4000 Essential English Words 6 » Unit 24: Preparing of the Future

Word List
  • abide [əˈbaid] v.
    To abide by something, like a rule, means to obey it.
    → If you want to play the game with us, you must be willing to abide by our rules.
  • conversion [kənˈvəːrʃən] n.
    Conversion is the act of changing something into a different state or form.
    → The city discussed the conversion of the parking lot into a skateboard park.
  • cram [kræm] v.
    To cram things means to put them into a place that can barely contain them.
    → He crammed all of his shirts into the top drawer of the dresser.
  • defer [diˈfəːr] v.
    To defer means to arrange for an action to happen at a later time.
    → The girl was very sleepy, so she chose to defer her bath until morning.
  • export [ˈekspɔːrt] v.
    To export products means to sell them to other countries.
    → The United States exports many cereals and grains.
  • fume [fjuːm] n.
    Fumes are unhealthy smoke and gases that are made by fires or chemicals.
    → The engine put unpleasant, black fumes into the air.
  • habitual [həˈbitjuəl] adj.
    When something is habitual, it is a behavior that a person usually does or has.
    → The man was a habitual liar who was incapable of being honest with the police.
  • justify [ˈdʒʌstəfai] v.
    To justify something means to show or prove that it is necessary.
    → The government tried to justify its decision to bring the country into a war.
  • output [ˈautput] n.
    Output is the amount of something that a person or thing produces.
    → The boss hired more workers to increase the factory’s output of products.
  • overpopulation [ˌouvərpɒpjuˈleiʃən] n.
    Overpopulation is the state of having too many people in an area.
    → The organization is concerned with overpopulation of the world.
  • patent [ˈpætənt] n.
    A patent is a right to be the only person allowed to make or sell a new product.
    → He quickly established a patent for his brilliant invention.
  • penalize [ˈpiːnəlaiz] v.
    To penalize someone means to punish him or her.
    → The team was penalized when they broke the rules.
  • petroleum [piˈtrouliəm] n.
    Petroleum is a liquid natural resource from which many fuels are made.
    → The petroleum at that factory is used to make gasoline.
  • prototype [ˈproutətaip] n.
    A prototype is a new machine that is not ready to be made in large quantities.
    → He introduced his prototype to the motorcycle company.
  • scrap [skræp] n.
    A scrap of something is a small amount of it.
    → Chris liked to use many scraps of paper when thinking up ideas.
  • sector [ˈsektə:r] n.
    A sector is a part of a country’s economy in a specific type of industry.
    → We learned about just a few of the factories within the manufacturing sector.
  • subscribe [səbˈskraib] v.
    To subscribe to something is to agree or to concur with it.
    → She subscribed to the view that musical education should be kept in schools.
  • subsist [səbˈsist] v.
    To subsist means to have the food, water, and money needed to stay alive.
    → Some people are forced to subsist on only a few dollars a month.
  • suspend [səsˈpend] v.
    To suspend something means to delay or stop it from happening for a while.
    → The oil company suspended production until it was sure the factory was safe.
  • synthesis [ˈsinθəsis] n.
    A synthesis is a combination of different ideas or styles.
    → The band’s music was a synthesis of many different musical genres.
Exercise 1

Choose the answer that best fits the question.

  1. What is needed to subsist?
    • a. Rainy weather
    • b. Clean water
    • c. Fast cars
    • d. The Internet
  2. What is someone penalized for?
    • a. Falling in love
    • b. Winning a race
    • c. An invention
    • d. Breaking the law
  3. What does a business owner justify?
    • a. Her house
    • b. Her decision
    • c. Her workers
    • d. Her family
  4. Which one of these uses a product made from petroleum?
    • a. A sandwich
    • b. A telephone
    • c. An automobile
    • d. A cow
  5. What releases fumes?
    • a. An old truck
    • b. A baby cat
    • c. A tired worker
    • d. A bicycle
Exercise 2

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

WORD BLANK
fumes habitual scraps prototype
abide overpopulation patent export
output sector    

Everyone was very excited about the new 1___________ .
The inventor of the machine got a 2___________ .

The dramatic increase of people into the city led to 3___________ .
It is the most important problem in the human services 4___________ .

The mother was worried that her child’s bad behavior was 5___________ .
She decided on some new rules to which her child had to 6___________ by.

The factory produced 5000 computers a day as 7___________ .
But the machines used to make them also let out harmful 8___________ .

The country prepared tons of different materials to 9___________ .
However, some of the materials were just 10___________ .

Exercise 3

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

  1. The best theory was the one that was a combination of all the scientist’s ideas.
    ____________
  2. When the power went out, he was forced to stop or delay progress on his project.
    ____________
  3. The brothers believe along with other people to the opinion that socialism is best.
    ____________
  4. The cutting tool was just a new machine not ready to be made in large amounts.
    ____________
  5. Her job was to get all of the goods ready to sell to other countries.
    ____________
  6. The chemist demonstrated the change into a different form of liquid water into gas.
    ____________
  7. After the tornado, it was difficult for the family to have the food and money needed to live.
    ____________
  8. The mechanic yelled when he stepped on the sharp small amount of metal.
    ____________
  9. It is the policeman’s job to make sure people do what is right by the law.
    ____________
  10. We’ll have to postpone our vacation until next month.
    ____________
Exercise 4

Write C if the italicized word is used correctly. Write I if the word is used incorrectly.

  1. ______ The big city worked hard to prevent overpopulation problems.
  2. ______ I tried to cram all of my clothes into one suitcase.
  3. ______ The machine’s output was so great that we ran out of room to store the products.
  4. ______ Why don’t we defer the decision until right now?
  5. ______ The conversion over the bridge was scary.
Answer Key
Exercise 1
  1. b
  2. d
  3. b
  4. c
  5. a
Exercise 2
  1. prototype
  2. patent
  3. overpopulation
  4. sector
  5. habitual
  6. abide
  7. output
  8. fumes
  9. export
  10. scraps
Exercise 3
  1. synthesis
  2. suspend
  3. subscribe
  4. prototype
  5. export
  6. conversion
  7. subsist
  8. scrap
  9. abide
  10. defer
Exercise 4
  1. C
  2. C
  3. C
  4. I
  5. I
Answer Key
Preparing of the Future

Overpopulation is a big problem in the world today. Too many people are crammed into cities and towns around the globe. Earth’s population is about 6.5 billion people. This number is growing every day. In just 50 years, the population will be almost 9 billion.

Many people worry that the Earth won’t have enough resources to support so many people. One major reason for this is that wasting resources and polluting have become habitual behaviors. Industrial output results in polluting the air with dangerous fumes. Also, cars and machines waste a ton of important natural resources like oil and water. It’s possible that the Earth may become so damaged that it cannot support a large population of humans.

Another issue is the lack of useful land for cultivating crops. Even today, many people subsist on mere scraps of food and little water. In 50 years, many experts worry that huge numbers of people will starve to death. So what is being done to prepare for the future?

People are realizing they can no longer justify their wasteful behavior or defer action to fix it. Many car companies already have patents on prototypes for very efficient cars. Such cars waste no resources and produce no pollution. A conversion to clean cars means that petroleum can be saved for the future. In addition, the environmental sectors of many governments are setting strict rules for industries that pollute too much. If companies do not abide by the standards, they are penalized with higher taxes. In some cases, their operations might be suspended altogether.

Food is also an issue that is being tackled. Many countries are now subscribing to the point of view that immediate action is needed. They are determining ways to export goods to people in need, so that no one goes hungry. Experts will continue to come up with ideas for the future, and a synthesis of these ideas will help to support the growing population.

Reading Comprehension

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

  1. _____ Because of overpopulation, too many people are crammed into cities and towns.
    • _____________________________________________________
  2. _____ The environmental sectors of many governments are deferring strict standards.
    • _____________________________________________________
  3. _____ Some car companies have patents on prototypes.
    • _____________________________________________________
  4. _____ A conversion to clean cars means petroleum can be used right now for people.
    • _____________________________________________________
  5. _____ Companies that don’t abide by standards are penalized or their operations might be suspended.
    • _____________________________________________________

Part B: Answer the questions.

  1. What will a synthesis of good ideas for the future do?
    _____________
  2. What have become habitual behaviors in the world today?
    _____________
  3. What prototypes do companies have patents for in the passage?
    _____________
  4. What behavior can no longer be justified?
    _____________
  5. What point of view are many countries subscribing to?
    _____________
Answer Key
Answer Key
Reading Comprehension
Part A
  1. T
  2. F / The environmental sectors of many governments are setting strict standards.
  3. T
  4. F / A conversion to clean cars means petroleum can be saved for the future.
  5. T
Part B
  1. A synthesis of these ideas will help to support the growing population.
  2. Wasting resources and polluting have become habitual behaviors in the world today.
  3. Many car companies already have patents on prototypes for very efficient cars.
  4. People are realizing they can no longer justify their wasteful behavior.
  5. Many countries are also subscribing to the point of view that immediate action is needed to provide the world with enough food.
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