The world's richest man might seem to have it all, but Bill Gates has one regret. The self-made billionaire said he felt stupid for not knowing any foreign languages.

    Speaking in his third Ask Me Anything question-and-answer session for online forum Reddit, the Microsoft founder revealed that he wished he spoke French, Arabic or Chinese.

    He said, "I took Latin and Greek in high school and got As and I guess it helps my vocabulary."

    "I keep hoping to get time to study one of these - probably French because it is the easiest. I did Duolingo for a while but didn't keep it up."

    Gates, who is worth US$79.3 billion, praised Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg for stunning an audience in Beijing when he spoke fluent Mandarin.

    He said, "Mark Zuckerberg amazingly learned Mandarin and did a Q&A with Chinese students - incredible."

    Gates' admission over language is not the first time he has given insight into his domestic habits and personal insights.

    Last February, Gates said he likes to do the dishes himself - to his own exacting standards every night and shared the eyebrow-raising revelation that his wife, Melinda, would likely want Samuel L Jackson to play her husband in a biopic.

    He also admitted that he would pick up a US$100 bill if he found it on the street.

    As he took the top spot on Forbes 28th Annual Billionaires list last year for the fourth time, he said he is pretty basic when it comes to spending on clothes and food, but that he enjoys investing in shoes and racquets, as he plays tennis.

    When asked a life lesson he had to learn the hard way, the generous philanthropist said staying up too late is a habit he is still trying to break.

    "Don't stay up too late even if the book is really exciting. You will regret it in the morning. I am still working on this problem," he said.

    Words to Learn 相关词汇

    坚持

    jiānchí

    keep ... up

    persevere, continue

    透露的信息

    tòulù de xìnxī

    revelation

    something revealed or disclosed, especially a striking disclosure, as of something not before realized

    比尔·盖茨：后悔没学外语

    世界首富比尔·盖茨看似坐拥一切，但却有一件憾事。这位白手起家的亿万富翁觉得自己不会外语是件很逊的事情。

    第三次参加网络论坛Reddit的Ask Me Anything问答时，比尔·盖茨透露，他希望自己会说法语、阿拉伯语或中文。

    他说：“我高中时上过拉丁语和希腊语课，两门都得了A，我觉得这两门课拓展了我的词汇。”

    他还说：“我一直希望有时间学习前面说到的其中一门语言，可能是法语吧，因为它是那里面最容易的。我用过一阵Duolingo，但没坚持下来。”

    身价高达793亿美元的盖茨称赞Facebook创始人扎克伯格会说流利的中文，让北京观众大为惊叹。

    他说：“扎克伯格奇迹般地学会了中文，与中国学生问答互动——这太不可思议了。”

    盖茨此番承认对不会外语感到遗憾并非是第一次让我们了解到他居家的习惯和个人感悟。

    去年2月，盖茨曾表示他每晚喜欢按照自己的程序洗碗，并透露了一个令人吃惊的消息：他妻子梅琳达希望塞缪尔·杰克逊在传记片中饰演她的丈夫。

    他还坦言，如果在街上看到一张100美元的钞票，他会捡起来。

    去年，盖茨第四度位居第28期福布斯全球亿万富翁排行榜榜首，他说在服装和食物方面他力求简单朴素，却喜欢为打网球而花钱购买球鞋和球拍。

    当被问到人生中惨痛的教训时，这位慷慨大方的慈善家表示，他仍在尝试改掉熬夜的坏习惯。

    他说：“一本书再怎么好看也不能因此熬夜。早上起床你就会后悔。我还在努力改这个毛病。”