Two neighbors
A short in Serbian text 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. Two people live on my floor, and they are completely different. The first is cheerful and polite: he always says hello…
Text
- На мом спрату живе два човека и потпуно су различити. Први је весео и љубазан: увек каже добар дан и помогне са стварима. Други је ћутљив и делује бесан, али је поштен и никада не лаже. Прошле недеље смо се расправљали око буке, и он је признао да је грешка његова. Сада мислим да карактер није оно што се види први дан.Na mom spratu žive dva čoveka i potpuno su različiti. Prvi je veseo i ljubazan: uvek kaže dobar dan i pomogne sa stvarima. Drugi je ćutljiv i deluje besan, ali je pošten i nikada ne laže. Prošle nedelje smo se raspravljali oko buke, i on je priznao da je greška njegova. Sada mislim da karakter nije ono što se vidi prvi dan.Two people live on my floor, and they are completely different. The first is cheerful and polite: he always says hello and helps with things. The second is silent and seems angry, but he is honest and never lies. Last week we argued over noise, and he admitted the mistake was his. Now I think character is not what you see on the first day.
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 is the first neighbor like?
- What does the narrator say about the second neighbor?
- What did they argue about?
- What conclusion does the narrator reach?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Serbian?
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.