Please refer to Sample Paper Class 10 English Term 2 Set D with solutions provided below. We have provided CBSE Sample Papers for Class 10 English as per the latest paper pattern and examination guidelines for Standard 10 English issued by CBSE for the current academic year. The below provided Sample Guess paper will help you to practice and understand what type of questions can be expected in the Class 10 English exam.

CBSE Sample Paper Class 10 English for Term 2 Set D

SECTION – A (READING)

1. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow :

(1) We are what we eat. The type of food we eat has both immediate and long-term effect on us, at all the three levels – the body, the mind and the spirit. Food which is tamasik (i.e. stale or leftover) in nature is bound to generate stress as it tends to upset the normal functioning of the human body. Fresheners should be avoided. Taking piping hot tea/milk or steaming hot food, whenever available, must be preferred. Excessive use of condiments also disturbs one’s usually calm attitude. Further, it is a mistaken belief that smoking or drinking, even in moderation, relieves stress. Simple meals with one or two food items, rather than too many lavish dishes, are advisable. Thus, vegetarian diet is preferable. Although it is customary to serve fruits with food, it is not the right thing to do. This is because different kinds of digestive secretions are produced by the stomach for variant foods. Mixing up too many varieties of food items at one meal creates problems for the digestive system. In fact, any one type of fruit, preferably taken in the morning is better.

(2) On an average, we eat almost three to four times the quantity of food than we actually need. A lot of body’s energy is used up for digesting the excess food. It is said that after a particular level of food intake, the ‘food actually eats one up’. It is always good to eat a little less than your ‘full-stomach’ capacity. Besides, never eat food unless you are really hungry. Having dinner at 8 or 9 pm after a heavy snack at 5 or 6 pm in the evening is asking for trouble. In fact skipping an odd meal is always good if the stomach is upset. There are varying views on the benefits of fasting. Giving a break to one’s stomach, at least once a week, by having only fruit or milk, etc. may be worth trying.

(3) While a little bit of water taken with meals is all right, drinking 30 to 60 ml much water with food is not advisable. Water, taken an hour or so before or after meals, is good for digestion. One’s diet must be balanced with all the required nutrients for a healthy living. Also remember, excess of everything is bad. Related to the problem of stress, excessive intake of salt is definitely out. Too much sugar, fried food and chillies are not good either. Overindulgence and excessive craving for a particular taste/type of food generates rajasik (aggressive) or at worst, tamasik (dull) tendencies.

(4) An even more important aspect of the relationship between food and stress lies not so much in what or how much we eat but how the food is taken. For example, food eaten in great hurry or in a state of anger or any other negative state of mind is bound to induce stress. How the food is served is also very important. Not only the presentation, cutlery, crockery, etc. play a role, the love and affection with which the food is served is also significant. Finding faults with food while it is being eaten is the worst habit. It is better not to eat the food you do not like, rather than finding fault with it.

(5) It is good to have regular food habits. Workaholics who do not find time to eat food at proper meal times invite stomach ulcers. One must try to enjoy one’s food, and therefore, eating at the so-called lunch/dinner meetings is highly inadvisable. Every morsel of food should be enjoyed with a totally peaceful state of mind. Food and discussions should not be mixed.

On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer ANY FIVE questions from the six given below:

(i) Why shouldn’t we serve food and fruits together?
Answer. Fruits should not be served together with food because they result in the secretion of different digestive secretions that can lead to problems in the digestive system.

(ii) When is the ideal time to consume fruits?
Answer. Consumption of fruits is ideal in the mornings rather than being included with other meals or mixing food items.

(iii) Why is it good to have regular food habits?
Answer. Having or maintaining regular food habits will help in the proper functioning of the stomach and thus maintain the overall health of the person.

(iv) Give one cause of stomach ulcers?
Answer. Stomach ulcers can be caused by irregular eating habits or improper meal times.

(v) “One must enjoy one’s meal.” What do you think this means?
Answer. It means one must take ample time to eat and not rush eating. Having a calm and proper eating habit is ideal for everyone.

(vi) What is the relationship between food and stress?
Answer. Food and stress are related in the way food is taken or consumed. This means that one must give proper time to eat and not rush or force while one is eating.

2. Read the following passage carefully.

(1) In this country, women, men and children have too often been attacked because of their identity as Dalits or tribals, religious or linguistic minorities. A recurring feature of such brutal hate crimes and mass violence is that elected and selected public officials fail to uphold their Constitutional duty: to secure equal protection to every citizen, regardless of their caste, faith or linguistic identity. They fail not because they lack the mandate, authority or legal powers but because they choose to fail, because the pervasive prejudice against these disadvantaged groups permeates large sections of the police, magistrate, judiciary and the political class.

(2) Based on my experience as a district officer, I am convinced that no riot or anti-Dalit massacre can continue for more than a few hours without the active collusion of the State. But public officials enabling massacre is not recognised explicitly as a crime. Officials who have been named as guilty of bias in numerous judicial commissions of enquiry have rarely been penalised.

(3) A similar culture of impunity surrounds those who instigate and participate in murder, arson and rape. Impunity is the assurance that you can openly commit a crime and not be punished. This impunity arises from infirmities in, and corrosion of the criminal justice system. The collapse of the justice machinery compounded when the victims are disadvantaged by caste, religion, or minority language. You are more likely to be punished when you murder a single person in ‘peace time’ with no witnesses, than if you slay 10 in broad daylight observed by hundreds of people.

(4) A careful study of major episodes of targeted violence have shown that despite being separated in time and space, there is a similarity in the systematic and active subversion of justice. The impunity of the accused begins immediately after the violence. Preventive arrests and searches usually target Dalits and minorities. Police refuse to record the names of killers, rapists and arsonists and instead refer to anonymous mobs. If victims assert, ‘cross-cases’ are registered against them, accusing them of crimes. Arrests are partisan, the grant of bail even more so. Accused persons from dominant groups find it easy to get bail in weeks or at most months, while those caught in ‘cross-cases’ are not released, sometimes for years.

(5) This openly discriminatory treatment of the accused based on whether they are from dominant or discriminated groups, is one way to coerce them to ‘compromise’. It amounts to extra-legal out-of-court ‘agreement’ by victims to turn ‘hostile’ and retract from their accusations in court. Victims are intimidated, offered inducements or threatened with exile or social boycott. Police investigation is deliberately shoddy, and most cases are closed even before they come to trial. The few that reach the court are demolished by the prosecution.

(6) It is agreed that no new laws are required to empower state officials to control targeted violence. Most crimes already exist in statute books, and no great punishment is called for. The National Advisory council’s (NAC) draft, Communal and Targeted Violence Bill does create a few new crimes, sexual assault, hate propaganda and torture – but these can be written into the Indian Penal Code.

(7) To discourage targeted hate-crimes in future, we require a law that creates the offence of dereliction of duty of public officials who deliberately fail to protect vulnerable groups. This must be coupled with the principle of command, responsibility, which ensures that responsibility for failing to act is carried to the level from which orders actually flow. This public accountability is at the heart of the NAC draft bill.

On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer ANY FIVE questions. 

(i) What is the “Constitutional duty” of selected public officials mentioned in the first paragraph?
Answer.The “Constitutional duty” of selected public officials is to secure equal protection to all, regardless of what their caste, faith, or linguistic identity is.

(ii) What, according to the narrator, is “impunity” that is seen in most of crimes?
Answer.Impunity is the feeling of assurance that one’s crime like murder, arson or even rape can be openly committed and not be punished.

(iii) Why is it easy for criminals to get bail but harder for ‘cross-cases’?
Answer.Criminals easily get bail while victims of ‘crosscases’ are imprisoned even for several years because the accused persons are from dominant groups whereas victims of cross-cases are from the poorer or lower sections of society.

(iv) How are ‘victims’ made to accept out-of-court settlements.
Answer.An ‘out-of-court’ settlement such as intimidation, inducements or even threats or social boycotts are used to make ‘victims’ agree to retract their accusations.

(v) What is the author implying by the statement “the active collusion of the State”?
Answer.The author means that riots cannot happen for longer durations unless the state is conspiring to enable them. This means that states know or are somehow involved in such riots.

(vi) What is one way to discourage targeted hate-crimes?
Answer.One way to discourage targeted hate-crimes in future is to make a law that creates the offence ofdereliction of duty of public officials who deliberately fail to protect and prevent crimes against vulnerable groups.

SECTION – B (WRITING AND GRAMMAR)

3. Attempt any one of the given questions. 
The given pie charts show the favourite colors of students of a school. Write an analytical paragraph about it in 120-150 words.

OR
As Sports Incharge of A.C.C. Public School, Secunderabad, write a letter to the Secretary of the Sports Authority of India, Delhi, requesting him to send the details of scholarships admissible to different categories of students of the school, who have achieved excellence in various sports.
Answer.The given pie charts show the colour preferences of students of a school. The preferred colours are blue red, black, white and the total number of students participated in the survey is 1500.
The most preferred colour by boys is white which consists of 30% of the total data. Red and blue stand at position two of favourite colours levelling it off at 25% each. And according to the given data black is the least preferred colour choice with only 20% students preferring it.
If we look at the data of girls the majority preferred red colour which consists of 40% of total number. The next preferred colour is white which is chosen by 30% of girl. The least preferred choices are blue and black accounting for 20% and 10% respectively.
So to conclude the given data and draw comparison, it is evident that both the genders preferred different colours as their most favourite. The girls preferred red whereas the boys preferred white. However, the least preferred colour choice of both the genders is same which is colour black.
The given pie charts clearly show the colour choices of girl and boy students of a particular school and their specific data.
OR

A.C.C. Public School
Secunderabad
1 April, 20XX
The Secretary
Sports Authority of India
Subject : Requesting Details of Scholarship
Sir,
It has been brought to our notice that SAI offers scholarships to excellent players, who belong to economically weaker sections of the society, to help them continue with their training. I am Kamlesh Singh, Sports Incharge of A.C.C. Public School,Secunderabad, writing to you, seeking details of scholarships admissible to different categories of school students, who have achieved excellence in various sports.
A.C.C. Public School has a track record of producing bonafide players in various sports categories, such as cricket, football, hockey, badminton, tennis, etc. The current batch of players has made the school proud once again by winning gold medals at various state level sports events. The school’s cricket team too won the zonal cricket tournament held last month.
We are keen that our students too should get the opportunity to avail the benefits of SAI scholarships.
Therefore, kindly enlighten us on how to apply for the same.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Thank you
Yours sincerely
Kamlesh Singh
Sports Incharge

4. The following paragraph has not been edited. There is an error in each line. Identify the error and write its correction against the correct blank number. Remember to underline the correction. The first has been done for you.

Answer.
     Error           Correction
(a) being           was
(b) A                 The
(c) so                as

5. Read the conversation between Priya and Rahul and complete the passage that follows

Priya asked Rahul where (a) _____________________. Rahul replied that (b) _____________________.
Priya then asked if she could go and get it to which he replied in the affirmative.
Answer.
(a) his bag was
(b) he had left it in the car

SECTION – C (LITERATURE)

6. Answer ANY SIX of the following in about 30-40 words. 

(i) Where did Buddha preach his first sermon?
Answer.Gautama Buddha preached his first sermon at the city of Benares, which is regarded as the holiest of the bathing places on the river Ganges.

(iii) Why does Lomov wish to propose to Natalya?
Answer.Lomov is thirty-five years of age with health problems. He wishes to settle down by getting married. He knows that his neighbour and friend Chubukov’s twenty-five years old daughter, Natalya is still single. She is beautiful, an excellent housekeeper and an estate manager, well-educated and belongs to an equally rich family as Lomov. Therefore, he wishes to marry Natalya.

(iv) Why did Richard lose interest in tagging butterflies?
Answer.Richard raised thousands of butterflies, tagged them and released them to study their migration. But soon, he lost interest because only two of his tagged butterflies were returned to him and they had travelled only seventy-five miles.

(v) How did Bholi’s teacher play an important role in changing the course of her life?
Answer.Bholi’s teacher played an important role in changing the course of her life. She was polite and friendly, which touched Bholi’s heart. She encouraged her every time and was affectionate towards her and told Bholi to put her fears of not being able to speak properly aside. The teacher transformed Bholi from a dumb cow into a confident person who could read, write and speak clearly.

(vi) Why did Matilda throw the invitation spitefully?
Answer.Matilda was simply displeased when her husband showed the invitation. She felt humiliated and threw the invitation spitefully as she had nothing beautiful enough to wear to such a grand gathering.

(vii) What excited Rajvir? Why did Pranjol not share his excitement?
Answer.Visiting a tea estate in Assam excited Rajvir as he was visiting for the first time. He had never seen vast stretches of tea bushes growing in orderly rows against the backdrop of tall, sturdy shade-trees, which were a part of the densely wooded hills. While Rajvir found the view to be splendid, Pranjol did not share his friend, Rajvir’s excitement. Pranjol was born and brought up on a tea estate and was already familiar with the surroundings.

7. Answer ANY TWO of the following in about 120-150 words each. 

(i) Behaviour of the conductor in ‘Madam Rides the Bus’ is an example of good manners. Mentioning the instances of good manners shown by the conductor in the story, write how you can make your life happy by observing good manners.
(i) Behaviour of the conductor in ‘Madam Rides the Bus’ is an example of good manners. The conductor was a jolly person who liked to joke. We too can make our life happy by observing good manners.
When, at first, while going to the town little Valli stopped the bus, the bus conductor helped her to get on the bus by stretching out his hand. Throughout the journey, he showed concern for the eight year old child who was travelling in the bus unaccompanied. He made sure that Valli was comfortable at her seat and cautions her that she might fall if she did not sit. When in town, the conductor offered to get Valli something to drink when he learned that she would be scared to venture out all by herself. When Valli demanded to be treated like an adult, with respect, and not as a child because she had paid for her bus ticket, the bus conductor took it in good humour.
People like the bus conductor are always a positive influence on others. They win over others with their kindness and jolly nature and good behaviour is a part of their persona. We too should imbibe good qualities. We too should be kind and helpful to each other, speak politely and take things in a good spirit instead of being so quick to take offence.

(ii) People should always try to live within their limits. Elaborate on the basis of chapter, ‘The Necklace’.
Answer.Guy de Maupassant’s short story ‘The Necklace’ is about a young woman, who daydreams about wealth, social status and a life of luxury. She is truly happy, when she is able to have that life for one night adorned with a beautiful dress and a borrowed necklace, which ultimately brings her doom. As the story begins we find her living in delusions of grandeur, imagining a better life. One can be ambitious in life and dream big. But it is very important to remain true to oneself.
Adorning that expensive dress and seemingly expensive necklace Matilda creates a make believe for herself that she belongs to high strata of the society. Lost in her imaginary world, she enjoys herself to the fullest on that night, only to realise later that her life was going to be changed forever. She falls into the trap of drudgery and grinding poverty. In order to return the necklace to Mme. Forestier they had to give up all their comforts, Matilda starts doing her household chores and in this whole process loses ten years of youth and carefree life. There is a lot that we can learn from Matilda’s life but most importantly staying true to one’s reality and trying to live within the means of one’s life. Even though the aspirations of a human being have no limit but it is important to stick to ground reality.