A2 English reading
Practice everyday language, follow the sequence of events, and describe experiences with simple reasons.
After reading, try this speaking task
Retell the story with first, then, and finally. Explain which part you liked best and why.
Read and listen first, checking the translation when needed. Start with one complete idea, then add details in response to the AI. If you need constant translation, try a lower level. If retelling is easy, try a harder version of the same article.
Choose an article to begin
How Words Change Their Meaning
A mouse can run across a kitchen floor. It can also sit beside a computer. We usually know which meaning is right. Words can get new meanings, and people may use their old meanings
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Why Past Choices Can Make It Hard to Stop
Imagine you buy a film ticket. Halfway through, you are bored and want to leave. But you stay because you paid. Staying will not bring your money back. A sunk cost is money, time
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Finding Planets Through Missing Light
How can scientists find a planet when its star's light is too bright to see it? They can watch for a small change in the star's light. They use a telescope, a tool for seeing thin
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When Ice Traveled by Ship
In the 1800s, businesses sent ice by ship from cold places to warmer countries. Ice from lakes in New England traveled as far as the Caribbean and India. In winter, workers cut th
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How You Know Where Your Arms Are
When you put on a jacket, you can find the sleeve without watching your hand all the time. You also know if your arm is straight. Your body has a sense called proprioception: it te
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Why Sweat Does Not Always Cool You Down
A wet shirt on a hot day does not always mean you are cooling down. Your body makes sweat, water with a little salt that comes out of your skin. But making sweat is only the first
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When AI Learns the Wrong Thing
AI, a computer system that learns from examples, can do well on a test but fail at its real job. It may learn to use the wrong information. Imagine a company teaching AI to sort p
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Why Ice Skaters Turn Faster with Their Arms In
An ice skater turns around with both arms out. Then the skater brings the arms close to the chest and turns faster. There is no new push against the ice. Why does this happen? Ima
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Saving Electricity for Tomorrow
Solar panels, flat things that use sunlight to make electricity, can make plenty at lunchtime. But people need electricity for cooking and lights after sunset. Could we save more f
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Words English Took from Other Languages
Many English words come from other languages. People brought them into English through travel, buying and selling, and learning. "Piano" comes from Italian. It is short for "piano
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Music and a Quiet Moment
A woodpecker, a bird that hits wood to make sounds, played music on a branch. A squirrel, a small animal with a long tail, asked him to play for her dance at an autumn party. Her
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Why Astronauts Float Above Earth
An astronaut, a person who works in space, lets go of a pen. It stays nearby instead of dropping to the floor. Earth is still pulling on both of them. They float because they are f
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Roman Objects with an Unknown Use
A Roman dodecahedron—a small metal object with twelve flat sides—sits in a museum. It has round holes of different sizes and small round parts at its corners. It was carefully made
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Why Your Eyes Need Time in the Dark
When you walk from a sunny street into a dark cinema, you may not see the seats. After some time, you can see more. The room is not brighter. Your eyes can now work better with les
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How Beavers Make Ponds
Beavers, animals that live near water, can change the area around them. They build dams, walls across small rivers, with pieces of trees, stones and wet earth. A dam slows the wat
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How AI Changes Speech into Text
AI can turn speech in a meeting or video into text on a screen. But people speak in sounds, not separate written words. How does AI find the words? First, a microphone, a tool tha
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Everyday Life in Venice
Venice is famous for its beautiful bridges and gondolas, long boats that carry people. But for people who live there, water is not just a pretty view. It changes how they travel, s
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Three People, One Rainstorm
The film club made a four-minute film about a toy car crossing a garden. It had no sound. Rosa suggested making sounds live beside the screen. Ben brought rice in a box for rain.
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The Empty Half Hour
At three o'clock, Mara still had not eaten her sandwich. She had been busy all morning in her salon, a shop where she cut people's hair. Then she had agreed to cut another customer
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When Does an Invitation Become a Plan?
"You must come over sometime!" sounds like an invitation. But is it a plan? The answer depends on the situation and the people speaking. An invitation can help people plan a visit
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What Does Ready Mean?
Lena worked at a furniture company. On Tuesday, she asked Marco if the brochure, a small book showing their products, was ready. He said yes. Lena arranged to have it printed that
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Six Mugs Left
By noon, Tessa had sold all her mugs, cups for hot drinks. She smiled as she packed up her market table. At home, she counted the money. Then she paid for clay, the soft earth she
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Is the Bigger Bag Really Cheaper?
Two bags of oats, a breakfast food, cost $2 and $3.60. Which is cheaper? You need to know how much food is inside, not just the price. The $2 bag holds 500 grams. The $3.60 bag ho
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Why Metal Feels Colder Than Wood
A metal spoon and a wooden spoon sit in the same kitchen all night. In the morning, the metal spoon feels colder. But is its temperature really lower? Usually, it is not. If both
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A Game in Three Evenings
Every Saturday, Lena and her mother played a game with wooden boats. They moved between islands and collected coloured stones. Each game took almost two hours. Lena always made hot
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The North Wind and the Sun
The North Wind and the Sun wanted to know who was stronger. They agreed to try to make a man take off his clothes. The Wind went first. He blew hard, but the man held his cloak, a
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The Hare and the Tortoise
A hare, a fast animal like a rabbit, laughed at a tortoise, an animal with a hard cover on its back. She had short feet and walked slowly. She said she could win a race against him
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The Lion and the Mouse
A mouse ran over a sleeping lion's face and woke him up. The angry lion caught the mouse and wanted to kill him. The mouse asked to live and promised to help the lion one day. The
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The Crow and the Pitcher
A crow, a black bird, was very thirsty and needed water to stay alive. He saw a pitcher, something people use to hold water, and flew to it. There was only a little water inside.
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The Fox and the Grapes
A very hungry fox, an animal like a small dog, was walking beside a garden. She saw some grapes, small round fruit, growing on a plant above her head. They were black and ready to
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Eight Hats, One String
Pella made eight summer hats for her shop. She wanted a photo before putting them in the window. Her friends wore them outside, but the wind blew some hats off. Pella joined the h
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The Note Under the Door
Tomas was eleven. He had played the trumpet, which you blow into to make music, for three weeks. He played every afternoon. He sounded like a goose, a large bird, with a cold. One
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The Cat with Three Names
Every evening, a gray cat came to Ana's flat. Ana was new to the city and lived alone. She called the cat Pepper and bought a blue bowl for him. For two weeks, he ate his dinner th
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The Extra Tomato
Every Saturday, Mira walked to the little market in town. She was new there and did not know many people. Her favorite stall belonged to an old man named Ovid. Mira always bought
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The Red Shoes on Juniper Hill
Basil Moreno had repaired shoes at the top of Juniper Hill for forty-one years. His shop was small and smelled of leather and glue, and a brass bell rang every time the door opened
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The Cat and the Cock
A CAT caught a Cock. The Cat tried to find a good reason to eat him. He said the Cock woke people at night and kept them from sleep. The Cock said he crowed for the good of people
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THE QUEEN BEE
Two kings' sons went into the world to seek their fortunes. They soon lived in a wasteful and foolish way and could not return home. Then their little brother, a dwarf, went to see
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President Jonathan Levin's remarks at Opening Convocation
First-years, transfer students, and families: Welcome to Stanford! We are glad you are here. We saw you moving in this morning. That is one of my favorite moments. Parents and fam
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THE SWORD OF DAMOCLES
There was a king named Dionysius. He was very cruel. People hated him. He was afraid that someone would kill him. He was very rich. He lived in a fine palace. There were many beau
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Researchers: South Korea's Birth Rate Increase Last Year Unclear
In 2024, the number of babies born in South Korea rose for the first time in nine years. The change is good news for a country with big population problems. The statistics agency
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The Goodyear Blimp Has Been Flying Over America for 100 Years
The Goodyear Blimp is an airship that is also a traveling advertisement for the Goodyear Tire Rubber Company. The airships are immediately recognizable to most Americans. For the
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Lincoln's Cottage: a Country House for the President
About five kilometers from the White House in Washington, D. C., there is an old building linked to a famous American president. Abraham Lincoln This building is called President L
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The Old Lion
An old lion was very tired. He was sick and almost at the end of his life. A wild boar saw the lion and ran at him. The boar bit the lion with his tusks, because they had a fight l
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The Charger and the Miller
A Charger was old and not strong anymore. He was sent to work in a mill. Instead of fighting in wars, he had to grind grain. He was sad about this change. He remembered when he was
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Nothing ventured, nothing gained
The saying "Nothing ventured, nothing gained" means that if you do not try, you will not get anything new or good. It tells us to be brave and to try new things. Sometimes, people
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