MACHKHANDA HIGH SCHOOL

SEMESTER I, 2025
CLASS: XI
SUBJECT: ENGLISH (B)
TIME: 2 hours F.M.: 40

PROSE

1. Choose the correct alternative:

The astrologer’s forehead was resplendent with –
(A) vermilion (B) sacred ash (C) mud (D) Both (A) & (B)

2. On the second night, the tent was pitched beside a __________ river.
Choose the correct word to fill in the given blank –
(A) mighty (B) frozen (C) fast-flowing (D) small

3. Choose the correct option:

Statement I: Hughie was very wealthy.
Statement II: He married Laura.

(A) I and II are independent of each other.

(B) II is the reason for I.
(C) Both I and II are false.
(D) I is false but II is true.

4. Pick out the false statement:

(A) The astrologer intended to be an astrologer since childhood.
(B) The astrologer left his village suddenly.
(C) The astrologer ran away two hundred miles from his village.
(D) The astrologer was unmarried when he had left the village.

5. Choose the correct option:

The discoverers of the Amarnath cave, according to Swamiji, came to the cave in
search of –
(A) food (B) firewood (C) lost sheep (D) Mahadev

6. Rearrange the following incidents chronologically:

(i) Hughie felt his pockets to see what money he had.
(ii) The old beggar-man rested for a moment on a wooden bench.
(iii) The old beggar-man looked very forlorn and wretched.
(iv) Hughie could not help pitying him.

(A) (iv) - (ii) - (i) - (iii).

(B) (ii) – (iii) – (iv) – (i).
(C) (iv) – (iii) – (i) – (ii).
(D) (iii) – (i) – (ii) – (iv).
7. Match the words in Column A with the contents in Column B.

COLUMN A COLUMN B
(i) The Astrologer’s wife (a) wanted to take revenge.
(ii) The groundnut seller (b) wanted to prepare sweets.
(iii) Guru Nayak (c) made noise to attract customers.
(iv) Auctioneer of cheap cloth (d) gave fancy names to his ware.

(A) (i) - (c) , (ii) – (b) , (iii) – (d) , (iv) – (a)

(B) (i) – (b) , (ii) – (a) , (iii) – (d) , (iv) – (c)
(C) (i) – (d) , (ii) – (b) , (iii) – (c) , (iv) – (a)
(D) (i) – (b) , (ii) – (d) , (iii) – (a) , (iv) – (c)

8. Pick out the correct option:

Who is described as “an old gentleman with gold spectacles and grey hair”?
(A) Alan Trevor (B) Monseieur Gustave Naudin (C) Baron Hausberg (D) The Colonel

9. Which of the following diagrams rightly describes the itinerary (route) of Sister
Nivedita’s journey to Amarnath?

10. ASSERTION:
Punctually at mid-day, the astrologer opened his bag.
REASON:
He wanted to study obscure mystic charts.

Pick out the correct option:

(A) Assertion is incorrect and Reason is correct.
(B) Assertion is correct but the Reason is incorrect.
(C) Both Assertion and Reason are incorrect.
(D) Both Assertion and Reason are correct.
 VERSE

11. In ‘Upon Westminster Bridge’, the poet views the city –

(A) at dawn (B) at noon (C) at night (D) in the evening

12. Who wrote ‘The Second Coming’?

(A) William Wordsworth (B) W. B. Yeats (C) Sarojini Naidu
(D) William Shakespeare

13. Choose the correct option:

(i) In the poem, ‘mighty heart’ refers to the Westminster Bridge.
(ii) The city remains inactive in the early morning.
(iii) The River Thames flows smoothly.
(iv) In the early morning, no boats or ships are sailing on the river.

(A) T, T, T, F
(B) T, F, T, F
(C) T, F, T, T
(D) F, T, T, T

14. The bangles are called ‘lustrous tokens of radiant lives’ because –
(A) they are made of a glossy material.
(B) they are costly.
(C) they are fragile.
(D) their colours represent joy and happiness.

15. “This city now doth, like a garment, wear…”

The word ‘doth’ means –
(A) death (B) does (C) do (D) done

16. A middle-aged woman worships gods at the side of her –

(A) husband (B) sister (C) children (D) parents

17. Match the words in Column A with the contents in Column B.

COLUMN A COLUMN B
(i) body (a) slow
(ii) head (b) blank
(iii) gaze (c) lion
(iv) movement (d) man

(A) (i) - (d) , (ii) – (b) , (iii) – (a) , (iv) – (c)

(B) (i) – (d) , (ii) – (a) , (iii) – (b) , (iv) – (c)
(C) (i) – (c) , (ii) – (d) , (iii) – (b) , (iv) – (a)
(D) (i) – (b) , (ii) – (d) , (iii) – (c) , (iv) – (a)
18. Match the colours with the objects they are associated with:

(i) silver and blue (a) flushed buds

(ii) yellow (b) mountain mist
(iii) pink (c) marriage flame
(iv) orange or red (d) fields of sunlit corn

19. Rearrange chronologically:

(i) Things fall apart.
(ii) The second coming is at hand.
(iii) The falcon cannot hear the falconer.
(iv) A fierce beast slouches towards Bethlehem to be born.

(A) (i) - (ii) - (iii) - (iv).

(B) (iii) – (i) – (ii) – (iv).
(C) (iv) – (ii) – (i) – (iii).
(D) (ii) – (i) – (iv) – (iii).

20. The poem “Composed Upon Westminster Bridge” is a ___________.

(A) Petrarchan Sonnet (C) Shakespearean Sonnet
(B) Spenserian Sonnet (D) Ballad

RAPID READER

21. Choose the correct option:

Lady Macbeth suffered from –
(A) hysteria (B) pneumonia (C) malaria (D) somnambulism

22. State which of the following sentences are true and which are false by choosing the
right option:
(i) Othello and Desdemona set sail for Cyprus.
(ii) Othello demoted Cassio from the post of lieutenant.
(iii) Othello killed Desdemona with a sword.
(iv) Othello was a brave soldier/warrior.

(A) T, T, F, T
(B) T, F, T, T
(C) T, F, T, F
(D) T, F, F, T

23. King Duncan was impressed by Lady Macbeth’s –

(A) generosity (B) hospitality (C) beauty (D) good behavior
24. Fill in the blank with a suitable word from the options provided:
Oliver fell in love with _____ who was in reality none other than Celia.
(A) Aliena (B) Ganymede (C) Rosalind (D) Desdemona

25. ASSERTION:
After injuring the officer Montano, Cassio became repentant.
REASON:
He regretted his action as his reputation was lost.

Pick out the correct option:

(A) Assertion is incorrect and Reason is correct.
(B) Both Assertion and Reason are correct.
(C) Both Assertion and Reason are incorrect.
(D) Assertion is correct but the Reason is incorrect.

26. The assassins (pounced upon them and) killed Banquo but _________ managed to
escape.
The correct word to fill in the blank is –
(A) Malcolm (B) Macduff (C) Fleance (D) Donalbain

27. Choose the correct option:

Who stole Desdemona’s handkerchief?
(A) Cassio (B) Iago (C) Emilia (D) Montana

28. Choose the correct option:

Which country did the characters in ‘As You Like It’ belong to?
(A) England (B) France (C) Italy (D) Venice

29. Arrange the following sentences in their sequential order by choosing the correct
option:
(i) Macbeth tried to grasp the dagger.
(ii) He advanced towards the bed chamber.
(iii) He visualized another dagger hanging in the air.
(iv) Macbeth took the dagger in his hand.

(A) (iv) - (i) - (iii) - (ii).

(B) (iv) – (ii) – (iii) – (i).
(C) (iv) – (iii) – (i) – (ii).
(D) (iv) – (ii) – (i) – (iii).

30. Match the following characters with their mutual relationships:

CHARACTERS RELATIONS
(i) Senior Duke - Rosalind (a) master - servant
(ii) Celia – Rosalind (b) father - daughter
(iii) Sir Ronald de Boys – Adam (c) Father-in-law – son-in-law
(iv) Duke Frederick - Oliver (d) cousins
 (A) (i) - (a) , (ii) – (d) , (iii) – (c) , (iv) – (b)
(B) (i) – (b) , (ii) – (c) , (iii) – (a) , (iv) – (d)
(C) (i) – (d) , (ii) – (a) , (iii) – (c) , (iv) – (b)
(D) (i) – (b) , (ii) – (d) , (iii) – (a) , (iv) – (c)

TEXTUAL GRAMMAR

31. Choose the correct alternatives:

The swine has cheated me. (Change the voice)
(A) I had been cheated by the swine.
(B) I am cheated by the swine.
(C) I am being cheated by the swine.
(D) I have been cheated by the swine.

32. Trevor was a painter. (Make it negative)

(A) Was not Trevor a painter?
(B) Was Trevor a painter?
(C) Trevor was a painter.
(D) Did Trevor not become a painter?

33. “I am an unlucky devil”, growled Hughie. (Change the mode of narration)

(A) Hughie growled he had been an unlucky devil.
(B) Hughie growled that he was an unlucky devil.
(C) Hughie growled that he was being an unlucky devil.
(D) Hughie growled that he is an unlucky devil.

34. Dull would he be of soul who could pass by a sight so touching in its majesty.
Identify the underlined clause:
(A) Noun Clause (B) Adjective Clause (C) Adverbial Clause (D) Main Clause

35. We bear our shining loads. (Make it complex)

(A) We bear our loads which are shining.
(B) We bear our loads when they are shining.
(C) We bear our loads when the sun is shining.
(D) We who bear our loads are shining.

READING COMPREHENSION (UNSEEN)

Read the following passage and answer the following questions:

In the middle of the night, Shankar was woken up by a strange loud noise from the
forest. There seemed to be a huge turmoil in the jungles. Alvarez too had been up.
They listened carefully – and what they heard was truly strange. They had no clue
about what was happening.
 Shankar switched on his torch and was about to leave the tent, but Alavrez stopped
him. He said, “Don’t rush out in these unknown jungles at night. I have cautioned you
many a time. Besides, where is your rifle?”

It was pitch dark outside. What they saw in the torchlight defied logic.

Wild animals were running desperately, trampling on bushes and small plants. They
came out of the mountain forest on the west and ran towards the hill on the east. There
were hyenas, baboons and wild buffalos. Two leopards passed close by them.

36. Shankar and Alvarez were sleeping in a –

(A) house (B) room (C) jungle hut (D) tent

37. Shankar was warned as he was going outside –

(A) without his rifle (B) without his torch (C) without taking Alvarez with him
(E) without anyone else

38. The sight defied logic to Shankar as –

(A) the hordes of animals were running towards the hill without any apparent reason
(B) such things do not happen in the jungle
(C) the animals were panic-stricken
(D) the animals had no reason to run in the middle of the night

39. The bushes and small plants were ______ under the feet of the running animals.
Fill in the blank with the right word from –
(A) squeezed (B) trampled (C) shaken (D) broken

40. How was the night, described in the narrative?

(A) starlit (B) intensely dark (C) faintly dark (D) moonlit