Trump Falls on Forbes Billionaires List; Bezos Rises

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Materials Daily News

Intermediate

Exercise 1

Vocabulary

plummet

Verb

ˈpləmɪt

to drop or fall very quickly

When stocks plummet investors lose money.

consecutive

Adjective

kənˈsɛkjətɪv

happening one after another

We've hit our sales targets for three consecutive quarters.

Retail sales rose for the fifth consecutive month.

She turned down three consecutive offers of marriage because she was in love with someone else.

The economy achieved nearly 5 percent growth in three consecutive quarters.

dwindle

Verb

ˈdwɪndl

to gradually become smaller

The giant panda population has dwindled over the past few decades.

crackdown

Noun

ˈkrækdaʊn

strong action taken against criminal activity

The government ordered a crackdown on drug dealers.

corruption

Noun

kəˈrʌpʃən

dishonest or illegal behavior carried out by powerful people

Corruption in government is one of society's biggest problems.

As a journalist, she feels obliged to report every act of corruption in this country.

Corruption in the banking industry has led to a financial crisis.

A prominent US judge has been found guilty of corruption.

Exercise 2

Article

AI Generated Audio––:–– / ––:––

Trump Falls on Forbes Billionaires List; Bezos Rises

U.S. President Donald Trump's net worth fell by $400 million last year, down to an estimated $3.1 billion, causing him to plummet 222 places on Forbes magazine's annual list of the world's billionaires.

It is the second consecutive year that Trump's fortune has dwindled.

Trump's slide down the rankings of the world's wealthy comes as a record 35 people have joined Forbes' list of billionaires.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was named the richest man in the world, with a fortune of $112 billion. Rounding out the top three are Microsoft's Bill Gates with $90 billion and investor Warren Buffett with $84 billion.

The U.S. has the most billionaires by country, with 585, followed by China.

Germany has the most of any European country, with 123. India has 119 billionaires, and Russia has 102. Hungary and Zimbabwe made their first appearances on the annual list, with one billionaire each.

Ten Saudi Arabians who usually feature among the top 100 were left off the list, "due to a lack of clarity about what they currently own," Forbes explained, following a recent Saudi government crackdown on corruption within its ranks.

The list featured a record 256 women, led by Walmart heiress Alice Walton, worth $46 billion.

According to Forbes, the 2,208 billionaires who made this year's list together are worth $9.1 trillion, roughly 4 percent of all the money in the world.

Jeff Bezos

Exercise 3

Questions

Who are the three richest people in the world, according to Forbes' list?

What country has the most billionaires?

How many women made the list this year?

Exercise 4

Discussion

What are your thoughts on Forbes' list of billionaires?

Do you think that Trump's net worth will continue to dwindle over the course of his presidency? Why? Why not?

Do you believe that China will have more billionaires than the U.S. in the near future? Why? Why not?

Do you expect to see more women on Forbes' list over the coming years? Why? Why not?

How do you feel about the fact that the world's richest people have roughly 4 percent of all the money in the world?

Exercise 5

Further Discussion

Are there a lot of billionaires in your country? Why do you think this is the case?

What do you imagine your life would be like if you were as wealthy as Jeff Bezos?

If you were a billionaire, what would you invest in? Why?

What causes or charities would you support if you were a billionaire? Why?

Do you imagine that being a billionaire would be stressful? Why? Why not?

Exercises for Further Self-Study

These self-study exercises are optional and should be carried out after the lesson has finished.

Exercise 6

Sentence Building

Write at least one sentence for each of the words in Exercise 1: Vocabulary. Begin by making sure you understand the definition of each word. Use the example sentences as a guide if you are unable to think of a sentence. Practice reading your sentences out loud.

Exercise 7

Summary

Make a brief summary of the article. Focus on the main topic and consider which pieces of information are most important. Make sure you include details such as what the article is about, who is mentioned in it, where and when the events took place, and also how and why they happened.

Parts of this lesson are based on:

An article by Voice of America.