A house outside town
A short text in Russian at level A2. The translation sits next to it: reading with a dictionary is still too early at this level, and without support it will not happen at all. In spring we rented an old house outside town: with a yard, a fence and a small garage. The roof was fine, but the…
Text
- Весной мы сняли старый дом за городом: с двором, забором и маленьким гаражом. Крыша была в порядке, но в подвале было сыро и холодно. Первую неделю мы каждый день подметали, стирали шторы и гладили всё, что можно. Почтовый ящик был полон объявлений: в доме давно никто не жил. Теперь всё чисто, и по вечерам мы сидим во дворе, пока не станет холодно.Vesnoy my snyali staryy dom za gorodom: s dvorom, zaborom i malenkim garazhom. Krysha byla v poryadke, no v podvale bylo syro i kholodno. Pervuyu nedelyu my kazhdyy den podmetali, stirali shtory i gladili vsyo, chto mozhno. Pochtovyy yashchik byl polon obyavleniy: v dome davno nikto ne zhil. Teper vsyo chisto, i po vecheram my sidim vo dvore, poka ne stanet kholodno.In spring we rented an old house outside town: with a yard, a fence and a small garage. The roof was fine, but the basement was damp and cold. The first week we swept every day, washed the curtains and ironed everything we could. The mailbox was full of ads: nobody had lived in the house for a long time. Now everything is clean, and in the evenings we sit in the yard until it gets cold.
Comprehension questions
The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.
- What was wrong with the house?
- What did they do the first week?
- Why was the box full of ads?
- Where does the family sit in the evenings?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Russian?
A2. That means: you know the letters and have a stock of everyday words — about two or three hundred.
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.