English – Important Questions Bank for Maharashtra Board HSC 2016 Examination

English – Important Questions Bank for Maharashtra Board HSC 2016 Examination.


We had mentioned some tips for cracking the HSC Maharashtra board exam here: HSC Study Tips to Crack HSC Exams.

We had also shared  Important Questions Bank for HSC Examination 2016 and students have really appreciated it and showered us with love last year.

Today, we are posting the English – Important Questions Bank for Maharashtra Board HSC 2016 Examination to make life easy for all you HSC students.

Without making you wait any further, please find the questions below:

Q. Read the following extract and answer the questions given below: (11)

I tramped back to the farm, drenched, shamed, furious, and picked the soggy bundle from the ash can. I dried it in the kitchen oven. Then I flung it on the table and set to work again with a kind of frantic desperation. I lost myself in the ferociousness of my purpose. Toward the end of the third month, I wrote finis. The relief, the sense of emancipation, was unbelievable. I had created a book. Whether it was good, bad or indifferent I did not care.

I chose a publisher by the simple expedient of closing my eyes and pricking a catalogue with a pin. I dispatched the completed manuscript and promptly forgot about it.

In the days which followed I gradually regained my health, and I began to chafe at idleness. I wanted to be back in harness.

At last the date of my deliverance drew near. I went round the village saying good-bye to the simple folk who had become my friends. As I entered the post office, the postmaster presented me with a telegram-an urgent invitation to meet the publisher. I took it straight away and showed it, without a word, to John Angus.

The novel I had thrown away was chosen by the Book Society, dramatized and serialized, translated into 19 languages, bought by Hollywood. It has sold, to date, some three million copies.

Question…

What is the extract about? 2). What were the writer’s reactions at the completion of his novel? 2). How did the Book Society popularize the writer’s novel? 3). What qualities do you think are essential to achieve success? 4). Rewrite the following sentences in the ways instructed:(i) I flung it on the table and set to work again. (Make it a simple sentence)). (ii) I had created a book. (Rewrite it using the Present Perfect Continuous tense). (iii) I went around the village saying good – bye to my friends. (Rewrite it using the infinitive form of the underlined word.)

Q. Grammar (Do as directed):

“Why did you throw it away?” said the father to his son. “I didn’t like it,” said the son. (Change it into Indirect Speech) 2. It is paradoxical that ___________ average consumer cannot decide which technology will offer him _______ highest standards of water purification. [Fill in the blanks with appropriate articles]

Q. Read the following passage and answer the following questions. (11)

Michael Dell’s Two-Billion-Dollar Dream

One afternoon in 1977, as his parents and two brothers fished in the Gulf of Mexico, 12-year-old Michael Dell sat on the beach, painstakingly putting together a trotline, a maze of ropes to which several fish hooks could be attached. “You’re wasting your time,” the rest of the family called to Michael, as they pulled in fish. “Grab a pole and join in the fun.”

Michael kept working. It was dinnertime when he finished, and everyone else was ready to call it a day. Still, the youngster cast the trotline far into the water, anchoring it to a stick that he plunged deep in the sand.

Over dinner his family teased young Michael about coming away empty-handed. But afterward Michael reeled in his trot line, and on the hooks were more fish than the others had caught all together!

Michael Dell has always been fond of saying, “If you think you have a good idea, try it!” And today, at 29, he has discovered the power of another good idea that has helped him rise in just a few years from teen to tycoon. He has become the fourth-largest manufacturer of personal computers in America and the youngest man ever to head a Fortune 500 corporation.

Growing up in Houston, Michael and his two brothers were imbued by their parents with the desire to learn and the drive to work hard. Even so, stories about the middle boy began to be told early.

Like the time a saleswoman came asking to speak to “Mr. Michael Dell” about his getting a high-school equivalency diploma. Moments later, eight-year-old Michael was explaining that he thought it might be a good idea to get high school out of the way.

A few years later Michael had another good idea, to trade stamps by advertising in stamp magazines. With the $ 2000 profit he made, he bought his first personal computer. Then he took it apart to figure out how it worked.

In high school Michael had a job selling subscriptions to the Houston Post. Newlyweds, so he figured, were the best prospects, so he hired friends to copy the names and addresses of recent recipients of marriage licenses. These he entered into his computer, then sent a personalized letter offering each couple a free two-week subscription.

This time Dell made $18 000 and bought a BMW. The car salesman was flabbergasted when the 17-year-old paid cash.

Question..

Why was the car salesman flabbergasted? 2). How did Michael succeed in catching more fish?  3). What does Dell fondly say about any good idea? Do as directed: 1) What do these words stand for? OPEC, NASA, WHO. 2) What are the above abbreviated forms called? 3).  Everyone else was ready to call it a day. 4) That has helped him rise in just a few years from teen to tycoon. 5) What do the underlined expressions mean? 6). Write word from the passage which related to the phrase ‘with great care of trouble’

Q. Grammar (Do as directed): 

Multani mitti takes its name from a place in Pakistan. (Rewrite using the Present perfect tense.) 2. He was unable to see their act. (Rewrite using ‘could’) He could not see their act. 3.   He’d need a massive home library. (Add a question tag.)

Q. Read the following extract and answer the questions given below: (11)

Everyone emptied their sacks of the fruits they had collected earlier and started madly filling them up with these precious fruits and flowers. They all forgot that they had said they had more than enough for their needs at home. Greed took over their minds and all they could think about was adding more and more valuables to their sacks. The fruits which they had picked earlier, and had tasted to be as sweet as nectar, now lay in heaps around the garden – forgotten and left to rot.

Then with their sacks filled right to the top, the citizens made their way to the rear gate of the garden where the king was waiting. But what was this? To their astonishment they found a raging stream stopping their way. Water gushed from behind some rocks and rushed over pebbles and big boulders through the garden. The stream was narrow, but the current was strong. There were no boats to take the people across. Clearly, the only way was to swim. But how could they swim with such heavy sacks filled with gold and silver apples and other fruits?

The people stood by the stream for a long time scratching their heads. Then one man did what they all knew needed to be done. He simply abandoned his sack by the stream, waded to be done. He simply abandoned his sack by the stream, waded into the water, then swam across to the other side. Slowly, the others too followed suit . Sadly, some wailing in distress, they left their sacks filled with what they had thought was the riches of a lifetime, and divided into the stream. Then they walked up to their king – wet, unhappy and angry.

Question…

Why were the people astonished? 2). How did the young man go across the stream? 3). Were the people happy to have to abandon their treasure? How do you know? 4). What would you have done if you were in a similar situation? 5).  Rewrite the following sentences in the ways instructed:(i) Clearly, the only way was to swim.  (Rewrite as a negative sentence) (ii) The people stood by the stream for a long time scratching their heads. (Rewrite as a compound sentence) (iii) There were no boats to take the people across. (Rewrite using ‘that’) 6). Write from the extract the antonyms of the following words: a. front. b. happiness.

Q. Grammar (Do as directed): 

There is ____________ box lying in ___________ largest cupboard in our bedroom. (Fill in the blanks with appropriate articles.) (ii) I am thankful _____________ the great Lord _____________ all the gifts I have received. (Rewrite it using the proper prepositions) (iii) “Please tell me freely about my faults,” said the King to his ministers and other courtiers. (Change it into indirect speech)

Making -Notes

Q. Read the following passage and draw a tree diagram to cover the main points.

When we talk about commerce, what do we mean? Generally by commerce we mean the trade and auxiliaries to trade. Trade is classified into two types—the home trade and foreign trade. The home trade plays an important role in national economy as the wholesale and retail trading involves a large number of people by providing them means of living. On the other hand, the foreign trade consists of import and export of goods. This type of trading consists of a few number of economic factors. Commerce cannot exist without its auxiliaries. These auxiliaries include transport, communication, banking, finance, insurance, warehousing and advertising.

Q. Draw Tree Diagram with the help of following points. A Tissue may be defined as a group of cells having some shape, size, origin, function and the same type of development. Tissues are basically classified into two groups namely, meristematic tissues, and  permanent tissues. Meristematic tissues are divided into two, these are position based and origin based. Permanent tissues are further divided into two groups. They are simple tissues and complex tissues. On their basis of their position in the plant body meristematic tissues are classified as aplicle – intercalary, and lateral. On the basis of origin, meristematic tissues are divided into 3 groups; they are Pro – meristem, Primary – meristem and secondary – meristem. Simple tissues are classified into 3 groups, namely parenchyma, collechyma, sclerenchyma, The two complex tissues are found in vascular plant. They are xylem and phloem.

Q. Add a paragraph of your own at the beginning of the extract of about 120 words.

Yes, there was a skeleton in the cupboard, and although I never saw it, I played a small part in the events that followed its discovery. I was fifteen that year, and I was back in my boarding school in Simla after spending the long winter holidays in Dehradun. My mother was still managing the old Green’s hotel in Dehra – a hotel that was soon to disappear and become part of Dehra’s unrecorded history. It was called Green’s not because it purported to the spread of any greenery (its neglected garden was chocked with lantana), but because it had been started by an Englishman, Mr Green, back in 1920, just after the Great War had ended in Europe. Mr Green had died at the outset of the Second World War. He had just sold the hotel and was on his way back to England when the ship on which he was traveling was torpedoed by a German submarine. Mr Green went down with the ship.

The hotel had already been in decline, and the new owner, a Sikh businessman from Ludhiana, had done his best to keep it going. But post-War and post-Independence, Dehra was going through a lean period. My stepfather’s motor workshop was also going through a lean period- a crisis, in fact – and my mother was glad to take the job of running the small hotel while he took a job in Delhi.

Letter writing:

  1. Read the following advertisement and prepare a letter of application in response to it using the information given in the CV that follows:
  2. The condition of roads in your city / town is extremely bad resulting in increasing road mishaps and inconvenience to people. Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper drawing attention of the authorities to take prompt action.
  3. Write a speech to be delivered among your class mates, regarding blood donation.
  4. Read the following extract carefully, Imagine that two girls/friends Anita and Sunita converse about the story event in the story extract. Write it in the form of dialogue.

You may begin with : Anita: Poor bird! Nobody gave it even a drop of water in the evening.

“I wish I could console the poor lark,” thought the daisy. It could not move one of its leaves, but the fragrance of its delicate petals streamed forth, and was much stronger than such flowers usually have: the bird noticed it, although it was dying with thirst, and in its pain tore up the green blades of grass, but did not touch the flower.

The evening came, and nobody appeared to bring the poor bird a drop of water; it opened its beautiful wings, and fluttered about in its anguish; a faint and mournful “Tweet, tweet,” was all it could utter, then it bent its little head towards the flower, and its heart broke for want and longing. The flower could not, as on the previous evening, fold up its petals and sleep; it dropped sorrowfully. The boys only came the next morning; when they saw the dead bird, they began to cry bitterly, dug a nice grave for it, and adorned it with flowers. The bird’s body was placed in a pretty red box; they wished to bury it with royal honours. While it was alive and sang they forgot it, and let it suffer want in the cage; now, they cried over it and covered it with flowers. The piece of turf, with the little daisy in it, was thrown out on the dusty highway. Nobody thought of the flower which had felt so much for the bird and had so greatly desired to comfort it.

Let’s try to make this a two way exercise. While we gather the question banks, you might have some inputs on this too! Please use the comments box below and post questions that you think are important from your analysis. It would help the HSC community a lot.

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Don’t forget to read: MUST REMEMBER THINGS on the day of Exam for HSC Students

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24 thoughts on “English – Important Questions Bank for Maharashtra Board HSC 2016 Examination”

    1. hi anu,
      u need to click on share button available in the box saying “This content is locked”. once u click on share, the content will be unlocked and u can see imp questions there itself.
      if u still need any assistance let us know..
      all d best 🙂

    1. hi parag,
      u need to click on share button available in the box saying “This content is locked”. once u click on share, the content will be unlocked and u can see imp questions there itself

    1. hi arbaaz,
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    1. hi sid,
      we cannot be sure that same thing will appear in exams. however if u hv understood the subjects clearly, then u will be able to score good marks.
      all d best for tom 🙂

    1. hi rinku,
      u need to click any of the share button available in the box saying”This content is locked”once u click over that buttons u will be able to view the entire content there itself

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