Jobs & People Who Help — A2 Essential Words
Ten essential A2 words (Jobs) with the complete apparatus: pronunciation, simple definitions, natural American examples, collocations, family, the common mistake and spoken usage — plus a 15-question practice quiz. Mark your status on every word.
farmer /ˈfɑːrmər/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person who owns or works on a farm, growing food or keeping animals.
Example: The farmer grows corn and soybeans.
Another example: Farmers wake up before the sun.
Collocations: a local farmer · farmer's market · dairy farmer
Synonyms: grower, rancher (animals)
Word family: farmers (n pl) · farm (n/v) · farming (n)
⚠ Common mistake: A rancher raises animals on a ranch; a farmer's ground is a farm. Both feed the country.
🗣 In spoken American English: Farmers markets bring them to the city every weekend.
Register: Neutral — work basics.
nurse /nɜːrs/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person trained to care for sick or injured people in a hospital or clinic.
Example: The nurse checked my temperature.
Another example: She works as a nurse at the children's hospital.
Collocations: a hospital nurse · nurse station · school nurse
Synonyms: caregiver, medic
Word family: nurses (n pl) · nursing (n)
⚠ Common mistake: Nurses do the daily hands-on care; doctors diagnose and prescribe. Say 'nurse' for men and women alike.
🗣 In spoken American English: The person you actually see most in any hospital stay.
Register: Neutral — health jobs essential.
cook /kʊk/ noun / verb A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person whose job is preparing food; to prepare food by heating it.
Example: The cook makes amazing pasta.
Another example: She cooks dinner every night.
Collocations: a good cook · cook dinner · cook for
Synonyms: chef (professional, trained)
Word family: cooks (n pl) · cooking (n) · cooker (UK stove!)
⚠ Common mistake: A chef is a trained professional (often the boss of a kitchen); a cook is anyone who cooks. Careful: in Britain a 'cooker' is the stove — in the US it's not a word for the machine.
🗣 In spoken American English: 'Too many cooks…' — the proverb every team kitchen quotes.
Register: Neutral — food jobs.
waiter /ˈweɪtər/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person who serves food and drinks to customers in a restaurant (a woman is a waitress; 'server' covers everyone).
Example: The waiter brought our drinks.
Another example: He works as a waiter on weekends.
Collocations: our waiter · waiter, please · head waiter
Synonyms: server, waitress (female)
Word family: waiters (n pl) · wait (v)
⚠ Common mistake: Modern American restaurants often prefer 'server' for everyone. 'Waiter!' shouted across a room is rude — catch their eye instead.
🗣 In spoken American English: The person who can make or save your whole evening out.
Register: Neutral — restaurant essential.
builder /ˈbɪldər/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person or company whose job is making buildings and structures.
Example: The builders finished the house in six months.
Another example: Her father is a builder.
Collocations: house builder · master builder · builders work
Synonyms: constructor, contractor (organizer)
Word family: builders (n pl) · build (v) · building (n)
⚠ Common mistake: Builders build; contractors organize the building. The same person often does both in small companies.
🗣 In spoken American English: Every skyline is their signature written large.
Register: Neutral — work basics.
artist /ˈɑːrtɪst/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person who creates art — paintings, drawings, music, or other creative work — especially as a job.
Example: The artist painted the ocean at dawn.
Another example: Street artists perform in the square.
Collocations: a famous artist · street artist · artist's work
Synonyms: painter (paints), creator
Word family: artists (n pl) · artistic (adj) · art (n)
⚠ Common mistake: Artist is wider than painter: singers, sculptors, and digital creators are artists too.
🗣 In spoken American English: Every city has a district where they cluster — galleries follow.
Register: Neutral — culture jobs.
engineer /ˌendʒɪˈnɪər/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person trained to design and build machines, roads, bridges, software, or systems using science and math.
Example: Engineers designed the new bridge.
Another example: She's a software engineer in Seattle.
Collocations: software engineer · civil engineer · engineer at
Synonyms: designer (visual), technician (hands-on)
Word family: engineers (n pl) · engineering (n)
⚠ Common mistake: Engineer covers many fields: civil (bridges), mechanical (machines), software (code). In the US, a train driver is also called an engineer — old usage that survives.
🗣 In spoken American English: The fixers of the physical and digital worlds alike.
Register: Neutral — careers essential.
singer /ˈsɪŋər/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person who sings, especially as a job.
Example: The singer's voice filled the hall.
Another example: She dreams of becoming a singer.
Collocations: a famous singer · lead singer · singer and songwriter
Synonyms: vocalist, performer
Word family: singers (n pl) · sing (v) · song (n)
⚠ Common mistake: Singer names the person; song names the music. 'Singer-songwriter' writes AND performs — a classic American career title.
🗣 In spoken American English: From church choirs to stadiums, they carry the country's feelings.
Register: Neutral — music jobs.
pilot /ˈpaɪlət/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person who flies an aircraft; also a person who guides ships into ports.
Example: The pilot landed the plane safely.
Another example: She trained for years to become a pilot.
Collocations: airline pilot · the pilot announced · pilot training
Synonyms: captain (the senior pilot), aviator
Word family: pilots (n pl)
⚠ Common mistake: On a plane, the captain is the chief pilot. 'Pilot' also describes a trial version: a pilot program, a TV pilot episode.
🗣 In spoken American English: The calmest voice in any storm: 'This is your pilot speaking.'
Register: Neutral — travel jobs.
scientist /ˈsaɪəntɪst/ noun A2 Jobs
Meaning: A person who studies the natural world through observation and experiments, as a job.
Example: Scientists study climate change.
Another example: The scientist discovered a new species.
Collocations: a research scientist · scientists say · scientist at
Synonyms: researcher, investigator
Word family: scientists (n pl) · science (n) · scientific (adj)
⚠ Common mistake: Scientist is the job; science is the field. The adjective is scientific ('the scientific method').
🗣 In spoken American English: White coats in labs — and in every kid's career poster.
Register: Neutral — science jobs essential.
Practice — Jobs & People Who Help
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