Generally speaking, a British is widely regarded as a quiet, shy and conservative person who is1 only among those with whom he is familiar. When a stranger is present, he often seems nervous, 2 embarrassed. You have to take a commuter train any morning or evening to witness the truth of this. Serious-looking businessmen and women sit reading their newspapers or 3 off in a corner; hardly anybody talks, since to do so would be considered quite offensive.
4, there is an unwritten but clearly understood code of behavior, which, once 5, makes the offender immediately the object of criticism.
One of the few things we can say about the British with certainty is that a British 6 the discussion of their weather and that, if given a chance, he will talk about it 7. Some people argue that it is because the British weather 8 follows forecast and thus becomes a source of interest to everyone. This may be so. Certainly a British cannot have much faith in the weathermen, whose predictions, in many cases, 9 to be wrong! The man in the street seems to be as accurate (准确的) — or as inaccurate —as the weathermen in his 10.Foreigners may be surprised at the number of references 11 weather that the British make to each other in the course of a single day. Very often conversational greetings are 12 by comments on the weather. "Nice day, isn't it?" "Beautiful day!" may well be heard instead of "Good morning, how are you?" 13the foreigner may consider this exaggerated (夸大)and comic, it is worthwhile pointing out that it could be used to his advantage. If he wants to start a conversation with a British but is at a loss to know where to begin, he could do well to mention the state of the weather. It is a(n)14 subject to which a response may well be 15of even the most reserved of the British.
