CBSE Class 12 English(Core) Question Paper 2025 Solution
Are you looking for the complete solution to the CBSE Class 12 English (Core) Question Paper 2025? You’ve come to the right place! In this guide, we provide detailed answers to all sections, including Reading Comprehension, Writing Skills, and Literature. Whether you need explanations for tricky questions or want to cross-check your answers, this solution will help you score better in your exams.
Let’s dive into the question-wise answers and make your exam preparation easier! ✅📖
CBSE Class 12 English(Core) Question Paper 2025 Solution pdf
Answers:
Question 1: (Reading Comprehension – Sense of Humour)
(i) The author proves that a sense of humour is a double-edged sword by stating that it can entertain others and make them laugh, but it can also be used for making snide or critical remarks about others.
(ii) Sense of humour is valuable as it helps in defusing tense situations, managing alliances, and forming friendships. It also makes social interactions smoother and more enjoyable.
(iii) One significant advantage of humour is that it helps one to manage social relationships and reduce tension in conflicts.
(iv) “Schmoozing with a bunch of new people at a cocktail party is an opportunity to engage in light-hearted banter…” This shows that humour helps break the ice in social situations.
(v) According to evolutionary psychologists, people with a sense of humour can lighten a tense situation.
(vi) (C) people having similar interests and attitudes.
(vii) advantage: benefit :: indignation: anger
(viii) The phrase “arsenal of tools” refers to the different aspects of humour that help in social interactions, such as breaking the ice, diffusing tension, and forming relationships.
(ix) “A person with an undeveloped sense of humour lacks a social skill that puts him or her at a severe disadvantage in the hurly-burly of everyday social life.”
(x) (A) Sense of humour elevates the status of a person in the social circle.
Question 2: (Reading Comprehension – Youth Aspirations in India)
(i) (C) Higher education and career opportunities.
(ii) The latest trend among Indian youth is pursuing skill development programs to enhance their employability and adapt to changing job market demands.
(iii) Entrepreneurship is the last preference because only 17% of youth consider it, as they prioritize job security and career advancement in public and private sector jobs.
(iv)
- 60% of female respondents have no paid work experience compared to 54% of males.
- 15% of females face biases related to gender, age, and family background, while only 9% of males face such issues.
(v) The driving force for Indian youth to join a skill development programme is more employment opportunities.
(vi)
- Sentence 1 (“Ria embraced new technology…”) talks about adoption.
- Sentence 2 (“Ria displays her artistic skill…”) talks about competency.
(vii)
- 76% of youth are interested in skill development programs.
- 86% feel they are moderately up-to-date with changing skills requirements.
(viii) (C) (ii), (iii) & (v) – Marriage, lack of opportunities, and family background.
Question 3: (Notice Writing – Choose Any One)
(A) NOTICE – Road Safety Awareness Workshop
📌 SJS GGSSS, Silana
📅 NOTICE
📌 Road Safety Awareness Workshop
📢 All students of Classes IX-XII are informed that a Road Safety Awareness Workshop will be held in our school. The details are as follows:
📅 Date: [Insert Date]
⏰ Time: [Insert Time]
📍 Venue: School Auditorium
👨🏫 Conducted by: [Traffic Police/Expert]
The workshop will cover essential traffic rules, safe driving habits, and emergency measures. Attendance is compulsory.
For queries, contact the undersigned.
✍️ Ashna/Ashish
(Head Boy/Girl)
OR
(B) NOTICE – Science Model-Making Competition
📌 SJS GGSSS, Silana
📅 NOTICE
📌 Inter-House Science Model-Making Competition
📢 This is to inform all students of Classes IX-XII that an Inter-House Science Model-Making Competition will be held in our school. The details are as follows:
📅 Date: [Insert Date]
⏰ Time: [Insert Time]
📍 Venue: Science Lab
📜 Theme: [Mention Theme]
🔹 Each House can register [X] students for participation.
🔹 Interested students must give their names to the Science Club President by [Deadline].
For further details, contact the undersigned.
✍️ M. [Your Name]
(President, Science Club)
Question 4: (Formal Invitation Letter)
📌 Sender’s Address
[Your Address]
📅 Date: [Insert Date]
📌 Recipient’s Name
[Guest’s Designation]
[Address]
Subject: Invitation to Annual Function at SJS GGSSS, Silana
Dear [Guest’s Name],
On behalf of SJS GGSSS, Silana, we are honored to invite you as the Chief Guest for our Annual Function on [Date] at [Time] in the School Auditorium. Your presence would inspire our students, and we would be delighted to hear your valuable words.
Kindly confirm your availability at your earliest convenience.
Looking forward to your gracious presence.
Yours sincerely,
✍️ [Your Name]
(Principal)
Question 5: (Letter to Editor – Awareness on Water Conservation)
📌 Sender’s Address
[Your Address]
📅 Date: [Insert Date]
📌 The Editor
[Newspaper Name]
[City]
Subject: Need for Urgent Awareness on Water Conservation
Dear Sir/Madam,
Through the columns of your esteemed newspaper, I wish to draw attention to the urgent need for water conservation. With increasing population and excessive water wastage, we are facing a severe water crisis.
Simple steps like rainwater harvesting, reducing wastage, and spreading awareness can make a significant difference. Schools and communities should actively promote conservation practices.
I urge the authorities and citizens to take this matter seriously and adopt sustainable water management practices.
Yours sincerely,
✍️ [Your Name]
(Concerned Citizen)
Question 6: (Job Application – English Teacher Post)
📌 Your Address
📅 Date: [Insert Date]
📌 The Principal
[School Name]
[School Address]
Subject: Application for the Post of English Teacher
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to apply for the post of English Teacher at your esteemed institution. I hold an M.A. in English and a B.Ed., with [X] years of teaching experience. I am passionate about student-centered learning, literature, and interactive teaching methodologies.
I am confident that my skills and dedication to education will be an asset to your school. I have enclosed my resume for your reference.
I look forward to the opportunity for an interview.
Yours sincerely,
✍️ [Your Name]
SECTION-C (LITERATURE)
Extract-Based Questions (Choose Any One: A or B)
(A) A Roadside Stand
(i) The expression ‘It is in the news’ suggests
- (B) an important decision has been taken by the government.
- Explanation: The phrase implies a formal announcement, likely a government policy to relocate rural kin, not a protest or mere absence from news.
(ii) Assertion: The poet complains that the rural people are exploited by the people in power. Reason: The rural people reposed blind faith in the false promises of the people in power.
- (C) The Assertion is true, but the Reason is false.
- Explanation: The poet criticizes exploitation (“greedy good-doers”), but the extract doesn’t suggest rural people blindly trusted promises—rather, benefits are forced upon them.
(iii) In the line ‘that are calculated to soothe them out of their wits,’ the phrase ‘soothe them out of their wits’ refers to
- dulling their minds and independence through imposed comforts.
- Explanation: It implies a calculated effort to pacify and mentally numb them, stripping their ability to think.
(iv) Bring out the irony in the expression ‘they won’t have to think for themselves’.
- The irony lies in presenting a loss of autonomy as a benefit, while it actually enslaves them to others’ control, contradicting the idea of freedom.
(v) The poet uses the expression ‘greedy good-doers’ to (criticize / appreciate) the intention of the powerful people.
- criticize
- Explanation: “Greedy” mocks their selfish motives masked as benevolence, showing disdain, not praise.
(vi) The tone of the poet in the above extract is
- sarcastic and critical.
- Explanation: The poet uses irony (“mercifully gathered”) and harsh imagery (“beasts of prey”) to mock the powerful.
(B) Keeping Quiet
(i) The poet uses the expression ‘single minded’ to refer to
- our relentless focus on constant activity and progress.
- Explanation: It highlights humanity’s obsession with “keeping lives moving” without pause.
(ii) Why does the poet refer to silence as a welcoming interruption?
- It breaks the cycle of sadness and self-ignorance, offering a chance for reflection and understanding, unlike the usual chaos.
(iii) Assertion: The poet personifies Earth as a teacher. Reason: We learn from the Earth that pausing doesn’t mean the end.
- (A) Both the Assertion and the Reason are true, and the Reason is the correct explanation of the Assertion.
- Explanation: Earth is depicted as a teacher showing life persists after apparent death, directly supporting the assertion.
(iv) By the expression “keeping our lives moving” the poet refers to
- the endless rush of daily tasks and ambitions without stopping to reflect.
- Explanation: It’s our refusal to pause amid life’s momentum.
(v) The intention of the poet in the above extract is
- (D) to highlight the importance of sustaining peace and silence.
- Explanation: The poet advocates stillness to counter sadness and learn from Earth, emphasizing peace.
(vi) What is the significance of the last line ‘you keep quiet and I will go’?
- It suggests a personal commitment to silence, leaving others to join voluntarily, symbolizing individual peace initiating collective calm.
Extract-Based Questions (Choose Any One: A or B)
(A) Memories of Childhood
(i) ‘I felt terribly sad’. The reason for the speaker’s sadness is because it was an act of
- discrimination.
- Explanation: The elder’s subservience to fetch vadais highlights caste-based humiliation, saddening the speaker.
(ii) “The thought of it infuriated me’ with reference to the above line, what do you think is the impact of the incident on the speaker?
- (B) The speaker was angry and condemning.
- Explanation: The fury and desire to rebel against the act show anger, not sympathy or excitement.
(iii) ‘I wanted to touch those wretched Vadais myself’ The above expression indicates the speaker’s
- defiance against the discriminatory norms imposed on her community.
- Explanation: It’s a rebellious urge to challenge the degrading status quo.
(iv) The incident made the speaker realise that the discrimination was (dehumanizing / elevating)
- dehumanizing
- Explanation: The elder’s meekness and the casual superiority dehumanize her people, sparking her outrage.
(B) On the Face of It
(i) ‘Years. I take it steady’. The above line speaks of the speaker’s
- resilience and patience in adapting to his physical limitations.
- Explanation: Mr. Lamb’s calm approach reflects years of coping steadily.
(ii) Derry, how will you climb on a ladder? What does Derry hint at in the above query?
- He hints at Mr. Lamb’s physical disability, questioning its impact on practical tasks like climbing.
(iii) ‘When I go down the streets, the kids shout Lamey Lamb.’ The attitude of the speaker expressed in the above line is
- (C) his acceptance of reality and positive attitude.
- Explanation: Mr. Lamb sees it as a game, not a burden, showing optimism.
(iv) Mr. Lamb’s handicap has not ___ his attitude towards life.
- diminished
- Explanation: His cheerful acceptance of kids and life shows his handicap hasn’t soured his outlook.
Extract-Based Questions (Choose Any One: A or B)
(A) Poets and Pancakes
(i) What does the writer mean by the phrase ‘indoor shooting’ in the first line of the extract?
- Filming inside studios using artificial sets and lighting, not outdoors.
(ii) Pick up one sentence from the extract that reflects the sarcastic tone of the writer.
- “I suppose the sets and studio lights needed the girls and boys to be made to look ugly in order to look presentable in the movie.”
(iii) The hierarchy in the make-up department puts the ‘office boy’ in the (lowest/top) rung of the ladder.
- lowest
- Explanation: He handles the least significant crowd players.
(iv) On the days when there was a ‘crowd-shooting’. By the phrase crowd-shooting, the author refers to
- filming scenes with many minor actors or extras.
(v) “…..mix his paint in a giant vessel and slapping it on the crowd players.” The choice of words like ‘paint’ and ‘slapping’ by the author reflects
- (C) author’s sarcastic and humorous writing style.
- Explanation: It mocks the crude, exaggerated process humorously.
(vi) “A strict hierarchy was maintained in the make-up department.” What does the following line from the extract showcase?
- (B) A system of ranks according to importance of work was followed.
- Explanation: Roles were tiered by actor significance.
(B) The Last Lesson
(i) What is the tone of the speaker in the expression ‘I hardly knew how to write….. how sorry I was for not learning my lessons’?
- (B) regretful
- Explanation: The speaker laments past neglect of studies.
(ii) The speaker refers to ‘seeking birds’ egg’ and ‘sliding on the Saar’ as
- (C) source of distraction from learning
- Explanation: These were playful distractions from lessons.
(iii) What is reflected through the shift in the speaker’s perception of his books through his expression of calling them his ‘old friends’ rather than considering them as ‘nuisance’?
- A newfound appreciation for learning, triggered by the loss of opportunity.
(iv) “It was because they were sorry too….” They were sorry for
- not learning their language
- Explanation: The villagers regret neglecting French education.
(v) What is inferred from the expression ‘the country that was theirs no more’?
- Their homeland (Alsace) was lost to German control, ending their cultural ownership.
(vi) What does M. Hamel’s ruler reflect about his image?
- His strict, cranky disciplinarian nature, now softened by the last lesson’s gravity.
Q10: Answer ANY FIVE (40-50 words each)
(i) Sophie’s father’s character (Going Places)
- Sophie’s father is aggressive and authoritative, warning her about her reckless chatter. His tone suggests frustration and a controlling nature, reflecting a practical, no-nonsense personality wary of her dreamy ambitions.
(46 words)
(ii) ‘A thing of beauty is a joy forever’ (A Thing of Beauty)
- Keats suggests beauty, like nature or art, provides eternal joy, uplifting the spirit amid life’s gloom. Its permanence offers solace, as seen in “quiet bower” and “flowery band,” linking us to lasting happiness.
(40 words)
(iii) Franz’s plan during commotion (The Last Lesson)
- Franz hoped to slip into class unnoticed amid the initial bustle, avoiding M. Hamel’s scolding for tardiness. The commotion was a distraction he planned to exploit before the unexpected quietness changed everything.
(41 words)
(iv) ‘Polished traffic’ vs. ‘pathetically pled’ (A Roadside Stand)
- “Polished traffic” depicts urban wealth and indifference, speeding past, while “pathetically pled” shows rural desperation and poverty at the stand. The contrast highlights coexisting worlds—privileged city life ignoring struggling rural existence.
(42 words)
(v) Pablo Neruda’s clarification (Keeping Quiet)
- Neruda clarifies that his call for stillness isn’t death or inaction but a pause for introspection, distinguishing it from war’s destructive silence. He seeks unity and self-awareness, not confusion with lifelessness.
(41 words)
(vi) Saheb’s inaccessible game (Lost Spring)
- Poverty, child labor, and lack of education keep Saheb from tennis. Barefoot scavenging replaces play, as economic necessity and social barriers—rags vs. rackets—lock him out of the privileged game he watches.
(40 words)
Q11: Answer ANY TWO (40-50 words each)
(i) Annan’s role in Bama’s success (Memories of Childhood)
- Annan inspired Bama by explaining caste oppression and urging education as resistance. His advice to study hard fueled her determination, helping her overcome discrimination and achieve success through learning.
(41 words)
(ii) Charlie’s vision of Galesburg 1894 (The Third Level)
- Charlie saw Galesburg as a peaceful, simpler past—big houses, lawns, and a relaxed pace. It was an escape from 1950s stress, a nostalgic haven he sought via the third level.
(42 words)
(iii) Dr. Sadao’s agreement to assassins (The Enemy)
- Sadao agreed due to patriotism and fear of repercussions as a Japanese doctor. Despite saving the American, loyalty to his country and the General’s authority swayed him to eliminate the threat.
(40 words)
Q12: Answer ANY ONE (120-150 words)
(A) Importance of overcoming fear in ‘Deep Water’ and ‘Indigo’
- In Deep Water, Douglas conquers his childhood fear of water through persistent practice, turning terror into triumph by swimming confidently. Facing the pool mirrors battling inner demons, showing fear’s defeat through effort. Similarly, in Indigo, Gandhi overcomes fear of British oppression by mobilizing peasants against injustice. His calm defiance in Champaran, despite threats, inspires courage, proving collective action defeats fear. Both texts highlight overcoming fear—Douglas personally, Gandhi socially—as essential for growth. Douglas gains freedom from phobia; Gandhi liberates farmers from exploitation. Together, they underscore that confronting fear, whether physical or systemic, builds resilience and agency, a lesson for CUET aspirants facing exam pressures.
(149 words)
Q13: Answer ANY ONE (120-150 words)
(B) Bama and Zitkala-Sa: Education as antidote (Memories of Childhood)
- Bama, facing caste discrimination, uses education as defiance after Annan’s advice, transforming anger into achievement. Her struggle against dehumanizing norms fuels her will to rise above through study. Zitkala-Sa resists cultural erasure at a missionary school, where her spirit fights forced assimilation—cutting her hair, losing traditions. Her will shines in preserving identity despite oppression. Both endure social evils—caste for Bama, colonialism for Zitkala-Sa—yet education empowers them. Bama excels to challenge inequality; Zitkala-Sa’s resistance educates others about heritage. Their victories show education counters injustice, equipping them to rewrite their narratives. For CUET 2025, their grit inspires students to harness learning against obstacles.
(147 words)
