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Unseen Passage with Answer – Set-1

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Unseen Passage with Answer – Set-1 – Here are some easy steps for understanding and answering Class 10 comprehension passages:

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1. Read the passage carefully but quickly.

2. Highlight important details using a pen or pencil.

3. Pay attention to the questions and look for answers in the passage.

4. Answers usually follow a logical order in the passage.

5. Try to express answers in your own words.

6. For vocabulary questions, replace the word with its meaning to see if it fits.

7. For multiple-choice questions, read all options, review the passage again, then pick the right one.

Unseen Passage for Class 10 English Reading Skills

Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:

(1) Mankind’s fascination with gold is as old as civilization itself. The ancient Egyptians held gold in high esteem. Gold had religious significance for them, and King Tutankhamen was buried in a solid gold coffin 3300 years ago. The wandering Israelites worshipped a golden calf, and the legendary King Midas asked that whatever he touched be turned into gold.

(2) Not only is gold beautiful, but it is virtually indestructible. It will not rust or corrode. Gold coins and products fabricated from the metal have survived undamaged for centuries. Gold is extremely easy to work with. One ounce, which is about the size of a cube of sugar, can be beaten into a sheet nearly 100 square feet in size, and becomes so thin that light can pass through it. An ounce of gold can also be stretched into a wire 50 miles long. Gold conducts electricity better than any other substance except copper and silver, and it is particularly important in modern electronic industry.

(3) People have always longed to possess gold. Unfortunately, this longing has also brought out the worst in human character. The Spanish conquerors robbed palaces, temples and graves and killed thousands of people in their ruthless search for gold. Even today, the economy of South Africa’s gold mines depend largely on the employment of black labourers who paid about 40 pounds a month, plus boarding and lodging. They work in conditions that can only be described as cruel. About 400 miners die in South Africa each year.

(4) Much of the gold’s value lies in its scarcity. Only about 80,000 tons have been mined in the history of the world. All of it can be stored in a vault 60 feet square, or a super tanker. Great Britain was the first country to adopt the gold standard, when the Master of the Mint, Sir Issac Newton, established a fixed price for gold in 1717. The discovery of gold in the last half of the nineteenth century in California 1848 and later in Australia and South Africa changed everything. Before the discovery there simply wasn’t enough gold around for all the trading nations to link their currencies to the precious metal.

(5) An out-of-work prospector named George Harrison launched South Africa into the gold age in 1886 when he discovered the metal on a farm near what is now Johannesburg. Harrison was given 12 pounds as a reward by the farmer. He then disappeared and was eaten by a lion.

(6) One of the biggest gold mining areas in the Soviet Union is the Kolyma River region, once infamous for its prison camp. The camp has gone, but in a way nothing has changed. Many ex-prisoners have stayed on to work in the mines and are supervised by ex-guards.

(7) Despite the current rush to buy gold, 75 percent of the metal goes into making jewellery. Italy is the biggest consumer of gold for this purpose, and many Italian jewellers even tear up their wooden floors and burn them to recover the tiny flecks of gold. Historically, the desire to hoard gold at home has been primarily an occupation of the working and peasant classes, who have had no faith in paper money. George Bernard Shaw defended their instincts eloquently, “You have to choose between trusting the natural stability of the honesty and intelligence of the members of the government,” he said “and with due respect to these gentlemen, I advise to vote for gold.”

Based on your understanding to the passage, answer the questions given below. 10 ✘ 1 = 10

(i) When was King Tutankhamen buried?

(a) 1717 (b) 1886 (c) 3300 years ago (d) 1848

(ii) Why did Egyptians hold gold in great esteem?

(a) because it is a good conductor of electricity.

(b) because of its religious significance.

(d) because it is indestructible.

(iii) According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?

(a) Gold is the best conductor of electricity.

(b) Apart from gold, copper and silver are good conductors of electricity.

(d) Gold plays an important role in the modern electronics industry.

(iv) Select the option that displays what the writer projects, with reference to the following: