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Date: Class:VIII
English
Time: 3 Hrs. M. M: 70
General Instructions:
1. This paper consists of THREE sections :
Section A Reading 20 marks
Section B Writing & Grammar 25 marks
Section C Literature 25 marks
2. Attempt all questions.
3. Do not write anything on the question paper.
4. All the answers must be correctly numbered as in the question paper and written in the Answer

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sheet provided to you.
5. Read each question carefully and follow the instructions.

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6. Strictly adhere to the word limit given with each question. Marks will be deducted for exceeding
the word limit.
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SECTION A: READING
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1. 12
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Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.
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The main difference between men and the animals is the difference in their power of
concentration. All success in the line of work is the result of this. Everybody knows something
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about concentration. We see its result everyday. High achievements in art, music, etc, are the
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results of concentration. Those who have trained animals find much difficulty in the fact that the
animal is constantly forgetting what is told to him. He cannot concentrate his mind upon anything
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long at a time. Herein is the difference between man and the animals – man has the greater power
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of concentration, this also constitutes the difference between man and man. Compare the lowest
with the highest man. The difference is in the degree of concentration. This is the only difference.
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Everybody’s mind becomes concentrated at times. We all concentrate upon those things we love
and we love those things upon which we concentrate our minds. Which mother is there who does
not love the face of the homeliest child? That face is to her the most beautiful face in the world.
She loves it because she concentrates her mind on it, and if everyone could concentrate his mind
on that same face, everyone would love it. It would be the most beautiful face.

We all concentrate our minds upon those things we love. When we hear beautiful music, our
minds become fastened upon it and we cannot take them away. Those who concentrate their minds
upon what you call classical music do not like common music, and vice-versa. Music in which the
notes follow each other in rapid succession holds the mind readily. A child loves lively music
because the rapidity of the notes gives the mind no chance to wander. A man who likes common
music dislikes classical music, because it is more complicated and requires a great degree of
concentration to follow it.

The great trouble with such concentration is that we do not control the mind ; it controls us.

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Something outside of ourselves, as it were, draws the mind into it and holds it as long as it
chooses. We hear melodious tones or see a beautiful painting, and the mind is held fast ; we cannot
take it away.

If I speak to you well upon a subject you like, your mind becomes concentrated upon what I am
saying. I draw your mind away from yourself and hold it upon the subject inspite of yourself. Thus
our attention is held, our minds are concentrated upon various things, inspite of ourselves.

a.) What is the difference between man and animals? 2

b.) What does ‘difference between man and man’ mean? When would be the child’s face the 2
most beautiful face in the world?
c.) Why does a child love lively music? Why does a man having great love for common music
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dislike classical music?
d.) What is the trouble with concentration that is being talked in the above passage? When is it 2
easy to concentrate our mind upon a particular thing?
e.) Find the word similar to the meaning of the phrase ‘one after the other’ from the passage. 1

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f.) Find the synonym of the word ‘focus’ from the passage. 1
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g.) Find the word similar to the meaning of the phrase ‘roam here and there’ from the passage.
h.) Find the antonym of the word ‘simple’ from the passage.
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2. Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow. 8
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Suns that set and moons that wane

Rise and are restored again,
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Stars that orient day subdues

Night at her return renews.
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Herbs and flowers, the beauteous birth

Of the genial womb
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Suffer but a transient death

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From the winter’s cruel breath.

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We alas, earth’s haughty kings,

We that promise mighty things,
Losing soon life’s happy prime,
Droop and fade in little time.

On the basis of your reading of the poem, complete the following summary with one word 1/2
only. *10=5

The poet is sullen about the brevity of human life. He says that sun (a.)____________and moons
wane. But, the very next day they rise again. Their lives are (b.)____________ in a very short span
of time. Stars return every (c.)____________. Herbs and (d.)_____________ are beautifully born
out of (e.)_____________ womb of earth. They suffer but attain a (f.)_____________death from
the chill of the cruel (g.)_____________. But, human beings rule the (h.)_____________ and
promise to do the mighty things. When we lose happiness of our (i.)____________ we droop and
fade in little (j.)_______________.

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k.) Find the synonym of the word ‘temporary’ from the poem. 1
l.) Find the antonym of the word ‘kind’ from the poem. 1
m.) Give a suitable title to the poem. 1

SECTION B – WRITING AND GRAMMAR

3.
For the first time in your life you are travelling in a crowded bus. You felt very exasperated after 7
the journey. Write a page in your diary describing your experience. (Word Limit – 150 words)
Hints : Got up late, missed the school bus, boarded DTC bus, crowded, rash driving, sudden
brakes, nearly fell, said sorry to lady, deboarded with great difficulty, terrible experience

OR

You are Isha/Ishan. Your brother got hurt in a road accident. You are really concerned about the
alarming rate of road accidents in your city. Write an article expressing your concern and
highlighting the causes of road accidents and suggest some ways of dealing with this problem.

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(Word Limit – 150-180 words)

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Hints : Poor condition of roads, faulty traffic light, rash and reckless driving, not obeying
traffic rules, many valuable lives lost, strict enforcement of rule, other steps to improve
overall state
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4. Study the following visual carefully. With the help of the visual, write a letter to the Editor of the 8
National Daily at the following address, The Times of India, Times House, 7 Bahadurshah Zafar
to

Marg, New Delhi – 110001, to express your views on ‘Growing Craze for Junk Food among
Children’ (Word Limit – 200 words)
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OR

Arun is a class VIII student. For the last one month he has been feeling very restless and
disturbed............... Complete the story in about 200 words.
Hints : Restless, disturbed, focus on studies, visits temple, astrologer, special prayers, no
effects, approaching exams, hard working, met counsellor, systematical preparation, feeling
better, relaxed

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5. In the following passage one word has been omitted in each line. Write the omitted word ½*8=4
along with the word that comes before and the word that comes after it in your answer sheet
against the correct blank number. Underline the missing word.

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Before Word After

Milk is used various forms. It is taken a) ___________________________

directly. It is added tea, coffee and other drinks. b) ___________________________
Curds, whey and cheese are prepared milk. Milk c) ___________________________
should always be kept clean and covered containers. d) ___________________________
In cities and towns milk is sold booths and shops. e) ___________________________
Milk is cheaper in comparison many other costly f) ___________________________
food items. It is a source energy g) ___________________________
and strength. Milk is the best supplement growth. h) ___________________________

6. Change the narration of the given dialogue and fill in the blanks given below. 4

Salesman : Can I help you ?

Customer : Yes, I’d like to buy a shirt.
Salesman : Come to that section, please. What type of shirts do you like ?
Customer : I like plain shirts.

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Salesman : Select any among these. You’ll have a variety of colours.
Customer : How nice it is ! I’d buy this one.

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Salesman : Shall I pack it for you ?

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The salesman asked the customer (a)____________. The customer replied in affirmative and said
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that he would like to buy a shirt. The salesman requested the customer to (b) __________ and
wanted to know what type of shirts he liked. The customer informed the salesman that (c)
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____________. The salesman requested him to select any among those and informed the customer
that he would have a variety of colours. The customer exclaimed that (d) ____________and said
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that he would buy that one. The salesman asked the customer whether he should pack it for him.
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7. Rearrange the following jumbled words to make meaningful sentences. 2

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a.) people / recognize him / he / out / never / fearing / that / went / will
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b.) tired / took / under / tree / a / traveller / rest / the / as / he / was

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8. SECTION C – LITERATURE & LONG READING TEXT

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Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow.
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(a.)“ So stooping down from hawthorn top,
He thought to put him in his crop.
The worm, aware of his intent,
Harangued him thus, right eloquent:”

(i) Who stoops down from the hawthorn top and why ?
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(ii) Pick out one poetic device from the above lines. 1
(iii) Explain the line ‘Harangued him thus, right eloquent’. 1

OR

(b.)“ I saw him sneak in here about ten minutes ago, and if you want proof, his prison clothes be in
the next room. I was just going to fetch my uncle-the constable of the village, you know- and these
boys tried to stop me. That’s why we were fighting when you came in.”

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(i) Name the lesson and author of the lesson from which these lines are taken. 1
(ii) What are they fighting about ? 1
(iii) Who was fighting with whom ? 1

9. Answer the following questions briefly in about 30-40 words each. 2*4=8

a.) Why did Connie mistake the author for her husband Jim Macpherson ?
b.) Who truly deserved the plate of gold and why ?
c.) Justify the title of title of the play ‘The Unexpected’.
d.) What is Connie’s Christmas present ? Why is it ‘the best Christmas present in the world’?

10. Answer any one of the following questions in about 80-100 words. 4

a.) ‘War is as much a punishment to the punisher as it is to the sufferer’. Elucidate the
statement based on the lesson ‘The Best Christmas Present in the World’

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OR

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b.) ‘Honesty is the best policy’. But Mrs. Parker practised dishonesty to help her son Roger
escape from the prison. Do you justify her action ?
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11. LONG READING TEXT – AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS 2*5=10
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Answer the following questions in about 100-120 words.

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a.) Write a brief pen-portrait of Fix.

b.) Describe the events that led to the disappearance of Jean Passepartout.
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Class VIII – ENGLISH ANSWER KEY
SECTION A – READING

A.1.a.) The main difference between men and the animals is the difference in their power of concentration.
Men can concentrate but the animals cannot.

b.) The phrase ‘difference between man and man’ refers to the degree of concentration between two men.
One man may have a low degree of concentration as compared to another. The child’s face would be the most
beautiful face in the world for the mother because she loves her child and concentrates her mind on it, and if
everyone could concentrate his mind on that same face, everyone would love it.

c.) A child loves lively music because the rapidity of the notes gives the mind no chance to wander. A man
who likes common music dislikes classical music, because it is more complicated and requires a great degree
of concentration to follow it.

d.) The great trouble with the concentration is that we do not control the mind ; it controls us and wanders.
Something outside of ourselves draws the mind into it and holds it as long as it chooses. We hear melodious

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tones or see a beautiful painting, and the mind is held fast ; we cannot take it away. If one speaks well upon a
subject liked by the other person, the mind becomes concentrated upon what one is saying.

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e.) rapid/rapidity

f.) concentrate/concentration y.
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g.) wander
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h.) complicated
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A.2.a.) set b.) restored c.) night d.) flowers e.) genial f.) transient g.) breath h.) earth
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i.) prime j.) time k.) transient l.) haughty

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m.) Title is subjective

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SECTION B – WRITING & GRAMMAR

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A.3.) Diary Entry – Content -4, Fluency & Expression – 3

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Article - Content -4, Fluency & Expression – 3

A.4.) Formal Letter – Content -4, Fluency & Expression – 2, Accuracy – 2

Story - Content -5, Fluency & Expression – 3

GRAMMAR

A.5.) Editing – Omission a.) used in various

b.) added to tea

c.) prepared with milk

d.) kept in clean

e.) sold at booths

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f.) comparison to many

g.) source of energy

h.) supplement for growth

A.6.a.) if he could help him

b.) go to that section

c.) he liked plain shirts

d.) it was very nice

A.7.a.) Fearing that people will recognize him he never went out.

b.) The traveller took rest under a tree as he was tired.

SECTION C – LITERATURE

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A.8. a.(i) The Nightingale stoops down from the hawthorn top to look for a prey as it was hungry.

(ii) Alliteration – harangued him Personification – his intent

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(iii) The glow-worm criticized the nightingale in very expressive terms when it came to know of its
intent to eat the glow-worm.
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b. (i) Lesson – The Unexpected, Author – Luella(Ella) Adkins

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(ii) The speaker is Joe here & he is speaking about seeing somebody coming inside the house.
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(iii) Joe is fighting with Tom and Alec

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A.9.a.) Connie mistook the author for her husband Jim Macpherson because she was very old and slightly
confused and secondly Jim had promised her that he would return back to her next Christmas in his last letter.
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b.) The poor peasant truly deserved the plate of gold because he was the only one who could empathise with
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the poor beggar and said encouraging words to him. He was the perfect embodiment of love and compassion
and hence a true reflection of God.

c.) The title ‘The Unexpected’ is very apt for the play as the story of Mrs. Parker and the story ends with an
expected twist in the tale when Roger escapes from the cops fooling Joe Badger and everyone present at Mrs.
Parker’s house with the help of his mother without leaving any trace of evidence.

d.) Connie’s Christmas present was the coming back of her husband Jim. It was the best Christmas present in
the world because she was waiting for all these years for Jim to come back after the war had ended.

A.10.) Subjective Answer

A.11.) Subjective Answer

A.12.) Subjective Answer

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