A man named Amanj Ali, who owns a food place in Bury, Greater Manchester, lost a lot of money because of a fight over a name with Tesla, the car company. He called his shop “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” because he likes Nikola Tesla, a famous inventor. But Tesla, the car company, didn’t want him to use that name for his food shop. They said it was too close to their name and people might get confused. The people in charge of deciding said Tesla was right, and Ali had to pay a lot of money.

Ali spent a lot of money trying to keep the name, but in the end, he couldn’t fight anymore because it was too expensive. He said he picked the name because he admires Nikola Tesla, just like the car company does. But after a while, Tesla changed their mind and said Ali’s shop name was not okay. This made Ali very upset and stressed because he lost a lot of money and it was hard for him to work and sleep.

Tesla also said that Ali tried to sell the name back to them for a lot of money, but Ali said that wasn’t true. He said his old lawyer made a mistake. Ali said he never really wanted to sell the name unless it was for a huge amount of money. This whole fight shows how big companies are very careful about their names and don’t want other businesses to use names that are too similar.

Original news source: Bury chicken shop boss loses £12,000 in Tesla trademark row (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– News Summary
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs or small groups. Give each group a few minutes to read the article. Then, have them work together to write a summary of the article in their own words. Encourage them to focus on the main points and key details. After they finish, have each group share their summary with the class.

– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Have the class discuss their opinions on the situation described in the article. Divide the class into pairs or small groups and give them a few minutes to talk about whether they think Tesla was right in not allowing Ali to use the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza.” After discussing, have each group share their opinions with the class and facilitate a class discussion.

– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write a list of vocabulary words from the article on the board. Divide the class into small groups and give each group a set of vocabulary words. One student from each group should come to the front of the class and draw a picture to represent one of the words without speaking. The rest of the group must guess the word based on the drawing. The group that guesses correctly gets a point. Repeat with different students and words until all the vocabulary words have been used.

– Headline Creation
Instructions: In pairs or small groups, have the students come up with a catchy headline for the article. Encourage them to use their creativity and think of something that would grab people’s attention. After they have created their headlines, have each group share their headline with the class and explain why they chose it.

– Pros and Cons
Instructions: Divide the class into pairs or small groups. Have each group discuss the pros and cons of owning a business and the challenges that can arise, using the article as a starting point. After discussing, have each group share their ideas with the class and facilitate a class discussion on the topic.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. What was the name of the food place in Bury owned by Amanj Ali?
2. Why did Tesla, the car company, not want Ali to use the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza”?
3. How did Ali feel when he had to pay a lot of money because of the fight over the name?
4. Why did Ali choose the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” for his food shop?
5. Why did Ali eventually have to give up the fight over the name?
6. What did Tesla accuse Ali of trying to do with the name?
7. What does this story show about big companies and their names?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A man (1)______d Amanj Ali, who owns a food place in Bury, (2)______ Manchester, lost a lot of money because of a fight over a name with Tesla, the car company. He called his shop “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” because he (3)______ Nikola Tesla, a famous inventor. But Tesla, the car company, didn’t want him to use that name for his food shop. They (4)______ it was too (5)______ to their name and people might get confused. The people in charge of deciding said Tesla was right, and Ali had to pay a lot of money.

Ali spent a lot of money trying to keep the name, but in the end, he couldn’t (6)______ anymore because it was too expensive. He said he picked the name because he admires Nikola (7)______, just like the car (8)______ does. But after a while, Tesla changed their mind and said Ali’s shop name was not okay. This made Ali very upset and (9)______ because he lost a lot of money and it was hard for him to work and sleep.

Tesla also said that Ali tried to sell the name back to them for a lot of money, but Ali said that wasn’t true. He said his old (10)______ made a mistake. Ali said he never really wanted to (11)______ the name unless it was for a huge amount of money. This whole fight shows how big companies are very careful about their (12)______ and don’t want other businesses to use names that are too similar.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.

1. What is the name of the food place owned by Amanj Ali?
2. How do you think Amanj Ali felt when he lost a lot of money because of the fight over the name?
3. Do you like Nikola Tesla? Why or why not?
4. How would you feel if someone told you that you couldn’t use the name you wanted for your business?
5. What do you think about big companies being very careful about their names?
6. Why do you think Amanj Ali picked the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” for his food shop?
7. How do you think Amanj Ali felt when Tesla changed their mind about his shop name?
8. Do you think it’s fair for big companies to stop other businesses from using similar names? Why or why not?
9. What would you do if you were in Amanj Ali’s situation?
10. How do you think Amanj Ali’s customers felt when they found out he had to change the name of his food shop?
11. Why do you think Amanj Ali’s lawyer made a mistake?
12. How do you think Amanj Ali’s life would be different if he never had to change the name of his food shop?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. inventor
2. confused
3. expensive
4. admires
5. upset
6. stressed
7. lawyer
8. mistake
9. careful
10. businesses
11. similar
12. fight

Meanings:
(A) To argue or struggle against someone or something
(B) Almost the same, not very different
(C) Costs a lot of money
(D) Something done wrong
(E) Feeling worried and not able to relax
(F) Being very cautious and paying attention to details
(G) Really likes or respects someone
(H) Places where people sell things or offer services
(I) Mixed up, not sure about something
(J) A person who helps you with the law
(K) Sad or unhappy about something
(L) Someone who creates new things
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Why did Amanj Ali call his food place “Tesla Chicken & Pizza”?
(a) He wanted to confuse people
(b) He wanted to sell the name to Tesla
(c) He thought it sounded cool
(d) He likes Nikola Tesla

2. Why did Tesla, the car company, not want Ali to use the name?
(a) They didn’t like Nikola Tesla
(b) They wanted to buy the name from Ali
(c) They thought it was too similar to their name
(d) They wanted to confuse people

3. Who decided that Ali had to pay a lot of money?
(a) The people in charge of deciding
(b) Ali’s lawyer
(c) Nikola Tesla
(d) The customers of the food place

4. Why did Ali stop fighting to keep the name?
(a) He didn’t like Nikola Tesla anymore
(b) He wanted to sell the name to Tesla
(c) He didn’t want to confuse people
(d) It was too expensive

5. Why was Ali upset and stressed?
(a) He couldn’t work and sleep
(b) He lost a lot of money
(c) Tesla wanted to buy the name from him
(d) His lawyer made a mistake

6. What did Tesla accuse Ali of doing?
(a) Stealing their car designs
(b) Making a lot of money from the name
(c) Trying to sell the name back to them
(d) Changing his name to Tesla

7. Why did Ali say he never really wanted to sell the name?
(a) He wanted to confuse people
(b) He admired Nikola Tesla
(c) His lawyer made a mistake
(d) He wanted to make a lot of money

8. What does this fight show about big companies?
(a) They are careful about their names
(b) They like to confuse people
(c) They don’t like Nikola Tesla
(d) They want to sell their names for a lot of money

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. Amanj Ali spent a lot of money trying to keep the name, but it was affordable to continue fighting.
2. Tesla thought the name was too similar to their own and might confuse people.
3. This situation shows that big companies are very careful about their names and don’t want other businesses to use similar names.
4. A man named Amanj Ali owns a food place in Bury, Greater Manchester.
5. Tesla praised Amanj Ali for trying to sell the name back to them for a lot of money, but Amanj Ali said it wasn’t true.
6. Amanj Ali called his shop “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” because he likes Nikola Tesla, a famous inventor.
7. Tesla, the car company, wanted Amanj Ali to use the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” for his food shop.
8. The people in charge of deciding disagreed with Tesla and Amanj Ali didn’t have to pay a lot of money.
Go to answers ⇩

📝 Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.

Writing Questions:

Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.

1. Why did Amanj Ali call his food shop “Tesla Chicken & Pizza”?
2. Why did Tesla, the car company, not want Ali to use that name for his shop?
3. How did Ali feel when he had to change the name of his shop?
4. What did Tesla say about Ali trying to sell the name back to them?
5. Why are big companies like Tesla careful about their names?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. What was the name of the food place in Bury owned by Amanj Ali?
The name of the food place owned by Amanj Ali was “Tesla Chicken & Pizza”.

2. Why did Tesla, the car company, not want Ali to use the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza”?
Tesla, the car company, did not want Ali to use the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” because they thought it was too similar to their own name and people might get confused.

3. How did Ali feel when he had to pay a lot of money because of the fight over the name?
Ali felt very upset and stressed when he had to pay a lot of money because of the fight over the name.

4. Why did Ali choose the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” for his food shop?
Ali chose the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” for his food shop because he admires Nikola Tesla, a famous inventor, just like the car company does.

5. Why did Ali eventually have to give up the fight over the name?
Ali eventually had to give up the fight over the name because it became too expensive for him to continue fighting.

6. What did Tesla accuse Ali of trying to do with the name?
Tesla accused Ali of trying to sell the name back to them for a lot of money.

7. What does this story show about big companies and their names?
This story shows that big companies are very careful about their names and do not want other businesses to use names that are too similar.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) name
(2) Greater
(3) likes
(4) said
(5) close
(6) fight
(7) Tesla
(8) company
(9) stressed
(10) lawyer
(11) sell
(12) names
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. inventor
Answer: (L) Someone who creates new things

2. confused
Answer: (I) Mixed up, not sure about something

3. expensive
Answer: (C) Costs a lot of money

4. admires
Answer: (G) Really likes or respects someone

5. upset
Answer: (K) Sad or unhappy about something

6. stressed
Answer: (E) Feeling worried and not able to relax

7. lawyer
Answer: (J) A person who helps you with the law

8. mistake
Answer: (D) Something done wrong

9. careful
Answer: (F) Being very cautious and paying attention to details

10. businesses
Answer: (H) Places where people sell things or offer services

11. similar
Answer: (B) Almost the same, not very different

12. fight
Answer: (A) To argue or struggle against someone or something
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Why did Amanj Ali call his food place “Tesla Chicken & Pizza”?
Answer: (d) He likes Nikola Tesla

2. Why did Tesla, the car company, not want Ali to use the name?
Answer: (c) They thought it was too similar to their name

3. Who decided that Ali had to pay a lot of money?
Answer: (a) The people in charge of deciding

4. Why did Ali stop fighting to keep the name?
Answer: (d) It was too expensive

5. Why was Ali upset and stressed?
Answer: (b) He lost a lot of money

6. What did Tesla accuse Ali of doing?
Answer: (c) Trying to sell the name back to them

7. Why did Ali say he never really wanted to sell the name?
Answer: (b) He admired Nikola Tesla

8. What does this fight show about big companies?
Answer: (a) They are careful about their names
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. Amanj Ali spent a lot of money trying to keep the name, but it was affordable to continue fighting. (Answer: False)
2. Tesla thought the name was too similar to their own and might confuse people. (Answer: True)
3. This situation shows that big companies are very careful about their names and don’t want other businesses to use similar names. (Answer: True)
4. A man named Amanj Ali owns a food place in Bury, Greater Manchester. (Answer: True)
5. Tesla praised Amanj Ali for trying to sell the name back to them for a lot of money, but Amanj Ali said it wasn’t true. (Answer: False)
6. Amanj Ali called his shop “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” because he likes Nikola Tesla, a famous inventor. (Answer: True)
7. Tesla, the car company, wanted Amanj Ali to use the name “Tesla Chicken & Pizza” for his food shop. (Answer: False)
8. The people in charge of deciding disagreed with Tesla and Amanj Ali didn’t have to pay a lot of money. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧