4000 Essential English Words 5 » Unit 29: Jen’s New Job

Word List
  • antique [ænˈtiːk] adj.
    If something is antique, it is very old and rare, and therefore valuable.
    → My grandmother’s antique rocking chair is worth a lot of money.
  • applicant [ˈæplikənt] n.
    An applicant is someone who writes a request to be considered for a job or prize.
    → Lots of applicants came into the store when the job position became available.
  • artifact [ˈɑːrtəfækt] n.
    An artifact is an old object made by humans that is historically interesting.
    → We studied artifacts from an ancient Chinese settlement.
  • authentic [ɔːˈθentik] adj.
    When something is authentic, it is not false or a copy of the original.
    → We ate authentic Italian food on our vacation to Rome.
  • chronology [krəˈnɒlədʒi] n.
    The chronology of a series of past events is when they happened.
    → We learned the chronology of World War II in history class.
  • diplomat [ˈdipləmæt] n.
    A diplomat is a representative of a country who works with another country.
    → The Spanish diplomat discussed trade issues with officials in Peru.
  • epic [ˈepik] n.
    An epic is a long book, poem, or movie about a period of time or a great event.
    → The poet wrote an epic about the great discoveries of the past thousand years.
  • excerpt [ˈeksəːrpt] n.
    An excerpt is a short piece of writing or music taken from a larger piece.
    → I didn’t listen to the entire symphony online, but I did play an excerpt.
  • fossil [ˈfɒsl] n.
    A fossil is the hard remains of a prehistoric animal or plant.
    → The expert arranged the fossils to build the skeleton of the dinosaur.
  • humiliate [hjuːˈmilieit] v.
    To humiliate someone means to make them feel ashamed and embarrassed.
    → I was humiliated when I tripped and fell down in front of the whole school.
  • lyric [ˈlirik] adj.
    When a poem is considered lyric, it is written in a simple and direct style.
    → I enjoy reading and creating my own lyric poetry.
  • majesty [ˈmædʒisti] n.
    Majesty is supreme greatness or authority.
    → You should address the king and queen as your majesty.
  • monarch [ˈmɒnark] n.
    The monarch of a country is the king, queen, emperor, or empress.
    → The monarch lived in a beautiful palace with a grand gate.
  • precede [priˈsiːd] v.
    To precede something means to come before it.
    → The hurricane was preceded by a moment of still wind and clear sky.
  • punctual [ˈpʌŋktjuəl] adj.
    When someone is punctual, they do something or arrive at the right time.
    → My mother hates being late. She is the most punctual person I know.
  • recruit [riˈkruːt] v.
    To recruit people means to select them to join or work for an organization.
    → We successfully recruited someone to be the new manager.
  • refund [ˈriːfʌnd] n.
    A refund is money given back to a person when an item is returned to a store.
    → I asked for a refund because the shoes I bought were too tight.
  • register [ˈredʒəstə:r] n.
    A register is an official list or record of people or things.
    → At a wedding there is register for all of the guests to sign.
  • renown [riˈnaun] n.
    Renown is the quality of being well known due to having done good things.
    → Michael is a singer of great renown in New Zealand.
  • tusk [tʌsk] n.
    A tusk is a long, curved, pointed tooth of an elephant, boar, or walrus.
    → Sadly, some people hunt elephants and remove their tusks to sell them.
Exercise 1

Choose the answer that best fits the question.

  1. Which of the following might humiliate someone?
    • a. Spilling a drink
    • b. Getting a new car
    • c. Working ten hours
    • d. Sitting down
  2. What might be antique?
    • a. A sweet fruit
    • b. An old sofa
    • c. A good father
    • d. A cell phone
  3. Who is referred to as her majesty?
    • a. A queen
    • b. A student
    • c. A mother
    • d. A teacher
  4. Where might a job applicant go for job?
    • a. An abandoned house
    • b. A store with an available position
    • c. A sandy beach
    • d. A graveyard
  5. What precedes waking up in the morning?
    • a. Going to sleep
    • b. Going to school
    • c. Buying a new bed
    • d. Shopping
Exercise 2

Fill in the blanks with the correct words from the word bank.

WORD BLANK
antique refund monarch artifact
authentic register Majesty tusks
fossil applicants    

The statue of the walrus had long, beautiful 1___________.
The 2___________ piece was over a hundred years old and quite valuable.

Many stories have been told about the powerful 3___________ .
All of the king’s servants addressed him as “Your 4___________ .'

The college must decide who to accept among thousands of 5___________ .
The most qualified will add their names to the elite 6___________ .

I now see that my new leather boots are not 7___________ .
I need to take these fake boots back to the store and get a 8___________ .

Mark thought that the old bone he found was a dinosaur 9___________ .
However, it turned out to be a man-made 10___________ .

Exercise 3

Choose the one that is similar in meaning to the given word.

  1. humiliate
    • a. impress
    • b. entertain
    • c. destroy
    • d. embarrass
  2. diplomat
    • a. a representative
    • b. a user
    • c. a creature
    • d. a joker
  3. punctual
    • a. hurried
    • b. on time
    • c. too loud
    • d. brave
  4. precede
    • a. to fail
    • b. to quit
    • c. to rely
    • d. to go first
  5. register
    • a. a control
    • b. a list
    • c. an apartment
    • d. a grave
Exercise 4

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

  1. The circus performer held on to the elephant’s long, curved tooth.
    ____________
  2. The salesman assured me that the artwork was not false or an imitation.
    ____________
  3. At the end of the year, our club will select a new person to join.
    ____________
  4. Janet isn’t able to arrive at the right time at all. She’s late to school every day.
    ____________
  5. It is difficult to follow the series of past events and times of computer programming.
    ____________
  6. DNA can be taken from a part of hard remains from a prehistoric animal.
    ____________
  7. Please stand and read a(an) short piece of writing taken from a larger piece.
    ____________
  8. I took a class at the university where I wrote simple and direct poetry.
    ____________
  9. The lliad is an wonderful long book about great events.
    ____________
  10. Her mother was a dancer of some quality of being well known for doing good things.
    ____________
Answer Key
Exercise 1
  1. a
  2. b
  3. a
  4. b
  5. a
Exercise 2
  1. tusks
  2. antique
  3. monarch
  4. Majesty
  5. applicants
  6. register
  7. authentic
  8. refund
  9. fossil
  10. artifact
Exercise 3
  1. d
  2. a
  3. b
  4. d
  5. b
Exercise 4
  1. tusk
  2. authentic
  3. recruit
  4. punctual
  5. chronology
  6. fossil
  7. excerpt
  8. lyric
  9. epic
  10. renown
Answer Key
Jen’s New Job

The history museum needed to recruit a new tour guide. The director interviewed dozens of applicants before he decided to hire Jen. She was chosen because she was friendly, punctual and had a great attitude.

On her first day, Jen got to work and prepared to give her first tour. She looked at the names on the register. She saw that the Queen of England and a diplomat were visiting the museum. She thought, “It’s my very first day, and I have to impress a monarch! I hope I don’t humiliate myself in front of a person of such renown!”

Jen was nervous. She took a deep breath and said, “Hello, everyone! I’m going to talk to you about the chronology of ancient Egypt.” As she turned around to show the group some artifacts, she bumped into a fossil of an authentic elephant tusk. It fell to the ground and broke into a million pieces! “Oh no!” said Jen in a subtle voice. “I sure hope the rest of the tour goes better than this!”

The rest of the tour did not go any better. She tripped over an antique vase and broke a piece off of it. As she was reading an excerpt from a lyric poem, she sneezed and tore a page of the epic.

After the tour, Jen approached the queen to apologize. She said, “I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I was a terrible tour guide. Let me give you a refund for the money you spent.”

The queen laughed. She said, “I don’t want my money back, Jen. I loved the tour. You just have to be a little more careful and work hard to become the best at your job. Hard work precedes success.”

Jen smiled and thanked the queen. She decided to be extra careful from then on. She was persistent and worked hard. In time, Jen became the best tour guide at the museum.

Reading Comprehension

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

  1. _____ The museum director interviewed dozens of applicants when he recruited a new tour guide.
    • _____________________________________________________
  2. _____ Jen did not want to humiliate herself in front ofthe diplomat and the monarch.
    • _____________________________________________________
  3. _____ The queen bumped into the fossil of an authentic elephant tusk.
    • _____________________________________________________
  4. _____ Jen was chosen for the job because she was friendly, punctual, and had a register.
    • _____________________________________________________
  5. _____ Jen broke artifacts, including an antique vase.
    • _____________________________________________________

Part B: Answer the questions.

  1. What did Jen say she hoped for in a subtle voice?
    _____________
  2. What chronology did Jen want to talk about to her tour group?
    _____________
  3. What happened as Jen was reading the excerpt from the epic lyric poem?
    _____________
  4. Why did Jen offer her majesty a refund?
    _____________
  5. What precedes success, according to the queen?
    _____________
Answer Key
Answer Key
Reading Comprehension
Part A
  1. T
  2. T
  3. F / Jen bumped into the fossil of an authentic elephant tusk.
  4. F / Jen was chosen because she was friendly, punctual, and had a great attitude.
  5. T
Part B
  1. Jen hoped that the rest of the tour would go better.
  2. Jen wanted to talk about the chronology of Ancient Egypt.
  3. She sneezed and tore a page of the epic.
  4. Jen thought she was a horrible tour guide.
  5. Hard work
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