Monkey Climber

Today’s blog for intermediate English students is an imaginary story about a monkey named Fred who couldn’t stay still. Check out the vocabulary in bold ink below the article. Words unbeknown to you should be checked via a dictionary.

Fred would bounce around like a rubber ball, happy and excited to be alive. Happiness is a condition he liked because instead of worrying about life, he would embrace it; running, jumping, and climbing everything in his path.

For breakfast he would eat bananas. For lunch he would have bananas. For dinner he would scoff as many bananas as he could for pure pleasure. In other words, he loved bananas as his staple diet.

He lived with an older couple who owned a big house at the top of the hill. It was a detached home with a stable for horses, though there were none. Fred was given free reign to mess about as he pleased. His only obligation was to return home to his owners for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Then he would go to bed in the barn like dwelling.

Fred loved to climb. Apart from bouncing around like a ping-pong ball, he would climb trees in the garden all day long. Whenever there was an opportunity, he would climb. Climbing for Fred was built into his DNA. There were several trees close to each other, and he would jump from one until the other.

Where his energy came from is a mystery. Some say the bananas have a special quality that make him hyper active while others say it is built into his genes.

Take care!

Prof. Carl Boniface

Vocabulary builder:

Monkey (n) = ape, primate, chimpanzee, baboon

couldn’t = is the negative form of "Could" which is a modal verb, specifically the past tense form of "can," used to express past ability, possibility, politeness, or making suggestions. It is often used in conditional sentences and to indicate something was possible or might have happened.

Still (adj) = motionless, immobile, stagnant, stationary  

Should = is a modal verb, also known as a helping or auxiliary verb. It's used to indicate obligation, duty, expectation, or advisability, often suggesting what is right or proper to do. 

Would = is a modal auxiliary verb. It's the past tense of "will" and is used to express a variety of meanings, including future in the past, conditional situations, polite requests, and repeated or habitual actions. 

A "rubber ball" typically refers to a spherical object made of rubber, designed to be bounced. It is a common toy and can also be used in games and sports, or as a stress relief tool. 

Worrying (adj) = causing anxiety about actual or potential problems; alarming. "A worrying health risk would be extreme sports which are dangerous, and potentially lethal.”

Embrace (n) hug, squeeze, cuddle, (v) include, incorporate, involve, (ant) exclude

Scoff (v) = eat very fast. (syn) eat, guzzle, gobble, stuff your face, wolf down, (ant) nibble

Staple (adj) = fundamental, core, key, vital, (ant) minor. Also, can be used for clip, fastener, nail, tack, pin

Stable = also known as a barn where horses are kept. Additionally, stable can mean constant, firm, unwavering, sure, established, secure, committed, longstanding, (ant) changeable