Famous Things
Perfume
Perfume
Pre-Reading Warm Up Questions ☀
1. Can you name several different brands of perfume?
Perfume has been used for thousands of years. Its name comes from
the Latin “per fume”, meaning “through smoke”.
Egyptians were the first to use perfume as part of their religious
rituals. They burned incense and herbs and applied perfumed
creams and oils to their skin. The Egyptians also invented glass, and
introduced the use of perfume bottles around 1000 BC.
2. Do you know where perfume was first used?
3. Do you know the origin of the word perfume?
4. When do you think perfume bottles were first
introduced?
5. Have you heard of the perfume called Chanel No 5?
Where do you think this name came from?
The use of perfume spread to Greece, Rome and the Islamic world.
With the fall of the Roman Empire, perfume use declined and only
became popular again in the 12th Century with the beginning of
international trade.
By the 17th Century, perfume was widely used. In France, because
of the popularity of perfumed gloves, the Guild of Glove and
Perfume Makers was established in 1656. The court of Louis XV
was named “the perfumed court”, due to the many scents that were
applied daily to people’s skin, clothing, fans and even furniture.
The 18th Century brought the invention of eau de cologne that was
used in many different ways. It was added to bathwater, mixed with
wine, used as a mouthwash, and even injected. Containers varied as
much as the different fragrances and their uses.
Big changes came in the 19th Century when chemists created many
new fragrances. Many fragrance houses appeared in Europe, and
bottling became very important. In 1872, the Crown Perfumery
was founded and Queen Victoria allowed an image of her crown to
be used for the top of a Crown Perfumery fragrance bottle.
In 1921, when fashion designer Gabrielle Chanel launched her own
perfume, she called it Chanel No 5 because it was the fifth of many
fragrances presented to her. With French perfumery at its peak in
the 1950s, other designers started creating their own scents. Today,
fragrances named after celebrities are popular. They have had a big
impact on the industry, but most experts do not expect the trend to
last.
Today, more than 30,000 designer perfumes are being sold.
COMPREHENSION ✍
A. True or False. Read the statements below. If the
statement is true, write T beside the sentence. If it is
false, write F. If it is false, correct the information.
1. The Greeks were the first to use perfume.
2. Egyptians first introduced perfume bottles.
3. Perfume use decreased after the fall of the Roman
Empire.
4. Eau de cologne was invented in 1656.
5. Nowadays, many perfume brands are named after
movie stars and other famous people.
1
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Famous Things
Perfume
B. Practice asking and answering the following questions with your partner. Then write the answers in complete sentences.
1. Where does the word perfume come from?
2. How did the Egyptians first use perfume?
3. Why did perfume become popular in other countries in the 12th century?
4. Why was the Guild of Glove and Perfume Makers established in 1656 in France?
5. What was the court of Louis XV called and how did it get this name?
6. How was eau de cologne used in the 18th century?
7. Why did Gabrielle Chanel call her perfume Chanel No 5?
VOCABULARY REVIEW ✍
A. Match the words on the left with the correct meaning on the right.
_____ 1. ritual
a) a headdress worn by a king or queen
_____ 2. incense
b) set up; start an organization, company, etc.
_____ 3. apply
c) put a liquid into the body with a needle
_____ 4. invent
d) an act or part of a ceremony
_____ 5. decline
e) highest level
_____ 6. guild
f) substance producing a sweet smell when burning
_____ 7. establish
g) create something new
_____ 8. court
h) strong influence or effect
_____ 9. scent
i) put on the skin
_____ 10. inject
j) an organization of people who do the same work
_____ 11. crown
k) smell (usually of something pleasant)
_____ 12. peak
l) decrease; become smaller
_____ 13. impact
m) place where a king or queen lives
DISCUSS
1. Do you have a favorite perfume? If so, what
is it?
2. Do you know how perfume is made?
3. Nowadays many people are developing
allergies to perfumes and other scented
products. Do you think perfumes should be
banned from the workplace for this reason?
4. Can you name several celebrities who have
become involved in the perfume industry?
If not, look in a current fashion magazine
and try to find several examples.
B. Choose the correct word from the list below to complete the following sentences.
celebrity – founded – trend – spread – fragrance – varies – due to – launch
1. When he dropped his cigarette on the dry grass, a fire started and it ______________________ very quickly throughout the forest.
2. She is a very famous ______________________. Everywhere she goes, people take pictures of her and ask for her autograph.
3. I don’t like that perfume. I think the ______________________ is too strong.
4. The company is planning to ______________________ a new computer product next spring.
5. Mini-skirts were very popular in the 1970’s, but the ______________________ didn’t last long.
6. That university is very old. It was ______________________ over 200 years ago.
7. The picnic was cancelled ______________________ the rain.
8. Because Canada is such a large country, the weather ______________________ from region to region.
2
Copyright 2009. This eBook is produced and distributed by Red River Press Inc. All rights reserved. The contents within this e-book/document may only be
photocopied by members of ESL-Llibrary.com in accordance with membership terms and conditions. Contact [email protected] for complete details.
Famous Things
Perfume
ANSWER KEY
Please note: The reading for this topic is also available in full-page format at the end of the lesson (page 4).
PRE-READING QUESTIONS
1 - 5 individual answers
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
A. True or False
1. F
2. T
3. T
4. F
5. T
B. Written Answers
1. The name perfume comes from the Latin “per fume”, meaning “through smoke”.
2. The Egyptians used perfume as part of their religious rituals. They burned incense and herbs and applied perfumed
creams and oils to their skin.
3. Perfume become popular in other countries in the 12th century due to the rise of international trade.
4. The Guild of Glove and Perfume Makers was established in 1656 because of the popularity of perfumed gloves.
5. The court of Louis XV was named “the perfumed court”, due to the many scents that were applied daily to people’s
skin, clothing, fans and even furniture.
6. Eau de cologne was added to bathwater, mixed with wine, used as a mouthwash, and even injected.
7. She called it Chanel No 5 because it was the fifth of many fragrances presented to her.
VOCABULARY REVIEW
A. Match the word(s)
1. d
2. f
3. i
4. g
5. l
9. k
10. c
11. a
12. e
13. h
6. j
7. b
B. Choose the correct words...
1. spread
2. celebrity
3. fragrance
6. founded
7. due to
8. varies
4. launch
5. trend
3
Copyright 2009. This eBook is produced and distributed by Red River Press Inc. All rights reserved. The contents within this e-book/document may only be
photocopied by members of ESL-Llibrary.com in accordance with membership terms and conditions. Contact [email protected] for complete details.
8. m
Famous Things
Perfume
Perfume
Perfume has been used for thousands of years. Its name comes from the Latin “per fume”, meaning “through
smoke”.
Egyptians were the first to use perfume as part of their religious rituals. They burned incense and herbs and
applied perfumed creams and oils to their skin. The Egyptians also invented glass, and introduced the use of
perfume bottles around 1000 BC.
The use of perfume spread to Greece, Rome and the Islamic world. With the fall of the Roman Empire, perfume
use declined and only became popular again in the 12th Century with the beginning of international trade.
By the 17th Century, perfume was widely used. In France, because of the popularity of perfumed gloves, the
Guild of Glove and Perfume Makers was established in 1656. The court of Louis XV was named “the perfumed
court”, due to the many scents that were applied daily to people’s skin, clothing, fans and even furniture.
The 18th Century brought the invention of eau de cologne that was used in many different ways. It was added to
bathwater, mixed with wine, used as a mouthwash, and even injected. Containers varied as much as the different
fragrances and their uses.
Big changes came in the 19th Century when chemists created many new fragrances. Many fragrance houses
appeared in Europe, and bottling became very important. In 1872, the Crown Perfumery was founded and
Queen Victoria allowed an image of her crown to be used for the top of a Crown Perfumery fragrance bottle.
In 1921, when fashion designer Gabrielle Chanel launched her own perfume, she called it Chanel No 5 because it
was the fifth of many fragrances presented to her. With French perfumery at its peak in the 1950s, other
designers started creating their own scents. Today, fragrances named after celebrities are popular. They have had
a big impact on the industry, but most experts do not expect the trend to last.
Today, more than 30,000 designer perfumes are being sold.
4
Copyright 2009. This eBook is produced and distributed by Red River Press Inc. All rights reserved. The contents within this e-book/document may only be
photocopied by members of ESL-Llibrary.com in accordance with membership terms and conditions. Contact [email protected] for complete details.