A week without cigarettes
A text in Urdu 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. After fifteen years of smoking the doctor talked with me. At the examination an inflammation of the lungs was found.…
Text
- پندرہ سال سگریٹ نوشی کے بعد ڈاکٹر نے بات کی۔ معائنے میں پھیپھڑوں کی سوزش نکلی۔ ڈاکٹر نے سمجھایا کہ نوشی صحت کے لیے نقصان دہ ہے۔ پہلے ہفتے بے خوابی اور ذہنی دباؤ نے تکلیف دی۔ اب ہر روز ورزش ہے اور صحت پہلے سے بہتر ہے۔ سچ کہوں تو چھوڑنے کی کوشش پہلے بھی ہوئی تھی۔pandrah sal sigret noshi ke baad daktar ne bat ki. muaine main phiphron ki sozish nikli. daktar ne samjhaya ke noshi sehat ke lia nuqsan deh hai. pehle hafte be khwabi aur zehni dabao ne taklef di. ab har roz warzish hai aur sehat pehle se behtar hai. sach kahun to chhorne ki koshish pehle bhi hui thi.After fifteen years of smoking the doctor talked with me. At the examination an inflammation of the lungs was found. The doctor explained that smoking is harmful to the health. The first week insomnia and stress gave suffering. Now exercise every day, and the health is better than before. To tell the truth, there had been an attempt to quit before.
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 was found at the examination?
- What tormented the first week?
- What does he do now?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Urdu?
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.