Words in Context #1 (Reading Comprehension + Vocab)

Precarious means something that is not secure, stable, or safe - something risky, uncertain, or likely to fall or collapse. A situation that feels unsafe, uncertain, or shaky - like walking on a rope where you might fall.

অনিশ্চিত, বিপজ্জনক, ঝুঁকিপূর্ণ, নড়বড়ে অবস্থায়; এমন কিছু যা সহজেই ভেঙে পড়তে পারে বা ক্ষতির সম্ভাবনা রয়েছে। অনিশ্চয়তা, অস্থিরতা, টালমাটাল অবস্থা

The ladder looks precarious, so be careful.

Immigrants feel the precariousness of life when they don’t know if they will keep their jobs or homes.

তার আর্থিক অবস্থা খুবই precarious (অনিশ্চিত) ছিল।

Derision means to mock or ridicule someone. When people laugh at you in a mean way or mock you with contempt (অবজ্ঞা/তাচ্ছিল্য)

উপহাস, উপহাসমূলক বিদ্রূপ, তাচ্ছিল্য, অবহেলা/অবজ্ঞা

Her suggestion was met with derision by the other students.

Newcomers may face derision if others make fun of their accents or customs.

তাকে derision (উপহাস) করে সবাই হাসল।

1) “Being an outsider in a society … is a source of insecurity in itself.”

Meaning: If you are new in a country, you already feel nervous and unsure about your place there.

Precariousness fits here → because immigrants live in uncertainty (they don’t know if they can survive or if they’ll lose things they depend on).

2) “They can take away your home or business, but never your education…”

Meaning: Your house or job can be taken away, but your knowledge stays with you.

Education is shown as the one safe thing in a shaky (precarious) life.

3) “Newcomers and religious minorities may face derision or hostility.”

Meaning: Outsiders often get laughed at or mocked (derision), and sometimes even treated with hate (hostility).

Derision fits here → people make fun of immigrants or minorities instead of respecting them.

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To say really good things about something, to praise it a lot.

খুব প্রশংসা করা, গুণগান করা, মহিমান্বিত করা

If a teacher says, “You are the best student ever!” they are extolling you.

Books and movies extol the idea of living in the present.

তিনি তার শিক্ষার্থীদের সাফল্য extol (উচ্চ প্রশংসা) করেছেন

To teach something again and again so that it becomes a habit.

বারবার শেখানো, অভ্যাস করানো, মনে গেঁথে দেওয়া

If your parents keep telling you “Brush your teeth every night” until you do it automatically, they are inculcating that habit.

Parents try to inculcate good manners in their children.

The teacher inculcated a love of reading in her students."

শিক্ষক শিক্ষার্থীদের মনে নৈতিকতা inculcate (গেঁথে) দেন।

1) “Impulse control runs against the grain of contemporary culture.”

Today’s world likes quick fun and instant rewards.

মানুষ এখন তৎক্ষণাৎ আনন্দ পেতে চায়, ধৈর্য ধরতে চায় না।

2) “Books and feel-good movies extol the virtue of living in the here and now…”

Movies and books extol (praise) the idea of “just enjoy the moment, don’t worry about the future.”

বই আর সিনেমা বারবার বলে এখনই মজা করো, ভবিষ্যতের জন্য চিন্তা কোরো না।

3) “…people who control their impulses don’t live in the moment.”

If you control yourself, you may miss out on quick fun - and popular culture doesn’t praise that.

যারা ধৈর্য ধরে তারা নাকি মজাটা মিস করে।

4) “By contrast, America’s most successful groups… inculcating habits of discipline from a very early age.”

But successful groups in America raised their children differently.

তারা শিশুদের ছোটবেলা থেকেই শিখিয়েছে (inculcated) কিভাবে নিয়ম মেনে চলতে হয়, কিভাবে ধৈর্য ধরতে হয়।

বারবার শেখানোর ফলে এই অভ্যাস তাদের চরিত্রের অংশ হয়ে গেছে।

When someone is too satisfied with themselves and stops trying to improve, even if there are problems → Self-satisfaction

আত্মতুষ্টি, আত্মসন্তুষ্টি, ঢিলেমি ভরা সন্তুষ্টি

If you get good marks once and then stop studying because you feel you’re already the best - that’s complacency.

His complacency about his job performance led to a decline in quality.

নিজের অর্জন নিয়ে complacency (অতিরিক্ত আত্মতুষ্টি) অনেক সময় ক্ষতিকর হতে পারে।

Living a very strict and simple life, giving up pleasures like fun, food, or comfort, often for religious or self-discipline reasons.

সন্ন্যাস, কঠোর সংযম, ভোগবিলাস ত্যাগ

If someone decides to never eat sweets, never play games, and only live with the bare minimum because they think that’s the “right way” - that’s asceticism.

Buddhist monks are known for their asceticism.

ধর্মপ্রাণ ব্যক্তিরা প্রায়ই asceticism (কঠোর আত্মসংযম) চর্চা করেন।

1) “In isolation, each of these three qualities would be insufficient.”

Having just one quality (superiority, insecurity, or impulse control) is not enough.

শুধু একটি গুণ থাকলে সেটা কাজে আসে না।

2) “Alone, a superiority complex is a recipe for complacency.”

If you only feel superior to others, you might get lazy and stop working hard. That laziness born out of overconfidence = complacency.

নিজেকে সব থেকে ভালো মনে করলে, চেষ্টা বন্ধ হয়ে যায় → এটিই complacency (আত্মতুষ্টি)।

3) “Mere insecurity could be crippling.”

If you only feel insecure, it makes you too weak to act.

4) “Impulse control can produce asceticism.”

If you only control yourself too much, you may become overly strict, giving up fun or comfort. That extreme lifestyle = asceticism.

যদি সবসময় নিজের ইচ্ছা চাপা দাও, জীবন অতিরিক্ত কঠোর ও আনন্দহীন হয়ে যায় → এটিই asceticism (সন্ন্যাস, ভোগবিলাস ত্যাগ)।

5) “Only in combination do these qualities generate drive…”

The point is: only when you combine superiority, insecurity, and impulse control together, they produce real motivation to succeed.

Instructions: The word “Zeal” is not circled in red. Find it.

Something harmful, unfair, or likely to cause anger and bad feelings.

হানিকর, ঘৃণা উদ্রেককারী, অন্যায়ভাবে ক্ষতিকর।অন্যের মনে হিংসা বা বিরূপতা সৃষ্টি করে এমন।

If a teacher gives prizes only to her favorite students, it feels invidious (unfair and hurtful to others).

The policy created invidious distinctions between employees.

তার invidious মন্তব্যে (বিদ্বেষজনক মন্তব্যে) সবাই বিরক্ত হলো।

Something gentle, kind, or harmless.

ক্ষতিহীন, মৃদু, নিরীহ, সহৃদয়।

If a big dog looks scary but is actually friendly and never bites, that dog is benign (harmless).

Thankfully, the doctor said the lump (গাঁট, ফোড়া, চাকা - শরীরে উঁচু হয়ে ওঠা শক্ত অংশ) is benign.

ডাক্তার বললেন টিউমারটি benign (ক্ষতিকর নয়)।

Zeal means strong energy, excitement, or passion for something you believe in.

প্রবল উদ্যম, অগাধ উৎসাহ, প্রবল আগ্রহ।

If you love football so much that you practice every single day with huge excitement, that’s zeal.

She worked with great zeal to improve the community.

সে অনেক zeal (উৎসাহ/উদ্দীপনা) নিয়ে পড়াশোনা করে।

1) “Impulse control can undercut the ability to experience beauty…”

Controlling yourself too much can take away joy.

বেশি সংযম মানুষকে আনন্দ থেকে বঞ্চিত করতে পারে।

2) “A superiority complex can be even more invidious.”

Feeling superior is not just bad - it can be invidious (harmful and unfair), leading to oppression, prejudice, even war.

নিজের দল বা ধর্মকে সবার থেকে শ্রেষ্ঠ মনে করা অনেক সময় অন্যায় ও ক্ষতিকর হয়ে দাঁড়ায় → এটাই invidious।

3) “…ethnic pride or religious zeal can turn into intolerance.”

Pride can become harmful (invidious) if it turns into looking down on others.

Here, zeal means very strong enthusiasm or passion for religion.

When people have too much zeal (too much excitement and devotion), it can sometimes turn negative - they may stop respecting other religions and become intolerant.

“Even when it functions relatively benignly as an engine of success…”

Sometimes these qualities (superiority, insecurity, self-control) can also be benign (gentle/harmless), meaning they seem to help success without causing visible harm.

কিন্তু কখনো কখনো এই গুণগুলো ক্ষতিহীনভাবে (benignly) কাজ করে, সাফল্যের ইঞ্জিন হিসেবে।

4) “…the combination of these three traits can still be imprisoning.”

But overall, if taken too far, they trap people into chasing money and status.

Penury means extreme poverty - having almost no money, food, or resources.

চরম দারিদ্র্য, অভাব-অনটন, নিঃস্বতা।

If a family doesn’t have enough money to buy food or clothes, they are living in penury.

1) “Cuban-Americans in Miami rose in one generation from widespread penury to relative affluence.”

At first, many Cuban-Americans in Miami were living in penury (extreme poverty).

That means they had very little money and faced hardship when they first arrived.

In Bangla: “মায়ামিতে কিউবান-আমেরিকানরা প্রথমে ছিল চরম দারিদ্র্যের (penury) মধ্যে।”

2) “… to relative affluence.”

Over time (in just one generation), they became much better off - they rose to affluence (wealth and comfort).

In Bangla: “কিন্তু এক প্রজন্মের মধ্যে তারা তুলনামূলক সচ্ছলতা অর্জন করেছে।”