Haryana Board (HBSE) Class 8 English Question Paper 2026 Answer Key
Instructions :
• All questions are compulsory.
• Questions 1 to 15 carry 1 mark each.
• Questions 16 to 21 carry 2 marks each.
• Questions 22 to 27 carry 3 marks each.
• Questions 28 to 30 carry 5 marks each.
1. Identify the correct tense of the sentence :
“It has been raining since morning.”
(a) Present continuous tense
(b) Present perfect tense
(c) Present perfect continuous tense
(d) Past perfect tense
Answer – (c) Present perfect continuous tense
2. Choose the most appropriate modal verb for a polite request to fill in the blanks.
………….. I come in?
(a) Can
(b) May
(c) Could
(d) might
Answer – (b) May
3. Select the correct form of the verb :
If ………… he hard, he will succeed.
(a) worked
(b) works
(c) will work
(d) work
Answer – (b) works
4. Identify the correct conjunction to fill the blank.
He was late ………… he missed the train.
(a) so
(b) but
(c) because
(d) or
Answer – (a) so
5. Identify the type of sentence :
What a beautiful painting this is!
(a) Interrogative
(b) Imperative
(c) Exclamatory
(d) Declarative
Answer – (c) Exclamatory
6. Rearrange the jumbled sentence :
Loves / she / to / the / beach / at / the / swim.
(a) Loves she to the beach at the swim.
(b) She loves to swim at the beach.
(c) She at the beach loves to swim.
(d) To swim at the beach she loves.
Answer – (b) She loves to swim at the beach.
7. The starving cricket went to an ant and requested it to lend him …………
(a) some clothes
(b) some money
(c) a mouthful of grain
(d) a quilt
Answer – (c) a mouthful of grain
8. Hawking was a ………….
(a) farmer
(b) scientist
(c) teacher
(d) generalist
Answer – (b) scientist
9. Jody’s father had been bitten by …………..
(a) a dog
(b) a horse
(c) rattle snake
(d) a tiger
Answer – (c) rattle snake
10. What was the name of the youngest daughter of the king?
(a) Princess August
(b) Princess September
(c) Princess July
(d) Princess May
Answer – (b) Princess September
11. Rewrite the following sentence into interrogative.
She is writing a book.
Answer – Is she writing a book?
12. My father lives ………… Delhi. (in / at)
Answer – in
13. Who wrote the poem ‘The School Boy’?
Answer – William Blake
14. ‘Toothbrush’ is a compound word. (True / False)
Answer – True
15. Choose the correct spelling Knowledge / Knowledege
Answer – Knowledge
16. Why had Velu run away from home?
Answer – Velu ran away from home because his father was a drunkard who beat him and his sisters regularly and snatched away all the money they earned.
17. What, according to the writer, did the experience as an Everest climber teach him? (The Summit within)
Answer – According to the author, H.P.S. Ahluwalia, the experience of climbing Mount Everest taught him to face life’s challenges with determination, endurance, and tenacity.
18. Did the prospect of meeting Stephen Hawking make the writer nervous? If so, why?
Answer – Yes, the writer felt nervous because Stephen Hawking was a world-famous scientist and the writer was excited and anxious about meeting such a great personality.
19. Where do the snakes and rodents take shelters? Why?
Answer – Snakes and rodents take shelter in holes, burrows and bushes because these places protect them from predators and harsh weather.
20. Why did the camel live in the middle of the desert?
Answer – The camel lived in the middle of the desert because it was a lazy animal and did not want to work like the other animals.
21. What surprises the warrior? (The Fight)
Answer – The warrior is surprised by Ranji’s excellent diving skills. He is amazed at how confidently Ranji dives and swims underwater.
22. Read the following stanza carefully and answer the questions given below :
I love to rise in the summer morn,
When the birds sing on every tree;
The distant huntsman winds his horn,
And the skylark sings with me,
O! What a sweet company.
Questions :
(i) Identify two words or phrases from the stanza that express the child’s happiness and joy.
Answer – “I love to rise” and “sweet company”
(ii) State the rhyming scheme used in the stanza.
Answer – ababc
(iii) The most appropriate word that best replaces ‘winds’ in the third line is :
(a) rings
(b) beats
(c) blows
(d) whistles
Answer – (c) blows
23. Read the text and answer the questions that follow :
Velu stares, this was a canal? Near some puddles of water was a row of the strangest huts he had ever seen. They were built out of all sorts of things- metal sheets, tyres, bricks, wood and plastic. They stood crookedly and looked as if they would fall any moment. “Is this where you live? These houses are strange!” said Velu. ” In our villages, the houses are made of mud and palm leaves.”
Questions :
(i) Of which material were the houses made of?
Answer – Houses were made of metal sheets, tyres, bricks, wood and plastic.
(ii) Did Jaya too live in one of such houses?
Answer – Yes
(iii) Why was Velu surprised to see the houses?
Answer – Velu was surprised because the huts were strange, crooked and looked as if they could fall any moment.
24. If Tilly’s award was to be shared, who would you think she should share it with, her parents or geography teacher and why?
Answer – Tilly should share her award with her geography teacher because the teacher had taught her about tsunamis and their warning signs. This knowledge helped her recognize the danger and save many lives.
25. “The giant lay dead, all covered with white blossoms.” What does this sentence indicate about the once selfish giant?
Answer – This sentence indicates that the once selfish giant had now become kind and loving. The white blossoms symbolize peace, happiness and the end of his selfishness.
26. Princess September kept her window open day and night. How did it help the princess herself?
Answer – Keeping the window open helped Princess September because the little bird could come and go freely, sing for her and keep her happy.
27. In what way is the forest pool different from the one which Ranji knew in the Rajputana desert?
Answer – The forest pool was clear, cool and surrounded by trees, while the pool in the Rajputana desert was dirty, muddy and crowded.
28. Read the following passage carefully and answer the following questions :
About the year 1900, a small, dark-haired boy named Charles Chaplin was often seen waiting outside the back entrances of London theatres. He looked thin and hungry but his blue eyes were determined. He was hoping to get work in show business. He could sing and dance. His parents were music-hall performers and he had been born into the life of the theatre. And, although his own boyhood was painfully hard, he knew how to make people laugh. His own father had died from drinking too much. And his mother was not really able to look after Charles and his older half-brother, Sid. She was often sick in mind and had to be sent into hospital.
Questions :
(i) The boy Charles Chaplin was ………..
(a) Brown-haired
(b) dark-haired
(c) Red-haired
(d) light-haired
Answer – (b) dark-haired
(ii) Chaplin thought to get a job in …………
(a) soap business
(b) hotel business
(c) show business
(d) hospital business
Answer – (c) show business
(iii) His parents were …………
(a) music-hall performers
(b) actors
(c) singers
(d) directors
Answer – (a) music-hall performers
(iv) His father had died due to ………..
(a) an illness
(b) accident
(c) drinking
(d) suicide
Answer – (c) drinking
(v) The meaning of ‘determined’ is ………..
(a) mind made up
(b) mind turn up
(c) mind fade up
(d) mind turn down
Answer – (a) mind made up
29. Who is an artisan? Why do you think the artisans suffered in the lesson “Glimpses of the Past”?
Answer – An artisan is a skilled manual worker who creates functional or decorative items by hand. In “Glimpses of the Past,” they suffered because the British imposed very high taxes on them and flooded the Indian market with cheap machine-made goods from England, which destroyed the local traditional hand-made industry.
OR
Write a report on the class trip to Taj Mahal last Saturday.
Answer – Last Saturday, our class went on a trip to the Taj Mahal in Agra. We started early in the morning with our teachers. When we reached there, we were amazed by the beauty of the Taj Mahal. The white marble building looked very beautiful and grand. Our teacher told us about its history and that it was built by Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal. We took many photographs and enjoyed the peaceful garden around it. The trip was very interesting and educational. We returned home in the evening with happy memories.
30. Write an application to the principal of your school requesting the remission of a fine.
Answer –
To
The Principal
Govt Sr Sec School, Charkhi Dadri
Subject : Request for remission of fine
Respected Sir/Madam,
I beg to say that I am a student of Class VII in your school. I could not attend school for two days due to illness. Because of this, I was unable to complete and submit my homework on time. Therefore, a fine was imposed on me.
I request you to kindly remit my fine as I was absent due to genuine reasons. I assure you that I will be regular in my studies and will complete my work on time in the future.
Thank you.
Yours obediently
Jatin Kumar
Class VII
OR
Write a paragraph on the topic “A Visit to Zoo.”
Answer – Last Sunday, I visited the zoo with my parents. The zoo was full of different kinds of animals and birds. I saw lions, tigers, elephants, deer, monkeys and many colourful birds. The lion looked very strong and the monkeys were jumping from one branch to another. We also saw a large elephant and a tall giraffe. The zoo was clean and well maintained. I learned many things about wild animals. It was a very enjoyable and interesting visit.