4000 Essential English Words 4 » Unit 7: The Architect’s Plan

Word List
  • account [əˈkaunt] n.
    An account with a bank is an arrangement to keep one’s money there.
    → After I paid for the new car, my bank account was nearly empty.
  • architect [ˈɑːrkɪtekt] n.
    An architect is a person who designs buildings.
    → The plans for building the new home were drawn by a famous architect.
  • conceal [kənˈsiːl] v.
    To conceal something means to hide it.
    → You should conceal your money so no one can take it from you.
  • crime [kraɪm] n.
    A crime is something bad that a person does that can be punished by law.
    → Police quickly arrived at the scene of the crime.
  • deed [diːd] n.
    A deed is a certificate that proves that someone owns something.
    → When she bought the car, she was given a deed to show the car was hers.
  • gratitude [ˈgrӕtətjuːd] n.
    Gratitude is a feeling of being thankful.
    → The kids showed Aunt Tess much gratitude for visiting them.
  • habitat [ˈhӕbətӕt] n.
    A habitat is the natural home of animals or plants.
    → Frogs are often found in a wet habitat, such as near a lake, river, or pond.
  • intervene [intərviːn] v.
    To intervene means to help stop a problem between two people or groups.
    → The students argued until the teacher intervened.
  • landmark [ˈlændmɑːrk] n.
    A landmark is an object that helps people find or remember a location.
    → The tall tree was used as a landmark for people to find the road to the inn.
  • legal [ˈliːgəl] adj.
    If something is legal, it is related to the law or allowed by the law.
    → It was not legal for him to drive until he was eighteen years old.
  • memorable [ˈmemərəbəl] adj.
    If something is memorable, then it is remembered for a special reason.
    → The party was memorable; people were still talking about it years later.
  • oblige [əˈblaɪdʒ] v.
    To oblige someone means to require them to do something.
    → If I wanted to have playtime, I was obliged to clean my room once a week.
  • offense [əˈfens] n.
    An offense is an action that breaks the law and requires punishment.
    → He was put in jail for two days for the offense.
  • proclaim [prouˈkleim] v.
    To proclaim something means to say it in public.
    → The army general proclaimed that the war was won.
  • rally [ˈrӕli] n.
    A rally is a large public meeting in order to support something.
    → The school had a rally in the gym to support the basketball team.
  • resolve [rɪˈzɒlv] v.
    To resolve something means to find a solution.
    → She resolved the problem with her children by giving them both a toy.
  • resource [rɪˈsɔːrs] n.
    Resources are a person or country’s money and materials that they can use.
    → The poor man didn’t have the resources to feed himself.
  • sentence [ˈsentəns] n.
    A sentence is punishment given to someone who didn’t follow the law.
    → The sentence for stealing a car is much worse than for stealing candy.
  • volunteer [volənˈtiər] v.
    To volunteer means to offer to do something for free.
    → Many people volunteered to help the adults learn to read.
  • witness [ˈwitnis] n.
    A witness is someone who sees or hears a crime or accident happen.
    → The woman was the only witness of the horrible crime.
Exercise 1

Part A: Choose the right word for the given definition.

  1. to work to correct a problem between two people
    • a. oblige
    • b. intervene
    • c. conceal
    • d. volunteer
  2. allowed by the law
    • a. legal
    • b. offense
    • c. memorable
    • d. gratitude
  3. to find a solution
    • a. proclaim
    • b. sentence
    • c. resolve
    • d. rally
  4. an object that helps people remember a place
    • a. witness
    • b. landmark
    • c. account
    • d. resource
  5. something a person does that can be punished by law
    • a. architect
    • b. deed
    • c. habitat
    • d. crime

Part B: Choose the right definition for the given word.

  1. memorable
    • a. natural
    • b. thankful
    • c. special
    • d. public
  2. witness
    • a. a designer of buildings
    • b. an important person
    • c. someone who obeys the law
    • d. a person who sees a crime
  3. deed
    • a. money and materials
    • b. proof of ownership
    • c. a natural home
    • d. an action that breaks the law
  4. sentence
    • a. a punishment for a crime
    • b. an object that helps people
    • c. something against the law
    • d. a large public meeting
  5. proclaim
    • a. to hide something
    • b. to offer to help
    • c. to say in public
    • d. to stop a problem
Exercise 2

Choose the answer that best fits the question.

  1. Which of the following is most likely a habitat?
    • a. A pond
    • b. A bridge
    • c. A broom
    • d. A picture
  2. When something is concealed, what is it called?
    • a. Loud
    • b. Colorful
    • c. Hidden
    • d. Quick
  3. What is something that an architect makes?
    • a. A law
    • b. A house
    • c. A cake
    • d. A dress
  4. Which of the following is NOT legal?
    • a. Swimming
    • b. Singing
    • c. Crying
    • d. Stealing
  5. What is someone who feels gratitude most likely to say?
    • a. “Hello.”
    • b. “I’m sorry.”
    • c. “Go away.”
    • d. “Thankyou.”
Exercise 3

Write a word that is similar in meaning to the underlined part.

  1. The government has enough money and materials to help all its people.
    ____________
  2. The town had a large public meeting to discuss the problem with the sidewalks.
    ____________
  3. The necklace was remembered fora special reason because it was from her grandmother.
    ____________
  4. His act that broke the law was serious enough to require him to stay in jail for 60 days.
    ____________
  5. She had iust enough money in her arrangement with the bank.
    ____________
  6. Children are required to go to school in most countries.
    ____________
  7. My uncle said in public that he was an old friend of the mayor.
    ____________
  8. Four students offered to help to carry the table downstairs.
    ____________
  9. A bear’s natural home is usually large forests areas with mountains.
    ____________
  10. He was filled with a feeling of being thankful when he was given the dog.
    ____________
Answer Key
Exercise 1
Part A
  1. b
  2. a
  3. c
  4. b
  5. d
Part B
  1. c
  2. d
  3. b
  4. a
  5. c
Exercise 2
  1. a
  2. c
  3. b
  4. d
  5. d
Exercise 3
  1. resources
  2. rally
  3. memorable
  4. offense
  5. account
  6. obliged
  7. proclaimed
  8. volunteered
  9. habitat
  10. gratitude
Answer Key
The Architect’s Plan

An architect wanted to build a new office building. He selected some land that seemed perfect. He planned to cut down the trees to make room for the building. But there was a problem ... a big problem.

The land was actually the habitat of several types of birds. Some nature lovers were very upset with the architect. First, they held a rally and told others about the issue. Then, they decided to take legal action because the architect didn’t respect the animals’ rights.

To resolve the problem, they asked a judge to intervene.

The judge could not call any witnesses for the nature lovers, so he first asked the architect to tell his side of the story.

“Why are you going to destroy the birds’ habitat?” the judge asked.

The architect replied, “I have the deed to the land. I want to make a great building there. As you may know, all my buildings become memorable landmarks.”

Then one of the nature lovers spoke. “We believe that there’s no reason to destroy all the trees. We just want to protect the birds.”

Then the judge made his decision. “I proclaim that the office building should be built,” he said. “It is not a crime to remove those trees. I cannot give you a sentence for any offenses, but I feel obliged to make one request. I will only allow you to use half of the land. The other half will remain free, so the birds have a place to live.

The nature lovers could not conceal their gratitude. All of the people cheered.

The architect said, “I have an idea. I will volunteer my time and efforts to design a new type of building. It will provide bushes on the roof where birds can live. There are enough resources in my company’s bank account to create the best building ever made.”

The architect did exactly as he promised. He built this new type of building, which was loved by everyone.

Reading Comprehension

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

  1. _____ The architect wanted to build a new school.
    • _____________________________________________________
  2. _____ The land was the habitat of several types of birds.
    • _____________________________________________________
  3. _____ The judge first asked the architect what happened.
    • _____________________________________________________
  4. _____ The architect had a deed to the land.
    • _____________________________________________________
  5. _____ The architect could not conceal his gratitude, so he cheered.
    • _____________________________________________________
  6. _____ There were enough resources in the company’s bank account to build a new building.
    • _____________________________________________________

Part B: Answer the questions.

  1. Why did the group have a rally?
    • a. To ask for more rights
    • b. To talk about the issue
    • c. To list names of witnesses
    • d. To talk to the architect
  2. Which of the following about the land did the architect NOT tell the judge?
    • a. He wanted to make a great building.
    • b. He had a deed for the land.
    • c. He thought nobody lived there.
    • d. His building would be a memorable landmark.
  3. What did the group do in order to resolve the problem with the architect?
    • a. Ask a judge to intervene
    • b. Proclaim war on the architect
    • c. Move the birds to a new habitat
    • d. Sell the land to the architect
  4. What did the judge decide to give the architect as a sentencing?
    • a. He gave him five years in prison.
    • b. He had to pay the nature lovers money.
    • c. He could not build any more buildings.
    • d. He was not given a sentence.
Answer Key
Answer Key
Reading Comprehension
Part A
  1. F / The architect wanted to build a new office building.
  2. T
  3. T
  4. T
  5. F / The people could not conceal their gratitude, so they cheered.
  6. T
Part B
  1. b
  2. c
  3. a
  4. d
Favorite Books
4000 Essential English Words 1

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4000 Essential English Words 2

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4000 Essential English Words 3

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4000 Essential English Words 5

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4000 Essential English Words 6

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