CTET Notes In Hindi | Previous Years’ Questions
CTET Notes In Hindi | Previous Years’ Questions
Previous Years’ Questions
Passage 21
This was one of the Old Man’s pet schemes; and one about
which he would brook no interference. Each child would
review the events of his school week in his own words, in
his own way; he was free to comment, to criticise, to agree
or disagree, with any person, subject or method, as long as
it was in some way associated with the school. No one and
nothing was sacred from the Headmaster down, and the
child, moreover, was safe from any form of reprisal.
“Look at it this way,” Mr. Florian had said. “It is of
advantage to both pupil and teacher. If a child wants to
write about something which matters to him, he will take
some pains to set it down as carefully and with as much
detail as possible; that must in some way improve his
written English in terms of spelling, construction and style.
Week by week we are able through his reviews, to follow
and observe his progress in such things.
As for the teachers, we soon get a pretty good idea what
the children think of us and whether or not we are getting
close to them. It may sometimes be rather deflating to
discover that a well-prepared lesson did not really excite
Johnny Smith’s interest, but, after all, the lesson was
intended to benefit Johnny Smith, not his teacher.
[CTET June 2011]
1. The scheme, according to the Old Man, was useful
because
(1) it was excellent feedback for the teacher, principal and
school
(2) he was slightly eccentric
(3) it was meant to humiliate the teacher
(4) it was meant to give power to the teacher
2. ‘Pet schemes’ in line 1 refers to
(1) a student he is fond of
(2) a formula he had discovered
(3) a pet animal
(4) a method he has advocated
3. The ‘Old Man’ refers to
(1) a parent of the school
(2) a student of the school
(3) a teacher of the school
(4) the headmaster called Mr Florian
4. The advantages of the scheme were many. Pick out
the disadvantage from the list given below
(1) Sometimes deflating to the teacher’s ego
(2) Diagnostic and remedial for the student and the teacher
(3) Effective feedback
(4) Enhanced writing skills
5. ‘Sacred in the context of the Headmaster means
(1) that even ‘he’ was not above the ‘scheme’ he
advocated for students
(2) he believed in the sacred nature of all life
(3) that he was a holy man
(4) that he was the powerful head of the school
6. ‘Brook’as a verb means ‘to tolerate in para 1. As a
noun, it means
(1) tolerance
(2) allow
(3) suffer
(4) stream
Passage 22
Karuna Verma is bewildered. “I don’t know how she did
it,” she says about her mother, Renu Chopra. Karuna’s
childhood memories are of her father leaving late for office
so that, by then, her mother would be back from work. Of
her parents working in sync to make sure the kids were
well taken care of. Of her mother handling kitchen and
classroom with ease.
When her own daughter was born, Karuna too wanted to
do the balancing act. But it did not turn out to be as easy as
it seemed. For starters, her parents’ era was different from
hers. As she was living with her husband in Andheri,
Mumbai, away from their families, resuming work would
have meant leaving her daughter with a maid while she was
away. Her daughter’s formative years would be spent with
an outsider a thought that did not appeal to Karuna. She
quit her teaching job in a school.
For a woman who was encouraged to be independent
throughout her life, the decision to quit and stay at home
was a difficult one. Ironically it was her mother who urged
her to quit the job and become a full-time mother. For
Karuna, being a housewife is one of the tougher jobs she
has had. “I have no time for myself,” says Karuna. “I make
sure all my personal work is done when Avni is asleep.
Earlier I had a set routine. My husband and I used to wake
up at 6 a.m. I would re-heat the food the maid had cooked
the day before and pack it for lunch. Then we used to head
off to work, and at night, we would go out. I had a lot of
time to myself and for my husband then,” says Karuna.
The routine is quite different now, Karuna has taken to
cooking. She wakes up quite early and makes sure all her
work is done before the baby is up. The rest of the day flies
by, pandering to two-year-old Avni’s needs.
[CTET June 2011]
1. Karuna Verma is bewildered at
(1) the responsibility of bringing up a daughter in a big city
(2) her mother’s ability to combine her career with
household work
(3) the amount of work that she has to do after becoming a
mother
(4) the late hours of work that her father followed
2. ‘… parents working in sync’ means
(1) father earning and mother taking care of children
(2) parents having staggered office hours and sharing
household work
(3) parents pooling their resources together to take care of
expenses
(4) husband and wife sinking their differences to preserve
domestic harmony
3. ‘… Karuna too wanted to do the balancing act.’ In
this sentence, the term ‘balancing act’ implies
(1) managing the time efficiently so that parents can spend
quality time with their children
(2) making adjustments in order to balance work and
leisure properly
(3) sharing of responsibilities by both husband and wife
(4) a mother’s ability to look after her child without quitting
her job
4. As she was living with her husband in Andheri
Mumbai, away from their families ………. In this
sentence their families’ refers to
(1) families of friends in Andheri, Mumbai
(2) Karuna’s parents and in-laws
(3) Karuna’s mother and father’s families
(4) Karuna’s husband’s family
5. Karuna’s parents and her husband’s parents
probably lived
(1) in Mumbai but not in Andheri
(2) with Karuna and her husband
(3) in Andheri, Mumbai
(4) in some other city
6. Karuna decided to quit her job because
(1) she wanted to have more time to herself and for her
husband
(2) she wanted to pay more attention to her cooking
(3) she was not interested in her teaching job.
(4) she did not want her daughter to spend her early years
with a maid
7. It was ironical that Karuna’s mother should advise
her to quit her job and stay at home because
(1) Karuna’s parents had always advised her that home was
much more important than career
(2) Karuna’s mother herself had not quit her job to take care
of children as she encouraged independence of women
(3) Karuna herself was keen on quitting her job
(4) Karuna’s parents had insisted that household chores
should be shared between husband and wife
8. After Karuna quit her job
(1) she sent her maid away as she felt that the maid was a
bad influence on Avni
(2) she had no time for herself as Avni needed all her
attention and care
(3) she had a lot of time to herself and for her husband
(4) she occupied herself with cooking to spend her time
usefully
g. “I have no time for myself.” says Karuna. This
sentence can be written in reported speech as
(1) Karuna said that she had no time for herself
(2) Karuna says that she had no time for herself
(3) Karuna says that she have no time for herself
(4) Karuna said that she had no time for myself
Passage 23
The farmer is up before dawn on shearing-day, driving his
flock into pens. By eight o’clock the shearers arrive and
after a hearty breakfast, they take their places on long
benches that the farmer has improvised in the pens. Shears
are taken from leather cases and sharpened with
whetstones; a fire is lighted to heat pitch for the marking
and the work begins.
Soon the shearers fall into their routine. A lad seizes a
sheep from the pen and ties its feet – not with a cord,
because that might injure it, but with a strip of sacking. The
sheep is carried to the benches and the shearer begins to
slice off the wool. First he shears the coarse wool from the
sheep’s belly, then lays the animal on its side on the bench
between his legs while he snips at the curly wool round the
neck. He works to and fro along the ribs, peeling the wool
back until it hangs like a cloak doubled back over the
animal. Then, he turns the sheep over and begins on the
unclipped side. In a few moments, the whole fleece falls
away in one piece, looking like a dirty grey rug. A few
more snips from the shears and the wool is cut from either
side of the sheep’s tail, leaving the animal white and naked.
The shearer pushes the sheep to the ground and
immediately calls for another animal. Meanwhile the lad
daubs the farmer’s mark in pitch on the newly shorn sheep,
unties her legs and drives her out of the shearing pens.
A second lad–the farmer’s son–seizes the fleece as it is
tossed aside, rolls it up, tucking the tail-wool in first and
secures the bundle by knotting the neck. Any loose
clippings are gathered separately.
The work continues till one o’clock, when the farmer’s
Wife fummons the men to dinner. Each man finishes the
sheep that is beside him, then the whole party goes back to
the farm house. The men troop into the farm kitchen,
leaving their dogs to scuffle in the yard. After the shortest
of dinner-breaks ― for there is much to be done― the
Shearing continues and the pile of fleeces mounts.
[CTET Jan 2012]
1. What expression in the first paragraph suggests that
shearing does not take place very often?
(1) Flock
(2) Whetstones
(3) Shearing day
(4) Improvised
2. The shearer first cuts the wool from the ……… of the
sheep
(1) ribs
(2) tail
(3) legs
(4) underside
3. Why are loose clippings of wool gathered separately?
(1) Because they are not so valuable as whole fleeces
(2) Because they are needed to fill up the top of the bags
(3) Because they weigh less than a whole fleece
(4) So that they do not get spoiled
4. Wool which has been sheared from a sheep is
(1) rolled and bundled
(2) tied with sacking
(3) bagged on shearing-day
(4) cut into two pieces by the shearer with a few snips
5. What word from the passage best tells us that shears
are like a very large pair of scissors?
(1) Cut
(2) Slice
(3) Sharpened
(4) Snips
6. The sheep is carried to the benches. It is an example of
(1) a negative sentence
(2) passive voice
(3) degree of comparison
(4) an interrogative sentence
Passage 24
Anaesthesia in any part of the body means a loss of
sensation, either permanent or temporary. The term is
usually used to describe the artificially produced loss of
sensation which makes a surgical operation painless.
There are four main types of anaesthesia : general, spinal,
regional and local. Anaesthetics may be given as gases, by
inhalation; or as drugs injected into a vein. A patient given
general anaesthesia loses consciousness. Anaesthesia of a
fairly large area of the body results from injecting the
anaesthetic drug into the spinal canal: all that portion of
the body below the level at which the drug is injected is
anaesthetised. Regional anaesthesia is the injecting of the
nerves as they emerge from the spinal column the
anaesthesia induced by this method affects only that area of
the body supplied by those nerves. In local anaesthesia, the
drug is injected directly at the site of the operative incision
and sometimes also into the nearby surrounding tissues.
Formerly the most commonly used local anaesthetic was
cocaine, a drug extracted from the leaves of the coca bush
and introduced in 1879. But cocaine has some
disadvantages and sometimes, undesirable side-effects. For
spinal, regional and local anaesthesia, procaine or one of the
several modifications of procaine, is now widely used
instead of cocaine. For very limited and short operations,
such as opening a small abscess, local anaesthesia may be
induced by spraying (rather than injecting) a chemical,
ethyl chloride, on a small area of the skin; in changing from
the liquid to the gaseous state, this drug freezes the area
sprayed and permits painless incision. [CTET Jan 2012]
1. When a part of the body is anaesthetised,
(1) the nearby organ loses its function permanently
(2) the body loses its consciousness
(3) the part gets excited
(4) that part loses the ability to feel any pain
2. The real purpose of using anaesthetics is
(1) to make patients unconscious
(2) to perform operations without causing pain
(3) to artificially produce loss of sensation
(4) to cure patients of diseases
3. An anaesthetic is inhaled when it is administered
(1) by injection
(2) as a gas
(3) as a spray
(4) as a drug
4. When a gas is used as an anaesthetic, the anaesthesia is
(1) spinal
(2) local
(3) regional
(4) general
5. Spinal anaesthesia is resorted to when
(1) a small area has to be anaesthetised
(2) the operation involves a big area of the body
(3) a drug has to be injected into the vein
(4) a patient has to be made unconscious
6. The expression the site of the operative incision
(lines 22-23) means
(1) the place at which a cut is to be made
(2) the spot at which the anaesthetic has to be injected
(3) the area of the body supplied by specific nerves
(4) all the surrounding tissues
7. An ‘abscess’ (line 34) is
(1) an operative incision
(2) a collection of poisonous matter in a hole in the body
(3) an open wound requiring surgery
(4) a deep hole
8. The word opposite in meaning to the word ‘formerly’
(line 25) is
(1) fortunately
(2) later
(3) significant
(4) industrially
9. ‘Anaesthetic'(line 26) is
(1) an adjective
(2) an adverb
(3) a noun
(4) a verb
Passage 25
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has served as a
catalyst in many school improvement efforts. Schools in
the United States are responding to meet the challenge of
these improvement efforts, although in doing so, some are
caught in a decision-making and funding quagmire. They
ask. “How can we best support teachers so that all students
can succeed ?” Using technology as a means of closing
achievement gaps is one option schools are considering
more purposefully and effectively. This includes using
assistive technologies for students with special needs and
creating a systemic approach to change that benefits all
students, including subgroups.
Assistive technologies are technologies that support
students with disabilities, of which a total of 6.5 million
were being served through the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act of 1997. This Act defines an assistive
technology device as “any item, piece of equipment, or
product system, whether acquired commercially off the
shelf, modified, or customised, that is used to increase,
maintain, or improve functional capabilities of a child with
a disability.” Regardless of their previous experience, many
administrators and educators are expected to be change
agents of school improvement efforts today and be well
versed and knowledgeable about assistive technologies,
despite the fact that the definition of assistive technology is
so broad and the field is relatively new. [CTET Nov 2012]
1. “Schools found themselves in a funding quagmire.”
Here, quagmire’ means
(1) boggy area
(2) isolation
(3) indebtedness
(4) quicksand
2. According to this report, ‘achievement gaps’ can be
closed by
(1) investing on more reference books in the library
(2) conducting after school special classes for weak
students
(3) getting more financial support from the government
(4) recruiting and training moral personnel to help the
special needs children
3. Functional capabilities constitute the
(1) ability to go for higher studies
(2) the skills to cope with everyday challenges
(3) the determination to succeed
(4) exceptional talent in academic or literary activities
4. A product system’ here means
(1) services or financial investments that are not
commercially value-adding
(2) important resources not available to the disabled
persons
(3) special training equipment designed for disabled
children
(4) products that are freely accessible to schools only
5. Find a word in the report that means ‘widely
circulated’
(1) systemic
(2) achievement
(3) product
(4) change
6. The antonym for the word ‘hindering would be
(1) challenge
(2) disability
(3) assistive
(4) customised
possage 26
Nammescong Creek flowed into the backs of my thighs as I
fished pausing between casts to secure my balance in the
current and admire a new hatch of pale yellow may flies lift
from the stream. Over my shoulder, the Sun dropped into a
farmer’s cornfield, the final patch of orange light on the
water enough for me to spot the small, vaguely metallic object
at my feet. Retrieving it, I ran my thumb over its raised
lettering, rubbing away the mud and a string of algae. A name
apeared, along with an expiration date. June, 1984. I had
discovered arrowheads here in the past, so it didn’t seem
misplaced to find a tool used by modern man to obtain a meal.
I took a moment to consider how the card had come to rest in
the bed of the Nammy. I thought may be there was a story in
it. I was curious to know if the owner had lost his wallet
while fishing, the whole trip ruined the second he’d
inventoried his cash or dug out his license for a game warden.
Over time, the leather would’ve rotted into fish food, with
the scoured plastic remaining. I wondered how many miles
the card might have ridden on spring floods over the past
quarter of a century. For all I knew, he could’ve been robbed,
be thieves stripping out the money and tossing the billfold
way later as they crossed a bridge.
Looking him up and phoning, I recited the card number and
issuing bank. He laughed, recalling it as the first credit
account he’d ever taken out, a line of imaginary cash in those
years when he had no real money. But that finally changed.
he explained, after an industrial accident cost him his left eye,
the payoff from the plant enabling him to retire 8 years earlier
than expected and move to a small hobby farm in Southern
Virginia. He told me a glass eye wasn’t his style, so he had
taken to wearing an eyepatch, which his wife still hates and
his grandchildren ages 3, 5 and 7, have always loved, as it
makes grandpop look like a pirate . He called them his Miracle
Sandbabies, born to a daughter who struggled with alcohol
and drug addiction for years her rock-bottom in 1984, a year
before she cleaned up for good.
But in the end, the man couldn’t remember ever losing his
Sallesither by accident or theft. He said he’d never fished
Nammy, that, in fact, he’d always thought the sport a
edhe boring, and so I came to realise there was no story
[CTET Nov 2012]
1. ‘Flowed into the backs of my thighs’ informs the
reader that the narrator was fishing while
(1) sitting on the river bank
(2) his legs were hanging in the river
(3) standing in the river
(4) walking across the river
2. ‘Scoured’ means
(1) drenched
(2) Cleaned
(3) bent shapeless
(4) discoloured
3. ‘… a tool used by modern man to obtain a meal’in
this context is a/some
(1) fishing rod
(2) money
(3) coins
(4) credit card
4. “The whole trip ruined’ was because of the
(1) sudden appearance of mayflies
(2) loss of the wallet, for its owner’ who had given up
his/her holiday
(3) orange sunlight falling on the water thereby disturbing
the fish
(4) narrator’s attention being diverted by his find
5. By ‘looking him up’, the narrator
(1) referred to a telephone directory
(2) attempted to meet the owner personally
(3) called him up through an operator
(4) found out about him through various sources
6. ‘A small hobby farm’ would be
(1) an open space where rare animals are cared for
(2) a small zoo in the backyard
(3) a commercially successtul farm
(4) a farm run without any profit
7. The ‘owner’s’ daughter had cleaned up by
(1) getting married
(2) having two children
(3) giving up a destructive lifestyle
(4) choosing to stay with her parents
8. There was no story because
(1) what he found out showed that the owner’s life
lacked adventure
(2) he was disappointed that the owner was well to do
(3) the owner’ did not share his interest in fishing
(4) the reality did not live up to his imagination
9. A word in the story that means ‘soar’ is
(1) born
(2) lift
(3) plant
(4) rub
Passage 27
The fossil remains of the first flying vertebrates, the
Pterosaurs have intrigued paleontologists for more than
two centuries. How such large creatures, which had
wingspans from 8 to 12 meters, solved the problems of
powered flight and exactly what these creatures
were-reptiles or birds-are among the questions scientists
have puzzled over.
Perhaps the least controversial assertion about the
pterosaurs is that they were reptiles. Their skulls, pelvises
and hind feet are reptilian. The anatomy of their wings
suggests that they did not evolve into the class of birds.
In pterosaurs. a greatly elongated fourth finger of each
forelimb supported a wing like membrane. In birds the
second finger is the principle strut of the wing. If the
pterosaur walked or remained stationary, the fourth
finger and with it the wing, could only turn upward in an
extended inverted V-shape alongside of the animal’s body.
Both the pterosaurs and the birds have hollow bones, a
feature that represents a saving in weight. In the birds,
however, these bones are reinforced more massively by
internal struts.
Although scales typically cover reptiles, the pterosaurs
probably had hairy coats. The recent discovery of a
pterosaur specimen covered in long, dense and relatively
thick hair-like fossil material was the first clear evidence
that this reasoning was correct. Efforts to explain how the
pterosaurs became air-borne have led to suggestions that
they launched themselves by jumping from cliffs, by
dropping from trees or even by rising into light winds from
the crests of waves. [CTET July 2013)
1. The pterosaurs flew by
(1) momentum gathered by running
(2) jumping off a mountain ledge
(3) pushed by wind before take off
(4) jumping upwards with force
2. A synonym for ‘compressed from the passage is
(1) strut
(2) launch
(3) dense
(4) light
3. The opposite of controversial’ is
(1) undisputed
(2) questionable
(3) uncertain
(4) debatable
4. It can be understood from the passage that scientists
believe that the
(1) pterosaurs walked on all fours
(2) large wings help pterosaurs to fly great distances
(3) hollow bones showed they evolved from bats
(4) fossil remains explain how they flew
5. The skeleton of a pterosaur can be distinguished
from a birds by the
(1) anatomy of its wing span
(2) size of its wing span
(3) presence of hollow bones
(4) hook-like projections at the hind feet
6. Which is the characteristic of pterosaur?
(1) Lived mostly in the forest
(2) They hung upside down like bats before flight
(3) Flew to capture prey
(4) Unable to fold their wing fully at rest
7. The elongated finger in the …….. supported the
outstretched wings.
(1) Neither
(2) pterosaurs
(3) birds
(4) Both (2) and (3)
8. The body of the pterosaurs was covered in
(1) smooth skin
(2) leathers
(3) scales
(4) fur
9. Fossils often left scientists in doubt whether the
pterosaur
(1) their shape and gender
(2) even existed at all
(3) how many lived at that period
(4) their size and weight
Passage 28
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small
opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for
several hours as it struggled to force its body through that
little hole. Then, it seemed to stop making any progress. It
appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go
no further. So, the man decided to help the butterfly. He
3] took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of
the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a
swollen body and small shriveled wings. The man
continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that,
at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be
able to support the body, which would contract in time.
Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its
life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled
wings. It never was able to fly. What the man in his
kindness and haste, did not understand was that the
restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the
butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God’s way
of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its
wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved
its freedom from the cocoon. [CTET July 2013]
1. The writer’s message in his/her essay is about
(1) needless struggles in life
(2) not to have any problems
(3) need for struggles in life
(4) escape pain at any cost
2. The essay is ….in form.
(1) argumentative
(2) factual
(3) descriptive
(4) discursive
3. A man noticed that the
(1) butterfly was emerging
(2) butterfly was hidden
(3) cocoon was growing
(4) cocoon was moving
4. The man’s first instinct was
(1) keep watching
(2) leave the cocoon alone
(3) help the butterfly
(4) leave the butterfly alone
5. The natural process would have the wings of the
butterfly
(1) unfold and remain stiff
(2) fold and stretch out
(3) fold up and remain snug
(4) half open and snug against the body
6. A word that means to make or become withered’ is
(1) shrivelled
(2) moistened
(3) folded
(4) wasted
Possage 29
“Get well soon !” Shanta said, handing Partha a yellow
balloon. She was his third visitor. That’s because she was
his class teacher’s daughter and her mother made her visit
him. The other two-Rahul and Syed, weren’t really his
friends, although they often ganged up with him against
other kids to take away their lunch pocket money. Partha
knew he wouldn’t have long to live. He could feel it, deep
inside. Seeing his aunty crying after talking with the doctor
confirmed it. His time had come. He didn’t tell his visitors,
though. They would either pity him or be happy to get rid
of him.
Once Shanta left, he ripped a page off from his notebook
and wrote
“Dear God, I know I messed up and nobody likes me.
Please give me a second chance. I can show you what a
good friend I can be.”
He drew a map showing the way from the school to the
bospital, walked shakily to the window and let the balloon
fly away, carrying his message towards God.
The balloon was heading straight to a telephone pole, but a
gentle breeze blew it away just in time. It crossed the park
and disappeared out of view.
The next day, a boy he had never met before came to visit
him. “I find balloon,” he said. “You are lonely?
He just nodded; too startled to talk.
“I lonely too. My family come from Afghanistan and I no
speak English good,” He smiled. “I bring gift to you.” He
banded him a small bag of fruits. “I pray for friend and
God give me friend.”
Normally, he would have made fun of his broken English
and his long, baggy brown kurta but he knew better. He
smiled and offered him the first orange. [CTET Feb 2014]
1. One student the reader understands did not really
want to meet Partha, that is
(1) Shanta
(2) Syed
(3) Rahul
(4) the Afghan boy
2 Partha felt lonely because … visited him when he
was at the hospital.
(1) his class teacher
(2) only Syed and Rahut from his class
(3) he had no friends at school, so no one
(4) Shanta
3. A synonym for the word ‘startled in the passage is
(1) surprised
(2) stunned
(3) avoided
(4) composed
4. An antonym for the word ‘shakily’ in the passage is
(1) unsure
(2) unsteadily
(3) firmly
(4) rickety
5. Partha’s feeling of loneliness soon turned to
(1) irritation
(2) sympathy
(3) self- pity
(4) anger
6. Partha would not go back to school to meet his
schoolmates and teachers because
(1) his parents wanted to change his school
(2) he did not have long to live
(3) he hated his school as he had no friends
(4) his doctors did not let him
7. The message in the passage is
(1) loneliness in inevitable
(2) about faith in God
(3) all actions have consequences
(4) friendship is rare
8. The change in Partha’s attitude is evident when he
(1) accepted the fruits from a stranger, although he disliked
oranges
(2) refrained from poking fun at the Afghan boy and shared
the fruits
(3) was unmoved even when his aunt was crying
(4) sent a letter to God written on a balloon
9. A phrase that can replace the words ‘ganged up’ is
(1) joined in opposition
(2) formed a group
(3) supported together
(4) became friends
Passage 30
Our consumption of palm oil is rocketing: Commitments
from various governments to increase the amount of
biofuels being sold are pushing this rise in demand, because
they are seen as an attractive quick fix to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions. India wanted 20% of its diesel to be
bio-diesel by 2012. The irony is that these attempts to
reduce the impact of climate change could actually make
things worse- clearing forests and draining and burning
‘pcatlands’ to grow palm oil which releases more carbon
emissions than burning fossil fuels. But this phenomenal
growth of the palm oil industry spells disaster for local
communities, biodiversity and climate change as palm
plantations enroach further and further into forested areas
where the emission of greenhouse gases is largely due to
deforestation.c.g. much of the current and predicted oil
palm expansion is taking place on forested peatlands’. Peat
locks up huge amounts of carbon, so clearing ‘peatlands’ by
draining and burning releases huge greenhouse gases. The
Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has
established clear ethical and ecological standards for
producing palm oil.
But since then, forest destruction has continued unabated.
[CTET Feb 2014]
1. The passage is about the impact of ……. on the
environment.
(1) destruction of peatlands
(2) palm oil industries
(3) drilling for diesel fuel
(4) loss of communities
2. Peatlands are natural
(1) means to suppress carbon emissions
(2) causes of environmental destruction
(3) sources of biofuels when burnt
(4) sources of diesel
3. The phrase in the passage which means ‘speedy remedy
is
(1) phenomenal growth
(2) quick fix
(3) current and predicted
(4) draining and burning
4. The synonym of the word ‘irony’ is
(1) respect
(2) reality
(3) praise
(4) paradox
5. The RSPO was convened to
(1) control destructive practices in palm oil production
(2) control the burning of peatlands
(3) rehabilitate local communities
(4) force the closure of palm oil industries
6. The passage suggests that RSPO’s efforts to carry out
its responsibility have been
(1) mostly successful
(2) mostly a failure
(3) no information in the passage
(4) partly successful
Passage 31
World Animal Day has been observed on 4th October since
1931, as a way of highlighting the plight of endangered
species. Since then, it has become a day for remembering and
paying tribute to all animals and the people who love and
respect them. It’s celebrated in different ways in every
country, with no regard to nationality, religion, faith or
political ideology.
Since the official World Animal Day website was launched by
Naturewatch Foundation, the number of events taking place
throughout the world has increased and the trend continues.
And, that is the aim of the World Animal Day initiative to
encourage everybody to use this special day to highlight their
importance in the world; celebrate animal life in all its forms;
celebrate humankind’s relationship with the animal kingdom;
acknowledge the diverse roles that animals play in our lives-
from being our companions, supporting and helping us, to
bringing a sense of wonder into our lives; and acknowledge
and be thankful for the way in which animals enrich our lives.
Increased awareness will lead the way to improved standards
of animal welfare throughout the world. Building the
initiative is a way to unite the animal welfare movement with
something that everyone can join in, whether they are
part of an organisation, group or as an individual.
Through education, we can help to create a new culture
of respect and sensitivity, to make this world a fairer
place for all living creatures. On the website people will
find everything they need to make World Animal Day a
reality in their area. If we care about animals, we should
not miss this special day to help make animal welfare
issues front page news around the globe- a vital catalyst
for change. [CTET Sept 2014]
1. In reading this passage, we learn that the World
Animal Day is an/a …………. celebration.
(1) monthly on the 4th
(2) year long
(3) annual
(4) commemoration held in 1931
2. The writer points out that animals are important
because they
(1) can replace people by being more resourceful
(2) will outlive human beings in the years to come
(3) can be put to work in many ways
(4) make us appreciate the diversity of life
3. The launch of the website is to
(1) promote social networking by animal lovers
(2) provide guidelines to celebrate Animal Day
(3) give information about endangered animals species
(4) serve as a source of reference about animals
4. The writer implies that animals are
(1) treated cruelly by human beings
(2) usually given due protection
(3) ignored altogether
(4) often subject to mistreatment
5. Identify the correct statement
(1) Animals often pose a danger to people
(2) People tend to forget to celebrate Animal Day
(3) Animal Day reminds us to care for other species
(4) The new website was started by the writer
6. The expression : ‘a sense of wonder’ means
(1) a critical reaction
(2) a sympathetic attitude
(3) an emotional response
(4) a deep understanding
7. A closest synonym for the word ‘sensitivity’ as
used here is
(1) passivity
(2) affection
(3) awareness
(4) tolerance
8. The antonym of the word ‘initiative’ is
(1) enterprise
(2) idleness
(3) indifference
(4) advance
9. A word in the essay that means ‘impetus’ is
(1) trend
(2) catalyst
(3) reality
(4) welfare
passage 32
Meditating can have an almost instant effect on reducing
stress, researchers have found. They say three consecutive
days of 25-minute sessions can have a dramatic effect.
Researchers studied ‘mindful meditation’- the guiding
principle is to live more ‘in the moment,’ spending less time
going over past stresses and worrying about future
problems. Techniques include moving the focus of
attention around the body and observing sensations that
arise- the so-called ‘body scan’. A secular practice, it is said
to help people recognise and overcome negative thoughts.
For the study, the research team had 66 healthy individuals
aged 18-30 years old participate in a three-day experiment.
Some participants went through a brief mindfulness
meditation training programme for 25 minutes for three
consecutive days, the individuals were given breathing
exercises to help them monitor their breath and pay
attention to their present moment experiences. A second
group of participants completed a matched three day
cognitive training programme in which they were asked to
critically analyse poetry in an effort to enhance
problem-solving skills. Following the fined training
activity, all participants were asked to complete stressful
speech and mathematical tasks in front of stern-faced
evaluators. Each individual reported their stress levels in
response to stressful speech and mathematical performance
stress tasks and provided saliva samples for measurement of
cortisol, commonly referred to as the stress hormone. The
participants who received the brief mindfulness meditation
training reported reduced stress perceptions to the speech
and mathematical tasks, indicating that the mindfulness
meditation fostered psychological stress resilience.
[CTET Sept 2014]
1. The text is a …………… piece of writing.
(1) factual
(2) descriptive
(3) biographical
(4) reflective
2. The writer’s attitude to mediation is
(1) indifferent
(2) different
(3) suspicious sometimes
(4) supportive
3. The writer, by referring to the experiment, suggests
that, it is
(1) stress that cannot be controlled
(2) possible for us to control stress
(3) mathematics is a stressful subject
(4) poetry analysis is easier than solving Mathematical
problems
4. The ‘body scan’ is a reference to
(1) an esperiment in a lab
(2) a form of meditation
(3) a research experiment
(4) a problem solving activity
5. An antonym for the word ‘stressful’ would be
(1) annoying
(2) calming
(3) challenging
(4) erasing
6. The word that can replace perception’ in the text is
(1) belief
(2) attention
(3) conceptualisation
(4) trust
Passage 33
As District Employment Officer, my father was given a
jeep by the government. There was no garage in the office,
so the jeep was parked in our house. My father refused to
use it to commute to the office.
He told us that the jeep is an expensive resource given by
the government-he reiterated to us that it was not his jeep’
but the government’s jeep. Insisting that he would use it
only to tour the interiors, he would walk to his office on
normal days. He also made sure that we never sat in the
government jeep-we could sit in it only when it was
stationary. That was our early childhood lesson in
governance-a lesson that corporate managers learn the hard
way, some never do.
The driver of the jeep was treated with respect due to any
other member of my father’s office. As small children, we
were taught not to call him by his name. We had to use the
suffix ‘dada’ whenever we were to refer to him in public or
private. When I grew up to own a car and a driver by the
name of Raju was appointed, I repeated the lesson to my
two small daughters. They have, as a result, grown up
calling him ‘Raju Uncle-very different from many of
their friends who refer to their family drivers as ‘my
driver.’ When I hear that term from a school or college
going person, I cringe, to me the lesson was
significant-you treat small people with more respect than
you treat big people. It is more important to respect your
subordinates than your superiors. [CTET Feb 2015]
1. The author’s father would not allow his family to use
the jeep because
(1) it was not their private vehicle
(2) the roads were full of potholes
(3) he was afraid of accidents
(4) the jeep was in a bad condition
2. The author taught his children to
(1) be firm with servants
(2) treat small people with respect
(3) maintain a discreet distance from servants
(4) be kind to small people
3. The author was critical of his children’s friends
because their attitude to servants smacked of
(1) weakness
(2) coarseness
(3) arrogance
(4) loftiness
4. The author’s attitude towards servants can be
described as
(1) respectful
(2) indifferent
(3) rational
(4) affectionate
5. The opposite of the word ‘refused’ is
(1) accepted
(2) received
(3) justified
(4) admired
6. The word that can replace ‘reiterated’ is
(1) revised
(2) repeated
(3) recalled
(4) reconsidered
Passage 34
Ramanujan was born on 2nd December, 1887 in Erode
(South India) as the eldest son in a family of six children. In
November, 1892 he entered the Town High School at
Kumbakonam as a half-fee scholarship-holder and passed
the Matriculation Examination in 1904. In the school, he
became a minor celebrity, walking off with merit
certificates and prizes for academic brilliance. This school
nourished him for six years, bringing him as close as he
would ever come to a satisfying academic experience. When
he was in the seventh standard, he gave clear evidence of his
mathematical gifts; he could reel off the square root of a
natural number to the specified number of places; he could
point to the indeterminate nature of zero divided by zero
Ramanujan’s mother-the family being close to
penury-took in college students as boarders who noticing
Ramanujan’s interest in Mathematics, brought him
textbooks from the college library. Loney’s ‘Trigonometry’
was one such treasure which he mastered.
During 1906-1912, Ramanujan was constantly in search of
an employer to earn his livelihood. With his “Notebooks
as his only recommendation, he sought the patronage of V
Ramaswamy lyer, the founder of Indian Mathematical
Society who was at Tirukovillur and asked for a clerical job
in his office. The former had no mind to smother
Ramanujan’s genius and sent him back to Madras with a
letter of introduction to PV Seshu Aiyar, then at the
Presidency College, Madras. He gave in turn, Ramanujan a
letter of recommendation to the true lover of Mathematics,
R Ramachandra Rao, the District Collector, Nellore. This
was the turning point in his life.
On the advice of PV Seshu Aiyar, Ramanujan
communicated his theorems on divergent series in a
historic letter dated 16th January, 1913 to GH Hardy, who
was ten years senior to Ramanujan. With the personal
interest of Gilbert Walker and support given by Indian
stalwarts, the University of Madras awarded its first
scholarship to Ramanujan to study in Cambridge. Over the
next three months, Ramanujan received four long letters
form Hardy, who had already sprung into action, advising
the India Office, of his wish to bring him to Cambridge.
Srinivasa Ramanuja (1887-1930) CTET Feb 2015)
1. Merit certificates and prizes awarded to Ramanujan
at school are a proof of his
(1) commitment
(2) intellectual brilliance
(3) sincerity
(4) dedication
2. Ramanujan’s mother took in college students as
boarders because
(1) the family was on the verge of poverty
(2) she wanted to give her son all the comforts of life
(3) she wanted to save money to buy a house
(4) she had to pay up huge debts
3. The turning point in Ramanujan’s life came when
(1) he was given a scholarship
(2) he got a job in Indian Mathematical Society
(3) his name was recommended to the District Collector,
Nellore
(4) he was awarded a big cash award
4. The support Ramanujan received from his school
suggests that
(1) fortune favours those who dare
(2) a talented person needs nourishment to flourish
(3) luck is more important than patronage
(4) support or no support men with talent forge ahead
5. Identify the correct statement
(1) Ramanujan was offered a job at Cambridge
(2) Ramanujan did not get much support from his school
(3) Ramanujan’s mother did not want him to go abroad
(4) Seshu Aiyar was Ramanujan’s patron
6. The phrasal verb, ‘reel off’ means to
(1) say quickly
(2) fishing
(3) rehearse easily
(4) articulate fast
7. The closest synonym for the word ‘smother’ is
(1) deaden
(2) stifle
(3) discourage
(4) ruin
8. The antonym for the word ‘recommendation’ is
(1) disapproval
(2) condemnation
(3) criticism
(4) revulsion
9. The word that can best replace ‘nourished’ is
(1) gifted
(2) sent
(3) supported
(4) served
Passage 35
One Sunday morning, I was travelling on a subway in
Mumbai. People were sitting quietly some reading
newspapers, some lost in thought, It was a calm, peaceful
scene. Then suddenly, a man and his children entered the
subway car. The children were so loud and rambunctious
that instantly the whole climate changed.
The man sat next to me and closed his eyes, apparently
oblivious to the situation. The children were yelling back
and forth, throwing things, even grabbing people’s papers.
It was very disturbing. And yet, the man sitting next to me
did nothing.
It was difficult not to feel irritated. I could not believe that
he could be so insensitive as to let his children run wild and
do nothing about it. It was easy to see that everyone else on
the subway felt irritated, too. So finally, I turned to him
and said, “Sir, your children are really disturbing a lot of
people. I wonder if you couldn’t control them a little
more?
the man lifted his gaze as if to come to a consciousness of
the situation for the first time and said softly, “Oh, you’re
right. I guess should do something about it. We just came
from the hospital where their mother died an hour ago. I
don’t know what to think and I guess they don’t know
how to handle it either.”
Can you imagine what I felt at that moment. My
paradigm shifted. Suddenly I saw things differently, and
because I saw things differently, I thought, felt and
behaved differently. My irritation vanished; my heart was
filed with the man’s pain. Feelings of sympathy and
compassion flowed freely “Your wife just died? Oh, I am
sorry! Can you tell me about it? What can I do to help?”
Everything changed in an instant. [CTET Sept 2015]
1. The primary purpose of the author is to
(1) narrate an amusing incident
(2) show how indulgent parents spoil their children
(3) show a radical shift in attitude
(4) highlight the problems of subway travellers
2. The word ‘oblivious’ (Para 3) means
(1) unaware
(2) neglectful
(3) inconsiderate
(4) insensitive
3. The word which is opposite in meaning to
compassion’ (Para 6) is
(1) coarseness
(2) dislike
(3) wildness
(4) cruelty
4. ‘I felt differently,
Tense of the above sentence has been correctly
changed into present continuous in
(1) I am feeling differently
(2) I had been feeling differently
(3) I was feeling differently
(4) I have been feeling differently
5. My irritation vanished. The sentence given above
has been correctly changed into interrogative form
in
(1) Couldn’t my irritation vanish?
(2) Hadn’t my irritation vanished?
(3) Didn’t my irritation vanish?
(4) Did my intitation vanish?
6. The children’s behaviour on the subway was
(1) imitating
(3) shocking
(2) disgusting
(4) amusing
7. How did the man (children’s father) react to the
unruly behaviour of his children?
(1) He rebuked them
(2) He tried to control them
(3) He did nothing
(4) He enjoyed their antics
8. It can be inferred from the man’s behaviour that he
was
(1) an indulgent parent
(2) mentally disturbed
(3) unsocial
(4) insensitive
9. When the writer learnt the truth
(1) his heart was filled with the man’s suffering
(2) he was angry with himself for being judgemental
(3) he decided to help the man out
(4) he felt apologetic
Passage 36
Your attitudes are the perspectives from which you view life.
Some people seem to have a good attitude towards most
things. Some people seem to have a bad attitude towards
everything. But when you look closer, you will find that
most of us have a combination of attitudes, some good, some
not so good.
Whatever attitude we have towards anything will affect how
we feel about it, which in turn determines whether or not we
will do well. So our right attitudes play a very important
part in helping us become successful.
In fact, as we can see, a good attitude is essential for
achievement of any kind! We so often hear of someone who
is said to have a ‘bad attitude’. The term is often applied to
young people, especially to teenagers who frequently get
into trouble, but we often hear it about adults, too The
implication is always that the individual in question is not
going to make it if he doesn’t change his attitude.
I would agree, without a good attitude it is not possible to
see the opportunities ahead and set one’s sights to reach
them. But even more important is the fact that in order to
possess the kind of feelings which work for us we’ve got to
have the right attitude to start with. But where do we get our
attitudes from? Are we born with them or do they just
appear out of nowhere? Our attitudes are no accident: They
don’t just happen. Our attitudes are created and influenced
entirely by our beliefs. [CTET Sept 2016]
1. Which one of the following statements is correct?
(1) Our attitudes are influenced by our parents only
(2) Our attitudes are created and controlled by our beliefs
(3) Our attitudes are the results of own personal experience
(4) We are born with our attitudes
2. The word ‘determine’ most nearly means
(1) influence
(2) overcome
(3) engage
(4) govern
3. Which part of speech is the underlined word in the
sentence given below?
‘Some people seem to have a good attitude towards
most things.
(1) Preposition
(2) Adjective
(3) Conjunction
(4) Adverb
4. A/An_____ attitude is absolutely necessary for
attainment of any kind.
(1) cheerful
(2) optimistic
(3) good
(4) virtuous
5. The term ‘bad attitude is used for young people
because they
(1) behave irresponsibly
(2) often get into difficulty
(3) are unpredictable
(4) dety all kinds of authority
6. Right attitudes are absolutely essential to
(1) win the goodwill of our peers and superiors
(2) have harmonious relations with others
(3) promote our mental well-being
(4) Succeed in life
Passage 37
Your body is made up of sixty per cent water and you lose
the essential fluid every minute of every day as you breathe,
digest and hopefully work up a sweat. It is important that
you put back every drop. Starting now, drink eight 230 mL
glasses of water every single day-that’s the minimum, your
body needs daily. That is the non-negotiable sugar savvy
hydration Mantra. Many times when you think you’re
hungry, sleepy, depressed and/or irritated, you’re actually
just dehydrated. Drinking enough water actually helps you
combat water retention. Sounds counterintuitive, but think
about it. If you are running around in a semi-dehydrated
state all the time, your body is going to hang on to every
single drop, giving you that puffy, unhealthy appearance.
When you are properly hydrated, your body gets the
message that all systems are operating smoothly and it
continues its work of flushing out your system and ridding
itself of the excess fluids.
If your goal is to lose weight, water is a must. When you’re
dehydrated, your body sends out signals that you need
assistance. Many people mistake those thirsty SOS signals
for hunger and take in hundreds of extra calories. They also
don’t solve the real problem-thirst! Drinking water can be
a powerful appetite suppressant and allows you to cue into
your real hunger. Your body also needs plenty of water for
proper digestion, so you can get the most from the foods
you eat. You are less susceptible to food cravings when your
stomach is full and you’re getting all the nutrients you need.
Drink two glasses of water before every meal – you’ll eat less
! Your body uses water for fat. [CTET Peb 2016]
1. ……….. helps fight water retention.
(1) Having a balanced diet
(2) Drinking enough water
(3) Exercising regularly
(4) A reguli moming walk
2. Our systems operate satisfactorily
(1) if excess fat is reduced
(2) when we enjoy a sound sleep
(3) When we are properly hydrated
(4) if we consume lots of fruits and vegetables
3. The best way to lose weight is to
(1) eat less starchy food
(2) take weight-reducing pills
(3) exercise at least twice a day
(4) drink plenty of water
4. When we are dehydrated, we think we
(1) are about to collapse
(2) want to vomit
(3) are tired
(4) need food
5. The word ‘irritated’ most nearly means
(1) annoyed
(2) troubled
(3) uneasy
(4) frustrated
6. The word which is opposite in meaning to
‘assistance is
(1) fragrance
(2) resistance
(3) persistence
(4) enstence
7. ‘Your body uses water for fat.”
The voice’ in the above sentence has been correctly
changed in
(1) water was used for fat by our body
(2) water could be used for at by our body
(3) water is being used by our body for at
(4) water is used for fat by your body
Passage 38
Raja Ram Mohan Roy is considered the pioneer of
modern Indian Renaissance for the remarkable reforms he
brought about in the 18th century India. Among his
efforts, the abolition of the Sati-pratha- a practice in
which the widow was compelled to sacrifice herself on the
funeral pyre of her husband-was prominent. His efforts
were also instrumental in eradicating the Purdah system
and child marriage. In 1828, Ram Mohan Roy formed the
Brahmo Samaj, a group of people, who had no faith in
idol-worship and were against the caste restrictions.
Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s father was a wealthy Brahmin
and strictly performed the duties set by the religion Ram
Mohan himself was also devoted to Lord Vishnu and in
his 14th he wanted to become a monk but his
mother, Tarini Devi objected to his desire.
Ram Mohan viewed education as a medium to implement
the social reforms. So, in 1815, Ram Mohan came to
Calcutta and the very next year, started an English
College by putting in his own savings. He was well aware
that the students should learn the English language and
scientific subjects and that’s why he criticised the
government’s policy of opening only Sanskrit schools.
According to him, Indians would lag behind if they do
not get to study modern subjects like Mathematics,
Geography and Latin. The government accepted this
idea of Ram Mohan and also implemented it but not
before his death Ram Mohan was also the first to give
importance to the development of mother tongue. His
Gaudiya Byakaran in Bengali is the best of his prose
works. Rabindranath Tagore and Bankimchandra also
followed in the footsteps of Ram Mohan Roy.
Ram Mohan Roy was a staunch supporter of free speech
and expression and fought for the rights of Vernacular
Press. He also brought out a newspaper in Persian called
Miratul-Akhbar (the Mirror of News) and a Bengali
weekly called Sambad Kaumudi (the Moon of Intelligence).
In those days, items of news and articles had to be
approved by the government before being published.
Ram Mohan protested against this control by arguing
that newspapers should be free and that the truth should
not be suppressed simply because the government did not
like it. [CTET Feb 2016]
1. Raja Ram Mohan Roy is known for his
(1) economic reforms
(2) literary reforms
(3) political reforms
(4) social reforms
2. When he was a teenager, Raja Ram Mohan Roy
expressed his desire to become a
(1) journalist
(2) monk
(3) teacher
(4) businessman
3. Raja Ram Mohan Roy believed that Indians would lag
behind if they
(1) forgot their cultural roots
(2) did not learn traditional skills
(3) gave up study of Sanskrit
(4) did not study modern subjects
4. Raja Ram Mohan Roy strongly supported
(1) ntuals and observances
(2) physical education
(3) freedom of speech and expression
(4) moral education
5. The word ‘eliminating most nearly means
(1) banishing
(2) eradicating
(3) banning
(4) dismissing
8. The word which is opposite in meaning to
‘encouraged’ is
(1) crushed
(2) misled
(3) disheartened
(4) suppressed
7. Which part of speech’ is the underlined word in the
sentence given below?
“He was a staunch supporter of free speech and
expression.”
(1) Adjective
(2) Conjunction
(3) Noun
(4) Adverb
8. ‘Raja Ram Mohan Roy viewed education ….’ The
‘voice’ in the above sentence has been correctly
changed in
(1) education was viewed
(2) education is viewed
(3) education has been viewed
(4) education had been viewed
Passage 39
A remarkable feature of Edison’s inventions was their basic
simplicity. There were innumerable scientists possessing
deep knowledge of electricity, chemistry, etc., but it was
this unschooled genius who succeeded where they failed.
What were his unique qualities? Firstly, he had an uncanny
ability to judge the practical use of any scientific fact.
Secondly, he was blessed with patience and perseverance.
He would try out countless ideas till he found the right
one. Third was his business acumen, which enabled him to
earn the large sums of money necessary to conduct
experimental work.
Edison’s enthusiasm for work and optimistic attitude
ensured a long and productive life. Only after crossing the
age of seventy-five did he start slowing down. During his
final illness, his curiosity about his condition, medicines,
and treatment, made the doctors think that possibly he was
taking this too as one of his scientific investigations! He
passed away on 18 October, 1931, at the ripe old age of
eight-four.
During his lifetime itself Edison became one of the most
famous men in the world. Honours were showered on him.
Among them was the congressional gold medal in 1928 for
his contributions to human welfare. In 1960, he was
posthumously elected to the Hall of Fame for Great
Americans at New York University. But the tribute that
was most eloquent was quite unintended. The authorities
contemplated switching off the power supply in New
York, the scene of his triumph in 1882, for two minutes as
a mark of respect on his death. But 1931 was not 1882.
Since normal life would have come to a standstill by the
two minutes power cutoff, the idea was given up. There
could be no greater tribute to the man than this negative
tribute! [CTET Sept 2016]
1. The most remarkable feature of Edison’s inventions
was their
(1) low cost
(2) aesthetic aspect
(3) fundamental simplicity
(4) multiple usefulness
2. According to the author, Edison became prosperous
because he
(1) had great business sense
(2) had luck on his side
(3) worked very hard
(4) made the best use of his time
3. To conduct experimental work, Edison needed
(1) calm and quiet atmosphere
(2) sophisticated gadgets
(3) support of generous patrons
(4) huge amounts of money
4. Edison’s long and productive life can be attributed to
(1) his positive attitude
(2) his immensely good health
(3) a large circle of friends
(4) his involvement in charitable work
5. The word ‘uncanny’ as used in the passage means
(1) astonishing
(2) weird
(3) great
(4) terrific
6. The opposite of ‘famous’ is
(1) negligible
(2) unnoticeable
(3) unpopular
(4) unknown
7. Which part of speech is the underlined word?
“…….any scientific fact.”
(1) Adverb
(2) Preposition
(3) Noun
(4) Adjective
Passage 40
The art of Madhubani painting is the traditional style
developed in the Mithila region, in the villages around
Madhubani, Bihar. Madhubani literally means a forest of
honey. This style of painting has been traditionally used by
the women of the region, though today men are also
involved to meet the demand. The work is done on freshly
plastered mud walls. For commercial purposes, it is now
being done on paper, cloth etc.
The paintings are basically of religious nature. They are
done in the special rooms of their homes in the Pooja
room, ritual area, bridal room), on the main village walls,
etc., for ceremonial or ritualistic purposes. The women
offer prayers to the deity before starting the work. Figures
from nature and mythology are adapted to suit their style.
The themes and designs widely painted are the worship of
Hindu deities such as Krishna, Rama, Shiva, Durga,
Lakshmi, Saraswati, Sun and Moon, Tulsi plant, court
scenes, wedding scenes and other social events taking place
around them.
Floral, animal and bird motifs, geometrical designs are used
to fill up all the gaps. There is hardly any empty space in
this style. Cotton wrapped around a bamboo stick forms
the brush. The colours applied are prepared by the artists.
The skill is handed down the generations, and hence the
traditional design and patterns are widely maintained. It is
believed that genesis of Madhubani paintings came about
when king Janaka asked for paintings to be developed for
his daughter Sita’s wedding. [CTET Sept 2016]
1. Madhubani paintings are no longer done exclusively
by women on walls
(1) as paper is cheaper
(2) because cloth is more durable
(3) to meet their widespread demand
(4) as men are better painters
2. Madhubani paintings are essentially of religious
nature when they are done
(1) using figures from nature
(2) in the Pooja room
(3) in the bridal room
(4) on the village walls
3. These paintings become secular when they depict
(1) wedding scenes
(2) court scenes
(3) worship of Saraswati
(4) Tulsi plant
4. A Madhubani painting shows only
(1) geometrical designs
(2) a balanced portrayal of all of them
(3) Hindu deities
(4) flowers and plants
5. The art of Madhubani painting is learnt in the
(1) homes of renowned artists
(2) Ashrams of Madhubani
(3) schools of art
(4) families at home
6. ‘Floral’ is an adjective derived from the noun,
‘flower’. Aural is derived from the noun
(1) eye
(2) mouth
(3) morning
(4) ear
7. The word ‘genesis’ means the same as
(1) spirit
(2) growth
(3) birth
(4) original
8. ‘On freshly plastered mud walls’. The words
plastered’ is a/an
(1) participle
(2) particle
(3) gerund
(4) infinitive
Answers
Passage1 1. (3). 2. (3), 3. (1). 4. (2), 5.(3). 6. (2). 7. (4). 8. (2). 9. (2)
Passage2 1. (3). 2. (2). 3. (2). 4. (3). 5.(2), 6. (1)
Passage3 1. (1). 2. (4), 3. (3). 4. (2).5.(1), 6. (2). 7.(1). 8. (4), 9.(2)
Passage4 1. (1). 2. (1), 3. (2). 4. (1), 5. (4), 6. (1). 7.(1). 8. (2). 9. (3)
Passage5 1.(1). 2. (4). 3. (1). 4. (1). 5. (1). 6. (2)
Passage6 1. (2). 2. (1), 3. (3). 4. (2). 5. (4), 6. (3). 7.(1). 8. (4). 9. (2)
Passage7 1. (3). 2. (3), 3. (4), 4. (2), 5. (I). 6. (3). 7.(1). 8. (3), 9.(2)
Passage8 1. (2). 2. (2). 3. (1). 4. (1). 5. (3). 6. (4). 7.(2), 8. (4), 9.(4)
Passage9 1. (3), 2. (3), 3. (3), 4. (2), 5. (3), 6. (1). 7.(1). 8. (2). 9.(3)
Passage10 1. (4). 2. (4), 3. (4), 4. (1). 5. (2). 6. (3).
Passage11 1. (4). 2. (2). 3. (3). 4. (2). 5. (4). 6. (2). 7.(3). 8. (1). 9.(2)
Passage12 1. (4). 2. (4). 3. (3). 4. (3). 5. (1), 6. (1). 7. (3). 8. (2). 9. (2)
passage13 1. (3). 2. (2). 3. (3). 4. (3), 5. (2), 6. (2). 7.(1). 8. (3). 9.(2)
Passage14 1.(4). 2. (3). 3. (3). 4. (4). 5. (1), 6. (1). 7. (3). 8. (2). 9.(3)
Passage15 1. (3), 2. (2). 3. (3). 4. (1). 5. (4), 6. (2). 7.(3)
Passage16 1. (3). 2. (2), 3. (4). 4. (2). 5. (1). 6. (4). 7.(1). 8. (3). 9. (1)
passage17 1. (3). 2. (2), 3. (1). 4.(1). 5. (3). 6. (3). 7. (3). 8. (4), 9.(4)
passage18 1. (3). 2. (1). 3. (4). 4. (2). 5. (4). 6. (3). 7.(1). 8.(2)
passage19 1. (2). 2. (3). 3. (3). 4. (1). 5.1), 6. (4). 7.(3)
passage20 1. (1). 2. (3), 3. (2). 4. (1). 5. (4). 6. (2). 7. (3), S. (2)
Previous Years Questions
Passage21 1. (1), 2. (4), 3. (4), 4. (1), 5. (1), 6. (4)
Passage22 1. (2), 2. (2), 3. (4), 4. (2), 5. (4), 6. (4), 7.(2), 8. (2), 9.(1)
Passage23 1. (3), 2. (4), 3. (1), 4. (1), 5. (4), 6. (2)
Passage24 1. (4), 2. (2), 3. (2), 4. (4), 5.(2), 6. (1), 7.(2), 8. (2), 9. (3)
Passage25 1.(4), 2. (2), 3. (2), 4. (3), 5. (1), 6. (3)
Passage26 1. (3), 2. (2), 3. (4), 4. (2), 5. (1), 6. (4), 7. (3), 8. (4), 9. (2)
Passage27 1. (2), 2. (3), 3. (1), 4. (2),5. (1), 6. (4), 7. (2), 8. (4), 9. (4)
Passage28 1. (3), 2. (4), 3. (1), 4. (3), 5. (2), 6. (1)
Passage29 1. (1), 2. (3), 3. (2), 4. (3), 5. (3), 6. (2), 7. (3), 8. (4), 9. (4)
Passage30 1. (2), 2. (1), 3. (2), 4. (4), 5. (1), 6. (2)
Passage31 1. (3), 2. (4), 3. (2), 4. (4), 5. (3), 6. (3), 7. (3), 8 (3), 9. (2)
Passage32 1. (3), 2. (1), 3. (3), 4. (4), 5.(2), 6. (4)
Passage33 1. (1), 2. (2), 3. (3), 4.(1), 5. (1), 6.(2)
Passage34 1. (2), 2. (1), 3. (3), 4. (2), 5. (4), 6. (1), 7. (2), 8. (2), 9.(3)
Passage35 1. (3), 2. (1), 3. (4), 4. (1), 5. (3), 6. (1), 7. (3), 8. (2), 9. (1)
Passage36 1. (2), 2. (1), 3.(2), 4. (3), 5. (2), 6. (3)
Passage37 1. (2), 2. (3), 3. (4), 4. (4), 5. (1), 6. (2), 7. (4)
Passage38 1. (4), 2. (2), 3. (4), 4. (3), 5. (2), 6. (3), 7. (3), 8. (1)
Passage39 1.(3), 2. (1), 3. (4), 4.(1), 5. (2), 6. (4), 7.(4)
Passage40 1. (3), 2. (2), 3. (2), 4. (2), 5. (4), 6. (4), 7. (3), 8. (1)
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