Many years ago two friends, Joe and Tom, came to a small town. It was very dark when they came to a little inn. They asked for a room with two beds. The owner of the inn showed them a room and gave them a candle because there was no lamp in the room.
When they were going to the room the candle fell out of Joe"s hand. It became very dark. They found the door of the room and went in.
They took off their clothes and went to bed. The bed was very big and by mistake1 they got into the same bed: Tom from one side and Joe from the other.
After a few minutes Joe said, "You know, Tom, there"s a man in my bed. Here are his feet near my face."
"Yes, Joe, there"s a man in my bed too. His feet are near my face too. What shall we do?"
"Let"s push them off our beds."
And they began to push each other. After some time the two men fell on the floor.
"Joe!" cried Tom. "My man is stronger than I. He has pushed me down to the floor."
"I"m on the floor too," answered Joe. "I think we must go to the owner of the inn and tell him about it."
Are You Angry, Sir?
One day Mark Twain was travelling in France by train. He was going to a small town near Paris. It was very late at night when he went to sleep. He asked the conductor to wake him up when they got to the town, and went to sleep.
It was early morning when he woke up. The train was already near Paris. Mark Twain was very angry. He ran up to the conductor and cried, "I asked you to wake me up! Why didn"t you do it? I am very angry with you!"
The conductor looked at him for a moment and then said, "You may be angry, sir, but not so angry as the American whom I put off" the train instead of you."
In a Small Town
Toscanini was a great musician. He lived in America. One day he came to a very little town. He was walking along the street when he saw a piece of paper in one of the windows. He read:
"Mrs. Smith. Music Lessons. Two Dollars a Lesson"
Then Toscanini heard the music. Somebody was playing Tchaikovsky.
"Mrs Smith is playing," he thought, "she isn"t a very good musician. She doesn"t play Tchaikovsky well. I must show her how to play it."
He went up to the door of the house and rang. The music stopped and soon a woman opened the door.
"Are you Mrs Smith?" asked Toscanini. "My name is Toscanini and I want to show you how to play Tchaikovsky."
Mrs Smith was very glad to meet the great musician. She asked him to come in. Toscanini played Tchaikovsky for her and went away.
A year later Toscanini visited the same town again. When he went up to the house where he had played Tchaikovsky the year before he again saw a piece of paper. Now it read:
"Mrs. Smith (Toscanini"s pupil). Music Lessons. Four Dollars a Lesson"
A Great Painter and a Great Doctor
Joseph Turner was a great English painter. He had a dog which he loved very much. One day he was playing with his dog. The dog fell and broke his leg. Turner sent for a doctor. But he did not want to send for a vet.1 He sent for the best doctor in London.
When the doctor came Turner said, "Doctor, I"m glad you have come. My dog has broken a leg. I know that you are too great for this work, but please, do it. It"s so important to me."
The doctor was angry but he did not show it.
Next day the doctor asked Turner to come to his house. "The doctor wants to see me about my dog," Turner thought.
When Turner got to the doctor"s house the doctor said, "Mr Turner, I"m glad to see you. I want to. ask you to paint my door. I know that you are too great for this work, but please, do it. It"s so important to me."
The Policeman and the Thief
In a small town a man stole1 some money from a house. The police began to look for the thief. Soon they found him and brought him to the police station.
There was a new policeman at the police station and they wanted to give him some work.
"Take this thief to the city," said one of the policemen. "You must go there by train."
The policeman and the thief went to the station. On their way to the station they came to the shop where bread was sold
"We have no food and we must eat something in the train," said th° thief. "It"s a long way to the city and it"ll take us a long time to get there. I"ll go into the shop and buy some bread. Then you and I can eat in the train. Wait for me here."
The policeman was glad to have some food in the train. "Be quick," he said to the thief, "we don"t have much time."
The thief went into the shop and the policeman waited in the street for a long time. At last he went into the shop.
"Where is the man who came in here to buy some bread?" asked the policeman
"Oh, he went out the back door," said the owner of the shop.
The policeman ran out but he could not see the thief. So he went to the police station and told the others about it. They were very angry with him. All the police of the town began to look forthe thief again and soon they found him. They brought him back to the police station and called the same policeman.
"Now," said one of them, "take him to the city and do not lose him again."
The policeman and the thief went to the station and came up to the same shop.
"Wait here," said the thief. "I want to go into the shop and buy some bread there."
"Oh, no," said the policeman, "you did that once and ran away. Now I"ll go into the shop and you"ll wait for me here."
Not a Robber
A young man who lived in the suburbs" of a big English city was going home from the railway station. It was a dark night and there was nobody in the street. Suddenly he heard somebody walking behind him. The faster he went, the faster the man ran after him. At last he decided to turn into a small street to see what the man would do.2 After a few minutes he looked back and saw that the man was still running after him.
"He wants to rob me," the young man thought. He saw a high garden wall and jumped over it. The other man jumped over the wall too. Now the young man was sure that the man behind him was a robber. But he could not understand why the robber was not in a hurry2 to attack him.
The young man did not know what to do. Then he turned round and said, "What do you want? Why are you following me?"
"Do you always go home in this way? Or are you taking some exercise today?" answered the man. "I"m going to Mr White, but I don"t know where he lives. A man at the railway station told me to follow you, because I could find his house very easily as Mr White lives next door to you. Will you go home or will you do some more gymnastics?"
The Mouse and the Corn
Many, many years ago there lived a king who said that anyone who could tell a story for two years would get1 a piece of land.
First one man tried but his story lasted only two weeks. Another man finished his story after five days. A third man began his story like this:
"Once a farmer planted some corn. When the corn grew the farmer gathered it and put it into a shed. Then the mouse came into the shed and began to eat the corn."
The man went on, "The mouse took a grain of corn, the mouse took a grain of corn, the mouse took a grain of corn..."
The King interrupted the story, "Well, what was after this?"
"I can"t tell you," answered the man, "because the mouse hasn"t finished eating the corn yet."
"All right," said the king, "you will get a piece of land."
For Those Who Like to Travel
One day a Paris newspaper gave an advertisement3 about a very cheap4 and pleasant way of travelling - for 25 centimes.5 Many people believed it and sent the money.
A few days later each of them got a letter. The letter read: "Sir, rest in bed and remember that the Earth turns. Paris stands at the 49th parallel. At the 49th parallel you travel more than 25,000 kilometres a, day. You may look out of the window and watch the beautiful sky."
A Clever Fisherman
A fisherman brought a very large fish to a rich man"s house. The rich man asked the fisherman to name his price for the fish. "I don"t want money," was the answer. "One hundred lashes on my back is the price of my fish. I won"t take one lash less!"
The rich man was surprised and said, "Well, this fisherman is very strange, but we must have the fish. So let the price be paid."
After fifty lashes the fisherman cried, "Stop! Stop! I have a partner in my business and he must get his part, too." "Where can I find him?" asked the rich man.
"He"s your own servant. He didn"t want to let me come into your house till I promised to give him half of the price of the fish."
Two Brothers
Once there were two brothers, Peter and Bernard. Both of them liked to ride horses. One day they both went to buy a horse. Bernard bought a horse and Peter bought a horse, too.
"Oh, dear!" said Bernard. "How are we going to tell our horses apart? How shall I know which is my horse and which is your horse?"
"It isn"t difficult," said Peter, "you cut the tail of your horse shorter than that of mine."
So Bernard cut the tail of his horse and now they could see which horse was his. But then the tail of Bernard"s horse grew and the brothers began to think again.
"I know!" said Bernard. "You cut the mane of your horse very short and so we"ll see which horse is yours."
But soon the mane of his horse grew.
"Do you know what we must do?" asked Peter. "We must see whose horse is longer. Perhaps, one is longer than the other."
And at last they found that the black horse was three centimetres longer than the white horse.
Quick Thinking
One night a hotel caught fire1 and the people who were staying in it ran out in their night clothes.
Two men were standing near the hotel and looking at the fire. "Before I came out," said one of them, "I ran into some of the rooms and found a lot of money there. People don"t think about money when they are in panic. When paper money gets into a fire, the fire burns it. So I took all the paper money that I could find. No one will be poorer because I took it."
"You don"t know me," said the other man, "and you don"t know what I am."
"And where do you work?"
"I"m a policeman."
"Oh!" cried the first man. He thought quickly and then he said, "And do you know what I am?"
"No," said the policeman.
"I"m a writer. I"m always telling stories about things that never took place."
Я давно преподаю английский язык, и в мою методику входит самостоятельное чтение, которое выглядит примерно так: после каждого занятия я посылаю ученику на e-mail рассказ на английском, который он дома читает (иногда еще и слушает, если к тексту есть аудио), а на следующее занятие пересказывает мне.
Теперь я решила выложить эти рассказы, чтобы их могли использовать все желающие – как те, кто самостоятельно изучает английский и ищет что-нибудь интересное почитать, так и такие же, как я, учителя в постоянном поиске материала для своих учеников.
Рассказы на английском распределены по трём категориям: попроще, средней сложности и посложнее. К большинству текстов прилагается аудио, в этом случае рассказ можно послушать прямо на странице чтения или скачать в формате mp3. Здесь, к сожалению, нет материалов для детей – все тексты рассчитаны на взрослых. Некоторые из них адаптированы, другие – нет. Авторы самые разные: часть рассказов написана О’Генри, некоторые – Марком Твеном, другие принадлежат перу менее известных и более современных английских и американских писателей. Но абсолютно все опробованы на моих студентах и одобрены ими.
Список текстов постоянно пополняется. Читайте, слушайте, учитесь и учите других!
Избранные статьи
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Я хочу, чтобы все материалы на этом сайте оставались бесплатными. Если вы поддержите его развитие, я смогу чаще добавлять тексты и аудио, писать новые полезные статьи и расширять функционал. А ещё я буду очень вам благодарна:)
Всем известно, смех — лучшее лекарство от стресса. Совместите приятное с полезным: читайте эти короткие забавные истории и практикуйте свой английский с удовольствием.
Если вам надо написать мистическую историю на английском языке, отдельно я подготовила
My meeting with a traffic cop
Моя встреча с гаишником — Забавная история из жизни
It was seven years ago.
I was driving to work.
I drove up to the office and broke a traffic rule — I crossed a double solid line on the road.
At that time, a police officer was standing on the street.
I thought he saw me go over the double lines.
But he kept standing.
I drove further slowly because I was near my office.
At that time, a car backed up.
The driver didn’t see my car, and smashed into it.
That police officer ran up to us and said to me:
«I have seen everything: you violated traffic rules, you have a dead body in your trunk, and drugs in your car.
Can I see your driver’s license?»
I’m standing, I’m hearing, and I can’t say anything.
Then he laughed and said: “Miss, please smile, you looked so upset that I had to tell you something to cheer you up” and let me go.
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
Это было 7 лет назад.
Я ехала на работу.
Я уже подъехала к офису, но нарушила правила дорожного движения — пересекла двойную сплошную линию.
А там как раз стоял сотрудник ГАИ.
Я думала, он видел как я пересекла сплошную.
Но он продолжал стоять.
Тут подбегает гаишник и говорит:
« Я всё видел — вы нарушили правила, у вас в багажнике труп и наркотики.
Можно ваши водительские права?»
Я стою слушаю и не могу ничего сказать.
Тут он рассмеялся и сказал: «Девушка улыбнитесь, вы стоите такая расстроенная, я должен был вас хоть как то рассмешить/приободрить», после чего отпустил меня.
Fortune and the man
One day a man was walking along the street. He carried an old bag in his hands. He was wondering why people who had so much money were never satisfied and always wanted more. “As to me,” he said, “if I had enough to eat, I should not ask for anything else.”
Just at this moment Fortune came down the street. She heard the man and stopped.
“Listen,” she said, “I want to help you. Hold your bag, and I shall pour diamonds into it. But every diamond which falls on the ground will become dust. Do you understand?”
“Oh, yes, I understand,” said the man. He quickly opened his bag and stream of diamonds was poured into it. The bag began to grow heavy. “Is that enough?” asked Fortune. “Not yet.” The man’s hand’s began to tremble.
“You are the richest man in the world now.” Said Fortune.
“Just a few more, and a few more,” said the man. Another diamond was added and the bag slipped. All the diamonds fell on the ground and became dust.
Fortune disappeared, leaving the man in the street.
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
Однажды бедняк шел по улице. В его руках был старый мешок. Он шел и думал: «Почему люди, у которых очень много денег никогда не бывают довольными и все время хотят иметь больше денег.»
«Как по мне», думал он, если б мне хватало только на пропитание, мне и не нужно было ничего большего.»
В этот момент Судьба проходила мимо него. Она услышала бедняка и остановилась.
«Слушай» — сказала она, «Я хочу тебе помочь. Давай свой мешок, я наполню его бриллиантами. Но если хоть один бриллиант упадет на землю, всё содержимое мешка превратится в пыль. Понимаешь?
«О конечно, понимаю», — ответил бедняк. Он быстро открыл свой мешок и бриллианты посыпались в его мешок. Мешок становился тяжелым.
«Достаточно?» спросила Судьба.
«Нет еще» — ответил мужик, руки его задрожали.
«Ты самый богатый человек на свете» — сказала Судьба.
«Еще! Еще немного!» сказал бедняк.
В этот момент очередной бриллиант упал в переполненный мешок.
Мешок выскользнул из рук бедняка и упал на землю, а бриллианты стали в тот же миг пылью.
Судьба исчезла, оставив бедняка на улице.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Everyone has heard of Sherlock Holmes. Everyone has read stories about Sherlock Holmes at one time or another. Sherlock Holmes was a famous detective. Actually, he was the most famous detective of all times.
The author of the Sherlock Holmes stories was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Once Sir Arthur arrived in Paris. He took a cab and asked the cabman to take him to the Ritz, the hotel where he was going to spend the night.
The cabman brought him to the hotel. When he received the fare he said:
“Thank you very much, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.”
“How do you know who I am?” asked Sir Arthur. He was very much surprised.
“Well, sir, I read in the newspaper yesterday that you were coming to Paris from the South of France. I also noticed that your hair was cut by a barber in the South of France. Your clothes and especialy your hat told me that you were English. I put all the information together and quessed that you were Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.”
“That is wonderful,” said Sir Arthur.
“You could recognize me though you knew very few facts.”
“Besides,” added the cabman. Your name is on both of your travelling bags. That also helped.”
So, the cabman played a good joke on Conan Doyle.
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
Все слышали о Шерлоке Холмсе. В то или иное время все читали рссказы о Шерлоке Холмсе. Шерлок Холмс был известный детективом.Собственно, он был самым известным детективом всех времен.
Автором рассказов Шерлока Холмса был сэр Артур Конан Дойл. Однажды сэр Артур прибыл в Париж. Он взял такси и попросил таксиста отвезти его в Ритц, в гостиницу, где он собирался провести ночь. Извозчик привез его в гостиницу. Когда он получил оплату за проезд, он сказал:
«Большое вам спасибо, сэр Артур Конан Дойл».
«Откуда вы знаете, кто я?» — спросил сэр Артур. Он был очень удивлен.
«Что ж, сэр, вчера я прочитал в газете, что вы едете в Париж с юга Франции. Я также заметил, что вы пострижены парикмахером на юге Франции.
Ваша одежда и особенно ваша шляпа говорят, что вы англичанин Я собрал всэти факты вместе и понял, что вы сэр Артур Конан Дойл.
«Замечательно», — сказал сэр Артур. «Вы смогли меня узнать зная очень мало фактов».
«Кроме того», — добавил извозчик, «Ваше имя находится на обеих ваших дорожных сумках. Это тоже помогло.»
Таким образом извозчик хорошо пошутил над Конан Дойлем.
Honesty is the best policy
A woodman was once working on the bank of a deep river. Suddenly his axe slipped from his hand and dropped into the water.
“Oh! I have lost my axe,” he cried. “What shall I do? Who can help me?”
Mercury heard the poor man’s cries and appeared before him.
‘What is the matter, poor woodman?” he asked. “What has happened? Why are you so sad and unhappy?”
Mercury listened to the man’s story and then said, “Perhaps I can help you.” He dived into the river and brought up a golden axe. “Is this yours?” he asked. “No, that is not mine,” was the answer.
Mercury dived a second time and this time brought up a silver axe. “Is this yours?” he asked. Again the answer was “No.” So Mercury dived a third time and brought up the very axe that the woodman had lost. “That’s my axe,” cried the man. “Yes, that is my axe. Now I can work again.”
Mercury was so pleased with the follow’s honesty that at once he made him a present of the other two axes and disappeared before the man could say, “Thank you”.
The woodman went home very pleased with his good luck. He told his friends all about it and one of them decided to try his luck. So he went to the same place, dropped his axe into the river, and cried out: “Oh! I have lost my axe. What shall I do? Who can help me?”
Mercury appeared as before, and when he learnt that man had lost his axe, he dived into the river. Again he brought up a golden axe. “Is this yours”? he asked.
“Yes, it is,” answered the woodman. “You are not telling me the truth,” said Mercury.
You will neither have this axe nor the one that you so foolishly dropped into the water.”
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
Однажды дровосек работал на берегу глубоководной реки. Вдруг топор выскользнул из его рук и упал в воду.
«Ой! Я потерял топор, — воскликнул он. «Что мне делать? Кто может мне помочь?»
Меркурий услышал крики бедняка и предстал перед ним.
«Что случилось, бедняга?» — спросил он. «Что произошло? Почему ты такой грустный и несчастный?
Меркурий выслушал рассказ человека, а затем сказал: «Возможно, я могу тебе помочь». Он нырнул в реку и поднял золотой топор. «Это твой топор?» — спросил он. «Нет, это не мой», — был ответ дровосека. Меркурий нырнул во второй раз, и на этот раз он поднял серебряный топор. «Это твой?» — спросил он. Опять ответ был «Нет». Меркурий нырнул в третий раз и поднял тот топор, который потерял дровосек. «Это мой топор, — воскликнул бедняк. «Да, это мой топор. Теперь я могу снова работать ».
Меркурий был так доволен честностью приятеля, что тотчас же сделал ему подарок из двух других топоров и исчез, прежде чем мужчина мог сказать: «Спасибо».
Дровосек вернулся домой очень довольный своей удачей. Он рассказал своим друзьям обо всем этом, и один из них решил попробовать свою удачу. Он подошел к тому же месту, уронил топор в реку и закричал: «Ой! Я потерял топор. Что мне делать? Кто может мне помочь?»
Меркурий появился, как и прежде, и когда он узнал, что человек потерял топор, нырнул в реку. Он поднял золотой топор. «Это твой топор»? — спросил он.
«Да, это мой», ответил дровосек. «Ты говоришь неправду,»- сказал Меркурий.
Ты не получишь и этот топор, и свой, который ты по глупости кинул в воду».
A present from the son
Long ago there lived an old woman in England. She had a son who was a sailor. He went to different countries and always brought presents for his old mother.
Once he went to China and brought some tea from that country.
At that time tea was very expensive and only rich people could buy and drink it. So the old woman was very happy to have such a nice present. But she didn’t know what to do with it as she had never bought tea before. She thought it was a vegetable. She told her friends about her son’s present and invited them to taste it with her. At last the day of the tea-party came. The woman called her guests to the dining-room and put a big dish of tea leaves on the table. The guests began to eat the leaves with salt just as they ate vegetables. Nobody liked it but didn’t tell the woman about it and continued to eat the leaves.
Some tome later the sailor came into the room. When he saw that all the guests were eating leaves, he smiled.
“What are you doing? Why are eating these leaves? Where is the tea?”
“Here it is, my son,” the old woman said.
“And where is the water in which you have boiled the leaves?” asked the man laughing.
“I threw it away, of course,” answered the woman.
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
Давным-давно в Англии жила одна пожилая женщина. У нее был сын, который был матросом. Он ездил в разные страны и всегда привозил подарки своей старой матери.
Однажды он отправился в Китай и привез из этой страны чай. В то время чай был очень дорогим, и только богатые люди могли купить и пить такой чай. Поэтому старушка была очень счастлива иметь такой приятный подарок. Но она не знала, что с делать с таким чаем, поскольку она никогда не покупала его раньше. Она подумала, что это овощ.
Она рассказала своим друзьям о подарке сына и пригласила их попробовать этот чай. Наконец настал день чайной вечеринки. Женщина позвала своих гостей в столовую и положила на стол большое блюдо из чайных листьев. Гости стали есть листья с солью, как они делали это, когда ели овощи. Никто не понравилось, но никто не сказал об этом старушке, а продолжали есть листья.
Некоторое время спустя сын вошел в комнату.
Когда он увидел, что все гости ели листья, он улыбнулся.
«Что вы делаете?
Зачем вы едите эти листья?
А где чай?»
«Вот он, мой сын,» — сказала старушка.
«А где вода, в которой вы заварили листья?» — спросил сын, смеясь.
«Разумеется, я вылила ее, — ответила мать.
I’m four years old at home, and two and a half in buses and trains
A mother and her young son got into a bus and sat down. The bus conductor came up to them and asked them to pay the fare. The mother said, ‘I want one ticket to Oxford,’ and gave him a shilling.
The conductor was looking at the small boy for a few seconds and then said, ‘How old are you, young man?’
The mother began speaking, but the conductor stopped her, and the boy said, ‘I’m four years old at home, and two and a half in buses and trains.’
The mother took sixpence more out of her bag and gave it to the bus conductor.
He gave her one ticket and a half.
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
В автобус вошла молодая женщина с маленьким ребенком и села на сидение. К ним подошел кондуктор автобуса и попросил оплатить проезд. Протягивая один шиллинг женщина произносит: «Мне нужен один билет до Оксфорда».
Посмотрев на ребенка, кондуктор спросил маму: «Сколько Вам лет, молодой человек?».
Женщина начала было говорить, но кондуктор остановил ее и мальчик произнес: «Дома мне четыре годика, а в автобусах и поездах — мне 2.5».
Женщина доставила из сумки еще шесть пенсов и отдала кондуктору. А тот дал ей один взрослый и один детский билет.
I prefer to play the part of a great man on the stage
Once David Garrick, a famous actor, was told by a Member of Parliament that as he was so popular he could easily become an MP too. “No thank you,” the actor replied. “I prefer to play the part of a great man on the stage than the part of a fool in Parliament.”
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
Поскольку Дэвид Гаррик был известным актером, однажды, один из членов парламента сказал ему, что актер так же мог с легкостью вступить в парламент.
«Нет, спасибо», ответил актер.
«Я предпочитаю играть роль великого человека на сцене, чем дурака в парламенте.»
Can my dog have a seat in the bus?
One wet day a woman with a dog got on a bus. It was a very big dog and its feet were dirty.
The woman said, “Oh, conductor, if I pay for my dog, can he have a seat like the other passengers?”
The conductor looked at the dog and then said, “Certainly, madam, he can have a seat, but like the other passengers, he mustn’t put his feet on it.”
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
В один дождливый день в автобус села женщина с собакой. Собака была очень большая и с грязными лапами. Женщина спросила: «Кондуктор, может ли сесть собака на сидение, как другие пассажиры, если я заплачу за ее проезд?»
Кондуктор посмотрела на собаку и ответила: «Конечно, мадам, собака может сесть, но она, как и все пассажиры не должна сидеть ногами на сидении.»
Why do men in this country wear black when they marry?
Mrs. Robinson was a teacher in a big school in an American city. She had boys and girls in her class, and she always enjoyed teaching them, because they were quick and because they thought about everything carefully.
One day she said to the children: “People in a lot of countries in Asia wear white clothes at funerals, but people in America and in Europe wear white clothes when they’re happy, what color does a woman in this country wear when she marries, Mary?”
Mary said, “White, Miss because she’s happy.”
“That’s good, Mary,” Mrs. Robinson said. “You’re quite right. She wears white because she’s happy.”
But then one of the boys in the class put his hand up.
“Yes, Dick,” Mrs. Robinson said. “Do you want to ask a question?”
“Yes, Miss,” Dick said. “Why do men in this country wear black when they marry?”
ПЕРЕВОД ТЕКСТА
Миссис Робинсон была учителем в большой школе в американском городе. В классе у нее были мальчики и девочки, которых она обожала учить, т.к. они всё схватывали на лету и тщательно изучали материал. Как то она сказала детям:
«Люди многих азиатских стран одевают белые одежды на похороны, в то время как в Америке и Европе мы одеваем белую одежду на праздник, когда мы счастливы. Какого цвета оденет девушка одежду в нашей стране когда она выходит замуж?»
«Белую, Мисс, потому что она счастлива» — ответила Мария.
«Хорошо, Мария» — сказала миссис Робинсон. «Ты абсолютно права. Она одевает белое потому что, она счастлива».
Но тут один из учеников в классе поднял руку.
«Да, Дик» — сказала миссис Робинсон. «Ты хочешь задать вопрос?»
«Да, Мисс,» — ответил Дик.
«Почему у нас мужчины одевают черную одежду, когда они женятся?»
Короткие рассказы на английском языке (short English stories)- адаптированные и в оригинале. Для начинающих, продолжающих и совершенствующихся. Для тех, кто только начинает изучение английского языка или тех, кто не хочет забыть его. Лучшие рассказы английских и американских писателей с захватывающими сюжетами особенно подойдут тем, кто изучает английский язык самостоятельно.
Если Вы заглянули на эту страничку, дорогой читатель, значит Вы хотите прочитать что-нибудь на английском языке. Вы можете выбрать книгу, рассказ или небольшое произведение , а заодно и посмотреть его экранизацию. Давайте вместе совершим путешествие во времени, скажем, в век XVIII, познакомимся с эпохой, ее типичными характерами, а заодно и с величайшими писателями, которые жили в то время. Они говорят с нами через несколько веков, вложив слова в уста героев своих произведений. Хорошая книга — понятие относительное. Ведь вкусы у нас разные, поэтому и произведения на нашем сайте Вы найдете разные. Однако несомненно одно — все книги, которые мы предлагаем, достойны того, чтобы их читать. Ведь это не просто лучшие книги на английском языке — это классика английской и американской литературы. Итак, открываем книгу и отправляемся в другой мир. Не потеряйтесь!
Мы в Lingvistov часто говорим, что наша задача - это интересное изучение английского языка. Когда вас захватывает сам процесс и вы видите его смысл, то английский язык без сомнения учится быстро и безболезненно. Поэтому мы решили разнообразить повседневность, наполненную грамматикой и скучными учебными текстами, и предложить подборку анекдотов на английском языке! Смешные истории на английском языке помогут вам в развитии языковых навыков, пополнять ваш словарный запас и просто улучшат настроение.
Woops Sorry About That
Marvin, was in the hospital on his death bed. The family called Marvin’s Preacher to be with him in his final moments. As the Preacher stood by the bed, Marvin’s condition seemed to deteriorate, and Marvin motioned for someone to quickly pass him a pen and paper. The Preacher quickly got a pen and paper and lovingly handed it to Marvin. But before he had a chance to read the note, Marvin died. The Preacher feeling that now wasn’t the right time to read it put the note in his jacket pocket. It was at the funeral while speaking that the Preacher suddenly remembered the note. Reaching deep into his pocket the Preacher said “and you know what, I suddenly remembered that right before Marvin died he handed me a note, and knowing Marvin I’m sure it was something inspiring that we can all gain from. With that introduction the Preacher ripped out the note and opened it. The note said “HEY, YOU ARE STANDING ON MY OXYGEN TUBE!”
TEACHER: Glenn, how do you spell "crocodile?"
GLENN: K-R-O-K-O-D-I-A-L"
TEACHER: No, that"s wrong.
GLENN: Maybe it is wrong, but you asked me how I spell it.
Bad Date Joke
“Hi Sarah, listen I only have a minute. I’m about to get picked up for a blind date, can you call me in a half hour just in case it’s going bad? Yes? Ok great! We’ll speak.” Raquel gave herself a quick spray of perfume, checked herself out one more time in the mirror, and headed outside to wait for the guy. Sure enough after twenty minutes Raquel was discreetly checking her watch. After ten more long minutes her phone finally buzzed. Raquel listened for a few seconds, grimly pursed her lips, and turned to her date, “I feel terrible, but my Grandmother is terribly sick, and I must go home now .” “No problem!” Said her date with a big grin, “in a few more minutes my dog was going to get run over!”
The child and his mother
A curious child asked his mother: “Mommy, why are some of your hairs turning grey?”
The mother tried to use this occasion to teach her child: “It is because of you, dear. Every bad action of yours will turn one of my hairs grey!”
The child replied innocently: “Now I know why grandmother has only grey hairs on her head.”
Homework
PUPIL – “Would you punish me for something I didn’t do?”
TEACHER – “Of course not.”
PUPIL – “Good, because I haven`t done my homework.”
* * *
TEACHER: Clyde, your composition on "My Dog" is exactly the same as your brother"s. Did you copy his?
CLYDE: No, sir. It"s the same dog.
* * *
TEACHER: Now, Simon, tell me frankly, do you say prayers before eating?
SIMON: No sir, I don"t have to, my Mom is a good cook.
* * *
TEACHER: George Washington not only chopped down his father"s cherry tree, but also admitted it. Now, Louie, do you know why his father didn"t punish him?
LOUIS: Because George still had the axe in his hand.
Math, Physics, & Philosophy
Dean, to the physics department. "Why do I always have to give you guys so much money, for laboratories and expensive equipment and stuff. Why couldn"t you be like the math department - all they need is money for pencils, paper and waste-paper baskets. Or even better, like the philosophy department. All they need are pencils and paper."
Mental Patient
John and David were both patients in a Mental Hospital. One day, while they were walking, they passed the hospital swimming pool and John suddenly dove into the deep end. He sank to the bottom and stayed there. David promptly jumped in and saved him, swimming to the bottom of the pool and pulling John out. The medical director came to know of David"s heroic act. He immediately ordered that David be discharged from the hospital as he now considered him to be OK. The doctor said, "David, we have good news and bad news for you! The good news is that we are going to discharge you because you have regained your sanity. Since you were able to jump in and save another patient, you must be mentally stable. The bad news is that the patient that you saved hung himself in the bathroom and died after all." David replied, "Doctor, John didn"t hang himself. I hung him there to dry."
News Stand
A newsboy was standing on the corner with a stack of papers, yelling, "Read all about it. Fifty people swindled! Fifty people swindled!" Curious, a man walked over, bought a paper, and checked the front page. What he saw was yesterday"s paper. The man said, "Hey, this is an old paper, where"s the story about the big swindle?" The newsboy ignored him and went on calling out, "Read all about it. Fifty-one people swindled!”
School Question
Mother: "Why are you home from school so early?"
