Term pack

Class 10 English

Name: ________________________

Skills in this pack

Tenses across a passage
Agreement with harder subjects
The passive in every tense
Reporting a whole conversation
Small words in a gap-fill
Simple, compound and complex — in both directions
Connectors between sentences
The errors that come round again and again
Editing and proofreading
Changing a word's part of speech
Reading a passage closely
Writing a summary
Writing an analytical paragraph
Writing a formal letter

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Class 10 English · 1 of 14

Tenses across a passage

Choose the tense each gap in a passage needs, using the time signals around it.

1.Which sentence says the work will be finished before next April?
- a) The school will complete the library next April.
- b) The school completes the library next April.
- c) The school is completing the library next April.
- d) The school will have completed the library by next April.
2.Sort each verb form by its tense.
Groups: Past perfect · Present perfect · Past continuous
- has reached
- had written
- were writing
- was reaching
- had reached
- have written
3.A passage opens: "For six months the tap had run dry." What does that tense tell a reader about the story to come?
- a) The tap has never once been dry.
- b) The dry tap is the background, and the story itself happens later.
- c) The tap is dry at this very moment.
- d) The tap will run dry in the future.
4.By the time the bell rang, the class ____ the whole chapter.
- a) had finished
- b) has finished
- c) finishes
- d) finished
5.Match each verb form to the time it describes.
- cooked
- had cooked
- has cooked
- was cooking
- is cooking
- will have cooked
- will be finished before a future point
- finished, and it still matters now
- finished at a stated past time
- was going on at a past moment
- finished before another past action
- going on right now
6.Ravi ____ the letter when the postman knocked, so he put down his pen and opened the door.
- a) was writing
- b) has written
- c) wrote
- d) writes
7.Complete with the present perfect of "live", in two words: My grandmother ____ in this house since 1971.
8.The shop ____ at eight every morning, but today it ____ late.
- a) is opening / opens
- b) opens / opened
- c) opened / opens
- d) opens / is opening

Tenses across a passage · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 2 of 14

Agreement with harder subjects

Make the verb agree when the subject is a quantity, a fraction, an inverted phrase or a subject buried in an added phrase.

1.Sort each sentence by whether the verb agrees with its subject.
Groups: Agrees · Does not agree
- A number of letters has arrived.
- A number of letters have arrived.
- The number of letters has grown.
- More than one shop were shut.
- More than one shop was shut.
- The number of letters have grown.
2.Write "was" or "were": Among the papers on the desk ____ a torn map.
3.At the end of the lane ____ two old wells.
- a) has been
- b) are
- c) was
- d) is
4.Write "has" or "have": More than one house ____ been damaged by the storm.
5.Write "is" or "are": Two-thirds of the water ____ still in the tank.
6.Write "is" or "are": Two-thirds of the students ____ present.
7.Sort each subject by the verb it needs.
Groups: Takes a singular verb · Takes a plural verb
- All of the roads
- A number of visitors
- Every one of the roads
- More than one answer
- Both of the answers
- The number of visitors
8.Which sentence is correct?
- a) Half of the mangoes was ripe.
- b) Half of the mangoes is ripe.
- c) Half of the mangoes has ripe.
- d) Half of the mangoes were ripe.

Agreement with harder subjects · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 3 of 14

The passive in every tense

Form the passive in any tense, and with a modal verb or an imperative.

1.Change to the passive: "Someone was following us."
- a) We were followed.
- b) We had been followed.
- c) We were being followed.
- d) We are being followed.
2.Complete the passive using "must", with three words: The report ____ before Friday. (verb: submit)
3.Sort each passive verb phrase by whether it carries a modal verb.
Groups: Passive with a modal · Passive without a modal
- should be washed
- can be repaired
- was washed
- must be signed
- has been signed
- is repaired
4.Which sentence is the passive of the command "Close the gate"?
- a) Let the gate be closed.
- b) The gate closes.
- c) The gate is closing.
- d) The gate closed.
5.Match each active sentence to its passive form.
- They clean the hall.
- They are cleaning the hall.
- They cleaned the hall.
- They have cleaned the hall.
- They will clean the hall.
- They must clean the hall.
- The hall was cleaned.
- The hall is being cleaned.
- The hall will be cleaned.
- The hall is cleaned.
- The hall has been cleaned.
- The hall must be cleaned.
6.Complete the passive: The bridge ____ by next June. (verb: complete)
7.Change to the passive: "They have finished the work."
- a) The work had been finished.
- b) The work has finished.
- c) The work is finished by them.
- d) The work has been finished.
8.Why might a writer choose the passive in "The window was broken during the night"?
- a) Because who broke it is unknown or does not matter.
- b) To turn the sentence into a question.
- c) To move the sentence into the future.
- d) To say clearly who broke it.

The passive in every tense · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 4 of 14

Reporting a whole conversation

Report several turns of a conversation, keeping the tense shift, the pronouns and the reporting verbs consistent throughout.

1.Which is the correct reported form? The original was: "Please shut the window."
- a) He said that shut the window.
- b) He said me to shut the window.
- c) He told that I shut the window.
- d) He requested me to shut the window.
2.Priya asked me, "Where do you live?" How is that reported?
- a) Priya asked where I lived.
- b) Priya asked where do I live.
- c) Priya asked that where I lived.
- d) Priya asked where did I live.
3.Sort each reported sentence by the kind of thing that was originally said.
Groups: A statement · A question · A command or request
- He said that the gate was locked.
- She asked when we had finished.
- She begged him to finish quickly.
- He told us to lock the gate.
- She said that she had finished.
- He asked whether the gate was locked.
4.Ravi said, "I am waiting for the bus." How is that reported?
- a) Ravi said that he waited for the bus.
- b) Ravi said that he is waiting for the bus.
- c) Ravi said that I was waiting for the bus.
- d) Ravi said that he was waiting for the bus.
5.A teacher says to one student, "You have done well." When that student reports it later, which pronoun does "you" become?
- a) he
- b) they
- c) I
- d) you
6.Sort each reporting verb by what it usually introduces.
Groups: A statement · A command or request
- replied
- ordered
- remarked
- begged
- instructed
- explained
7.Put this reported conversation back into the order it must have happened.
- Anil replied that it was blue and had his name on it.
- The conductor asked him what the bag looked like.
- The conductor told him to come back to the office the next morning.
- Anil said that he had lost his bag on the bus.
8.When the words being reported state a general truth, what may happen to the tense?
- a) It may stay in the present.
- b) It must move into the future.
- c) The sentence cannot be reported at all.
- d) It must always shift back one step.

Reporting a whole conversation · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 5 of 14

Small words in a gap-fill

Fill the articles, determiners and prepositions an exam-style gap-fill leaves out.

1.Sort each determiner by the kind of noun it goes with.
Groups: Countable plural nouns · Uncountable nouns
- a great deal of
- few
- many
- much
- several
- little
2.Write the one missing word: She is the tallest girl ____ the class.
3.Put the steps of filling a gap in the order you should do them.
- Next, look at the word just before the gap and the word just after it.
- First, read the whole passage once without filling anything in.
- Finally, write your word in and read the sentence again to hear whether it fits.
- Then decide what kind of word the gap needs — an article, a determiner or a preposition.
4.Match each sentence to the preposition its gap needs.
- Everything depends ____ the weather.
- The keys are ____ the top drawer.
- We waited ____ the gate for an hour.
- She walked ____ the bridge to the other side.
- This ring is made ____ solid gold.
- He has been ill ____ Monday.
- in
- of
- on
- since
- at
- across
5.We reached the station ____ half past six.
- a) on
- b) from
- c) in
- d) at
6.Kavi is ____ honest boy, and everyone in the lane trusts him.
- a) a
- b) the
- c) no word at all
- d) an
7.Write one missing word: That film was ____ best I have seen this year.
8.Sort each preposition by what it usually marks.
Groups: Time · Place
- beside
- among
- behind
- during
- until
- since

Small words in a gap-fill · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 6 of 14

Simple, compound and complex — in both directions

Rewrite a sentence as simple, compound or complex without changing what it means.

1.Change to a complex sentence: "He was tired, so he went to bed early."
- a) Being tired, he went to bed early.
- b) Because he was tired, he went to bed early.
- c) He was tired; he went to bed early.
- d) He was tired and went to bed early.
2.Which of these sentences is complex?
- a) The rain stopped before the sun came out.
- b) The rain stopped and the sun came out.
- c) The rain stopped, and then the sun came out.
- d) The rain stopped; the sun came out.
3.Join into one complex sentence beginning with "When", and write the whole sentence: The bell rang. The children ran out.
4."He is so weak that he cannot walk." Which simple sentence means the same?
- a) He is weak, but he can walk.
- b) He is too weak to walk.
- c) He is weak, so he walks.
- d) He is as weak as he walks.
5.Sort each joining word by the kind of sentence it builds.
Groups: Builds a compound sentence · Builds a complex sentence
- unless
- so
- because
- but
- and
- although
6.Complete the compound sentence with one word: The sky was clear, ____ the wind was bitterly cold.
7.Sort each sentence by its kind.
Groups: Simple · Compound · Complex
- She won the race easily.
- When the bell rang, the class stood up.
- The bell rang loudly.
- The bell rang and the class stood up.
- Because she ran fast, she won the race.
- She ran fast, so she won the race.
8.Match each simple sentence to the complex sentence that means the same thing.
- Being ill, he stayed at home.
- On reaching the station, we bought our tickets.
- He is too weak to walk.
- In spite of his age, he works hard.
- I know his address.
- The man in the blue shirt is my uncle.
- The man who is wearing the blue shirt is my uncle.
- When we reached the station, we bought our tickets.
- He is so weak that he cannot walk.
- Although he is old, he works hard.
- Because he was ill, he stayed at home.
- I know where he lives.

Simple, compound and complex — in both directions · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 7 of 14

Connectors between sentences

Link ideas across sentences with the connector that shows the right relationship.

1.Put the sentences of this paragraph in order. The connectors will tell you where each one belongs.
- One reason is that rainwater runs straight into drains instead of soaking into the ground.
- Consequently, several cities now collect rainwater on rooftops.
- Cities across the country are running short of water.
- Moreover, old pipes leak away a large share of the supply.
2.What is wrong here? "The shop was shut. Therefore, we bought the bread there."
- a) Nothing is wrong.
- b) "Therefore" is spelled wrongly.
- c) "Therefore" should not be followed by a comma.
- d) "Therefore" does not fit the meaning.
3.Write one connector that opens a sentence and means the same as "but".
4.The hall was very small. ____, it was badly lit.
- a) For example
- b) However
- c) Moreover
- d) Therefore
5.Rain fell for six hours without stopping. ____, the match was abandoned.
- a) Consequently
- b) Similarly
- c) For example
- d) Meanwhile
6.The road was flooded. ____, the bus could not reach the village.
- a) Nevertheless
- b) Similarly
- c) For instance
- d) Consequently
7.Many crops need very little water. ____, millet grows well in dry soil.
- a) Therefore
- b) However
- c) For instance
- d) In contrast
8.Sort each connector by the relationship it signals.
Groups: Adds an idea · Contrasts an idea · Shows a result · Gives an example
- nevertheless
- on the other hand
- as a result
- furthermore
- consequently
- for example
- in addition
- for instance

Connectors between sentences · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 8 of 14

The errors that come round again and again

Name the kind of mistake a faulty line contains — agreement, tense, article, preposition or word form — and then correct it.

1.Correct the error: "Please explain me the rule." Write the one word that must be added.
2.Correct the error: "I have seen him yesterday." Write the corrected word.
3.Sort each line by whether it is correct English.
Groups: Correct · Wrong
- He returned back from the city on Sunday.
- She married a doctor.
- He returned from the city on Sunday.
- She married with a doctor.
- We will discuss the matter later.
- We will discuss about the matter later.
4.Which correction is right for "He is one of the best player in the team"?
- a) one of the better player
- b) one of the best playing
- c) one of best player
- d) one of the best players
5.What kind of error is in "The scenery of the hills are beautiful"?
- a) The tense of the verb is wrong
- b) The article before the noun is wrong
- c) A plural verb has been given to a noun that cannot be counted
- d) The adjective at the end is the wrong form
6.Which line is free of error?
- a) Each of the boys has a bat.
- b) Each of the boys have bats.
- c) Each of the boy has a bat.
- d) Each of the boys have a bat.
7.What kind of error is in "She said me that she was busy"?
- a) The pronoun at the end is the wrong one
- b) The tense of the reported verb is wrong
- c) The article before the noun is missing
- d) This reporting verb cannot be followed straight away by the listener
8.Correct the error: "He is senior than me." Write the corrected word.

The errors that come round again and again · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 9 of 14

Editing and proofreading

Find and correct the single error in a line — grammar, spelling or punctuation.

1.Correct the spelling: "They live in a seperate house." Write the word correctly.
2.Sort each line by whether it contains an error.
Groups: Correct · Contains an error
- I did not see him.
- There are many books.
- I did not saw him.
- She has two brothers.
- There is many books.
- She have two brothers.
3.One word must be removed: "He is the most tallest boy in the class." Write the word to remove.
4.Correct the spelling: "I recieved your letter." Write the word correctly.
5.Which line is punctuated correctly?
- a) Where's my pen
- b) Where's my pen?
- c) wheres my pen?
- d) wheres my pen
6.Which word is the error? "The book which I bought it yesterday is torn."
- a) it
- b) which
- c) bought
- d) torn
7.Correct the error: "She don't like sweets." Write the corrected word or words.
8.Which word is the error? "The boys was playing in the field."
- a) boys
- b) field
- c) playing
- d) was

Editing and proofreading · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 10 of 14

Changing a word's part of speech

Turn a word into a noun, adjective, verb or adverb by changing its ending.

1.Sort each ending by the part of speech it makes.
Groups: Makes a noun · Makes an adjective
- -ity
- -ful
- -ment
- -ness
- -ive
- -less
2.Make a noun from "decide".
3.Which word is the noun form of "able"?
- a) ability
- b) enable
- c) ably
- d) unable
4.Which of these is a compound word — two whole words joined into one?
- a) flowery
- b) flowering
- c) sunflower
- d) flowers
5.Make a noun from "know".
6.Match each ending to what it makes.
- -tion
- -ous
- -ify
- -ly
- -ment
- -en
- a verb, as in widen
- a noun, as in attention
- an adjective, as in famous
- a verb, as in simplify
- a noun, as in movement
- an adverb, as in quickly
7.Make a noun from "succeed" — the one that means the opposite of failure.
8.Make a verb from "strength".

Changing a word's part of speech · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 11 of 14

Reading a passage closely

Answer questions on an extract — what it states, what it implies, and what its words mean there.

1.Read: "Meera checked the sky twice before she left, and pushed the umbrella deep into her bag." What does this suggest?
- a) She disliked walking.
- b) She was expecting rain.
- c) She was going to the market.
- d) She had lost her umbrella.
2.Put these four sentences into the order that makes one paragraph. The time words tell you where each one belongs.
- They stay until the mud returns.
- In July, however, the rains fill it to the brim.
- For most of the year the lake is a shallow bowl of cracked mud.
- By September the water has drawn back a little, and the birds arrive.
3.Match each sentence to what the word in brackets means in it.
- The keen wind cut through his shirt. (keen)
- She has a keen interest in birds. (keen)
- The train drew into the station. (drew)
- She drew a map on the board. (drew)
- He could not bear the noise. (bear)
- The path bears to the left. (bears)
- sketched
- eager
- moved
- sharp
- tolerate
- turns
4.Read: "'Of course you may borrow it,' said Nita, holding the book a little tighter." What does the detail about her hands suggest?
- a) She was about to read it aloud.
- b) The book was very heavy.
- c) She did not really want to lend it.
- d) She had only just bought it.
5.Read: "He had rehearsed the speech forty times, yet his hands would not keep still." What does "yet" do here?
- a) It gives the result of the first half.
- b) It offers an example of the first half.
- c) It sets the second half against the first.
- d) It gives the reason for the first half.
6.Passage: "Arun put down his bag, switched off the fan and locked the door behind him. The corridor lights were already off." Sort each statement by whether the passage states it or only implies it.
Groups: Stated in the passage · Only implied
- Other people had already gone.
- Arun was leaving for the day.
- The corridor lights were off.
- Arun locked the door.
- Arun switched off the fan.
- The fan had been on before Arun reached it.
7.Read: "By the time the inspector arrived, the register had been signed by everyone." Which happened first?
- a) Both happened at the same moment.
- b) The extract does not say.
- c) The register was signed.
- d) The inspector arrived.
8.Read: "The old bridge was rickety, and the villagers crossed it one at a time." What does "rickety" mean here?
- a) Newly built
- b) Crowded
- c) Very wide
- d) Unsteady

Reading a passage closely · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 12 of 14

Writing a summary

Cut a passage to its essential points and write them out as your own connected sentences.

1.Match each long phrase to the single word that can replace it.
- a large number of
- in the near future
- due to the fact that
- at the present moment
- in the event that
- with the exception of
- many
- if
- because
- soon
- except
- now
2.Why should a summary avoid copying the passage's own sentences word for word?
- a) Because a summary has to be longer than the passage.
- b) Because a summary may not use complete sentences.
- c) Because copying does not show that the passage has been understood.
- d) Because the passage's sentences are always badly written.
3.Which of these belongs in a summary?
- a) Your own opinion of the passage
- b) One example from each paragraph
- c) The main point of each paragraph
- d) A direct quotation from the passage
4.Reduce this phrase to a single word: "people who live in a village".
5.Which is the best opening sentence for a summary of a passage about water shortage?
- a) I think the passage is about water shortage.
- b) In this passage the writer says a great many things.
- c) Let me tell you all about water shortage.
- d) Water shortage in the district has three main causes.
6.Reduce this phrase to a single word: "at regular intervals".
7.Reduce this phrase to a single word: "in spite of the fact that".
8.Reduce this phrase to a single word: "at this point in time".

Writing a summary · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 13 of 14

Writing an analytical paragraph

Turn a chart or a table into one paragraph that reports what it shows, without listing every figure on it.

1.Match each kind of change to the word that describes it.
- a large rise
- a small rise
- a large fall
- a small fall
- no change at all
- an up-and-down movement
- soared
- held steady
- plunged
- edged up
- slipped
- fluctuated
2.The chart shows how many readers used the village library each year from 2019 to 2023. Tap the bar for the first year in which the number fell.
Write the number of the part.
3.Which sentence reports a trend rather than a single figure?
- a) The number rose steadily until 2021 and then fell.
- b) In 2021 the figure was ninety-five.
- c) The chart has five bars on it.
- d) There were sixty readers in 2022.
4.Which is the better sentence for an analytical paragraph?
- a) The figure was forty, then seventy, then ninety-five, then sixty, then eighty-five.
- b) The figure almost doubled in two years before falling back.
- c) I like the year 2021 best of all.
- d) The chart is about library readers.
5.Put the sentences of this analytical paragraph in the order they should come.
- Overall, the library was busier at the end of the period than at the start.
- Use rose sharply from 2019 to 2021, when it reached its highest point.
- The bar chart shows the number of readers at the village library over five years.
- It then dropped in 2022 before recovering a little in the following year.
6.Which verb form fits the sentence that introduces a chart: "The graph ____ the rainfall over five years"?
- a) shows
- b) showed
- c) has been showing
- d) will show
7.How should an analytical paragraph on a bar chart begin?
- a) With a list of every figure on it
- b) With a sentence saying what the chart shows
- c) With the highest bar
- d) With your own opinion of the figures
8.Which of these has no place in an analytical paragraph?
- a) A word that names the shape of the change
- b) A closing sentence about the overall pattern
- c) A sentence naming the highest and the lowest points
- d) Every single figure from the chart, one after another

Writing an analytical paragraph · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Class 10 English · 14 of 14

Writing a formal letter

Write a letter to an official that names its business at once and keeps its language businesslike to the end.

Before you start

A formal letter with each of its blocks marked. Notice how far down the page the greeting comes, and how short the subject line is beside the body.

1. Your own address
2. The date
3. The officer's address
4. Salutation
5. Subject line
6. Body paragraphs
7. Sign-off and name

Everything above the greeting is addresses and dates. The letter itself does not begin until the body.

1.Which is the most formal way to ask?
- a) I want you to repair it.
- b) Fix it soon, please.
- c) I request that you arrange for the light to be repaired.
- d) Please repair it right now.
2.Which of these has no place in a formal letter?
- a) A clear subject line
- b) A polite request
- c) A vague word such as stuff
- d) A plain statement of the facts
3.Match each part of a formal letter to what it holds.
- Subject line
- Salutation
- Opening paragraph
- Middle paragraph
- Closing paragraph
- Sign-off
- The details of the matter
- One line naming what the letter is about
- The polite phrase before your name
- The greeting to the reader
- The reason for writing
- The action you are asking for
4.A formal letter spells its verbs out in full. Write "don't" as a formal letter would write it.
5.Sort each sentence by whether its language suits a formal letter.
Groups: Suits a formal letter · Too informal
- It's been going on for ages now.
- I just wanted to say something about this.
- Write back soon, okay?
- The problem has continued for three weeks.
- I should be grateful for an early reply.
- I am writing to draw your attention to the matter.
6.Which subject line is best for a letter about a street light that has stopped working?
- a) Subject: Broken street light outside the school gate
- b) Subject: Please read this carefully
- c) Subject: Letter
- d) Subject: A problem
7.You are writing to the municipal officer about waste that is no longer being collected. Which closing sentence is best?
- a) I request that you arrange for collection to resume without further delay.
- b) I hope you will do something about it.
- c) Please look into it whenever you happen to have time.
- d) That is all I have to say on the matter.
8.What should the first sentence of a formal letter do?
- a) Say why you are writing
- b) Describe the weather that week
- c) Ask after the reader's family
- d) Apologise for taking up any time

Writing a formal letter · Class 10 English · www.arenapublications.com/learn

Answer keys — Class 10 English

In the same order as the worksheets.