E). Find examples of linguistic similarities in your mother tongue and/or European languages

3. a) Open the brackets using the correct forms of the verbs.

to in'dulge (oneself) in sth – to allow yourself to have or do something that you enjoy

It all started when I saw a little ad in a magazine that ____________ (1 – to read): “Follow your dreams.” I ___________ ________________ (2 – always / to dream) of seeing other parts of the world, meeting people of different cultures, and communicating in a language that was different from my native one.

Frequently, I pictured myself in front of an international crowd _______________ (3 – to give) a speech in a language that everyone would understand. ______________ (4 – to learn) a language would make me ____________ (5 – to become) a part of an international community, a part of this world. I always enjoyed the thought of ____________ (6 – to be) a world citizen even when I was only five years old. Years passed, and I was lucky enough to study in one of the best colleges in my country where the instruction _________________ (7 – to conduct) in English. It was the influence of my Dad that made me ____________ (8 – to decide) on learning English. He told me that if I ________________ (9 – to learn) how to speak English, I ________ _____________ (10 – to have) friends all around the world.

I decided that the best way __________________ (11 – to understand) a culture and their people was by ________________ (12 – to live) in a country for a period of time. During those years, I met many people from all around the world, some of whom I _____________ (13 – to become) very good friends with. I had a fabulous experience __________________ (14 – to study) abroad and _______________ (15 – to indulge) myself into knowledge and information. So by the age of twenty-four, I ____________________ (16 – already / to live) in three continents. I accumulated great memories by having the opportunity to sit in a class with internationals whom I ended up _______________ (17 – to do) business with. I gained much wisdom ______________ (18 – to work) in different countries in _______________ (19 – to challenge) situations. These international experiences brought new perspectives to my life. I feel I _________________ (20 – to create) a culture and a lifestyle of my own and a hometown that has no boundaries. I __________________ (21 – to make) the world my hometown.

(After Fati Erdogan, Global Study Magazine 1.2)

b) Answer the teacher’s questions.

4. a) Read the text filling in the gaps with the proper words.

hegemony [hI'gemRnI / 'hedGRmRnI]

English is a West... (1 – German/Germanic) language which is the... (2 – dominant/domineering) language in the United Kingdom, the United States, many Commonwealth nations... (3 – including/comprising) Australia, Canada, Malta and other former British colonies. It is also a dominant or official language in many countries... (4 – formerly/lately) under British rule. It has lingua franca status in many parts of the world, due to the military,... (5 – economical/economic), scientific, political and cultural influence of the British Empire in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries and that of the United States from the early 20th century to the present.

The current... (6 – status/position) of the English language at the start of the new millennium compares with that of Latin in the past. English is the most widely learned and used foreign language in the world, and some linguists believe that it is no longer the... (7 – essential/exclusive) cultural emblem of 'native English speakers', but rather a language that is absorbing aspects of cultures world-wide as it grows in use. Others believe that there are limits to how far English can go in... (8 – matching/suiting) everyone for communication purposes.

There are numerous arguments for and against English as a... (9 – world/global) language. On the one hand, having a global language aids in communication and in... (10 – gathering/pooling) information (for example, in the scientific community). On the other hand, it leaves out those who, for one reason or another, are not... (11 – fluent/good) in the global language. It can also marginalize populations whose... (12 – first/mother) language is not the global language, and lead to a cultural hegemony of the populations speaking the global language as a first language. A... (13 – second/secondary) concern with respect to the spread of global languages is the resulting disappearance of minority languages, often along with the cultures and religions that are primarily transmitted in those languages. Language death caused by English has been particularly pronounced in areas such as Australia and North America where speakers of... (14 – native/indigenous) languages have been displaced or absorbed by speakers of English in the process of colonization.

b) Answer the teacher’s questions.