Please see below Class 10 English Sample Paper Term 1 Set D with solutions. We have provided Class 10 English Sample Papers with solutions designed by English teachers for Class 10 based on the latest examination pattern issued by CBSE. We have provided the following sample paper for Term 2 Class 10 English with answers. You will be able to understand the type of questions which can come in the upcoming exams.

CBSE Sample Paper for Class 10 English Term 1 Set D

READING

I. Read the passage given below.

I. The news that the Indian Railways are going to incur a shortfall of Rs. 1000 crore in their resources generation-and will, therefore, have to seek budgetary support to that extend – will not surprise many. That’s a scenario that has been played out for years now, and the outcome, too, has been predictable – with railways budget doing is duty by doling out public money. But it’s time to look at the problem differently, in view of the current concerns of the government in economizing its charity and the feeling that the railways have to stand on their own legs.

II. The Railways have, over the last few months, continued to experience a shortfall of Rs. 85 crore per month, a feature that could add to their woes if it continue. Fall in expected goods traffic, in the rate per tonne and also a dip in passenger traffic have contributed to the shortfall. All these may not be new concerns for the Railways; the relevant point, however, is how the system and the government hope to tackle it.

III. Clearly, budgetary support should be considered only in the last instance, after various measures to both reduce expenditure and raise resources have been tried out. Consider subsidies on passenger traffic- the expenditure which really digs into the government’s coffers. In fact, passenger traffic subsidy accounted for nearly 90 per cent of the railways’ losses in 1992-93, with freight traffic subsidies taking up the rest.

IV. Freight traffic subsidy cuts should prove more easy if this year’s budget exercise is any indication. Till now, sixteen commodities were subsidized. In 1993-94, budget subsidy on four commodities were removed. Prices did not rise, there was little protest and now the Railways ought to be emboldened to do more Reduction in passenger subsidies is more tricky given the dependence of such a large population, mostly poor, on the system and most governments have been reluctant to do much. In fact, passenger rates have been hiked very few times and that, too, only in recent years.

V. One area where the Railways could do a lot more pruning is in shutting uneconomic branch lines. For instance, in 1992-93 it was found that 114 branch lines contributed a loss of Rs. 121 crore.

VI. To its credit, however, the railways have been looking around for sources of funds other than the budget.

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

Question 1. Which of the following is correct regarding the shortfall in the Railways’ resource generation ?
(a) It was higher than earlier years
(b) It is happening for the first time
(c) It was anticipated by most people
(d) This is the largest shortfall ever to happen

Question 2. How does the government expect to ‘economise its charity ?
(a) By requiring the railways to be self-sufficient
(b) By stopping the budget support
(c) By showing its concern through the Railway ministry
(d) By not doling out public money

Question 3. Which of the following has the same meaning as the phrase ‘played out’ as it has been used in the passage?
(a) Enacted
(b) Dramatised
(c) Repeated
(d) Predicted

Question 4. Which of the following is false regarding the railway operation?
(a) Reduction in goods traffic is not a new phenomenon
(b) Passenger traffic has shown an increase in recent years
(c) Rates per tonne of goods carried has come down
(d) Railways are aware of the problem of reduction in income

Question 5. How does the cut in freight traffic affect the shortfall?
(a) By increasing the income
(b) By reducing the expense
(c) Simultaneously increasing income and reducing expense
(d) None of these

Question 6. Which of the following has the same meaning as the word ‘dip’ as it has been used in the passage?
(a) Drift
(b) Plunge
(c) Slowness
(d) Reduction

Question 7. Which of the following seems to be the major contributing factor towards the losses of the railways?
(a) Passenger subsidies
(b) Freight subsidies
(c) Uneconomical lines
(d) All of these

Question 8. What does the author suggest that the railways should do as regards freight subsidy?
(a) It should introduce subsidy for more items
(b) It should be very courageous
(c) It should remove or reduce subsidies of more items
(d) Author’s views are not explicit

Question 9. Which of the following is true regarding the passenger fare charged by the railways?
(a) It is excessively high now
(b) First class passengers are not given any subsidy
(c) Only second class passengers get subsidy
(d) None of these

Question 10. What seems to be the ultimate consideration for allowing freight subsidy by the railways?
(a) Keeping the freight charges low
(b) Keeping the railway in losses
(c) Keeping the prices of commodities low
(d) Cannot be made out from the passage

II. Read the passage given below.

I. Nature is declining globally at rates unprecedented in human history – and the rate of species extinctions is accelerating, with grave impacts on people around the world now likely, warns a landmark new report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES).

II. The Report finds that around 1 million animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction, many within decades, more than ever before in human history.

III. The average abundance of native species in most major land-based habitats has fallen by at least 20%, mostly since 1900. More than 40% of amphibian species, almost 33% of reef-forming corals and more than a third of all marine mammals are threatened. The picture is less clear for insect species, but available evidence supports a tentative estimate of 10% being threatened. At least 680 vertebrate species had been driven to extinction since the 16th century and more than 9% of all domesticated breeds of mammals used for food and agriculture had become extinct by 2016, with at least 1,000 more breeds still threatened.

IV. To increase the policy-relevance of the Report, the assessment’s authors ranked, for the first time at this scale and based on a thorough analysis of the available evidence, the five direct drivers of change in nature with the largest relative global impacts so far. These culprits are, in descending order : changes in land and sea use; direct exploitation of organisms; climate change; pollution and invasive alien species.

V. The Report notes that, since 1980, greenhouse gas emissions have doubled, raising average global temperatures by at least 0.7 degrees Celsius with climate change already impacting nature from the level of ecosystems to that of genetics-impacts expected to increase over the coming decades, in some cases surpassing the impact of land and sea use change and other drivers.

VI. Despite progress to conserve nature and implement policies, the Report also finds that global goals for conserving and sustainably using nature and achieving sustainability cannot be met by current trajectories, and goals for 2030 and beyond may only be achieved through transformative changes across economic, social, political and technological factors.

Scale of Loss of Nature

• Gains from societal and policy responses, while important, have not stopped massive losses.
• Since 1970, trends in agricultural production, fish harvest, bioenergy production and harvest of materials have increased, in response to population growth, rising demand and technological development, this has come at a steep price, which has been unequally distributed within and across countries. Many other key indicators of nature’s contributions to people however, such as soil organic carbon and pollinator diversity, have declined, indicating that gains in material contributions are often not sustainable.
• The pace of agricultural expansion into intact ecosystems has varied from country to country. Losses of intact ecosystems have occurred primarily in the tropics, home to the highest levels of biodiversity on the planet. For example, 100 million hectares of tropical forest were lost from 1980 to 2000, resulting mainly from cattle ranching in Latin America (about 42 million hectares) and plantations in South-East Asia (about 7.5 million hectares, of which 80% is for palm oil, used mostly in food, cosmetics, cleaning products and fuel) among others.
• Since 1970 the global human population has more than doubled (from 3.7 to 7.6 billion), rising unevenly across countries and regions; and per capita gross domestic product is four times higher – with ever-more distant consumers shifting the environmental burden of consumption and production across regions.
• The average abundance of native species in most major landbased habitats has fallen by at least 20%, mostly since 1900.
• The numbers of invasive alien species per country have risen by about 70% since 1970, across the 21 countries with detailed records.
• The distributions of almost half (47%) of land-based flightless mammals, for example, and almost a quarter of threatened birds, may already have been negatively affected by climate change.

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

Question 11. According to the new report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), how many animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction?
(a) 0.5 million
(b) 1 million
(c) 1.5 million
(d) 2 million

Question 12. Since the 16th century how many vertebrate specie had been driven to extinction?
(a) 580
(b) 680
(c) 780
(d) 1000

Question 13. The five direct drivers of change in nature with the largest relative global impacts so far are :
1. uneven rise of population around the world
2. climate change
3. pollution
4. less pollinator diversity
5. invasive alien species
6. direct exploitation of organisms
7. changes in land and sea use
8. rising demand and technological development
(a) 1, 3, 5, 6 and 8
(b) 2, 4, 6, 7 and 8
(c) 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7
(d) 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7

Question 14. Since 1980 greenhouse gas emissions have doubled which in return have :
(a) increased the water levels around the globe resulting in flooding of the coastal ecosystems.
(b) raised average global temperatures by at least 0.7 degrees Celsius.
(c) increased average global ocean ecosystem death rate by 2%.
(d) substantially raised the imbalance in the land ecosystems by 1%.

Question 15. The distributions of almost half of land-based flightless mammals and almost a quarter of threatened birds may already have been negatively affected
(a) by melting of polar caps.
(b) by climate change.
(c) by global warming.
(d) by ecological imbalance.

Question 16. What sort of change is required to achieve global goals for conserving and sustainably using nature and achieving sustainability?
(a) educative change
(b) impactful change
(c) global change
(d) transformative change

Question 17. Which of the following changes have not been observed in the world since the year 1970?
(a) Environmental burden of consumption and production across regions has reduced considerably.
(b) Population has risen unevenly across countries and regions.
(c) The global human population has more than doubled.
(d) Per capita gross domestic product is four times higher.

Question 18. Though there have been gains because of the societal and political responses to save the planet but it has still not stopped
(a) the imbalance of the ecosystems.
(b) the population increase.
(c) the massive loss of nature.
(d) the ever-increasing global temperatures.

GRAMMAR & WRITING

GRAMMAR

III. Answer any five out of six questions by selecting the most appropriate option for each.

Question 19. The lame boy tried to climb up the staircase without _____ help.
(a) little
(b) any
(c) some
(d) many

Question 20. Your sister is seriously injured. You _____ consult a good doctor.
(a) can
(b) would
(c) might
(d) must

Question 21. He _____ cooking in his leisure time.
(a) enjoy
(b) enjoying
(c) enjoys
(d) enjoyed

Question 22. The water tank _____ before it was filled.
(a) had been cleaned
(b) have been cleaned
(c) has cleaned
(d) had cleaned

Question 23. Which option displays the correct change of the following to reported speech?
The principal said, “Why didn’t you attend the flag hoisting ceremony, Anuj ?”
(a) The principal asked Anuj why hadn’t he attended the flag hoisting ceremony.
(b) The principal asked Anuj why he hadn’t attended the flag hoisting ceremony.
(c) The principal asked Anuj why didn’t he attend the flag hoisting ceremony.
(d) The principal asked Anuj why he didn’t attend the flag hoisting ceremony.

Question 24. Which option displays the correct change of the following to reported speech?
He says “I go for a walk every morning”.
(a) He says that he goes for a walk every morning.
(b) He said that he used to go for a walk every morning.
(c) He said that he goes for a walk every morning.
(d) He says he went for a walk every morning.

WRITING

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

Jamuna Nagar is a thickly populated, locality inhabited mainly by working-class people. Unfortunately, there is no milk booth in the locality. Here is given the letter to the editor of a local daily drawing the attention of the authorities to the problem faced by the people, requesting them to open a milk booth. You are Sanjay/Suhana, 4, Jamuna Nagar, Mumbai.

Suhana
4, Jamuna Nagar
Mumbai
Date : 15th March, 20XX
The Editor
Hindustan News
Mumbai
Subject : (25) _____

Respected Sir/Madam
I am Suhana, a resident of Jamuna Nagar. I am writing to you in order to (26) _____ in my locality. Jamuna Nagar has a huge population that comprises daily wagers. Still the area does not have a milk booth. The residents (27) _____ as they have to walk upto 10 kilometres every morning to (28) _____. This has also led to black marketing. The people of the area are getting harassed.
As the situation is serious, I request you to highlight it through your newspaper so that the (29) _____ towards it and do the needful.
Thanking You
(30) _____
Suhana

Complete the letter by choosing the most appropriate option:

Question 25.
(a) Regarding milk booth
(b) To open milk booth
(c) Absence of milk booth in Jamuna Nagar
(d) No milk booth in locality

Question 26.
(a) open a milk booth
(b) make you aware about the opening of milk booth
(c) Raise the issue of the absence of a milk booth
(d) establish milk booth

Question 27.
(a) become worried
(b) get tired
(c) face many problems
(d) suffer with

Question 28.
(a) get their daily stock of milk and milk products
(b) purchase milk
(c) arrange for milk products
(d) provide milk and milk products

Question 29.
(a) people become sensitive
(b) authorities can know about
(c) people look into the matter
(d) authorities are sensitized

Question 30.
(a) You sincerely
(b) Your sincerely
(c) Yours sincerely
(d) My sincerely

LITERATURE

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

Everything was going well – it was an easy flight. Paris was about 150 kilometres behind me when I saw the clouds. Storm clouds. They were huge. They looked like black mountains standing in front of me across the sky. I knew I could not fly up and over them, and I did not have enough fuel to fly around them to the north or south. “I ought to go back to Paris,” I thought, but I wanted to get home. I wanted that breakfast. ‘I’ll take the risk,’ I thought, and flew that old Dakota straight into the storm.
(Two Stories About Flying)

Question 31. Based on the given extract,, choose the option that lists the meme which would be the most appropriate response to “…it was an easy flight”?

(a) Option (i)
(b) Option (ii)
(c) Option (iii)
(d) Option (iv)

Question 32. How would you describe the “risk” the narrator took?
(a) calculated
(b) impetuous
(c) unavoidable
(d) navigable

Question 33. In what way might the reference to the Dakota as “old” be relevant?
(a) Its antique value made it expensive and precious to the narrator.
(b) It is employed by the narrator as a term of endearment.
(c) It did not have enough fuel to fly around the storm clouds.
(d) Its ability to negotiate the storm clouds might have been suspect.

Question 34. Read the statements given below, and then select the option that best describes the given statements.
Statement I : The narrator’s desire to reach home and see his family made him complacent.
Statement II : The narrator was unaware of the threat that the adversarial storm clouds presented.
Statement III : The narrator’s decision making was quick but irresponsible as well as dangerous.
(a) Statement I is False, Statement II is True, Statement III cannot be inferred
(b) Statement I and III are True, Statement II cannot be inferred.
(c) Statement I cannot be inferred, Statement II is False, Statement III is True.
(d) Statement I and II are False, Statement III is True.

Question 35. Select the correct option to fill in the blanks below: risk: risky :: _____ : _____
(a) danger: dangerously
(b) hazard : hazardous
(c) peril : imperilled
(d) caution : precaution

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

Thinking about Wanda and her hundred dresses all fined up in the closet, Maddie began to wonder who was going to win the drawing and colouring contest. For girls, this contest consisted of designing dresses and for boys, of designing motorboats. Probably Peggy would win the girl’s medal. Peggy drew better than anyone else in the room. At least, that’s what everybody thought She could copy a picture in a magazine or some film star’s head so that you could almost tell who it was. Oh, Maddie was sure Peggy would win. Well, tomorrow the teacher was going to announce the winners. Then they’d know.
                                                     (The Hundred Dresses I)

Question 36. For girls, this contest consisted of
(a) designing motorboats
(b) designing dresses
(c) designing sceneries
(d) designing forests

Question 37. According to the class, the girl who would win it was
(a) Maddie
(b) Peggy
(c) Wanda
(d) C.N.

Question 38. Maddie thought Peggy was sure to win it because
(a) she had setting with teacher
(b) she was teacher’s relative
(c) she drew worse than others
(d) she drew better than others

Question 39. The noun form of ‘win’ is
(a) winable
(c) winning
(b) winably
(d) winner

Question 40. Names of the classmates of Wanda are
(a) Jacques, John
(b) Peggy, C.M.
(c) Maddie, Peggy
(d) Maddie, Jerk

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

The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
(Dust Of Snow)

Question 41. Of the many symbols the hemlock tree represents,choose the one that Frost drew upon in all likelihood, for this poem.
Symbol of
(a) longevity.
(b) togetherness.
(c) healing.
(d) protection.

Question 42. Choose the option that lists the possible feelings of the poet prior to the experience shared in the poem.
1. reassured
2. disappointed
3. curious
4. demotivated
5. thankful
6. disheartened
7. impulsive
(a) 1, 3 and 7
(b) 2, 4 and 6
(c) 5 and 7
(d) 1 and 3

Question 43. Identify the option that does not use the word ‘rue’ correctly.
(a) The film was a disaster and he rued his decision to act in it.
(b) I am sure she rued the day she listened to a fortune-teller.
(c) It wasn’t long before I rued my disobedience and my deceit.
(d) Others finally rue the one who is dishonest and heartless.

Question 44. Synecdoche is a poetic device that uses a part to represent the whole. E.g. That’s a great set of wheels!
(Set of wheels has been used for car.)
Pick an example of synecdoche from the poem.
(a) Has given my heart/A change of mood
(b) The way a crow/Shook down on me
(c) The dust of snow/From a hemlock tree
(d) And saved some part/Of a day I had rued

Question 45. Choose the option showing the reason not corresponding with “… a crow/Shook down on me/The dust of snow”.
(a) The crow’s landing on the branch of the tree.
(b) The shivering of the crow, due to the cold.
(c) The readjustment of position of the crow on the branch.
(d) The cawing of the crow hidden in the foliage.

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

I think he knew I made a little money this way but he did not seem to mind. Anil made money by fits and starts. He would borrow one week, lend the next. He kept worrying about his next cheque, but as soon as it arrived, he would go out and celebrate. It seems he wrote for magazines – a queer way to make a living!
(The Thief’s Story)

Question 46. Anil made money ‘by fits and starts’ means that he
(a) deemed it fit to start investing money.
(b) started earning money in the recent past.
(c) received money intermittently.
(d) put his money to use frequently.

Question 47. The information in the extract suggests that Anil could be a
(a) salaried professional
(b) freelancer
(c) business man
(d) volunteer

Question 48. If borrow: :lend, then pick the odd pair from the options below
(a) give :: take
(b) lose :: find
(c) hop :: skip
(d) buy :: sell

Question 49. The reference to making a little money ‘this way’ refers to a way that is viewed by most people as
(a) sensible
(b) inappropriate
(c) charitable
(d) Aggressive

Question 50. Based on your understanding of Anil in the extract,choose the option that synchronises with his thinking.
(a) So what if I don’t have much money? Giving it to that person is important as they could do with a helping hand.
(b) I better learn how to protect my money. I think I’m being looted.
(c) I earn money with such tremendous effort. Where does it all go?
(d) When I become rich, I can begin to help friends then. Right now, I will spend only on myself.
Ans : (a) So what if I don’t have much money? Giving

IX. Attempt the following.

Question 51. Lencho compared the quantum of damage with
(a) attack by rats
(b) attack by crows
(c) plague of locusts
(d) None of the above

Question 52. What did Mandela learn about courage?
(a) it is absence of fear
(b) it is the triumph over fear
(c) both a and b
(d) none of the above

Question 53. Why does Anne think she was lonely?
(a) she had no friends
(b) she had no real friends
(c) she was all alone
(d) she was an introvert

Question 54. What was the description of the house which Maddie thought to be Wanda’s house?
(a) Little white house
(b) Big white house
(c) Small green cottage
(d) Tiny Red hut

Question 55. In the poem “Fire and Ice”, why do some people say that the world will end in ice?
(a) because love among people is increasing fast.
(b) because hatred among people is increasing fast.
(c) because lust among people is increasing fast.
(d) None of these

Question 56. How does the caged tiger react to the visitors?
(a) He ignores them
(b) With a happy face
(c) With a sad face
(d) Proudly

Question 57. Who is the poet of the poem ‘The Ball Poem’?
(a) Sylvia Plath
(b) W.B Yeats
(c) Robert Frost
(d) John Berryman

Question 58. “In two weeks he had been transformed into a lithe,hard-musled animal” . What is the meaning of the word “lithe”?
(a) dirty
(b) graceful
(c) misbehaving
(d) rude

Question 59. What was Anil doing when the boy met him?
(a) cooking
(b) watching a match
(c) playing
(d) writing an article

Question 60. Who did Griffin attack and rob all the money?
(a) the landlord
(b) the assistance of the London store
(c) the owner of the big London store
(d) the owner of the theatrical company