2.120In China it is relatively usual to ask people their age, but in the West this question is generally regarded as impolite. This is particularly true (11) women, and even more so if the inquirer is a man. However, it is very (12) to ask children their age, and some adults may not mind being asked either. In fact, some elderly people are quite happy to (13) their age, especially if they feel they look young for their age. Nevertheless, it is not very wise to ask a direct question like “How old are you?”. If elderly people want to talk about their age, they may easily (14) the topic themselves, and ask the other person to guess how old they are . They normally expect to be complimented on their youthfulness, though rather than (15) that they look very old. Even though Westerners do not usually ask people directly how old they are, this does not (16) that they are not interested to know how old other people are. They may ask (17) for the information, or else they may try to (18) the topic indirectly. Sometimes discussions about educational (19) and the number of years of working experience may provide some clues, but this is not always the (20).