Learning English

A fifth of plants in danger of extinction

A study published today reveals that vast numbers of the world's plants are under threat. The research, by the Royal Botanic Gardens, also reveals that 2,000 unknown types of plants were discovered last year. 

Language challenge

True or false: the word 'kill' can be used in expressions which mean the following?

• to stop something
• to feel pain
• to do something while waiting

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The story

A new report on the state of the world's plants says that more than 2,000 new species were discovered last year alone including a three-metre-tall orchid and a sprawling insect-eating sundew plant from Brazil.

But the researchers from the Royal Botanic Gardens in London warned that a fifth of all plants were at risk of extinction – vulnerable to climate change, habitat loss or disease.

Steve Bachman – Royal Botanic Gardens

We have a huge demand for food, so there's a lot of mouths to feed in the world now and that's growing. And we need the land, so basically the natural habitat is being converted so that we can have soya plantations, crops, livestock and as a result that's really causing species to lose their habitat and get closer towards extinction.

Key words and phrases

species
a group of animals or plants that are similar and can together produce young animals or plants

sprawling
reaching over a large area

habitats
the places where plants and animals live naturally

at risk of
in a situation where something bad or dangerous could happen 

kill off
destroy something totally 

To do

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Downloads

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Language challenge - answer

The answer is: true. 

Examples
to stop something - This meeting's going nowhere. Let's kill it.
to feel pain - After running the marathon, my feet were killing me.
to do something while waiting - I love to kill time at the station by reading a book.

More

Learn more about this story with BBC News.

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