The Question

Q30 is Part C of the paper and carries 9 marks (9 × 1). It has an internal choice:

Option What is printed Typical questions
A an unseen prose passage of about 200 words seven or eight factual questions, one idiom or phrase (often as an MCQ), one antonym
B an unseen poem eight factual questions on the poem's details, one antonym

Both carry nine one-mark questions, and the answers are in the text. Nothing here has to be learnt in advance: the whole question is a reading test.

Which one to attempt. Read both for half a minute. The passage is usually safer, because its answers are stated in full sentences and are easy to lift. Choose the poem only if its questions are plainly literal (in 2025 they were) and the passage looks dense with names and dates. Attempt one of them, not parts of both.

[Exam Tip] — Nine marks is more than the letter or the speech, and it needs no preparation, only method. Spend the time you save here on Part B.

Method for the Prose Passage

  1. Read the questions first, in order. They almost always follow the order of the passage, so they act as a map.
  2. Read the passage once without stopping, then once more with the questions in mind.
  3. For each question, find the sentence that holds the answer and mark it.
  4. Write the answer as a short, complete sentence of your own, using the words of the passage. One line is enough.
  5. For a fill-in-the-blank, write only the missing word or phrase.
  6. For an MCQ on an idiom, write the letter and the words: iii) To explore every alternative.
  7. For an antonym or synonym, write the single word.

How to shape an answer

Question begins with Answer begins with
Why… Because… or a sentence giving the reason
Where… a place
When… a time
Who / Whom… a person's name
Which… the named thing
How… the manner: by walking, barefoot
Name the… the name only, written in full
… is known as __ the missing words only

Rules that protect the marks

  • Do not copy a whole paragraph. A long answer with the right words inside it still loses time, and sometimes the mark.
  • Do not add your own knowledge or opinion. Everything must come from the passage.
  • Keep the passage's spelling of names: Saalumarada Thimmakka, Bikkale Chikkayya, Hulikal.
  • Answer in the tense of the question.

The 2025 Passage, Solved

The passage was about Saalumarada Thimmakka, the environmentalist from Karnataka who planted and cared for thousands of trees, was called the 'Tree-Woman', could not attend school because of poverty, married Sri Bikkale Chikkayya of Hulikal village, began planting banyan saplings with him, and received the Padmashri in 2019.

Question Answer Where it comes from
a) Why was Thimmakka not able to go to school? Because of poverty and the lack of facilities in her village. "could not go to school due to poverty and lack of facilities"
b) Whom did Thimmakka marry? She married Sri Bikkale Chikkayya of Hulikal village. stated directly
c) Where was Saalumarada Thimmakka born? In a small village in Gubbi taluk, Tumkur district, Karnataka. stated directly
d) Saalumarada Thimmakka is known as __. the 'Tree-Woman' "She is called as 'Tree - Woman'"
e) Why did Thimmakka want to end her life? Because she could not conceive, at the age of forty. stated directly
f) Which trees did Thimmakka and her husband plant? Banyan trees. "10 banyan saplings"
g) Name the environmental organization named after Thimmakka in the U.S. Thimmakka's Resources for Environmental Education. stated directly
h) The idiom 'left no stone unturned' means __ (i turning stones, ii to be in trouble, iii to explore every alternative, iv to give up) iii) To explore every alternative. an idiom question, not a passage fact
i) The antonym of the word 'known' is __. unknown prefix un-

Two things to notice. Seven of the nine answers are lifted straight from the passage in one line each. The other two, the idiom and the antonym, test vocabulary, so they are the only places where general English knowledge is needed.

Method for the Poem, and the 2025 Poem

The poem option works the same way, with two differences: the answers are spread over short lines rather than sentences, and the wording is often figurative, so lift the poem's own words rather than explaining them.

  1. Read the poem twice. Do not try to interpret it; the questions are factual.
  2. Match each question to the line it comes from.
  3. Answer in one short line, in the poem's words.
  4. Save the antonym question for last; it needs no reading.

The 2025 poem was Prayer of a Black Boy, in which a tired boy asks the Lord not to send him to "their school", and says he would rather follow his father into the cool gorges, walk barefoot on the red-hot paths, and sleep under a mango tree until the White man's factory siren howls.

Question Answer
a) Whom does the boy want to follow into the cool gorges? His father.
b) Where does the boy not want to go? To their school.
c) Where does the night hover? Over the magic forests.
d) What is the black boy requesting the Lord? To help him so that he need not go to school again.
e) How is the road to school? It is steep.
f) How does the boy want to tread the red-hot paths? Barefoot.
g) Which tree does the black boy want to sleep under? A mango tree.
h) When does the black boy want to wake up? Only when the White man's siren starts to howl.
i) The antonym of the word 'HOT' is __. cold

Notice that every answer is a phrase from the poem itself. The examiner is not asking what the poem means; that is what makes this option quick when the questions are literal.

The Two Vocabulary Questions, and Common Mistakes

The idiom question is usually an MCQ. The commonest idioms set with such passages:

Idiom Meaning
leave no stone unturned try every possible means
at the eleventh hour at the last moment
a blessing in disguise something bad that turns out well
turn a deaf ear refuse to listen
burn the midnight oil study or work late into the night
break the ice start a conversation
once in a blue moon very rarely
a bolt from the blue a sudden shock

The antonym question is usually formed with a prefix or a common opposite.

Word Antonym
known unknown
hot cold
poverty wealth / prosperity
ancient modern
increase decrease
formal informal
possible impossible
visible invisible
honour dishonour
accept reject

Common mistakes

Mistake Correction
Copying a whole paragraph as the answer One sentence that answers the question.
Adding facts from outside the passage Only what is printed can be right.
Changing a name's spelling Copy names exactly as printed.
Writing a sentence for a one-word question An antonym or a fill-in takes only the word.
Answering both the passage and the poem It is a choice; answer one fully.
Answering the MCQ with the letter alone Write the letter and the words.
Leaving a question because the idiom is unknown Guess from the sentence around it; a sensible guess may earn the mark.

[Exam Tip] — Answer the nine in order and keep each to one line. Nine one-line answers take about twelve minutes, which leaves the rest of Part C's time for checking.