Not one wall, but many — built and rebuilt over two thousand years.
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Before we read, let's learn the important words. Match each word (1–8) to its meaning (A–H). Say your answers out loud — "I think 1 is D" — then check.
1 = F (to build) · 2 = C (a wall) · 3 = H (an enemy) · 4 = G (a soldier)
5 = B (a worker) · 6 = E (to protect) · 7 = A (a tower) · 8 = D (a myth)
Read each part. Then try the questions from memory, and talk about the last one.
Many people think there is one Great Wall of China. But this is not true. There were many walls. For a long time, different parts of China built small walls to protect their land.
Then, about 2,200 years ago, one man became the first emperor of all China. His name was Qin Shi Huang. He gave a big order: join the small walls into one long wall in the north. He wanted to stop the enemies who came from the north on fast horses.
The first walls were not made of brick. They were made of earth. Workers pressed the earth down hard until it became like stone. Hundreds of thousands of workers built the wall. The work was very hard, and very sad: many workers died, far from their homes and families.
1. Is the Great Wall really only one wall? Explain your answer.
2. What did the first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, do?
1. No. There were many different walls. Different parts of China built their own small walls first.
2. He was the first emperor of all China. He ordered people to join the small walls into one long wall in the north, to stop enemies on horses.
The first emperor's wall did not last. Over the next 1,800 years, the wall was left, repaired, and built again many times. Each new emperor had his own enemies and his own ideas.
The wall we know today — the big grey wall of stone and brick on the green hills — is quite new. Most of it was built by the Ming emperors, between about 600 and 400 years ago. Before the Ming, people from the north (the Mongols) ruled China. The Ming did not want this to happen again, so they built a strong wall.
The wall was not only for fighting. It was also a border. Soldiers stood in tall towers and watched the land. When they saw danger, they made a big fire. The next tower saw the fire and made another fire. In this way, a warning travelled a very long way, very fast — faster than a man on a horse.
1. Which emperors built most of the wall we see today? Why?
2. How did soldiers send a warning a long way, very fast?
1. The Ming emperors (about 600–400 years ago). The Mongols from the north had ruled China before, and the Ming did not want this to happen again.
2. They made a big fire in a tower. The next tower saw it and made another fire, and so on — faster than a man on a horse.
People love to tell stories about the Great Wall. But some of these stories are myths — they are not true.
Here is the most famous myth: people say you can see the Great Wall from space, with your eyes. This is not true! The wall is very long, but it is only a few metres wide. It is also the same colour as the land around it. Astronauts say they cannot see it. The first Chinese astronaut in space looked, but he could not find it. Long is not the same as easy to see.
Today, most of the wall is old and broken. Slowly, it is going back into the hills. But people repaired some parts, and these parts are visited by millions of people every year. The wall was built to keep the world out. Now, it brings the world in.
1. Can you really see the Great Wall from space with your eyes? Why / why not?
2. What happens at the wall today?
1. No. The wall is very long, but it is thin (only a few metres wide) and the same colour as the land. Astronauts say they cannot see it.
2. Most of it is old and broken, but some parts are repaired and are visited by millions of people every year.
The Wall is very, very old, and it is still here today. To say how long something has continued, we use the present perfect: "The Wall has stood for two thousand years."
Write for (how long) or since (when it started). Say each one out loud.
1. The Wall has stood two thousand years.
2. People have visited it many years.
3. The towers have looked over the hills the time of the Ming emperors.
4. Tourists have come here 1987.
1. for (how long — "two thousand years")
2. for (how long — "many years")
3. since (when it started — "the time of the Ming emperors")
4. since (when it started — "1987")
Put the verb into the present perfect. Then read the sentence out loud.
1. (stand) The Wall here for two thousand years.
2. (protect) It the north for a very long time.
3. (be / rebuild) The Wall many times since then.
1. has stood
2. has protected
3. has been rebuilt (we say "the Wall", not the workers)
Make the question, then answer it with for or since. Try it as a small dialogue.
1. (the Wall / stand) How long here? — It for two thousand years.
2. (people / visit it) How long it? — They it for many years.
1. has the Wall stood … has stood
2. have people visited … have visited
There is a real podcast about the Great Wall of China. It is for native speakers, so it is fast and quite difficult — that is normal! You do not need to understand every word.
From the Noiser podcast network. Hosted by historians, roughly 50 minutes.
Listen on Spotify →Do all three tasks out loud. Use the timer to keep talking.
Tell the story of the Great Wall in your own words. Use these steps to help you: many small walls → the first emperor joins them → walls of earth, and hard work → the Ming build the big stone wall → towers and fire warnings → the "see it from space" myth.
Try to use the present perfect with for and since to say how long things have lasted ("The Wall has stood for…", "It has protected the north since…", "It has been rebuilt…"), and some of the key words (build, wall, enemy, soldier, worker, protect, tower, myth).
The Great Wall was built to keep enemies out. Why do people and countries build walls and borders, today and in the past? Do you know any other famous walls? Do you think walls really work?
Tell the story of any famous building you choose — a church, a bridge, a tower, a stadium. Try to use for and since: how long has it stood? Since when have people visited it? How long has it been famous?
Not sure what to talk about? Choose one: