Most families meet the Class 10 Sanskrit paper for the first time in the pre-board. That is late. The syllabus CBSE publishes for 2026-27 tells you exactly what the 80 marks are for, down to which sandhis and which suffixes can be asked, and a student who has seen that map in September prepares a different year from one who sees it in January.
Here is the map, taken from the official curriculum document for Sanskrit, subject code 122, session 2026-27. Check every figure against the copy your school has issued, because CBSE revises this every year.
The paper in one table
| Section | What it tests | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| क Apathita avabodhanam | One unseen prose passage of 80 to 100 words: a simple story or description | 10 |
| ख Rachanatmakam karyam | Composition: a letter, a picture description or paragraph, and a translation | 15 |
| ग Anuprayukta vyakaranam | Applied grammar, seven topics | 25 |
| घ Pathita avabodhanam | Textual comprehension from the nine prescribed chapters | 30 |
| Written paper, three hours | 80 | |
| Internal assessment | Awarded by the school across the year, four parts of five | 20 |
| Total | 100 |
Two things stand out before any detail. Fifty-five of the eighty marks, grammar plus textual, come from material with a published boundary: a named list of topics and nine named chapters. And the composition section supplies a word bank. This is a paper that can be prepared completely, which is the whole reason Sanskrit has its reputation as a scoring third language.
The nine chapters of Shemushi Part 2
The prescribed literature is Shemushi Part 2 (शेमुषी भाग-2), revised edition. For 2026-27 the syllabus lists nine chapters, numbered as they are in the book:
| No. | Chapter |
|---|---|
| 1 | शुचिपर्यावरणम् Śuciparyāvaraṇam, a clean environment |
| 2 | बुद्धिर्बलवती सदा Buddhir balavatī sadā, intelligence is always the stronger |
| 3 | शिशुलालनम् Śiśulālanam, caring for a child |
| 4 | जननी तुल्यवत्सला Jananī tulyavatsalā, a mother loves alike |
| 5 | सुभाषितानि Subhāṣitāni, wise sayings |
| 6 | सौहार्दं प्रकृतेः शोभा Sauhārdaṁ prakṛteḥ śobhā, harmony is nature's beauty |
| 7 | विचित्रः साक्षी Vicitraḥ sākṣī, a strange witness |
| 8 | सूक्तयः Sūktayaḥ, maxims |
| 10 | अन्योक्तयः Anyoktayaḥ, indirect sayings |
Chapter 9 is not on the list, which is why the numbering jumps. Do not let a tutor or a guidebook add it back. The three textbooks named are Shemushi Part 2, Abhyasvan Bhav Part 2 (अभ्यासवान् भव) and Vyakaranavithi (व्याकरणवीथिः), all NCERT. The syllabus adds a useful note: grammar questions are to be drawn from Shemushi where possible, and from Abhyasvan Bhav otherwise. So the grammar examples a student meets in the exam are, as far as possible, sentences from the chapters they have already read.
Grammar: 25 marks, seven topics, all named
This is the section where a published list turns a subject into a checklist. Every topic and its marks:
| Topic | Exactly what is examinable | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Sandhi | Vowel: yaṇ, ayādi, pūrvarūpa. Consonant: first letter of a class to the third, first to the fifth. Visarga: to u, to r, dropped, and to s, ś, ṣ | 4 |
| Samāsa | Splitting compounds in sentences and forming them: tatpuruṣa (vibhakti-, upapada-, karmadhāraya), bahuvrīhi, avyayībhāva (anu, upa, saha, nir, prati, yathā), dvandva | 4 |
| Pratyaya | Kṛt: tavyat, anīyar, kta, ktavatu. Taddhita: matup, ṭhak, tva, tal. Feminine: ṭāp, ṅīp | 4 |
| Vācya | Changing voice, in laṭ lakāra only: kartṛ, karma, bhāva | 3 |
| Samaya | Writing the time in words: the hour, quarter past, half past, quarter to | 4 |
| Avyaya | A fixed list of indeclinables, from uccaiḥ and ca to yadā-tadā, yāvat-tāvat, sahasā, śanaiḥ, iti and the rest | 3 |
| Aśuddhi-saṁśodhanam | Correcting errors of number, gender, person, tense and case | 3 |
Read that table as a parent and one thing should be obvious: there is nothing in it a student can be surprised by. Four marks for telling the time in Sanskrit is four marks for a pattern learned in an afternoon. The visarga sandhi rules are three rules. The avyaya list is finite. A student who is losing grammar marks in Class 10 is losing them to a foundation problem from earlier classes, usually vibhakti, not to the syllabus.
Composition: 15 marks, with a word bank
- A letter, formal or informal, 5 marks. The syllabus lists the likely subjects: to the principal, to the municipal corporation, to the post office, to a publisher; or a letter of well-being, congratulation, invitation, exam results, a description of the school. A word bank (मञ्जूषा) is supplied.
- A picture description or a paragraph, 5 marks, again with a word bank.
- Translation of five simple sentences from Hindi or English into Sanskrit, 5 marks.
The translation is the least-practised five marks on the paper, and in my experience the most revealing. It cannot be memorised; it tests whether the student can build a Sanskrit sentence at all. Five sentences a day from October onward is the whole preparation.
Textual comprehension: 30 marks from nine chapters
| Question | Marks |
|---|---|
| A prose passage from the book: one-word and full-sentence answers, plus language work (find the verb and its subject, adjective and noun, synonym and antonym, the noun a pronoun stands for) | 5 |
| A verse passage, the same pattern | 5 |
| A drama passage, the same pattern | 5 |
| Making four questions on underlined words in sentences | 4 |
| Anvaya, or the meaning in Sanskrit, of one śloka | 4 |
| Writing a story from events given in order | 4 |
| Meanings in context: short answers on the chapters | 3 |
Notice that fifteen of the thirty marks are three passages with the same five sub-questions each, and that the language work in those passages is the same language work as the unseen passage in section क. One skill, practised on the nine chapters, earns 25 marks across two sections. The four marks for "make questions on the underlined words" are the same question-word trick used for vibhakti: कः, कम्, केन, कस्मै, matched to the case of the underlined word.
Internal assessment: 20 marks the school gives
Four parts of five: periodic written tests (the best two count), multiple assessment (short class tests, quizzes, oral work, competitions), a portfolio of the year's work, and language-enrichment activities: stories, dialogue, speech, drama, śloka recitation, riddles. These are marks a diligent student collects almost in full, and a careless one leaves on the table without noticing. The portfolio in particular is judged on neatness, accuracy and being on time.
Where the marks actually go
From marking Class 10 scripts and mocks, the losses cluster in five places, none of them the literature.
- Sandhi split the wrong way. The student knows the rule but cannot see which rule a joined word came from. Practice must be both directions: join and split.
- Samāsa vigraha written as a translation. The examiner wants the analytic phrase in Sanskrit, with the right case ending, not the meaning in Hindi.
- Vācya with the wrong case on the agent. Karma-vācya puts the doer in tṛtīyā; students who learned vibhakti as a table rather than a set of jobs get this wrong under time.
- The translation left for last. Five easy marks abandoned because the student never practised building a sentence.
- Answers in the wrong language. Every answer in sections क and घ must be in Sanskrit. A correct answer in Hindi scores nothing.
A working plan from September
Chapters first, at one a week, each read aloud, translated, and turned into the three-passage question pattern. Grammar alongside, one of the seven topics a week, from the syllabus list and nothing beyond it. From November, one full past paper a month under time, marked to the CBSE scheme. From January, a paper a fortnight. The student who does this is not revising in February; they are polishing.
If the grammar section is the problem, the fix is usually earlier than Class 10. How to score 90+ in Class 10 Sanskrit covers the strategy; the vibhakti tricks cover the foundation most marks rest on.
Class 10 Sanskrit, taught to this syllabus
Ms. Ishita Parikh holds an MA in Sanskrit from the Central Sanskrit University and taught the CBSE and ICSE Sanskrit syllabus in Mumbai classrooms for five years. School tuition follows the student's own textbook and the year's published syllabus, with past papers marked to the board's scheme.
School Sanskrit tuition, Classes 1 to 12, or book the free first class and bring the last test paper.
Questions people ask
How many chapters are in CBSE Class 10 Sanskrit for 2026-27?
Nine chapters of Shemushi Part 2 are prescribed for the 2026-27 examination: chapters 1 to 8 and chapter 10. Chapter 9 is not in the list. Always check against the syllabus your school has issued, because CBSE revises the list from year to year.
What is the CBSE Class 10 Sanskrit paper pattern?
An 80-mark written paper of three hours in four sections: unseen comprehension 10 marks, composition 15, applied grammar 25 and textual comprehension 30, plus 20 marks of internal assessment awarded by the school. Total 100.
Which grammar topics come in the Class 10 Sanskrit board exam?
Seven, with fixed marks: sandhi 4, samasa 4, pratyaya 4, vachya 3, telling the time in Sanskrit 4, avyaya 3, and correcting errors 3. The syllabus names exactly which sandhis, compounds, suffixes and indeclinables are examinable, so this section can be prepared completely.
Which textbooks are prescribed for CBSE Class 10 Sanskrit?
Shemushi Part 2, revised edition, for the literature; Abhyasvan Bhav Part 2 and Vyakaranavithi for grammar. All three are NCERT publications. The syllabus says grammar questions are drawn from Shemushi where possible and from Abhyasvan Bhav otherwise.
Is Sanskrit a scoring subject in Class 10?
Yes, for a student who has understood the grammar rather than memorised it. Of the 80 written marks, 25 are grammar with a published list of topics, 15 are composition with a word bank supplied, and the 30 textual marks come from nine chapters. Very little of the paper rewards interpretation; most of it rewards accuracy, which is why prepared students score in the nineties.