CBSE English Sample Papers for Class 8

Section I: Each question carries 1 (10 x 1 = 10 marks)

mark. Fill in the blanks with can, could, may

 ________________ you swim across the river? (can / may)
or might.
 Nobody ________________ lift this table. (can / may)
 You ________________ take this. (may / can)
 ________________ I borrow your car? (may / can)
 It ________________ rain in the evening. (may / can)
 They ________________ arrive late. (may / can)
 That ________________ be true. (cannot / may not)
 I ________________ run for hours when I was young. (can / could / might)
 He said that I ________________ go. (can / may / could / might)
 I thought they ________________ arrive. (may / might / can)

Section II: Each question carries 10 marks. (2 x 10 = 20 marks)

1. Complete the following sentences using since or for.

 He has been looking for a job ___________ February. (since / for)

 I have been running this blog ___________ ten years. (for / since)
 He has been jobless ___________ six months. (since / for)
 They have known each other ___________ their school days. (since / for)
 I have known him ___________ twenty years. (for / since)
 I haven’t seen Janhavi ___________ Diwali. (since / for)
 We have been good friends ___________ university days. (since / for)
 It has been a long time ___________ our last meeting. (since / for)
 I once studied the piano ___________ six months. (for / since)
 _________________how long have you been here? (since / for) [I have changed the
placement of the blank in this sentence.]
2. Add appropriate question tags to the following sentences.

 Let’s go to a restaurant, ______________?

 You are the new secretary, ______________?
 He can’t wait for the classes to begin, ______________?
 Open a window, ______________?
 Your mother is at home, ______________?
 Shut up, ________________?
 There is little we can do about it, ______________?
 John will be here tomorrow, ______________?
 You are much better off where you are, ______________?
 Sing a song and forget your troubles, ______________?

Section III: Each question carries 10 marks. (3 x 10= 30 marks)

1. Complete the following sentences using relative pronouns.

 The dog _____________ has the brown collar is mine. (that / which / who)
 The girl ____________ is sitting beside Swati is her cousin. (who / whom / which)
 This is the best book _____________ I have ever read. (that / which / what)
 The man ___________ house was burgled called the police immediately. (who /
whose / whom)
 The girl _____________ we met in the store was very pretty. (who / whom / which)
 The film ________ we watched yesterday was very interesting. (which / that / what)
 Amar, ____________ works with my brother, is a good singer. (who / whom / that)
 The cake____________ my mother baked for my birthday was very delicious. (which
/ that / what)
 We are looking for a young woman____________ can play the role of Sita. (who /
whom / which)
 The doctor __________ treated Aparna was very kind and knowledgeable. (who /
whom / which)
2. Make interrogative and negative sentences in the simple past tense.

 Leslie went to the market to buy some flowers.

 Ram broke another window yesterday.
 The cat drank the milk.
 The girl spoke about her dreams.
 He wrote a poem yesterday.
 India defeated Australia to win the World Cup Cricket Championship.
 Roshni applied for the job.
 Ruby spent her childhood in Kerala.
 Malar won the first prize in the quiz competition.
 The worker fell off the ladder.

3. Read the conversation given below and complete the paragraph that follows.

Pooja: How did you spend your holidays?

Gautham: I went for cricket coaching. What did you do?

Pooja: I went for the NTSC coaching classes.

Gautham: At least during the holidays you could have enjoyed yourself.

Pooja: I enjoyed going for the coaching classes.

Pooja asked Gautham (a) ………………… holidays. Gautham said that (b) ………………. Cricket

coaching and wanted to know (c) ………………. during the holidays. When Pooja told him that

she had gone for NTSC coaching classes, Gautham told her that she could have enjoyed

herself during the holidays. Pooja replied that (d) ……………….. the coaching classes.
Section IV: Each question carries 10 marks. (1 x 10= 10 marks)

1. Read the passage given below and answer briefly the questions that follow:

Man does not live by food alone. Water is vital to human health and fitness. Although it is
not a nutrient as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins and minerals it is a key nutrient; as
no life is possible without it. Whereas we can do for weeks without food, we cannot live
without water longer than a couple of days.

Water approximates 60 per cent of the body weight of human adults. The total amount of
water in a man weighing 70 kilograms is approximately a little over 40 litres. It is an
excellent solvent - more substances are soluble in water than in any other liquid known so
far. This makes it an ideal constituent of the body fluids which sustain life-supporting
chemical reactions. It dissolves varied products of digestion and transports them to the rest
of the body. Likewise, it dissolves diverse metabolic wastes and helps drain them out of the
body. Besides, it performs a variety of functions-some well-known and well understood
while others not so well appreciated yet vital. The no less important role of water is to
distribute/dissipate the body heat efficiently, thereby regulating the body's temperature.
Water accomplishes this role ideally because it has thermal conductivity ensuring rapid heat
from one part to the other.

Above all, water has a high specific heat, implying that it takes a lot of heat to raise the
temperature of water and likewise much heat must be lost to lower its temperature.
Drinking a lot of water is an inexpensive way to stay healthy. Even excess of water is
harmless.

Water therapy - drinking a litre or so the first thing in the morning is kidney-friendly. The
water regulation in the body is affected by the hypothalamus in two ways i.e.,[i) by creating
the sensation of thirst which makes us drink water and (ii) by controlling the excretion of
water and urine. If water regulation fails, medical emergency ensues.
1. Man cannot live for more than a couple of days___________________

a. Without food
b. without water
c. without oxygen
d. without fruits

2. Water is an excellent solvent because___________________

a. It regulates excretion of urine

b. It dissolves metabolic wastes
c. It drains wastes out of body
d. More substances are soluble in it than in any other liquid.

3. The high thermal conductivity of water helps to___________________

a. Dissolve food
b. Dissolve metabolic wastes
c. Regulate body temperature
d. Sustain life-supporting chemical reactions

4. The word ' ideal' means___________________

a. lazy
b. most suitable
c. valuable
d. good

5. The total amount of water in a man weighing 70 kg is___________________

a. Approximately 70 litres
b. Approximately 60 litres
c. Approximately 40 litres
d. Approximately 50 litres
6. High specific-heat of water means___________________

a. It has high thermal conductivity

b. It takes less heat to raise its temperature
c. It takes more heat to raise its temperature
d. It distributes the body heat efficiently

7. Drinking a litre of water in the morning is called ___________________

a. Hypothalamus
b. water regulation
c. kidney therapy
d. water therapy

Section V: Each question carries 5 marks. (2 x 5 = 10 marks)

1. Complete the following passage with the most appropriate words from the options
given.

An ATM, or Automated Teller is (a) ______________ (a, an, the, no word) simple machine
which (b) ______________ (acting, acted, acts, is acted) as an extension of a bank even (c)
______________ (as, which, when, where) the bank is closed. The machine (d)
______________ (was, is, has been, should be) usually placed (e) ______________ (at, of,
in, on) a small room with a security guard stationed outside. You can (f) ______________
(withdraw, withdrawal, withdrawn, withdrew) money from your account, deposit cheques,
order (g) ______________ (a, an, the, no word) cheque book, get (h) ______________ (my,
our, somebody’s, your) account statements etc. The ATMs work round the year 24 hours a
day.

2. Write a diary entry in about 100-120 words about your experience of donating blood.