B1 Level Kawther Houria SEKKAI

Being polite – Worksheet

Before you read
1. Are people in your country polite? What are some of the politeness standards In there?
2. Other than “words”, what would make you sound polite?
Understanding the Text
1. What is the general idea of the text?
2. Has the text surprised you?
3. Which of the translations do you find the most funny, surprising or unbelievable one ?

Extending your vocabulary

1. Try to deduce the meaning of the bold words and match them with their definitions.
To lose face 1. a person or thing that is a perfect example of a particular quality or type
Hollow 2. without meaning
Decipher 3. to be able to understand something after thinking about it a lot
Fellow 4. a man
Fathom 5. sly
Epitome 6. to discover what something says or means
Weaselly 7. to become less respected by others

2. complete the sentences with words from the table:

3. He's a ______________________, conniving thief.
 Somehow the outfit was the ____________________ of French chic with a very modern
twist.
 Your son's a bright little ___________________.
 No one could _________________ why she had left so early.
 It's sometimes difficult to ____________________ his handwriting.
 His promises are often ______________________.
 His terrible performance in the debate caused him ______________________ with the
voters.

4. Answer the detailed questions using the words from the previous exercise.
 Do English people tend to say things out of politeness?
 On the whole, does the article imply English people to be polite or not?
 Compare Algerians and Britons in terms of politeness.