Café Society: English Vocabulary List

the process of cultural exchange and adaptation when individuals or groups from different cultures come into contact, leading to changes in their respective cultural patterns

"Acculturation happens when one culture adopts traits from another culture over time."

"The process of acculturation takes time as immigrants gradually adopt the language and customs of their new country."

a system where people are treated differently or separated based on their race, ethnicity, or other characteristics

"Apartheid was a system of racial segregation in South Africa."

"The apartheid system in South Africa legally enforced racial segregation for nearly fifty years."

people in the highest class of society who have a lot of power and wealth and usually high ranks and titles

"The aristocracy had power."

"The aristocracy ruled the country for many years."

the society's middle class

"The bourgeoisie prospered."

"The bourgeoisie historically refers to the middle class who own capital and property."

fully aware of the ranking system that distinguishes the general public

"He is very class-conscious."

"He is very class conscious and only associates with people from wealthy families."

relating to a system that is organized based on social ranking or levels of authority

"The structure is hierarchical."

"The hierarchical structure of the company means that decisions must be approved by several levels of management."

the state of belonging to a certain ethnic group

"The form asked about his race and ethnicity."

"Job applications should not ask about ethnicity because that information could lead to discrimination."

someone who is in a position of power, especially in the past

"The feudal overlord owned all the land in the village."

"The cruel overlord ruled the land with absolute power many centuries ago."

the specific form or system of government of a society or institution

"The polity is stable."

"The ancient Greek polity influenced modern democracy."

a system that divides the people of a society into different social classes based on their wealth, privilage, or profession

"The caste system divided society into rigid social classes."

"The caste system in traditional Indian society divided people into rigid social groups based on birth with very limited opportunity to move from one caste to another."

someone who believes that a particular group of people, especially one determined by sex, religion, or race, is better than other groups and should dominate them

"The white supremacist was arrested for inciting violence."

"The white supremacist group was condemned by the government last week."

the protection that a country grants to someone who has fled their home country because of political reasons

"Seek political asylum."

"Many people seek political asylum in other countries to escape persecution in their homeland."

a person who gives money or support to help others

"The library was named after its benefactor."

"The generous benefactor donated a large sum of money to build the new library."

the conflict of interests between different social classes in a society, as mentioned in Marxist ideology

"Class struggle theory."

"Class struggle theory explains social conflict between different economic classes in society."

the expulsion of a non-citizen or foreigner from a country, often for being undesirable or violating laws

"The deportation order forced the man to leave the country immediately."

"The immigrant faced deportation after living in the country for ten years because his visa had expired without being properly renewed."

the practice of treating a person or different categories of people less fairly than others

"Fight discrimination in the workplace and schools."

"Employment discrimination based on race gender or religion is prohibited by federal law."

hatred, antipathy, or prejudice toward homosexuals

"Homophobia is still a problem in many places."

"Homophobia still exists in many societies and causes discrimination against gay people."

to take away a person or a country's riches to the point of poverty

"The war impoverished the entire region."

"The long devastating war impoverished the entire country and destroyed much of its infrastructure and productive farmland."

extremely poor or in need

"He is indigent."

"The indigent man could not afford a lawyer so the court appointed a public defender to represent him in his criminal case."

related to the social categories such as gender, race, sexuality, or age and the way they can extend over the experiences of an individual belonging to an oppressed population

"The approach is intersectional."

"The approach is intersectional and considers how race gender and class overlap and affect each other."

to treat a person, group, or concept as insignificant or of secondary or minor importance

"Do not marginalize minority groups."

"The new policies tend to marginalize minority groups by excluding them from important decision making processes."

to grant citizenship to a foreigner

"She naturalized as a citizen after five years."

"After living in the country for ten years she finally decided to naturalize as a citizen."

a state in which two or more things are equal

"The company achieved pay parity between men and women."

"Women continue to fight for pay parity with men in many industries around the world."

a state of being exceedingly poor and in need

"The artist lived in penury for many years."

"After losing his job he lived in penury barely able to afford food or rent each month."

the act of enhancing different opportunities for the people who have been treated as inferior due to belonging to a specific social category like race, sex, and etc. in a society

"Positive discrimination policy."

"The university uses positive discrimination policy to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds."

a system that allows a limited number of immigrants to officially enter a country annually

"The quota system limits entry."

"The government implemented a strict quota system to manage the number of foreign workers permitted to enter the country each year."

an owner of a house of land in a location where people are exceedingly poor and have really bad living conditions, who demands rents more than one can afford

"The slumlord ignored repairs."

"The slumlord refused to repair the broken heating system even during freezing winter weather."

an awareness of other people's pain and problems who have a bad condition in the society and feeling a sense of duty to take care of them

"Strong social conscience."

"She has a strong social conscience and always helps people in need."

the fact of having or expressing strong, irrational views and disliking other people with different views or a different way of life

"Bigotry has no place in a diverse society."

"Religious bigotry creates hatred and violence between different communities in society."

a political situation in which there is anger among the people and protests are likely

"Social unrest led to protests in the capital."

"Social unrest grew after the controversial government decision was announced last month."

a group of people with similar social standing, education, or income

"The rich stratum."

"The study examined the social mobility between the lower and upper stratum of society."

the statistical characteristics of a population, such as age, gender, and ethnicity

"The demographic changed."

"The company's target demographic is women aged twenty five to forty with college degrees."

a situation in which one has just enough money or food to survive

"The farmers live at a subsistence level."

"Many families in rural areas still practice subsistence farming to feed themselves."

to employ a system that sorts out people in the society based on their race or religion

"Schools once segregated students by race."

"In the past many schools used to segregate students by race which was completely unfair and unjust."

to make someone leave their home by force, particularly because of an unpleasant event

"The flood displaced thousands of families."

"The construction of the new dam will displace thousands of families who have lived in the valley for generations."

a small group of people in a society who enjoy a lot of advantages because of their economic, intellectual, etc. superiority

"The elite group meets in private."

"The elite military unit underwent the most rigorous training program in the armed forces."