A week without cigarettes
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. I smoked for fifteen years and every day began with coffee and a cigarette. After the examination the doctor told me…
Text
- Paliłem piętnaście lat i każdy dzień zaczynałem od kawy i papierosa. Lekarz po badaniu powiedział mi, że płuca nie są zdrowe. Powiedział, że palenie szkodzi sercu, i kazał mi rzucić palenie. Pierwszy tydzień bez papierosów był najtrudniejszy, w nocy nie mogłem zasnąć. Dziś biegam trzy razy w tygodniu i czuję się lepiej niż przed latami. Dziś wiem, że bez tego złego nawyku dam radę.I smoked for fifteen years and every day began with coffee and a cigarette. After the examination the doctor told me that my lungs were unhealthy. He said that smoking harms the heart and told me to quit smoking. The first week without cigarettes was the hardest; at night I could not fall asleep. Today I run three times a week and feel better than before. Now I know I will manage without this harmful habit.
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 many years did he smoke?
- What did the doctor discover?
- What was the hardest in the first week?
- What does he do now?
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.