QUESTION BANK FOR SYJC (HSC EXAMINATION) SUBJECT- ENGLISH
QUESTION BANK HSC (SYJC)
SECTION I: PROSE
SET 1: Q.1A SEEN PASSAGES (12 Marks)
1. Read the extract and complete the activities given below: (12)
Punctually at midday he opened his bag and spread out his professional equipment, which consisted of a dozen cowrie shells, a square piece of cloth with obscure mystic charts on it, a notebook, and a bundle of Palmyra writing. His forehead was resplendent (glorious) with sacred ash and vermilion, and his eyes sparkled with a sharp abnormal gleam (shine) which was really an outcome of a continual searching look for customers, but which his simple clients took to be a prophetic light and felt comforted. The power of his eyes was considerably enhanced by their position placed as they were between the painted forehead and the dark whiskers (mustaches) which streamed down his cheeks: even a half-wit’s eyes would sparkle in such a setting. To crown the effect he wound a saffron-coloured turban around his head. This colour scheme never failed. People were attracted to him as bees are attracted to cosmos or dahlia stalks. He sat under the boughs of a spreading tamarind tree which flanked a path running through the Town Hall Park. It was a remarkable place in many ways. A surging crowd was always moving up and down this narrow road from morning till night. A variety of trades and occupations was represented all along its way : medicine sellers, sellers of stolen hardware and junk, magicians, and above all, an auctioneer of cheap cloth, who created enough din all day to attract the whole town. Next to him in vociferousness came a vendor of fried groundnut, who gave his ware a fancy name each day, calling it “Bombay Ice Cream” one day and on the next “Delhi Almond,” and on the third “Raja’s Delicacy,” and so on and so forth, and people flocked to him. A considerable portion of this crowd dallied before the astrologer too. The astrologer transacted his business by the light of a flare which crackled and smoked up above the groundnut heap nearby. Half the enchantment of the place was due to the fact that it did not have the benefit of municipal lighting. The place was lit up by shop lights. One or two had hissing gaslights, some had naked flares stuck on poles, some were lit up by old cycle lamps, and one or two, like the astrologer, managed without lights of their own. It was a bewildering crisscross of light rays and moving shadows. This suited the astrologer very well, for the simple reason that he had not in the least intended to be an astrologer when he began life; and he knew no more of what was going to happen to others than he knew what was going to happen to himself next minute. He was as much a stranger to the stars as were his innocent customers. Yet he said things which pleased and astonished everyone: that was more a matter of study, practice, and shrewd guesswork. All the same, it was as much an honest man’s labour as any other, and he deserved the wages he carried home at the end of a day.
A1. State if the given statements are True or False. (2)
i. The astrologer used to have the preparation of his business in quite professional way.
ii. The physical appearance of the astrologer hardly created an impact on the customers.
iii. The place was busy with a variety of occupations.
iv. The astrologer’s style of handling the business lies in his skills.
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A2. Complete the given web. (2)
Activities of the
astrologer
A3. The astrologer was a shrewd judge of a character. Explain with some details from the extract. (2)
A4. We need to understand even the smallest details of the business in order to succeed. Write your views. (2)
A5. Do as directed. (2)
1) It was a remarkable place in many ways.
(Choose correct alternative to rewrite the given sentence as an exclamatory sentence)
i. It was a remarkable place in many ways!
ii. How a remarkable place in many ways it was!
iii. What a remarkable place in many ways it was!
iv. What remarkable in many ways the place it was!
2) He spread out his professional equipment, which consisted of a dozen cowrie shells.
(Choose correct alternative to rewrite the given sentence as a compound sentence)
i. He spread out his professional equipment but it consisted of a dozen cowrie shells.
ii. He spread out his professional equipment and it consisted of a dozen cowrie shells.
iii. He spread out his professional equipment that it consisted of a dozen cowrie shells.
iv. He spread out his professional equipment and it had consisted of a dozen cowrie shells.
A6. Find the synonyms for the following words from the passage. (2) a. Confusing b. hanging around c. difficult to understand d. magical effect
2. Read the extract and complete the activities given below: (12)
The young lift-man in a City office who threw a passenger out of his lift the other morning and was fined for the offence was undoubtedly in the wrong. It was a question of “Please.” The complainant entering the lift, said, “Top.” The lift-man demanded “Top-please,” and this concession being refused he not only declined to
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comply with the instruction, but hurled the passenger out of the lift. This, of course was carrying a comment on manner too far. Discourtesy is not a legal offence, and it does not excuse assault and battery. If a burglar breaks into my house and I knock him down, the law will acquit me, and if I am physically assaulted, it will permit me to retaliate with reasonable violence. It does this because the burglar and my assailant have broken quite definite commands of the law. But no legal system could attempt to legislate against bad manners or could sanction the use of violence against something which it does not itself recognize as a legally punishable offence. And our sympathy with the liftman, we must admit that the law is reasonable. It would never do if we were at liberty to box people’s ears because we did not like their behaviour, or the tone of their voices, or the scowl on their faces. Our fists would never be idle, and the gutters of the city would run with blood all day. I may be as uncivil as I may please and the law will protect me against violent retaliation. I may be haughty or boorish and there is no penalty to pay except the penalty of being written down an ill mannered fellow. The law does not compel me to say “Please” or to attune my voice to other people’s sensibilities any more than it says that I shall not wax my moustache or dye my hair or wear ringlets down my back. It does not recognize the laceration of our feelings as a case for compensation. There is no allowance for moral and intellectual damages in these matters.
A1. Read the following statements and pick out the statement which expresses the intention of the writer. (2)
i. There is an importance of good manners and civility.
ii. The wound on one’s self-respect is more painful than physical wound. iii. One needs to be courteous with a liftman.
iv. Strict laws can civilize people.
A2. Pick out some examples of behaviour from the extract that are not punishable under law. (Any four) (2)
A3. “The passenger damaged the liftman’s self- respect”. Support your answer with some facts from the extract. (2)
A4. What if- ‘Discourtesy is a legal offence?’ Write your response in about 30 words.(2) A5. Do as directed. (2) 1) If I am physically assaulted, it will permit me to retaliate.
(Choose correct alternative to use ‘unless’)
i. Unless I am physically assaulted, it will permit me to retaliate.
ii. Unless I am physically assaulted, it would not permit me to retaliate. iii. Unless I am physically assaulted, it will not permit me to retaliate. iv. Unless I am not physically assaulted, it will not permit me to retaliate.
2) The law will protect me against violent retaliation.
(Choose correct alternative to use a modal auxiliary showing ‘obligation’)
i. The law can protect me against violent retaliation.
ii. The law could protect me against violent retaliation.
iii. The law may protect me against violent retaliation.
iv. The law must protect me against violent retaliation.
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A6. Find out the words from the passage which mean the following: (2)
i. Lack of courtesy
ii. Fight with the fists
iii. Uncultured
iv. An attacker
3. Read the extract and complete the activities given below: (12)
Soapy left his bench and strolled out of the square and across the level sea of asphalt, where Broadway and Fifth Avenue flow together. Up Broadway he turned, and stopped at a luxurious cafe. Soapy had confidence in himself from the lowest button of his vest upward. He was shaven, and his coat was trim and his neat, black bow had been presented to him by a lady missionary on Thanksgiving Day. If only he could reach a table in the restaurant unsuspected, success would be his. The portion of him that would show above the table would raise no doubt in the waiter’s mind. A roasted mallard duck, thought Soapy, would be about the thing with a bottle of wine and then some cheese, a cup of coffee and a cigar. One dollar for the cigar would be enough. The total would not be so high as to call forth any extreme of revenge from the cafe management; and yet the meat would leave him filled and happy for the journey to his winter island. But as Soapy set foot inside the restaurant door, the head-waiter’s eye fell upon his tattered trousers and decadent shoes. Strong and ready hands turned him about and conveyed him in silence and haste to the side-walk and averted the ignoble fate of the menaced mallard. Soapy turned off Broadway. It seemed that his route to the coveted island was not to be an easy one. Some other way of entering the limbo must be devised. At a corner of Sixth Avenue electric lights and cunningly displayed wares behind plate glass made a shop window attractive. Soapy took a stone and dashed it through the glass. People came running round the corner, a policeman in the lead. Soapy stood still with his hands in his pockets, and smiled at the sight of brass buttons. “Where’s the man that done that?” inquired the officer agitatedly. “Don’t you think that I might have had something to do with it?” said Soapy, with a friendly voice, as one greets good fortune. The policeman refused to accept Soapy even as a clue. Men who smash windows do not remain to chat with the police. They take to their heels. The policeman saw a man half-way down the block running to catch a car. With drawn club he joined in the pursuit. Soapy, with disgust in his heart, drifted along, twice unsuccessful.
A1 Soapy’s attempts to get into Winter Island: (2)
A2 Complete the given statement in 30 words. (2) Soapy couldn’t enter the restaurant because………
A3 Soapy had confidence in himself from the lowest button of his vest upward. Here the lowest button of his vest upward means ……………. (2)
A4 If a person tries to damage the public property, how you will react in such a situation. (write your response in 3/ 4 lines) (2)
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A5 Do as directed. (2) 1) The policeman refused to accept Soapy even as a clue.
(Choose the correct alternative to transform as a negative statement)
i) The policeman didn’t accept Soapy even as a clue.
ii) The policeman had never accepted Soapy even as a clue.
iii) The policeman didn’t accepted Soapy even as a clue.
iv) The policeman couldn’t accept Soapy even as a clue.
3) “Don’t you think that I might have had something to do with it?” said Soapy. (Choose the correct alternative to change the sentence into indirect speech) i) Soapy asked if he didn’t think that he might have something to do with that.
ii) Soapy asked if he didn’t think that he might have had something to do with that.
iii) Soapy asked if he didn’t thought that he might have had something to do with that.
iv) Soapy asked if he didn’t think that he might had had something to do with that.
A6. Match the words in column A with column B: (2)
4. Read the extract and complete the activities given below: (12)
So a huge amount of data is collected. Let me give you an idea of how huge the data might be. Big Data can be petabytes or exabytes of data consisting of billions to trillions of records of millions of people- all from different sources, for example web, sales, customer contact centre, social media, mobile data and so on. The data available to industries and companies is enormously increasing in volume, variation, velocity, veracity and value. Such a Big Data is easy to obtain but so massive that it challenges the current computing technologies and hence Big Data analytics is used to give insights that were previously incomprehensible. Big Data analytics is the complex process of examining large and varied data sets or Big Data to uncover information- such as hidden patterns, unknown correlations, market trends and customer preferences. With such a huge data available with the industries they can have innumerable advantages hence all the industries are trying to reap the maximum benefit from it. Many industries have advanced by miles from their competitors. It’s not the amount of data that is important but what the organizations do with the data is what matters.
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Uses of Big Data
1. Location Tracking: Big Data has been useful in identifying and tracking the exact location of a place. Your GPS and Google Maps make use of Big Data. With geographic positioning and radio frequency identification sensors we get the real-time data about traffic, congestion on a particular route, information if the route is closed or if it is a one-way route, understanding accident prone areas etc. You can plan your own route according to the travel time and the transportation of goods. If you have ordered something online you can track the location of your goods in transit, you can also track the condition of the goods. This has immensely helped the logistics companies to reduce risks in transport, improve speed and reliability in delivery.
A1. Arrange the given sentences in the order to summarize the extract according to proper occurrences. (2)
i. Big data improved the logistics services.
ii. Every online activity is stored in big data.
iii. Big data is comprehensible due to Big Data Analytics.
iv. The industries gained advantages from the big data.
A2. Big Data analytics play a vital role. Justify. (2) A3. Big data is a great challenge to the present computing technologies. Explain. (2)
A4. We tend to refer to certain features of the product or services before orders. Give reasons for such conduct. (2)
A5. Do as directed. (2)
1) If you have ordered something online you can track the location of your goods in transit.
(Choose correct alternative to use ‘After+ing’)
i. After you have ordering something online, you can track the location of your goods in transit.
ii. After ordering something online, you can track the location of the goods in transit.
iii. After you have ordered something, you are tracking the location of your goods in transit.
iv. After ordering something online, you can tracking the location of your goods in transit.
2) Big data analytics is the complex process.
(Choose correct alternative to change the sentence as negative sentence)
i. Big Data analytics is not the complex process.
ii. Big Data analytics is not a compound process.
iii. Big Data analytics is not an easy process.
iv. Big Data analytics is not the simple process.
A6 Pick out the antonyms of the following words from the passage. (2) a) Understandable b) hide c) available d) similar
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5. Read the extract and solve the activities. (12)
The eight-and-a-half-hour-long day inside the hide was a fruitful as the Jambha tree standing tall on the edge of Umbarzara. Before wrapping up my day at this natural waterhole, I took entries of the avifauna in my field work. Since I was alone, I rushed to Pitezari village where I was stationed. I camouflaged the hide, took my essentials, and came out of the hide and stretched out to my heart's content. I lifted my camera bag and took the familiar trial to Pitezari. Negotiating the webbed leaves of Teakwood and Moha trees, trying to make minimal sound, I was treading cautiously among the wood. Walking alone in a jungle needs more alertness than walking with a companion. I was alone here like a fox. Following the trial silently, watching with wide-open eyes, my ears were grasping a variety of sound stunned me...
'Khyak! Khyak! KhyakoSS Khyak!'
It was a Langur alarm call. The leader of the gang of Langurs was sitting on the tall tree making alarm calls out of fear. Rest of the Langur brigade continued raising the alarm calls. The network of alarm calls was expanding its range as the petrified Langurs speeded to the trees near and far and secured their places on treetops. All this upheaval was created by only one animal's presence- a Leopard. Many animals make alarm calls when they see a predator- Tiger or a Leopard nearby. The Langur is more reliable when it comes to finding clues about the presence of the apex predators in the jungle. The mighty elusive Leopard of Umbarzara was out of his liar. He was on the prowl. The stealthily moving figure in spotted gold- black cloak was spied by these Langurs. Even the small ones from the legion of Langurs were giving alarm calls.
'Chyak! Chyak!'
I stayed put. Gauged the leader Langur's target sight and scanned the area visually. Took some steps. Stopped again. A fresh scat was lying before me on the trail. The bluish-purple flies were hovering over it. I was sure that the Leopard was somewhere near. The distant alarm call of four-horned antelope was adding to the chaos.
A1 Complete the given flowchart about the writer’s activities. (2) The writer completed his tasks satisfactorily.
He was alarmed of a predator in vicinity.
A2 Enlist the clues which confirmed the presence of a leapord. (2) A3 Complete. (2) ‘I was alone like a fox.’ The writer compares himself to the fox because …..
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A4 State what precautions you would take after finding yourself lost in a jungle. (2) A5 Do as directed. (2)
i. The langur is the most reliable in finding clues in jungle about predators. (Choose the correct alternative that gives the transformation of the given sentence in Positive Degree)
a. No other animal in jungle is as reliable as langur in finding clues about predators in jungle.
b. No other langur is as reliable as other animals in finding clues about predators in jungle.
c. Langur is as reliable as other animals in jungle in finding clues about predators.
d. Very few animals in jungle are as reliable as langur in finding clues about predators in jungle.
ii. I camouflaged the hide...
(Choose correct alternative that has Simple Present Tense form.)
a) I camouflage the hide
b) I am camouflaging the hide
c) I have camouflaged the hide
d) I can camouflage the hide
A6 Find a word from the extract which mean the following: (2)
i. To hide oneself by covering up with natural or artificial material to mislead the enemy.
ii. Finishing the work
iii. Making oneself safe from danger
iv. To successfully walk over
6. Read the extract and solve the activities. (12)
I scored 100% marks in Mathematics in almost all the examinations that I appeared for from my 1st standard until IIT, barring only a few times. I stood 16th in the SSC Board (at that time, this examination was for the whole of Maharashtra, including Nagpur) and I stood 1st in the University in all subjects put together. Those days, you could get an admission into IIT without the entrance test (JEE) if you had secured the 1st rank in the University. Therefore, I did not have to appear for the entrance test to get the admission into IIT, but nobody in Solapur told me about it, for I doubt if anybody in Solapur even knew about this rule. Therefore, I appeared for the entrance examination, and I secured a very good rank in the same. I was quite happy getting into IIT, but my joy was short lived. At Solapur I had not seen any building which was more than three storeyed. Mumbai however was full of skyscrapers. At IIT, most of the students and professors used to converse in English whereas my English was very poor. I had my entire education in Marathi. My spoken English was quite pathetic. Not only did I have a very weak vocabulary, but, my pronunciation also was terrible and my construction of English sentences very awkward to say the least. Due to all this, I was feeling quite lonely and terrified in Mumbai in general and IIT in particular. I had developed an inferiority complex and wanted to run away from IIT and even Mumbai.
One day, I was sitting at my mess table in the hostel sipping tea when a senior guy came and sat on the chair adjacent to me. He was a convent educated guy with
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fairly sophisticated English- at least spoken or colloquial English. He was a bit arrogant and wanted to pull my leg. He tried to engage in some conversation with me and started pointing out errors in just about every sentence or everything that I said. After about 5 minutes he walked away after insulting me.
I felt extremely humiliated and upset. As it is, I was feeling quite depressed and diffident and this incident was the last straw. I was almost broken. I felt out of place there and literally wanted to run away to Solapur that very moment. However, it was only my self-esteem which stopped me. Suddenly, a feeling of determination and strength came over me and gripped me. Despite hailing from Solapur, if I could be a rank holder in the school, college and IIT with many awards in Mathematics, there must be something right with me. Why should I give up? And that too for a silly and small thing like English? I was not to give up anymore, and I was determined to fight back.
A1 Complete the given statements. (2)
i. The writer got admission in IIT as he ….
ii. The poor English of the writer was responsible for ….
A2 Describe the state of mind of the writer when he came from Solapur. (2)
A3 The incident of the insult by a senior was a blessing in disguise for the writer. Explain. (2)
A4 We need a punch to push ourselves forward. Share your experience. (2)
A5 Do as directed. (2)
i. Not only did I have a very weak vocabulary, but my pronunciation also was terrible.
[Choose correct alternative to rewrite the sentence as a simple sentence] a. I had a very weak vocabulary with terrible pronunciation.
b. I had a very weak vocabulary and my pronunciation was terrible.
c. I did have a very weak vocabulary along with terrible pronunciation. d. I had a weak vocabulary as well as terrible pronunciation.
ii. I felt extremely humiliated.
[Choose correct alternative to rewrite the sentence using the noun form of the underlined word.]
a. I felt extremely humiliation.
b. I felt extremely humiliating.
c. I felt extreme humiliation.
d. I felt extreme humiliating.
A6 Prepare a word register for ‘language’. (2)
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