4000 Essential English Words 3 » Unit 23: Lazy Hans

Word List
  • Aborigine [ӕbəˈridʒəni:] n.
    An Aborigine is a native of Australia before Europeans lived there.
    → The Aborigines created beautiful artwork.
  • ban [bæn] v.
    To ban something is to not let people do it.
    → Smoking is banned in this building.
  • cautious [ˈkɔːʃəs] adj.
    If you are cautious, you are careful in a dangerous situation.
    → Be very cautious as you stack those boxes.
  • confess [kənˈfes] v.
    To confess something is to say that you did it.
    → He confessed that he was responsible for choosing the winning story.
  • cottage [ˈkɒtɪdʒ] n.
    A cottage is a small, old house in the countryside.
    → My aunt lives in a pretty cottage in the mountains.
  • daytime [ˈdeɪtaɪm] n.
    Daytime is the time of the day when the sky is light.
    → I only allowed my kids to play outside in the daytime.
  • desperate [ˈdespərɪt] adj.
    If you are desperate, you will try anything to do or change something.
    → I’m desperate to find a new job.
  • fade [feɪd] v.
    If something fades, it gets quieter or darker.
    → The piece of cloth I found was old and faded.
  • fierce [fɪərs] adj.
    If a person or animal is fierce, they are angry or violent.
    → Wolves are fierce animals. Do not disturb them.
  • gamble [ˈgæmbəl] v.
    To gamble means to play a game that involves winning or losing money.
    → Many people like to go to casinos to gamble.
  • lawn [lɔːn] n.
    A lawn is an area covered in grass.
    → My dad keeps the lawn in front of our house very neat.
  • mow [mou] v.
    To mow grass is to cut it to make it very short.
    → I mow our lawn every weekend.
  • outlaw [ˈautlɔː] n.
    An outlaw is a criminal who hides from the police.
    → The police passed out posters of the outlaw to all the people.
  • prospect [ˈprɒspekt] n.
    A prospect is a possibility that something will happen.
    → He wakes up every morning with the prospect of having a good day.
  • purse [pəːrs] n.
    A purse is a bag where women keep money, makeup and keys.
    → My sister likes to buy designer purses.
  • rod [rɔd] n.
    A rod is a thin stick made of wood or metal.
    → I bought a new fishing rod to use while on vacation.
  • seldom [ˈseldəm] adv.
    If something seldom happens, it doesn’t happen very often.
    → It seldom rains in southern Arizona.
  • shave [ʃeɪv] v.
    To shave means to cut the hairs on your face with a sharp tool.
    → My father shaves his face every day because he doesn’t want a beard.
  • terrified [ˈterəfaid] adj.
    If you are terrified, you are extremely scared.
    → When I saw the ghost, I was absolutely terrified!
  • wizard [ˈwɪzə:rd] n.
    A wizard is a man who can do magic.
    → The wizard made gold fall from the sky.
Exercise 1

Choose the answer that best fits the question.

  1. Where are the Aborigines originally from?
    • a. Australia
    • b. Asia
    • c. South America
    • d. Europe
  2. If someone confesses, what do they do?
    • a. Go away
    • b. Make up a story
    • c. Tell the truth
    • d. Go back home
  3. Who often shaves their faces?
    • a. Children
    • b. Women
    • c. Babies
    • d. Men
  4. Which of the animals below is very fierce?
    • a. A mouse
    • b. A lion
    • c. A rabbit
    • d. A horse
  5. What do you need ifyou want to gamble?
    • a. A kitchen
    • b. Money
    • c. A book
    • d. Special boots
  6. What does it mean if you’ll try anything to make a change?
    • a. You are fierce.
    • b. You will rob.
    • c. You are desperate.
    • d. You are terrified.
  7. What does a person with a lot of opportunities have?
    • a. Cottages
    • b. Purses
    • c. Prospects
    • d. Lawns
  8. What should a person be like if they are handling something dangerous?
    • a. Cautious
    • b. Mow
    • c. Wizard
    • d. Confess
  9. What might happen to someone who doesn’t follow the rules of a library?
    • a. They may be sent to see an Aborigine.
    • b. They may be banned from the place.
    • c. They may have to mow the grass.
    • d. They may only be allowed to enter during the daytime.
  10. What happens to a cloth that is washed too many times?
    • a. It's colors begin to fade.
    • b. It's gambled.
    • c. It's outlawed.
    • d. It's seldom seen.
Exercise 2

Choose the word that is the better fit for each blank.

  1. cottage / Aborigine
    • The ____________ lived in a large ____________ hat was faraway from the rest of the population.
  2. prospects / outlaw
    • The old ____________ sat in his hideout trying to figure out what to do. He was out of ____________ and thought he should just turn himself in to the sheriff.
  3. wizard / shaved
    • The popular ____________ was tired of not having any privacy. So he ____________ his long beard and dyed his hair so no one would recognize him.
  4. gamble / cautious
    • Be ____________ when you ____________ with large amounts of money.
  5. daytime / ban
    • We decided to ____________ all ____________ fires because they could spread easily.
  6. lawn / faded
    • Mr. Beck’s once proud ____________ has been overgrown and ____________ since he moved away.
  7. desperate / purse
    • The ____________ thief stole the woman ____________ from the table.
  8. mow / fierce
    • I had to ____________ the lawn in the old field yesterday. As I did, I uncovered a small den of ____________ raccoons.
  9. terrified / confess
    • I was ____________ by the thought of going to jail. So I knew that the right thing to do would be to ____________ my crime to the authorities.
  10. seldom / rod
    • My grandfather ____________ lets anyone to use his favorite fishing ____________. But since it was my birthday, he let me use it.
Answer Key
Exercise 1
  1. a
  2. c
  3. d
  4. b
  5. b
  6. c
  7. c
  8. a
  9. b
  10. a
Exercise 2
  1. Aborigine, cottage
  2. outlaw, prospects
  3. wizard, shaved
  4. cautious, gamble
  5. ban, daytime
  6. lawn, faded
  7. desperate, purse
  8. mow, fierce
  9. terrified, confess
  10. seldom, rod
Answer Key
Lazy Hans

Hans was lazy. He seldom helped his mother with anything. He didn’t cook and he never mowed the lawn. He didn’t even shave! He spent the daytime gambling with his mother’s money. One day, his mother realized that her money was gone from her purse. “You’re banned from my house!” she shouted. “ Don’t come back until you’ve learned your lesson!”

Hans went to live in the forest like an outlaw. But it was cold, and Hans couldn’t find food. He went to a cottage to ask for a meal.

An Aborigine answered the door. “ Can I stay here please?” Hans asked.

“You can stay if you work,” the man replied.

Hans liked the prospect of food and warmth, so he agreed.

The man pointed to a field. “ Take this rod and plant it over there. I am a wizard, and this magic rod will bring us food.”

The field was far away. Hans knew it would be hard to walk there. So he just threw the rod behind the cottage and sat by the river. When daylight faded, he returned to the cottage and went to sleep.

The next morning, the old man looked very fierce. “ You didn’t take the rod to the field!” he shouted.

“ No,” confessed Hans, “ it was too far!”

“ Because of you we have nothing to eat!” replied the man.

Hans was terrified that the man would punish him. So he ran home. “ Mama!” he cried, “ I’m desperate to come back!” His mother was cautious.

“ Do you promise to work?” she asked.

“ Yes!” said Hans, “ I’ll never be lazy again!”

Reading Comprehension

Part A: Mark each statement T for true or F for false. Rewrite the false statements to make them true.

  1. _____ Hans gambled with money from his mother’s purse.
    • _____________________________________________________
  2. _____ Hans went to the Aborigine’s cottage because he liked the prospect of working.
    • _____________________________________________________
  3. _____ The old man in the cottage was an outlaw.
    • _____________________________________________________
  4. _____ When daylight faded, Hans went to sleep under a tree.
    • _____________________________________________________
  5. _____ Hans didn’t eat anything at the wizard’s cottage.
    • _____________________________________________________
  6. _____ The old man got very fierce when he realized Hans had been lazy.
    • _____________________________________________________

Part B: Answer the questions.

  1. At the beginning of the story, what did Hans do during the daytime?
    • a. Gamble
    • b. Shave
    • c. Do domestic work
    • d. Mow the lawn
  2. Why did Hans’s mother ban him from her house?
    • a. He was lazy.
    • b. He wasn’t good at gambling.
    • c. He couldn’t farm.
    • d. He didn’t listen to the wizard.
  3. What did Hans confess to doing?
    • a. Eating all of the food
    • b. Throwing the rod behind the cottage
    • c. Sleeping in the field
    • d. Stealing his mother’s money
  4. How did Hans’s mother feel when Hans returned home?
    • a. Desperate
    • b. Terrified
    • c. Fierce
    • d. Cautious
Answer Key
Answer Key
Reading Comprehension
Part A
  1. T
  2. F / Hans went to the old man’s cottage because he liked the prospect of food and warmth.
  3. F / The old man in the cottage was a wizard.
  4. F / When daylight faded, Hans returned to the cottage.
  5. T
  6. T
Part B
  1. a
  2. a
  3. b
  4. d
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