Vocabulary Exercise #18: Synonyms of "Thief" (Part 2)

Communicative Objective: Describing Thieves

Context: Categories of Thieves

Part 1, Speaking: The words listed below are all synonyms of the noun “thief.” Each varies slightly from the others in meaning and use. Discuss the definition and application of each word.

1.   bandit: (noun) a travelling robber  

Example: Bandits plague deserted highways in the developing world.

2.   embezzler: (noun) someone who steals money secretly from his or her company

Example: Embezzlers can go undetected for years as they are often respected members of the community.

3.   hoodlum: (noun) a young, tough male who engages in petty crime  / mafia activities

Example: “Hood” is a more dismissive form of “hoodlum.”

4.   plunderer: (noun) someone who steals great wealth

Example: Many corrupt heads of state are infamous plunderers.

5.   swindler: (noun) someone who robs by tricking people

Example: I am always surprised at how easily swindlers can trick some people over the internet.

Part 2, Reading Exercise: Complete the reading passage with the most appropriate vocabulary.

     Some thieves eventually become so well-known that they are immortalized in our folklore and enter our daily conversations.

     Robin Hood, the subject of many popular stories and films, was a beloved _____ who famously “stole from the rich and gave to the poor” throughout the forests and highways of medieval England. 

     William Teach, or “Blackbeard,” was a notorious pirate active in the Caribbean and along the east coast of what would become the United States, in the early 18^th century. Although not the most financially successful pirate in history, he was greatly feared by colonies and merchants as a _____.

    Joseph Weil, better known as “the Yellow Kid,” operated as a _____ in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries, selling snake oil, among other cons.

     Al Capone, of course, is the most celebrated _____, advancing in his career from gangbanging to running the largest bootlegging and alcohol smuggling operation in the United States in the early 20^th century. Depicted in numerous films and other forms of media, he is an icon of organized crime.

     Finally, Bernie Madoff is the greatest _____ to date, having operated the largest known Ponzi scheme. Over the years, he deceived investors into parting with hundreds of billions of dollars. He was arrested in 2008 and sentenced in 2009 to 150 years in prison and $170 billion in restitution.       

  

© James Doyle, 2013

www.mylanguagesolutions.com

Vocabulary Class: 
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Answers: 
The answers to this exercise are available at the following link: 

http://www.mylanguagesolutions.com/#!english-exercises-answers/c11f1