Unlocking Word Meanings
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
1. engraved (adj.) [en-greyv] – cut deeply into a surface with a pattern or design
Example: The family’s surname is engraved on the gate of their house.
2. alumni (n.) [uh-luhm-nuh s] – (plural form) graduates of a school or university
Example: The alumni of batch 2001 donated money to their school.
3. reunion (n.) [ree-yoon-yuh n] – gathering of members of a group who have been separated for a long time
Example: She was so happy to see her high school classmates in the reunion.
4. track down (phrasal v.) [trak doun] – to search for something or someone with determination
Example: The policemen are tracking down the location of the lost goods.
5. get in touch (v.) [get in tuhch] – to begin communication with someone
Example: He must get in touch with a friend he has not seen for a long time.
Article
Read the text below.
Fifty years after finding a ring at Lake Winnipesauke in New Hampshire, scuba diver Brad Swain was finally able to return the ring to its owner.
Swain, then in his 20s, found the class ring sometime between 1962 and 1965 while snorkeling in the lake. It was a 1962 girls’ ring for graduates of Beverly High School in Massachusetts.
At first, he kept the ring and did not try finding the owner. But after a few years, he thought finding its owner would be fun and exciting. Aside from the school’s name, the letters “D.N.D.” were engraved on the ring.
Sometime in the 1970s, he called Beverly High School, but the school did not want to give private information about its alumni.
Last December, Swain continued his search, knowing 2012 would be the 50th reunion of Beverly High School’s class of 1962.
He located the school’s website and exchanged e-mails with graduates from the class. He learned the ring belonged to “Donna.” Unfortunately, the address and phone number given to him were no longer in use. Donna also did not attend the reunion.
But Swain did not give up. On September 30 this year, he asked the Beverly Citizen newspaper to publish his story and to help him track down the owner.
A reader sent the correct contact details, and Swain finally got in touch with Donna. He immediately had the ring cleaned by a professional and mailed the ring to Donna on October 11.
Donna was very shocked and thankful for Swain’s effort to return the ring. Swain, now 68, said he was also thankful for having found the ring in the lake because it led him to his career as a scuba diving instructor.
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Viewpoint Discussion
Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
· What do you do when you suddenly find something that is not yours? Do you try your best to find the owner? Please explain your answer.
· How would you feel if someone made an effort to return something you lost?
Discussion B
· Can you share an experience where you lost something? What did you do to find it?
· How can a person avoid losing something important to him or her?
