IGCSE Urdu: Identity and Culture — Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs — examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers available free from your board.

Related: Identity and Culture revision notes

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Section A — Vocabulary and grammar

1. Give the Urdu for: family, custom, language, festival, neighbour. [5]

2. Complete each sentence with the correct form of the verb:

(a) میں روزانہ اردو ______ (پڑھنا — present habitual) [1] (b) کل ہم عید ______ (منانا — future) [1] (c) بچپن میں وہ گاؤں میں ______ (رہنا — past habitual) [1]

Section B — Comprehension and writing

3. Read the passage and answer in Urdu:

ہمارے خاندان میں عید کی تیاری کئی دن پہلے شروع ہو جاتی ہے۔ والدہ گھر کی صفائی کرتی ہیں، بہنیں مہندی لگاتی ہیں اور والد صاحب بازار سے مٹھائی لاتے ہیں۔ عید کے دن ہم سب مل کر نماز کے لیے جاتے ہیں، پھر رشتہ داروں سے ملنے نکلتے ہیں۔

(a) عید کی تیاری کب شروع ہوتی ہے؟ [1] (b) گھر کے مختلف افراد کیا کام کرتے ہیں؟ [3] (c) عید کے دن سب سے پہلے کیا کیا جاتا ہے؟ [1]

4. Write about 90–100 words in Urdu on “میرا خاندان اور ہماری روایات”. Mention at least three customs and give one opinion. [10]

5. Explain three things an examiner looks for in a piece of Urdu writing at this level. [6]

6. State Urdu’s basic word order, and explain how it differs from English word order, with an example. [3]

7. Give one Urdu comparative structure, and explain why examiners value the use of comparatives in a response. [2]

8. Explain why writing an entire response in only one tense limits the language mark, even if every sentence is grammatically accurate. [2]

9. What does the specification say about word counts in the writing paper, and what actually determines whether a response is complete? [2]

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Answers

1. family — خاندان [1]; custom — رسم / روایت [1]; language — زبان [1]; festival — تہوار [1]; neighbour — پڑوسی [1].

2. (a) پڑھتا ہوں / پڑھتی ہوں [1]. (b) منائیں گے [1]. (c) رہتا تھا / رہتی تھی [1].

3. (a) عید سے کئی دن پہلے تیاری شروع ہو جاتی ہے [1]. (b) والدہ گھر کی صفائی کرتی ہیں [1]؛ بہنیں مہندی لگاتی ہیں [1]؛ والد صاحب بازار سے مٹھائی لاتے ہیں [1]. (c) سب مل کر نماز کے لیے جاتے ہیں [1].

4. Model answer:

میرا خاندان بڑا ہے۔ ہم سب ایک ہی گھر میں رہتے ہیں، اس لیے گھر میں ہمیشہ رونق رہتی ہے۔ ہمارے ہاں کئی خوبصورت روایات ہیں۔ پہلی یہ کہ ہم روزانہ رات کا کھانا سب مل کر کھاتے ہیں اور دن بھر کی باتیں ایک دوسرے کو سناتے ہیں۔ دوسری روایت یہ ہے کہ عید پر بڑے چھوٹوں کو عیدی دیتے ہیں۔ تیسری بات یہ کہ ہم مہمانوں کا بہت احترام کرتے ہیں۔ میرے خیال میں یہ روایات ہمیں ایک دوسرے کے قریب رکھتی ہیں، اور مجھے ان پر فخر ہے۔

Marking: content — three customs clearly described [3]; an opinion given and justified [2]; range of vocabulary beyond the basic [2]; accuracy of verb agreement and gender [2]; length and organisation into linked sentences [1].

5. Any three, 2 marks each: accuracy of gender and verb agreement — the verb agrees with the subject in gender and number, except in perfective tenses with نے, where it agrees with the object (میں نے کتاب پڑھی — پڑھی is feminine because کتاب is), and errors here are the most heavily penalised because they obscure meaning [1] [1]. Range of vocabulary and structures — using varied connectives (اس لیے، لیکن، حالانکہ) and tenses rather than repeating simple present sentences [1] [1]. Task fulfilment — addressing every bullet point in the question and including an opinion where asked, since content marks are awarded for what the response actually covers [1] [1]. Organisation — a clear opening, linked paragraphs and a closing sentence, rather than a list of unconnected statements [1] [1].

6. Urdu follows Subject–Object–Verb order [1], unlike English’s Subject–Verb–Object [1] — e.g. main kitaab parhta hoon (“I book read am”) = “I read a book,” with the verb placed last rather than after the subject [1]. Urdu also uses postpositions, which follow the noun, where English places prepositions before it — e.g. mez par (“table on”) for “on the table.”

7. e.g. is se zyaada mushkil (more difficult than this) [1]. Comparatives let a response compare and evaluate rather than only describe or list, raising the range of structures used [1].

8. Examiners assess range separately from accuracy [1] — a response written entirely in the present tense, however error-free, cannot demonstrate control of past or future forms, so the language mark is capped regardless of accuracy [1].

9. The specification states that, provided the tasks set are completed, the number of words is not important — the given word counts (e.g. 60-70, 90-100, 100-120, 150-170 words depending on the question) are guidance, not a hard limit [1]. What actually determines completeness is whether the candidate has addressed everything the task asks for, not whether the response lands on a particular word count [1].

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Where marks are usually lost

• Verb forms that do not agree in gender and number — with the subject normally, but with the object when نے is used in a perfective tense.
• Answering comprehension questions in English when Urdu is required.
• Missing one of the bullet points in the writing task, which loses the content marks that point would have earned.
• Aiming for the suggested word count as if it were a hard limit rather than guidance — completing the task set is what matters.
• Using English (Subject-Verb-Object) word order instead of Urdu’s Subject-Object-Verb.
• Giving undeveloped, one-fact answers instead of adding a reason, example or opinion.