Eight hundred years ago an Englishman _____.
Practice 1
Broadly speaking, the Englishman is a quiet, shy, reserved person who is fully relaxed only among people he knows well. In the presence of strangers or foreigners he often seems inhibited, even embarrassed. You have only to witness a commuter train any morning or evening to see the truth of this. Serious-looking businessmen and women sit reading their newspapers or dozing in a comer: no one speaks. In fact, to do so would seem most unusual. An English wit, pretending to be giving advice to overseas visitors, once suggested, “On entering a railway compartment, shake hands with all the passengers.” Needless to say; he was not being serious. There is an unwritten but clearly understood code of behavior which, if broken, makes the person immediately the object of suspicion.
It is a well-known fact that the English have an obsession with their weather and that, given half a chance, they will talk about it at length. Some people argue that it is because English weather defies forecast and hence is a source of interest and speculation to everyone. This may be so. If a foreigner wants to start a conversation with an Englishman (or woman) but is at a loss to know where to begin, he could-do well to mention the state of the weather. It is a safe subject which will provoke an answer from even the most reserved of Englishmen.
Every Englishman knows _____.
In fact, the Englishman who tried to fly _____.
Practice 7
Some people would say that the Englishman's home is no longer his castle; that it has become his workshop. This is partly because the average English is keen on working with his own hands and partly because he feels, for one reason or another, that he must do for himself many household jobs for which, some years ago, he would have hired professional help. The main reason for this is a financial one.. the high cost of labor has meant that the builders and decorators' costs have reached a level which makes them prohibitive for house-proud English people of modest means. So, if they wish to keep their houses looking bright and smart, they have to tackle some of the repairs and decorating themselves. As a result, there has grown up in the post-war years what is sometimes referred to as the “Do-it-yourself Movement”.
The “Do-it-yourself Movement” began with home decorating but has since spread into a much wider field. Nowadays there seem to be very few things that cannot be made by the “do-it- yourself” method.
Passage 2 Broadly 1 , the Englishman is a quiet, shy, reserved person who is fully relaxed only among people he knows 2 . In the presence of strangers or foreigners he often seems inhibited, 3 embarrassed. You have only to witness a commuter train any morning or evening to see the truth of this. Serious-looking businessmen and women sit 4 their newspapers or dozing in a corner: 5 one speaks. Obviously, there is here an unwritten but clearly understood code of behavior 6 , if broken, makes the person immediately the object of suspicion. It is a well-known fact that the English have a passion 7 the discussion of their weather and that, given half a chance, they will talk about it at 8 . Some people argue that it is because English weather defies forecast and hence is a source of interest and speculation to everyone. This may be so. Certainly Englishmen cannot have much faith in the 9 , who, after promising fine, sunny weather for the following day, are often proved 10 when a cloud over the Atlantic brings rainy weather to all districts! The man in the street seems to be as accurate -- or as inaccurate -- as the weathermen in his predictions. The overseas visitors may be excused for showing surprise at the number of references to weather that the English 11 to each other in the course of a single day. Very often conversational greetings are replaced by comments 12 the weather. “Nice day, isn’t it? Beautiful!” may well be heard instead of “Good morning, how are you?” Although the foreigner may consider this exaggerated and comic, it is worthwhile pointing out that it could be used 13 his advantage. If he wants to start a conversation with an Englishman but is 14 a loss to know where to begin, he could do well to mention the state of the weather. It is a safe 15 which wills provoke an answer from even the most reserved of Englishmen.
In fact, the Englishman who tried to fly _____.
Every Englishman knows _____.
Eight hundred years ago an Englishman _____.
He pretended to be an Englishman, but his foreign accent gave him ______ .
