MOCK I EXAMINATION: 2024-2025

ENGLISH LANGUAGE
ENGLISH Paper- 1
(Two hours)

Date: Full Marks: 80

Class: X
Answers to this Paper must be written on the paper provided separately.
You will not be allowed to write for the first 15 minutes.
This time is to be spent in reading the question paper.
The time given at the head of the Paper is the time allowed for writing the answers.

Attempt all five questions.

The intended marks for questions or parts of questions are given in brackets [ ]
You are advised not to spend more than 30 minutes in answering Question 1
and 20 minutes in answering Question 2.
__________________________________________________________________________

Question 1
(Do not spend more than 30 minutes on this question.)
Write a composition (300-350 words) on any one of the following: [20]
a) You were returning home by flight after staying with your relatives abroad. When you landed
you discovered that your suitcase containing costly articles was missing. Give a vivid account
of your feelings at that time and the subsequent efforts you made to recover your suitcase.
b) Write a short story which illustrates the truth of the statement, ‘A friend is someone who
knows all about you and still loves you.’
c) ‘Advertisements lead to wasteful expenditure.’ Express your views either for or against the
statement.
d) Describe a day at home when everything went wrong. Explain what happened to you and how
the day ended.
e) Study the picture given below. Write a short story or a description or an account of what it
suggests to you. Your composition may be about the subject of the picture or may take
suggestions from it. However, there must be a clear connection between the picture and your
composition.

Page 1 of 5
Question 2
(Do not spend more than 20 minutes on this question.)

Select one of the following: [10]

a) You have recently won a national level debating competition held in a different city in which
students from 15 states participated. Write a letter to your brother expressing your happiness
at winning the competition.
b) Write a letter to the customer care of a popular brand of phones, complaining against the
defective working of the mobile phone recently purchased by you.

Question 3 [5+5]

a) You are the Secretary of the Photography Club of your school. Draft a notice to be displayed
on the school notice board, asking students of Classes IX and X to submit their entry to
participate in a photograph exhibition for creating awareness about the hazards of pollution on
our environment.
b) Write an email to the Lady Principal of your school asking for permission to use the foyer at
the entrance of the school to display the photographs of the exhibition.

Question 4

Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:

Life resumed its normal pace on the Market Road next morning, although the day started late.
It was as if our town was waking up from a fantasy full of colour, glitter, crowd and song. The
Market Road was covered with litter, banana peels, coconut shells, leaves and flowers. Municipal
sweepers were busy. Sastri came only at nine o’clock and went straight to the type-board; he seemed
determined to complete K. J’s labels today. Muthu and the rest had left by an early bus for their
respective homes. I sat at my desk and placed a pen and a pencil in position in order to make a note
of payments to be made, cash in hand and cash promised.
Our Postman, Thanappa, a timeless being whom we had known as children, old enough to
retire twice over but somehow still in service, was my first visitor for the day. I remember seeing him
in the days when postmen were given a red turban and a shining belt, a leather bag and a khaki
uniform. He had passed from that to the latest stage of donning a forage cap-a portly old man who
not only knew the addresses of every citizen in the town but also the ups and downs of their fortunes.
At his favourite corners, he spread out his letters and bags and packets and sat down to a full
discussion of family and social matters; he served as a live link between several families, carrying
information from house to house. All this took time, but nobody could hustle him, and we accepted
our letters when they came. His habit when he came to my press was to stand at the doorway, rest his
shoulders on the doorpost, and spend at least half an hour exchanging information with me. Only
before leaving would, he remember to give me the letter or book packet. Today he stood on my door-
step and looked serious,

Page 2 of 6
blinking through his inch-thick glasses. There was a frown on his face, and he breathed hard with
excitement. He held up a letter without a word. I said, ‘Come in, Thanappa, how did you like the
procession last night?’ he mumbled something and moved in as if he were in trance. He placed the
letter on my desk. ‘This receipt has to be signed.’
I saw it was addressed to Vasu. ‘This is for him Thanappa. Take it upstairs.’
‘I went up, but, but,’ he wetted his lips with his tongue, ‘he is dead.’ He spoke softly, he looked
scared. ‘I usually take his mail to his bed, though I hate to go to his room. I thought he was sleeping
in his chair. I went up with the letter. I almost touched him,’ he said with a shudder. The man looked
desperate with the disgust he felt at the memory of that icy contact.
I said, ‘Thanappa, go and deliver those letters and try to get this thing out of your mind. Don’t speak
about this to anyone. I will go up and see things for myself and come back.’
Thanappa hesitated for a second and decided to follow my advice. He said, ‘So this registered letter
goes back? Has no one else the authorization to sign for him?’ he picked up his bag and stepped out.

(i) For each word given below choose the correct meaning (as used in the passage)
from the options provided. [2]

(1) donning (line 11)

(a) disrobing (b) take off (c) put on (d) remove

(2) shudder (line 28)

(a) flutter (b) quietly (c) nervous (d) shiver

(ii) Which word in the passage means the opposite of the word unusual? [1]
(a) bizarre (b) normal (c) uncommon (d) suprising

(iii) Answer the following questions briefly in your own words:

(a) Why were the Municipal sweepers busy that morning? [2]
(b) What are the childhood memories of the narrator about the postman? [2]
(c) Who was the letter addressed to? Why was the Postman hesitant to deliver it? [2]
(d) What did the narrator advice the Postman to do? [1]
(e) What was the narrator busy with that morning? [2]

(iv) In not more than 50 words, describe why the narrator calls the Postman
a timeless being. How was his behaviour different on that particular day? [8]

Page 3 of 6
Question 5

(i) Fill in each of the numbered blanks with the correct form of the word given in brackets. Do not
copy the passage, but write in correct serial order the word or phrase appropriate to the blank
space. [4]

Example: (0) dealing

Till 1879, Procter and Gamble were (0) ____(deal) in candles. But the company was in trouble.
Edison (1) ____(invent) the light bulb, and it looked as if candles had become obsolete. Their
fears (2) ____ (become) reality when the market for candles plummeted since they were then sold
only for special occasions.

However, at this time, it seemed that destiny (3) ____ (play) a dramatic role in (4) ____(pull) the
struggling company out from the clutches of bankruptcy. A forgetful employee at a small factory
forgot to turn off his machine when he went for lunch. When he (5) ___ (go) back, there was a (6)
____(froth) mass of lather filled with air bubbles. He almost threw the stuff away but then he
decided to make it into soap. The soap (7) ___(float) on water. Thus, Ivory Floating Soap (8)
___(born) and became the mainstay of the Procter and Gamble Company.

(ii) Fill in the blanks with an appropriate word: [4]

a) Do not go away ____ the place.
b) The monkey jumped____ the compound wall.
c) The sun rose____ the horizon.
d) I looked ____ my nephew while his parents went out.
e) Mother prohibited me____ going out.
f) One should not boast ____ one’s wealth.
g) Mohan went to the temple____ foot.
h) Nobody is exempt ____ paying taxes.

(iii) Join the following sentences to make one complete sentence without using and, but or so.
Choose the correct option. [4]
1. Everyone should do his duty. India expects this of every citizen.
a) India expects of its citizens to do their duty.
b) India expects every citizen to do his/her duty.
c) India expect every citizen to do their duty.
d) India is expected of every citizen to do their duty.

2. He ran so fast. He soon overtook me.

a) He soon overtook me as he ran so fast.
b) He soon could overtake me as he could run so fast.
c) He could overtook me as he ran so fast.
d) He ran so fast to overtake me soon.

Page 4 of 6
 3. Aman got up. He saw the thief disappearing through the window.
a) As Aman gets up he sees the thief disappearing through the window.
b) As Aman got up he could see the thief disappearing through the window.
c) As Aman saw the thief disappearing through the window, he got up.
d) When Aman got up, he saw the thief disappearing through the window.

4. The family was simple. They decided not to have an extravagant wedding.
a) The family was simple enough to have an extravagant wedding.
b) The family was simple and could not have an extravagant wedding.
c) The family being simple decided not to have an extravagant wedding.
d) The family decides not to have an extravagant wedding.

(iv) Choose the correct option to rewrite the following according to the instructions given after
each.
[8]

1. He is not only a good orator, but also an excellent actor. (Begin with: Besides being……)
a) Besides being an orator, he is also an actor.
b) Besides being a good orator, he is therefore an excellent actor.
c) Besides being a good orator, he is an excellent actor.
d) Besides being the good orator, he was also the excellent actor.

2. There is a slight difference between the two shades. (Use: different)

a) The two shades are slightly different.
b) The two shades were quite different.
c) These are two different shades.
d) These are two different variants of the colour.

3. He was so strong that he lifted the box easily. (Use: enough)

a) He was enough strong to easily lift the box.
b) He was strong enough on easily lifting the box.
c) He was strong enough to easily lift the box.
d) He was strong enough for lifting the box.

4. Reena said, “Please lend me your pen, Dilip.” (Begin with: Reena requested…)
a) Reena requested to Dilip to lend her his pen.
b) Reena requested Dilip to please lend her his pen.
c) Reena requested Dilip to lend her his pen.
d) Reena requested Dilip for lending to her his pen.

Page 5 of 6
5. The police broke the lock. (Rewrite in passive voice)
a) The lock is broken by the police.
b) The lock was broken by the police.
c) The lock has been broken by the police.
d) The lock was to be broken by the police.

6. The judge will sentence all the militants (Begin with: All the militants……)
a) All the militants will be sentenced by the judge.
b) All the militants got a sentence from the judge.
c) All the militants were sentenced by the judge.
d) All the militants will have to be sentenced by the judge.

7. Have I not told you of the danger earlier? (Use: already)

a) I have already tell you of the danger.
b) I have been telling you of the danger.
c) I have told you of the danger already.
d) I have already told you about the danger.

8. Sand and potash largely make glass. (Begin with: Glass is……)
a) Glass is made largely of sand and potash.
b) Glass is made only of sand and potash.
c) Glass is made from sand and potash.
d) Glass is made through sand with potash.

_________________________________________________________________

Page 6 of 6