Welcome reading: Languages

 

1Study the highlighted words and check the meanings in a dictionary. Then do the languages quiz. 

What do you know about languages?

• 1How many languages are there in the world?

  about 1,500,000about 7,000about 3,500

• 2What place has got about 2,200 different languages?

  AsiaAfricaSouth America

• 3A quarter of the world's population live in Europe. How many languages are there in Europe?

  about 150about 370about 230

• 4How many characters has the Russian alphabet got?

  422633

• 5What language has got the most speakers?

  Mandarin ChineseEnglishSpanish

• 6Mandarin Chinese writing uses over 50,000 characters. How many characters do Mandarin speakers use every day?

• 2,000–3,0009,000–10,0006,000–7,000

• 7What country has got the most native English speakers?

  the United Kingdomthe USAAustralia

• 8How old is the modern English language?

  over 10,000 years oldover 8,000 years oldunder 7,000 years old

• 9Esperanto is an artificial language. What number of speakers has it got?

  approximately 2,000,000approximately 9,000approximately 1,000,000

Grammar ReferenceWordlist

2Find the words in the box in the quiz and answer the questions. Use a dictionary to help you. 

MOVE
• around
• over
• under

• 1What two words mean approximately?

• about
,  

• 2Complete the definitions.

  a   50 is the same as >50.

  b   50 is the same as <50.

What do you know about languages?

• 1How many languages are there in the world?

  a about 1,500,000

  b about 7,000

  c about 3,500

• 2What place has got about 2,200 different languages?

  a Asia

  b Africa

  c South America

• 3A quarter of the world's population live in Europe. How many languages are there in Europe?

  a about 150

  b about 370

  c about 230

• 4How many characters has the Russian alphabet got?

  a 42

  b 26

  c 33

• 5What language has got the most speakers?

  a Mandarin Chinese

  b English

  c Spanish

• 6Mandarin Chinese writing uses over 50,000 characters. How many characters do Mandarin speakers use every day?

• a 2,000–3,000

  b 9,000–10,000

  c 6,000–7,000

• 7What country has got the most native English speakers?

  a the United Kingdom

  b the USA

  c Australia

• 8How old is the modern English language?

  a over 10,000 years old

  b over 8,000 years old

  c under 7,000 years old

• 9Esperanto is an artificial language. What number of speakers has it got?

  a approximately 2,000,000

  b approximately 9,000

  c approximately 1,000,000

3Read the factfile. Then choose the correct words to complete the sentences. 

English language factfile

Speakers of English as a native / first language:

around 375 million

Speakers of English as a foreign language:

around 750 million

People who use English on the internet:

around 72 million

Number of people who study English every year:

1 billion+

• 1OverUnder 350 million people speak English as their native language.

• 2ApproximatelyOver 750 million people speak English as a foreign language.

• 3UnderAbout 72 million people use English on the internet.

• 4OverAbout 1 million people study English every year.

4 CHALLENGE! Write about you, your country and your language. Answer the questions. Use the internet to help you. Use the words in the box to help you.   about  around  over  under   Where are you from? I'm from ... . What's your nationality and language? My nationality is ... and my language is ... . How many people speak your language? .... people speak my language. How many languages are there in your country? There are ... languages in my country.  Write your task in another program (e.g. Word).  Save the file to your computer.  Upload your file.  If you want to add a note to your teacher, write it in the Comments box.  Select Submit to Dropbox to send your work to your teacher.