EFOMM 2026 — Inglês | Questão 07
📘 CONTEXTO DA QUESTÃO
Esta página apresenta a análise da questão 07 de Inglês da prova da EFOMM 2026. O exercício avalia vocabulário e expressão idiomática em contexto, exigindo que o candidato identifique o significado da expressão 'daily grinds'. No trecho apresentado, a expressão refere-se à rotina cansativa de trabalho diário, caracterizada por tarefas repetitivas e entediantes. A alternativa correta identifica o sentido figurado de 'daily grinds' como trabalho chato ou tedioso realizado todos os dias.
📘 Text Comprehension
🔐 🔎 Ver texto de apoio
The search for 'meaning' at work
By Kate Morgan
Ask workers what the most important thing is to them in a job, and first on the list generally is pay cheque - perhaps obviously. But in a very close second, as data is beginning to show; people want their work to have meaning. A 2020 McKinsey & Company surveyed showed 82% of employees believe it's important their company has a purpose; ideally, one that contributes to society and creates meaningful work. And when a company has purpose, its people do, too. Separate McKinsey research from 2022 showed 70% of employees say their personal sense of purpose is defined by their work, and when that work feels meaningful, they perform better, are much more committed and are about half as likely to go looking for a new job.
The search for meaning at work is a relatively new idea, says Aaron De Smet, a senior partner at McKinsey. The Industrial Revolution, he says, made work very "transactional": people worked and got paid money to live, with no greater purpose required or expected. But over time, as decent working conditions and a pay cheque became simple fundamentals, workers began to want more. In 2018, a survey of American professionals showed nine out of 10 workers would trade a percentage of their earnings for work that felt more meaningful. This drive for meaning is especially true of the newest generation to enter the workforce; in a survey of Gen Z workers from jobs site Monster, 70% of respondents ranked purpose as more important than pay.
As people's jobs have become a significant part of their identities - and the way they spend most of their time - occupations have also become the place where they hope to derive at least some of their life's meaning. People might define meaning in many ways, whether that's working in a glossy 'dream job' or using particular skills to perform a necessary role. But however people frame meaning, experts say that in the workplace of the future, making people feel that what they're doing matters, matters more than ever.
The modern search for meaning at work
The desire for meaningful work has been a slow and steady evolution that's happened as society has become, on the whole, wealthier. As people's basic needs for food and shelter were met, and the nature of work changed, people began to want more from their daily grinds. In many industries, the more rote, repetitive jobs have disappeared. "Automation is happening pretty quickly, which is why I think things are now coming to this tipping point where meaning matters a lot," says De Smet.
Stephanie Bot, a clinical psychologist and co-founder of Workright, a Toronto-based workplace mental-health consultancy, notes that for a lot of people, identity has become closely tied to work. What we do, in many ways, defines who we are. "As the type of jobs we're in have evolved, people are now looking for a greater sense of self," she says. It makes people feel like their lives have meaning, she adds, when their work does.
People also spend most of their time at work - it's the activity that takes up the biggest chunk of waking hours - and even when they're not actively working, many people are still thinking about work. The majority of younger people, in particular, report that it's difficult to disengage. It becomes even more important, then, that this place people spend most of their time and mental energy mean something. "If people don't have outside time to get those needs met elsewhere," says Bot, "they need to get more out of work."
In the wake of the pandemic, meaningful work has become more important to people than ever before. It was a catalyst that realigned many people's priorities. "Two-thirds of US employees said Covid caused them to reflect on their purpose in life," says De Smet, of 2021 McKinsey research. "Everybody took this moment to step back and reassess. People were taking stock of their lives, and asking, 'Does what I do matter? I should really spend my time on things that matter.""
People's search for meaning in their work contributed to the Great Resignation - a phenomenon that's seen workers leave their jobs in droves throughout the past two years. "Some people said, 'I'm not getting enough meaning from work, I want to work somewhere my purpose is more fulfilled by the work I do'," says De Smet. "Or, they said, 'I don't feel the work I do is important to anyone. I want to go somewhere it feels like my work is valued by my organisation'."
📘 Question
QUESTÃO
In "[...] people began to want more from their daily grinds", what is the meaning of the expression in bold "daily grinds" in the previous passage taken from the text? Choose the correct option.
Boring work that you have to do everyday.
Daily dreams and wishes.
Day-to-day basic needs for food and shelter.
Daily fixed amount of money agreed as pay for an employee.
Attempts to improve mental health everyday.
📘 Answer Key
🔐🔎 Ver gabarito
📘 Detailed Solution
🔐🧠 Ver resolução comentada
🧭 Leitura orientada
A questão avalia vocabulário idiomático em contexto, exigindo a interpretação correta da expressão “daily grinds” conforme o sentido atribuído no texto.
🔍 Análise do trecho
O texto afirma que, com o tempo, as pessoas “began to want more from their daily grinds”, referindo-se às atividades rotineiras do trabalho, especialmente aquelas marcadas por repetição e pouca satisfação.
🧠 Núcleo de sentido
A expressão “daily grind” é um idiomatismo do inglês que significa o trabalho diário cansativo, repetitivo e muitas vezes entediante que as pessoas realizam por obrigação.
🔍 Análise alternativa por alternativa (com pegadinhas)
(A) ✅ Correta — GABARITO
“Boring work that you have to do everyday”
traduz exatamente o sentido idiomático de daily grinds.
(B) ❌ Errada
Pegadinha: sonhos e desejos não têm relação
com rotina de trabalho.
(C) ❌ Errada
Pegadinha: necessidades básicas aparecem em outro trecho,
mas não definem daily grinds.
(D) ❌ Errada
Pegadinha: salário fixo não corresponde
ao sentido da expressão idiomática.
(E) ❌ Errada
Pegadinha: não há referência a práticas de saúde mental,
mas sim à rotina laboral.
🧠 Resumo B3GE™ Master
✔ Questão de idiomatismo.
✔ Daily grind = rotina de trabalho cansativa e repetitiva.
✔ Sentido não literal, mas cultural.
✔ Ler o parágrafo completo evita erro de interpretação.
🔎 Gabarito confirmado: (A)
🏛 Informações do site
O portal B3GE Concursos Militares disponibiliza questões comentadas de provas de inglês de concursos militares, com foco em análise pedagógica, compreensão textual e preparação estratégica para candidatos.