A pen giant

Do you know László Bíró? Maybe you do not, but you probably use his invention every day, and you may even have it in your hand right now!

Bíró (1899–1985) was the inventor of the ballpoint pen. He was born in Budapest, Hungary. In the 1930s, when he worked as a newspaper editor, he used a fountain pen almost every day. However, he had to refill it all the time. The ink also did not dry easily, and it sometimes made a mess on the paper. Bíró wanted a better pen. His brother, George, helped him develop a special ink. The ink dried easily. Then they developed a new type of pen.

There was a tiny ball at the tip of the pen. The ball rolled ink onto paper as it moved. They called it the "ballpoint" pen.

The ballpoint pen was a great success. Everyone loved it. Now millions of people use it all over the world every day.

People will always remember Bíró for his invention. Today in many English-speaking countries, people still use the word "biro" to refer to any kind of ballpoint pen.

Grammar

A good, bad and far

B (not) as … as