Lettura e ascolto intermediate in inglese: The Bathtub Test

Piccole letture in inglese in chiave umoristica e/o filosofica

The bathtub test

Perché non provi inizialmente ad ascoltare l’audio senza leggere il testo?

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During a visit to a mental asylum, I asked the director how he knew when a patient needed to be institutionalised.
“It’s really quite simple,” the director replied. “We just fill up a bathtub with water and then offer a teaspoon, a teacup and a bucket to the patient and ask him or her to empty the bathtub.”
“Oh, I understand,” I replied. “Obviously a normal person would use the bucket because it’s bigger than the spoon or the cup.”
“No,” said the director. “A normal person would pull the plug out. Do you want a bed near the window?”

short stories

Your comments are always very welcome.

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Author: Tony

Born and raised in Malaysia between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Educated at Wycliffe College in Stonehouse, Gloucestershire, England. Living in the foothills of Mount Etna since 1982 and teaching English at Catania University since 1987.

21 thoughts on “Lettura e ascolto intermediate in inglese: The Bathtub Test”

    1. Pretty good on the whole, Dany. Well done.

      Be a bit careful about not giving enough weight to important words. An example?

      “mental asylum” in the first line. Both words should have equal weight and come out strongly in your reading.

      🙂

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    1. Hi Sara. Secondo me, ti devi concentrare più sui suoni e meno sulla “naturalezza” per adesso. Credo che il tuo tentativo di dare un suono “naturale” distoglie dai suoni individuali che soffrono di conseguenza. Dovresti leggere più lentamente e cercare di dare più peso ai suoni individuali – soprattutto quelli lunghi.

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      1. Thank you teacher, this exercise was more difficult because there was no audio track to follow. I will put focus on the single pronunciation.

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      1. lol lol lol ..and what do you think I chose instead?…I’ll give youa clue..lol What could a BANANA chose?

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      1. It was really nice to hear from you again. The story is very fun . I am going to Manchester next week . Have you ever been in Manchester?
        Have good holiday
        Marcella

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        1. Hi Marcella, no, I’ve never been to Manchester. I’m sure you’ll have a great time there.
          Careful with “fun”: it’s a noun and not an adjective = The story is good/great/a lot of fun.
          Otherwise use the adjective: The story is very funny! 🙂

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