Reading is for our mind what working out in the gym is for our body. In this article we will give you links to 7 sites with texts for reading in English. Try to “pump up” your brain!
1. English as a Second Language
This site is suitable for beginners with levels and. All texts are short, they use simple words and elementary grammar - three tenses of the Simple group. Try to read at least 2-3 texts daily, it will only take 5-10 minutes.
The themes of the texts are different, often they are small jokes. All words are selected in such a way that the student not only reads texts in English, but also expands his vocabulary. So, you can learn the first phrasal verbs, frequently used words and expressions.
Feature of this resource: Each text is accompanied by an audio recording. The speaker speaks clearly and slowly, which is exactly what beginners need to learn to understand English by ear.
2. English Online
This resource was created specifically for English language learners with a level and above. The texts are not very long, but they are full of useful expressions and words.
Articles on various topics are adapted specifically for students: the most commonly used vocabulary and simple grammatical structures are used. At the moment, several hundred texts on various topics are available for reading on the site. They are all quite interesting, so this resource contains the optimal proportion of education and entertainment.
Feature of this resource: In all articles you will see words in bold. This is the vocabulary you are asked to learn. After the text of the article you will find an English-English dictionary with these words. Thus, the site performs an important function - you can learn new vocabulary on it in context.
3. Short Stories
This site is suitable for all lovers of fiction. There are no adapted texts or dictionaries here, only stories by English-speaking authors in their unaltered form.
The site presents 8 popular genres: children's literature, detective, fantasy, horror, humor, documentary, novel, science fiction. If you are at the Pre-Intermediate level, try starting to read children's stories. In these texts, the characters speak in fairly simple words, and at the same time, their speech is lively and unadapted. You can try reading any stories at a level; it’s better to start with short texts in your favorite genre.
Feature of this resource: the variety of genres of stories on this site will not allow even the most demanding reader to get bored. Additionally, you can sort stories by length. To do this, select any of the genres you are interested in and click on the All stories button. In the tab that opens, you can select stories from 1-2 to 30+ pages in length. This is quite convenient: you can select your text depending on the availability of free time.
4. Breaking News English
The site is suitable for students from Elementary to , who want to keep up with the latest news and improve their English. News is sorted by date - from the most recent to the oldest. Sources are indicated for each - if interested, you can read them in the relevant media and compare the presentation of information.
For all news there are reading, listening, vocabulary and writing exercises.
Feature of this resource: the same news is adapted to several levels - see what words and grammatical structures can convey the same information.
5. Infosquares
This site contains only a few dozen texts, but it is worthy of your attention. The resource is suitable for students with an Intermediate level and above.
The resource differs from previous sites in that your task is now not just to read the text and understand the main idea, but to grasp even the smallest details. On the tab with any article you will find not only a link to the text itself, but also a test to test your reading comprehension. Therefore, we advise everyone who is preparing for an English language exam to pay attention to this resource, because you can “rehearse” the Reading section on this resource.
Feature of this resource: The main purpose of this site is to check how well you understand the text. Therefore, we recommend studying on this site about once a month, and reading other articles the rest of the time. This way you will see how quickly your English reading skill is developing and how attentive you are when reading.
6. Study Zone
This site is similar to the previous one: the small amount of materials is more than compensated by the presence of various exercises that test understanding of the text. Here you can study at the Pre-Intermediate level and above.
Feature of this resource: Of course, the main advantage of this site is the availability of exercises for understanding and memorizing the text. In addition, we must pay tribute to the authors of the site - they have collected the most interesting stories for you and presented the information in a convenient form.
7. Dreamreader
This resource will be of interest to those who like to read various educational and entertaining articles on the Internet. The site is suitable for students at the Elementary level and above.
Most of the texts on this site are presented in the Fun English and Academic English sections. The beauty of the articles is that they are written in simple but lively language. And the topics discussed in the articles are relevant and cover a wide variety of aspects of life: from body language to fast food, from UFOs to “cat” idioms. Each text is accompanied by a series of questions to help you check how well you understood what you read.
Feature of this resource: the site is a 2 in 1 tool. You can not only read the article, but also listen to it. Moreover, the audio recording is suitable even for those who have difficulty understanding English speech by ear. The speaker speaks clearly and quite slowly, so you can practice your listening skills, and the text will become your assistant in this matter.
There are many more sites on the Internet with texts in English. However, we have recommended the most informative and useful ones for you to study. Read with pleasure, and let English become your best entertainment, an activity that brings pleasure.
One of the words that often scares English language learners is “authentic.” This word is especially often used in relation to English articles and other texts. Teachers and students try to use authentic texts in learning English - that is, those written by native speakers for native speakers and not aimed at foreigners. Such articles in English with translation allow students to start reading more confidently and learn a lot of new and interesting things.
The benefits of articles in English with translation
The fact that authentic articles in English really help in learning is not an unfounded statement. According to English linguistics professor Vivian Cook, articles in English help you learn a lot about English grammar and vocabulary. Let's look at their benefits point by point.
Organization of text
Reading articles in English helps you understand how to properly organize texts in different genres. For example, in newspaper news stories, the main information of the article is always presented in the first paragraph. In texts of other genres, the main idea may be in the middle or even the end of the text. All these tricks can be learned from reading English articles with translation.
Headings
Also, reading English articles will help you better understand their headings. Journalists often use complex puns and allusions in headlines that are incomprehensible to most foreigners. By practicing reading interesting articles in English, you will become familiar with slang and commonly used expressions in journalism.
Genres
English articles with translation into Russian will help you understand a wide variety of journalistic genres. In newspapers and online publications there are small news articles, short and long interviews, research articles, analytical materials, etc. To easily navigate all these genres, read as many English articles as possible from publications of different directions: entertainment, scientific, educational.
Idioms and phraseological units
Articles in English, especially in the American tabloid press, use a large number of . Among them there are both commonly used phrases that are in dictionaries and local phraseological units that are understandable only to residents of a particular country or even region. In the second case, the meaning of such phrases can only be understood from the context of the article, since many of them appeared recently and have not yet earned the right to even be included in the dictionary of modern vocabulary and slang.
Understanding the essence of texts
Reading many articles in English with translation over time develops the ability from the very first minutes to find the main idea of the author, highlight his main points, determine the purpose of the article, its audience. To develop these skills, try to answer 5 questions for yourself after reading each article in English: who is the hero of the article? what happened? when did it happen? Where did it happen? why did this happen?
Finding a new job can be quite a tedious task. How many vacancies ( job openings), different companies, interesting offers - you want to try everything at once. But before starting work, you will most likely have to undergo an interview ( an interview). Although no. First of all, you need to write a resume and don’t forget to write a cover letter for it.
- We talked about how to write a resume in English in our articles “” and “”.
- And a lot was said about the cover letter in the article “”.
- Our teacher Alexey prepared our readers for interviews in English with the help of the article “”. Here you will find general interview guidelines and a sample list of questions that are often asked during an interview.
So, at any interview you will definitely be asked about your current (last) place of work. There is nothing difficult about talking about your work in Russian. But how can you talk about your work in English? Even if you are not going to a job interview, in a conversation with a stranger you can somehow touch on the issue of profession and work. Therefore, I would like to provide you with a certain set of cliches, set phrases that are used to talk about your work.
Position - position
Let's see how the teacher Rebecca talks about work. Don't forget to write down all the interesting phrases for yourself.
A job description begins with the title of the position you hold or have held. Shall we begin?
Bill was the president. – Bill was president.
I used to be in charge of the HR team. – I was the head of the recruitment team.
She is the head of the managers’ department. - She is the head of the management department.
Tasks - tasks
Job responsibilities ( responsibilities), as well as performing tasks related to responsibilities, is what interests a potential employer in the first place. Therefore, try to briefly and to the point indicate your main functions at the place of work.
My main task is to take bookings over the phone. – My main task is to take orders by phone.
She handles customer complaints. – She resolves cases with customer complaints.
I had to establish and adjust selling prices. – I had to set and regulate prices.
Time - time
After mentioning the place of work, they usually talk about how long the person has been working in this place. Suggestions will help you:
I worked there for 4 years between 2003 and 2007. – I worked there for 4 years, from 2003 to 2007.
She has been working at the company for 5 years. – She has been working for the company for 5 years.
Bob left that place after just four weeks. – Bob left there after 4 weeks.
If you no longer work there, then you need to use time Past Simple. If you are you still working somewhere, then take the offer to Present Perfect or Present Perfect Continuous.
Hiring or employing people
Besides verbs to hire(hire) and to employ(provide work), there are a couple more phrases that will help talk about getting hired. By the way, an employer(employer) - a person who hires someone, and an employee(emphasis on the last syllable / ɪmˈplɔɪiː/) is the employee/person who was hired.
They took me about five months ago. – They hired me about 5 months ago.
A new salesperson has been appointed. - They appointed a new salesman.
She was contracted for the post of a PR manager. “They signed a contract with her for the position of PR manager.
Travel – how to get to work
Perhaps they will ask questions related to the road to work ( commuting). The simplest phrases that are known from the level Elementary, will help answer such questions.
I get to work by bus. / I go to work by bus. – I get to work by bus.
The journey takes about an hour. – The trip takes about an hour.
She gets in early to avoid the rush hour traffic. She arrives early to avoid rush hour traffic.
Firing or telling people to leave – dismissal from work
The longest list of words can probably be found when describing dismissal or termination of employment. Here are the most frequently used phrases:
- to get the sack- be fired;
- to be fired– to be fired (informal option);
- to give somebody a boot– fire someone (informal option);
- to get a boot- be fired;
- to be made redundant- get laid off;
- to be laid off– to be dismissed due to reduction (informal option);
- to give up work in order to study– quit your job to study;
- to take maternity (woman) or paternity (man) leave- go on maternity leave;
- to be on maternity (woman) or paternity (man) leave- be on maternity leave;
- to be on sick leave- to be sick;
- to take sick leave- go on sick leave;
- to throw a sickie– pretend to be sick so as not to go to work (school);
- to take early retirement- retire early.
Here are a few examples to illustrate the use of some phrases.
They got fired for industrial espionage. “They were fired for industrial espionage.”
My boyfriend was sacked for inappropriate conduct at the party. My boyfriend was fired for inappropriate behavior at a party.
Bill was given the boot for incompetence. Bill was fired for incompetence.
Unfortunately, their brand managers had to cut back on the workforce. “Unfortunately, their brand managers had to save on labor.
Employers laid off everyone in the London office. – Employers laid off everyone in the London office.
Contract, hours – contract, working hours
When hired, an employee must undergo training, internship or trial period. If a person shows himself to be good, he may be offered an indefinite contract ( an indefinite contract), which does not need to be renegotiated after a certain period. When you work full time, this type of employment is called a full-time job, and if you study and at the same time work several hours a day, then this a part-time job. If a person does not like working for someone else, he can be a self-employed entrepreneur or self-employed, that is, working for oneself. In the word "freelancer" ( a freelancer), which has come into our everyday life, is called a person who works without a contract, freelance (for example, a freelance designer). If a company calls an employee when a job becomes available for him or her, then that person is working at a zero-hours contract(the company does not provide full-time work, but calls when there is a task for an individual). The most “dusty-free” job is considered to be office work from 9:00 to 17:00 5 days a week ( to work from 9 to 5). Those who work the morning shift are a little less fortunate ( a morning shift) or, even worse, on the night shift ( a late-night shift).
- Don't forget to check out our article on business idioms "". Knowing these phrases, you will be able to show off your erudition in any conversation.
Work is what a person does for most of his life. If you know how to talk about your work in English, then you can start or maintain a dialogue with anyone. I suggest looking at examples of people’s stories about their work in the following posts. And to make listening to stories even more interesting, try taking a test in which you need to choose the correct answer and fill in the blanks with prepositions that you hear in the audio recordings. Forward!
Test
The English-language press is a great opportunity to improve your English skills. Today we will tell you in a short review what to read first and where in Moscow you can buy scientific journals in English
It is worth noting that you, of course, can start your search for English-language popular science magazines by exploring all the kiosks at hotels or immediately running to the British Council library, but we are ready to offer a simpler and more effective way: subscribe via the Internet.
Popular science magazines in English
National Geographic
Today the magazine has a circulation of more than 4 million copies, the magazine's audience is 40 million people. Unique materials on archeology, history and culture, exclusive photographs helped the magazine gain worldwide recognition. It is published in 33 languages and is the world's most famous popular science magazine. You can subscribe.
It is also worth paying attention to two more English-language popular science magazines that have Russian-language versions. You can subscribe to original versions of magazines only on official websites, but finding electronic versions of publications is not difficult.
Popular Mechanics
The magazine began publishing in 1902, and has now gained popularity around the world as a classic example of a popular science magazine. More than a million circulation indicates the popularity of this magazine throughout the world.
Popular Science
The magazine, which has conquered 45 countries, is published in more than 30 languages. Darwin, Huxley, and Peirce published their papers and reviews of research in this journal. The magazine has not always enjoyed enormous popularity, but today it is one of the world's most famous popular science publications, its circulation is more than 1 million copies.
Have fun reading!
The ability to talk about your work in English is a must for communication in the modern world. Sooner or later, everyone faces the task of presenting themselves in English and talking about their work. For example, there is an important business event coming up, where you will probably have to answer a lot of questions about your professional activities. You are worried and worried. But under no circumstances should you try to find someone else’s story on the Internet in order to learn it! Nothing good will come of this.
I assure you that you will be able to write a story about your work in English on your own. It's very simple. Especially for readers of the ENGINFORM blog, I prepared this practical lesson, which included a number of necessary words, phrases and expressions with explanations and examples of their use. After studying this material, in 15 minutes you will be able to independently compose a ready-to-use story about your work. Get yourself a dictionary, get ready to write down your ideas and examples, and let’s go, let’s get started!
So, you've heard the question:
What do you do?
What's your job?
What do you do for a living?
In what field are you?
What to say if you are not currently working? You can answer like this:
I haven’t got a job at the moment. - At the moment I don’t have a job.
I am unemployed. - I am unemployed.
I am retired. - I'm on retirement.
I am a student. - I am a student.
I am looking for a job at the moment. - I'm looking for a job at the moment.
If you have a job, then the first thing you can say is to name your profession. To do this, use . A list of the most common professions with transcription and translation is presented in the article:
I am a teacher. - I'am a teacher.
I am a lawyer. - I am a lawyer.
A more “complicated” version is with the verb work, after which the word as is required:
I work as a manager. - I work as a manager.
I work as a secretary. - I work as a secretary.
My responsibilities include... - My responsibilities include...
My daily duties include... - My daily duties include...
I am involved into… - I take part in… I work on… - I am working on…
My responsibilities include meeting customers. - My responsibilities include...
My daily duties include transporting goods. - My daily responsibilities include...
I am involved in creating new design. - I take part in the creation of a new design.
I work on testing new drugs. - I'm working on testing new drugs.
When you talk about responsibilities, use the have to construction. It is not as strong and categorical as must and is very suitable for describing responsibilities:
I have to travel a lot. - I have to travel a lot.
I have to read documentation every day. - I have to read the documentation every day.
We talk about the type, place of work, and working hours.
Do you have a permanent job or a temporary job, do you have a full-time or part-time job? Let's learn how to talk about this in English:
I have a full-time job. = I work full-time. - I work full time/full time.
I have a part-time job. = I work part-time. - I have a part-time job.
I have a permanent job. - I have a full-time job.
I have a temporary job. - I have a temporary job.
Let's talk about your schedule. In English they use the word hours - hours of work. Pay attention to the pronunciation - the first letter is not pronounced:
I have regular working hours. - I have a constant schedule.
I have fixed working hours. - I have normal working hours.
I work nine-to-five. = I have a nine-to-five job. - I work from 9 to 6.
I work flexible hours. - I have a flexible schedule.
There is a system of flexitime in my company. - We have a rotating schedule in our company.
If your job involves a shift work schedule, remember the word shift: shift:
A day shift - day shift
A night shift - night shift
I work in shifts. - I work in shifts.
I change shifts every two weeks. - My shifts change every two weeks.
To tell where you work, you will need the following phrases:
I work in an office. = I have an office work. - I have an office job.
I work outside. - I work outdoors.
I work from home. - I work from home.
I telecommute. / I telework. - I work remotely.
Perhaps you still have a minimal vocabulary or you are not yet familiar with some of the grammatical topics that I mentioned today. So that you can quickly master them, improve your level and speak English, I invite you to ENGINFORM. We have developed a course specifically for those who urgently need English for work and career. Basic terminology and business vocabulary, only the necessary grammar, developing communication skills in a business environment, writing letters, negotiating, passing a job interview, working with case studies of real companies and lots and lots of discussions, listening, useful reading and speaking.
Even if your level is not yet high, you can try right now and find out what English is on Skype, sign up with a teacher. You will receive an assessment of your level and personal recommendations for learning English, and you will also practice speaking about your work in English. After all, now, after studying this material, you have everything you need: vocabulary, templates of phrases and expressions.
To begin with, your story may be small, in the form of a few sentences, but in the future, by learning new words, deepening your knowledge of grammar and getting enough speaking practice in individual lessons, you will supplement and improve it.
