Ten years of silence
A text in Arabic at level B1. The translation sits next to it for checking, not for support: at this level the text is read whole, and an unknown word is usually guessed from the sentence. We have been friends since childhood with Sara, a school friend. We talked every day and laughed a lot. Then a small…
Text
- كنت أصدقاء منذ الطفولة مع سارة، صديقة المدرسة. وكنا نتكلم كل يوم ونضحك كثيرا. ثم سوء فهم صغير، وقطعنا التواصل. كل واحد انتظر أن الآخر يتصالح أولا. بقينا عشر سنوات بلا كلام، وقلب كل منا حزين. في العام الماضي كتبت لها رسالة، وأرسلت الرد في نفس اليوم. الآن نتكلم كل أسبوع، والصداقة جديدة من جديد.кунту асдикааʾ мунзу ат-туфууля маʿа саара, сыдиикат аль-мадраса. ва-кунна натакаллям куль йаум ва-надхак кясииран. сумма сууʾ фахм сагиир, ва-катаʿна ат-таваасуль. куль ваахид интаазар ан аль-аахар йятасаалах ауввалан. бакийна ʿашар санаваат биля калам, ва-кальб куль минна хазиин. фи аль-ʿаам аль-маади катабту ляха рисаалян, ва-арсалат ар-радд фи нафс аль-йаум. аль-аан натакаллям куль усбууʿ, ва-с-сыдаака джадида мин джадид.We have been friends since childhood with Sara, a school friend. We talked every day and laughed a lot. Then a small misunderstanding — and we stopped communicating. Each waited for the other to make up first. We remained ten years without words, and each heart was sad. Last year I wrote her a letter, and she sent an answer the same day. Now we talk every week, and the friendship began anew.
Comprehension questions
The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.
- Who was Sara?
- What broke the friendship?
- How many years did the silence last?
- What happened last year?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Arabic?
B1. That means: everyday topics are behind you, you know about three thousand words, and an unknown word is more often guessed from the sentence than looked up.
How to read a text in an unfamiliar language usefully?
First all the way through without peeking at the translation — just to catch the familiar words. Then with the translation. Then all the way through again: the second pass brings noticeably more, and that feeling matters more than any rule.