

Q-3 Mukesh’s family is among them. None of them know that it is illegal for children like him to work in
the glass furnaces with high temperatures, in dingy cells without air and light; that the law, if enforced, could
get him and all those 20,000 children out of the hot furnaces where they slog their daylight hours, often losing
the brightness of their eyes. Mukesh’s eyes beam as he volunteers to take me home, which he proudly says
is being rebuilt. We walk down stinking lanes choked with garbage, past homes that remain hovels with
crumbling walls, wobbly doors, no windows, crowded with families of humans and animals coexisting in a
primeval state.
1. Mukesh belonged to a family of
A. farmers B. rag-picker C. bangle maker D. motor mechanic
2. What did Mukesh want to become, on growing up?
A. a motor mechanic B. a shopkeeper
C. a bangle maker D. a carpenter

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English Core – Question Bank

3. Bangle industry flourishes in the town of

A. Ferozepur B. Firozabad C. Ferozgarh D. Farukhabad
4. The families of the bangle-makers live in
A. Com
B. fortable environment B. big houses
C. dilapidated houses D. factories
5. ’…. where they slog their daylight hours…’
Select the option which conveys the meaning of slog’ as reflected in the above lines.
A. The father leaves to his son an inheritance of toil and misery.
B. He scolded the kids for not cleaning up the mess
C. A testing problem or situation, period of long and hard work.
D. The band was playing old Hindi songs.
6 State true or false.
Mukesh’s eyes beam when he talks about his family’s profession of bangle Making.

Q-4. “Do you know anything about cars?” I ask.

“I will learn to drive a car,” he answers, looking straight into my eyes. His dream looms like a mirage
amidst the dust of streets that fill his town Firozabad, famous for its bangles. Every other family in Firozabad
is engaged in making bangles. It is the centre of India’s glass-blowing industry where families have spent
generations working around furnaces, welding glass, making bangles for all the women in the land it seems.
1. What does Mukesh want to do
A. to learn to repair mobile phones
B. to drive a car
C. to become a bangle maker
D. to be a rag picker

2. In what way Mukesh is different from his family

A. wants to walk to his work place
B. Mukesh has the courage to dream of becoming a motor mechanic
C. does not want to listen to his father
D. likes to play tennis

3. Mukesh's father manages to do is....

A. to teach his children Mathematics
B. to teach his children bangle making
C. to participate in rag picking
D. to avoid police

4. His dream looms like a mirage

Select the option that does not mean the same as mirage as used in the above line?
A. optical illusion
B. hallucination
C. phantasmagoria
D. certainty

5 Every other family in Firozabad is engaged in

making bangles
The above sentence suggest that

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 English Core – Question Bank

A. Bangle Making is a corporate industry

B. Firozabad is an economically advanced city.
C. Bangle Making is a small scale industry involving majority of Firozabad population
D. All of the above
6 State true or false
Bangle Making is considered their destiny by bangle makers of Firozabad.

Q-5 Listening to them, I see two distinct worlds — one of the family, caught in a web of poverty, burdened
by the stigma of caste in which they are born; the other a vicious circle of the sahukars, the middlemen, the
policemen, the keepers of law, the bureaucrats and the politicians. Together they have imposed the baggage
on the child that he cannot put down. Before he is aware, he accepts it as naturally as his father. To do
anything else would mean to dare. And daring is not part of his growing up. When I sense a flash of it in
Mukesh I am cheered. “I want to be a motor mechanic,’ he repeats. He will go to a garage and learn. But the
garage is a long way from his home. “I will walk,” he insists. “Do you also dream of flying a plane?” He is
suddenly silent. “No,” he says, staring at the ground. In his small murmur there is an embarrassment that has
not yet turned into regret. He is content to dream of cars that he sees hurtling down the streets of his town.
Few airplanes fly over Firozabad.

1. Who will be hauled up by the police if they try to get organized?

A. the old citizens B. the owners of the factories
C. the group of young men D. Mukesh’s family
2. What bothers the author most about the bangle makers?
A. the stigma of poverty and caste B. the affluence of the landlords
C. the behaviour of the factory owners D. the labour laws
3. The sahukars, the middlemen, the policemen, the keepers of the law, the bureaucrats and the politicians.
Together these people
A. worked for the benefit or bangle makers
B. imposed the baggage on the child that he cannot put down
C. worked for the upliftment of women
D. abolished child labour
4. Mukesh wants to learn to become a motor mechanic by
A. finding a tutor B. going to a garage to learn
C. by reading books D. by joining a school
5. Select the option that does not mean the same as Hurtling as used in the above excerpt
A. crawling B. scurrying. C. speeding. D. hurrying.

6 State True or False

‘And daring is not part of his growing up.’ Daring here means audacity to participate in adventure activities.

 ANSWERS
1 2 3 4 5 6
Q-1 A C D D C False
Q-2 B B B A D False
Q-3 C A B C C False
Q-4 B B B D C True
Q-5 C A B B A False

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English Core – Question Bank

DEEP WATER
BY WILLIAM DOUGLAS
Q.1.Who said these words? "All we have to fear is fear itself."
A. President Roosevelt
B. Douglas
C. His instructor
D. His father
Q2- After the author was fed up with teaching, he decided to opt for which career?
A) Medical
B) Gardening
C) Engineering
D) A legal career
Q3- What is the story Deep Water speaking about?
A) Fear of water and the way to overcome it
B) Fear of people
C) Fear of dogs
D) Fear of swimming
Q4-The 'curtain (of life) fell' corresponds to an aspect of
A) Geometry
B) History
C) Sports
D) Drama
Q5- How did the author’s fear vanish?
A) With courage, guidance and determination
B) With care
C) With mother’s words
D) With guidance
Q6- Y.M.C.A stands for?
A) Young Men’s Christian Authority
B) Young Men’s Christopher Association

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English Core – Question Bank

C) Young Men’s Christian Army

D) Young Men’s Christian Association

Q7- Where is Yakima located?

A) In New Zealand
B) In California
C) In Washington
D) None of these

Q8- Where did the writer go when he was 3 or 4 years old in the story?
A) Washington
B) New Zealand
C) California Beach
D) Canada

Q9- Why did he develop fear of water?

A) Because of knocking down by waves at a beach
B) Because of a bully young boy
C) Both A & B
D) Neither A nor B

Q10- What was haunting the author?

A) Terrible experience in the pool
B) Ghosts
C) His mother’s words
D) A push by a young boy

Q11- How did the author learn swimming?

A) With the help of a rope
B) With the help of a friend
C) With the help of his mother

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English Core – Question Bank

D) With the help of a swimming instructor

Q12- What did William O Douglas desire for?

A) Visit to California
C) To be a judge
C) To learn swimming
D) To be with his mother

Q13- What did the author realise while drowning in the pool?
A) Terror in fear of death
B) Swimming was fun
C) The lifeguard did not come to his rescue
D) All of these

Q14- What is the theme of the story` Deep Water’?

A) Victory in facing the fear
B) Being fearful
C) To learn swimming
D) All

Q15- Deep water is an excerpt from which book?

A) Fear of water
B) Of Men and Mountains
C) How to Swim
D) Fearless

Q16- What does `Deep Water’ signify?

A) Beauty
B) Depth of Sea
C) Depth of ocean
D) Determination to fight fear

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English Core – Question Bank

17. What did the pool incident create?

A. It created a mess.
B. It developed fear.
C. It revived hydrophobia.
D. Nothing

Q18- What was the fear in Douglas’ mind?

A) To be defeated
B) To be pushed
C) The fear of getting drowned
D) None

Q19 - What were the series of emotions and fears that Douglas experienced when he was thrown into the
pool?
A) Fear
B) Confidence
C) Overconfidence
D) Mixed feelings of confidence and fear

Q20- What plans did he make to come to the surface of the pool?
A) Shouted
B) Try to jump and push himself up
C) Cried aloud
D) Shouted “help”

Q21. Which option indicates that the poet lost consciousness?

A. It was quiet and peaceful
B. I crossed to oblivion
C. Tender arms like mother’s

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English Core – Question Bank

D. It wiped out fear

Q22- What lesson did Douglas learn from his experience of drowning learning to swim?
A) Learnt swimming
B) Love for swimming
C) Swimming is not difficult
D) Face the fear with grit and determination

Extract 1. Each time the instructor relaxed his hold on the rope and I went under, some of the old terror
returned and my legs froze. It was three months before the tension began to slack. Then he taught me to put
my face under water and exhale, and to raise my nose and inhale. I repeated the exercise hundreds of times.
Bit by bit I shed part of the panic that seized me when my head went under water.
Next he held me at the side of the pool and had me kick with my legs. For weeks I did just that. At first my
legs refused to work. But they gradually relaxed; and finally I could command them.
Q23. The above passage shows that the author was
1. patient
2. clever
3. optimistic
4. dedicated
5. dominating
6. understanding
A. 2, 3, 6
B. 1, 4, 5
C. 1, 4, 6
D. 2, 3, 4

Q24- I was frightened, but not yet frightened out of my wits - The given line uses...
A. Hyperbole
B. Paradox
C. Imagery
D. Irony

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English Core – Question Bank

Q25- The chap that threw me in was saying, “But I was only...
fooling.” choose the option mentioning the personality traits of the chap.
1. persuasive
2. irresponsible
3. domineering
4. manipulative
5. callous
A.1, 2, 4
B.2, 4, 5
C.2, 3, 5
D.1, 3,, 5

Extract 2. Thus, piece by piece, he built a swimmer. And when he had perfected each piece, he put them
together into an integrated whole In April he said, "Now you can swim. Dive off and swim the length of
the pool, crawl stroke."
I did. The instructor was finished.
But I was not finished. I still wondered if I would be terror-stricken when I was alone in the pool. I tried it.
I swam the length up and down. Tiny vestiges of the old terror would return. But now I could frown and
say to that terror. "Trying to scare me, eh? ? Well, here's to you! Look! And off I'd go for another length of
the pool.

26. What led the narrator to believe that he was not finished"?
A. his childhood experience of swimming
B. his instructor's attitude towards his swimming.
C. his insecurity over his ability to overcome fear
D. his motivation to overcome his newly-developed fear

27. Which of these BEST describes the narrator's relationship with his fear?
A hostile
B. evasive
C. indifferent
D. repressive

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English Core – Question Bank

28. Which of these BEST describes the contrast in the focus of the swimming instructor and the narrator
when it came to swimming?
A. While the former focused on the mechanics, the latter focused on the creativity involved
B. While the former focused on the physical, the latter more focused on the psychological aspect.
C. While the former focused on the practical, the latter was more focused on the theoretical aspects.
D. While the former focused on casual learning, the latter focused on learning how to do it competitively.

29. The narrator mentions his conversations with fear in this story to emphasise the
A. gaps in his skills as a swimmer
B. grip that fear of water still has on his life
C. improvement in his assurance in fighting fear
D. case with which he forgot about his fear of swimming

30. The swimming instructor helped the narrator to regain his

A. strength
B. prosperity
C. innocence
D. confidence

ANSWERS
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
A D A D A D C C C A
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
D C A A B D C C D B
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
B D C B C D D B C D

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English Core – Question Bank

THE RATTRAP
By Selma Lagerlof
Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow:
1. The stranger must have seemed incredulous, for the old man got up and went to the window, took down a
leather pouch which hung on a nail in the very window frame, and picked out three wrinkled ten-kronor bills.
These he held up before the eyes of his guest, nodding knowingly, and then stuffed them back into the pouch.

(1) What is the author's primary purpose in describing the old man's act of showing the three ten-kronor bills
to the stranger?

(a) To highlight the stranger's dishonesty

(b) To emphasise the old man's generosity and kindness
(c) To illustrate the value of money in the story
(d) To create suspense and mystery
(2) The line, 'These he held up before the eyes of his guest, nodding knowingly, and then stuffed them back
into the pouch. can be best classified as:
(a) Character development
(b) Theme
(c) Foreshadowing
(d) Dialogue enhancement
(3) Explain any one possible inference that can be drawn from the line, "The stranger must have seemed
incredulous, for the old man got up..."
(a) peddler may have appeared doubtful
(b) he sells rattraps
(c) the stranger sells milk to creamery
(d) the old man has a cow
(4) Identify the line from the text that bears evidence to the fact that the old man had put his trust in the
rattrap seller.
(a) The stranger must have seemed incredulous
(b) These he held up before the eyes of his guest
(c) for the old man got up
(d) went to the window

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English Core – Question Bank

(5) Based on the context provided in the extract, select the most likely thought that the rattrap seller must
have had when the old man was showing him his ten kronor bills.
(a) The old man is trying to trap me with his generosity.
(b) This man is so stupid to trust me
(c) Thank-God! I have a chance to steal now.
(d) I wonder if he will give me some of that money.

(6) Complete the sentence appropriately. The author creates a sense of mystery in this part of the story so
.......
(a) The readers are left in suspense to what is going to happen next.
(b) The old man is stupid to trust a vagabond.
(c) The rattrap seller got the chance to steal money.
(d) The iron master was a kind man.

(B) The old man was just as generous with his confidences as with his porridge and tobacco. The guest was
informed at once that in his days of prosperity his host had been a crofter at Ramsjo Ironworks and had
worked on the land. Now that he was no longer able to do day labour, it was his cow which supported him.
Yes, that bossy was extraordinary. She could give milk for the creamery every day, and last month he had
received all of thirty kronor in payment. The stranger must have seemed incredulous, for the
old man got up and went to the window, took down a leather pouch which hung on a nail in the very window
frame, and picked out three wrinkled ten-kronor bills.
7. Based on the extract, which of these can we infer about the old man?
A. He made more money at the creamery than as a crofter.
B. His occupation changed due to the limitations of old age.
C. His generosity increased as he became more prosperous in old age.
D. He preferred to earn by being his own boss rather than working under someone
8. What is the author implying when she compares the old man's confidences with his porridge and tobacco?
(a) she wants to convey that the vagabond was a kind hearted man.
(b) she means that the old man was a stupid.
(c) she wants to say that the rattrap seller should not be trusted.
(d) She wants to say that he parted with his porridge and his tobacco in a generous manner, just
like he gave his secrets away

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English Core – Question Bank

9. Complete the given sentence appropriately. Based on the extract, we can infer that being a crofter paid the
old man __________.
(a) generously.
(b) miserly.
(c) stealthily.
(d) roughly.

10. Which of these sentences uses 'supported' in the same way as the extract does?
A. The pillars supported the thick ceiling that was made completely of stone.
B. Raman supported his friend's decision to find a job that pays her more money.
C. Lalitha supported her mother by sending some money home on a regular basis.
D. Few people supported the policy while the majority of the voters were against it.

11. Why would the peddler have seemed 'incredulous'? State a reason.
(a) because old man shared his tobacco.
(b) because old man welcomed him.
(c) because the old man was showing him where all his money was.
(d) because the old man gave him food.

12. Which one of the following is incorrect.

(a) The old man seems to be naive as he easily tells the peddler where all his money is.
(b) The old man is a generous man as he shares all his resources with the peddler freely.
(c) The old man was a schemer.
(d) The old man is clearly lonely and glad to have company.

(C) No one can imagine how sad and monotonous life can appear to such a vagabond, who plods along the
road, left to his own meditations. But one day this man had fallen into a line of thought, which really seemed
to him entertaining. He had naturally been thinking of his rattraps when suddenly he was struck by the idea
that the whole world about him — the whole world with its lands and seas, its cities and villages — was
nothing but a big rattrap. It had never existed for any other purpose than to set baits for people. It offered
riches and joys, shelter and food, heat and clothing, exactly as the rattrap offered cheese and pork, and as
soon as anyone let himself be tempted to touch the bait, it closed in on him, and then everything came to an
end. The world had, of course, never been very kind to him, so it gave him unwonted joy to think ill of it in
this way. It became a cherished pastime of his, during many dreary ploddings, to think of people he knew

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English Core – Question Bank

who had let themselves be caught in the dangerous snare, and of others who were still circling around the
bait.
13. How does the vagabond's perspective on life differ from a conventional viewpoint?
(a) as people love to buy the rattraps and catching the rats with a bait.
(b) as a stack of rattraps.
(c) The world is a big jungle.
(d) as a series of traps, contrasting with conventional views of purpose and meaning.
14. What does the metaphor of the "big rattrap" suggest about the vagabond's outlook on the world?
(a) the world entices people with promises of riches and joys.
(b) the world provides all luxuries.
(c) the world is a bait.
(d) the world is full of hardships and challenges.
15. Why does the vagabond find joy in thinking ill of the world in this way?
(a) because the world promises him of riches and joys.
(b) because it offers an explanation for the difficulties he has faced.
(c) because the world is a bait for him.
(d) because the world is kind and generous.
16. How does the concept of the world as a rattrap help the vagabond make sense of his own experiences?
(a) to rationalize his hardships by attributing them to a purposeful trap.
(b) to understand it as having misfortune.
(c) as if he is ensnared by the world.
(d) he wants to catch the world in his rattrap.
17. In what ways does the vagabond use this perspective to cope with the challenges he faces during his
travels?
(a) allowing him to find a shelter at an old crofter’s home.
(b) allowing him to trap the people.
(c) allowing him to sell his rattraps at a better price.
(d) allowing him to find amusement in identifying others who have fallen into similar traps.
18. Can you draw any parallels between the world as a rattrap and real-life situations or temptations people
face
(a) people are enticed by promises only to face unforeseen challenges and difficulties.
(b) people are buying rattraps to catch the thieves.

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English Core – Question Bank

(c) people do not like the rattrap sellers.

(d) people easily trust the rattrap sellers.

(D). As he walked along with the money in his pocket, he felt quite pleased with his smartness. He realised,
of course, that at first, he dared not continue on the public highway, but must turn off the road, into the
woods. During the first hours this caused him no difficulty. Later in the day it became worse, for it was a big
and confusing forest which he had gotten into. He tried, to be sure, to walk in a definite direction, but the
paths twisted back and forth so strangely! He walked and walked without coming to the end of the wood,
and finally he realised that he had only been walking around in the same part of the forest. All at once he
recalled his thoughts about the world and the rattrap. Now his own turn had come. He had let himself be
fooled by a bait and had been caught. The whole forest, with its trunks and branches, its thickets and fallen
logs, closed in upon him like an impenetrable prison from which he could never escape.
19. How does the man's initial feeling of smartness contrast with his later realization in the forest?
(a) initially feels the world as a rattrap but later on steals 30 kronors.
(b) initially feels pleased with his cunningness, but later realizes he's trapped.
(c) initially afraid of being caught but later on goes to the ironmaster’s home.
(d) initially trust the old crofter but later on breaks into his house.
20. What does the forest symbolize in this passage?
(a) entrapment and confusion
(b) riches and joys
(c) food and hunger
(d) luxuries and prosperity
21. How does the man's experience in the forest parallel his earlier thoughts about the world being a rattrap?
What broader message might the author be conveying through this parallel?
(a) talking about the poverty of the world.
(b) highlighting the cyclical nature of entrapment in life's challenges.
(c) saying that there is no place for generosity in this world.
(d) tempting the people to follow the path which leads to success.

22. Can you identify any literary devices or techniques used in this passage to enhance the reader's
understanding of the man's predicament?
(a) imagery and metaphor
(b) simile and anti-climax

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English Core – Question Bank

(c) personification and alliteration

(d) synecdoche and parody
23. what does the man's situation in the forest reflect?
(a) difficulty to find food and shelter
(b) riches and joys
(c) life's complexities and uncertainties
(d) luxuries and prosperity

24. How might the man's experience in the forest serve as a metaphor for broader human experiences or
struggles?
(a) illustrating how easily money can be stollen.
(b) illustrating how individuals can become entangled in life's trials, seeking a way out.
(c) illustrating how to win over someone’s trust.
(d) illustrating what to do when lost in the jungle.

(E). The young girl opened the package, which was so badly done up that the contents came into view at
once. She gave a little cry of joy. She found a small rattrap, and in it lay three wrinkled ten kronor notes. But
that was not all. In the rattrap lay also a letter written in large, jagged characters — “Honoured and noble
Miss, “Since you have been so nice to me all day long, as if I was a captain, I want to be nice to you, in
return, as if I was a real captain — for I do not want you to be embarrassed at this Christmas season by a
thief; but you can give back the money to the old man on the roadside, who has the money pouch hanging
on the window frame as a bait for poor wanderers.
25. The package's shabby wrapping contrast with the contents it reveals, what might this symbolize?
(a) a theme of unexpected generosity
(b) a tiny rattrap
(c) thirty kronor
(d) theft and hunger

26. The young girl react with a "cry of joy" upon seeing the rattrap and money, what might this suggest about
her circumstances and character?
(a) finding the thief.
(b) making the discovery of money and a rattrap a significant and welcome surprise.
(c) the rattrap seller has gone.
(d) her father was right about the rattrap seller.

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English Core – Question Bank

27. What significance can be attributed to the fact that the money was accompanied by a letter, written in
large, jagged characters?
(a) stealing the crofter’s money
(b) so that no one can identify his handwriting
(c) emphasize its sincerity and perhaps the writer's lack of formal education
(d) he cannot be traced by police

28. In what ways does the letter reflect the author's message or theme regarding kindness and reciprocity?
(a) a sense of gratitude and a desire to reciprocate kindness
(b) giving the stollen rattrap and thirty kronors back
(c) going away before he is caught
(d) no one is kind and sympathetic in this world.

29. How does the presence of the letter challenge conventional notions of giving and receiving during the
Christmas season?
(a) to steal something is not good
(b) we should give gifts to others on Christmas
(c) Money should be gifted on big festivals
(d) emphasizing the value of personal connections and genuine gestures over monetary exchange

30. What broader commentary might the passage be making about the nature of generosity and trust in a
world that may be perceived as deceitful or treacherous?
(a) if you are good enough to share your secrets, you will be cheated
(b) giving shelter to others is always harmful
(c) acts of kindness can break down barriers of mistrust and revealing the potential for goodness
(d) there is no kindness or generosity in this world.

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English Core – Question Bank

ANSWERS
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
B C A B A A B D A C
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
C C D A B A D A B A
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
B A C B A B C A D C

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English Core – Question Bank

INDIGO
By LOUIS FISHER
Read the extracts given below and attempt the questions that follow.

1. They merely heard that a Mahatma who wanted to help them was in trouble with the authorities. Their
spontaneous demonstration, in thousands, around the courthouse was the beginning of their liberation
from fear of the British.
The officials felt powerless without Gandhi’s cooperation. He helped them regulate the crowd.
He was polite and friendly. He was giving them concrete proof that their might, hitherto dreaded and
unquestioned, could be challenged by Indians.
The government was baffled. The prosecutor requested the judge to postpone the trial.
Apparently, the authorities wished to consult their superiors.

1. The helplessness of the authorities was compounded by the fact that

A. Gandhi’s refused to cooperate with them.
B. Gandhi’s arrogant and unruly behaviour.
C. The crowd was listening only to Gandhi.
D. Gandhi was instigating the mob to indulge in violence.

2. The demonstrations were indicative of

A. Failure of British policies.
B. The dread instilled in the hearts of Indians had begun to lessen.
D. The influence of British administration.
D. Might of the British had not been understood by Indians.
3. Dreaded: _______: Challenged: Confront (complete the analogy by choosing the right option)
A. Humourous
B. Dramatic
C. Terrified
D. Persuasive
4. Gandhiji’s behaviour towards the British prior to the proposal of postponement of the trial was that
of
A. indifference.
B. calm acceptance.
C. ignorance of consequences.
D. polite helpfulness.
EXTRACT 2. They thought he would demand repayment in full of the money which they had illegally and
deceitfully extorted from the sharecroppers. He asked only 50 percent. “There he seemed adamant,” writes
Reverend J. Z. Hodge, a British missionary in Champaran who observed the entire episode at close range.
“Thinking probably that he would not give way, the representative of the planters offered to refund to the
extent of 25 percent, and to his amazement Mr. Gandhi took him at his word, thus breaking the deadlock.”
This settlement was adopted unanimously by the commission.

5. Gandhi knew that he would not get an agreement on the demand for 50% repayment. Choose the
option that offers the correct justification for the assumption made above.

A. He had anticipated the negotiating tactics of the planter’s representative.

B. He had been informed about the depleting funds of the planters.

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English Core – Question Bank

C. He had taken the advice of the Reverend on board.

D. He had evaluated the commission’s attitude towards Indians.
6. Given below are four real-life situations. Choose the option that perfectly describes the deadlock.

He is unable to
She cannot get a job
manage the front-
because she has no The employees started She was stuck between
end and the
experience and she protesting against their deciding whether to go to
backend forums at
can’t have any receding annual salary the US or the UK for higher
his company
experience because and other incentives. studies.
without any
she has no job.
support.

A. Situation 1
B. Situation 2
C. Situation 3
D. Situation 4
7. Based on the given context, choose the option that exemplifies deceitful extortion, out of the examples
given below.

1. The workers demonstrated their rights, 2. The head of the workers union pretended to address
peacefully, on the streets. all the problems faced by them.

3. The head of the workers union came with 4. The workers decided to sell their products directly
goons and took all the assets of the poor artisans. to government outlets.

A. Option 1
B. Option 2
C. Option 3
D. Option 4
8. The deadlock broke because
A. Gandhi’s settlement offer was tempting for the planters.
B. Unanimous agreement by all commission members to adopt the representative’s offer.
C. The Viceroys intervention.
D. The sharecroppers refused to be convinced by the commission.
9. In light of the following statement, pick the option that lists the characteristics of Gandhi.
“Gandhi never contented himself with large political or economic solutions. He saw the cultural and social
backwardness in the Champaran villages and wanted to do something about it immediately.”
1. Pragmatic
2. Dutiful
3. Empathetic
4. Benevolent
5. Persistent

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English Core – Question Bank

6. Theatrical

A. 1, 3, 6

B. 2, 4, 5

C. 1, 4, 5

D. 2, 5, 6

10. Complete the statement about the form of the chapter, ‘Indigo’.

The chapter ‘Indigo’ is __________ a Louis Fischer book.

A. a preamble to

B. the blurb for

C. the foreword of

D. an excerpt from

EXTRACT 3. But Champaran did not begin as an act of defiance. It grew out of an attempt to alleviate the
distress of large numbers of poor peasants. This was the typical Gandhi pattern — his politics were
intertwined with the practical, day-to-day problems of the millions. His was not a loyalty to abstractions; it
was a loyalty to living, human beings. In everything Gandhi did, moreover, he tried to mould a new free
Indian who could stand on his own feet and thus make India free.

11. Choose the option listing the sentence that is the most appropriate example of an ‘act of defiance,' from
the following:

She picked up the telephone terrified of what was about to come. She could hear nobody on the other side.
Meanwhile, there was a thud at the door loud enough to scare her. Curious as she was, she wanted to open it
as soon as possible. Her mother tried to stop her several times, but she went ahead, nevertheless.
A. She picked up the telephone terrified of what was about to come.
B. Meanwhile, there was a thud at the door loud enough to scare her.
C. Curious as she was, she wanted to open it as soon as possible.
D. Her mother tried to stop her several times but she went ahead nevertheless.

12. Choose the correct option with reference to the two statements given below.
 Statement 1: His was not a loyalty to abstractions; it was a loyalty to living, human beings.
 Statement 2: Gandhi was a humanitarian at heart.
A. Statement 1 is the cause of Statement 2.
B. Statement 2 is the effect of Statement 1.
C. Statement 2 can be inferred from Statement 1.

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English Core – Question Bank

D. Statement 1 and Statement 2 are independent of each other.

13. The given extract DOES NOT talk about

A. Details of the daily problems faced by human beings.
B. Efforts to relieve the suffering of the common people.
C. The reason for the occurrence of Champaran.
D. Gandhi’s principles in the field of politics.

14. Which option showcases an example of action (A) -result (R), from the passage?
1. A=defiance, R=poor peasants
2. A=free Indians, R=free India
3. A=free India, R=defiance
4. A=defiance, R=free Indians
A. Option 1
B. Option 2
C. Option 3
D. Option 4

15. Gandhi’s protest in Champaran is most appropriately a great model of

A. Supremacy.
B. Leadership.
C. Assistance.
D. Patronage.
EXTRACT 4 The Champaran episode was a turning point in Gandhi’s life. ‘‘What I did,” he explained, “was
a very ordinary thing. I declared that the British could not order me about in my own country.” But
Champaran did not begin as an act of defiance. It grew out of an attempt to alleviate the distress of large
numbers of poor peasants. This was the typical Gandhi pattern — his politics were intertwined with the
practical, day-to-day problems of the millions. His was not a loyalty to abstractions; it was a loyalty to living,
human beings. In everything Gandhi did, moreover, he tried to mould a new free Indian who could stand on
his own feet...

16. In the extract, the phrase 'loyalty to abstractions' refers to a strong commitment to __________.
A. Ear marked groups
B. Earthly pleasures
C. Certain ideologies
D. British authorities
17. Select a suitable word from the extract to complete the following analogy:
Defiance: Submission:: Aggravate: __________.

18. Select the correct option to fill in the blank.

The primary motive of Gandhi's actions was to _________.
A. Make Indians self-reliant
B. Eradicate peasant poverty
C. Unite the people of Champaran
D. Expose the incompetence of the British

19. Which of these best describes the primary purpose of the extract?
A. It highlights Gandhi's intention to use peasants to overthrow colonial power.

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English Core – Question Bank

B. It points out why the Champaran episode is still relevant in free modern India.
C. It explains the differences between the political strategies of Gandhi and the British.
D. It shows how Gandhi's position in the Champaran struggle reflected his political views.
EXTRACT 5. When I first visited Gandhi in 1942 at his ashram in Sevagram, in central India,
he said, “I will tell you how it happened that I decided to urge the departure of the British.
It was in 1917.” He had gone to the December 1916 annual convention of the Indian
National Congress party in Lucknow. There were 2,301 delegates and many visitors.
During the proceedings, Gandhi recounted, “a peasant came up to me looking like any
other peasant in India, poor and emaciated, and said, ‘I am Rajkumar Shukla. I am from
Champaran, and I want you to come to my district’!’’ Gandhi had never heard of the place.
It was in the foothills of the towering Himalayas, near the kingdom of Nepal.

20. The ‘I’ in the first line refers to________

A. Rajkumar Shukla
B. Louis Fisher
C. Brij Kishore
D. Mahatma Gandhi

21.The synonym for the word ‘Emaciated’ will be:

A. Skeletal
B. Fat
C. Stocky
D. Burly

22. What is the Mahatma trying to convey by saying ‘urge the departure’?
a. Force the departure
b. Push the departure
c. Exhort the departure
d. All of these

23. “Looking like any other peasant in India-poor and emaciated” indicates-
A. The peasants of India were starving under the British rule
B. The beneficial nature of British agrarian policies
C. Gandhi never expected Indian peasants to look emaciated
D. Rajkumar Shukla looked different from other Indian peasants

EXTRACT 6 The news of Gandhi’s advent and the nature of his mission spread quickly
through Muzzafarpur to Champaran. Sharecroppers from Champaran began arriving on
foot and by conveyance to see their champion. Muzzafarpur lawyers called on Gandhi to
brief him; they frequently represented peasant groups in court; they told him about their
cases and reported the size of their fee. Gandhi chided the lawyers for collecting big fee
from the sharecroppers.

24.The lawyers ended up being rebuked by Gandhi as

A. He expected them to charge nominal fees
B. He wanted them to increase their fees
C. He wanted better lawyers to fight the case
D. He wanted the cases to be fought in courts of Delhi.
25. Why was there a huge multitude of people?

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English Core – Question Bank

A. They came to see the Chief Justice of the High court

B. To Bid farewell to Dr Rajendra Prasad
C. To see their champion-Mahatma Gandhi
D. The British administration was distributing free grains
26. The word ‘Advent’ in the passage can be replaced with
A. Droves
B. Meagre
C. Arrival
D. Absence

EXTRACT 7 “The battle of Champaran is won”, he exclaimed. Then he took a piece of

paper and divided the group into pairs and put down the order in which each pair was to
court arrest. Several days later, Gandhi received a written communication from the
magistrate informing him that the Lieutenant-Governor of the province had ordered the
case to be dropped. Civil disobedience had triumphed, the first time in modern India.

27. The case against Gandhi was dropped since

A. There was no witness willing to testify against Gandhi
B. Gandhi managed to threaten the Judges
C. He was innocent
D. Gandhi was about to leave Champaran.

28. Who exclaimed that the battle of Champaran has been won
A. Mahatma Gandhi
B Louis Fischer
C. Lt Governor
D. The lawyers

29. Gandhi managed to influence the lawyers

A. By bullying and threatening them with serious consequences.
B. By offering monetary incentives and higher positions in judiciary
C. Through his willingness to fight for justice, his thoughtful actions and
D. Through his dictatorial leadership style that focused on un pragmatic solutions to
problem.

30. Mahatma Gandhi believed in:

A. Centralised leadership
B. Taking decisions without consulting all stake holders
C. Being away from the masses
D. Grooming of next level of leadership

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English Core – Question Bank

ANSWERS

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

C B C B A B C B C D

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

D C A B B C Alleviat A D B
e

21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

A D A A C C C A C D

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English Core – Question Bank

The Poets and Pancakes

By Asokamitran

Q1 _________ was the founder of Gemini Studio?

A. Kothamangalam Subbu

B. Vjayantimala

C. Asokamitran

D. S.S. Vasan

Q 2 ________ was author’s job in Gemini Studios?

A. Office boy

B. Makeup of artists

C. Cutting of newspaper clippings

D. Helping hand of Boss

Q 3 Gemini Studio was located in _______?

A. Madras

B. Calcutta

C. Secunderabad

D. Lucknow

Q.4 How was the Gemini studio influenced by the plays staged by MRA?
A. They imitated their styles
B. They imitated their dialogues
C. They imitated their story
D. They imitated their sets and costumes
Q.5 What was the brand name of the make up material that Gemini studio bought?
A. Pancake
B. Mancake

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English Core – Question Bank

C. Fancake
D. Latincake

Q.6 Who was Greta Garbo?

A. A Swedish actress- an Oscar winner
B. a German actress
C. a French actress
D. a Bengali actress

Q.7 Why author called ‘Gemini Studios’ as the favourite haunt for poets ?
A. Because poets often came to drink coffee there
B. Because there were lot of poetry in Tamil shows.
C. Both A & B
D. Because it was full of great poets.

Q.8 What was MRA?

A. British Army
B. The Moral Rearmament Army- a counter movement to International Communism
C. a wing of Indian Army
D. A drama company

Q.9 What did the story department also consist of in the chapter ‘Poets & Pancakes’?
A. Lawyer
B. Scriptwriter
C. Dialogue writer
D. None of the above

Q.10 What was the specialty of the Moral Rearmament Army, as mentioned in the chapter ‘Poets
and Pancakes’?
A. their plots and messages were not complex
B. their sets and costumes were near to perfection
C. their style of shooting was very different
D. Both (A) & (B)

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English Core – Question Bank

Q.11. Where did the author work in earlier days, as in the chapter ‘Poets & Pancakes’?
A. in an office
B. inside a cubicle
C. in a centre
D. None of the above
Q.12. Who would bother the author time & again, as in the chapter ‘Poets &Pancakes’?
A. Lawyer
B. Office boy
C. Boss
D. Colleagues
EXTRACT BASED QUESTIONS
Read the following extract and answer the questions.
1. In all instances of frustration, you will always find the anger directed towards a single person openly or
covertly and this man of the make-up department was convinced that all his woes, ignominy and neglect
were due to Kothamangalam Subbu. Subbu was the No. 2 at Gemini Studios. He couldn’t have had a more
encouraging opening in films than our grown-up make-up boy had. On the contrary he must have had to face
more uncertain and difficult times, for when he began his career, there were no firmly established film
producing companies or studios. Even in the matter of education, specially formal education, Subbu couldn’t
have had an appreciable lead over our boy. But by virtue of being born a Brahmin — a virtue, indeed! — he
must have had exposure to more affluent situations
Q.13 The remark in the line “In all instance……or covertly”- by the author is a…..
A. General observation applicable for all
B. Specific observation applicable for one
C. A universal truth.
D. A hypothetical observation.
Q.14 “this man” in the line refers to ______________
A. The narrator
B. The office boy
C. Kothamangalam Subbu
D. S S Vasan
Q.15 If Kothamangalam Subbu was No.2 at Gemini Studios, who was No.1 ?
A. The narrator
B. The office boy
C. Kothamangalam Subbu
D. S S Vasan
Q.16 “But by virtue of being born a Brahmin” which social evil of Indian society is expressed here ?
____________

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English Core – Question Bank

Q.17 Which word in the above extract means similar to phrase “born with a silver spoon in your mouth”
Q.18 ‘He begins to observe them, following them around and openly taking their pictures.’ Which word in
the extract is opposite of the underlined word.
2. Someone called the group an international circus. They weren’t very good on the trapeze and their
acquaintance with animals was only at the dinner table, but they presented two plays in a most professional
manner. Their ‘Jotham Valley’ and ‘The Forgotten Factor’ ran several shows in Madras and along with the
other citizens of the city, the Gemini family of six hundred saw the plays over and over again. The message
of the plays were usually plain and simple homilies, but the sets and costumes were first-rate.
Q.19 Which group is referred here ?
A. Poets who visited the coffee shop.
B. Crowd gathered for shooting.
C. Moral Re-Armament army
D. Moral Armament army
Q.20 The purpose of visit of the group was_______
A. counter - movement to international Communism
B. show circus
C. shooting movie in India
D. creating awareness about English
Q.21. Which sentence in the extract explains that the plays of the group were quite successful in Madras?
Q.22 Which political inclination of the Boss of Gemini studio we come to know through this lesson.
A. Communist B. Nazis C. Socialist D. Dictatorial
Q.23 Which word in the extract is similar to sermons
Q.24 The sentence ‘their acquaintance with animals was only at the dinner table’ is…..
A. Humorous
B. Satirical
C. Cruel
D. Emotional
3. I paid fifty paise and picked up a copy of the book, The God That Failed. Six eminent men of letters in six
separate essays described ‘their journeys into Communism and their disillusioned return’; Andre Gide,
Richard Wright, Ignazio Silone, Arthur Koestler , Louis Fischer and Stephen Spender. Stephen Spender!
Suddenly the book assumed tremendous significance. Stephen Spender, the poet who had visited Gemini
Studios! In a moment I felt a dark chamber of my mind lit up by a hazy illumination. The reaction to Stephen
Spender at Gemini Studios was no longer a mystery. The Boss of the Gemini Studios may not have much to
do with Spender’s poetry. But not with his god that failed.
Q. 25 Why was the copy of the book available at low price?

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English Core – Question Bank

A. because it was at resell

B. because nobody wanted to buy it
C. because nobody understand the language of book
D. because it was special students’edition
Q.26 “Men of letters” in the line refers to____________
Q.27 “In a moment I felt a dark chamber of my mind lit up by a hazy illumination.” Identify the figure of
speech in above line.
Q.28 “the poet who had visited Gemini Studios!” the exclamation mark here represents_____________
A. pleasant surprise
B. sad realisation
C. frustrate anger
D. painful realisation
Q.29 Which two of the six eminent men of letters mentioned above extract you are familiar with ?
Q.30 Find opposite of “meaninglessness” from the passage.

ANSWERS
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
D C A D A A D B A D
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
B B D B D Casteism Affluent Covertly C A
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Ran C Homilies A D Writers Oxymoron A 1. Stephen Significance
several Spender
shows 2. Louis
Fischer

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English Core – Question Bank

THE INTERVIEW
BY Christopher Silvester and Umberto Eco

Extract1 Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
Saul Bellow, who has consented to be interviewed on several occasions, nevertheless once described
interviews as being like thumbprints on his windpipe. Yet despite the drawbacks of the interview, it is a
supremely serviceable medium of communication. “These days, more than at any other time, our most
vivid impressions of our contemporaries are through interviews,” Denis Brian has written. “Almost
everything of moment reaches us through one man asking questions of another. Because of this, the
interviewer holds a position of unprecedented power and influence.”
1. How would you describe Denis Brian’s opinion on interviews? Choose the most appropriate option.
(1) appeasing (2) utilitarian (3) approving (4) praising
(a) (1) and (2)
(b) (3) and (4)
(c) (2) and (3)
(d) (1) and (4)
2. According to Saul Bellow, interviews are like thumbprints on his windpipe. What emotion might best
describe such an image?
(a) Sadness
(b) Frustration
(c) Discomfort
(d) Fear

3. Denis Brian states that the interviewer occupies a position of power and influence as ..

(a) everything reaches us through one man asking questions of another.

(b) the interview is a supremely serviceable medium of communication.
(c) our most vivid impressions of our contemporaries are through interviews.
(d) interviews are like thumbprints on the interviewee’s windpipe.

4. Enumerate ‘Interview is a supremely serviceable medium of communication?

(a) a medium to gossip
(b) a medium to be the talk of the town
(c) a medium to prosper
(d) a medium of interaction and introspection

Extract 2. Umberto Eco: And then I have a secret. Did you know what will happen if you eliminate the
empty spaces from the universe, eliminate the empty spaces in all the atoms? The universe will become as
big as my fist. Similarly, we have a lot of empty spaces in our lives. I call them interstices. Say you are
coming over to my place. You are in an elevator and while you are coming up, I am waiting for you. This
is an interstice, an empty space. I work in empty spaces. While waiting for your elevator to come up from
the first to the third floor, I have already written an article! (Laughs).
5. Choose a word that DOES NOT mean ‘eliminate’:
(a) Eradicate
(b) Obliterate
(c) Resuscitate
(d) Annihilate

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English Core – Question Bank

6. Why does Umberto Eco choose to compare the empty spaces in one’s life to that of the empty spaces in
the universe?
(a) To illustrate that there is a lot of empty space available.
(b) To show that life is all empty space and not much else.
(c) To show that the universe is but one giant empty space.
(d) To demonstrate that what’s in the universe is also in one’s life.

7. Choose another word that means Umberto Eco’s ‘interstices’:

(a) Closure
(b) Continuation
(c) Connection
(d) Lacuna
8. What can be inferred as the meaning of the sentence, ‘I work in empty spaces’?
(a) He works while teaching in a university.
(b) He works in the gaps between activities.
(c) He works while travelling in an elevator.
(d) He works while being interviewed.

Extract.3. Umberto Eco: When I presented my first Doctoral dissertation in Italy, one of the Professors
said, “Scholars learn a lot of a certain subject, then they make a lot of false hypotheses, then they correct
them and at the end, they put the conclusions. You, on the contrary, told the story of your research. Even
including your trials and errors.” At the same time, he recognised I was right and went on to publish my
dissertation as a book, which meant he appreciated it.
9. Choose another word for ‘dissertation’:
(a) Summary (b) Thesis (c) Creative writing (d) Abstract

10. Choose the word from the extract that best fits this definition, ‘an idea or explanation for something
that is based on known facts but has not yet been proven’:
(a) A hypothesis
(b) A dissertation
(c) A conclusion
(d) A trial

11. Which of the following can be inferred from this extract?

(1) Eco was penalised for choosing to follow a different path.
(2) Eco’s style of writing dissertations became a new trend.
(3) No one before Eco wrote a dissertation like he did.
(4) Eco was appreciated for writing the story of his research.
(a) (1) and (2)
(b) (1) and (4)
(c) (3) and (4)
(d) (2) and (3)

12. From the passage which adjective best describes Umberto Eco?
(a) Strong (b) Innovative (c) Stylish (d) Ordinary

STAND ALONE MCQs

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English Core – Question Bank

13. According to Christopher Silvester, the interview can be “in its highest form, a source of truth”. Choose
the option that does NOT enable this?
(a) An interview allows for discovery of new knowledge about the interviewee and/ or the subject being
discussed.
(b) An interview enables the interviewer to probe deeply, seek clarifications, and confirm understandings.
(c) An interview represents an opportunity to open doors to experiences that may not otherwise find a
voice.
(d) An interview requires the interviewer to have in-depth prior knowledge of the interviewee and the
subject.

14. Umberto Eco mentioned that he was not puzzled by the tremendous mass popularity of his novel, The
Name of the Rose. What does this tell you about Umberto Eco?
(a) He believes that he understands readership trends well, and writes accordingly to ensure mass appeal.
(b) He elevates himself above publishers and journalists who were surprised by the success of the book.
(c) He respects and understands that there are variations in people’s reading choices and experiences.
(d) He feels that the success of a book is a mystery, and there was no point pondering over it.

15. What satisfies Umberto’s taste for narration?

(a) stories
(b) children’s work
(c) interviews
(d) novels

16. what days did Umberto Eco used to write novels

a. Saturday nights
b. Friday nights
c. Every evening.
d. Sundays

17. What can be inferred to be the writer’s own opinion on the function of the interview?
(a) That it lies only between the interviewer and the interviewee.
(b) That different people have varying opinions about the interview.
(c) That it lies somewhere in between being ‘a source of truth’ and ‘art’.
(d) That it has become a common place of journalism in the past 130 years.

18. Choose the authors who never consented to an interview.

(1) V.S. Naipaul
(2) Lewis Carroll
(3) Rudyard Kipling
(4) Mark Twain
(5) H. G. Wells
(6) Joseph Stalin
(a) (1) and (2)
(b) (2) and (3)
(c) (4) and (5)
(d) (5) and (6)

19. - Who is the author of the lesson ‘The Interview’?

(a) Christopher Priest
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English Core – Question Bank

(b) Christopher Silvester (1959)

(c) J.B. Priestley
(d) Alfred John Churchley

20 - What does V.S. Naipaul feel about interviews?

(a) horror
(b) happy
(c) wounded
(d) none

21. - What does Naipaul present in his travel books?

(a). his feelings
(b) his feelings about interviews
(c) impression of the country of his ancestors that is India
(d) none
22- What does writing novels on Sunday by Eco signify?
(a) writing novels – his passion
(b) writing novels – his need
(c) writing novels – his casual job
(d) writing novels – his interest

23.- How does Umberto Eco find so much time to write so much?
(a) using early morning time
(b) using his office time
(c) using his family time
(d) using using empty spaces (free times) like waiting for someone, break time
24. Why do most celebrity writers despise being interviewed?
(a). they don’t like journalism
(b). unwarranted intrusion in their lives
(c). their privacy is hurt
(d). they don’t get time to give interview

25. - What did he present in this book?

(a) varied opinions of politicians
(b) varied opinions of civilians
(c) varied opinions of armymen

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English Core – Question Bank

(d) varied opinions of celebrities regarding an interview

26. What do Eco’s works for children speak about?
(a) his passion for children
(b) children are nuisance
(c) children love to be happy
(d) nonviolence and peace

27. why do celebrities feel embarrassed most often?

(a) because of questions attacked during interview
(b) because of interviewer’s gestures
(c) because of interviewer’s appearance
(c) none
28.. What kind of a novel was The Name of The Rose?
(a) hilarious
(b) fiction
(c) non-fiction
(d) a serious one
29..What way interviews have become a commom place of journalism?
(a) because of its power, influence and medium of communication
(b) because of its pomp
(c) because of its glory
(d) because of its rapport

30.Who has written Alice in Wonderland?

(a) Christopher
(b) Mukand
(c) Rudyard Kripling
(d) Lewis Caroll

Answer Key:

Q. No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Correct Ans. c c a d c d c b b a
Q. No 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Correct Ans. c b d d d d d a b c
Q. No 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Correct Ans. c c d b d d a b a d

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English Core – Question Bank

GOING PLACES
By A.R. Barton

I. “Jansie, knowing they were both earmarked for the biscuit factory, became melancholy. She wished
Sophie wouldn’t say these things.
When they reached Sophie’s Street Jansie said, “It’s only a few months away now, Soaf, you really
should be sensible. They don’t pay well for shop work, you know that, your dad would never allow it.”
“Or an actress. Now there’s real money in that. Yes, and I could maybe have the boutique on the side.
Actresses don’t work full time, do they? Anyway, that or a fashion designer, you know — something a bit
sophisticated”
1. How are Sophie and Jansie related?
A. Teenagers who are friends and classmates
B. Neighbours
C. Colleagues
D. Actors
2. Which of the following expression best describes Jansie?
1) Sensible
2) Boastful
3) Realistic
4) Pessimist

A. 1 and 4
B. 2 and 4
C. 1 and 3
D. 2 and 3
3. What impression do you form of Sofie after reading the paragraph?
A. A happy go lucky kind
B. A realistic girl
C. A naughty girl
D. A day dreamer
4. Pick out the statement which is NOT True about Sophie:
A. To work in the biscuit factory
B. To become an actor
C. To become a manager
D. To be rich and sophisticated
5. Pick out a word from the paragraph which means the same as……….
A. feeling of pensive sadness
B. gloomy
C. sorrowful
D. mournful
6. What is the tone of Jansie in the given passage?
A. Sarcastic and humorous
B. Taunting and teasing
C. Serious and straightforward

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English Core – Question Bank

D. Criticizing and provoking

II. “She thinks money grows on trees, doesn’t she, Dad?’ said little Derek, hanging on the back of his father’s
chair.

Their mother sighed.

Sophie watched her back stooped over the sink and wondered at the incongruity of the delicate bow
which fastened her apron strings. The delicate-seeming bow and the crooked back. The evening had
already blacked in the windows and the small room was steamy from the stove and cluttered with the
heavy-breathing man in his vest at the table and the dirty washing piled up in the corner. Sophie felt a
tightening in her throat.

7. “She thinks money grows on trees, doesn’t she, Dad?” What is the tone of Derek in the given remark?
A. Indifferent
B. Sarcastic
C. Ironical
D. Serious
8. “Sophie felt a tightening in her throat.” Pick the option that lists Sophie’s feelings in this context.
1. angry
2. anxious
3. annoyed
4. uneasy
A. Options 1 & 3
B. Options 2 & 3
C. Options 1 & 4
D. Options 2 & 4
9. Which of the following expressions indicate that the mother was tired and depressed?
A. delicate bow of her apron
B. her sigh
C. pile of dirty clothes
D.
E. her stooped back
10. Pick out the figure of speech used in the given line “small room was steamy from the stove.”
A. Simile
B. Metaphor
C. Alliteration
D. Hyperbole
11. Give the opposite of the word “incongruity” from the words given below:
A. Oddness
B. Absurdity
C. Disparity
D. Aptness
12. On the basis of the extract, choose the correct option with reference to (1) and (2)
(1) Sophies mother sighed because she felt tired of doing household chores
(2) She was unhappy in her marriage
A. Both (1) and (2) are true
B. Both (1) and (2) are false
C. Only (1) can be inferred from the extract
D. Both (1) and (2) are can be inferred from the extract

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English Core – Question Bank

III. “He was kneeling on the floor in the next room tinkering with a part of his motorcycle over some
newspaper spread on the carpet. He was three years out of school, an apprentice mechanic, travelling to his
work each day to the far side of the city. He was almost grown up now, and she suspected areas of his life
about which she knew nothing, about which he never spoke. He said little at all, ever, voluntarily. Words had
to be prized out of him like stones out of the ground. And she was jealous of his silence.”
13. Who is “he” in the above extract?
A. Derek
B. Geoff
C. Father
D. Frank
14. Who is an “apprentice”?
A. A person who works with someone in order to learn their skill
B. A person who works in a garage in order to earn a living
C. A person who works as a house helper to earn his living
D. A person who works at a factory to earn his bread
15. “Words had to be prized out of him like stones out of the ground” pick out the figure of speech used in
this
line:
A. Personification
B. Simile
C. Oxymoron
D. Alliteration
16. Complete the following analogy correctly by picking up a word from the extract:
Jealous : admiring : : ____________ : forcibly
17. -Explain-Words had to be prized out of him like stones out of aground.
A. it was difficult to speak to him
B. it was difficult to locate him in a shop
C. it was difficult to locate him in factory
D. it was difficult to get information out of him
18. Why Sophie was jealous of her brother?
A. Because he is elder to her
B. Because he never shares his secrets with her
C. Because he never gave her a ride on her bike
D. Because he has a lot of friends

IV. On Saturday they made their weekly pilgrimage to watch United. Sophie and her father and little Derek
went down near the goal — Geoff, as always, went with his mates higher up. United won two-nil and Casey
drove in the second goal, a blend of innocence and Irish genius, going round the two big defenders on the
edge of the penalty area, with her father screaming for him to pass, and beating the hesitant goalkeeper
from a dozen yards. Sophie glowed with pride. Afterwards, Geoff was ecstatic.
19. -Which game are Sophie and her family fans of?
A. Cricket
B. Badminton
C. Volleyball
D. Football

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English Core – Question Bank

20. -Which country did Danny play for?

A. Netherland
B. Ireland
C. New Zealand
D. Switzerland
21. Based on the following statements, choose the correct option:
Assertion: “Geoff, as always, went with his mates higher up.”
Reason 1: Geoff was not very close to his family and lived in his own world.
Reason 2: Geoff was rude and indifferent towards everyone around him and didn’t care about
anyone.

A. Reason 1 and Reason 2 both can be inferred from the assertion.

B. Reason 1 can be inferred but Reason 2 cannot be inferred from the assertion.
C. Reason 1 cannot be inferred but Reason 2 can be inferred.
D. Reason 1 and Reason 2 both cannot be inferred.

22. Choose the option listing the situation in which one would be ‘ecstatic’

Option -A Option -B Option -C Option -D

23. Why did “Sophie glowed with pride”?

A. Because her father appreciated her
B. Because her brother shared his secrets with her
C. Because Danny scored the winning goal for United
D. Because she met Danny after the match
24. United in the above passage refer to …..
A. A football club
B. A particular area in the countryside
C. A city
D. A country

V. After dark she walked by the canal, along a sheltered path lighted only by the glare of the lamps from the
wharf across the water, and the unceasing drone of the city was muffled and distant. It was a place she had
often played in when she was a child. There was a wooden bench beneath a solitary elm where lovers

45
English Core – Question Bank

sometimes came. She sat down to wait. It was the perfect place, she had always thought so, for a meeting of
this kind. For those who wished not to be observed. She knew he would approve.
25. Whom is she waiting for ?
A. Jansie
B. Geoff
C. Danny Casey
D. Derek
26. Pick out the literary device used in the given sentence “the unceasing drone of the city was muffled and
distant”
A. Onomatopoeia
B. Imagery
C. Alliteration
D. Oxymoron
27. The expression “a meeting of this kind” refers to…………
A. A covert meeting with her brother Geoff
B. A secret meeting with Jansie
C. A Casual meeting with her younger brother
D. A private meeting with Danny Casey
28.Pick out a sentence which is not true about the place that Sophie chose for her meeting?
A. It was a perfect place for a love meeting
B. She always played there as a child
C. It was a very crowded place
D. It was a solitary place

29. The word “elm” refers to...

A. A kind of bench
B. A kind of tree
C. A kind of food item
D. A kind of drink
30. What impression do you form of Sophie from the given extract?
1. She is a daydreamer and impractical
2. She is realistic and practical
3. She has rich imagination
4. She is kind hearted and truthful
A. Only 1 is correct
B. Only 3 is correct
C. Both 1 and 3 are correct
D. Both 2 and 4 are correct

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English Core – Question Bank

ANSWER KEY
1 2 3 4 5 6
A C D A Melancholy C
7 8 9 10 11 12
B D B C D C
13 14 15 16 17 18
B A B Voluntarily D B
19 20 21 22 23 24
D B B A C A
25 26 27 28 29 30
C A D C B C

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English Core – Question Bank

MY MOTHER AT SIXTY- SIX

BY KAMALA DAS

Q1 Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow.
Driving from my parent’s
home to Cochin last Friday
morning, I saw my mother,
beside me,
doze, open mouthed, her face ashen like that
of a corpse and realized with
pain
that she was as old as she
looked but soon
put that thought away,

(1) Choose the option that best applies to the given extract.
(1) An order (2) an argument (3) a request (4) a strategy (5) a recollection (6) a direction

a) 1, 3 & 6
b) 2, 4 & 5
c) Only 5
d) Only 1

(2) Choose the option that displays the same literary device as in the given lines of theextract.
her face ashen like that of a corpse…
(a)I like it when its raining …
(b)She said that he liked her presentation at the seminar
(c)My love is like a red rose….
(d) I like to listen to soft music especially when I am driving
(3) And I realized with pain……
The realization was painful because-------------------
(i) It brought with it the distressing thought that she was also nearing the death.
(ii) The poet started thinking about the separation from her mother.
(iii) The poet has not seen anybody dying before.
(iv) The poet was not that close to her father as she was with her mother.

(a) (i), (ii) and (iii)

(b) (ii), (iii), and (iv)
(c) (iv)
(d) (i) and (ii)

4. Choose the option which is not correct as per the above stanza.
(a) As the car travels, the daughter observes her aging mother.
(b) The mother's face appears like ashen.
(c) The pale complexion of the old woman seems her similar to that of a corpse.

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English Core – Question Bank

(d) The thought of the corpse forces the poet to think of her mother's young age.
5. Identify the sentence that is not true:
(a)The mother is sitting beside her daughter in a car and dozing.
(b)The daughter is seeing her mother with much attention.
(c)The mother has a positive expression on her shrunken face.
(d) The daughter feels sad while comparing her old mother’s face with pale moon

6.Which Statement is correct for this extract?

(a) The ahen face is compared to colour
(b)The Poet was driving from her parental home to the Cochin airport.
(c)The daughter thinks who will look after her mother in absence
(d)The mother thinks about safety of the daughter that why she accompanies.
7.Ashen like that of a corpse is
(a) Alliteration (b)Repetition (c)Simile (d)Personification
8.The poet of MY MOTHER AT SIXTY SIX is…….
(a) John Keats (b)Stephen Spender (c)Pablo Neruda (d)Kamala Das
9.This poem is……………….
(a)having rhyming scheme (b)no rhyming scheme-blank verse (c) specific interval rhyming scheme(d)none
of above
10.who went to see off the poet at the airport?
(a) her mother(b)her aunt (c)her friend (d)her grandmother

Q2 Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow.
Looked out at young
Trees sprinting, the merry children spilling
out of their homes, but after the airport’s
security check, standing a few yards
away, I looked again at her, wan,
pale
as a late winter’s moon and felt that
old
familiar ache

1. Choose the option that appropriately describes the relationship between the two statements given
below.
Statement 1: Mother did not seem to look at the prime of health
Statement 2: . The poet is traumatized to leave her mother alone.
a) Beginning – Ending
b) Cause – Effect
C) resposnsibility- car journey
d) relationship- rationality

2.. Choose the option that completes the sentence given below.
Just like the moon has lost its lustre and is hazy and foggy the mother, .
a) has lost her relationship with her daughter.
b) has lost the appeal and her glory of youthful days .
c) has lost touch with others and is lonely.

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English Core – Question Bank

d) has lost her memories of the past

3....And looked at the young sprinting trees..." Which poetic device has the poet used in the above line?

(a) Onomatopoeia
(b) Personification
(c) Simile
(d) Hyperbole

4. Identify the sentence that does not use the word ‘sprinting’ in its proper context:
(a) Nelly was sprinting towards the finishing line.
(b) The woman started sprinting in an alarmed manner.
(C) Siddharth was seen sprinting off to his class so as to avoid being
late before he met with an accident.
(d) The clock was making a sprinting sound.

5. The tone of the poet in the above extract is:

(a) of regret
(b) of nostalgia
(c ) of denial of the inevitable
(d) of melancholy

6. The word “spilling” here connotes:

(a) a zeal for life
(b) carefree days of childhood
(c ) boiling of milk
(d) none of the above
7. Assertion: The expression on the mother’s face was of lack of energy and vigor.
Reason: She thought her daughter was selfish as the latter is going away.
(a) Both Assertion and Reason are true and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.
(b) Both Assertion and Reason are true and reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.
(c) Assertion is true but Reason is false
(d) Assertion is false but Reason is true

8. Justify the brightness of the winter’s moon is veiled behind the haze and mist similarly:
(a) the pain of separation has shaded mother’s expression
(b) age has fogged mother’s youthful appearance
(c) growing up has developed a seasoned maturity in the poet
(d) memories warm the heart like the pale moon in winter

9. The mother’s pale and wan face is a depiction of

(a)The inevitability of nature
(b)The bond between mother and daughter
(c ) Old age related ailments
(d) A reminiscence of the youth

10.What is the most likely reason the poet capitalized ’Young Trees’?

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English Core – Question Bank

(a) Convey a clearer meaning

(b) highlight the adj-noun combination
(c) enhance the contrast
(d) draw a connection with the title
Q 3 Read the passage and answer the questions that follow.

old familiar ache,

my childhood's fear, but all
I said was, see you soon, Amma,
all I did was smile and smile and smile......

1. What was the poet's childhood fear?

(a) losing her childhood innocence.
(b) scared of losing her youth.
(c) fear of separation from her mother.
(d) The fear of losing her belongings.
2. Choose the option that appropriately describes the reason for the poet’s smile.
Statement 1: The poet smiled as she remembered with joy the beautiful vacation she spent with her mother.

Statement 2: The poet smiled because she wanted to hide her fears from her mother and reassure her that
all is well with her .

According to the context:

(a) Statement 1 is correct but statement 2 is not.

(b) Statement 2 is correct but statement 1 is not.
(c) Both statement 1 and statement 2 are correct.
(d) Both statement 1 and statement 2 are incorrect

3.What does the speaker do to cope with her fear?

(a)she hugs and kisses her mother goodbye.
(b) she cries and expresses her emotions.
(c)she smiles and pretends to be happy.
(d) she calls and talks to her mother.

4.Which pair is found incorrect?

(a) Sprinting Trees-Childhood and youth
(b) merry children-exuberance of youth
(c) childhood ache-losing mother
(d) none of above

5.The phrase ‘Old familiar ache’ has been used to refer to a fear in the extract ,This phrase can also be used
to
(a) compare physical pain with mental agony
(b) elicit someone unanswered queries
(c) substantiate reasons for aches and pains
(d) describes a longing one has been aware of

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English Core – Question Bank

6.The tone of the poet in the poem is primarily a combination of … and ….

(1) dauntlessness (2) apprehension (3) dejection (4) disappointment

(a) 1 and 2
(b) 2 and 3
(C) 3 and 4
(d) 1 and 4

7.Which poetic device is used in the line:`see you soon,Amma’?

(a) Antithesis
(b)Alliteration
(c)Analogy
(d) Apostrophe

8.From this extract it can be inferred that-

(1) The poet wanted to say many things but didn’t
(2) The poet accepted her mother’s ageing
(3) The poet pretended to be okay but wasn’t
(4) The poet was reluctant to leave but left any way.
(a)1 and 4
(b) 2 and 3
(c) 1 and 3
(d)3 and 4

9.choose the option that describes appropriately the relationship between the two statements given below.
Statement 1: The Poet knows her mother has aged.
Statement 2: The Poet feels the pain of separation.

(a)Beginning-Ending
(b)Cause-Effect
(c) Question-Answer
(d) Introduction-Conclusion

10.smile and smile and smile……….

(a)Alliteration (b) repetition (c )personification (d)Anaphora

ANSWERS:
Q1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
C C D D C B C D B A

Q2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
B B B D C A C B A C

Q3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
C B C D D B D B B B

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English Core – Question Bank

Keeping Quiet
By Pablo Neruda
1-Read the following Extracts and select the most appropriate option.
Extract-1
Now I will count to twelve
and we will all keep still.

For once on the face of the Earth

Let's not speak in any language,
Let's stop for one second,
And not move our arms so much.

1- What does twelve refer to-

a- twelve divisions of the clock
b- twelve Zodiac signs
c- twelve months
d- all of the above

2. The poet advises the people not to speak

a- French
b- Spanish
c- in any language
d- English

3- What is the poetic device used in ‘not move our arms so much’
a- Simile
b- Metaphor
c- Pun
d- Hyperbole
4. What does 'still' mean here
a- To introspect
b- To keep quiet
c- Not to do any work
d- Not to talk
Extract-2
It would be an exotic moment
Without rush, without engines,
We would all be together
In a sudden strangeness
1. What kind of moment would it be when everyone is silent
a- terrible

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English Core – Question Bank

b-Painful
c- Unusual
d- unforgettable
2. 'sudden strangeness', is one of the following poetic devices
a- Simile
b-Personification
c-alliteration
d- metaphor

3. Why does the poet wish to be without 'rush or engines'

a- one would get time to self-introspect ones's own activities
b-one would think of others activities
c- calmness in one's life
d-strangeness in one's life

4. What does 'sudden strangeness' mean

a- to build a law of quietness
b-to build a feeling of universal brotherhood
c- to be safe
d- none of the above
Extract-3
Those who prepare green wars, wars with gas,
wars with fire victory with no survivors,
would put on clean clothes and walk about with their
brothers
in the shade, doing nothing.

1. What types of War is the poet talking about?

a-green war
b- wars with gas
c-war with fire
d-All of the above

2. What does 'victory with no survivors' mean?

a- no survivors will be left to celebrate the victory
b-survivors only victorious
c- All victorious people celebrate
d- All the people are victorious

3. What does the poet mean by ' doing nothing’?

a- becoming inactive
b- not speaking in any language
c- not preparing destructive weapons

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English Core – Question Bank

d-not putting clean clothes

4-what is green war?

a-war with poisonous gas
b-war against environment
c- war with fire
d-wars with nuclear weapons

Objective type questions

Answer the following questions in one word/phrase
1-In which language the poem Keeping Quiet was originally written?
2-What is the rhyming scheme used in the poem?
3- What is the message conveyed by the poem?
4- Does the poet advocate ‘Total inactivity’?
5-What literary device is used in phrase- ‘Without rush, without engine’?
6- From where man needs to learn a lesson?
7- Why does the poet count up to 12?
8- What will the fisherman not harm?
9-Where would the man gathering salt look at?
10-What are the fishermen symbolic of?
11-What does the Earth teach us?
12-What might the ‘huge silence’ signify?
Fill in the blanks
Fill in the blanks with suitable option given.
1-Pablo Neruda won noble prize for _________________
a-Science b- Literature c- Economics d- did not win any
2- Pablo Neruda is the pen name of __________________
a- Ricardo Reyes b- Reyes Basoalto c- Ricardo Reyes Basoalto
d-No pen name
3- Counting to twelve and keeping still help us to achieve___________
a- Happiness & joy
b- Peace & unity
c- Kindness & empathy
d- Integrity & discipline
4- We learn from nature to______________
a-work silently b-enhance our beauty c-be happy d-be quiet
5-Pablo Neruda won Noble prize in ________________
a- 1871 b-1717 c- 1971 d- 1671
6- The Earth symbolises ‘When everything seems dead, later proves to be alive’.

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English Core – Question Bank

True/False

Answer Key

Extract-1 Extract -2 Extract-3

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
d c c a c c a b d a c b
Objective Type Questions
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Span No Intorspe No Repetition E 12 Whales Hurt Greed Hope Unde
ish Rhy ction, a signifie /other Hands ful rstand
me silence, r s living about ing
sche making t zodiac creatur life
me earth h signs, es
Free better months
vers place . clock
e divisio
n
Fill in the blanks
1 2 3 4 5 6
b c b a c T
r
u
e

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English Core – Question Bank

A Thing of Beauty
By John Keats
Extract : 1
1. Read the extract and answer the questions that follow
A thing of beauty is a joy forever
Its loveliness increases, it will never
Pass into nothingness; but will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth

(i) Choose the option that displays the same poetic device as used in the first line of the extract.
(a) I'm as happy as I can be.
(b) Life is a roller coaster ride.
(c) Nature is God's gift to us.
(d) The dazzling divas enchanted all.

(ii) What does the phrase 'a bower quiet' indicate?

(a) Serenity
(b) Morality
(c) Superiority
(d) Diversity

(iii) The benefits of a thing of beauty for humans include

(i) healthy body (iii) struggle-free life
(ii) calm mind (iv) better relationships
(v) hope to carry on

Choose the most appropriate option.

(a) Only (v) (c) (i), (iii) and (iv)
(b) (i), (ii) and (v) (d) (ii) and (iv)

(iv ) Answer in ONE word.

When the poet says that 'a thing of beauty' will never pass into nothingness, he means that it
is_________________
(v) On the basis of the extract, choose the correct option with reference to the two statements given
below.
(1) We are surrounded by beautiful things.
(2) Beautiful things provide us joy.
(a)
(1) can be inferred from the extract but (2) cannot.

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English Core – Question Bank

(b) (2) can be inferred from the extract but (1) cannot.
(c) Both (1) and (2) can be inferred from the extract.
(d) (2) is the reason for (1) and can be inferred from the extract.

(vi) Which of the following is an apt title for the extract?

(a) Full to the Brim with Joy
(b) Beauty Galore
(c) Live Life King Size
(d) Hope Floats

Extract : 2
Therefore, one every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'er darkened ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits.

(i) Which poetic device has been used by the poet in the phrase "are we wreathing a flowery band"?
(a) Alliteration
(b) Synecdoche
(c) Metaphor
(d) Simile

(ії) Give one cause of human suffering.

(a) Lack of noble nature
(b) Lack of money
(c) Selfishness
(d) Communication gap

(iii) What does the word 'despondence' mean?

(a) Gloominess
(b) Happiness
(c) Enthusiasm
(d) Confidence

(iv) What is name of the poem from which the above stanza has been taken?
(a) A Thing of Beauty
(b) Keeping Quiet
(c) My Mother at Sixty-six
(d) Aunt Jennifer's Tigers

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English Core – Question Bank

(v) Which line evokes the optimistic tone of the extract?

(a). A flowery band to bind us to the earth

(b). Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
(c). Of all the unhealthy and o'er-darkened ways
(d). Some shape of beauty moves away the pall

(vi) Select the option that uses the same literary device as the below line from the extract.

Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth

Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,

(a). Sing to me, Autumn, with the rustle of your leaves.

(b). Tyger Tyger, burning bright, in the forests of the night.
(c). Her beauty hangs upon the cheek of night, Like a rich jewel.
(d). All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players.

Extract : 3
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have heard or read;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven's brink.

(i) Who's the mighty dead here?

(a)The ones who died as gods
(b)Ones who died on the battlefield
(c)The ones who died for a noble cause
(d) The ones who died for greed

(ii) What lovely tales' is the poet referring to?

(a) Tales of bravery and sacrifice
(b) Tales of blood bath
(c) Tales of loss and death
(d) Tales of great love

(iii) Which word in the lines has the same meaning as 'eternal'?
(a) Grandeur
(b) Imagined
(c) Mighty
(d) Endless

(iv) Select the option that uses the same literary device as the below line from the extract.

“All lovely tales that we have heard or read;”

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English Core – Question Bank

a) All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players;
b) Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both
c) Once upon a time a frog, Croaked away in Bingle Bog
d) The crowds upon the pavement,
e) were fields of harvest wheat.

(v) Select that option that has the same rhyme scheme as these lines from the given stanza.
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have heard or read;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven's brink.

a) Tell me not, in mournful numbers,

Life is but an empty dream!
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.
b) It is an ancient Mariner,
And he stoppeth one of three.
'By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?
c) Sing of azure, crystaline lakes,
with sandy shores, and rocky breaks.
To lay, relaxed, beneath clear sky,
dream away, as clouds flitter by.
d) “Lull me to sleep, ye winds, whose fitful sound
Seems from some faint Aeolian harp-string caught;
Seal up the hundred wakeful eyes of thought
As Hermes with his lyre in sleep profound
The hundred wakeful eyes of Argus bound;

EXTRACT: 4

Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms;

And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have heard or read;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven’s brink.

(i) Pick the quote that matches best with—

‘And such too is the grandeur of the dooms we have imagined for the mighty dead.’

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English Core – Question Bank

a) In the night of death, hope sees a star, and listening love can hear the rustle of a wing.
b) When a great man dies, for years the light he leaves behind him, lies on the paths of men.
c) Endings are not always bad, most times they’re just beginnings in disguise.
d) Cowards die many times before their death; the valiant never taste of death but once.

(ii) Pick the option that refers to what ‘an endless fountain of immortal drink’ suggests.
1. inspirational deeds of great men
2. a ceaseless series of dreams
3. an infinite source of strength
4. an elixir of life for upliftment of the soul
5. an eternal source of delight
6. a boundless gift of love

a) 1, 4 and 5 b) 2, 3 and 5 c) 1, 2 and 6 d) 2, 4 and 6

(iii) Pick the option that pairs the TRUE statements based on the extract, from the list below.
1. The bushes with fragrant flowers lift the human spirit and bring joy.
2. Death is inevitable and everyone faces it no matter how powerful.
3. Immortality is achieved by man when he drinks the nectar of joy.
4. Legendary heroes and their heroic deeds instil inspiration in us.

a) 1 and 2 b) 2 and 4 c) 1 and 4 d) 2 and 3

(iv) Pick the option that uses the same literary device as the ‘mighty dead’.
a) sleepless nights
b) deafening silence
c) glaring lights
d) time is a thief
EXTRACT: 5
A thing of beauty is a joy forever
Its loveliness increases, it will never
pass into nothingness: but will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health and quiet and breathing
Therefore, on every morrow are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'er darkened ways
Made of our searching.

(i) Keats defined beauty as___________

(a) transient
(b) eternal
(c) illusionary
(d) short lived

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English Core – Question Bank

(ii) 'will keep a bower quiet for us' means all of the following EXCEPT
(a) create a peaceful, shady place
(b) provide a shelter
(c) will decrease noise pollution
(d) nature's canopy

(iii) On the basis of the extract choose the correct option with reference to the two
statements given below.

1. Beautiful things uplift the soul

2.Beauty is ever-changing

(a) 1 can be inferred from the extract but 2 cannot

(b) 2 can be inferred from the extract but 1 cannot
(c) both 1 and 2 can be inferred from the extract
(d) both 1 and 2 cannot be inferred from the extract

(iv) The things that cause unhappiness are

(1) lack of noble nature (2) old tunes
(3) dull days (4) calm mind
(5) a flowery band (6) strong relationship
Choose the most appropriate option
(a) (1) and (2) (b) (1) and (3)
(c) (4) and (5) (d) (3) and (6)

(v) Complete the analogy. Do not repeat from used example

flowery band: metaphor:: alliteration______________________

(vi) According to the poet 'every morrow' we are__________________

EXTRACT: 6.

Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing

A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o’er darkened ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits.

(i) In which of the following options can the underlined words be replaced with
‘despondence’?
a) The man paced about the room showing restlessness.
b) A chat with a close friend can take away our blues.
c) I was in jitters, seeing the boy trapped in the trench,
d) Being dogged is what led him to negotiate the challenges.

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English Core – Question Bank

(ii) Pick the option that is NOT an example of ‘unhealthy and o’er darkened ways.’
a) A person who is egoistic and looks down upon others.
b) A person who seeks God’s help for all his problems.
c) A person who uses evil ways to deceive others.
d) A person who is corrupt and manipulative.

(iii) Pick the option that enumerates what ‘noble natures’ would include.
1. selflessness
2. insensitivity
3. enthusiasm
4. aggression
5. meticulousness
6. judiciousness

a) 1, 4 and 5
b) 2, 3 and 6
c) 2, 4 and 5
d) 1, 3 and 6

(iv) Based on the poem, choose the correct option with reference to the two statements
given below.

Statement 1: The earth without the beautiful things is a place full of despair and
unpleasantness.
Statement 2: The ornate band created by human beings; ushers hope in their lives.

a) Statement 1 is true but Statement 2 is false.

b) Statement 1 is false but Statement 2 is true.
c) Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 can be inferred.
d) Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 cannot be inferred.

ANSWER KEY

EXTRACT:1
(I) (II) (III) (IV) (V) (VI)
(b) Life is a roller (a) Serenity (b) (i), (ii) Immortal (b) (2) can be inferred from the (d) Hope
coaster ride. and (v) extract but (1) cannot. Floats

EXTRACT:2
(I) (II) (III) (IV) (V) (VI)
(c) Metaphor (a) Lack of (a)Gloominess (a) A Thing of D. Some shape of B. Tyger
noble nature Beauty beauty moves away Tyger, burning
the pall bright, in the
forests of the
night.

EXTRACT:3
(I) (II) (III) (IV) (V)

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English Core – Question Bank

(c) the ones (a) tales of (d) (c) Once upon a (d) “Lull me to sleep, ye winds,
who died for bravery and Endless time a frog whose fitful sound
a noble caus sacrifice Croaked away … Seems from some faint Aeolian
harp…

EXTRACT:4
(I) (II) (III) (IV)
b) When a great man dies, a) 1, 4 and 5 c) 1 and 4 b) deafening silence
for years the light he
leaves behind him, lies on
the paths of men.

EXTRACT:5
(I) (II) (III) (IV) (V) (VI)
(b) eternal (a) create a a) 1 can be (b) (1) and (3) flowery band: We are
peaceful, shady inferred from metaphor ,noble wreathing a
place the extract natures: flowery band
but 2 cannot Alliteration because it binds
us to the earth
and makes us
live our lives in
spite of the
sadness

EXTRACT:6
(I) (II) (III) (IV)
b) Our blues. b) A person d) 1, 3 and 6 c) Both Statement 1 and Statement
who seeks 2 can be inferred.
God’s help for
all his
problems.

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English Core – Question Bank

A Roadside Stand
- By Robert Frost

About the poet

Robert Frost-
American poet, wrote about settings from rural life, only poet to receive four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry.

Notable works: A Boy’s Will, North of Boston, New Hampshire

Central idea:
The poem A Roadside Stand is the artist's request for thought for the helplessly low individuals who work
tirelessly yet their lives have indicated no advancement. He communicates his torment at their pity and
distress and looks for help and alleviation for them. He trusts that somebody would work unselfishly for
their restoration and not misuse them. He draws out the complete dissimilarity between the wealthy and
the poor with hard-hearted clearness and humankind and implies that the monetary prosperity of a nation
relies upon a fair advancement of towns and urban communities.

Read the extracts given below and attempt the questions that follow:

1. “No, in country money, the country scale of gain,

The requisite lift of spirit has never been found,
Or so the voice of the country seems to complain,
I can’t help owning the great relief it would be
To put these people at one stroke out of their pain.
And then next day as I come back into the sane,
I wonder how I should like you to come to me
And offer to put me gently out of my pain.”

1. The ‘country money’ contextually here refers to

A) money kept aside for rural development.
B) wealth accumulated by the whole country.
C) meagre income earned by the countryside people.

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English Core – Question Bank

D) riches collected by the ancestral farmers over time.

2. Choose the correct option with respect to the two statements given below.
Statement 1: The poet is agitated and depressed.
Statement 2: The poet realizes the futility of his thought about giving up
A) Statement 1 can be inferred but Statement 2 cannot be inferred.
B) Statement 1 cannot be inferred but Statement 2 can be inferred.
C) Statement 1 and Statement 2 can be inferred.
D) Statement 1 and Statement 2 cannot be inferred

3. Choose the option that correctly paraphrases the given lines from the above extract.
“I can’t help owning the great relief it would be
To put these people at one stroke out of their pain.”
A) The poet wants to kill the impoverished people.
B) The poet feels that death is better than living such a miserable life.
C) The poet wants to eliminate poverty from society.
D) The poet states that it is important that these people become rich

2. “The polished traffic passed with a mind ahead,

Or if ever aside a moment, then out of sorts
At having the landscape marred with the artless paint
Of signs that with N turned wrong and S turned wrong…”

4.The polished traffic in particular refers to the

A) sophisticated city dwellers in their vehicles.
B) shiny cars that the poet sees on the road.
C) extremely affluent people living in the neighbourhood.
D) civilized manner in which traffic is coordinated.

5. ‘The urban and educated people have their minds ahead.’

Choose the option suggesting the correct meaning behind this line.

1 2
The people are well educated and The people are concentrating on the road that
knowledgeable about the condition of the poor. is ahead in order to drive safely.

3 4
The people are preoccupied only by the thoughts The people are focused on their goal of
of their lives and nothing else. bettering the country.

A) Option 1
B) Option 2
C) Option 3
D) Option 4

6. What do the urban rich feel about the S and N signs that have been painted wrong?
A) Tolerant
B) Amused

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English Core – Question Bank

C) Sympathetic
D) Annoyed

3. It is in the news that all these pitiful kin

Are to be bought out and mercifully gathered in
To live in villages, next to the theatre and the store,
Where they won’t have to think for themselves anymore,
While greedy good-doers, beneficent beasts of prey,
Swarm over their lives enforcing benefits
That are calculated to soothe them out of their wits,
And by teaching them how to sleep they sleep all day,
Destroy their sleeping at night the ancient way.

7. Complete the following analogy correctly. Do NOT repeat from the used example.

greedy good doers: alliteration:: __________: Oxymoron

A) pitiful kin
B) beneficent beasts of prey
C) out of their wits
D) lives enforcing benefits

8. On the basis of the extract, choose the correct option with reference to (1) and (2) given below.

1. The city dwellers make promises for the betterment of the villagers.
2. The city dwellers have ulterior motives

A) (1) is true but (2) is false.

B) (2) is true but (1) is false.
C) (2) is the reason for (1).
D) Both (1) and (2) cannot be inferred from the extract.

9. Pick the option with the slogan that is likely to be used by a person selling at the roadside stand.

Slogan 1 Slogan 2 Slogan 3 Slogan 4

Corruption,
Men and women
By the people and for the I see humans but no corruption, you leave
inequality; a road to
people. humanity. my country. That’s
dignity.
all I pray!

A) Slogan 1
B) Slogan 2
C) Slogan 3
D) Slogan 4

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English Core – Question Bank

Q.10 What was twisted wrong, as in the poem ‘A roadside stand’?

A) The house doors
B) The direction signs
C) The window panes
D) All of the above
Q.11 What do the flowers of cities in a roadside stand refer to?
A) rich city people
B) city cars
C) urban crowd
D) The pleasures of cities

Q.12 Who are greedy doers in the poem ‘A Roadside Stand”?

A). Foxy Politicians
B). Government
C). Charitable trust
D). Countryside people

Q.13 Who are the ‘pitiful kin’ in the poem?

A) social agencies
B) government officials
C) city people with cars
D) The poor rural folk and farmers

Q.14 What do people in vehicles think about the roadside stand?

A) A way of finding a route
B). A curse
C). they find it a obstruction in beautiful landscape
D). they think that countryside people are mentally poor

Q.15 The poet's purpose in writing 'A Roadside Stand' is to __________.

A) motivate city people to live as humbly as the rural folk
B) draw attention to the glamorous life of the city people
C) eliminate his own pain about the situation of the poor
D) lament the pitiable condition of the rural folk

Q.16 What did the poor people wait in vain for, as in the poem ‘A roadside stand’?
A) For their products to sell
B) For cash flow
C) For a good opportunity
D) None of the above

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English Core – Question Bank

Q.17. ‘A roadside stand that too pathetically pled’- what is the figure of speech in this line from the
poem ‘A Roadside Stand’?
A) Alliteration
B) Personification
C) Simile
D) Metaphor

Q.18. How will the poet be at peace, in context of the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’?
A) When the poor will come out of their misery
B) When the rich will become big hearted
C) When the villagers will live a better life
D) All of the above

Q.19 Name the figure of speech in this line from the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’- ‘greedy good-doers,
beneficent beasts of prey’.
A) Repetition
B) Oxymoron
C) Simile
D) Metaphor
Q.20 How were the city dwellers by nature in the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’?
A) Humble & cooperative
B) Sweet & understanding
C) Helpful & big hearted
D) Mean & insensitive
Q.21 In the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’, there is a ________ as the poor people wait near the open
window.
A) great deal of confusion
B) great deal of mayhem
C) great deal of anxiety
D) great deal of sadness
Q.22 What were the people selling as in the poem ‘A roadside stand’?
A) Farm products
B) Dairy products
C) Daily utility products
D)All of the above

Q.23 What is unbearable for the poet of the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’?
A) the sight of poor people
B) to see the childish longing of the people as they wait for customers in vain
C) the sight of poor people struggling
D) none of the above
Q.24 What did the stand sell, as in the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’?
A) wild berries in wooden containers

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B) golden squash with a silver lump in twisted necked bottles

C) fruit juices in colourful bottles
D )Both (A) & (B)

Q.25 What news in the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’ is making its round in the village?
Ans.: The news making its round is about the resettlement of the poor, rural people who will be resettled
in the villages, next to the theatre and the store. They would be close to the cities and will not have to
worry about themselves any more.

Q.26 Explain: “soothe them out of their wits” with reference to the poem The Roadside Stand’.
Ans.: The powerful men approach the country folk with false promises of providing them with better
living conditions and a better life. These innocent and simple rustics repose blind faith in their false
claims and feel soothed and satisfied. They fail to see through their crookedness and selfishness.

Q.27 What was the plea of the folk who had put up the roadside stand?
Ans.: The folk who had put up the roadside stand pleaded to the city dwellers to stop and buy their
wares so as to enable them to earn some extra money for a decent living.

Q.28 Why does Robert Frost sympathise with the rural poor?
Ans.: Robert Frost feels an unbearable agony at the plight of the rural poor who are ignored and neglected
by the rich politicians. The Government and the party in power are indifferent to their welfare. They fool
them by making false promises and then fully exploit them to suit their own selfish interests.

Q.29 The poor people had marred …………………….. , in the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’?
Ans.: landscape, scenic view of the place

Q.30 What is the ‘childish longing’ that the poet refers to? Why is it ‘vain’?

The poet refers to the farmers' longing for customers at their roadside stall as “childish longing”. This is
because no one stopped and even if they did, it was for asking direction or to buy gas. Hence, this child-
like wait is in 'vain' and childish longing.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
C B B A C D B C C B
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
A A D C D B B D B D
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
D A B D

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25. about the resettlement of the poor

26. false promises of providing them with better living conditions and a better life
27. pleaded to the city dwellers to stop and buy their wares
28. rural poor who are ignored and neglected, false promises and then fully exploit
29. landscape / scenic view of the place
30. longing for customers at their roadside stall

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AUNT JENNIFER’S TIGERS

ANDRRIENNE RICH

Q:1 Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across a screen,
Bright topaz denizens of a world of green.
They do not fear the men beneath the tree;
They pace in sleek chivalric certainty.
1.How are Aunt Jennifer’s tigers described?
A. bright B. confident C. chivalric D. All of these

2. The tigers are called ‘Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers’ because_____________.

A. she has tamed them B. she has trained them
C. she has embroidered them D. she has sheltered them

3. Complete the sentence appropriately:

Tigers are described as denizens of a world of green because________________.
A. they are natives of forests B. they like forests
C. they don’t like the world of people D. they cannot survive anywhere else

4. Which poetic device is used in the last line, ‘They pace in sleek chivalric certainty.’
A. simile B. alliteration C. metaphor D. assonance

5. Complete the following statement:

The tigers are completely different from their creator because
A. they are bold whereas aunt is timid B. they are chivalric but aunt shrewd
C. they are wild but aunt is civilized D none of the above

6. What was Aunt mastered by?

A. her embroidery skills B. her culinary skills
C. her taming of tigers D. her ordeals

Q:2 Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:

Aunt Jennifer's finger fluttering through her wool

Find even the ivory needle hard to pull.
The massive weight of Uncle's wedding band
Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer's hand.

7. How would you describe Aunt Jennifer based on the above extract?
A. oppressed B. malnourished C. ageing D. diseased

8. Uncle’s wedding band sits heavily on Aunt Jennifer’s hand because

A. it is an expensive and heavy ring. B. she was married against her will.
C. she feels burdened in her marriage. D. their relationship is lacking in love.

9. Pick the option that displays the image which correctly corresponds to the type of task Aunt is engaged
in.

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English Core – Question Bank

A. Option (i) B. Option (ii) C. Option (iii) D. Option (iv)

10. Which of the following is an example of an alliteration?

A. finger fluttering through the wool B. upon Aunt Jennifer’s hand
C. ivory needle hard to pull D. massive weight of Uncle's wedding band

11. A word which cannot be considered a synonym of Massive.

A. huge B. enormous C. dwarfed D. giant

12. Here, ‘Wedding Band’ is a symbol of ……………..

A. Restrictions on women after marriage B. Constraints of married life
C. both A and B D. bond of love and respect

Q:4 Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:

“When Aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie

Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by.
The tigers in the panel that she made
Will go on prancing, proud and unafraid.”

13. Read the statement given below:

Aunt Jennifer’s plight is best explained by her hands, they hold both her freedom and the instrument of her
imprisonment.

Choose the option that best explains the above statement, as per the extract.
A. Aunt Jennifer’s hands are terrified, but when she is dead, her tigers will roam free.
B. Aunt Jennifer knits her desires, but is overpowered by the wedding ring she wears.
C. Aunt Jennifer’s tigers are proud and unafraid, but she is mastered by ringed ordeals.
D. Aunt Jennifer makes panels of tigers when she has time from her responsibilities.

14. Which of the following CANNOT be inferred from the given extract?
A. Aunt Jennifer’s tigers will keep her alive in everyone’s memory.
B. Aunt Jennifer feels oppressed and constricted in her marriage.
C. Even in death, Aunt Jennifer cannot escape patriarchal subjugation.
D. Aunt Jennifer’s tigers prance as a lasting symbol of her desires.

15. What makes the tigers “proud and unafraid”?

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A. They embody the grandeur and are beautiful.

B. They are ‘topaz denizens of green’.
C. They represent Aunt’s repressed desires for freedom and power.
D. They are a product of Aunt’s imagination and colonial experience.

16. Choose the option that DOES NOT reflect the movement implied by ‘prancing’.
A. bounding B. frolicking C. strutting D. shuffling

17. The poetic device …………….. is used in the last line, Will go on prancing, proud and unafraid.”
A. Assonance B. Pun C. Alliteration D. Metaphor

18. What was an innate desire of the Aunt?

A. to be fearless and free like tigers B. to be independent in making small decisions
C. to be proud and chivalric D. All of the above

Q:5 STAND ALONE MCQS

19. Read the statements given below. Choose the option that accurately describes the given statements.

Statement I - The poem is a manifesto against the institution of marriage.

Statement II - Aunt Jennifer represents all women artists.
Statement III – The poem embodies an alternative for women to express their repressed desires through art.

A. Statement I is True, Statement II is False, Statement III cannot be inferred.

B. Statement I and III are False, Statement II cannot be inferred.
C. Statement I and II are True, Statement III cannot be inferred.
D. Statement I is False, Statement II cannot be inferred, Statement III is True.

20. Which of the following does NOT represent the contrast between Aunt Jennifer and the tigers?
A. uncertainty and confidence B. terror and fearlessness
C. fiefdom and freedom D. authority and autonomy

21. Choose the option that does NOT reflect what the tigers represent in the poem:
A. Aunt Jennifer’s undying hopes B. Aunt Jennifer’s failing marriage
C. Aunt Jennifer’s artistic merit D. Aunt Jennifer’s desires.

22. What issue does the poem Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers address?
A. constraints of women B. constraints of married life a woman experiences
C. constraints of women as a poet D. None

23. What do aunt Jennifer’s fluttering hands through her wool in the second stanza tell us?
A. the lost freedom and fear of Jennifer’s mind because of marital restraints
B. her old age
C. her love for embroidery and knitting
D. her love for tigers

24. What are the ordeals aunt Jennifer is surrounded by?

A) wild animals B) old people
C) a heavy crowd D) heavy responsibilities of married life

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25. What is the purpose of creating animals which are completely in contrast to aunt’s character?
A) to show her strength and ability of not giving up in the face of difficulties
B) her courage
C) her fears and strengths
D) none

26. What is the poet conveying through Aunt Jennifer’s tiger?

A) wild life B) courageous tigers
C) tigers and their courage D) female existence and their fear of men

27. What is the tone of the poem towards the end?

A) happy moments B) resolving C) sad and tensed D) hopeful

28. Why did aunt embroider tigers on the panel?

A) to express her suppressed feelings B) to express her strengths
C) to express her fighting spirit of a warrior D) All these

29. Sleek chivalric certainty’ of the tigers means

(A) totally free movement of the tigers (B) ensure tiger in the cage
(C) tiger moving in his cage (D) tiger trying to be chivalrous

30. What is the meaning of the word ‘ringed’?

A) circles of a ring B) her wedding ring around finger
C) circles of responsibility of married life D) none

ANSWER KEY

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
D C A B A D A C B A
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
C C B A C D C D B D
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
B B A D A D C D A C

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English Core – Question Bank

The Third Level

- Jack Finney

Read the given extracts and answer the questions that follow:

1. “THE presidents of the New York Central and the New York, New Haven and Hartford railroads will
swear on a stack of timetables that there are only two. But I say there are three, because I’ve been on the
third level of the Grand Central Station. Yes, I’ve taken the obvious step: I talked to a psychiatrist friend of
mine, among others. I told him about the third level at Grand Central Station, and he said it was a waking-
dream wish fulfillment. He said I was unhappy. That made my wife kind of mad, but he explained that he
meant the modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry and all the rest of it, and that I just want to
escape. Well, who doesn’t? Everybody I know wants to escape, but they don’t wander down into any third
level at Grand Central Station.”

1. The narrator was sure that there were three levels because __________
a. He had been on the third level of the Grand Central Station.
b. The Presidents of railroads would swear on a stack of timetables.
c. He had taken the obvious step to visit his psychiatrist friend.
d. He was not unhappy.

2. What was/were the narrator’s psychiatrist friend’s opinion/s?

a. The narrator was unhappy.
b. The modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war and worry.
c. Option a
d. Both Options a & b

3. “That made my wife kind of mad…”

Pick up the option that carries the meaning of ‘mad’ same as in the given context.

i. Insane
ii. Annoyed
iii. Angry
iv. Crazy

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English Core- Question Bank

a. Option iii
b. Option i and iii
c. Option ii and iii
d. Option ii

4. What was the ‘Obvious step’ in the extract?

a. Going to the third level.
b. Consulting the psychiatrist friend.
c. Escape from the modern world.
d. Both a & c

2. But that’s the reason, he said, and my friends all agreed. Everything points to it, they claimed. My stamp
collecting, for example; that’s a ‘temporary refuge from reality.’ Well, maybe, but my grandfather didn’t need
any refuge from reality; things were pretty nice and peaceful in his day, from all I hear, and he started my
collection. It’s a nice collection too, blocks of four of practically every U.S. issue, first-day covers, and so on.
President Roosevelt collected stamps too, you know.

5. Which of the following cannot be inferred from the given extract?

a. People collect stamps as a hobby.
b. People collect stamps for temporary refuge from reality.
c. People collect stamps when they feel nice and peaceful.
d. President Roosevelt collected stamps.

6. Charley’s all friends agreed that ____________________

a. The Third Level exists.
b. His hobby of stamp collecting is a temporary refuge from reality.
c. The grandfather started Charley’s collection.
d. things were pretty nice and peaceful back then.

7. Which of the given images represents ‘a block of four’ as per the given extract?

a. b.

c. d.

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English Core- Question Bank

8. Based on the given statement, choose the correct option.

Assertion: “…..but my grandfather didn’t need any refuge from reality.”

Reason 1: All other people of the narrator’s grandfather’s time needed temporary refuge.
Reason 2: The narrator’s grandfather was a mentally healthy and happy person.

a. Reason 1 and Reason 2 both can be inferred from the assertion.

b. Reason 1 can be inferred but Reason 2 cannot be inferred from the assertion.
c. Reason 1 cannot be inferred but Reason 2 can be inferred.
d. Reason 1 and Reason 2 both cannot be inferred.

3. Anyway, here’s what happened at Grand Central. One night last summer I worked late at the office. I was
in a hurry to get uptown to my apartment so I decided to take the subway from Grand Central because it’s
faster than the bus. Now, I don’t know why this should have happened to me. I’m just an ordinary guy named
Charley, thirty-one years old, and I was wearing a tan gabardine suit and a straw hat with a fancy band; I passed
a dozen men who looked just like me. And I wasn’t trying to escape from anything; I just wanted to get home
to Louisa, my wife.

9. Charley chose the subway over the bus because ____________________

i. He worked late at the office and he wanted to get to his apartment early.
ii. The subway is faster than the bus.
iii. He wanted to find the third level.
iv. He was trying to escape from something.

a. Option iv
b. Option i and iv
c. Option i and ii
d. Option ii and iv

10. “Now, I don’t know why this should have happened to me.” What is Charley referring to here in this
statement?

a. Discovering the Third Level.

b. Getting late to get to his apartment.
c. Working late at his office.
d. A dozen men looking just like him

11. Which of the statements is/are not true about Charley?

a. Charley is a thirty-one years old ordinary guy.
b. Charley wore a gaberdine suit with a fancy band.
c. Charley was trying to escape a dozen of men who looked just like him.
d. Charley wanted to get to his wife Louisa.

12. Which of the following images represents the Gaberdine suit with a straw hat.

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English Core- Question Bank

a. b.

c. d.

4. I turned into Grand Central from Vanderbilt Avenue, and went down the steps to the first level, where you
take trains like the Twentieth Century. Then I walked down another flight to the second level, where the
suburban trains leave from, ducked into an arched doorway heading for the subway — and got lost. That’s
easy to do. I’ve been in and out of Grand Central hundreds of times, but I’m always bumping into new
doorways and stairs and corridors. Once I got into a tunnel about a mile long and came out in the lobby of the
Roosevelt Hotel. Another time I came up in an office building on Forty-sixth Street, three blocks away.

13. ‘That’s easy to do.’ The narrator states that it’s easy to ____________________.
a. Get lost in the Grand Central Station
b. Catch suburban trains.
c. Find the third level.
d. To come out in the lobby of Roosevelt Hotel.

14. ‘Then I walked down another flight to the second level…’

In which of the following sentences the meaning of the word ‘flight’ is as same as in the above given
sentence.

a. The seagull took his first ever flight.

b. New York to Singapore is a really long flight.
c. A typical flight of stairs has 13 to 16 steps.
d. The refugee’s flight from the warzone was not observed by the officers.

15. Which of the following is not the narrator’s experience at the Grand Central Station?

a. Bumping into new doorways, stairs and corridors.

b. Getting into long tunnels.
c. Never getting lost.
d. Catching trains for different places.

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16. The given extract is about ____________________

a. The description of the Grand Central Station.

b. The narrator’s journey to his home.
c. The narrator’s escapism.
d. The third level.

5. Sometimes I think Grand Central is growing like a tree, pushing out new corridors and staircases like roots.
There’s probably a long tunnel that nobody knows about feeling its way under the city right now, on its way
to Times Square, and maybe another to Central Park. And maybe — because for so many people through the
years Grand Central has been an exit, a way of escape — maybe that’s how the tunnel I got into... But I never
told my psychiatrist friend about that idea.

17. The above extract is not an example of _____________________.

a. Allegory
b. Analogy
c. Imagery
d. Metaphor

18. The grand Central has been compared with a tree because ____________________.
a. There is a park inside the Grand Central.
b. Exit and entry of people and trains are random like tree leaves.
c. It is always growing, like a tree.
d. It has many tunnels like the branches of a tree.

19. The idiom ‘feeling its way’ implies ______ movement.

a. swift
b. tentative
c. circular
d. disorganized

20. The narrator never told his psychiatrist friend about the idea because ________________________
a. He did not want his psychiatrist friend to know about this secret.
b. He thought his psychiatrist friend would not believe him.
c. He thought his psychiatrist friend would make fun of him.
d. Both a and c

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STAND ALONE MCQs

21. How would you describe Charley?

a. confused, happy-go-lucky
b. escapist, adventurous
c. imaginative, nostalgic
d. friendly, responsible

22. What happens when Charley enters the Grand Central Station?
a. He finds a huge tree like Station
b. new staircases, corridors and tunnels
c. tree keeps spreading its roots throwing rooms and windows
d. All of these

23. Why was the narrator seeing this Third Level?

a. as a wish to visit Galesburg
b. wanted to meet his friends
c. wanted to take a break from office
d. As a result of stress and anxiety in his mind

24. What did Charley see at the Third Level?

a. flickering gas lights and people with funny mustaches
b. brass spittoons
c. men wearing a tan gabardine suit and a straw
d. All these

25. Choose the option that best describes the society of Galesburg, Illinois as per the chapter.
a. content, peace-loving
b. leisurely, sentimental
c. orthodox, upper class
d. comfortable, ancient

26. How would you describe Charley’s vision of his grandfather’s life and times?
a. wistful escapism
b. idealized sentimentality
c. nostalgic simplicity
d. dreamy perfection

27. What does Sam’s letter to Charley represent?

a. A made up story
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English Core- Question Bank

b. an acceptance to visit
c. a proof of his fantasy
d. a blend of reality with fantasy

28. What convinced Charly that he had reached the Third Level Grand Central Station and not the second
level?
a. A different world of gas lights and brass spittoons
b. beards and mustaches of 1894
c. newspaper with a date June 11, 1894
d. All of these

29. What is ‘Waking dream wish fulfillment” according to the psychiatrist in the lesson?
a. Charley’s finding of the Third level at Grand Central Station
b. Charley’s realization of his wish to visit Galesburg Illinois
c. Charley’s escapism from realities
d. Both a & b

30. Why was the narrator seeing this Third Level?

a. as a wish to visit Galesburg
b. wanted to meet his friends
c. wanted to take a break from office
d. As a result of stress and anxiety in his mind

Answer Key:

Q. No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Correct Ans. A D C B C B A C C A
Q. No 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Correct Ans. C B A C C A A C B A
Q. No 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Correct Ans. B D D D B B D D D D

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English Core- Question Bank

THE TIGER KING:

BY KALKI

EXTRACT BASED QUESTIONS :

I. From that day onwards it was celebration time for all the tigers inhabiting

Pratibandapuram. The state banned tiger hunting by anyone except the

Maharaja. A proclamation was issued to the effect that if anyone dared to fling

so much as a stone at a tiger, all his wealth and property would be confiscated.

The Maharaja vowed he would attend to all other matters only after killing the

hundred tigers. Initially the king seemed well set to realise his ambition.

Not that he faced no dangers. There were times when the bullet missed its

mark, the tiger leapt upon him and he fought the beast with his bare hands.

Each time it was the Maharaja who won.

1. The tone of the author when he says, ‘it was celebration time for all tigers’ is

A. solemn.

B. sarcastic

C. sympathetic

D. mocking.

2. Pick the pair of TRUE statements based on the extract.

1. Tiger hunting was absolutely banned in the kingdom.

2. The Maharaja was extremely courageous and fearless.

3. The Maharaja paid no heed to matters related to his kingdom.

4. The Maharaja was able to fulfil his ambition, without any perils.

A. 1 and 2

B. 2 and 4

C. 2 and 3

D. 1 and 4
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English Core- Question Bank

3. In which of the following options can the underlined words NOT be replaced

with ‘proclamation’?

A. The politician shared his manifesto during the election meeting.

B. All the citizens of the kingdom had to abide by the emperor’s edict.

C. The communique made by the official had a disastrous effect.

D. The decree of the state forbade cruelty against animals.

4. On the basis of this passage, pick the option that enumerates the

characteristics of the king.

1. gullible.

2. arrogant.

3. willful

4. aggressive

5. apathetic

6. scrupulous

A. 1, 2 and 6

B. 3, 4 and 6

C. 3, 5 and 6

D. 2, 3 and 5

5. What literary device is used by the narrator when he says “so much as a stone” in the extract?

A. Oxymoron

B. Pun

C. Assonance

D. Hyperbole

II. “What if the hundredth tiger were also killed?”

“Then I will tear up all my books on astrology, set fire to them, and …” “And … “

“I shall cut off my tuft, crop my hair short and become an insurance agent,” the astrologer finished on an
incoherent note.

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English Core- Question Bank

6. Who said, “What if the hundredth tiger were also killed?”

A. Astrologers

B. Maharaja

C. Dewan

D. People

7. Why did the astrologer announce that he would cut off his ceremonial tuft?

A. Because the prophecy made by him seemed no relevance

B. Because he was sure of his prediction that the Maharaja’s death would be caused by the 100th tiger
C. Because the prediction made by the astrologer seemed to be untrue to his colleagues
D. Because his wife had raised her doubt about his astrology

8. The speaker urged the astrologer to make further promise to himself saying “And ….. “. This shows his:

A. obstinate attitude
B. malleable attitude
C. non- resistant attitude
D. amenable attitude

9. Complete the following analogy.

incoherent : lucid : : confiscated : _________

A. Fetch

B. Return

C. Seize

D. Attach

10. The meaning of phrase “Cut Off” as used in the extract:

A. Break off

B. Stop

C. End

D. Discontinue

III. Your Majesty, this is an extremely rare example of craftsmanship. A bargain at three hundred rupees!”

“Very good. Let this be your offering to the crown prince on his birthday,” said the king and took it away with him.
On that day father and son played with that tiny little wooden tiger. It had been carved by an unskilled carpenter.

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English Core- Question Bank

Its surface was rough; tiny slivers of wood stood up like quills all over it. One of those slivers pierced the
Maharaja’s right hand. He pulled it out with his left hand and continued to play with the prince.

The next day, infection flared in the Maharaja’s right hand. In four days, it developed into a suppurating sore
which spread all over the arm.

Three famous surgeons were brought in from Madras. After holding a consultation, they decided to operate. The
operation took place.

The three surgeons who performed it came out of the theatre and announced, “The operation was successful. The
Maharaja is dead.”

11. Complete the following sentence.

The tiny slivers of wood on the wooden tiger stood up like quills all over resulted in _______

A. Outrage of the king

B. Reward for the craftsman

C. Maharaja’s unfortunate and unprecedented demise

D. None of the above

12. The proverb ‘penny wise and pound foolish’ aptly justifies the extract.

A. True

B. False

13. The word ‘suppurating’, as used in the above extract, means the same as:

A. saturating B. blowing up C. rampaging D. swelling up

14. What would you NOT choose from the following if you are to justify the ending of the story ‘The Tiger King’?

1. Tame 2. Spontaneous 3. Unconstrained 4. Unpremeditated

5. Contrived 6. Gratuitous 7. Unconvincing

A. 1, 2, 4, 7
B. 2, 3, 5, 6
C. 1, 3, 4, 7
D. 2, 3, 4, 6

15. Identify the literary device in 'like quills all over it'.

A. Metaphor

B. Alliteration

C. Simile

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English Core- Question Bank

D. Personification

IV. The Maharaja’s anxiety reached a fever pitch when there remained just one tiger to achieve his tally of a
hundred. By this time the tiger farms had run dry even in his father-in-law’s kingdom. It became impossible to
locate tigers anywhere. Yet only one more was needed. If he could kill just that one single beast, the Maharaja
would have no fears left. He could give up tiger hunting altogether.

But he had to be extremely careful with that last tiger. What had the late chief astrologer said? “Even after killing
ninety-nine tigers the Maharaja should beware of the hundredth …” True enough. The tiger was a savage beast
after all. One had to be wary of it. But where was that hundredth tiger to be found? It seemed easier to find tiger’s
milk than a live tiger.

16. Why was it impossible to locate tigers anywhere?

A. A ruthless killing by all.

B. Tiger population dwindled due to killing by Maharaja

C. Due to drought

D. Tiger left the jungle

17. On what condition would, the Maharaja give up tiger hunting altogether?

A. On the condition that he would kill the hundredth tiger.

B. On the condition that he would get married.

C. On the condition that he would go to his father-in-law’s house.

D. On the condition that the dewan would help him.

18. Complete the sentence appropriately:

The figure of speech used in the sentence: ‘It seemed easier to find tigers milk than a live tiger is ____________ .

A. Allusion

B. Metaphor

C. Hyperbole

D. Understatement

19. “Even after killing ninety-nine tigers the Maharaja should beware of the hundredth.” What does it indicate?

A. Chief astrologer’s forewarning

B. Dewan’s advice

C. Chief Astrologer’s suggestion

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English Core- Question Bank

D. None of the above

20. ‘The Maharaja’s anxiety reached a fever pitch…’

Which of these sentences DOES NOT use the phrase ‘reached a fever pitch’ correctly.

A. When the bidding reached a fever pitch, one of the team’s absence was

notable.

B. The excitement of the audience reached a fever pitch when they saw the star perform.

C. The scenic beauty of the place reached a fever pitch when it began to snow.

D. The climax of the film reached fever pitch when the protagonist was assassinated.

21. The Tiger King rejected the British Officer’s request________

1. for fifty diamond rings
2. of getting photographed with a tiger carcass
3. visiting his kingdom
4. for hunting a tiger

A. 1 and 4

B. 3 and 4

C. 2 and 1

D. 2 and 4

22. What is a carcass?

A Dead body of an animal
B Dead body of a human
C Dead body of a demon
D None of these

23. Why did the Maharaja not want to relent?

A. For other Britishers could turn up for hunting tigers
B For other Britishers could turn up for hunting him
C For other Britishers could turn up for clicking his picture
D All of these

24. What is the. Antonym of ‘wary’?

A. Cautious

B. Afraid

C. Alert

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English Core- Question Bank

D. Careless

25. What does the word ‘relented’ means______

A. Oppose

B. Defy

C. Surrender

D. Rise

VI. Everyone stood transfixed in stupefaction. They looked wildly at each other and blinked. “O wise prophets! It
was I who spoke.” This time there were no grounds for doubt. It was the infant born just ten days ago who had
enunciated the words so clearly. The chief astrologer took off his spectacles and gazed intently at the baby. “All
those who are born will one day have to die. We don’t need your predictions to know that. There would be some
sense in it if you could tell us the manner of that death” the royal infant uttered these words in his little squeaky
voice.

26. Who is ‘I’ in the above lines?

A The Tiger King
B Kalki
C Astrologer
D The Tiger King’s Wife

27. Who spoke at the age of 10 days?

A The Tiger King
B Dr. Sadao
C Jack
D Evans

28. What did the royal infant want to know?

A The exact manner of his marriage
B The exact manner of his death
C The exact manner of his sitting on his throne
D The exact manner of his life

29. Find out the synonym of ‘Utter’ from the following:

A To speak
B To Express
C To Let out
D All of these

30. ‘transfixed in stupefaction’ means_____

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English Core- Question Bank

A. Go bananas

B. Become motionless with astonishment

C. Become unconscious

D. Become stupid

Answer key

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

B C C D D B B A B A

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

C A D D C B A C A C

21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

D A A D C A A B D B

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English Core- Question Bank

Journey to the end of the Earth

Q.1 Multiple Choice Questions based on an extract
(A) You lose all earthly sense of perspective and time here. The visual scale ranges from the microscopic to the
mighty: midges and mites to blue whales and icebergs as big as countries (the largest recorded was the size of
Belgium). Days go on and on and on in surreal 24-hour austral summer light, and a ubiquitous silence, interrupted
only by the occasional avalanche or calving ice sheet, consecrates the place. It’s an immersion that will force you to
place yourself in the context of the earth’s geological history. And for humans, the prognosis isn’t good.
(i) The ‘visual scale’ refers to
a) a measuring device
b) range of things one can see
c) visionary’s belief
d) the magnitude of preparation

(ii) Four people give a reason for the author’s feeling while travelling.
Choose the option that correctly summarizes it based on your understanding of the extract.

Person 1 Person 2 Person 3` Person 4

I think the author According to me, As far as I can judge, In my opinion, she is
is being paranoid she is bewildered by Tishani is being amazed by the grandeur
about leaving her the travel duration. hypocritical because she of the icy region.
hometown. is comparing the two
places.

a) Person 1
b) Person 2
c) Person 3
d) Person 4
(iii) Select the option that correctly fits the category of ‘microscopic to the mighty’ out of the ones given below.
1. trace of a skin cell: trace of a bird’s egg
2. a grain of rice: field of wheat
3. a scoop of ice cream: an ice-cream cone
4. a drop of water: Pacific Ocean
a) 1, 2
b) 3, 4
c) 1, 3
d) 2, 4
(iv) Choose the option listing the elements that influences one to think of earth’s physicality.

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English Core- Question Bank

1. breakage of an iceberg from a glacier

2. midges and mites
3. a regular seen avalanche
4. summer light in the Southern hemisphere
a) 1, 2
b) 3, 4
c) 1, 4
d) 2, 3
Q.2 Students on Ice, the programme I was working with on the Shokalskiy, aims to do exactly this by taking high
school students to the ends of the world and providing them with inspiring educational opportunities which will
help them foster a new understanding and respect for our planet. It’s been in operation for six years now, headed by
Canadian Geoff Green, who got tired of carting celebrities and retired, rich, curiosity-seekers who could only ‘give’
back in a limited way. With Students on Ice, he offers the future generation of policy makers a life-changing
experience at an age when they’re ready to absorb, learn, and most importantly, act.
(v) Students on Ice is …………. headed by Geoff Green. Select the option to fill in the blank correctly.
a) a travelogue
b) an expedition
c) a globetrotting
d) a tour
(vi) Choose the option that marks the ODD ONE OUT based on your reading of the above extract.
a) Sumit donates 10% of his monthly income to the environment-friendly NGOs.
b) Manmeet and her twin plant a new plant on their birthday every year.
c) Vivek invests in eco-friendly cosmetics that are packaged in plastic containers.
d) Afsana plans to device a machine that recycles the biodegradable wastes from home.

(vii) Pick the option that characterizes the celebrities based on your understanding of the extract.
1. overachiever
2. zealous
3. miserly
4. impassive

a) 1, 2
b) 3, 4
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English Core- Question Bank

c) 1, 3
d) 2, 4
(viii) Choose the option that lists the reasons for Green’s programme.
1. making youngsters realize the gory reality of the planet.
2. provoking the youth to think about the future earnestly.
3. giving a chance of exploring the north pole to the young generation
4. providing travel opportunities to students that were unfortunate.
a) 1, 2
b) 3, 4
c) 1, 3
d) 2, 4
Q.3 Stand Alone MCQs
(ix) “Antarctica is a crucial element in this debate — not just because it’s the only place in the world, which has
never sustained a human population and therefore remains relatively ‘pristine’ in this respect...” With respect
to the given statement from the text, choose the option to replace the underlined set of words.
a) stays as it is throughout the year.
b) becomes a perfect place to travel.
c) is left to be an uncorrupted area.
d) abides by the strict laws of nature.

(x) The central idea of the text is given below as told by four students. Choose the correct option of the ones
given below.

Student 1 Student 2 Student 3 Student 4

The author wants to The author is trying to The author is keen on The author throws light
invigorate a spirit in the delineate the beauty of drawing a comparison on the crucial issues of
readers to travel and Antarctica as compared between South India our planet through this
explore. to the rest of the world. and Antarctica in terms narrative.
of their weather.

a) Student 1
b) Student 2
c) Student 3
d) Student 4
(xi) ‘Take care of the small things and the big things will take care of themselves.’ Choose the option stating the
significance of this statement depending on the textual context.
a) We should try to focus on smaller regions like Antarctica to improve the rest of the world.

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b) We should tend to smaller grasses which eventually become a part of the food chain in order to expect bigger things
like animal and human lives to change.
c) We should give more opportunities to the younger generation than the older generation if we want to see a change in
the world.
d) We should save a little every now and then in order to explore bigger opportunities in terms of travel and tourism.
(xii) Choose the option that correctly represents the Venn diagram based on the statement given below.
‘Antarctica is the cosmic view of whatever is happening to our planet.’

Antactica Earth

(1) (2)

Earth
Antarctica

Antarctica
Earth

(3) (4)

a) Option 1
b) Option 2
c) Option 3
d) Option 4
(xiii) Choose the correct option with respect to the statements given below
Statement 1: Antarctica is a lesson in itself for the readers of the text.
Statement 2: Antarctica gives an insight to the damage being done to Earth by humanity.
a) Statement 1 can be inferred but Statement 2 cannot be inferred from the text.
b) Statement 1 cannot be inferred but Statement 2 can be inferred from the text.
c) Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 can be inferred from the text.
d) Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 cannot be inferred from the text.
xiv) Which one is the irrelevant of the following points to make Tishani Doshi reach Antarctica?

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English Core- Question Bank

a) Three means of transportation.

b) Three water bodies.
c) journey stated from equator.
d ) Nine time zones.
xv) India and Antarctica were the parts of the same landmass.
a) True
b) False
xvi) Which is the irrelevant in terms of Gondwana supercontinent?
a) Climate was the coldest .
b) It hosted variety of flora and fauna.
c) It contained South America, Australia, Antarctica, India and Africa.
d) Humans did not exist there.
xvii) Reason: India pulled northwards jamming against Asia
Assertion: The Himalaya was formed due to buckle the Indian plate with Asia

a) Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A

b) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
c) A is true but R is false.
d) A is false but R is true.

Q.4 Climate change is one of the most hotly contested environmental debates of our time. Will the West Antarctic ice
sheet melt entirely? Will the Gulf Stream ocean current be disrupted? Will it be the end of the world as we know it?
Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, Antarctica is a crucial element in this debate — not just because it’s the only place in
the world, which has never sustained a human population and therefore remains relatively ‘pristine’ in this respect; but
more importantly, because it holds in its ice-cores half-million-year-old carbon records trapped in its layers of ice.
(Journey to the End of the Earth)

xvii) How does the absence of a human population in Antarctica make it significant in the climate change
debate?

xix) Why is "climate change" described as a "hotly contested" issue in the extract provided? This is so, because
there _____.

A. is universal agreement on the causes and implications of climate change

B. is a planned path ahead about how to address climate change

C. are differing views on the causes and implications of climate change

D. are minimal reports of fresh threats to climate change

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English Core- Question Bank

xx) The analogy of a time machine is an appropriate analogy for the role of carbon records in the study of
climate change because ________________________.

xxi) Give one reason why the writing style of the extract can be called factual and informative

xxii )Which of these projects is most similar to the Students on Ice program in terms of its objective?

a). a project requiring students to do a cleaning drive of a beach to expose them to the reality of pollution

b). a project where students are taken to see old monuments to help them understand their cultural history iii). a
project where students observe how waste material is segregated to teach them about governance

c). a project in which students volunteer at a not-for-profit organisation to help them develop their creativity

d) The visit to the South Pole makes one realise the gravity of the problem and become motivated to change it.

xxiii) For a sun-worshipping South Indian like myself, two weeks in a place where 90 per cent of the Earth’s
total ice volumes are stored is a chilling prospect.

Which of the following sentences uses the same literary device as in the above sentence from 'Journey to the
end of the Earth'?

a) The waves were as high as mountains yesterday.

b) Michael ran at the speed of a cheetah to reach school on time.
c) The tallest building in town is the library that has thousands of stories.
d) The glacier submitted itself to the gleaming rays of the sun by melting away.

xxiv) Based on the text 'Journey to the End of the Earth', which piece of information about Antarctica
CANNOT be used to justify the statement given below?

Antarctica is a crucial element in the climate change debate.

a) Antarctica remains relatively uninhabited by humans.

b) Antarctica's ecosystem is easier to study due to its simplicity.
c) Antarctica is an enormous landmass that spans nine time zones.
d) Antarctica contains many carbon records that can help us better understand geology.

xxv) What does the line below from 'Journey to the end of the Earth' indicate?

The reason the programme has been so successful is because it’s impossible to go anywhere near the South
Pole and not be affected by it.

a) The harsh weather conditions make the students realise how difficult life near the South Pole is.
b) The journey to the South Pole is a long one and people travelling to the region often get exhausted.
c) The programme is quite popular and one can hear about it from others as they approach the South Pole.
d) The visit to the South Pole makes one realise the gravity of the problem and become motivated to change it.

xxvi)What is the aim of The Journey to, Antarctica?

(a) to know the geography more closely
(b) to sensitize the young minds towards climatic change

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(c) world tour

(d) to see the beauty of the earth

xxvii) The study of our past is possible in Antarctica through_________.

(a) Half-million-year-old carbon records trapped in its layers of ice
(b) Cordilleran folds
(c) pre-Cambrian granite shields
(d) All of the above
xxviii)‘And for humans, the prognosis isn’t good.’ This line means__________.
(a) The future of mankind is not promising.
(b) The future of mankind is secure.
(c) The prognosis isn’t good enough to be relied upon.
(d) The future of human kind is encouraging.
xxix) What is the figure of speech used in the line, “It’s like walking into a giant ping-pong ball”?
(a) Metaphor
(b) Alliteration
(c) Pun
(d) Simile
xxx) The author’s first emotion on facing Antarctica’s expansive white landscape was ____________.
(a) wonder
(b) relief
(c) shock
(d) disbelief
xxxi) How old are the records trapped in the layers of ice on Antarctica?
(a) 1 million year old
(b) 2 million years old
(c) half million-year-old carbon records
(d) All these
xxxii) ) How will the geographical phenomena help us to know the history of mankind?
(a) by telling the age of existence of human beings on the earth
(b) by showing the global warming
(c) by showing the imapacts of global warming
(d) none
xxxiii) What is phytoplankton?
(a) Oceans
(b) Southern oceans
(c) Microscopic grass
(d) None
xxxiv) How many years back were India and Antarctica part of the same landmass?
(a) 100 million years back
(b) 300 million years ago
(c) 200 million years ago
(d) 400 million years ago

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xxxv )Why did Geoff decide to take high school students on the journey?
(a) to make them tour the world
(b) to make them enjoy
(c) to make them feel relaxed
(d) to make them understand their planet and respect it.

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English Core- Question Bank

Answers

I. II. III. IV. V.

(b) (d) (d) (c) (b)
VI. VII. VIII. IX. X.
(c) (b) (a) (c) (d)
XI. XII. XIII. XIV. XV.
(b) (c) (c) (c) (a)
XVI. XVII. XVIII. XIX. XX.
This makes it an
important reference point just like a time machine
for understanding the would allow us to observe
(a) (b) effects of human activities (c) past events, carbon records
on the environment and allow us to observe past
the potential impacts of climate conditions
climate change
XXI. XXII. XXIII. XXIV. XXV.
because the writer
presents information
in a straightforward (a) (c) (c) (d)
and objective
manner
XXVI. XXVII. XXVIII. XXIX. XXX.
(
(b) (d) (a) d (b)
)
XXXI. XXXII. XXXIII. XXXIV. XXXV.
(c) (a) (c) (b) (d)

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English Core- Question Bank

THE ENEMY
By Pearl S. Buck
EXTRACT BASED QUESTIONS
A. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
Sadao had taken this into his mind as he did everything his father said, his father who never joked or played
with him but who spent infinite pains upon him who was his only son. Sadao knew that his education was his
father’s chief concern. For this reason he had been sent at twenty-two to America to learn all that could be
learned of surgery and medicine. He had come back at thirty, and before his father died he had seen Sadao
become famous not only as a surgeon but as a scientist. Because he was perfecting a discovery which would
render wounds entirely clean, he had not been sent abroad with the troops. Also, he knew, there was some
slight danger that the old General might need an operation for a condition for which he was now being treated
medically, and for this possibility Sadao was being kept in Japan.
1. What does the word ‘infinite’ mean?
A. Calculable
B. Sempiternal
C. Never ending
D. Both B and C

2. What does the speaker mean by “Perfecting a discovery”?

A. Honing the discovery
B. Making the discovery perfect
C. Both A and B
D. Making himself perfect for Hana

3. Why was Dr. Sadao never sent abroad with the troops?
A. For he remained ill
B. For the General remained ill
C. For he was perfecting a discovery
D. Both B and C

4. What does the word ‘troops’ mean?

A. Group of soldiers
B. Group of generals
C. Group of commanders
D. Group of brigadiers

5. What kind of person was Sadao’s father?

A. serious
B. A jolly good man
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C. Very strict
D. A true patriot and traditional person

B. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
The professor and his wife had been kind people anxious to do something for their few foreign students, and
the students, though bored, had accepted this kindness. Sadao had often told Hana how nearly he had not gone
to Professor Harley’s house that night-the rooms were so small, the food so bad, the professor’s wife so voluble.
But he had gone and there he had found Hana, a new student, and had felt he would love her if it were at all
possible.
6. Name the Professor.
A. Anatomy Professor
B. Professor Harley
C. Professor Tom
D. None of these

7. What does the word ‘Voluble’ mean?

A. Garrulous
B. Gassy
C. Loquacious
D. All of the above

8. Where was Dr Sadao putting up when he met Hana?

A. Japan.
B. America
C. At General’s home
D. All of these

9. Which race did Hana belong to?

A. American
B. Japanese
C. Indian
D. Chinese

10. Sadao had been a victim in America, of

A. racial prejudice
B. unruly mob
C. impartial teachers
D. unfriendly classmates

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C. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
The mists screened them now completely, and at this time of day no one came by. The fishermen had gone
home and even the chance beachcombers would have considered the day at an end. “What shall we do with
this man?” Sadao muttered. But his trained hands seemed of their own will to be doing what they could to
stanch the fearful bleeding. He packed the wound with the sea moss that strewed the beach. The man moaned
with pain in his stupor but he did not awaken. “The best thing that we could do would be to put him back in
the sea,” Sadao said, answering himself.
11. What does the speaker mean by ‘The mists screened them’?
A. Mist had hidden them
B. Mist had protected them
C. Mist had concealed them
D. All of these
12. Who is a beachcomber?
A. A vagrant living on beach
B. A person walks along a beach looking for valuables
C. A wanderer searching for things on the beach
D. All of these
13. What does the word ‘Strewed’ mean?
A. spread out
B. protected
C. Uncovered
D. Unavailable

14. Why did they want to throw the man back into the sea?
A. For he was an American
B. For he was an enemy
C. For he was a P.O.W.
D. All of these

15. The man found by Sadao and Hana was

A. a white man
B. a black
C. a Japanese
D. an Anglo-Indian
D. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:

Thus agreed, together they lifted the man. He was very light, like a fowl that had been half-starved for a long
time until it had only feathers and a skeleton. So, his arms hanging, they carried him up the steps and into the
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side door of the house. This door opened into a passage, and down the passage they carried the man towards
an empty bedroom. It had been the bedroom of Sadao’s father, and since his death it had not been used. They
laid the man on the deeply matted floor. Everything here had been Japanese to please the old man, who would
never in his own home sit on a chair or sleep in a foreign bed.

16. Which poetic device has been used in the first line?
A. Hyperbole
B. Antithesis
C. Metonymy
D. Simile
17. What is a fowl?
A. Bird
B. Goat
C. Pig
D. None of these
18. Who has been called ‘Old man’ in the above extract?
A. Sadao’s father
B. General Takima
C. Sadao’s servant (Gardener)
D. None of these

19. Find out the synonym of the word ‘Please’ from the following.
A. To make him happy
B. To make him sad
C. To make him tiresome
D. To make his nostalgic

20. When the body of the soldier was washed ashore, Sadao was with
A. his servants
B. his guard
C. his wife
D. his kids
E. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
Her hands went weak and she could not draw her breath. The servants must have told already. She ran to
Sadao, gasping, unable to utter a word. But by then the messenger had simply followed her through the garden
and there he stood. She pointed at him helplessly. Sadao looked up from his book. He was in his office, the
other partition of which was thrown open to the garden for the southern sunshine.
21. Who is ‘She’ in the above lines?
A. Hana
B. Yumi

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C. Cook
D. None of these

22. Whose messenger was he?

A. General Takima
B. General Roosevelt
C. General Edward Gait
D. None of these
.
23. Seeing the messenger, what was Hana’s reaction?
A. She got frightened
B. she thought he has come to arrest her husband
C. she got nervous
D. All these
24. Whom did Hana doubt for informing the police?
A. Neighbours
B. Servants
C. Army of Japan
D. All of these

25. What does the word ‘Utter’ mean?

A. Hesitate
B. Speak
C. Listen
D. All of these

F. Read the given extract to attempt the questions that follow

....if the man were whole, I could turn him over to the police without difficulty. I care
nothing for him. He is my enemy. All Americans are my enemy. And he is only a common fellow. You see
how foolish his face is. But since he is wounded ....”
“You also cannot throw him back to the sea,” Hana said. “Then there is only one thing to do. We must carry
him into the house.”

26. Who is the speaker in the above lines?

A. Hana
B. Dr Sadao
C. Yumi
D. Sadao's gardener
27. What does the speaker mean when he says "...if the man were whole'?
A. He means to say if the wounded man was full in his senses.
B. He means to say if the man was alive.
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C. He means to say if the wounded man was General's friend.

D. He means to say if the wounded man was wealthy.
28. Why does the speaker say he could turn him over to the police?
A. Because he was a thief
B. Because he was a prisoner of war and enemy of his country
C. Because he sneaked into his house without his permission
D. Because he was afraid of him
29. What conflicting ideas disturb Dr.’s mind after he brought American soldier?
A. Duty of a doctor and loyalty towards nation
B. his wife’s health and general’s health
C. patient’s health and servants
D. servants’ behavior

30. Why did Dr Sadao treat the soldier when he was from enemy’s nationality?
A. He was a doctor
B. It was against his professional ethics
C. as a doctor he could not let anyone die
D. All of these

ANSWERS
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
D C D A D B D B B A
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
D D A D A D A A A C
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
A A D B B B A B A D

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On the face of It
Susan Hill
Extract One
DERRY: I won’t ever look different. When I’m as old as you, I’ll look the same. I’ll still only have half a face.
MR LAMB: So you will. But the world won’t. The world’s got a whole face, and the world’s there to be
looked at.
DERRY: Do you think this is the world? This old garden?
MR LAMB: When I’m here. Not the only one. But the world, as much as anywhere.
DERRY: Does your leg hurt you?
MR LAMB: Tin doesn’t hurt, boy!
DERRY: When it came off, did it?
MR LAMB: Certainly.
DERRY: And now? I mean, where the tin stops, at the top?
MR LAMB: Now and then. In wet weather. It doesn’t signify.

1. What might Derry’s certainty about not looking different as he grows older, reveal?
(A) His coping mechanism
(B) His open defiance
(C) His payback to the society
(D) His denial towards ageing

2. Complete the sentence appropriately.

Mr. Lamb's analogy of the world having a "whole face" suggests that _________________________.

3. State whether TRUE or FALSE.

Derry’s questions - “Do you think this is the world? This old garden?” - were a taunting response.

4. List any ONE way how Mr. Lamb's response, "Tin doesn’t hurt, boy!" contributes to his characterisation.

Extract Two

MR LAMB: Look, boy, look.... what do you see?

DERRY: Just....grass and stuff. Weeds.
MR LAMB: Some call them weeds. If you like, then.... a weed garden, that. There’s fruit and there are
flowers, and trees and herbs. All sorts. But over there.... weeds. I grow weeds there. Why is one green,
growing plant called a weed and another ‘flower’? Where’s the difference. It’s all life.... growing. Same as
you and me.
DERRY: We’re not the same.
MR LAMB: I’m old. You’re young. You’ve got a burned face, I’ve got a tin leg. Not important. You’re standing
there.... I’m sitting here. Where’s the difference?

5. Like the play, the given extract is a study in contrasts. What does Mr. Lamb seek to do by bringing
up distinctions?
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English Core- Question Bank

(A) To explain that weeds are important and should be valued and cared for as much as flowers.
(B) To emphasize that distinctions are made by man to serve specific purposes and uses.
(C) To highlight that labels are arbitrary and essentially reflect a common life experience.
(D) To remind Derry that the only difference that matters is that of attitude and experien

6. How would you describe Derry’s tone when he says – “We’re not the same”?
(A) angry (B) perplexed (C) gloomy (D) practical

7. Write two examples of contrast brought out in the above extract.

8. Complete the sentence:

According to Mr. Lamb, there is no difference between weed and flower as ___________________.

Extract Three

DERRY: It won’t make my face change. Do you know, one day, a woman went by me in the street — I was
at a bus-stop — and she was with another woman, and she looked at me, and she said.... whispered....only I
heard her.... she said, “Look at that, that’s a terrible thing. That’s a face only
a mother could love.”
MR LAMB: So you believe everything you hear, then?

9. Complete the sentence appropriately:

Mr. Lamb asked Derry if _____________________________.

10. Mr. Lamb interprets the conversation in a _______________ way.

(A) argumentative (B) assertive (C) casual (D) mocking

11. The ellipses used in Derry’s dialogue shows the pause he takes to
(A) understand the incident.
(B) gather his thoughts.
(C) make the listener believe.
(D) convert fake to reality.

12. State whether TRUE or FALSE:

The ‘terrible thing’ inferred to is Derry’s tendency to eavesdrop.

Extract Four
DERRY: You don’t know who I am.
MR. LAMB: A boy. Thirteen or so.
DERRY: Fourteen [Pause] But I’ve got to go now. Good bye.
MR.LAMB: Nothing to be afraid of. Just a garden. Just me.
DERRY: But I’m not. I’m not afraid. [Pause] People are afraid of me.
MR.LAMB: Why should that be?

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DERRY: Everyone is. It doesn’t matter who they are, or what they say, or how they look. How they pretend.
I know. I can see.
MR. LAMB: See what?
DERRY: What they think.

13. Complete the sentence:

Derry’s remark, ‘You don’t know who I am’, suggests that ___________________________.

14. Which of the following character traits of Mr. Lamb is evident from the passage?
(A) Panicky (B) Patient (C) Argumentative (D) Stubborn

15. What can be inferred about Derry based on the statement-‘Everyone is [afraid of me]. It doesn’t matter
who they are, or what they say, or how they look. How they pretend. I know. I can see…’
(A) Derry is paranoid and believes that everyone is afraid of him.
(B) Derry has a history of threatening behaviour towards others.
(C) Derry has a heightened understanding of people’s thoughts and emotions.
(D) Derry is socially isolated and lacks understanding of social signals.

16. What does Derry mean by ‘they pretend’?

Extract Five
DERRY; Does your leg hurt you?
MR.LAMB: Tin doesn’t hurt, boy!
DERRY: When it came off, did it?
MR. LAMB: Certainly.
DERRY: And now? I mean, where the tin stops, at the top?
MR. LAMB: Now and then. In wet weather. It doesn’t signify.
DERRY: Oh, that’s something else they all say. ‘Look at all those people who are in pain and brave and
never cry and never complain and don’t feel sorry for themselves.’
MR.LAMB: I haven’t said it.

17. What does the dismissive tone in ‘Tin doesn’t hurt, boy!’ suggest about Mr. Lamb, at that point?

18. Present an argument against the view:

Derry persisted with his questioning about the tin leg to make Mr. Lamb uncomfortable.

19. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the extract:
(A) Mr. Lamb’s leg doesn’t hurt him at all in wet weather.
(B) Mr. Lamb doesn’t tell Derry to look at people in pain.
(C) Mr. Lamb had a tin leg.
(D) People sermonized Derry.

20. Based on the dialogue between Derry and Mr. Lamb, what can be inferred about Derry’s perception of
pain and bravery?
(A) Derry believes that showing pain and complaining is a sign of weakness.
(B) Derry believes that people who are in pain and brave never feel sorry for themselves.
(C) Derry challenges the idea that people in pain should never cry or complain.
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(D) Derry agrees with Mr. Lamb’s statement about people in pain and their attitude.

Extract Six

MR LAMB: Sit in the sun. Read books. Ah, you thought it was an empty house, but inside, it’s full.
Books and other things. Full.
DERRY: But there aren’t any curtains at the windows.
MR LAMB: I’m not fond of curtains. Shutting things out, shutting things in. I like the light and the
darkness, and the windows open, to hear the wind.
DERRY: Yes. I like that. When it’s raining, I like to hear it on the roof.
MR LAMB: So you’re not lost, are you? Not altogether? You do hear things. You listen.

21. What is Mr. Lamb's opinion on curtains?

(A) He loves them (B) He is indifferent (C) He doesn't have a preference (D) He dislikes them

22. From Derry's agreement with Mr. Lamb about enjoying the sound of rain on the roof, what can be
inferred about Derry's preference?
(A) Derry enjoys the tranquility of natural sounds (B) Derry prefers noisy environments
(C) Derry dislikes rainy weather (D) Derry prefers being indoors during rainstorms

23. Why does Mr. Lamb say, ‘So you’re not lost, are you? Not altogether?’

24. State whether TRUE or FALSE:

Based on Mr. Lamb's comment about the house being full inside despite its appearance of emptiness, it can
be inferred that he values the richness of life beyond superficial appearances.

Extract Seven

MR LAMB: Doesn’t mean they’re enemies, either, does it?

DERRY: No they’re just....nothing. People. That’s all.
MR LAMB: People are never just nothing. Never.
DERRY: There are some people I hate.
MR LAMB: That’d do you more harm than any bottle of acid. Acid only burns your face.
DERRY: Only....
MR LAMB: Like a bomb only blew up my leg. There’s worse things can happen. You can burn yourself
away inside.

25. What does Mr. Lamb suggest about the harm caused by hating people?
(A) It's worse than physical harm (B) It's equivalent to physical harm
(C) It's less harmful than physical harm (D) It's beneficial for mental health

26. How does Mr. Lamb respond to Derry's statement about hating some people?
(A) He agrees with Derry (B) He dismisses Derry's feelings
(C) He warns Derry about the consequences (D) He encourages Derry to express his feelings openly

27. State whether TRUE or FALSE:

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According to Derry, harbouring hatred can internally consume and damage a person's well-being.

28. Complete the sentence appropriately:

Derry states that people are just...nothing implying that there is a lack of ________ for people in his
view.

Extract Eight

[A creak. A crash. The ladder falls back, Mr. Lamb with it. A thump. The branch swishes back. Creaks.
Then silence. Derry opens the garden gate, still panting.]
DERRY: You see, you see! I came back. You said I wouldn’t and they said....but I came back, I wanted....
[He stops dead. Silence]
Mr. Lamb, Mr. ....You’ve.....
[He runs through the grass. Stops. Kneels]
Mr. Lamb, It’s all right....You fell....I’m here, Mr. Lamb, It’s all right.
[Silence]
I came back. Lamey-Lamb. I did.....come back.
[Derry begins to weep.]

29. The words ‘creak’, ‘crash’, and ‘thump’ are ________________.

(A) Ironical (B) Onomatopoeic (C) Repetitive (D) Visual Images

30. Select appropriate option depicting ‘Kneel’ posture:

(A) (B) (C) (D)

31. State whether TRUE or FALSE:

Derry successfully revives Mr. Lamb after finding him fallen from the ladder.

32. Mention two hints from the extract confirming Mr. Lamb’s death.

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ANSWER KEY

1. A
2. (Any one)
…the world is diverse, complex, and full of different perspectives and experiences. OR
…there is more to the world than meets the eye.
3. FALSE
4. (Any one)
Pragmatic (Mr. Lamb's practical approach to life. He doesn't complain about his condition.)
Resilient (By dismissing the idea that his tin leg hurts, Mr. Lamb displays resilience.)
Humorous (There's a hint of humor in Mr. Lamb's response. The use of "boy" and the matter-of-
fact tone add a touch of wit, revealing his ability to find lightness in the face of challenges.)
Comforting / Reassuring (By dismissing the idea that "tin hurts," Mr. Lamb is attempting to
reassure Derry.)
5. B
6. A
7. Weed and flower as well as old and young
8. It’s all life/both are growing
9. he believed everything he heard
10. C
11. B
12. FALSE
13. Derry wants to be understood for what he truly is, not his appearance.
14. B
15. A
16. People are hypocrites.
17. (Any one)
Mr. Lamb wanted to downplay any sympathy towards his physical condition. OR
Mr. Lamb preferred not to discuss his physical pain. OR
Mr. Lamb wanted to maintain a sense of strength and resilience.
18. (Any one)
Derry was curious and had genuine interest in understanding others’ experiences. OR
Derry wanted to connect with Mr. Lamb and gain insights.
19. A
20. C
21. D
22. A
23. Mr. Lamb finds positivity, hope and a flicker of light in Derry’s attitude towards nature/Derry has
some light still left in his soul and has not given up in life/ Derry is not completely lost into the
negativity of his mind but is simply scattered and needs to be guided to the light is what Mr. Lamb
talks about here
24. TRUE
25. A
26. C
27. FALSE
28. Significance or Importance
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29. B
30. D
31. FALSE
32. Silence and lack of response to Derry’s attempts to rouse him

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MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD
BY Zitkala- Sa and Bama
EXTRACR BASED QUESTIONS

1. I cried aloud, shaking my head all the while until I felt the old blades of the scissors against my neck, and heard
them gnaw off one of my thick braids. Then I lost my spirit. Since the day I was taken from my mother, I had
suffered extreme indignities. People had stared at me. I have been toast about in the air like wooden puppet. And
now, my long hair was shingled like a coward’s! In my anguish I moaned for my mother, but no one came to
comfort me. Not a soul reasoned quietly with me, as my own mother used do; For now I was only one of many
little animals driven by a herder.
1. ‘then I lost my spirit.’ Choose the option that refers to ‘spirit’.
1) Resolve
2) Without energy
3) Determination
4) Indifference
5) Dullness
6) Will power
a) 1,2,5 b) 2,4,5
c) 1,3, 6 d) 3,4, 6

2. What was the tone of the narrator when she says, “ I was only one of many little animals driven by a
herder
3. Complete the sentence appropriately.

The author had been subjected to humiliation when she was-------------------

4. “Among our people, short hair was worn by mourners, and shingled hair by cowards!” This statement is an
example of-

(A) a belief
(B) an opinion
(C) a myth
(D) a fallacy

5. When the narrator was in pain , she realized that-----------------------------------

2. When I heard this, I didn't want to laugh anymore, I felt terribly sad. How could they believe that it was
disgusting if one of us held that package in hands, even though the vadai had been wrapped first in a banana leaf
and then parcelled in paper? I felt so provoked and angry that I wanted to touch those wretched vadais myself
straightaway. Why we should have to fetch and carry for these people, I wondered. Such an important elder of
ours goes meekly to the shop to fetch snacks and hands them over reverently, bowing and shrinking, to this
fellow who just sits there and stuff them into his mouth. The thought of it infuriated me.
6. The elder handling snacks reverently bowing and shrinking to the fellow indicates that the ‘fellow’
was____________

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7. Based on given context , choose the option that illustrates when a person can be provoked ,out of the
examples given below.
1. The employees organised a peaceful protest outside the firm.
2. The manager ill-treated one of the employees and wrongfully terminated him.
3. Employees wrote a letter of complaint against the manager.
4. The director of the film scheduled a meeting for reconciliation.
(A) Option 1
(B) Option 2
(C) Option 3
(D) Option 4
8. The given extract talks about ________________________________
9. Zitkala -Sa suffers _____ at the hands of influential people.

(A) gender discrimination

(B) economic discrimination
(C) racial discrimination
(D) none of the above
10. Complete the sentence appropriately.
‘Why should we fetch and carry for these people, I wondered’ demonstrates
the___________________________________________________.

3. In my anguish I moaned for my mother, but no one came to comfort me. Not a soul reasoned quietly with me,
as my own mother used to do, and now I was only one of many little animals given by a harder.

11. Why was the speaker in anguish?

12. Why did the narrator feel like being treated like animals?
(A) Due to bad treatment meted out to her
(B) Due to bad treatment given to all Indian girls
(C) Due to bad treatment given to children in Carlisle school
(D) All were kept tied in a room.

13. Complete the sentence appropriately.

The speaker cried for her mother because____________.
14. The extract shows the _________________________
15. Choose the correct option with reference to the two statements given below.

Statement 1: The author had been subjected to humiliation when she was separated from her mother.

Statement 2: Nobody was able to ease her distress and empathise with her.

(A) Statement 1 is false but Statement 2 is true.

(B) Statement 1 is true but Statement 2 is false.
(C) Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 cannot be inferred from the lesson.
(D) Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 can be inferred from the lesson.
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16. What according to the writer, was the hardest trial on the first day?

(A) Eating by formula

(B) The paleface woman's talk
(C) Cutting of long, heavy braid
(D) Bitter-cold in the land of apples

4. It was actually possible to walk the distance in ten minutes. But usually , it would take me thirty minutes at the
least to reach home.

17. The narrator was a ______________________________

18. It would take the narrator thirty-minutes to reach school because she_____.
19. Why did the narrator take more time to reach home?
20. Which scene made the narrator double up?
A. Off road vendors
B.A lot of entertainment activities
C. Of a grown up elder, carrying a small packet by its strings without touching it.
D. All of these

5. ‘Who are you Appa, what’s your name?’ Annan told him his name. Immediately the other man asked, ‘Thambi
on which street do you live?’ the point of this was that if he knew on which street we lived he would know our
cast too.

21. Who asked the narrator’s brother’s name?

22. That man asked another question to ________________.
23. What problem has been discussed here?
24. What evil system prevailed in those days?
6. “But if we study and make progress, we can throw away these indignities. So , study with care, learn all you can.
If you are always ahead in your lessons, people will come to you of their own accord and attach themselves to
you. Work hard and learn.”

25. What advice did the narrator give to the listeners/readers?

26. How did the listener react?
27. The advice affected listener’s life as she-
(A) Earned a lot and many people befriended him/her.
(B) Stood first in class and many people became her friends
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(C) There was no change even then

(D) Learned a lot to get through the exams easily

28. The passage highlights the reaction to the hatred and cruelty against_________.

7. I saw that I was the only one seated, and all the rest at our table remained standing. Just as I began
to rise, looking shyly around to see how chairs were to be used, a second bell was sounded. All were
seated at last, and I had to crawl back into my chair again. I heard a man’s voice at one end of the
hall, and I looked around to see him. But all the others hung their heads over their plates. As I
glanced at the long chain of tables, I caught the eyes of a paleface woman upon me. Immediately I
dropped my eyes.

29. What was the narrator unable to understand in the dining hall?

(A) Standing by formula

(B) Eating by formula
(C) Crying by formula
(D) None of the above

30. Why were others standing in the dining hall?

(A) For they were waiting for their teacher
(B) For they were waiting for their principal
(C) For they were waiting for their Headmistress
(D) For they were praying before they eat

31. Who was staring at the narrator?

(A) Paleface man

(B) Paleface woman
(C) Boys who entered their party
(D) Principal

32. How did Zitkala-Sa react to the situation?

(A) She too stared at the paleface woman

(B) She dropped her food
(C) She dropped her eyes
(D) None of these

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ANSWERS

1. C
2. Melancholy and gloomy
3. Separated from her mother
4 A
5 Nobody was able to ease her distress
6 Condescending, disdainful and domineering
7. B
8. The author’s realization of her misconception
9 C
10. Anguish and rage carried out in the speaker’s voice
11. Because her hair was being cut against her will by school authorities.
12. C
13. She used to console her in her sad moments
14. Hardships and sufferings of the marginalised communities in different parts of the
world.
15. D
16. C
17. Small school going child
18. Roamed to watch the unending attractions on the way.
19. There were many distraction on way back to school
20. C
21. One of the landlords asked him his name
22. To find out the cast of narrator’s brother
23. The problem of untouchability and caste discrimination
24. In those days Dalits were confined to particular areas.
25. To study hard and win respect
26. She studies and became a writer
27. B
28. The discrimination on the basis of caste and social hierarchy
29. B
30. D
31 B
32. C

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