CLASS-XII

GENERAL ENGLISH
Time :3 hrs December 2020 Total Marks:80

SECTION A

1)Reading Comprehension 16 marks

a.Read the passage carefully and answer the following questions. 10*1=10

Sportsmanship can be defined as a fair and generous behaviour or treatment of others,

especially in a sporting contest. In general, sportsmanship refers to virtues such as fairness,
self-control, courage, persistence, maintaining self-control when dealing with others, and
respect for both - the concerned authorities and the opponents. The four elements of
sportsmanship are being in good form, the will to win, equity and fairness. All the four
elements are important and a balance must be maintained among all the four. These
elements may also cause conflict, as a person may desire to win more than play fairly. When
athletes become too self-centred, the idea of sportsmanship is dismissed. Since every sport
is rule-driven, the most common offence of bad sportsmanship is the act of cheating or
breaking the rules to gain an unfair advantage. A competitor who exhibits poor
sportsmanship after losing a game or contest is often called a ‘sore loser’, while a
competitor who exhibits poor sportsmanship after winning is typically called a ‘bad winner.
A sore loser blames others for the loss, does not accept responsibility for the defeat, reacts
in an improper way and makes excuses. A bad winner acts in a shallow way after the victory,
such as gloating about his or her win, lowering the opponent's self-respect ,by mocking the
opponent of poor performance even if the opponent has competed well. Not showing
respect to the other team is considered is a sign of bad sportsmanship and could lead to
demoralizing effects. Today's sporting culture gives more importance to the idea of
competition and winning and thus sportsmanship takes a back seat as a result.

i. Is it necessary to strike a balance among all the four elements of sportsmanship?

a. No
b. Yes
c. Any 2 can be balanced
d. Only 1 is sufficient
ii.Why has sportsmanship taken a back seat today?
a. Due to lack of balance among the elements
b.Due to the emphasis on winning
c. Due to drug abuse
d.None of the above
iii. If one does not accept responsibility for one’s defeat, he/she is called a …………………
a.sore loser
b.bad winner
c. good sportsman
d. prudent sportsman
iv. Which of the following is not a synonym of the word ‘gloating’:
a. celebrating
b. exulting
c. condemning
d. glorifying
v. When does the spirit of sportsmanship die?
a.When the sportsman becomes too self-centered
b. When the player loses the will to play
c. When the sportsman behaves badly
d. None of the above
vi. A bad sportsmanship may :
a. make you over-confident
b.make you irritating
c.cause demoralizing effect
d. none of the above
vii. Enumerate the four elements of sportsmanship.
viii. What happens when athletes become too self-centered?
ix. Define a ‘sore-loser’.
x.What is the most common offence of a ‘bad sportsmanship’?

(b) Read the following passage and answer the questions given below. 6*1=6

Less obviously, but just as significant, are the social reasons behind the modern urge to
travel. Foreign journeys were, at one time, expensive and difficult for most of the people to
organize, in fact, an indulgence for the wealthy. Today, cheap airfares and package holidays
have made foreign travel fashionable for many, especially for those who spend their lives
working in crowded cities and in industry. Travel to foreign countries is now within the reach
of the families who only thirty years ago would have hardly dreamt of such a thing. Indeed,
for some, it has become a matter of personal pride to boast of. The more the time spent
abroad, and the more glamorous and far-flung the destination, the better. Indians are now
looking beyond the beaches of Goa to Miami beaches or to the mountains of Alps or the
Niagara Falls or even the safaris of Africa for a new and vastly different experience. Travel
companies have been quick to advertise the cultural and educational advantages of such
holidays, selling wildlife exploration trips of the Amazon or the ancient temples of the east
just as earnestly as they once did the ‘Magic of Rome’ or the ‘Splendour of Ancient Athens’.

i.What was once considered an indulgence for the wealthy?

(a) horse riding in the forests (b) foreign travel
(c) playing on the ice (d) enjoying with family

ii. What has made foreign travel fashionable now?

(a) beauty of locations (b) people’s mood
(c) cheap airfares and package holidays (d) internet

iii. What makes people dream of holidaying abroad nowadays?

iv. Where do the Indians look forward to go for holidaying nowadays?

v. Fill in the blank with a suitable word from the passage.

Mumbai is one of the most _____cities in India.
vi. Match the words in column A with their meanings in the column B:

A B
. expensive sincerely
. earnestly freely
. costly

SECTION B

(writing skills, grammar and translation) 26 marks

2. Write a Precis of the following paragraph in your own words:

People in this modern materialistic world are prone to suffer from stress, emotional
imbalance, anxiety, frustration and anger. It leads to many physical ailments, disturbed
relationships and road rage. Many broken homes, accidents and suicides are due to this
mental turmoil. The only panacea for this is ‘meditation’. A simple description of meditation
is to sit silently with closed eyes and focus on breathing. It may or may not be accompanied
by music. It helps one to connect with deep inner self and raises the level of consciousness.
The first effort may not be perfect but with regular practice, one masters the technique.
Then the results start unfolding! It leads to peace of mind, better concentration, clarity of
thought and complete relaxation. The situations do not change but it changes our reactions
and attitude to these. One learns to be calm and grounded in all circumstances and
surrender to divine control. Gratitude takes the place of complaints and love replaces
resentments. It is then that circumstances begin to change. Life is a beautiful gift of God but
one becomes thankful for it only after practising meditation. The result is a calm and serene
individual. (4)

3. Imagine you are Harman. You live at # 1802, Grand Avenue, Mohali. Write a letter to the
editor of a newspaper expressing your views on the growing use of unfair means in the
examinations these days. (5)
or

You are Sarita. Your address is 156, Kaarvan Apartments, Sector 11, Panipat. Write an
application to the Principal of your school requesting him for remission of fine.

4.Explain the following Newspaper Headlines in 15-20 words.

. POWERFUL STORM KILLS 5 IN SRI LANKA
or
You are Shaman. Write an e-mail to your friend, Reena expressing your condolences on her
father's death. (3)

5.(A)Translate the following sentences into Punjabi/Hindi. Choose the correct option.
2*1=2
i. He has taken tea.
a) वह चाय पीता है । auh cwh pINdw hY[
b) उसने चाय पी ल है । aus ny cwh pI leI hY[
c) उसने चाय पी ल थी। aus ny cwh pI leI sI[
d) वह चाय पी रहा है । auh cwh pI irhw hY[

ii) The gardener will be watering the plants at that time.

a) माल पौध को पानी दे रहा है । mwlI pOidAW nUM pwxI dy irhw hY[
b) माल पौध को पानी दे ता है । mwlI pOidAW nUM pwxI idMdw hY[
c) उस समय माल पौध को पानी दे रहा होगा । aus smyN mwlI pOidAW nUM pwxI dy irhw hovygw[
d) माल पौध को पानी दे रहा था / mwlI pOidAW nUM pwxI dy irhw sI[

(B) Translate the following sentences into English. Choose the correct option.
2*1=2
i) मेरा सर चकरा रहा है । myrw isr ckrw irhw hY [
a) I am sleeping.
b) I am feeling giddy.
c) I was sleeping.
d) I will be sleeping.

ii) म नई घड़ी खर दँ ग ू ा। mYN nvIN GVI KrIdWgw[

a) I bought a new watch.
b) I will buy a new watch.
c) I will be buying a new watch.
d) I buy a new watch.

6. Do as directed. 3+2+2+2+1=10
(a) Supply a suitable Determiner. (3*1=3)
i. I saw him when he was_______ child.
ii. Have you got _______ money?
iii. ______ Geeta and Seeta ran the race.

(b) i. __________(steal) is a punishable offence. (Supply a suitable Gerund.) (2*1=2)

. ii. He is too quick ________. (respond) ( Supply a suitable infinitive.)

(c) Choose the correct option. (2*1=2)

Rewrite the given sentence after removing ‘too’. (Choose the correct option)
They are too slow to win the race.
i) They are so slow that they cannot win the race.
ii) They are so slow that they can win the race.
iii) They were so slow that they could not win the race.
iv) They were so slow that they cannot win the race.
 Change the degree of comparison. (Choose the correct option.)
Iron is the most useful of all metals.
i) No other metal is as useful as iron.
ii) Many other metal is as useful as iron.
iii) Most other metal is as useful as iron.
iv) No metal is more useful as iron.

(d) Choose the correct passive voice form of the following sentence out of the
given options: (2*1=2)

He keeps me waiting.
i) Waiting is kept to me by him.
ii) I am being waited to keep by him.
iii) I am kept waiting by him.
iv) I shall be kept waiting by him.

Will he help you?

i) Will you be helped by him?
ii) Shall you help him?
iii) Will you help him?
iv) Will you be helped by he?
(e) Choose the correct Indirect Speech of the following sentence out of the
given options. (1*1=1)
He said to me, “ Prices are going up”.
i) He told me that prices will be going up.
ii) He told me that prices were going up.
iii) He told me that prices are going up.
iv) He told me that prices went up.

SECTION C
(Literature Textbooks) 38 marks
7.Objective type questions: 10*1=10

i) Name the writer of the chapter,‘The Story of My Life’.

ii) Who had introduced day/night matches? (Thinking out of the Box:Lateral Thinking)
iii) Hassan was very arrogant. (True / False) (Hassan’s Attendance Problem)
iv) The baker’s name was ____________.
a) Henry b)Kerry c)Charlie d) Willie (The March King)
v) What did the liftman want the passenger to say?
a) Sorry b)Please c)Thank you d) Excuse me (On Saying Please)
vi) Who was walking behind Otchumyelov? (A Chameleon)
vii) Miss Beam ran the ‘The School for Sympathy’. (True / False)
viii) What were the walls of Datta’s shop covered with? (The Gold Frame)
a) clocks b) pictures c)lights d)balloons
ix) Who was Bholi’s eldest sister? (Bholi)
a)Champa b) Radha c)Mangla d) Sulekha
x) R.K.Narayan is the author of the story, ‘The Gold Frame’. (True/False)
8.(a) Read the following lines and answer the questions that follow: 4*1=4

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence
Two roads diverged in a wood,and I-
I took the less travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.
i) Name the poem and the poet.
ii) Write the rhyme scheme of the given stanza.
iii) Which path did the poet choose to travel?
iv) Is the poet doubtful about his decision?

or
And a youth said, “Speak to us of friendship”.
Your friend is your needs answered.
He is your field which you sow with love and reap with thanksgiving.
And he is your board and your fireside.

i) Name the poem and the poet.

ii) Which figure of speech has been used in the fourth line?
iii) What is the most important thing that we can give to a friend?
iv) How is a friend our fireside?

b) Give the central idea of one of the poems: (3)

i)Prayer of the Woods ii) The Echoing Green

9. Answer the following questions in 40 to 50 words. (any three) (3*2=6)

i) What was Hassan’s mother’s plea to his father? Why did the parent-teacher meeting
end fruitlessly? (Hassan’s Attendance Problem)
ii) Why did Philip get into trouble on the day of the concert? How did he manage to get
a clean dress? (The March King)
iii) What trick did the money-lender cunningly play to win the game? How did the girl
intelligently win? (Thinking out of the Box:Lateral Thinking)
iv) What is the first requirement of civility? What serves as little courtesies in our daily
life? (On Saying Please)
v) Why did the narrator dash the doll upon the floor? What did she learn at the well-
house? (The Story of my Life)
vi) What was Edward De Bono’s notion about ‘lateral thinking’? What was the
millionaire’s trick in borrowing the loan?
(Thinking out of the Box:Lateral Thinking)

10. Answer any two of the following questions in 40 to 50 words: (2 *2=4)

i) What was the real aim of Miss Beam’s school? Why did the author feel sorry for
 some of the children? (The School for Sympathy)
ii) What did Hryukin display to the crowd? Why did the crowd laugh at Hryukin at the
end of the story? (A Chameleon)
iii) What had Datta learnt from his experience? How was his new customer different
from the others? (The Gold Frame)
iv) Why was Sulekha called Bholi, the simpleton? Why was Ram Lal worried about
Bholi? (Bholi)

11. Answer any one of the following questions in 60 to 70 words: (3)

i) Write the character sketch of Hassan. (Hassan’s Attendance Problem)

ii) Write the theme of the chapter, ’The Story of My Life’.

12. Answer any one of the following questions in 60 to 70 words: (3)

i) Justify the title of the story, ‘A Chameleon’.

ii) What impression do you frame about Datta, the frame maker?
(An Astrologer’s Day)
13. Good Handwriting 5 marks