Daily Reading Practice · Nonfiction passage
Any word, any time — right from this page.
Before the fifteenth century, books in Europe were copied by hand, one page at a time. This slow process meant that books were rare and extremely expensive, so only wealthywealthy (adj)Having a lot of money or valuable possessions.≈ Synonym: rich🇺🇿UZ: boy🇷🇺RU: богатый people, churches, and universities could own them. Everything changed around 1440, when a German craftsmancraftsman (noun)A skilled worker who makes things by hand, often with great skill.≈ Synonym: artisan🇺🇿UZ: hunarmand🇷🇺RU: ремесленник named Johannes Gutenberg inventedinvent (verb)Created or designed something new for the first time.≈ Synonym: created🇺🇿UZ: ixtiro qildi🇷🇺RU: изобрёл a new machine that would transformtransform (verb)To completely change the form or nature of something.≈ Synonym: change completely🇺🇿UZ: o'zgartirmoq🇷🇺RU: преобразовать how information spread across the world: the printing pressprinting press (noun)A machine used to print many copies of text onto paper.≈ Synonym: print machine🇺🇿UZ: bosmaxona mashinasi🇷🇺RU: печатный станок.
Gutenberg's printing press used a system called movable typemovable type (noun)Separate metal letters that can be arranged and reused to print different pages.≈ Synonym: movable letters🇺🇿UZ: harakatlanuvchi shrift🇷🇺RU: подвижный шрифт. Instead of carvingcarve (verb)Cutting shapes, letters, or designs into a hard material.≈ Synonym: cutting🇺🇿UZ: o'yib yasash🇷🇺RU: вырезание an entire page by hand, individual metal letters could be arrangedarrange (verb)Put in a particular order or position.≈ Synonym: organized🇺🇿UZ: joylashtirilgan🇷🇺RU: расставлены, inkedink (verb)Covered with ink in preparation for printing.≈ Synonym: coated with ink🇺🇿UZ: siyohlangan🇷🇺RU: покрыты чернилами, and pressed onto paper, then rearranged to print a different page. This method allowed workers to produce many copies of a text far more quickly than any scribescribe (noun)A person whose job was to copy documents and books by hand.≈ Synonym: copyist🇺🇿UZ: kotib🇷🇺RU: переписчик could write them by hand.
The effects of the printing press spread rapidlyrapidly (adv)Very quickly, at a fast speed.≈ Synonym: quickly🇺🇿UZ: tezda🇷🇺RU: быстро. Gutenberg's most famous work, a printed Bible, showed the world what the machine could achieve. Within decades, printing workshopsworkshop (noun)Places where things are made or repaired by hand or machine.≈ Synonym: shops🇺🇿UZ: ustaxonalar🇷🇺RU: мастерские appeared in cities across Europe, producing books on science, religion, law, and literatureliterature (noun)Written works, especially those considered to have artistic value.≈ Synonym: written works🇺🇿UZ: adabiyot🇷🇺RU: литература. For the first time, ordinary peopleordinary people (noun)Regular, common people, not wealthy or powerful ones.≈ Synonym: common people🇺🇿UZ: oddiy odamlar🇷🇺RU: обычные люди had a real chance to accessaccess (verb)To obtain or make use of something.≈ Synonym: obtain🇺🇿UZ: foydalanish imkoniyati🇷🇺RU: доступ written knowledge.
This sudden access to books had huge consequencesconsequence (noun)Results or effects that happen because of an earlier action.≈ Synonym: effects🇺🇿UZ: oqibatlar🇷🇺RU: последствия for society. Literacy ratesliteracy rate (noun)The percentage of people in a place who can read and write.≈ Synonym: reading ability levels🇺🇿UZ: savodxonlik darajasi🇷🇺RU: уровень грамотности slowly began to rise as more people could affordafford (verb)To have enough money to be able to buy something.≈ Synonym: manage to pay for🇺🇿UZ: sotib olishga qurbi yetmoq🇷🇺RU: позволить себе books and learn to read. New ideas spread faster than ever before, fuelingfuel (verb)Giving energy or strength to something, helping it grow.≈ Synonym: driving🇺🇿UZ: kuchaytirib🇷🇺RU: подпитывая movementsmovement (noun)Organized efforts by groups of people to achieve a particular goal or change.≈ Synonym: campaigns🇺🇿UZ: harakatlar🇷🇺RU: движения such as the RenaissanceRenaissance (noun)A period in European history marked by great achievements in art and learning.≈ Synonym: period of revival🇺🇿UZ: Uyg'onish davri🇷🇺RU: Ренессанс and the ReformationReformation (noun)A religious movement in the sixteenth century that changed Christianity in Europe.≈ Synonym: religious reform movement🇺🇿UZ: Reformatsiya🇷🇺RU: Реформация. Governments and religious leaders sometimes tried to control or censorcensor (verb)To remove or control information that is considered harmful or unwanted.≈ Synonym: restrict🇺🇿UZ: senzura qilmoq🇷🇺RU: подвергать цензуре printed material, fearing its powerful influenceinfluence (noun)The power to affect how people think or behave.≈ Synonym: impact🇺🇿UZ: ta'sir🇷🇺RU: влияние.
Today, we live in a world shaped by Gutenberg's invention. Although digital technologydigital technology (noun)Modern electronic tools and devices, such as computers and the internet.≈ Synonym: electronic technology🇺🇿UZ: raqamli texnologiya🇷🇺RU: цифровые технологии has changed how we read, the basic idea behind the printing press — making information available to many people, not just a few — remainsremain (verb)Continues to exist or stay the same.≈ Synonym: stays🇺🇿UZ: qolmoqda🇷🇺RU: остаётся at the heart ofheart ofThe most important or central part of something.≈ Synonym: core of🇺🇿UZ: markazida🇷🇺RU: в центре, суть modern communicationcommunication (noun)The sharing of information between people.≈ Synonym: information sharing🇺🇿UZ: aloqa, kommunikatsiya🇷🇺RU: коммуникация. Historianshistorian (noun)People who study and write about history.≈ Synonym: history experts🇺🇿UZ: tarixchilar🇷🇺RU: историки still consider it one of the most important inventionsinvention (noun)New things that have been designed or created for the first time.≈ Synonym: creations🇺🇿UZ: ixtirolar🇷🇺RU: изобретения in human history.