A talk in the corridor
A text in Polish 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. A colleague stopped me in the corridor and asked whether I had a minute. He said he was calling about the project and…
Text
- Kolega zatrzymał mnie na korytarzu i zapytał, czy mam chwilkę. Powiedział, że dzwoni w sprawie projektu, i zaczął tłumaczyć tak szybko, że nie dosłyszałem. Dwa razy musiałem zapytać jeszcze raz i raz poprosić, żeby przeliterował nazwisko. Kiedy mnie przerwał w połowie zdania, powiedziałem spokojnie, że jeszcze nie skończyłem. Potem wróciliśmy do tematu i w pięć minut podsumowaliśmy wszystko, co było ważne. Na koniec poprosiłem o więcej czasu, bo jeszcze nie zdecydowałem.A colleague stopped me in the corridor and asked whether I had a minute. He said he was calling about the project and began to explain so fast that I did not catch it. Twice I had to ask again, and once I asked him to dictate the surname letter by letter. When he interrupted me in the middle of a phrase, I calmly said that I had not finished yet. Then we returned to the topic and in five minutes summed up everything important. At the end I asked for more time, because I had not decided yet.
Comprehension questions
The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.
- How did the colleague begin?
- Why did the narrator ask again?
- What did the narrator say when he was interrupted?
- How did the talk end?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Polish?
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.