Unit 29

Unit 29 WORD LIST burden n. A burden is a serious or difficult responsibility. Children who do not behave are a burden to their parents. compromise v. To compromise is to agree to something that is not exactly what you want. We both compromised about the game we decided to play. craft v. To craft something is to make it using skill. She crafted the bookcase out of solid pine wood and then painted it. dive v. When you dive into water, you go down head first into the water. I like sky-diving from an airplane. fragile adj. When people or things are fragile, they are not strong and can be damaged easily. The fragile glassware was carefully packed into boxes. half n. If you cut something into two parts that are the same size. you cut it half. The machine can divide the book in half. innocence n. Innocence is a lack of experience of difficult or complex things in life. Everyone who met her found her innocence to be charming. lead v. When you lead something, you go first and it follows you. I will lead you to the right place. meeting n. When you have a meeting, you are with other people. We have lots of meetings at our school to plan what to do. merge v. To merge two things is to combine them into one whole thing. The storm clouds merged into one large menacing cloud that filled the sky.

moderate adj. When something is moderate, it is not too big or too small in size or amount. It takes a moderate amount of patience to be around small children all day. overwhelm v. To overwhelm is to exist in such a large amount that someone cannot deal with it. The amount of homework her teacher assigned has overwhelmed her. payment n. When you make a payment, you give someone some money for what you get. I made the last payment on my car yesterday. Now I am really the owner. perception n. A perception of a situation is a way of thinking about it or understanding it. Since he couldn't see, his perception of life was much different than mine. settle v. When you settle something, you reach an agreement. We settled the argument by looking up the answer on the web. shiver n. A shiver is a shaking movement the body makes when someone is cold or scared. I got shivers on my way home because it was so cold. sociable adj. When someone is sociable, they are friendly. Many of my good friends are sociable, but I am shy. speed v. When you speed, you go very fast. Speeding is the cause of most car accidents. talkative adj. When someone is talkative, he or she talks a lot. My aunt is very talkative whenever she is on the phone. usual adj. When something is usual, it is what we expect. It was just the usual people who came.

The Demon's Bridge A young woman's cow had crossed the river in the morning when the water level was moderate. But when the woman returned with her dog to get the cow, she was overwhelmed by how high the water had risen. Even if she crossed, she still couldn't lead her cow back through the river. “ What am I going to do?" she wondered. Suddenly, a man appeared across the river. " A fragile young lady like you shouldn't have to work so hard to get across a river, " he said. " I'll build you a bridge. " The man was not the usual kind ofperson she met. The young woman'sperception of him was that he was a sociable person. He was talkative, yet something was strange about him. But her innocence allowed her to trust the man. " I don't want to be a burden to you, sir, " the woman replied. " Don't worry, " he told her as he began crafting a bridge. He merged the pieces of the bridge together with amazing speed. Soon, it was finished. " Oh, but how can I give you money for your work? Let's compromise. I am sure that we can find a fair solution. What do you think?" the woman asked. " The only payment I need is the first living thing that crosses the bridge, " the man replied. She thought, " This deal sounds strange. Maybe he's actually a river demon. " She shivered because she realized that he had taken advantage of her and settled the deal somehow. But she had a plan of her own. She pulled a piece of bread from her pocket and threw it across the bridge. Her dog ran after it. " The dog is the first living thing across the bridge, " she said to the man. The man was angry. He suddenly changed into a half-human and half-fish. " What's the matter with you! " he shouted. " You tricked me. I have no use for your dog! " he screamed and dived into the river. The woman sped across the bridge to the other side and had a happy meeting with her dog and cow.