1. Read the following passage carefully:
(1) Having a sense of humor might mean having the ability to entertain other people by making them laugh, but it can also mean having a quick wit that is frequently employed to criticize other people with mischief comments. Some might define a sense of humor as the ability to see humor in everyday life or as appreciating the cleverness of puns and wordplay, and many think it is possible to possess a good sense of humour without ever having those around them be aware of it.
(2) In any case, a sense of humour is a socially valued trait that almost all of us would rather have more, rather than less of – akin to the way that we think about intelligence or good looks. A person with an undeveloped sense of humour lacks a social skill that puts him or her at a severe disadvantage in the hurly-burly of everyday adult life.
(3) Freud thought of humour as an outlet for forbidden impulses, and philosophers ranging from Aristotle to Descartes believed that we are amused by something when it makes us feel superior to other people.
(4) Evolutionary psychologists believe that humour, along with other creative abilities, such as art and music, evolved as an honest signal of intelligence and genetic quality. The value of such a skill in defusing tension, aggressive situations and in managing alliances and friendships should not be underestimated either.
(5) Schmoozing with a bunch of new people at a cocktail party is an opportunity to engage in light-hearted banter, and other people are grateful when someone is skilful enough to turn a stiff and awkward situation into fun. Cracking jokes, making witty remarks, or engaging in humorous, cheeky observations about the social scene can be like fishing for other minds that connect naturally with one’s own. When it works, humour can be a device for connecting people who are operating on the same wavelength.
(6) Observing the operation of other people in such situations gives you a feel as to who you would like to get to know better – and who might be best left behind, wallowing in indignation and bitterness. In short, a sense of humour is the Swiss Army Knife of social skills. Perhaps it is indeed a single instrument, but it contains an arsenal of tools – each exquisitely designed for a unique social purpose.
Answer the following questions, based on the given passage:
How does the author prove in paragraph 1 that a sense of humour is a double-edged sword?
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Solution and Explanation
Step 2: Explanation Since humour can bring joy and amusement but also be employed as a sharp tool to mock or demean others, it acts as a double-edged sword.
Cite evidence from the passage to prove that a sense of humour is a valuable tool to make someone’s life better.
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Solution and Explanation
Step 2: Explanation This suggests that humour helps in navigating social interactions, diffusing tense situations, and forming alliances, making life easier and more enjoyable.
Complete the following sentence suitably with reference to paragraph 3.
One significant advantage of humour is that it helps one ....... .
One significant advantage of humour is that it helps one ....... .
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Solution and Explanation
Provide ONE textual evidence with reference to paragraph 5, to show a good sense of humour can be a great ice breaker.
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Solution and Explanation
Step 2: Explanation This proves that humour acts as an icebreaker, helping people connect in social settings.
Select the correct option from those given in brackets to fill in the blank.
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Solution and Explanation
According to evolutionary psychologists, people with a sense of humour can (trigger/lighten) tension in social situations.
Choose the correct option:
“...Humour can be a device for connecting people who are operating on the same wavelength.”
By the phrase “same wavelength,” the author refers to:
Choose the correct option:
“...Humour can be a device for connecting people who are operating on the same wavelength.”
By the phrase “same wavelength,” the author refers to:
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- People of age group
- People who belong to the same line of profession
- People having similar interests and attitudes
- People who are working in the same organisation
The Correct Option is C
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Understanding the phrase “same wavelength”
The passage discusses how humour helps people relate to each other. Being on the “same wavelength” means sharing similar thoughts, interests, and perspectives.
Step 2: Verifying the correct answer
- (1) Incorrect: Age group does not necessarily determine shared humour.
- (2) Incorrect: Profession is not a key factor in humour.
- (4) Incorrect: Working in the same organisation does not imply shared humour.
- (3) Correct: People with similar interests and attitudes often share humour, making this the right choice.
Complete the analogy with one word from paragraph 6:
Advantage: benefit :: ________: anger
Advantage: benefit :: ________: anger
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- Situation
- Stare
- Indignation
- Arsenal
The Correct Option is C
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Understanding the analogy
The relationship between “advantage” and “benefit” is that they are synonyms. Similarly, the word that matches the meaning of “anger” should be its synonym.
Step 2: Choosing the correct answer
- (1) Incorrect: "Situation" is unrelated to anger.
- (2) Incorrect: "Stare" is not a synonym for anger.
- (3) Correct: "Indignation" means strong displeasure or anger, making it the best choice.
- (4) Incorrect: "Arsenal" refers to a collection of tools or weapons, unrelated to anger.
In the line "it is indeed a single instrument, but it contains an arsenal of tools…", what does the phrase “arsenal of tools” refer to?
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Solution and Explanation
Step 2: Final interpretation It signifies that humour is a versatile tool that helps individuals navigate different social situations effectively.
Provide ONE textual evidence from the text which states lack of sense of humour may prove to be a handicap in one’s life.
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Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Finding the relevant textual evidence The passage states: "An undeveloped sense of humour lacks a social skill that puts him or her at a disadvantage."
Step 2: Explanation This statement directly shows how lacking a sense of humour can make social interactions difficult, placing a person at a disadvantage in social settings.
An undeveloped sense of humour shows lack of a social skill that puts him or her at a disadvantage.
Choose the correct option (A) or (B) which reaffirms the idea conveyed in the above extract.
Choose the correct option (A) or (B) which reaffirms the idea conveyed in the above extract.
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- Sense of humour elevates the status of a person in the social circle.
- People with sense of humour are not taken seriously in the society.
The Correct Option is A
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Understanding the meaning of the extract The passage explains that humour is a valuable social skill that helps individuals connect with others, diffuse tense situations, and enhance relationships.
Step 2: Verifying the correct answer
- (1) Correct: Since humour helps people socially, it elevates their status by making them more likable.
- (2) Incorrect: The passage does not mention that people with humour are not taken seriously; instead, it highlights the benefits of humour in social settings.
Top Questions on Reading Comprehension
During Bentham’s lifetime, revolutions occurred in the American colonies and in France, producing the Bill of Rights and the Declaration des Droits deHomme (Declaration of the Rights of Man), both of which were based on liberty, equality, and self-determination. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published The Communist Manifesto in 1848. Revolutionary movements broke out that year in France, Italy, Austria, Poland, and elsewhere. In addition, the Indus trial Revolution transformed Great Britain and eventually the rest of Europe from an agrarian (farm-based) society into an industrial one, in which steam and coal increased manufacturing production dramatically, changing the nature of work, property ownership, and family. This period also included advances in chemistry, astronomy, navigation, human anatomy, and im munology, among other sciences.
Given this historical context, it is understandable that Bentham used reason and science to explain human behaviour. His ethical system was an attempt to quantify happiness and the good so they would meet the conditions of the scientific method. Ethics had to be empirical, quantifiable, verifiable, and reproducible across time and space. Just as science was beginning to understand the workings of cause and effect in the body, so ethics would explain the causal relationships of the mind. Bentham rejected religious authority and wrote a rebuttal to the Declaration of Independence in which he railed against natural rights as “rhetorical nonsense, nonsense upon stilts.” Instead, the fundamental unit of human action for him was utility—solid, certain, and factual.
What is utility? Bentham’s fundamental axiom, which underlies utilitarianism, was that all so cial morals and government legislation should aim for producing the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. Utilitarianism, therefore, emphasizes the consequences or ultimate purpose of an act rather than the character of the actor, the actor’s motivation, or the particu lar circumstances surrounding the act. It has these characteristics: (1) universality, because it applies to all acts of human behaviour, even those that appear to be done from altruistic mo tives; (2) objectivity, meaning it operates beyond individual thought, desire, and perspective; (3) rationality, because it is not based in metaphysics or theology; and (4) quantifiability in its reliance on utility.- CLAT PG - 2026
- Legal Studies
- Reading Comprehension
“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights”.
This statement, in spite of literal inaccuracy in its every phrase, served the purpose for which it was written. It expressed an aspiration, and it was a fighting slogan. In order that slogans may serve their purpose, it is necessary that they shall arouse strong, emotional belief, but it is not at all necessary that they shall be literally accurate. A large part of each human being’s time on earth is spent in declaiming about his “rights,” asserting their existence, complaining of their violation, describing them as present or future, vested or contingent, absolute or conditional, perfect or inchoate, alienable or inalienable, legal or equitable, in rem or in personam, primary or secondary, moral or jural (legal), inherent or acquired, natural or artificial, human or divine. No doubt still other adjectives are available. Each one expresses some idea, but not always the same idea even when used twice by one and the same person.
They all need definition in the interest of understanding and peace. In his table of correlatives, Hohfeld set “right” over against “duty” as its necessary correlative. This had been done num berless times by other men. He also carefully distinguished it from the concepts expressed in his table by the terms “privilege,” “power,” and “immunity.” To the present writer, the value of his work seems beyond question and the practical convenience of his classification is convincing. However, the adoption of Hohfeld’s classification and the correlating of the terms “right” and “duty” do not complete the work of classification and definition.- CLAT PG - 2026
- Legal Studies
- Reading Comprehension
- Cite two evidences from the text to show that Indian youth is adapting itself to the needs of the job market.
- CBSE CLASS XII - 2025
- English Core
- Reading Comprehension
- The first thing that a scholar should bear in mind is that a book ought not to be read for mere amusement. Half-educated persons read for amusement, and are not to be blamed for it; they are incapable of appreciating the deeper qualities that belong to a really great literature. But a young man who has passed through a course of university training should discipline himself at an early day never to read for mere amusement. And once the habit of this discipline has been formed, he will find it impossible to read for mere amusement. He will then impatiently throw down any book from which he cannot obtain intellectual food, any book that does not make an appeal to the higher emotions and to his intellect. But on the other hand, the habit of reading for amusement becomes with thousands of people exactly the same kind of habit as wine-drinking or opium-smoking; it is like a narcotic; something that helps to pass the time, something that keeps up a perpetual condition of dreaming, something that eventually results in destroying all capacity for thought, giving exercise only to the surface parts of the mind, and leaving the deeper springs of feeling and the higher faculties of perception unemployed.
- UP Board XII - 2025
- English
- Reading Comprehension
- Out of debt, out of danger is, like many other proverbs, full of wisdom ; but the word 'danger' does not sufficiently express all that the warning demands. To one that is not insensible, a state of debt is a state of positive misery ; the sufferer is as one haunted by an evil spirit, and his heart can know neither rest nor peace till it is cast out. But as example is at all times more instructive than mere words of mouth, a living writer shall describe his own feelings when beset with creditors, and perhaps he may prove a beacon to the thoughtless ones who are likely to fall into the same gulf.
- UP Board XII - 2025
- English
- Reading Comprehension
Questions Asked in CBSE CLASS XII exam
- “You speak peculiar things.” Why does Derry find Mr. Lamb’s conversation peculiar? (On the Face of It)
If \(\begin{vmatrix} 2x & 3 \\ x & -8 \\ \end{vmatrix} = 0\), then the value of \(x\) is:
- How can you obtain the following?
(a) Aniline from ammonium benzoate
(b) Benzene diazonium chloride from nitrobenzene
(c) 2,4,6-Tribromoaniline from aniline - The capital of the firm of Seema and Avi is ₹ 12,00,000 and the market rate of interest is 10%. Salary of each partner is ₹ 10,000 per annum. The profits for the last four years were ₹ 3,00,000, ₹ 4,00,000, ₹ 5,00,000 and ₹ 4,00,000 respectively. Goodwill of the firm is to be valued on the basis of three years purchase of last four years average super profits. Calculate the goodwill of the firm.
- Verify that lines given by \( \vec{r} = (1 - \lambda) \hat{i + (\lambda - 2) \hat{j} + (3 - 2\lambda) \hat{k} \) and \( \vec{r} = (\mu + 1) \hat{i} + (2\mu - 1) \hat{j} - (2\mu + 1) \hat{k} \) are skew lines. Hence, find shortest distance between the lines.}