62 Literature (English) questions asked in CTET previous year papers, each with the correct answer and explanation. Read them free on UTpaper, or attempt the full papers as timed online tests.
Read the poem given below and answer the questions that follow by selecting the correct/most appropriate options.
My mother twisted through and through
groaning on a mat
My father, sceptic, rationalist,
trying every curse and blessing,
powder, mixture, herb and hybrid.
He even poured a little paraffin
upon the bitten toe and put a match to it.
I watched the flame feeding on my mother
I watched the holy man perform the rites
to tame the poison with an incantation.
After twenty hours
it lost its sting.
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
My mother only said
Thank God the scorpion picked on me
and spared my children.
The mother thanked God for ____________.
Aher quick recovery
Bsparing her children
Cbeing able to get a doctor in time
Descaping the scorpion’s bite
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (B) sparing her children
Explanation
Her only words were 'Thank God the scorpion picked on me and spared my children', so she thanked God for sparing her children.
Read the poem given below and answer the questions that follow by selecting the correct/most appropriate options.
My mother twisted through and through
groaning on a mat
My father, sceptic, rationalist,
trying every curse and blessing,
powder, mixture, herb and hybrid.
He even poured a little paraffin
upon the bitten toe and put a match to it.
I watched the flame feeding on my mother
I watched the holy man perform the rites
to tame the poison with an incantation.
After twenty hours
it lost its sting.
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
My mother only said
Thank God the scorpion picked on me
and spared my children.
Which literary device has been used in the expression: ‘to tame the poison’?
AMetaphor
BAnaphora
COxymoron
DSimile
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (A) Metaphor
Explanation
'Tame' is normally used for wild animals; applying it to poison is an implied comparison of the poison to a wild beast, i.e. a metaphor.
Read the poem given below and answer the questions that follow by selecting the correct/most appropriate options.
My mother twisted through and through
groaning on a mat
My father, sceptic, rationalist,
trying every curse and blessing,
powder, mixture, herb and hybrid.
He even poured a little paraffin
upon the bitten toe and put a match to it.
I watched the flame feeding on my mother
I watched the holy man perform the rites
to tame the poison with an incantation.
After twenty hours
it lost its sting.
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
My mother only said
Thank God the scorpion picked on me
and spared my children.
Which figure of speech is there in ‘the flame feeding on my mother’?
ASimile
BPersonification
CIrony
DAlliteration
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (B) Personification
Explanation
The flame is given the human/animal action of 'feeding', so it is personification.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Put away the road maps now.
To go there,
you do not need
helicopters any more;
wherever there is hunger,
there Kalahandi is.
The god of rain
turned away his face.
There was not one green leaf
left on the trees for supper.
The whole village a graveyard.
Cracked ground,
drab river sand.
All the plans failed;
the poverty line
receded further.
‘The god of rain/turned away his face’. Which figure of speech is used here?
Aalliteration
Bpersonification
Coxymoron
Dtransferred epithet
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (B) personification
Explanation
The rain is given a human face and the human action of turning away, which is personification.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Put away the road maps now.
To go there,
you do not need
helicopters any more;
wherever there is hunger,
there Kalahandi is.
The god of rain
turned away his face.
There was not one green leaf
left on the trees for supper.
The whole village a graveyard.
Cracked ground,
drab river sand.
All the plans failed;
the poverty line
receded further.
The village becoming a graveyard is a metaphor that:
Apeople are migrating to other cities.
Bmore graveyards are being planned.
Cpeople are living in graveyards.
Dpeople are dying in large numbers.
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (D) people are dying in large numbers.
Explanation
Calling the whole village a graveyard suggests that people are dying in large numbers from hunger.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Put away the road maps now.
To go there,
you do not need
helicopters any more;
wherever there is hunger,
there Kalahandi is.
The god of rain
turned away his face.
There was not one green leaf
left on the trees for supper.
The whole village a graveyard.
Cracked ground,
drab river sand.
All the plans failed;
the poverty line
receded further.
Kalahandi as described in the poem stands for:
Aprosperity
Bhunger
Cnatural disasters
Ddevelopment
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (B) hunger
Explanation
The poem says 'wherever there is hunger, there Kalahandi is', so Kalahandi stands for hunger.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Put away the road maps now.
To go there,
you do not need
helicopters any more;
wherever there is hunger,
there Kalahandi is.
The god of rain
turned away his face.
There was not one green leaf
left on the trees for supper.
The whole village a graveyard.
Cracked ground,
drab river sand.
All the plans failed;
the poverty line
receded further.
What natural calamity is the poet talking about?
Adrought
Bearthquake
Clandslide
Dfloods
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (A) drought
Explanation
The rain god turning away, no green leaves and cracked ground all describe a drought.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Put away the road maps now.
To go there,
you do not need
helicopters any more;
wherever there is hunger,
there Kalahandi is.
The god of rain
turned away his face.
There was not one green leaf
left on the trees for supper.
The whole village a graveyard.
Cracked ground,
drab river sand.
All the plans failed;
the poverty line
receded further.
What is the dominant ‘mood’ of the poem?
Asorrow
Bsurprise
Canger
Drelief
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (A) sorrow
Explanation
The images of hunger, death and failed plans create a mood of sorrow.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.
Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that is wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
Which of the following describes the theme of the poem correctly?
AFeminism
BRelationship
COppression
DEnvironment
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (C) Oppression
Explanation
The poem speaks of hatred, history's shame, terror and slavery, and the speaker rising above them, so its theme is oppression and rising against it.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.
Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that is wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
"I am the dream and the hope of the slave" shows that the poet is a/an
Apessimist
Boptimist
Ccynic
Dnihilist
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (B) optimist
Explanation
Seeing herself as the fulfilment of the slaves' dream and hope shows a hopeful, positive outlook, i.e. an optimist.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.
Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that is wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
The use of 'I rise' in the poem is an example of :
Ahyperbole
Bparallelism
Calliteration
Drepetition
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (D) repetition
Explanation
The phrase 'I rise' is repeated many times for emphasis, which is the device of repetition (refrain).
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.
Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that is wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
Which literary device has been used in the following line?
"But still, like air, I'll rise."
AMetaphor
BSimile
COxymoron
DMetonymy
Show answerHide answer
Correct answer: (B) Simile
Explanation
The speaker compares her rising to air using the word 'like', which makes it a simile.
How to use these CTET English questions
Every question here was asked in a real CTET paper; the paper and shift are shown on the card, and the number opens the question on its own page. Try each one before tapping Show answer, then attempt the full CTET papers as timed tests to check your speed under exam conditions.