The house with a yard
A short text in Urdu 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. We rented an old house with a yard and a fence. The roof was in order, but the basement was damp. The first week we…
Text
- ہم نے پرانا گھر کرایہ پر لیا، آنگن اور چار دیواری کے ساتھ۔ چھت ٹھیک تھی، مگر تہہ خانہ میں نم تھا۔ پہلے ہفتے ہم روز جھاڑو مارتے اور کپڑے دھوتے تھے۔ ڈاک کا ڈبہ اشتہارات سے بھرا تھا۔ اب شام کو ہم آنگن میں بیٹھتے ہیں۔hum ne purana ghar kiraya per liya, aungan aur char diwari ke sath. chhat thik thi, magar teh khana main nam tha. pehle hafte hum roz jharu marte aur kapre dhote the. dak ka dabba ishtiharat se bhara tha. ab sham ko hum aungan main baithte hain.We rented an old house with a yard and a fence. The roof was in order, but the basement was damp. The first week we swept and washed every day. The letterbox was full of advertisements. Now in the evenings we sit in the yard.
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 advertisements?
- Where do they sit in the evenings now?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Urdu?
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.