59+ English Passage for Translation exercise pdf download

English 2nd paper 

Passage translation

exercise pdf download

Translate it into your own language. 1

English is an international language. This language is well-known in the educated-society all over the world. Side by side of the mother tongue, English is very essential in our daily life. If we do not know English, we cannot keep pace with the developed countries of the world. We maintain/conduct international relationship and trade and commerce through English.

Translate it into your own language. 2

It is the last day of Ashar. The sky is covered with cloud. The rain is about to fall. There is darkness everywhere. The passers-by were looking at the sky again and again.

Translate it into your own language. 3

It is the month of Ashar. The sky is overcast with clouds. It is drizzling. The roads are filled with mud / full of mud. Boats are plying with sails.

Translate it into your own language. 4

Man cannot live alone. He wants company/ companion. For this man has been living together for long. None in the society can do whatever he likes. He has to abide by law and order.

Translate it into your own language. 5

We can now fully realize the importance of learning English. Without the knowledge of English, a country like ours cannot keep pace with the advanced countries. English is the medium of communication in the field of international relations and trade and commerce as well. Most of the books on knowledge and learning are written in English. As such, the more a nation masters in the English language, the more it becomes prosperous.

Translate it into your own language. 6

The flower is a unique gift of nature. It adds to the beauty of nature. It also adds to human beauty. We use flowers in various ways. So, flower cultivation should be increased.

Translate it into your own language. 7

Education is the key to prosperity. The more advanced a country in education and culture is, the more prosperous she is in all respects. But education must meet the demand of the age and it and it must be of required standard. Unfortunately, our education is neither befitting to the age nor to the high standard. We cannot keep pace with the other countries if we fail to upgrade the standard of our education.

Translate it into your own language. 8

Time is valuable. Many people do not know the value of time. They do not know that time is life. So even a single moment should not be wasted / we should not waste even a single moment. Lost time never comes back. The student who does not know the value of time, cannot succeed. Time and tide wait for none.

Translate it into your own language. 9

We live in the age of science. We can see the influence of science everywhere/in all spheres. Science is our constant companion. We have made the impossible to possible with the help of science. The modern civilization is the contribution of science. Poverty and disease have to be conquered with the help pf science. Science has to be engaged/used for the greater welfare of mankind.

Translate it into your own language. 10

There are six seasons in Bangladesh. Each season has its own characteristics. It dews at night in the winter. The spring is the king of seasons. The cuckoos are found in the spring. The sweet melody of the cuckoo gives us delight / pleasure. Various kinds of beautiful flowers bloom on trees.

Translate it into your own language. 11

Cricket is a popular game. The number of cricket fans is increasing all over the world. Now the practice of cricket is going on in many countries of the world. The practice of cricket is not new in this sub-continent. Bangladesh has come forward in cricket to a great extent/much. Now Bangladesh is a very familiar name in the world/arena of cricket.

Translate it into your own language. 12

Most of the people of our country are illiterate. They can neither read nor write. But man cannot prosper without education. Our government is trying to remove illiteracy from the country. An educated nation is the power of a country. It is the precondition for the development of the nation.

Translate it into your own language. 13

Education is the back bone of a nation. No nation can be prosperous without education. Ignorance is like darkness / Ignorance is similar to darkness. So, society needs the light of education. Everyone will have to realize this truth. Otherwise no hope will be left for the notion.

Translate it into your own language. 14

We live in Bangladesh. We speak in Bengali. About twelve crore people live in this country. Most of the people of the country are the Muslims. Besides, there are the Hindus, the Buddhists and the Christians. Ninety percent people live in villages. About eighty five percent people do the works of cultivation / do agricultural works / are farmers / live on agriculture. Agriculture is the backbone of the economy of this country.

Translate it into your own language. 15

All of you have heard the name of Kazi Nazrul Islam. He is our national poet. He was born in 1899 in West Bengal. His poetic genius evolves from his boyhood. He is also known as the rebel poet. He is also called the poet of the poor. He breathed his last in 1976.

Translate it into your own language. 16

Going out at night Hazrat Omar (R) used to see the condition of the poor. One night he was passing along a street. At that time, he heard a sound of crying from a hut. Going there he found that a widow had many children. They were asking their mother for food and were crying without getting any food. At this sight Mohsin's heart was filled with pity.

Translate it into your own language. 17

Hazrat Abdul Quader Zilanee was very truthful from his boyhood. He was very attentive to his studies. After completing his education in the village school, he decided to go to Baghdad for higher education. At the time of departure, his mother said to him, “My son, never tell a lie in life”.

Translate it into your own language. 18

The Japanese are industrious. Japan is not rich in natural resources. Skilled and efficient manpower is her great wealth. Only by dint of diligence Japan has developed. Japan is an example for a country like ours.           

Translate it into your own language. 19

Independence does not come down to a nation / Liberty does not descend upon any nation. A nation has to achieve it. Independence/Liberty is not/does not mean the change of the flag only. Political independence is meaningless without economic liberty / freedom.

Translate it into your own language. 20

He who loves his country is a patriot. A patriot loves his own country more than his own life. He is ready to sacrifice his life for the welfare of his country.  Everybody remembers him. He lives even after his death.

Translate it into your own language. 21

The twenty-first February is a memorable day in our national life. Every year we remember this day with respect/regard. The day is a government holiday. The national flag is kept half-mast on this day. Every monument of the martyrs is covered with flowers. Those who have laid down their lives for the mother tongue are immortal.

Translate it into your own language. 22

No one can prosper without diligence/labor. Let it be money or education, you have to work hard to achieve it. Those who are idle lag behind forever. Those who have obtained high position in the society are all industrious. Bear in mind that industry is the key to success.

Translate it into your own language. 23

Paper is a very useful thing. We cannot do without it. Previously there was no use of paper in our country. The people of China first invented paper. People in those days used palm leaf instead of paper.

Translate it into your own language. 24

A newspaper is the store house of knowledge. We can know the customs and manners of other countries of the world through a newspaper. In fact, it is a gist/summary of the current affairs. It supplies everyone with news.

Translate it into your own language. 25

Honesty is a noble virtue. A man of this quality / A person possessing this quality is lucky. Everybody respects him, nobody dislikes him. We need honest men / honest people are greatly needed in the present state of Bangladesh.

Translate it into your own language. 26

No one can proper without diligence/labor. Be it money or education, one must work hard to earn that. Those who are idle lag behind forever. All who rose to eminence in society were industrious. Always remember that industry is the key to success.

Translate it into your own language. 27

Man is the architect of his own fate. If we become reluctant to toiling, we cannot be lucky. Some people think that the success in life depends on fortune. But it is not true. Hard labor is needed to gain success in every sphere of life. Industry is the key to success. Those who believe in fate, lag behind always.

Translate it into your own language. 28

War is a curse for human civilization. In the ancient time, war was confined to the soldiers. But at present, all men both civil and military are to suffer the consequence of war. War causes great havoc / It causes great havoc during the war. Man wants to get rid of this curse / to get free from this curse.

Translate it into your own language. 29

Reading book is an attractive habit. To speak the truth, it has no alternative. Reading book is a must to know the unknown. Yet many people cannot understand the importance of reading book. Even the students, today, do not show sufficient interest in reading books.

Translate it into your own language. 30

Reading books is an excellent habit. There is no alternative to it. One must read books in order to gain knowledge. Many people do not read books. Nowadays students also do not show interest to books.

Practice now!

English Second Paper

Model Test Question with Answer

Translate it into your own language. 31

Fishermen work day and night / by day and at night. Many fishermen go to fish / go to catch fish at night. Storm may become that night / there may be storm that night. It may be a dark and cold night. When they go to river to catch fish / to fish, their family becomes / remains anxious.

Translate it into your own language. 32

Dhaka is the capital city of Bangladesh. It is one of the populous capital cities of the world. Traffic jam is a regular problem here. Load shedding is a usual affair. Even the problem of pure water is a common subject/matter.

Translate it into your own language. 33

The sun gives us light and heat. The sun looks like a plate. It is actually much larger than the earth and far away from the earth. The sun is visible only at day time / at day. The sun causes day and night. The night follows the day. Again, the day follows the night.

Translate it into your own language. 34

Ants are very industrious. They find their food all day long. They save their food against the rainy day. Though they are little, they are tolerant and careful. We have many things to learn from their lives.

Translate it into your own language. 35

The little bees fly from flower to flower. It has no rest from dawn to dusk. It has only work and work. It collects honey from flowers. One day the big honey-comb is built with small drops of honey.

Translate it into your own language. 36

It is the month of Asher. The sky is covered with clouds. It is drizzling. The roads and ways are full of mud. Boats are sailing on. Harvesting is going on. The farmers are busy to harvesting paddy. Bangladesh has assumed a beautiful look. This is our birthland. I love my motherland.

Translate it into your own language. 37

Many of us are in the habit if smoking. But everyone should know that smoking is harmful to health. Smoking causes various kinds of fatal diseases. Cancer is one of them. So, smoking should be given up/we should give up smoking.

Translate it into your own language. 38

The love of mother is never exhausted/ended. It has no fatigue. Father may turn his back from the children. Even, brothers and sisters may turn into deadly enemies. But mother's love exists through all.

Translate it into your own language. 39

Bangladesh was not independent before. Others ruled this country and exploited the people of the country. So, the war of independence took place in 1971. About thirty lac heroic people laid down their lives in this war. We remember them with respect/honor/regard.

Translate it into your own language. 40

Bangladesh is an independent and sovereign country. Independence/freedom is the birth right to human. But no nation can achieve it without efforts. To save the independence of the motherland is the duty of every citizen. To carry out this duty properly, proper education is very necessary. And educated, honest citizens never hesitate to sacrifice their lives for the independence of the country.

Translate it into your own language. 41

Man was very helpless in the ancient time. There was not much difference between man and beast. Man was always afraid of wild animals. They did not know how to build houses. They could not make / weave clothes and make weapons. They passed the night in the muddy cave or in the cave of a hill or climbing on a tree. At day time, they moved to and fro in search of food.

Translate it into your own language. 42

Mecca is an old city. The first mosque of the world was built there. It is known to all as Kaaba Mosque. Hazrat Ibrahim (A) built it. After that a long time has been passed away. Suddenly a hole was discovered on the wall. It was repaired soon carrying wood from Jeddah.

Translate it into your own language. 43

Poverty is a complex problem in Bangladesh. But we hardly realize that this miserable condition is of our own creation. Many do not try to improve their condition by hard labor and profitable business. They only curse their lot. We must give up laziness and averse to work. Man is the maker of his own fate.

Translate it into your own language. 44

Copying is not good. Everyone hates copying. Yet, some students copy. None can be great by copying. To be great one needs/requires of one's own quality / qualification.

Translate it into your own language. 45

Road accidents are increasing every day. Many people are dying. The drivers of the vehicles will have to be more alert. The pedestrians are also not free from this liability. The lives of people are invaluable.

Translate it into your own language. 46

A few days ago, / Some days ago, I went to my village home. Then it was rainy season. "The roads were about to go under water in excessive rain / because of heavy rain. I faced much troubles to reach home. But I forgot all the sufferings of the way after reaching home.

Translate it into your own language. 47

The place Bolpur / Bolpur is known/noted for Rabindranath’s Shanti Niketan. One/We can reach Shanti Niketan from Bolpur station by rickshaw. It is Rabindranath’s Shanti Niketan. There is pomp of green all around / The pomp of greenery is all around. What a calm and solitary place it is! Shanti Niketan is really a place of peace. When one goes / we go there, one’s/our mind is thrilled / leaps up with joy atomically.

Translate it into your own language. 48

Every morning, we see two wonderful matters / incidents. One is sunrise and other is the newspaper of that day / that day’s newspaper. Habitually, we do not feel wondered / surprise any more but neither of the two is a little matter / event. As the surrounding / all around is enlightened with the light of the sun / the sunlight, in the same way newspapers also inform us of the incidents that have happened all over the world in the last twenty-four hours.

Translate it into your own language. 49

Mahbub still studying / continues his studies through hardship / with great efforts. Although he is poor, he has not given up studies. Every day he comes to college on foot from a very long distant place / distance. He is painstaking, polite and hard-working. Everybody is placed at his behavior.

Translate it into your own language. 50

It is accepted by all that to lie is a great sin. In spite of that we cannot but tell a lie in most of the cases. If everybody spoke the truth, all misdeeds including terrorism and corruption would stop. The higher the accountability, the less will be the intensity of misdeeds. In fact, it is only the natural and effective application of law that can remove all misdeeds.

Translate it into your own language. 51

It is good for health to get up from bed early in the morning/Early rising is good for health. Early in the morning the air is pure and the mind is fresh. There is not much noise. Any work can be done attentively / with attention. One who rises early also gets much time. He can take rest. He can also finish all work in time. So, to rise early in the morning/early rising is a very good habit.

Translate it into your own language. 52

Flood occurs/visits Bangladesh every year. Man, and other animals suffer from untold miseries during flood. Crops are also greatly damaged. Various diseases like diarrhea and dysentery break out in an epidemic form after flood. So, flood is a serious problem for our country. That’s why/So, the government should try to solve this problem permanently taking specific plans.

Translate it into your own language. 53

There are many housewives who work almost all day long at home. They get no salary for their works. But their work is very important for the family. There are some housewives who assist their families in the agricultural works. Many build up poultry farm.

Translate it into your own language. 54

Once day some hunters set a trap to catch wild animals. A lion was caught in the trap. He tried his best to get out of the trap. As he rolled on the ground/earth, he was trapped in the net more tightly. He could not move any more. A rat heard the roar and groan of the lion. The rat went there to see what had happened. The rat came close to the lion, it said “Lie quietly and I will free you.”

Translate it into your own language. 55

Bangladesh is an agricultural country. Although some industrial plants have grown up, the country has not yet been industrialized. Even her agriculture is not self-dependent rather the whole of it is dependent on rain. Cloud is necessary for rain as there is no rain without cloud.

Translate it into your own language. 56

In spite of all these we are not pessimists. We find that the world is proceeding towards the path of development in the face of various kinds of problems. During the last fifty years after the Second World War, many countries have been freed from colonial rule. Bangladesh also achieved independence in 1971. And after liberation Bangladesh also developed much in many fields.

Translate it into your own language. 57

Copying in the examination has become a social disease. What is your idea in this matter? Many people think that it is not an isolated affair. The cause of this is rooted in our present social and political condition. If we cannot get rid of such condition we will be destroyed as a nation.

Translate it into your own language. 58

Nowadays, it has become very difficult to move in the Dhaka city. It appears that the number of the people and the vehicles are more than what the roads and ways can contain. Besides, there is sounder and more smoke and dust. In this situation, the sufferings of the common people beggar’s description. But it is a news of hope that the present govt. is taking necessary steps to make the communication system easier and available / low cost.

Translate it into your own language. 59

In ancient time, man was helpless. There was no difference between man and beasts. They were always anxious in fear of beasts. They could not know how to build houses. Even, they did not know how to wear clothes or make weapons.

English Passage for Translation 

Translate it into your own language. 60

The Japan is are industrious. Japan is not rich on the basis of natural assets. Educated and skilled people are her great assets. Japan has developed through only industrious. Japan is an example for like our country.

Practice now!

English Second Paper

Model Test Question with Answer

Read More

9+ Degree of Comparison exercise with answer pdf download

English 2nd paper 

Degree

exercise with answer pdf download

Positive - Comparative - Superlative

1. Runa is as tall as Bristi. (Make it Comparative) 

2. She is better than any other girl in the class (Make it superlative)

3. This book is finer than yours. (Make it positive)

4. He is taller than any other boy in the class. (Positive degree)

5. Gold is one of the most precious metals. (Comparative)

6. Chittagong is the biggest sea-port-in Bangladesh. (Comparative)

7. Akbar was the greatest king of India. (Comparative)

8. Dhaka is the greatest city in Bangladesh. (Make it positive)

9. Bhutan is one of the smallest states in Asia. (Comparative)

10. Calcutta is bigger than most other cities in India. (Positive)

Answer:

1. Bristi is not taller than Runa.

2. She is the best girl in the class.

3. Your book is not as fine as this one.

4. No other boy is as tall as he in the class.

5. Few metals are most precious than gold.

6. Chittagong is bigger than any other sea-port in Bangladesh.

7. Akbar was greater than any other king of India.

8. No other city in Bangladesh is as great as Dhaka.

9. Bhutan is smaller than most other states in Asia.

10. Very few cities in India are as big as Calcutta.

Practice now!

English Second Paper

Model Test Question with Answer

Read More

47+ Adverbs exercise with answer pdf download

English 2nd paper

Adverb

 exercise with answer pdf download

Underlined words reffering adverbs:

1. I shall return soon.

2. He always helped me.

3. I rise early in the morning.

4. He will come late.

5. The cow gives us milk daily.

6. He will never return my book.          

7. I shall go to Dhaka tomorrow.

8. Come here.

9. The thief ran away.

10. Ther is a garden near our class.

11. Kamal went inside.

12. Kamal went out.

13. Dhaka is far from Khulna.

14. Hills are not found everywhere.                      

15. There is a pen under the table.

16. The baby walks slowly.                        

17. He can run quickly.

18. Wind blows gently in the morning.      

19. He accepted my request gladly.

20. His sister sings sweetly.                       

21. I could not understand it clearly.

22. Earn much for future.                   

23. Spend less for bright future.

24. He hardly comes to me.

Practice now!

English Second Paper

Model Test Question with Answer

25. I drink enough water in the morning.

26. Muhammad Ali is very strong.    

27. The old man is too weak to walk.

28. I do not know why he does not come to me. 

29. I, therefore, hope that you will grant my prayer.

30. I was weak, so I could not go to Cox’s Bazar.

31. Yes, you are right.

32. No, you are wrong.

33. Surely he has stolen my watch.                

34. Really, he is a patriot.

35. Yes, you may go.                                     

36. No, he is not a liar.

37. I usually get up at 7 o’clock.        

38. He sometimes goes to cinema.

39. He may go there again.                

40. I don’t usually take tea.

41. Before starting, we should think first.    

42. Secondly it is very expensive. 

43. Finally he went to the meeting.              

44. Lastly we arranged a picnic.

45. There is a book on the table.                

46. Here is your pen.

47. Luckily we won the game.

48. Unfortunately he failed in the examination.

Practice now!

English Second Paper

Model Test Question with Answer

Read More

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning (Unit: 06-08)

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning

Unit: 6.2
Toxic বিষাক্ত
Disposal ব্যবস্হাপনা/পরিত্যাগ করা
Belch নির্গত হওয়া
Emit নির্গত হওয়া
Filth নোংরা
Contaminate দূষিত করা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 6.3
Alarming ভীতিকর
Undergoing অতিক্রম করা
Evidence সাক্ষ্য
Surroundings চারপাশ
Exemplify উদাহরণসহ ব্যাখ্যা করা
Clog up বাধা দেয়া
Detergent পাউডার/পরিষ্কারক
Fossil fuel জীবাশ্ম জালানী
Predict ভবিষ্যদ্ববাণী করা
Catastrophically আকস্মিকভাবে বিপত্তি
Wilderness জনবিচ্ছিন্ন এলাকা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 6.4
Extinction বিলুপ্তি
Poach বেআইনীভাবে ধরা
Tropical উষ্ণমন্ডলীয়
Accelerate গতি বৃদ্ধি পাওয়া
Slaughter পশু হত্যা/জবাই
Reptile সরীসৃপ
Species প্রজাতি
Perish ধ্বংস হওয়া
Sterility অনুর্বরতা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 6.5
Fume ধোয়া
Respiratory শ্বাস-প্রশ্বাস সংক্রান্ত
Indiscriminate নির্বিচারে
Odor গন্ধ
Olfactory ঘ্রাণ সম্পর্কীয়
Avert নিবারিত করা/এড়ানো

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 6.7
Compost জৈব সার
Incinerator দহনযন্ত্র
Refabricate পূনরায় প্রস্তুত করা
Biodegradable জীবাণু দ্বারা ক্ষতি হতে পারে এমন
Conserve সংরক্ষণ করা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 8.1
Splint কাঠের পাত
Strips ফালি, টুকরা
Roll গড়ানো
Pad নরম বস্তু
Blister ফোস্কা
Soak ভিজে যাওয়া
Jolting ঝাঁকি
Infection রোগ সংক্রমণ

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 8.2
Pretty বেশ
Consequence ফলাফল
Manifold বহু ধরনের
Cope মানিয়ে নেয়া

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 8.3
Unit একক
Interpret ব্যাখ্যা করা
Expose অনাবৃত রাখা
Tolerance সহনশীলতা
Insulation অন্তরণ

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 8.4
Drag টেনে নেয়া
Retort প্রতিবাদ, সমুচিত উত্তর দেয়া
Constant বারবার ঘটা
Thumping দুমদুম শব্দ
Screeching তীব্র শব্দে চিৎকার

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 8.5
Nosy কৌতূহলী
Troublesome বিরক্তিকর
Petty ক্ষুদ্র
Inhospitable আতিথ্যবিমুখ
Warm hearted সহানুভূতিশীল
Indifferent উদাসীন
Sociable মিশুক
Hostile হিংসুক
Fed up বিরক্ত
Blaring উচ্চ শব্দ
Stuffy গুমোট
Compel বাধ্য করা

Read More

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning (Unit: 8.6 to 13.4)

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning

Unit: 8.6
Convention চলতি প্রথা
Compile সংগ্রহ করা
Revise দেখা
Sprinkle ছিটিয়ে দেয়া
Morsel খাবারের টুকরা
Conscience বিবেক
Litter আবর্জনা
Pluck তোলা
Enforcing প্রয়োগকারী
Vigilant সতর্ক
Fluctuation ওঠানামা
Casualty দুর্ঘটনাসমূহ

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 9.1
Develop বিকশিত হওয়া
Ennoble মর্যাদা সম্পন্ন করা
Refine পরিশুদ্ধ করা
Eloquence বাগ্মীতা
Universal সর্বজনীন
Catalyst পরিবর্তন সাধন করা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 9.3
Owing to কারনে
Constraint সীমাবদ্ধতা
Requisite অপরিহার্য
Unusually অস্বাভাবিকভাবে
Violence হিংস্রতা
Closure বন্ধ

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 9.5
Procedure কার্যপ্রণালী
Expansion বিস্তার
Suitability উপযোগিতা
Candidature প্রার্থীতা
Assess যোগ্যতা বিচার করা
Prerequisite পূর্বশর্ত
Transcript প্রতিলিপি
Concerned সংশ্লিষ্ট
Lodge দেয়া

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 9.6
Prospect সম্ভাবনা
Specific নির্দিষ্ট
Preliminary প্রাথমিক
Require প্রয়োজন
Credentials যোগ্যতার প্রমাণ-পত্র
Non refundable অফেরতযোগ্য
Waive ছেড়ে দেয়া

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 9.8
Yardstick মাপকাঠি
Perspective পরিপ্রেক্ষিত

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 13.1
Clinker ঝামা
Incommensurate অসঙ্গতিপূর্ণ
Hamper বাধা দেয়া
Self esteem আত্মমর্যাদা
Hazardous ঝুকিপূর্ণ
Guerilla গেরিলা যোদ্ধা
Prefer পছন্দ করা
Errand ছোটখাট কাজ করতে বাইরে গমন
Meagre খুবই অল্প
Terrified ভীত, ভয়ার্ত

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 13.2
Enrolment তালিকা
Subservient অধীনস্ত
Dominated আধীপত্যে থাকা
Maltreated অত্যাচারিত
Abandonment পরিত্যাগ
Repression দমন নীতি

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 13.3
Gratuity পারিতোষিক
Eligible যোগ্য
Illegible অস্পষ্ট
Insure বীমা করা
Subsidized ভর্তুকিপ্রাপ্ত
Ailment পীড়া
Teenage কিশোর-কিশোরী (১৩-১৯ বছর)
Occasionally নিয়মিতভাবে নয়
Feeble দুর্বল
Malnutrition অপুষ্টি
Barely নামেমাত্র
Desperation বেপরোয়া অবস্হা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 13.4
Instance উদাহরণ
Stun বিহবল হওয়া
Atrocities নৃশংসতাসমূহ
Regime শাসন
Consequently ফলাফল স্বরুপ
Adopt গ্রহণ করা
Interference অনধিকার চর্চা
Congregation সমাবেশ
Detain অবরুদ্ধ থাকা
Confession স্বীকারোক্তি
Detention আটক অবস্হা

Read More

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning (Unit: 13.5 to 20.2)

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning

Unit: 13.5
Constantly ক্রমাগত
Span বিস্তার
Thrombosis জমাট রক্ত
Rheumatoid arthritis পুরনো বাত
Prevalent প্রচলিত
Adjacent নিকটবর্তী
Gloves দস্তানা
Apron সজ্জাবরণী
Chronic দীর্ঘ স্থায়ী
Defend রক্ষা করা
Formulate প্রকাশ করা, গঠন করা
Prevalent প্রচলিত
Daunting নিরুৎসাহ
Life-span জীবনব্যাপী

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 13.6
Extract উদ্ধৃত অংশ
Naturalization নাগরিকত্ব গ্রহণ / দান
 Integration যোগ্য, ঐক্য
Entail চাপিয়ে দেয়া

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 13.7
Ragged ছিন্ন বস্ত্র
Grime ময়লা
Detect বের করা
Makeshift অস্থায়ী
Leftover ফেলে দেয়া খাবার
Attendant সেবক
Eclipse অন্ধকার, সূর্য গ্রহণ
Ecstatic অধীক সুখী
Embarrassed অস্বস্তি
Terrified আতংকিত

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 14.1
Equate সমান বিবেচনা করা
Pivot কেন্দ্র করে ঘোরা
Patronage পৃষ্ঠপোষণ
Deputation প্রতিনিধি
Vigorously বলিষ্ঠভাবে
Zealously উদ্দীপনার সাথে

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 14.3
Stride লম্বা পদক্ষেপ
Conspicuous সহজে দৃষ্টগোচর হয় এমন
Count বিবেচনা করা
Urge অভিলাষ
Opt মনস্থির করা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 14.4
Integrated সমন্বিত
Approach দৃষ্টিভঙ্গি
Tremendous ব্যাপক

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 17.5
Transmit প্রেরণ করা
Correspond চিঠি আদান-প্রদান করা
Emerge আবির্ভূত হওয়া
Handle পরিচালনা করা
Applicable ব্যবহার উপযোগী
Typically সাধারণভাবে

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 17.6
Consume ভোগ করা
Efficiency দক্ষতা
Simultaneously যুগপৎভাবে

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 17.7
Sneer উপহাস করা
Comprehensive সমন্বিত
Disposition মেজাজ
Conjure স্মৃতি মনে করা
Visage মুখাবয়ব
Volition ইচ্ছা শক্তি
Colossal বিশাল
Remains ধ্বংসাবশেষ
Pedestal স্তম্ভের ভিত্তি
Antique সুপ্রাচীন
Frown ভ্রুকুটি
Stamp সজোরে পদাঘাত করা
Tenderness কোমলতা
Visualize মনের চক্ষু দিয়ে দেখা
Wrinkle কুঞ্চিত করা
Wreck ধ্বংস
Statue মূর্তি

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 20.1
Career পেশা / বৃত্তি
Gymnast শরীরকলাবিদ / মল্লবিদ
Vendor বিক্রেতা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 20.2
Acclaimed স্বীকৃত
Cumulative ক্রমবর্ধমান
Disbursement অর্থপ্রদান
Inception প্রারম্ভ
Substantiate প্রমাণ করা
Efficient পারদর্শী
Consumption ভোগ

Read More

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning (Unit: 20.3 to 24.2)

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning

Unit: 20.3
Affluent প্রাচুর্যশালী
Impoverished দরিদ্র
Devotion আত্মনিয়োগ
Horticulture উদ্যানবিদ্যা
Manure সার
Associate মেলামেশা করা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 20.4
Lucrative লাভজনক
Inevitable অবশ্যম্ভাবী / অপরিহার্য
Pursue খোজ করা
Relentless অবিশ্রান্ত / নির্মম
Radically সম্পূর্ণভাবে
Invariable অপরিবর্তনীয়
All consuming আধিপত্যবিস্তারকারী
Irony পরিহাস
Satire বিদ্রুপ
Bewilder হতবুদ্ধি করা
Peddler ফেরিওয়ালা
Disciple শিষ্য

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 20.5
Prolong দীর্ঘায়িত করা
Mandatory বাধ্যতামূলক
Command দক্ষতা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 20.7
Resume জীবনবৃত্তান্ত
Baccalaureate প্রবেশিকা পরিক্ষা
Denote চিহ্নিত করা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 20.8
Sort পৃথক করা
Chaff তুষ
Succession অনুক্রম / পর্যায়
Marginally প্রান্তিকভাবে
Entrails অন্ত্র / নাড়িভূঁড়ি
Predictor ভবিষ্যদ্বক্তা
Subjectivity আত্মনিষ্ঠতা
Inherent সহজাত
Straightforward সহজবোধ্য
Enthusiasm উৎসাহ-উদ্দীপনা
Attire পোষাক
Ostentatious জাঁকালো
Impressive হৃদয়গ্রাহী
Typical আদর্শ স্বরুপ

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 20.9
Despise অবজ্ঞা করা
Scrutinize সতর্কভাবে পরিক্ষা করা
Disparaged অবমূল্যায়িত করা
Forgo ত্যাগ করা
Precarious অনিশ্চিত / অনিরাপদ
Scrivener কেরানি
Distress দুর্দশা
Fickleness চপলতা
Venture ঝুঁকি
Wiseacre মেকি পন্ডিত
Morose খিটখিটে
Crabbed বদমেজাজি
Caprice খেয়াল খুশি
Jostle ধাক্কাধাক্কি করা
Irksome ক্লান্তিকর

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 23.1
Glimmering নিভুনিভু করে জলা
Embellished অলংকৃত
Immense সুবিশাল
Momentous গুরুত্বপূর্ণ
Wreak বড় ধরনের ক্ষতি করা
Reunification পূন: একত্রিকরণ
Collapse ধ্বংস হওয়া

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 23.2
Malnourished অপুষ্টিতে ভোগা
Deficiency স্বল্পতা
Splendid জমকালো, চমৎকার
Turbulent অশান্ত
Specter ভূত
Oppressive নিষ্ঠুর, অন্যায়
Devastate সম্পূর্ণ ধ্বংস করা
Instability পরিবর্তনশীলতা
Adverse প্রতিকূল
Fiery জ্বালাময়ী

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 23.3
Deteriorate অবনতি ঘটা
Boom একটানা তীব্র শব্দ
Sustainability স্থায়ীত্ব
Infrastructure মৌলিক অবকাঠামো
Daunting ভীতিকর
Erosion ভাঙ্গন
Diminish হ্রাস করা
Fragment টুকরা
Compensate ক্ষতিপূরণ করা
Reclamation পুনরুদ্ধার
Species প্রকার, শ্রেণি

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 23.4
Indiscriminately নির্বিচারে
Ultimately অবশেষে
Conservation সংরক্ষণ
Foresee ভবিষ্যদ্বাণী করা
Anticipate প্রত্যাশা করা
Reckless বেপরোয়া
Catastrophe দুর্যোগ, বিপর্যয়
Imperative আবশ্যক
Overwhelm আচ্ছন্ন করা

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 23.5
Spin মেরুদন্ড
Crash প্রচন্ড শব্দে বিধ্বস্ত হওয়া
Trend ঝোক
Governance শাসন পদ্ধতি
Expectancy প্রত্যাশা
Frozen জমাট

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 23.6
Agenda বিষয়সূচি

HSC English 1st Paper Word Meaning
Unit: 24.2
Converse কথোপকথন
Magnitude বিশালত্ব / গুরুত্ব
Critical বিবেচক / সম্পৃক্ত

Read More

HSC English First Paper | Unit: 15, Lesson: 4 | Tours and Travels | The Wonders of Vilayet

1. Warm up activity:

□ Discuss in a group any journey you have made to a village/town/city.

□ What significant changes have taken place in Bengal (today's Bangladesh) in the field of language and culture since the 19th century?

□ Can you find examples of travel writing in English? What are those?

As countries differ, so do their ways of life and living: How did the people in India and England lay out their houses in the eighteenth century? In the following extract from The Wonders of Vilayet (Vilayet is England in Persian), we get an enchanting picture of the parks, gardens and houses in London including the Queen's Palace. The author also makes references to houses and housing materials used in Bengal at that time. Can you identify some of the significant differences that the author points out? Mirza Sheikh Ttesamuddin, the author of the travelogue visited England in 1765 and recorded his experiences in Persian, the official language of India during the Mughal reign. The book, Shigurf Name-e-Vilayet, was translated into Bangla by the late Professor ABM Habibullah. Dr. Kaiser Huq, Professor of English at Dhaka University and a poet translated the book into English.

2. Now read the text below and answer the questions that follow:

The exterior of the King's palace is neither magnificent nor beautiful. The outer walls are not even plastered. It could easily be passed off as the multi-storied residence of a merchant of Benares. All the mansions in the city are of this sort, but the Queen's palace is very handsome. I was told, however, that the interior of the King's palace is very elegant, and that the suites of rooms and the chambers of the harem are painted an attractive verdigris.

The King's garden, which is outside the city, is very old. It has pleasant walks, lawns, and neatly arranged beds of various shapes - triangles, squares, hexagons and octagons. These are planted with varieties of flowers, green plants, and fruit trees such as the apple, gooseberry, peach, pear, filbert, etc. The garden also uses a special method to grow Indian fruits like the muskmelon, watermelon, cucumber, orange and pomegranate, and Indian flowers like the rose, henna, marigold, tuberose and the cock's-comb flower.

The cold weather in Europe doesn't allow one to grow Indian Suits and flowers in the open. A special kind of house is constructed for the purpose, three sides of which are of brick, while the fourth, which feces south, is made of glass-plates that keep out the cold air but let in the sun's rays. In the cold season stoves are lit in the house for heat, and fruit and flower seeds are sown in troughs filled with mould. The heat of the stoves and the warmth of the sunlight combine to aid the growth of Indian plants. European gardeners grow Eastern fruits in this manna- and make a very good profit, charging as much as five rupees for a pomegranate and three for a musk-melon.

The trees along the walks in the King's garden are arranged very tastefully. By cutting the branches many of them have been shaped into human forms, so that at night one may mistake them for real people. It takes many days of work to tailor the trees into these shapes.

The road in front of the Queen's palace is very broad and charming. On one side is the palace, on the other a pond which is part of a park. Deer are kept in the park and the walks in it are lined with shady walnut trees. On Sundays, men and women, old and young, rich and poor, natives and foreigners, all come here to stroll and amuse themselves. In these delightful surroundings a heavy heart is automatically lightened Sauntering courtesans with lissom figures and amorous maidens with the faces of houris spread a heavenly aura and the visitor's soul becomes a flowering garden.

These fairy-faced ravishers of the heart move with a thousand blandishments and coquetries; the earth is transformed into a paradise, and heaven itself hangs down its head in shame at seeing such beauty.... As soon as I saw this place I involuntarily exclaimed:

If there's a heaven on the face of the earth,

It is this! It is this!

It is this! Brick buildings in Bengal have rooms with high ceilings and large doors and windows, so that there is a soothing current of air in hot weather. It is exactly opposite in Europe. There is extreme cold, frost and snow; the ceilings are low, and the doors and windows small. The roofs are not flat like the roofs of brick buildings in India. Wooden beams and planks are used to build the frame of the roof in the shape of a camel's hump; that is to say, like the slanting thatched roofs of huts in Bengal. But whereas the latter are slightly curved at the end, both slanted halves of European roofs are plain. The frame is then covered with tiles of fired clay or slate. Such roofs last up to two hundred years without repairs, and if they are still intact when the walls have decayed, can be re-utilised. The bricks in the walls are laid with mortar prepared from pulverised stones. Human hair is mixed with the mortar to give added strength to the structure. Houses may be as tall as seven, eight or nine stories, yet the walls are not thicker than a cubit. Consequently the entire building quivers if the wind rises, and strangers may fear for their safety. But there is in reality no cause for fear, though I myself was at first alarmed. The inside walls, instead of being plastered, are lined with wooden planks, which are covered with paper decorated with pretty designs in many colours.

Teak and sal are foreign to Vilayet; houses and ships are built here with oak and walnut. These are light in colour, very sturdy and resistant to white ants and other insects. That is why buildings last so long in this country.

3. Answer the following questions:

a. The narrator was not impressed with the exterior of the King's palace. Why?

b. What does he say about its interior? How does he describe the Queen's palace?

c. The author is clearly fascinated by the King's garden. Why?

d. The narrator mentions a special kind of house which allowed plants to grow in cold weather. What are these houses called? How did they work in the narrator's description and how do they work now?

e. How many geometrical shapes does the narrator mention in describing the beds in the King's garden? Can you describe them?

f. Were Eastern fruits available in London when I'tesamuddin visited the city? If so, were they produced locally or imported?

4. Write about the differences between the Indian and the English houses described by the narrator.

5. Why was the narrator so fascinated by the road and the park in front of the Queen's Palace?

6. What makes the narrator describe the park as a 'heaven on earth'?

7. Describe how the houses in Europe were built when I'tesamuddin visited it.

8. Find out the differences among the following:

a. house, mansion, palace

b. frost, snow, ice

c. plank, beam, frame

9. Make a list of flowers and fruits the narrator mentions. How many are

unknown to you? Make a Google search and find out their pictures, then write brief descriptions of them.

10. Find out the meanings of the following words and make sentences with them:

a. lissom

b. courtesans

c. aura

d. blandishment

e. curved 

d. slanted

g. sturdy

h. quiver

11. Find antonyms for the following words:

a. elegant

b. broad

c. soothing

d. safety

e. thick

THE END

Read More

HSC English First Paper | Unit: 15, Lesson: 3 | Tours and Travels | Imaginary Travel

1. Warm up activity:

□ Discuss any travel account that you have read in English or Bengali and the places it describes. Imagine you are walking in a street in London or New York. How is your experience different from that of walking in the roads or streets of your town or city?

Travel can be imaginary as well. Authors would sometimes make imaginary voyages to strange places and draw pictures of people and places, manners and morals. Jonathon Swift's (1667-1745) Gulliver's Travels (1726) is an example of imaginary travel. Swift created a fictional traveller named Lamuel Gulliver, a ship doctor who visited the lands of the Lilliputs and Brobdingnags and the island of Laputa. These are all fictitious places inhabited by imaginary people. The travels here, however, carry a seious purpose. They reveal truths about human nature. For example, even today human life is poisoned by evils such as racism, religious extremism, bigotry etc. Gulliver during his visit to the land of the Lilliputs—who are humans, only about six inches tali-discover how strongly prejudiced the Lilliputians are about certain things and how these help nurse hatred and foment fratricidal war. Gulliver, a man of average height, gets a new insight into the pettiness of human nature when he arrives at the land of Lilliputs who are small not only in size but also in their thoughts and perceptions.

2. Now read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:

One morning, about a fortnight after I had obtained my Liberty, Reldresal, Principal Secretary (as they style him) of private Affairs, came to my House, attended only by one Servant. He ordered his Coach to wait at a Distance and desired I would give him an Hour's Audience; which I readily consented to, on Account of his Quality, and Personal Merits, as well as of the many good Offices he had done me during my Sollicitations at Court. I offered to lie down, that he might the more conveniently reach my Ear: but he chose rather to let me hold him in my Hand during our Conversation. 

He began with Compliments on my Liberty; said, he might pretend to some Merit in it; but, however, added that if it had not been for the present Situation of things at Court, perhaps I might not have obtained it so soon. For, said he, as flourishing a Condition as we appear to be in to Foreigners, we labour, under two mighty Evils; a violent faction at home, and the Danger of an invasion by a most potent Enemy from abroad. As to the first, you are to understand, that for above seventy Moons past, there have been two struggling Parties in this Empire, under the Names of Tramecksan, and Slamecksan, from the high and low Heels on their Shoes, by which they distinguish themselves.

It is alleged indeed, that the high Heels are most agreeable to our ancient Constitution: But however this be, his Majesty hath determined to make use of only low Heels in the Administration of the Government, and all Offices in the Gift of the Crown; as you cannot but observe; and particularly, that his Majesty's Imperial Heels are lower at least by a Drurr than any of his Court (Drurr is a Measure about the fourteenth Part of an Inch). The Animosities between these two Parties run so high that they will neither eat, nor drink, nor talk with each other. We compute the Tramecksan, or High-Heels, to exceed us in Number; but the Power is wholly on our Side.

We apprehend his Imperial Highness, the Heir to the Crown, to have some Tendency towards the High-Heels; at least we can plainly discover one of his Heels higher than the other; which gives him a Hobble in his Gait Now, in the midst of these intestine Disquiets, we are threatened with an Invasion from the Island of Blefuscu, which is the other great Empire of the Universe, almost as large and powerful as this of his Majesty. For as to what we have heard you affirm, that there are other Kingdoms and States in the World inhabited by human Creatures as large as yourself, our Philosophers are in much Doubt; and would rather conjecture that you dropt from the Moon, or one of the Stars;

because it is certain, that an hundred Mortals of your Bulk, would, in a short Time, destroy all the Fruits and Cattle of his Majesty's Dominions: besides, our Histories of six Thousand Moons make no Mention of any other Regions, than the two great Empires of Lilliput and Blefuscu. Which two mighty Powers have, as I was going to tell you, been engaged in a most obstinate War for six and thirty Moons past. It began upon the following Occasion. It is allowed on all Hands, that the primitive way of breaking Eggs before we eat them, was upon the larger End; But his present Majesty's Grandfather, while he was a Boy going to eat an Egg, and breaking it according to ancient Practice, happened to cut one of his Fingers. 

Whereupon the Emperor his Father published an Edict, commanding all his Subjects, upon great Penalties, to break the smaller End of their Eggs. The People so highly resented this Law, that our Histories tell us, there have been six Rebellions raised on that Account; wherein one Emperor lost his Life, and another his Crown. These civil Commotions were constantly fomented by the Monarchs of Blefuscu; and when they were quelled, the Exiles always fled for Refuge to that Empire. It is computed that eleven Thousand Persons have, at several Times, suffered Death, rather than submit to break their Eggs at the smaller End. Many hundred large Volumes have been published upon this Controversy: But the Books of the Big-Indians have been long forbidden, and the whole Party rendered incapable by Law of holding Employments.

3. Answer the following questions:

a. In the extract, who comes to visit Gulliver's house? What is his official position?

b. What does he tell Gulliver about his liberty?

c. Who are Tramecksan and Slamecksan ? What is the difference between them?

d. How long is a Drurr?

e. How many people died in the war on breaking eggs?

f. Why did the heir to the throne hobble?

4. Some words have been capitalized in the above extract though they are not capitalized in standard English. Do you have any ideas why?

5. Choose any two lines from the text and rewrite and punctuate them in standard English.

6. What are the two causes of division among the people here? How serious are they? Do you see any reflection of contemporary politics in the extract? Is the narrator critical of the Lilliputians? Has he chosen to laugh at them? Why and how does he ridicule them?

7. What is factionalism? What evidences of factionalism do you find here? What are the bad effects of factionalism?

8. Give the contextual meanings of the following words:

a. disquiet

b. heir

c. conjecture

d. foment

e. quell

f. animosity

9. List 5 noun words and 5 adjectival words from the extract. Now make sentences of your own with them.

If you want to read the next lesson of this unit please click the link below:
Lesson 4: The Wonders of Vilayet

Read More

HSC English First Paper | Unit: 15, Lesson: 2 | Tours and Travels | Arriving in the Orient

1. Warm up activity:

Discuss the following questions in pairs.

□ Have you ever travelled by boat, launch or steamer along a river? Write down your experience in 500-600 words.

□ Before the beginning of air travel, people travelling between continents had to do so by ships. What do you think were the pleasures and the dangers of those journeys?

During the colonial era (1757-1947) the English came to India in great numbers in search offortune. Many young women in quest of husbands also travelled to India.

George Orwell (1903-1950) spent a part of his early life in Burma (now Myanmar), -then an English colony-serving as a police officer. In the following extract taken from his Burmese Days (1934), we get the picture of the journey of a young English woman Elizabeth, across the sea by ship and her arrival in Burma. She has a typical colonial mind-set, and fantasizes a glorious life in India. Her attitude to the colony is also characteristic of the colonizers psyche that liked the land and the landscape but was dismissive of the people-called 'natives'-and their way of life.

2. Now read the text and answer the questions that follow:

Elizabeth spent thirty pounds on summer frocks and set sail immediately. The ship, heralded by rolling porpoises, ploughed across the Mediterranean and down the Canal into a sea of staring, enamel-like blue, then out into the green wastes of the Indian Ocean, where flocks of flying fish skimmed in terror from the approaching hull. At night the waters were phosphorescent, and the wash of the bow was like a moving arrowhead of green fire. Elizabeth 'loved' the life on board ship....

She was going to love India, she knew. She had formed quite a picture of India, from the other passenger's conversation; she had even learned some of the more necessary Hindustani phrases, such as 'idher ao,' jaldi,' 'sahibta^ etc. In anticipation she tasted the agreeable atmosphere of Clubs, with punkahs flapping and bare-footed white turbaned boys reverently salaaming; and maidans where bronze Englishmen with little clipped moustaches galloped to and fro, whacking polo balls. It was almost as nice as being rich, the way people lived in India.

They sailed into Colombo through green glassy waters, where turtles and black snakes floated basking. A fleet of sampans came reaching out to meet the ship, propelled by coal-black men with lips stained redder than blood by betel juice. They yelled and struggled round the gangway while the passengers descended. As Elizabeth and her friends came down, two sampan-wallahs, their prows nosing against the gangway, besought them with yells.

"Don't you go with him, missie! Not with him I Bad wicked man he, not fit taking missio!"

"Don't you listen him lies, missie! Nasty low fellow! Nasty low tricks him playing. Naaty native tricks!"

"Ha, ha! He is not native himself Oh no! Him European man, white skin are same, missie. Ha ha I"

"Stop your bat, you two, or TU fetch one of you a kick," said the husband of Elizabeth's friend-he was a planter. They stepped into one of the sampans and woe rowed towards the sim-bright quays. And the successful sampan-wallah turned and discharged at his rival a mouth fill of spittle which he must have been saving up for a very long time."

This was the Orient. Scents of coco-nut oil and sandalwood, cinnamon and turmeric, floated across the water on to Mount Lavinia where they bathed in a lukewarm sea that foamed like Coca-Cola. She came back to the ship in the evening, and they reached Rangoon a week later.

North of Mandalay the train, fuelled with wood, crawled at twelve miles an hour across a vast parched plain bounded at its remote edges by blue rings of hills. White egrets stood poised, motionless, like herons, and piles of drying chillis gleamed crimson in the sun. Sometimes a white pagoda rose from the plain like the breast of a supine giantess. The early tropic night settled down, and the train jolted on, slowly, stopping at little stations where barbaric yells sounded from the darkness. Half-naked men with their long hair knotted behind their heads moved to and fro in torchlight, hideous as demons in Elizabeth's eyes. The train plunged into the forest, and unseen branches brushed against the windows. It was about nine o'clock when they reached Kyauktada, where Elizabeth's uncle and aunt were waiting with Mr. Macgregor's car, and with some servants carrying torches. Her aunt came forward and took Elizabeth's shoulders in her delicate, saurian hands.

"I suppose, you are our niece Elizabeth? We are so pleased to see you," she said, and kissed her.

Mr. Lackersteen peered over his wife's shoulder in the torchlight. He gave a half-whistle, exclaimed, "Well, I'll be damned!" and then seized Elizabeth and kissed her, more warmly than he need have done, she thought. She had never seen either of them before.

3. Answer the following questions:

a. How did the waters of the Indian Ocean look like during the night?

b. What frightened the flocks of flying fish?

c. Why did Elizabeth think that she would like India?

d. What is polo? Who played the polo?

e. What did the sampanwallahs fight for?

f. Where did Elizabeth go from Rangoon?

g. Did Elizabeth enjoy her stay in Colombo?

4. Put T (true) and F (false) beside the following statements based on the above extract.

a. Elizabeth unwillingly undertook the sea voyage.

b. Her companions were unfriendly.

c. Before she got into the Indian Ocean she sailed across the Mediterranean.

d. The Indians lived a glamorous life.

e. The train journey to Kyauktada was a long one.

5. Discuss the following questions in pairs :

a. What picture of the sea do you find here?

b. The narrator is rather critical of the local people. What evidence do you find of the narrator's disapproval of the local people?

c. Narrate the competition between the sampanwallahs.

6. Choose the right words from the box to fill the blanks in the sentences given below:

floated   anticipation   ploughed   skimmed   crawled   gleamed

a. The ship…………. through the Mediterranean.

b. The fish…………. in terror from the approaching hull.

c. In…………. she imagined the agreeable atmosphere.

d. The black snakes…………. basking.

e. The train…………. at twelve miles an hour.

f. Piles of drying chilli…………. crimson in the sun.

7. What colours and spices have been mentioned in the passage?

8. Give synonyms of the following words:

a. delicate

b. warmly

c. discharge

d. lukewarm

e. hideous

f. supine

g. parched

9. The narrator has on several occasions compared one thing with another using the word 'like'. For example, sea foam has been compared to Coca-Cola.

Find five more examples from the text where the word 'like' has been used for comparison.

If you want to read the next lesson of this unit please click the link below:
Lesson 3: Imaginary Travel

Read More

HSC English First Paper | Unit: 15, Lesson: 1 | Tours and Travels | Travelling to a Village in Bangladesh

1. Warm up activity:

□ In a group discuss the last journey yon made out of your village/town/city.

□ Now share the following introduction with a friend.

Bangladesh, despite a fast paced urbanization, still remains predominantly rural Bow many villages are there now? Sixty four thousands or more? Have the villages changed muck aver the years? How did they respond to the onslaught of urbanization or march of development or growth in education? Write dawn your answer. In the following extract, we will see a Bangladeshi village and the villagers through the eyes of an English professor from England who taught in Dhaka university twice-first between 1947 and 1951 and again in 1972.

2. Read the text below and answer the questions that follow:

We set out on the evening of July 21st. Food was scarce in the village so Abdul packed a suitcase with two loaves and some tea and tins of milk, cheese and jam. We travelled Intermediate class in a cross country train not uncomfortably crowded, through a country of shadowy loveliness. It was a moonlit night of broken soft clouds; the land was mostly under water, with paddy and coco-palms growing from it, and a few raised cart-tracks and groups of cottages islanded among clumps of bushes, all reflected among shadows.

Here and there was the red glow of a cooking fire or the lantern of a fisherman's boat in open water. At dawn we reached Sonaimuri, a small canal-side station among wide fields, from there we had eight more miles by country boat, some of it along the canal, some of it across the flooded paddy fields. I was looking forward to that tranquil water-journey in the early morning, and tranquil it must have been, for I fell instantly asleep and knew no more till we reached the landing-ghat at Khorshed's house, in a blaze of sunlight. It turned out that his letter saying that he was bringing me was still on its way, but they rallied to the crisis and gathered round to make me welcome, though as none of them spoke any English they could only stare and laugh and offer me coco-nut juice.

Khorshed set me up a camp, a wooden bed, chair and table in a thatched bamboo outhouse. It was a lovely spot among bamboo and coco-palms, facing a tank where fireflies wove intricate dances at night. He put his own bed beside it for protection, and there I stayed, holding permanent court from dawn to bedtime. Within village memory-and that went back for some two centuries, I was the first European to go there: it was too remote even for a District Commissioner to pass through. Also since I was a woman, the women could come (at different times from the men) to look at me without losing their characters. People kept coming and coming: only the rains and the fact that few of them were rich enough to have boats prevented them from coming from ten miles round. When he saw that they would not stop coming Khorshed fixed some curtains round the bed so that I could crawl behind them when I was tired of being looked at, like a zoo animal into its sleeping hut. Even then the little hut would fill up with women and children. Children followed when I went out, and when Khorshed remonstrated a small boy pleaded, "Don't send us away! After she's gone not even a strange bird will come to the village." I stood up to the celebrity for the two days we had planned, but it was enough.

[A.G Stock, Memoirs of Dacca University 1947-1951, 1973]

3. Put T (true) or F (false) beside the following statements based on the above extract.

a. The author carried some food with her because she disliked local food.

b. She travelled to Sonaimuri by train.

c. She lived in a tent during her stay in the village.

d. She was the first European to visit the village.

e. Khorshed's father had a brick-built house.

4. Answer the following questions briefly:

a. When and why did the author fall asleep during her journey?

b. What trees and insects are mentioned in the passage?

c. Why did the small boy plead, "After she's gone not even a strange bird will come to the village"?

d. Why was there a "crisis" when the author arrived?

e. Why did the women visit her?

f. Find three evidences which suggest that the narrator enjoyed her visit.

g. Why does the narrator compare herself to a sleeping zoo animal?

h. What is the general tone of the passage?

5. Write a short paragraph describing your first visit to a place away from home.

6. Explain the significance of the statement - "I stood up to the celebrity for the two days we had planned but it was enough." What feeling is implied here-amusement or mild annoyance?

7. What do the following phrases mean in the passage?

not uncomfortably crowded; knew no more; rallied to the crisis; tired of being looked at; looking forward to; a blaze of sunlight; of broken soft clouds; fireflies wove intricate dances; clumps of bushes; holding permanent court; kept coming and coming.

8. Find the antonym for the following:

a. gather

b. weave

c. intricate

d. permanent

e. remote

f. remonstrate

g. tranquil

9. Join the pair of sentences in each line to make one sentence using the expressions given in the bracket.

a. He made fixed a tent. He wanted me to get some sleep, (so that)

b. None of them spoke English. They welcomed me. (though)

c. It was dark. He lit a lantern, (as)

d. I was a woman. Women visited me freely, (since)

If you want to read the next lesson of this unit please click the link below:
Lesson 2: Arriving in the Orient

Read More