Comprension/ Passage

Read The comprehension and answer the following questions 

Passage 1

1.Mankind's experience of various evolutionary changes from primitive times to the present day has been extensive and varied. However, man's problems were never before as complicated as they seem to be today. Man's economic activity centres primarily around factor of production, its role, therefore, has been given a lot of importance. It should be useful to have an overall view of the economic history of man from the nomadic times to the modern factory system and study its relevance to the various labour problems of today.

2. Initially, man passed through 'the hunting and fishing stage. During this period, his basic needs were adequately met by Nature. Wild animals, birds and fruits satisfied his hunger, and his thirst was quenched by the water of springs and rivers. Caves gave him shelter and barks of trees were used as clothing. During this stage of man's progress labour problems did not exist because of the absence of any economic, political and social system.

3. Then came 'the pastoral stage', which was marked by a certain amount of economic activity. The nomadic and migratory nature of man persisted, and together with his goats and cattle, he moved on to fresh pastures and meadows. Some conflicts would sometimes take place among herd owners, for, during this period, the institution of nominal private property ownership was not known.

4. This stage paves the way for 'the agricultural stage' during which the class system began to develop. There was a small artisan class mostly self-employed; and there were also landed properties or Zamindars as well as slaves. Thus, arose the feudal system. During the fourth stage of these developments, 'the handicraft stage', a number of social and economic changes took place which marked the beginning of the labour problem in the world. The self-sufficient economy of the village underwent a drastic change. The community of traders and merchants emerged.

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions by choosing the most appropriate option:

(a)The passage talks about

(i) the labour issues

(ii)the stages of man's development professionally and economically

(iii) wild animals and birds

(iv) man and animals

(b) In the pastoral stage:

(i)humans started migrating and held goat-herds

(ii)humans started owning land

(iii) humans started trading

(iv) humans started doing agriculture

(c)Humanity's evolution from primitive stage to the present has been:

(i) moderate and complex

(ii) huge and diversified

(iii) diminishing

(iv) peaceful

(d) Choose the right order:

(a) The handicraft stage

(b) The hunting and fishing stage

(c) The pastoral stage

(d) The agricultural stage

(i) d.b.c.a (ii) d.b.a.c (iii) b.c.d.a (iv) b.c.a.d

(e) During 'the hunting and fishing stage' the basic needs of man were met by:

(i) trade (ii) agriculture 

(iii) nature (iv) cattle

(f) Choose the synonym of 'emerged.

(i) Sufficient (ii) Surfaced

(iii) Damaged (iv) Satisfied

(g) Choose the antonym of 'initially.

(i) Immediately(ii) Casually 

(iii) Openly(iv) Finally

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions as briefly as possible:

(h) What does a man's problems that were never before as complicated as they seem to be today mean?

(i) When did the class system begin to develop?

(j) When was the beginning of the labour problem marked?

(k) Give a synonym of 'primitive.

(L) Give an antonym of 'adequately.

Passage -2

1. The role friends play in our lives has become significantly greater than at any other time, in our history. Today many of us live and work at great distances from where we were born or we grew up and are separated from our original families. The pain we feel when we are away from our families can be significant.

2. The happiness of the individual relies on friendships which form a necessary human connection. It is perfectly normal to need and want friends and depression is more prevalent among those who lack friends. They lack the intimacy and richness friends can bring into our lives. Frequently friends reflect similar values to us, Yet these values are often different from the ones we grew up with; they are the values we created for ourselves in our adult lives.

3. Communication skills are fundamental in all friendships. The more friends and acquaintances one has, the greater are one's communication skills. Some call these people skills.

4. Like watering a plant, we grow our friendships (and all our relationships) by nurturing them. Friendships need the same attention as other relationships, if they are to continue. These relationships can be delightfully non-judgemental, supportive, understanding and fun.

5. Sometimes a friendship can bring out the positive side that you never show in any other relationship. This may be because the pressure of playing a 'role' (daughter, partner or child) is removed. With a friend you are to be yourself and free to change. Of course you are free to do this in all other relationships as well, but in friendship you get to have lots of rehearsals and discussion about changes as you experience them. It is an unconditional experience where you receive as much as you give. You can explain yourself to a friend openly without the fear of hurting a family member. How do friendships grow? The answer is simple. By revealing yourself, being attentive; remembering what is most important to your friend and asking them about it; putting yourself in their position, showing empathy; seeing the world through the eyes of your friend you will understand the value of friendship. All this means learning to accept a person from a completely different family to your own or perhaps someone from a completely different cultural background. This is the way we learn tolerance. In turn we gain tolerance and acceptance for our own differences.

6. Friendships are made by being considerate which means all the communication skills come into play; active listening skills, questioning skills, negotiation skills, reflecting content skills, reflecting emotion skills, and editing yourself.

7. Friendships offer a great opportunity to learn about yourself because a friend can reflect back to you 'how you come across in the world'. They also allow you to practice skills in dealing with 'personal boundaries' by looking after yourself as well as your friend. They help you develop resilience in relation to the wider social world beyond your family.

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions by choosing the most appropriate option:

(a) Friendships grow by:

(i) revealing yourself

(ii) being reticent

(iii) showing indifference

(iv) All of the above

(b) The more friends we have, the greater are our:

(i) difficulties

(ii) opportunities

(iii) failures

(iv) communication skills

(c) In the passage nurturing friendship has been compared to:

(i) bringing up children.

(ii) watering plants

(iii) looking after the patients

(iv) helping the neighbours

(d) The company of friends from different cultural backgrounds teaches us the value of:

(i) knowledge(ii) traditions

(iii) tolerance (iv) language

(e) When we are separated from our families we feel:

(i) responsibility (ii) pain

(iii) bliss(iv) liberty

(f) Choose the synonym of 'prevalent.

(i) Irregular

(ii) Uncommon

(iii) Frequent

(iv) Limited

(g) Choose the antonym of 'considerate.

(i) Harsh (ii) Amiable

(iii) Generous (iv) Attentive.

On the basis of your understanding of the given passage, answer the following questions as briefly as possible:

(h) How is friendship different from other relationships?

(i) What does a lack of friends do?

(j) Mention the communication skills which help in building friendship.

(k) Give a syntonym of 'fundamental'.

(L) Give an antonym of 'lack.

Passage 3

1. Many of us believe that 'small' means 'insignificant. We believe that small actions and choices do not have much impact on our lives. We think that it is only the big things, the big actions and the big decisions that really count. But when you look at the lives of all great people, you will se that they built their character through small decisions, small choices and small actions that they performed every day. They transformed their lives through step-by-step or day-by-day approach. They nurtured and nourished their good habits and chipped away their bad habits, one by one. It was their small day-to-day decisions that added up to make tremendous difference in the long run. Indeed, in matters of personal growth and character building. there is no such thing as an overnight success.

2. Growth always occurs through a sequential series of stages. There is an organic process to growth. When we look at children growing up, we can see this process at work: the child first learns to crawl, then to stand and walk and then finally to run. The same is true in the natural world. The soil must first be tilled and then the seed must be sown. Next, it must be nurtured with enough water and sunlight and only then it will grow into trees laden with ripe fruits.

3. Gandhi understood this organic process and used this universal law of nature to his benefit. GANDHI GREW IN SMALL WAYS, in his day-to-day affairs. He did not wake up one day and find himself to be the 'Mahatma' In fact, there was nothing much in his early life that showed signs of greatness. But from his mid-twenties onwards, he deliberately and consistently attempted to change himself, reform himself and grow in some small way everyday. Day-by-day, hour-by-hour, he risked failure, experimented and learnt from mistakes. In small as well as large situations, he took up the responsibility rather than avoiding it.

4. This is a common factor in the lives of all great people: they exercise their freedoms and choices in small ways that make great impact on their lives and their environment. Each of their small decisions and actions, add up to have a profound impact in the long run. By understanding this principle, we can move forward, with confidence, in the direction of our dreams. Often when our 'ideal goal' looks too far from us, we become easily discouraged, disheartened and pessimistic. However, when we choose to grow in small ways, by taking small steps one at a time, our achievement becomes easy.

On the basis of your understanding of the given passage, answer the following questions by choosing the most appropriate option:

(a) We can grow in small ways by:

(i) getting discouraged

(ii) dreaming rarely

(iii) taking small steps one at a time.

(iv) becoming pessimistic

(b) According to the passage, what is the universal law of nature?

(i) Everything takes time to grow

(ii) Nothing can change in a day

(iii) Both (a) and (b)

(iv) Neither (a) nor (b)

(c) Gandhiji became 'Mahatma' by:

(i) risking failure

(ii) learning from mistakes

(iii) taking up responsibilities

(iv) All of the above

(d) To transform their lives great people:

(i) approach life casually

(ii) build character in small ways

(iii) believe in performing on big stages

(iv) All of the above

(e) Which of the following can be inferred from the third paragraph?

(i) Gandhi became great overnight

(ii) Gandhi showed signs of greatness in childhood itself

(iii) Everyday Gandhi made efforts to change himself in some small way

(iv) Gandhi never made mistakes

(f) Small actions help in our lives by:

(i) helping in building characters

(ii) nourishing good habits

(iii) chipping away bad habits

(iv) All of the above

( g) 'Chipped away at their bad habits' means:

(i) steadily gave up bad habits

(ii) slowly produced bad habits

(iii) gradually criticised bad habits

(iv) did not like bad habits

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions as briefly as possible:

(h) How does growth occur?

(i) What is the main idea in the first paragraph?

(j) When does one's achievement become easy?

(k) Give an antonym of 'consistently'.

(L) Give a synonym of 'tremendous'.

Passage 4.

1. India has never subscribed to the doctrine of militarism and war her history. War was never treated as an ideal. It was only tolerated as unavoidable and inevitable, and all attempts were made to check it and bring it under control. In spite of the frequency of wars in ancient India, in spite of highly developed military organisation, techniques of war and imperialism and in spite of the open justification of war as national policy, the heart of India loved pacifism as an ideal capable of realisation. India's symbolic role was that of a peacemaker and it sincerely pinned its faith on the principle of 'live and let live'. At least philosophically, India's intelligence supported the cause of peace not only in national affairs, but in International affairs also. All the great seers of yore visualised the unity of life, permeating all beings, animate or inanimate, which ruled out killing and suicidal wars.

2. This doctrine of philosophical pacifism practised by ancient Aryans is, no doubt, a question of controversial nature. Certainly, the great Indian teachers and savants stuck to this doctrine tenaciously and in their personal lives they translated it into practise and preached it to masses and even to princes of military classes.

3. Another culture of those times, the existence of which has been proved by the excavations of Mohenjo-daro, also enunciated the doctrine of pacifism and friendship to all. Strangely enough, the Indus Valley Civilisation has revealed to fortification and very few weapons.

4. The Mahabharata observes in this connection: 'A wise man should be content with what can be obtained by the expedients of conciliation, gift and dissension'. It denounces the warring world of men by comparing it to a dog kennel. 'First there comes the wagging of tails, then turning of one round to other, then the showing of teeth, then the roaring and finally comes the commencement of the fights. It is the same with men; there is no difference whatsoever. Yajnavalkya adds: 'War is the last expedient to be used when all others have failed'. Likewise, Shri Krishna whose Bhagwad Gita has been styled by some as a song of the battle, should not be considered out and out a militarist. When all the three expedients were exhausted, then alone the fourth was resorted to.

5. All possible avenues of peace such as negotiation, conciliation through conference, meditation and so on, were explored before resorting to war. This proves that the heart of ancient India was sound and it longed for peace, although war also was not treated as an anathema and was to be avoided as far as possible. Extract from 'Culture India-Pacifism has been the Ideal' by Shri Indra.

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions by choosing the most appropriate option:

(a) Aryans practise:

(i) non-violence 

(ii) freedom of speech and action

(iii) philosophical pacifism

(iv) military organisations

(b).......is not the avenue of peace.

(i) Negotiation

(ii) Conciliation through conference

(iii) War (iv) Meditation

(c) What did the heart of India love?

(i) Excavations

(ii) Techniques of wars

(iii) Loans

(iv) Pacifism

(d) The culture of peace and friendship are revealed in ancient civilisation through:

(i) no fortification (ii) few arms

(iil) Both (i) and (ii)

(iv) Neither (i) nor (ii)

(e)........has never been an Indian ideal.

(i) Pacifism (ii) War

(iii) Education (iv) Civilisation

(f) What does the Mahabharata compare the warring world to?

(i) Fish market (ii) Dog kennel

(iii) Song of the battle (iv) Militarist

(g) Choose the synonym of 'doctrine'.

(i) Science (ii) Culture

(iii) Principle(iv) Peace

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions

h) What was India's symbolic role?

(i) What has India never subscribed to?

(j) What did the excavations of Mohenjo-daro reinforce?

(k) Give a synonym of 'commencement.

(L) Give an antonym of 'reveal'.

Passage 5

1. One of the greatest sailing adventures of the past 25 years was the conquest of the Northwest Passage, powered by sail, human muscle, and determination. In 100 days, over three summers (1986-88), Canadians Jeff MacInnis and Mike Beedell accomplished the first wind-powered crossing of the Northwest Passage.

2. In Jeff MacInnis's words... Our third season. We weave our way through the labyrinth of ice, and in the distance we hear an unmistakable sound. A mighty bowhead whale is nearby, and its rhythmic breaths fill us with awe, Finally, we see it relaxed on the surface, its blow hole quivering like a volcanic cone, but it senses our presence and quickly sounds. We are very disappointed. We had only good intentions-to revel in its beautiful immensity and to feel its power. Mike thinks how foolish it would be for this mighty beast to put any faith in us. After all, we are members of the species that had almost sent the bowhead into extinction with our greed for whale oil and bone. It is estimated that as many as 38,000 bowheads were killed off eastern Baffin Island in the 1800s; today there are only about 200 left.

3. We were on the fine edge. Everything that we had learned in the Arctic over the last 90 days we now being tested. The fascinating and sometimes terrifying wildlife keeps us entertained during our explorations. Bearded harp and ring seals greeted us daily. The profusion of bird life is awesome; at times we see and smell hundreds of thousands of thick-billed murres clinging to their cliffside nests. Our charts show that we are on the edge of a huge shoal where the frigid ocean currents upswell and mix nutrients that provide a feast for the food chain. At times, these animals scare the living daylights out of us. They have a knack of sneaking up behind us

and then shooting out of the water and belly flopping for maximum noise and splash. A horrendous splash coming from behind has a heart-stopping effect in polar bear country.

4. We have many encounters with the 'Lords of the Arctic," but we are always cautious, observant, and ever so respectful that we are in their domain. In some regions the land is totally devoid of life. While in others the pulse of life takes our breath away. Such is the paradox of the Arctic, it's wastelands flow into oasis that are found nowhere else on the face of the earth. Many times we find ancient signs of Inuit people who lived here, superbly attuned to the land. We feel great respect for them, this landscape is a challenge at every moment.

5. We face a 35 mile open water passage across Prince Regent Inlet on Baffin Island that will take us to our ultimate goal-Pond Inlet on Baffin Bay. The breakers look huge from the water's edge.

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions by choosing the most appropriate option:

(a) Which of the following statements is true?

(i) A sound from distance was not heard

(ii) The sound was not in rhythm

(iii) Everyone was disappointed to hear the sound

(iv) A beautiful whale was not seen

(b) During exploration, wild birds and animals witnessed are

(i) horrifying

(ii) captivating

(ii) Both (i) and (ii)

(iv) Neither (i) nor (ii)

(c) The passage states about the:

(i) sailing adventure through the Northwest passage 

(ii) whales of the Arctic

(iii) survival skills needed while sailing

(iv) beauty of the Arctic

(d) In how many days was the first sail powered voyage through Northwest Passage completed?

(i) 100 (ii) 365 (iii) 1000 (iv) 2000

(e) When the whale sensed the explorer's presence, it

(i) disappeared

(ii) dived with enthusiasm

(iii) quickly sounded

(iv) None of the above

(f) Choose the synonym of 'labyrinth.

(i) Hut (ii) Lobby (iii) Maze (iv) Forest

(g) Choose the antonym of 'mighty.

(i) Imposing (ii) Towering

(iii) Significant (iv) Minute

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions as briefly as possible:

(h) Who are the 'Lords of the Arctic'?

(i) Which was the sailors' final goal to reach?

(i) According to the passage, how many bowheads are left?

(k) Give a synonym of 'immensity'.

(L) Give an antonym of 'observant.

Passage 1

Answers

a. (ii) b. (i) c. (ii)d. (iii) e. (iii) f. (ii) g. (iv)

Ans(h) It means that the present times pose much more challenges to humans than the previous times.

Ans.(I) The class system began to develop during the agricultural stage.

Ans.(j) During the handicraft stage, a number of social and economic changes took place which marked the beginning of the labour problem in the world.

Ans.(K) A synonym of 'primitive' is ancient.

Ans. (L)An antonym of 'adequately' is insufficiently

 Passage 2

Answers

a. (i) b. (iv) c. (ii) d. (iii) e. (ii) f. (iii) g. (i)

Ans.(H) Friendship can bring out the positive side that you never show in any other relationship. With a friend you can be yourself. Friendship is an unconditional relation where you receive as much as you give

Ans. (I)Those who lack friends are more likely to suffer from depression as they miss out on the intimacy and richness that friends can bring into their lives.

Ans. (j)Communication skills which help in building friendship are active listening, questioning, negotiation, reflecting content, reflecting emotion and editing yourself.

Ans.k A synonym of 'fundamental' is basic.

Ans.L An antonym of 'lack' is abundance.

Passage 3

Answers

a. (iii)b. (iii)c. (iv)d. (ii)e. (iii)f. (iv) g. (iv)

Ans. H.Growth always occurs through a sequential series of stages

Ans.(I) The main idea in the first paragraph is that small decisions, small choices and small important in one's life.

Ans.(J) One's achievement becomes easy when one chooses to grow in small ways, by taking small steps one at a time.pembaliα 

Ans.k An antonym of 'consistently' is rarely.

Ans.  L A synonym of 'tremendous' is huge.

Passage 4

Answers

a. (iil)b. (iii) c. (iv) d. (iii) e.(ii) f. (ii) g. (fil)

Ans.h. India's symbolic role was that of a peacemaker.

Ans.(I) India has never subscribed to the doctrine of militarism and war in her history.

AnsJ. The excavations of Mohenjo-daro reinforced the doctrine of pacifism and friendship to all as there was no fortification and very few weapons.

Ans.k A synonym of 'commencement' is beginning.

Ans.L.An antonym of 'reveal' is conceal.

Answers

passage 5

a. (ili) b. (iii) c. (i) d. (i) e. (iii) f. (i) g. (iv)

Ans.(H)The Lords of the Arctic' are the polar bears.

Ans. (i)The sailors' final goal to reach was Pond Inlet on Baffin Bay

Ans.(i) According to the passage, about zoo bowheads are left.

Ans.k A synonym of 'immensity' is hugeness.

Ans. L.An antonym of 'observant' is negligent.