Read the passage and answer the following question.
Life often poses certain circumstances that compel us to take the wrong way and tell a lie. We tend to become dishonest in certain situations. Once a person realizes that they can get away with a misdeed by lying, they tend to be dishonest again and again. Initially, it is indeed very tempting; however, in the grand scheme of things, the truth and the truth alone finds its way to glory.
All of us commit mistakes; nobody is perfect. One may find oneself in a very confused position in life that requires one to lie. It is very tough always to maintain an honest posture. However, one is forgivable if one realizes one’s misdeeds over time.
An inherently unwise person would repeatedly suppress the voice within themselves that asks them to tread a path of honesty. For their petty gains, they would resort to dishonesty. Such a deliberate attempt to tone down one’s inner voice to repeatedly falsify facts is not worth forgiving. Nor is it of any benefit, because the truth always finds its way into the light.
There is one difference between being deliberately dishonest and telling white lies. White lies are lies that we all tell once in a while to get out of awkward situations we are put in. White lies do not have any casualties; they are harmless. White lies have no significant bad impact on the one who tells them or the one who hears them. They are justifiable.
The word compel, as used in the passage, means
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → force
The passage says that life brings situations that “compel us” to tell a lie.
- Such situations push us. We feel we have no choice.
- So compel here means force. Example: The heavy rain compelled Ravi to stay at his friend’s house.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: tempt — Incorrect. Wrong meaning: To tempt means to make someone want to do something. In the first line, the situations leave us no choice. That is force, not a pull of desire. Example: The smell of hot samosas tempted Neha to stop at the shop.
Option 3: allow — Incorrect. Wrong meaning: To allow means to let someone do something if they want. The passage talks of pressure to lie, not of permission. Example: The teacher allowed us to leave early on Friday.
Option 4: warn — Incorrect. Wrong meaning: To warn means to tell someone about a danger. The situations do not warn us against lying. They push us into it. Example: The guard warned the children not to go near the river.