Karnataka 2nd PUC Question Paper 2026 Answer Key English

2026 II PUC EXAM – 1 KSEAB 02- ENGLISH
KARNATAKA SCHOOL EXAMINATION AND ASSESSMENT BOARD
2026 II PUC EXAM - 1

SUBJECT: 02-ENGLISH SCHEME OF EVALUATION MAX MARKS: 80
Q.N Answer Key Marks
PART-A
I
1. b. night 1
2. c. death sentence 1
3. d. yesterday 1
4. b. A-iii, B-i, C-ii 1
5. c. Basavaiah 1
6. c. Modern developments would replace books with more dynamic things. 1
7. a. pedestrians 1
8. b. Maduka 1
9. d. Fathima 1
10. c. water 1
11. was supported 1
was opposed 1
were composed 1
12. swept across 1
Brainchild 1
13. A-Pronouns B-Noun/Noun Phrases
a. He iii) Dr. Goldsmith 1
b. His vi) Dr. Goldsmith’s 1
c. She ii) poor woman 1
d. who i) poor woman’s husband 1
e. which iv) a small box 1
PART-B
II
teaching the torches to burn bright / a rich jewel / a snowy dove /
14. 2
beauty too rich for use / for earth too dear (any two)
15. The Archer / God 1
His arrows may go swift and far. 1
floods / landslides / scarcity of water / scarcity of fodder / scarcity of firewood
16. 2
(any two)
17. water / the Mahad Struggle 1
Chadar Tank 1

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2026 II PUC EXAM – 1 KSEAB 02- ENGLISH

Note: The answers are expected to be written in a paragraph of about 60 words. The
students are at liberty to express the correct & relevant content in their own words and
III sentences. The answers written in meaningful and grammatically correct sentences (in
terms of spelling, punctuation, sentence structure, subject–verb agreement, appropriate
tense, proper usage of articles and prepositions, and cohesion) should be given full marks.
Vandana Shiva learned about biodiversity in the Himalayan forests - protection of biodiversity on
the farms - saving seeds from farmers’ fields –farm for demonstration and training - Navdanya
18. farm in 1994 - 630 varieties of rice - 150 varieties of wheat and hundreds of other species 3
conserved and grown - biodiversity intensive form of farming-practised and promoted - the
conservation of biodiversity is answer to the food and nutrition crisis
Don Gonzalo’s cousin - in love with Laura - lived in villa called Maricela near Valencia - her
marriage was fixed with a merchant - one night, his cousin went to her villa - waited under her
19. window to hear her sing - was caught and insulted by merchant - duel between two - fought on 3
the beach - merchant badly wounded- merchant highly regarded in the locality - his cousin
concealed himself in his house out of fear – then he ran away from Valencia
Poet’s love for lady is different from other men - the other men loved her moments of glad grace
20. – loved her beauty with love false or true - poet loved the pilgrim soul in her - loved the sorrows 3
of her changing face- the other men loved her physical beauty
Child’s foot to live in a shoe after its defeat - grows bit by bit in the darkness - understands the
world in its own way- gets out of touch with its fellow - lives like a blind man. - soft nails grow
21. 3
hard - petaled toes grow bunched – become like eyeless reptiles with triangular heads - grow
callused – covered with faint volcanoes of death – toils in the shoe
Poet thinks heaven is on the earth itself - if we are not gods, then there can be no gods - if we are
not the nymphs, then there are no nymphs - roaring stream, rolling surf at the edge of waves-the
22. tender sunshine- the verdant gardens - the gentle sun make the earth a heaven - heaven lies all 3
over the earth in the splendor of harvest and moonlight - poet creates heaven on the earth -
imbibing and spilling song of nectar
Japanese live on overcrowded island - respect privacy - courtesy has double function - courtesy
23 and a substitute to privacy - the little red telephones become castle - conduct confidential business 3
transactions and intimate love quarrels in public - nobody listens- well-mannered people
Note: The answers are expected to be in a paragraph or two, in about 100 words. The
students are at liberty to express the correct and relevant content in their own words and
III sentences. The answers written in meaningful and grammatically correct sentences (in
terms of spelling, punctuation, sentence structure, subject–verb agreement, appropriate
tense, proper usage of articles and prepositions and cohesion) should be given full marks.
Criminal was expected to run away from the prison when the guard was dismissed- didn’t run
away - Minister of Justice spoke to him - told the criminal to go - the criminal argued - he had
nowhere to go - his character was ruined - people would turn their back on him - he had got out
of the way of working –treated badly - should have been executed, once he was sentenced to death
24 4
- didn’t complain when the death sentence was changed to a life imprisonment - unhappy for
removing the guard who used to supply food to him from the palace kitchen - without the guard
there, he had to fetch his own food from the palace kitchen - never complained on any of those
things- would not agree to run away from the prison

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2026 II PUC EXAM – 1 KSEAB 02- ENGLISH

Dona Laura said her friend was in love with Gonzalo’s cousin - She waited for her lover to come
back - did not receive any letters from him - thought that her love was lost forever-one afternoon,
she left the house - went to the beach where her beloved had risked his life in the duel with the
25. merchant - wrote his name on the sand-sat down upon a rock, fixing her gaze upon the horizon - 4
the waves murmured their eternal threnody and slowly crept up to the rock where the maiden sat
- the tide rose with a boom and swept her out to sea - waves didn’t wash away the name written
on sand for a long time
Tammanna decided to annihilate Basavaiah - composed all his experiences in the form of ballads
- started singing them - became a very popular singer - mentioned Basavaiah’s cruelty in his songs
– rivalry moved from visible to invisible, abstract domain - scholars of folklore were after him –
felicitated as the best poet - Basavaiah could not tolerate all this - tried to surpass the popularity
26. 4
of Tammanna but failed – later Tammanna fell ill – Basavaiah became happy – Tammanna’s
disease became Basavaiah’s health -Tammanna planned to punish Basavaiah – believed his death
could destroy Basavaiah – he left village – few days later Basavaiah passed away – after the death
of Basavaiah, Tammanna forgot all his songs – Tammanna became a non-entity
Borges agrees with Bernard Shaw’s idea that every book worth being re-read has been written by
the spirit - the book goes beyond its author’s intention - author’s intention is a meager - a fallible
thing - a book can be of full of errors - we can reject its author’s opinions and disagree with him
27. or her - a book retains something sacred, something mortal - something magical which brings 4
happiness - books will never disappear - the most astounding invention of man - extension of our
imagination and memory - the great memory of all centuries - their function is irreplaceable - if
books disappear, surely history would disappear, and surely man would disappear
Marcus was a school teacher - was a poor man then - once Marcus was elected - he was made the
Minister of Culture - became very rich - politics brought wealth, chieftaincy titles, doctorate
degrees and other honours - he owned two long cars and built the biggest house in Umuofia - the
28. voters realized that their ballot papers were the source of his fortune - they had underrated their 4
ballot papers in the previous election – Marcus became rich because people had elected him – the
power of their ballot papers made him rich and important – should not do the same again – decided
to ask for money in the next election – their ballot papers were not free anymore
Arivoli Iyakkam - led a vigorous literacy drive for the rural women in Pudukottai - N. Kannammal
- the Central Coordinator - included the cycling drive for the women on the directions of Sheela
Rani Chunkath - encouraged the women to learn cycling and use it for mobility - organised the
cycling training camps for them to learn cycling - cycling exhibitions cum contests and bicycle
rallies were organised to promote cycling among the women - gave cycling a social sanction,
29. when the women were discouraged with vicious attacks on their character by the male dominated 4
society - the women were encouraged with many cycling songs - the women learnt cycling- began
to use it for mobility - reduced their dependency on men and buses - used bicycles to cart
provisions - bring water from distant places-sell agricultural products - could reach the
unconnected areas - cover more areas in less time-more business - cycling gave independence and
freedom - gave self-respect – confidence - better life.
V
30-
A
a. Trinidad 1
b. in 2001 1
c. for 2 years 1
d. because of his bitter, even withering critiques of so called third world states and societies. 1

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2026 II PUC EXAM – 1 KSEAB 02- ENGLISH

e. ‘In a Free State’ 1
f. an intensified isolation and alienation. 1
g. ‘A House for Mr. Biswas’ 1
h Accomplishment 1
i Uneducated 1
30-B
a. two vast and trunkless legs of stone 1
b. on the sand 1
c. “My name is Ozymandis, king of kings: look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!” 1
d. cruelty and arrogance of the king 1
e. the other kings / the other powerful kings 1
f. The sculptor understood the king’s passions well. 1
g. boundless and bare desert sand 1
h. antique 1
i. frown 1
VI.
31.-A
i. We walked along a long distance on foot. 1
ii. I called my daughter in and shut the door of my home. 1
iii. The flock of birds is flying over head. 1
iv. I saw him at the mall last week. 1
31-B
and 1
as 1
but 1
at last 1
32-A
i. I do not know what to do, do I? 1
ii. What was a policeman clearing? 1
32-B
i. Children like sweets. 1
ii. The sun rises in the east. 1

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2026 II PUC EXAM – 1 KSEAB 02- ENGLISH

33 Note making
1. Lee Falk ½
2. Mr. Walker ½
3. An American ½
4. Mandrake, the magician ½
34 Report the following conversation
Roof told Ezenwa that he had given him/them three shillings, and he further asked him what 1+
else he/they expected from him. 1
Ezenwa told Roof that they wouldn’t have asked more if Marcus was a poor man. 1
Roof told Ezenwa that he would give him/them one more shilling, and he further told him/them 1+
not to expect more. 1
Note:
Apart from the mentioned reporting verbs (told & asked), any other appropriate
reporting verbs in their past tense form are acceptable.
35. Complete the dialogue
Mayura : Hi, Madhura, you are looking beautiful. 1
Madhura : Thank you. 1
Mayura : Is today a special day for you?
Madura : Yes, today is my birthday. 1
Mayura : Many more returns of the day, Madhura.
Madhura : Thank you, Mayura.
Note: Any other appropriate / meaningful expressions should be considered.
36-A Job Application
1. Format 2
2. Body of the letter 3
Note:
a. No marks for mere format without proper body of the letter.
b. Resume / Bio - Data can be written separately or can be included within the body
of the letter.
c. Apart from ‘XXXX, YYYY’ for name and address of the writer, any other
appropriate ‘From Address’ should be considered.

36-B Speech Writing
Introduction 1
Body of the speech 3
Conclusion 1

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