Listening Activity

English as the world’s Lingua Franca

Should English be the world's lingua franca? The world

definitely needs a standard language and "many people feel
that the only 1. ____________chance of breaking the
foreign-language 2. ____________ is to use a natural
language as a world lingua franca"

The prominence of the English language has continued to

increase in stature over time. Today, the language is spoken
by almost 2 billion people across the world, 3.
___________ to five million some five hundred years ago.
In fact, no language can 4. __________ superiority over
other languages based on its structure or grammar. Instead, politics and economics are the two leading 5.
_____________ of this prominence. The increase in use of the language has made it an 6. ___________ lingua
franca in the modern world. English is a 7. ___________ language in both Britain and the USA and therefore
derives considerable power by virtue of this association. The dominance of these two countries in the world
in successive periods has ensured the progression of the English language into a lingua franca. Ultimately, the
increased use of the dialect in a 8. ___________ of domains qualifies it as a world lingua franca.

English has successfully attained dominance as the leading means of communication in the international
sphere. Currently, the number of non-native speakers surpasses the number of conventional native speakers
from countries such as the USA and the UK (Seidlhofer, 2009). The increase in the numbers of speakers can
rightly be attributed to the association with power. Indeed, the choice of international language is determined
by power amidst other considerations. That notwithstanding, English has not been the only lingua franca in
the world’s 9. ______________. It is preceded by other lingua franca such as the French during the era
of European expansion and Latin during Greek domination of the globe. The choice of a universal language
is largely influenced by the speakers’ dominance in areas such as politics, economics and military. Such has
been the trend with the English language following subsequent superpower positions of Britain and the USA.
The existence of English as a lingua franca is a both a 10. _____________ and a curse to the world. While it
helps in globalization and integration of different communities, it has also been blamed for the suppression of
other languages such as Arabic.

1
Vocabulary

Find out the words which correspond to the following definitions.

1. The expression of a wish that misfortune, evil, doom: _________________________

2. The state or quality of being better, more powerful, greater: ___________________
3. Growth of something that gets bigger in number or volume: ___________________
4. Act or process of stopping something by force or authority: ___________________
5. A language that is adopted as a common language between speakers whose native languages are different:
__________________________
6. Power and influence over others: _________________________
7. The process of combining two or more things into one: ________________________
8. The state of being important, famous, or noticeable: ___________________________