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English Language & Literature — CBSE Class 10 board question

Q1. [5]
He stalks in his vivid stripes The few steps of his cage, On pads of velvet quiet, In his quiet rage. He should be lurking in shadow, Sliding through long grass
Read the following extract and answer the questions.
  1. (i) Identify and name any one figure of speech in the above extract. [2]
  2. (ii) Fill in the blank with one word. The tiger's stalking on 'pads of velvet' suggests a movement that is ___________. [1]
  3. (iii) Based on the given lines from the poem, which words would best describe the feelings of the tiger ? [1]
    1. A Calm and content
    2. B Both subdued and angry
    3. C Both frustrated and happy
    4. D Both angry and famished
  4. (iv) Select the option that applies the same rhyme scheme as the first four lines of the given extract. [1]
    1. A The people along the sand All turn and look one way They turn their back on the land They look at the sea all day
    2. B Along the sand, the people All turn and look one way They turn back on the sand They look at the sea all day
    3. C The people along the sand Look one way and all turn Their backs on the land They look at the sea all day
    4. D The people along the sand They turn their back on the land They look one way At the sea all day.
Previously asked in CBSE board exam
2025 2/1/1 Q7(b)
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-15 07:14 · grounding stimulus+chapter
Model Answer

(i) Personification — "In his quiet rage" attributes human emotion (rage) to the tiger.
(Alternatively: Metaphor — "pads of velvet quiet" compares the tiger's soft paws to velvet.)

(ii) The tiger's stalking on 'pads of velvet' suggests a movement that is silent/noiseless.

(iii) B — Both subdued and angry.
The tiger walks the few steps of his cage (subdued/confined) yet is filled with "quiet rage" (anger).

(iv) Option A.
The rhyme scheme of the first four lines is ABAB (stripes/cage/quiet/rage — cage rhymes with rage, stripes with quiet = ABAB).
Option A follows the same ABAB scheme: sand/way/land/day — sand & land (A), way & day (B).

Source: "A Tiger in the Zoo", Leslie Norris

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Explanation
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Previous-year CBSE Grade 10 board exam questions, organised by subject and chapter, each with a model answer — free to read and print.