📖 English Passages with Questions & Answers (2025 - 2022)
2025 Passages
Alfred Nobel [2025]
In 1866, Alfred Nobel, a Swedish chemist, introduced a form of nitroglycerine that could be handled safely. He called it dynamite. In 1875, he went on to invent gelignite. These explosives were used in engineering applications, but they also had obvious military applications. As a committed pacifist, Nobel hoped that his inventions would provide a deterrent to war and bring peace to mankind. His inventions did not bring peace, but they made him very rich. He used his fortune in his will to endow the Nobel Prizes awarded to those who have conferred the greatest benefit to mankind in five categories. He left £32,00,000 in his will for prizes in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. In 1969, the Bank of Sweden inaugurated a new Nobel Prize for Economics. In 1903, Marie Curie became the first woman to win the Nobel Prize, sharing it with her husband.
- Who was Alfred Nobel?
(a) Indian Chemist
(b) African Chemist
(c) Swedish Chemist ✅
(d) English Chemist - What did Alfred Nobel introduce?
(a) Medicine
(b) Form of nitroglycerine ✅
(c) Chemistry
(d) Gelignite - When did the Bank of Sweden introduce a new Nobel Prize in Economics?
(a) 1866
(b) 1875
(c) 1903
(d) 1969 ✅ - Why did Alfred leave £32,00,000 in his will?
(a) To finance prize in physics
(b) To finance prize in chemistry
(c) To finance prize in literature and peace
(d) All of the above ✅ - Who was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize?
(a) Marie Curie ✅
(b) Mother Teresa
(c) Kalpana Chawla
(d) Indira Gandhi
Gandhiji [2025]
Gandhiji travelled a lot. He always travelled third class in trains because all poor people in India travelled third class. In those days, trains had three classes.
Once, Gandhiji got off at Bombay (Mumbai) from a third class railway compartment. Lots of people had come to meet him. Among them were some American men and women. They went into Gandhiji's compartment and saw it was very small.
“Why doesn't he travel first?” asked one of the ladies. “I don't know. Let's go and ask him,” replied one of the gentlemen.
“Mr. Gandhi, we've come to ask you a question,” said the gentleman. “You are the leader of the Indian people, but you travel third. Please tell us why you travel third?”
Gandhiji laughed and said, “The answer is very simple. I travel third because there is no fourth.” He laughed again, and the American ladies and gentlemen laughed with him.
- In which class did Gandhiji travel?
(a) First class
(b) Third class ✅
(c) Second class
(d) All of these - Who came to meet Gandhiji at Mumbai Railway Station?
(a) One person
(b) Few people
(c) Some people
(d) Lots of people ✅ - Which country's men and women went into Gandhiji's compartment?
(a) Australia
(b) India
(c) England
(d) America ✅ - Give the opposite word of 'poor'.
(a) Honest
(b) Rich ✅
(c) Holy
(d) Fierce - Give the synonym of the word 'simple'.
(a) Small
(b) Smart
(c) Easy ✅
(d) Difficult
Meditation [2024]
What is the ultimate challenge these days? The ultimate challenge is to make your mind calm. And the ultimate solution is meditation. For a student, there can't be a more powerful technique to improve long term performance in studies than meditation.
Calm mind, better retention, better health, focus and concentration are the obvious benefits. When you practice meditation, you have a sense of well-being, happiness, and spiritual growth.
There are many types of meditation. The simplest is of course, focusing on breathing. Settle down in a cool place that has dim light and is relatively quiet. All you need to do is to keep focusing on breathing. If you do it every day, you will feel its magical effect.
- The ultimate challenge these days is to
(a) make money
(b) make your mind calm ✅
(c) get education
(d) focus on breathing
Women Education [2024]
If India wants to be a developed country, it must concentrate on female education. The old African proverb says, 'If you educate a man, you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate an entire family or entire nation.'
The root cause of all the problems like female infanticide, dowry, female suicide, domestic violence, malnutrition, child marriage etc. will vanish if women are educated.
Education provides an essential qualification to fulfil certain economic, political and cultural functions and improves women's socio-economic status. It brings reduction in inequality.
If we want to uplift the society, we should improve the life standard of our women and for this, education is a weapon.
- The above passage is mainly about
(a) A developed country
(b) Problems of women
(c) Women education ✅
(d) Upliftment of society - According to the old African proverb, 'If you educate a man you...'
(a) educate a woman
(b) educate a society
(c) educate a nation
(d) educate an individual ✅ - We should use education as a weapon
(a) to improve the life standard of our women ✅
(b) to educate our men only
(c) to make our society male-dominated
(d) to get a job - Which word in the passage means 'demand of money or other things before or during the marriage'?
(a) Malnutrition
(b) Dowry ✅
(c) Violence
(d) Domestic - Women education
(a) helps a nation become fully developed
(b) brings down the ratio of inequality
(c) helps society in the upliftment of our people
(d) All of these ✅
2023 Passages
The Stingy Baker [2023]
There once was a stingy baker. A poor man would stand outside his bakery every day, enjoying the nice smell of baking bread. The baker was very angry at the poor man. He felt that anyone who smelled his delicious products should pay for the smell. So he took the poor man to the court.
The judge heard the baker's complaint patiently. Then he asked the poor man, "Do you have any money?" The poor man searched his pocket and produced two small coins.
"This is all the money I have," he said to the judge.
The judge took the coins from the poor man. The baker smiled and eagerly held out his hand.
But the judge did not give the baker the money. He only jingled the coins together. He then returned them to the poor man, saying, "Punishment should fit the crime. The price for the smell of bread shall be the sound of money."
- The poor man stood outside the bakery…
(a) To buy bread
(b) To eat bread
(c) To enjoy the smell of baking bread ✅
(d) To steal bread - The baker took the poor man to…
(a) Court ✅
(b) Temple
(c) Bakery
(d) His home - How many coins were found in poor man's pocket?
(a) Twenty
(b) Two ✅
(c) Four
(d) One - Give a suitable title for the passage
(a) Kingdom of Fools
(b) Love begets Love
(c) There is a will, there is a way
(d) Tit for Tat ✅ - Which word is the opposite of the word 'rich'?
(a) Honest
(b) Stingy
(c) Poor ✅
(d) Judge
The Bee and the Dove [2023]
A bee went to a tank to quench its thirst, and tumbling in, was almost drowned. A dove that happened to pass that way saw the danger the bee was in. It hastened to a neighbouring tree and, plucking off a leaf, dropped it into the water before the bee. The bee climbed onto the leaf, dried its wings and flew away to its hive, full of gratitude to the dove that had saved its life.
A few days later, the same bee, while returning to its hive after a hard day's work, saw a cruel boy taking aim at the dove sitting upon the branch of a tree. At once, the bee flew to the wrist of the boy and, just when he was going to shoot the dove, stung him. The boy danced with pain while the dove, realizing the danger to which it was exposed, flew safely away.
- The bee went to the tank
(a) To quench its thirst ✅
(b) To meet another bee
(c) To save dove
(d) To bath - Who saved the bee?
(a) Falcon
(b) Boy
(c) Ant
(d) Dove ✅ - What did the bee feel when it was saved by the dove?
(a) Proud
(b) Gratitude ✅
(c) Guilty
(d) Disappointed - Who danced with the pain?
(a) The boy ✅
(b) Dove
(c) Bee
(d) Elephant - The meaning of the word 'tumbling' is
(a) Falling ✅
(b) Neighbouring
(c) Swimming
(d) Crying
2022 Passages
Discipline [2022]
Discipline must be enforced early in life. Discipline at home makes for the future greatness of a boy. It forms his character and makes him a fit citizen. The child who is allowed to have his own way becomes wayward. The child who is allowed all sorts of excesses like running about in the sun, exposing himself to cold, eating wholesome things, as a result, will fall ill frequently. A child whose habits have been disciplined and who has been taught to rise early, attend to his lessons properly, take physical exercises at the proper time and avoid things that are injurious will grow up to be a useful member of society. The spoilt child who has been allowed to run his own course will show vice in younger days. His parents would wish that he had not been born at all.
- What does discipline do for a child?
(a) Forms character and makes him a fit citizen ✅
(b) Makes child dull
(c) Makes him strong
(d) Makes him wayward - What evils does a child pick up when he is allowed to do what he likes?
(a) Make himself happy
(b) Catch cold and fall ill ✅
(c) Develop good habits
(d) Develop discipline in him - What are good habits?
(a) Running in the sun
(b) Playing all the time
(c) Avoid things that are injurious ✅
(d) Exposing himself to cold - Give a suitable title.
(a) Importance of discipline ✅
(b) Running
(c) Playing
(d) Physical Exercises - What does 'Spoilt' mean?
(a) Greatness
(b) Destroyed ✅
(c) Injurious
(d) Disciplined
Garbage [2022]
Garbage is a great environmental hazard. It comes from various sources: used paper, tiffin packings, plastic bags, ice-cream wrappers, bottle caps, fallen leaves from trees and many more. Garbage makes the premises ugly, unkempt, and breeds diseases. A lot of trash that is thrown away contains material that can be recycled and reused such as paper, metals, and glass which can be sent to the nearest recycling centre or disposed of to the junk dealer. It also contains organic matter such as leaves which can enrich soil fertility. A compost pit can be made at a convenient location where the refuse can be placed with layers of soil and an occasional sprinkling of water. This would help decomposition to make valuable fertilizer. This would also prevent pollution that is usually caused by burning such organic waste.
- The main sources of Garbage in present conditions are
(a) Household things ✅
(b) Plots and other materials
(c) Water and liquid
(d) Cotton and clothes - Leaves can enrich
(a) Water
(b) Soil ✅
(c) Air
(d) Human body - The noun form of the word 'recycled' is
(a) Recycle
(b) Recycling ✅
(c) Recyclingly
(d) To recycled - Give the meaning of the word 'nearest'
(a) Closest ✅
(b) Closely
(c) Far
(d) Far away - Garbages can be reused by
(a) Re-selling
(b) Recycling ✅
(c) Repairing
(d) Renovating