A week without a phone

A short in Ukrainian 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. The smartphone broke on Tuesday: first the microphone stopped working, then the phone's camera would not turn on. I…

Updated September 1, 2026 · Lingofly

Text

  • Смартфон зламався у вівторок: спершу не працював мікрофон, потім перестала вмикатися камера телефона. Я віддав його в ремонт і тиждень жив без сім-карти. Виявилося, що будильник є і на розумному годиннику, а кодів із смс за тиждень не знадобилося жодного. Коли телефон повернули, я не одразу згадав пароль.
    The smartphone broke on Tuesday: first the microphone stopped working, then the phone's camera would not turn on. I handed it in for repair and lived a week without a SIM card. It turned out there is an alarm clock on a smart watch too, and in a week not one code from text messages was needed. When the phone came back, I did not remember the password right away.

Comprehension questions

The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.

  1. What broke first?
  2. How long did the narrator live without the phone?
  3. Where did the alarm clock turn out to be?
  4. What happened when the phone came back?

Frequently asked

What level do you need to read this text in Ukrainian?

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.

Next

Try one lessonOpen Lingofly