Generally speaking, a British is widely regarded as a quiet, shy and conservative person who is 【C1】______ only among those with whom he is acquainted. When a stranger is at present, he often seems nervous,【C2】______ embarrassed. You have to take a commuter train any morning or evening to 【C3】______ the truth of this. Serious-looking businessmen and women sit reading their newspapers or dozing in a corner; hardly anybody talks, since to do so would be considered quite offensive. 【C4】______ there is an unwritten but clearly understood code of behavior. which,【C5】______ broken, makes the offender immediately the object of 【C6】______ . It has been known as a fact that the British has a 【C7】______ for the discussion of their weather and that, if given a chance, he will talk about it 【C8】______ . Some people argue that it is because the British weather seldom【C9】______ forecast and hence becomes a source of interest and 【C10】______ to everyone. This may be so. 【C11】______ a British cannot have much 【C12】______ in the weathermen, who, after promising fine, sunny weather for the following day, are often proved wrong 【C13】______ a cloud over the Atlantic brings rainy weather to all districts! The man in the street seems to be as accurate--or as inaccurate --as the weathermen in his 【C14】______ . Foreigners may be surprised at the number of references 【C15】______ weather that the British make to each other in the course of a single day. Very often conversational greetings are 【C16】______ by comments on the weather. 'Nice day, isn't it?' 'Beautiful!' may well be heard instead of 'Good morning, how are you?'【C17】______ the foreigner may consider this exaggerated and comic, it is worthwhile pointing out that it could be used to his advantage. 【C18】______ he wants to start a conversation with a British but is 【C19】______ to know where to begin, he could do well to mention the state of the weather, k is a safe subject which will【C20】______ an answer from even the most reserved of the British. 【C1】