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The silent monk
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Some people just can't keep their mouth shut.
A man wanted to become a monk so he went to the monastery and talked to the abbot (the head monk).
The abbot said, "You must take a vow of silence and can only say two words every three years."
The man agreed and after the first 3 years, the abbot came to him and said, "What are your two words?"
- "Food cold!" the man replied.
Three more years went by and the abbot came to him and said "What are your two words?"
- "Robe dirty!" the man exclaimed.
Three more years went by and the abbot came to him and said, "What are your two words?"
- "Bed hard!".
Three more years went by and the abbot came to him and said, "What are your two words?"
- "I quit!" said the man.
"Well," the abbot replied, "I am not surprised. You have done nothing but complain ever since you got here!"
Report mistakesMONK= Pronounced with the vowel in HUT. A monk is a male member of a religious community bound by vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Femenine: nun.
MONASTERY= The building were monks live.
VOW= A solemn promise, especially a promise to live and act in accordance with the rules of a religious order.
A VOW OF SILENCE= A promise not to speak. Some religious orders (the Carthusians, for example) must take a vow of silence and they never speak, but meditate.
THREE MORE YEARS WENT BY= In English we say that "time goes by" meaning that time passes, so if one month goes by, it's a month later.
REPLIED (formal English)= Answered.
ROBE= A long loose flowing outer garment (item of clothing), like the ones worn by ancient Greeks and Romans, or modern Christian priests and Christian or Buddhist monks.
QUIT= To stop doing something, to abandon, to leave a job, to give up.
YOU'VE DONE NOTHING BUT COMPLAIN= The only thing you've done is to complain. You've been complaining all the time.
EVER SINCE= It is more emphatic than just saying "since".
