SSC (English Medium) १० वीं कक्षा - Maharashtra State Board Question Bank Solutions for English

B1. Speech
Prepare a speech to be delivered by you on ‘Environment Day’ Celebration in your school, laying stress on conserving the environment.

                                                      OR

B2. View and Counterview.
View: Progress of mankind depends on deforestation.
Counterview :
(a) Rising population
(b) Wild-life affected
(c) Global warming
(d) Flora and fauna endangered

(a) Prepare a speech you wish to give on the farewell Day function of your school.

OR

You wish to open an account in SBI In your area. Write a dialogue between you and the Bank Manager.

Speech Writing: 

Write a short speech to be delivered in your college on 'Tree Conservation' on the occasion of 'The World Earth Day,' with the help of the following points (about JOO words):
(I) Air, water and noise pollution.
(2) Depletion of natural resources.
(3) Trees prevent soil erosion.
(4) Live in harmony with nature .  

Find out 2 hidden words of minimum 4 letters from –
‘tracheotomy’.

Arrange the following words in alphabetical order.
dream, rainbow, soldier, credit

             There had to be one successful story if Indians were to survive in sports
and we have that story now. Enough has been said about this great warrior
who conquered the world. This warrior is none other than Mary Mangte Komthe
Komqueror and the Komrade. She is famed as a five times World Boxing
Champion and the only boxer to win a medal in every one of the six world
championships. In the 2012 Olympics, she became the first Indian woman boxer
to qualify and win a bronze medal in the 51 Kg flyweight category of Boxing.

              Kom was born in Kangthei village, Moirang Lamkhai in Churachandpur
district of rural Manipur in eastern India. She came from a poor family. Her
parents, Mangte Tonpa Kom and Mangte Akham Kom were tenant farmers who
worked in jhum fields. Kom grew up in humble surroundings, helping her parents
with farm related chores, going to school and learning athletics initially and later
boxing simultaneously. Her father was a keen wrestler in his younger age.
 

             She had an eager interest in athletics since childhood and the success of
Dingko Singh a fellow Manipuri returned from the 1998 Bangkok Asian games
with a gold medal, Kom recollects had inspired many youngsters in Manipur to
try boxing and she too thought of giving it a try.
     

         Mary Kom’s career started in 2000 after her victory in the Manipur State
women’s boxing championship and the regional championship in West Bengal.
In 2001, she started competing at international level. She was only 18 years
old when she made her international debut at the first AIBA Women’s World
Boxing Championship in United States, winning a silver medal in the 48 kg
weight category. Her greatness is reinforced by the way she apoligized to the
whole nation for not being able to win the Gold. She is a legend for sure and
an idol for all the sportswomen to look up to.

(B1) Name the following.
(i) According to the writer the great warrior who conquered the world -
(ii) The State in which Mary Kom was born -
(iii) The kind of farming in which Mary’s parents were working as tenant
farmers -
(iv) The sportsman who inspired many youngsters in Manipur -

(B2) Complete the following.

(B3) Find out antonyms for the following from the passage.
(a) failure × (b) defeat ×
(c) weakened × (d) wealthy ×

(B4)
(i) She is a legend for sure and an idol for all sportswomen to look up to. (Use ‘Not only……….. but also’)
(ii) In the 2012 Olympics, Mary became the first Indian woman boxer to qualify
and win a bronze medal. (Use ‘As well as’)

(B5) What qualities do you think are required to become a good sportsman ?

I think I could turn and live with animals, they are
              so placid and self-contain’d
I stand and look at them long and long.
They do not sweat and whine about their condition,
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins,
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God,
Not one is dissatisfied, not one is demented with
                  the mania of owning things.
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that
                  lived thousands of years ago,
Not one is respectable or unhappy over the whole earth.
So they show their relations to me and I accept them,
They bring me tokens of myself, they evince
                   them plainly in their possession
I wonder where they get those tokens,
Did I pass that way huge times ago and negligently drop them?

(A1) Complete the following sentences with the help of the poem.
(a) The poet wishes he could.............................
(b) Animals do not complain about............................
(c) Animals do not merely discuss.............................
(d) Animals are not crazy about .............................

(A2) The qualities of animals that highlighted by the poet in the poem are

.............................................................................................................

............................................................................................................

..........................................................................................................

(A3) Name and explain the figures of speech.
“I stand and look at them long and long.’’

Read the following poem and write an appreciation of it with the help of the given points in paragraph format.

You can use the following points while appreciating the given poem.

• Title
• Poet
• Theme/Central Idea (At least 2 to 3 lines)
• Rhyme Scheme
• Figures of speech
• Special Features
  (Type of the poem, imagery, implied meaning if any etc.)
  (At least 3 to 4 lines)
• Favourite line/lines
• Why I like/don’t like the poem

Drafting a Speech :
  You are going to speak in your school assembly convincing junior students that the secret of true happiness lies in Giving and Sharing more than in Receiving and Taking.

  You can use the following points - a hearty satisfaction, pleasure of sharing, peace of mind, etc. You can add your own points.

Find out 2 hidden words of minimum 4 letters from –
‘triumphant’

Arrange the following words in alphabetical order.
groan, glimpse, guilt, gorgeous,

Read the following passage and do the activities.
Social/Historical Context: Hemingway’s novel is based on real events and it also draws heavily on his own life. He had experience of fishing in the Cuban waters and like the old man he was also a fan of baseball. He worked for the Red Cross during the First World War and was injured by shrapnel when he was in Italy. Hemingway always talks about the need to struggle against defeat or death and how determination and endurance can help one to win in
this struggle. The old man is at the end of the novel very near death, but we know that the story of his suffering and loss will live on in the memories of the people of his village. Ultimately his story becomes one of triumph because the tales of his life will live on even after his death. The novel was published in 1952, when people were trying to recover from the mass destruction wrought by the two world wars, and this tale of endurance and ultimate triumph immediately struck a chord with the readers.
       Writing Style: Hemingway’s language is simple and pithy. He mostly writes in short and straight-forward sentences and practises an extreme economy in his
use of words. This simplicity is deceptive and a reader can read his work again and again and find new layers of meaning every time.

(A1) Complete the following sentences.
(a) Hemingway had experience of ……………..
(b) He worked for …………………… during the First World War.
(c) ‘The Old Man And The Sea’ was published in ………………….
(d) After reading his work reader can find ……………………..

(A2) Complete the following web.


(A3) Find the synonyms for the following from the passage.
(i) The ability to do something difficult for a long time.
(ii) Formed or worked
(iii) Brief
(iv) Likely to make someone believe something that is not true.
(A4)
(1) The old man is at the end of the novel very near death, but we know that the story of his suffering and loss will live on in the memories of the people of his village. (Rewrite the sentence using ‘Though’.)
(2) During the First World War Hemingway was injured by shrapnel. (Begin the sentence with ‘Shrapnel ………….)
(A5) Write four to five sentences about your favourite writer.

Read the following passage and do the activities.

He decided, instead to go to a hermit who was widely renowned for his wisdom. The hermit lived in a small hut in a forest which he never left. He spoke only to common folk. So the king put on simple clothes and approaching the hermit’s cell, dismounted his horse and left his bodyguard behind.
When the king arrived, the hermit was digging the ground in front of his hut. He greeted the king but went on digging. The hermit was frail and weak, and each time he struck the ground with the spade and turned over a little earth, he breathed heavily. The king went up to him and said, “I have come to you, wise hermit, to ask you to answer three questions-How can I learn to do the right thing at the right time? Who are the people I most need, and to whom should I, therefore, pay most attention ? And what affairs are the most important and need my first attention?”
The hermit listened to the king but said nothing. He just spat on his hand and resumed digging. The king watched in silence for a while. Then, feeling sorry for the hermit, he said, “You are tired, let me take the spade and work a while for you.” The hermit silently handed over the spade and sat down on the ground. When he had dug two beds, the king stopped and repeated his questions. The hermit again gave no answer, but rose, stretched out his hand for the spade, and said, “Now rest a while and let me work a bit”. But the king did not give him the spade and continued to dig.
One hour passed and another. The sun began to sink behind the trees and the king at last stuck the spade into the ground and said, “I came to you, wise one, for an answer to my questions. If you can give me none, please say so, and I will go home.’’ “Here comes someone running,’’ said the hermit, “let us see who it is.

(B1) State whether the following statements are True or False.
(a) The hermit answered all the questions.
(b) The hermit was strong and firm.
(c) The king had come to hermit to ask him answers of seven questions.
(d) The king felt sorry for the hermit after watching him tired.

(B2) Why did the king come to the hermit? How did the hermit respond to the king’s questions?

(B3) Find out two present participles and two past participles.

(B4)
(1) You are very tired.
(The correct exclamatory form of the sentence is …………..)
(i) How are you tired !
(ii) How tired you are !
iii) How you are tired !
(2) The hermit gave no answer. (Make it affirmative.)

(B5) Whom will you consult if you have any doubt or question in your mind? Why?

Read the following extract and do the activities.
I remember the night my mother
was stung by a scorpion. Ten hours
of steady rain had driven him
to crawl beneath a sack of rice.
Patting with his poison – flash
Of diabolic tail in the dark room -
he risked the rain again.
The peasants came like swarms of flies
And buzzed the name of God a hundred times
to paralyse the Evil One.
With candles and with lanterns
throwing giant scorpion shadows
on the mud-baked walls
they searched for him: he was not found.
They clicked their tongues.
With every movement that the scorpion made his poison
moved in Mother’s blood, they said.

(A1) Choose the correct option for the following.
(1) The incident in the poem took place in
(i) the morning (ii) the night
(iii) the afternoon (iv) the evening

(2) ‘The Evil’ mentioned in the poem was
(i) the peasant (ii) the God
(iii) the scorpion (iv) the mother

(3) The scorpion crawled beneath a sack of
(i) sugar (ii) a wheat
(iii) corns (iv) rice

(4) The peasants are compared with
(i) flock of sheep (ii) group of monkeys
(iii) swarms of flies (iv) herds of cattle

(A2) Write the reactions of the people when they knew that the mother was stung by a scorpion.
(i)..................................................................
(ii)................................................................
(iii)...............................................................
(iv)...............................................................

(A3) Write down the rhyming words from the stanzas for the following.
(i) fight - (ii) clash -

Drafting a Speech :
You are going to speak in a national level elocution competition on “How to live before you die.”. Draft a speech to deliver it in a competition with the help of the following points.
You can use the following points – Be happy, Help others, Burning desire to do something, Fulfil your hobbies and dreams, Explore the world, No worries, Be creative, Be friendly with others, Be social, Live tension free life, etc.

Find out 2 hidden words of minimum 4 letters from –
‘Introduction’

Read the following passage and do the activities.

Smita bit her lip in self-reproach. She had been so excited at seeing the announcement, that she had not remembered that her brother was very ill. She had seen how the doctors had shaken their heads gravely and spoken words that neither she nor even her parents could understand. But somewhere deep inside Smita had known the frightening truth – that Anant was going to die. The word cancer had hung in the air – her brother was dying of cancer even though she pretended that all would be well and they would return together, a small family of four, to their home in Gaganpur. And he was only fifteen and the best table-tennis player in the school and the fastest runner. He was learning to play the sitar; they were both taking sitar lessons, but Anant was better than her as in many other things. He was already able to compose his own tunes to the astonishment of their guru. Then cancer had struck and they had come to Bombay so that he could be treated at the cancer hospital in the city.
Whenever they came to Bombay they stayed with Aunt Sushila. Her apartment was not big but there was always room for them. They had come with high hopes in the miracles of modern science. They told themselves that Anant would be cured at the hospital and he would again walk and run and even take part in the forthcoming table-tennis tournament. And, he would play the sitar-perhaps be a great sitarist one day. But his condition grew worse with each-passing day and the doctors at the cancer hospital said, ‘Take him home. Give him the thing he likes, indulge him,’ and they knew then that the boy had not many days to live. But they did not voice their fears. They laughed and smiled and talked and surrounded Anant with whatever made him happy. They fulfilled his every need and gave him whatever he asked for. And now he was asking to go to the concert. ‘The chance of a lifetime,’ he was saying. ‘When you are better,’ his mother said. ‘This is not the last time they are going to play.’ Smita stood at the window looking at the traffic, her eyes wet with tears. Her mother whispered, ‘But you Smita, you must go. Your father will take you.’ When she was alone with Aunt Sushila, Smita cried out in a choked voice, ‘No, how can I? We’ve always done things together, Anant and I.’ ‘A walk in the park might make you feel better,’ said Aunt Sushila and Smita was grateful for her suggestion.

(B1) Who said to whom. 02
(1) This is not the last time they are going to play.
(2) We have done things together.

(B2) Describe the condition of Smita and her reaction to Anant when she came to know about the concert. 02

(B3) Write the root forms of the given words from the passage. 02
1. Indulgence 2. Surroundings 3. Fulfilment 4. Happiness

(B4) Choose the appropriate adverb or adjective to fill in the gaps. 02
1. He was able to compose his own tunes. (use ‘could’ and rewrite the sentence.)
2. Smita cried out in a choked voice. (Identify the tense.)

(B5) The two contradictory pictures are depicted in the story. Describe them in your own word. 02

Read the following extract and do the activities.

When God at first made Man,
Having a glass of blessings standing by;
Let us (said He) “pour on him all we can:”
Let the worlds riches, which dispersed lie,
Contract into a span.
So strength first made a way;
Then beauty flow’d, then wisdom, honour, pleasure:
When almost all was out, God made a stay,
Perceiving that alone of all His treasures
Rest in the bottom lay.

For if I should (said He)
Bestow this jewel also on my creature,
He would adore my gifts instead of me,
And rest in Nature, not the God of Nature.
So both should losers be.
Yet let him keep the rest,
But keep them with repining restlessness:
Let him be rich and weary, that at last,
If goodness lead him not, yet weariness
May toss him to my breast.

(A1) Choose the correct alternative from the following. 02
(1) The first gift that God gave man is _________
a. Wisdom b. Strength c. Beauty d. Rest
(2) The poem displays ___________ as the main theme.
a. Origin of human species
b. Origin of universe and galaxy
c. Origin of spirituality
d. Origin of earth and space

(A2) Explain the reason why rest is withheld from man by God. 02

(A3) Write the rhyme scheme of the first stanza. 01

Drafting a Speech :
Regular practice of Yoga can help in maintaining good health and even in the prevention of so many ailments. Write a speech to be delivered in the morning assembly on the usefulness of Yoga.

Find out two hidden words of minimum four letters from:

‘endurance’