Class 10 English Sample Paper Term 1 Set E

Please refer to Class 10 English Sample Paper Term 1 Set E with solutions below. The following CBSE Sample Paper for Class 10 English has been prepared as per the latest pattern and examination guidelines issued by CBSE. By practicing the English Sample Paper for Class 10 students will be able to improve their understanding of the subject and get more marks.

CBSE Class 10 English Sample Paper for Term 1

Section – A

I. Read the passage given below.

1. When it comes to drinking water every day, an important question to ask is how much water should you drink? It is a simple question with a not-so-simple answer. Just like one size does not fit all, every individual has different hydration needs which depend on a person’s health, level of activity and climatic conditions.

2. Water is one of the most important nutrients and contributes about 50 – 60% to our body weight. Much also depends on an individual’s age, gender and body-fat content. We can live without food for almost two months, but we can’t survive without water for more than a few days. Water is essential for the body to function normally, dehydration can cause death. Lack of water can lead to malfunctioning of the kidney, which would hinder excretion of uric acid, urea and calcium, resulting in kidney stones. Its scarcity can affect electrolyte balance in the body, which could be potentially dangerous causing coma or death.

3. Water is also essential for breathing, as the lungs need to be moist before they exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide. Apart from all those known functions, water is important for chemical reactions in digestion and metabolism. It also helps cool the body through perspiration and lubricates our joints. People suffering from arthritis should drink a glass of water every second hour.

4. In the last decade, the 8 x 8 guideline (8 ounce or 240 ml of water, or 8 glasses of water) was followed all over the world. The National Institute of Nutrition in its 2011 guidelines prescribed two litres or eight glasses of water per day for a healthy adult.
Optimum hydration can be achieved by drinking low-calorie, nutritious beverages such as lemon water, green tea, coconut water, butter milk, besides plain water. Plan your day in a way that you drink enough liquid. The thumb rule should be to include at least one of these beverages as part of your Mid-day meal. In a nutshell, a person requires a minimum of eight glasses of water per day — do not gulp all in one go, divide the number of glasses equally throughout the day and combine them with low-calorie, nutritious beverages whenever possible. Regulate your water intake according to weather conditions for staying adequately hydrated.

5. To conclude, water is the elixir of life. Instead of wasting water, we must adopt rainwater harvesting. Think of states like Rajasthan where water supply is available for a few hours. At some places, there is a great shortage of water. We must use water judiciously and sparingly. What will we leave for the next generation if we use such a precious source carelessly? If things go like this, we all will be fighting over water. What we need is to treat even the sea water to meet water scarcity or else we will end up saying. ‘‘water water everywhere, but not a drop to drink.’’

Based on your understanding of the passage, answer any eight out of the ten questions by choosing the correct option.

1. When the writer says that ‘it is a simple questions with a not-so simple answer’, he tries to highlight that
(a) people have different views over it.
(b) the problem requires a thorough analysis.
(c) the problem does not have a single-answer.
(d) there is no concrete evidence to solve the problem.

2. The writer says ‘water is elixir of life’ because
(a) without water, the body does not function properly.
(b) water maintains the health of the organs.
(c) we can’t live without water for even 2 days.
(d) None of the above

3. Select the option that suitably completes the given dialogue as per the context of the passage.
Doctor : Your body shows sign of (1) ……………. . How much water do you drink in a day?
X : I drink about 4 glasses of water in a day.
Doctor : That is not good. You need to start drinking (2) ……………………
(a) (1) kidney problem (2) 2 litres of water in a day
(b) (1) dehydration, (2) water every hour in a day
(c) (1) kidney stones, (2) 8 glasses of water in a day
(d) All of the above

4. Which board would appropriately be used by the author to make readers aware about human requirements of water?

(a) Option 1
(b) Option 2
(c) Option 3
(d) Option 4

5. Select the option that clearly indicates the correct set.

6. What is the relationship between (1) and (2)?
(1) Water is one of the most important nutrients ………
(2) ………we can’t survive without water for more than a few days.
(a) (2) is the cause for (1).
(b) (1) repeats the point stated in (2).
(c) (2) elaborates the problem described in (1).
(d) (1) sets the stage for (2).

7. Which of the following illustrates the perfect way in which we should drink the stated amount of water?
(a) In one go
(b) Gradually through out the day
(c) At an interval of one hour
(d) Only when you are thirsty

8. ‘Just like one size does not fit all,’ in the context of the passage means
(a) different health condition of people
(b) different body composition of people
(c) different quantities of water available to people
(d) different water requirements of people

9. Which quote can be used in the last paragraph of the passage?
(a) “Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.” – Lao Tzu
(b) “Water is life’s matter and matrix, mother and medium. There is no life without water.” – Albert Szent-Gyorgyi
(c) “When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water.” – Benjamin Franklin
(d) “Tread lightly. Reduce your Water Footprint.” – The Dharma Trails

10. Based on your understanding of the passage, choose the option that lists the need of water for the human body correctly.
1. Digestive tract
2. Respiratory system
3. Excretory system
4. Glands
5. Cardiovascular system
(a) 1, 2, 3
(b) 1, 2, 5
(c) 2, 3, 4
(d) 1, 3, 5

II. Read the passage given below.

‘’Hunger and under nutrition cannot and should not be fixed by mere calorie provision. All stakeholders must pay attention to making balanced healthy diets which are climate- friendly, affordable and accessible to all.’’ Shweta Khandelwal, Head of Nutrition Research, Public Health Foundation of India.
India ranked 94 among 107 nations in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2020 and was in the ‘serious’ hunger category with experts blaming poor implementation processes, lack of effective monitoring, soiled approach in tackling malnutrition and poor performance by large states behind the low ranking. Nepal in 73rd and Sri Lanka in 64th position were in ‘moderate’ hunger category, the report showed.
Seventeen nations, including China, Belarus, Ukraine, Turkey, Cuba and Kuwait, shared the top rank with the GHI scores of less than five, as per the website of the Global Hunger Index which tracks hunger and malnutrition, said the officials on Friday.

According to the report released on Friday, 14 per cent of India’s population was undernourished. It also showed the country recorded a 37.4 per cent stunting rate among children under five and a wasting rate of 17.3 per cent. The under-five mortality rate stood at 3.7 per cent. (Wasting is children who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute under-nutrition. Stunting is children under the age of five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic under nutrition).
Data from 1991 through 2014 for Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan showed that stunting was concentrated among children from households facing multiple forms of deprivation, including poor dietary diversity, low levels of maternal education and household poverty. During this period, India experienced a decline in under-five mortality, driven largely by a decrease in deaths from birth asphyxia or trauma, neonatal infections, pneumonia and diarrhea, the report stated.
‘’However, child mortality, caused by prematurity and low birth-weight, increased particularly in poorer states and rural areas.
Prevention of prematurity and low birth-weight is identified as a key factor with the potential to reduce under- five mortality in India through actions such as better antenatal care, free vaccination, education and nutrition as well as reductions in anaemia and oral tobacco use,’’ it said.

Based on your understanding of the passage, answer any six out of the eight questions by choosing the correct option.

11. Select the correct inference with reference to the following.
Hunger and undernutrition cannot and should not be fixed by more calorie provision.
(a) Calorie measurement is not the correct factor to measure hunger and undernutrition.
(b) Hunger and undernutrition is dependent on other factors and not on calorie intake.
(c) There are various factors that come into play when we seek to measure hunger and undernutrition.
(d) Calorie intake is dependent on other factors which are central to measuring hunger and undernutrition.

12. According to the passage, one of the reasons for India’s poor ranking in GHI 2020 is
(a) lack of result oriented supervision
(b) lack of financial resources
(c) high population
(d) lack of human resource to tackle it

13. Select the option that displays the true statement with reference to the data presented in the image.
(a) China is one among the 17 countries that score low in GHI.
(b) A 100 countries were a part of the study that publishes the score of the GHI.
(c) The higher the score the lesser the percentage of people or children suffering from under nutrition.
(d) The GHI measure stunting, wasting and mortality rate to score the countries.

14. Based on your reading of the passage, select the appropriate counter- argument to the given argument.
Argument : I don’t think that stunting and wasting are related to under nourishment.
(a) Stunting and Wasting are a part of the GHI score and hence must be related to under nourishment.
(b) Stunting and Wasting are deficiency diseases which is a result of under nourishing diet and hunger.
(c) Stunting and Wasting can be related to heredity but not completely as it depends on the food we eat.
(d) Stunting and Wasting reflect chronic under nourishment as children do not take a proper balanced diet.

15. Select the option that displays the correct cause-effect relationship.

16. Pick the option that lists statements that are NOT TRUE according to the passage.
1. India performed better than Cuba and Kuwait
2. Hunger and malnutrition is tracked by the website of GHI
3. Sri Lanka ranked higher than Nepal
(a) 1 and 2
(b) Only 1
(c) Only 2
(d) 2 and 3

17. India’s high score in the GHI is due to the high levels of …………………….. .
(a) Stunting
(b) Wasting
(c) Undernourishment
(d) Mortality

18. Read the two statements given below and select the option that suitably explains them.
(1) Child mortality has decreased in poorer states and rural areas.
(2) Prevention of prematurity and low birth weight are important factors that reduce under-5 mortality rate.
(a) (1) is the problem and (2) is the solution for (1).
(b) (1) is false but (2) correctly explains (1).
(c) (1) summarises (2).
(d) (1) is true and (2) is the reason for (1).

Section – B

Attempt any 10 questions in this section.

III. Answer any four out of the five questions given, with reference to the context below.

You are Lalith, the secretary of your School’s Book Club. Your school has been asked to send volunteers to the book fair organised by the Sahitya Akademi. Write a notice for the same.

19. Select the most appropriate title for the notice.
(s) Book Fair by Sahitya Akademi
(b) Call For Volunteers
(c) Participation in The Book Fair
(d) Volunteers Needed

20. Would this notice include the salutation?
(a) Yes, after the title
(b) Yes, after the name of issuing authority
(c) No, there is no need to write salutation in a notice
(d) All of the above

21. Select the option with the information points to be included in the body of the notice.
1. Location of the fair r
2. Date of the fair 
3. Class specification for the volunteers
4. Cash prize for the best voluntee
5. Last date for the submission
(a) 1 and 2
(b) 3 and 4
(c) 1, 2 and 5
(d) All of these

22. Select the name of the issuing authority for the notice.
(a) Lalith (Secretary of Book Club) – XYZ School
(b) Novella Book Club
(c) Sahitya Akademi
(d) No name will be mentioned

23. Select the appropriate conclusion for the notice.
(a) Collaboration solicited
(b) Please give your names as early as possible
(c) Collaboration will be appreciated
(d) For any query contact Ms. Nilanjana in room 104.

IV. Answer any six of the seven questions given, with reference to the context below.

Kabir is the member of the health society that promotes a balanced living. He has to write an article emphasising the need to live a balanced and healthy life.

24. Select the option that lists an appropriate title for Kabir’s article.
(a) All About Balance
(b) Balance and Health
(c) All About Balance- A Happy Existence
(d) Smart Living: Health and Balance

25. Which option (1-4), would Kabir use to write his article?

(a) Option 1
(b) Option 2
(c) Option 3
(d) Option 4

26. Which option would help Kabir with the appropriate organisation of relevant ideas for the article?
(a) Modern living- Example- Need for happy and balanced living- Example- Benefits of balance lifestyle- Need to remain healthy- Conclusion
(b) Modern imbalanced lifestyle- Importance of balance- Example- How does a balanced life affect us- Suggestions – Conclusion
(c) Definition of balance life- Why is balance life important- Example- Providing suggestion of how to live happily- Conclusion
(d) Modern life- Definition of modern life- Example- Need of balanced life- suggestions on how to live a balanced life- conclusion

27. Which of the following can be used as an example to justify the need to balanced life?
(a) A working woman
(b) A student
(c) A CEO
(d) All of these

28. Read a sentence from Kabir’s article draft and help him complete it by selecting the most appropriate option.
…………………. the balance in one’s life is both beneficial but crucial. Balance saves from tipping off a cliff of stress and destruction.
(a) Similar to the nature where balance works its best
(b) Just like in nature, where balance is a crucial factor,
(c) As has been accepted, balance is a part of nature
(d) To add, nature works on balance, similarly

29. Which quote should Kabir use to conclude the central idea of his article?
(a) “Balance is a feeling derived from being whole and complete; it’s a sense of harmony. It is essential to maintaining quality in life and work.” –Joshua Osenga
(b) “A balanced inner calmness radiates from a peaceful centre. It neither craves others’ approval nor rejects others’ presence. It neither pulls towards nor pushes away. It has a reverent attitude towards life and all its inhabitants.”- Donna Goddard
(c) “Balanced thinking will take you beyond confusion.”- Daphne Michaels
(d) “Be aware of wonder. Live a balanced life – Learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.” – Robert Fulgham

30. A good article contains certain markers. Select the option that contains the correct markers that Kabir must follow while writing his article.

(a) Option 1
(b) Option 2
(c) Option 3
(d) Option 4

Section – C

This section has sub-sections : V, VI, VII, VIII and IX. There are a total of 30 questions in the section. Attempt any 26 questions from the sub-sections V to IX.

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

With that he picked me up and tossed me into the deep end. I landed in a sitting position, swallowed water, and went at once to the bottom. I was frightened, but not yet frightened out of my wits. On the way down I planned: When my feet hit the bottom, I would make a big jump, come to the surface, lie flat on it, and paddle to the edge of the pool.
It seemed a long way down. Those nine feet were more like ninety, and before I touched bottom my lungs were ready to burst. But when my feet hit bottom I summoned all my strength and made what I thought was a great spring upwards. 

31. The fact that Douglas ‘went at once to the bottom’ suggests that
(a) he was shocked
(b) the event happened suddenly
(c) did not try to save himself
(d) did not know how to swim

32. The phrase ‘out of my wits’means
(a) to the point of blankness
(b) to the point of unconsciousness
(c) to the point of extremity
(d) All of the above

33. What do you think Douglas means when he says that ‘what I thought was a great spring upwards’?
(a) Nothing happened to him
(b) His plan failed
(c) He had gone unconscious
(d) His hope of survival was lost

34. Select the option that lists Douglas’s condition corresponding to the following:
(1) I was frightened, but not yet frightened out of my wits. On the way down I planned:
(2) Before I touched bottom my lungs were ready to burst.

35. Select the option that lists the correct feeling associated with ‘frightened out of my wits’.
1. Agitated
2. Wrathful
3. Reassurance
4. Succor
5. Buoyant
6. Startled
(a) 2 and 6
(b) 3 and 4
(c) 1 and 6
(d) 4 and 5

VI. Read the given extract to attempt questions that follow :

Unaware of what his name represents, he roams the streets with his friends, an army of barefoot boys who appear like the morning birds and disappear at noon. Over the months, I have come to recognise each of them.
“Why aren’t you wearing chappals?” I ask one.
“My mother did not bring them down from the shelf,” he answers simply.
“Even if she did he will throw them off,” adQ.sanother who is wearing shoes that do not match.
When I comment on it, he shuffles his feet and says nothing. “I want shoes,” says a third boy who has never owned a pair all his life. Travelling across the country I have seen children walking barefoot, in cities, on village roads. It is not lack of money but a tradition to stay barefoot, is one explanation.

36. Why does the writer say that Saheb is unaware of what his name represents?
(a) To show the lack of literacy among the boys.
(b) To highlight the irony present in Saheb’s life.
(c) To built upon the theme of loss of childhood which the boys do not know.
(d) To depict the level of deprivation of the boys.

37. Select the option that lists the correct inference based on the information in the extract.
(a) The author had been visiting Saheb and his friends for a long time.
(b) The author wanted to know about Saheb and his life.
(c) The author coincidentally meets Saheb and his friends.
(d) The author has befriended all the ragpicker boys in her area.

38. What was the reason for one of the boys wearing the shoes that do not match?
(a) He did not have a complete pair to wear.
(b) He could not afford to buy a new matching pair.
(c) The boy did not care to wear the matching pair.
(d) The boy liked wearing the unmatched pair.

39. When the author mentions that the boy was wearing mismatched shoes, the boy shuffles his feet.
The boy was shuffling his feet because ………………………… .
(a) he was dejected
(b) he was ashamed
(c) he was embarrassed
(d) he was hurt

40. How does the author feel about the children talked off in the extract?
(a) Anxious
(b) Dejected
(c) Wrathful
(d) Suspicious

VII. Read the given extract to attempt questions that follow :

What I want should not be
confused
with total inactivity.
Life is what it is about;
I want no truck with death.
If we were not so single-minded
about keeping our lives moving,
and for once could do nothing,
perhaps a huge silence
might interrupt this sadness
of never understanding ourselves
and of threatening ourselves with death.

41. Choose the option that best applies to the given extract.
1. A conversation
2. An argument
3. A piece of advice
4. A strategy
5. A recollection
6. A suggestion
(a) 1, 3 and 6
(b) 2, 4 and 5
(c) Only 5
(d) Only 1

42. What does the poet mean by ‘I want no truck with death’?
(a) He does not propagate death.
(b) His concern in the poem is not death.
(c) He does not want people to die in wars.
(d) He wants people to stop thinking about death.

43. The ‘single minded’, most likely, indicates the quality(ies) of ……… possessed by man.
(a) Materialistic
(b) Selfishness
(c) Immoral
(d) Both (a) and (b)

44. What is life according to the poet?
(a) Happiness and productivity
(b) Living life on one’s own terms
(c) Being victorious in achieving one’s goals
(d) Maintaining peace and brotherhood

45. What does the phrase ‘Huge silence’ signify?
(a) Melancholy
(b) Understanding
(c) Discomfort
(d) Flexibility

VIII. Read the given extract to attempt questions that follow:

To make sure, I walked over to a newsboy and glanced at the stack of papers at his feet. It was The World; and The World hasn’t been published for years. The lead story said something about President Cleveland. I’ve found that front page since, in the Public Library files, and it was printed June 11, 1894.
I turned toward the ticket windows knowing that here – on the third level at Grand Central – I could buy tickets that would take Louisa and me anywhere in the United States we wanted to go. In the year 1894. And I wanted two tickets to Galesburg, Illinois

46. What did Charley want to make sure?
(a) That he was not lost
(b) That he was in the past
(c) That he was on the third level
(d) That he had been imagining things

47. Charley’s going through the Public Library files was a
(a) clarification of the exact date and year of the newspaper.
(b) affirmation of the date and year to which he had travelled.
(c) logical search of where he was at the time.
(d) proof of Charley visiting the third level at the station.

48. Select the option that signifies the reason of Charley’s decision to go to Galesburg.
1. Childhood memories
2. Pre-war times
3. Countryside
4. Simple life
5. Friendly neighbours
(a) 1, 4, 5
(b) 2, 3, 4
(c) 1, 2, 3
(d) 2, 3, 5

49. Select the option that displays a cause-effect relationship.

50. Which of the following can be applied to Charley?
(a) Past glorification
(b) Nostalgic pride
(c) Antiquity infatuation
(d) Modern magnification

IX. Attempt the following.

51. On the basis of the poem ‘My Mother at Sixty-Six’, pick the opinion that is TRUE about its theme.
(a) Nature is immortal and humanity is mortal.
(b) No one can stop age and time.
(c) Age brings with itself a sense of loss.
(d) Time and tide waits for none.

52. “It is his karam, his destiny,” says Mukesh’s grandmother The statement by Mukesh’s grandmother indicates
(a) Recognition
(b) Acceptance
(c) Oppression
(d) Superstition

53. Select the suitable option for the given statements, based on your reading ‘My Mother at Sixty-Six’.
(1) The poet feels stuck within her duty as a daughter and her responsibility to her work.
(2) The poet is overpowered by her responsibility and feels sorry for herself.
(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) cannot be inferred.
(d) Both Statement (1) and Statement (2) can be inferred.

54. ‘Wear skins peeped through by bones and spectacles of steel With mended glass, like bottle bits on stones.’
Pick the option that lists the literary device not used in the given lines.
1. Alliteration
2. Imagery
3. Metaphor
4. Simile
5. personification
6. Symbolism
(a) 1, 2, 3
(b) 1, 2, 4
(c) 3, 4, 5
(d) 4, 5, 6

55. ‘I’ve been in and out of Grand Central hundreds of times, but I’m always bumping into new doorways and stairs and corridors.’
Pick out the option that CANNOT be inferred from the given lines.
(a) The narrator accidentally explores the Grand Central Station.
(b) The discovery of new places like the third level was not new to Charley.
(c) The narrator had experienced such incidents many times.
(d) The narrator did not expect to find the Third level of the Grand Central Station.

56. Choose the correct option with reference to the two statements given below.
Yumi was correct in her decision of not washing the POW.
Yumi is not influential like Sadao and thus could be claimed a traitor for helping the POW.
(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) are true.
(d) Both Statement (1) and Statement (2) are false.

57. Classify (1) to (4) as fact (F) and opinion (O), based on your reading of ‘The Last Lesson’.
1. M. Hamel came to be the most respected person of Alsace only when he was leaving.
2. The people of Alsace are careless in their education.
3. Franz feels utterly shocked at the prospect of not learning French anymore.
4. M. Hamel should want the people to keep reading French.
(a) F – 1 and 4 ; O – 2 and 3
(b) F – 2 and 3 ; O – 1 and 4
(c) F – 1 and 2 ; O – 3 and 4
(d) F – 2 and 4 ; O – 1 and 3

58. Pablo Neruda in the poem ‘Keeping Quiet’ states ‘in the shade, doing nothing’. This indicates that
(a) people who are responsible for wars do nothing in their life
(b) people who become a part of wars should relax.
(c) People should relax and not be bothered by other people.
(d) People should sit under the shade and form fraternal bonds with others

59. Douglas learns a lesson from President Roosevelt through his words ‘All we have to fear is fear itself.’ Select the option that can be used to state the lesson learnt.
(a) To dispel fear
(b) To address the fear
(c) To prevent the fear
(d) To ignore the fear

60. What convinced Charley that he had reached the Third Level of the Grand Central Station and not the Second Level?
(a) Different world of gas lights and brass spittoons
(b) Beards and moustaches of 1894
(c) Newspaper named ‘The World’
(d) All of the above