Chapter 5: The Empty Heart

VVI questions — the ones the board asked most (3)

1. Q1Short answer2 marksAsked: 2022, 2026

   How did the rich man wreck his health ?

   

   Medha Ma’am

   AskMedha’s AI teacher

   Hear it from Medha Ma’am · 25 s

   Model answer · how the rich man wrecked his health

   1. 1.Driven by the demon Desire to fill the eighth, half-full pot, the rich man rose before cock-crow and worked till past midnight.1 mark
   2. 2.He shirked eating, drinking and sleep. In this way he wrecked his health, sold his conscience and tried all tricks to gather gold.1 mark

   Marks split from a structure derived from past papers (checked twice); not Bihar Board’s official scheme

2. Q2Short answer2 marksAsked: 2025

   Why was the man not content, though he was very rich ?

   

   Medha Ma’am

   AskMedha’s AI teacher

   Hear it from Medha Ma’am · 40 s

   Model answer · man's discontent despite riches

   1. 1.The man was not content, though he was very rich, because he had a constant craving to acquire more wealth and possessions. Even though he already had seven pitchers full of gold, he was not satisfied and wanted an eighth pot filled too, which shows that his craving for more wealth and possessions never ended.1 mark
   2. 2.The root cause of his discontent was his greed, which never allowed him to live peacefully with what he already possessed. His greed for more wealth made him forget the seven full vessels he already had and drove him to work day and night to fill the eighth pot, so he could never live peacefully.1 mark

   • Write the word 'craving' and the phrase 'more wealth and possessions' in the first paragraph.
   • Write the word 'greed' and the word 'peacefully' in the second paragraph to show it is the root cause of discontent.

   Marks split from a structure derived from past papers (checked twice); not Bihar Board’s official scheme

3. Q3Short answer2 marksAsked: 2026

   What was the gift given by the wish-yielding tree ?

   

   Medha Ma’am

   AskMedha’s AI teacher

   Watch it on the board · 25 s

   Model answer · gift of the wish-yielding tree

   1. 1.The rich man had asked the Wish-yielding Tree (Kalpaka) for only one pot of gold, but his prayer was granted sevenfold: he was given glistening gold in seven pitchers.1 mark
   2. 2.They were seven silver pitchers, each filled to the brim with gold coins. Then the 'unkind' tree added an eighth pot, which was only half full.1 mark

   Marks split from a structure derived from past papers (checked twice); not Bihar Board’s official scheme

Objective questions with the board’s key (10)

1. 1. Bihar Board 2026

   What slides softly away ?

   • (A) Patience
   • (B) Happiness
   • (C) Wealth
   • (D) Years ✓

   Answer: (D)

2. 2. Bihar Board 2026

   'Greed is endless, but life is not' — is from

   • (A) The Empty Heart ✓
   • (B) Koel
   • (C) Thinner than a Crescent
   • (D) God Made the Country

   Answer: (A)

3. 3. Bihar Board 2026

   The pitchers were made of

   • (A) gold
   • (B) silver ✓
   • (C) brass
   • (D) iron

   Answer: (B)

4. 4. Bihar Board 2026

   The rich man died before he could ........................ the eighth pot.

   • (A) fill ✓
   • (B) half-fill
   • (C) empty
   • (D) half-empty

   Answer: (A)

5. 5. Bihar Board 2025

   Only the pain caused by ............................... comes back again and again.

   • (A) disease
   • (B) happiness
   • (C) someone
   • (D) hurt ✓

   Answer: (D)

6. 6. Bihar Board 2025

   ......................... is endless.

   • (A) Anger
   • (B) Road
   • (C) Greed ✓
   • (D) Life

   Answer: (C)

7. 7. Bihar Board 2025

   The rich man left home because he wanted to earn more

   • (A) respect
   • (B) money
   • (C) diamond
   • (D) gold ✓

   Answer: (D)

8. 8. Bihar Board 2025

   The Empty Heart' highlights a great human weakness,

   • (A) Greed ✓
   • (B) Anger
   • (C) Love
   • (D) Hatred

   Answer: (A)

9. 9. Bihar Board 2025

   Man's .................... brought about his downfall in the poem 'The Empty Heart'.

   • (A) hunger
   • (B) education
   • (C) sleep
   • (D) greed ✓

   Answer: (D)

10. 10. Bihar Board 2025

    'Each with gold coins filled to the brim' - is from

    • (A) Koel
    • (B) The Sleeping Porter
    • (C) The Empty Heart ✓
    • (D) Polythene Bag

    Answer: (C)

Questions parents and students ask

How many marks does "The Empty Heart" carry in Bihar Board Class 10 English?

In the Bihar Board papers of 2021–2026, this chapter carried about 2 marks and about 3 questions a year; by marks it ranks 18 in English.

Which are the most important (VVI) questions of "The Empty Heart"?

The 3 questions above are from the board’s real papers, each with the years it was asked; the most-asked come first with their full model answers. All 3 written questions of this chapter, with answers, are in the AskMedha app.

Do the answers follow the board’s marking scheme?

BSEB does not publish a marking scheme. Each answer is written point by point on a structure derived from past papers and checked by a second, independent model; it is never called the board’s official scheme.