How words came into being is unknown. All we assume（推测）is that some early men in
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How words came into being is unknown. All we assume（推测）is that some early men invented certain sounds, in one way or another, to express thoughts and feelings, actions and things, so that they could talk with each other. Later they agreed upon certain signs, called letters, which could be put together to show those sounds, and which could be written down. Those sounds, whether spoken or written in letters, are called words.
The power of words, then, lies in their associations - the things they bring up to our minds. Words become filled with meaning for us by experience; and the longer we live, the more certain words bring back to us the happy and sad events of our past; and the more we read and learn, the more the number of words that mean something to us increases.
Great writers are those who not only have great thoughts but also express these thoughts in words which have powerful effects on our minds and feelings. This clever use of words is what we call literary style（文体）. Above all, the real poet is a master of words. He can express his meaning in words which sing like music and which by their position and association can move men to tears. We should therefore learn to choose our words carefully and use them correctly, or they will make our speech silly and common.
小题1:We learn from the text that language might have begun with | A．actions | B．expressions | C．sounds | D．signs |
小题2:What is mainly discussed in Paragraph 2?| A．The relation of human experience with words. | | B．The gradual change and development of words. | | C．The learning of new words. | | D．The importance of old words. |
小题3:In the last paragraph, what does the author suggest that we should do?| A．Associate with listeners. | B．Make musical speeches. | | C．Learn poems by heart. | D．Use words skillfully. |
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答案
小题1:C
小题2:A
小题3:D |
解析
试题分析：阅读理解是一篇说明文，阐述文字的起源和运用。给我们呈现了文字从起源到现在对我们生活、思想和智慧发展的影响。建议巧妙运动和注意遣词，促进文字的发展。
小题1:细节题：文中第一段的第二句 “All we assume is that some early men invented cortain sounds,in one way or another…”作出了提示。说明sounds很可能是最初的语言雏形，选C
小题2:段落主旨概括：第二段首句 “The power of words,then,lies in their associations-the things they bring up to our minds. ”The relation等同于文中的associations 可知这段讲的是人类的经历和单词的关系，选A
小题3:理解作者的意图和态度，理解主旨要义 “We should therefore learn to choose our words carefully and use then correctly,or they will make our speech silly and common. 作者所举例证及用词的感情色彩可知，作者鼓励我们用词的技巧，如同文学作品，诗文等一样，要注重遣词。选D |
举一反三
You may not be aware, but digital currency (货币) is a big part of the Internet world. QQ Coins can buy you accessories (配饰) for your QQ images. More importantly, a new digital currency, Bitcoin, is bringing the world’s commerce online.
If you’re traveling, you can spend Bitcoins at restaurants and hotels listed at BitcoinTravel.com. In China, Bitcoins can be used to buy goods at about 134 online shops on Taobao. And at a café named 2nd Place in Beijing, you can even buy fresh coffee with Bitcoins.
So what makes Bitcoin so attractive to investors?
First of all, the Bitcoin system is not controlled by anyone. One central authority cannot make policies to change the value of Bitcoins. The fixed amount of Bitcoins also means they cannot lose value through inflation(通货膨胀), as all forms of paper money have done over time.
In addition, accounts in the Bitcoin system are anonymous and transparent. Users can set up an account easily and track every Bitcoin. All of these features seem to make Bitcoins immune(有免疫力的) from loss, but that is not entirely true.
“The value of Bitcoins can vary wildly as no central government makes the price of them steady. If the value drops suddenly, investors cannot get any compensation(赔偿),” Zhao Qingming, a senior researcher at China Construction Bank, told China Economic Weekly. And Bitcoins, unlike company shares, are not backed by any tangible funds, which also adds to their risk.
While China will not recognize the digital currency anytime soon, Xinhua said, lawmakers and officials at a hearing on Nov. 18 in the US made positive comments about Bitcoin.
Ben Bernanke, outgoing chairman of the Federal Reserve, told the Washington Post that “these types of creations, such as Bitcoin… may hold long-term promise, particularly if its system promote a faster, more secure and more efficient payment system.”
小题1:Bitcoin is ______.
A. actually exactly like QQ Coins
B. only used online
C. a new currency used both online and in real life
D a country’s new digital currency.
小题2:We can use Bitcoin to buy the following things except ______.| A．online goods | B．goods at 134 online shops on Taobao | | C．books in physical shops | D．coffee at a café named 2nd Place |
小题3:What is the disadvantage of Bitcoin?| A．the value of it can rise and fall wildly. | | B．It cannot lose value through inflation. | | C．Every bitcoin in your account can be followed. | | D．It can even be used at some specific restaurants and hotels. |
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“Long time no see” is a very interesting sentence．When I first read this sentence from an American friend’s email，I laughed．I thought it was a perfect example of Chinglish．
Obviously，it is a word-by-word literal translation of the Chinese greetings with a ruled English grammar and structure! Later on，my friend told me that it is a standard American greeting．I was too thrilled to believe her．Her words could not convince me at all．So I did a research on google．com．To my surprise，there are over 60 thousand web pages containing “Long time no see．” This sentence has been widely used in emails，letters，newspapers，movies，books，or any other possible places．Though it is sort of informal，it is part of the language that Americans use daily．Ironically，if you type this phrase in Microsoft Word，the software will tell you that the grammar needs to be corrected．
Nobody knows the origin of this Chinglish sentence．Some people believe that it came from Charlie Chan’s movies．In the 1930s，Hollywood moviemakers successfully created a world wide famous Chinese detective named “Charlie Chan” on wide screens．Detective Chan likes to teach Americans some Chinese wisdom by quoting Confucius．“Long time no see” was his trademark．Soon after Charlie Chan，“Long time no see” became a popular phrase in the real world with thanks to the popularity of these movies．
Some scholars refer to America as a huge pot of stew．All kinds of culture are mixed in the stew together，and they change the color and taste of each other．American Chinese，though a minority ethnic（少数民族的成员） group in the United States，is also contributing some changes to the stew! Language is usually the first thing to be influenced in the mixed stew．
You can have some other examples than adoptions from Chinese，such as pizza from Italian，susi from Japanese，and déjà vu from French etc．There is a long list! Americans do not just simply borrow something from others．They will modify it and make it their own，so you would not be surprised to find a tofu and peanut butter hamburger in a restaurant，or to buy a bottle of iced Chinese green tea with honey in a grocery store．Since Americans appreciate Chinese culture more and more nowadays，I believe more Chinese words will become American English in the future．In this way the American stew keeps adding richness and flavor．
小题1:The writer himself felt surprised at ______．| A．the Chinglish expression “Long time no see” | | B．“Long time no see” used as standard American English | | C．so many literal translation of the expressions used in America | | D．finding out Americans use the expression every day |
小题2:The word “stew” in the 4th paragraph probably means ______．| A．mixture literature | B．Confucius’ words | | C．a kind of cooked dish | D．American changing cultures |
小题3:According to the passage，it can be inferred that ______．| A．detectives translate the phrase “Long time no see” | | B．Hollywood made “Long time no see” popular | | C．the huge pot of stew greatly affects all kinds of languages | | D．cultures can be changed in the huge pot of stew |
小题4:The main idea of the passage is that ______．| A．some Chinese expressions are introduced into English | | B．you’ll not be surprised at a tofu in a restaurant in America | | C．some American expressions can be used in China | | D．American English keep being enriched from different cultures |
小题5:According to the passage，which of the following statements is not true?| A．Informal language sometimes doesn’t go with grammar and structure． | | B．Languages are always ruled by grammar and structure． | | C．“Long time no see” has been used in at least four media mentioned in the passage． | | D．There are four languages mentioned to be adopted in the American stew． |
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A World of Color
No matter where you go, colors are everywhere! And while the colors may be the same, their meanings change depending on the country.
Colors
| Different Meanings
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| Green
| Green means “hope” in Ecuador. In the U.S., it’s a symbol of money and concern for the environment.
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| Purple
| Purple is worn by kings and queens in Europe, while in Thailand, it’s worn by women whose husbands have died.
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| Black
| Black is the traditional color of mourning(哀悼) in the West. But on the Pacific islands of Melanesia, it’s a symbol of beauty and speed.
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| White
| White is considered a pure color and is worn at weddings in America. In parts of Asia, however, white is worn to funerals(葬礼) as a sign of winter, when everything is dead.
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| Red
| Red means “beautiful” in Russia, but in South Africa, it’s the color of mourning. In the United States, a bride would be criticized(批评) for wearing a red gown. In India or China, though, brides often wear red as a symbol of good fortune.
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Colors mean different things in different countries. No matter what the meaning is, color adds interest to our lives and makes them brighter.
小题1:In the US if you prefer the color_____, it will probably show that you are concerned about the environment. | A．green | B．purple | C．black | D．white |
小题2:How many colors mentioned in the passage can be used as a sign of mourning?| A．Five. | B．Four. | C．Three. | D．Two. |
小题3:If a bride is wearing a red gown in the wedding, she must come from_____.| A．Thailand | B．America | C．India | D．South Africa |
小题4:Which is true according to the passage?| A．White stands for purity in China. | | B．An American bride will wear a red gown on the wedding. | | C．Black is a symbol of beauty and speed in the west. | | D．Purple is worn by kings and queens in Europe |
小题5:What can we infer from the passage?| A．All the colors have different meanings in different countries. | | B．From country to country, people view colors differently. | | C．All the brides from China prefer to wear white gowns. | | D．White is considered a pure color and often worn to funerals. |
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More than a century ago, the composer and bandleader John Philip Sousa warned that technology would destroy music, who said, “These talking machines are going to ruin the artistic development of music in this country. When I was a boy … in front of every house in the summer evenings you would find young people together singing the songs of the day or the old songs. Today you hear these terrible machines going night and day. We will not have a vocal cord (声带) left.”
Music has greatly changed in the past hundred years, which has been everywhere in our world: rivers of digital melody flow on the Internet or on disc; MP3 players with forty thousand songs can be put in a back pocket or a purse. Yet, for most of us, music is no longer something we do ourselves, or even watch other people do in front of us. It has become a radically virtual medium, an art without a face.
Ever since Edison invented the phonograph cylinder(留声机), people have been assessing what the medium of recording has done for and to the art of music. Sousa was a spokesman for the party of doom; in the opposite corner are the utopians(乌托邦), who argue that technology has not imprisoned music but liberated it. Before Edison came along, Beethoven’s symphonies could be heard only in select concert halls. Now the recordings carry the man from Bonn to the corners of the earth. Glenn Gould, after renouncing live performance in 1964, predicted that within the century the public concert would disappear into the electronic air.
Having discovered much of my favorite music through LPs and CDs, I am not about to join Sousa’s party. Modern urban environments are often so soulless or ugly that I’m grateful for the humanizing touch of electronic sound. But neither can I accept Gould’s slashing futurism. I want to be aware of technology’s effects, positive and negative. Fortunately, scholars and critics have been methodically exploring this terrain for many decades, trying to figure out exactly what happens when we listen to music with no musicians in the room.
小题1:The first paragraph is intended to .| A．defend an argument | B．make a prediction | | C．criticize an attitude | D．summarized a viewpoint |
小题2:The author’s attitude towards the recorded music may best be described as .| A．dissatisfied | B．defensive | C．optimistic | D．objective |
小题3:The underlined word “terrain” in the last paragraph most nearly means .| A．region | B．subject | C．land | D．distinction |
小题4:The primary purpose of the passage is to .| A．explain different attitudes of scholars and critics | | B．defend the view of one group from the criticism of another | | C．advocate an unexpected solution to a pressing problem | | D．present the key issues in an ongoing debate |
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In English the spelling of words does not always represent the sound. So people say /rait/ but spell it right or write, or even rite. Combinations of letters may be pronounced in many ways. And some words just seem to have too many letters.
For Americans things are a little bit easier, thanks to the work of Noah Webster, a teacher who graduated from Yale University in 1778. As a young man, he had fought against the British in the American War of Independence, and he felt that written English in the newly independent United States should have a distinctive American look.
So he began his work on American English. His first book, The Elementary Spelling Book, suggested simplifying the spelling of English words. The book was extremely popular. By the 1850s, it was selling one million copies a year, making it one of the most popular school books ever.
Many of the suggestions were quickly adopted. Center instead of centre, program instead of programme, and flavor instead of flavour. Others, however, such as removing silent letters like s in island or the final e in examine, were not .
Webster is best known for his American Dictionary of the English language, which first appeared in 1828. It introduced lots of new American words, with information about their pronunciation and use, and, of course, the new spelling. The British criticized the dictionary, but it quickly became a standard reference book in the States. Today, Webster"s dictionary is still the number one dictionary for American students.
小题1:What is the text mainly about? | A．Webster and his best sellers. | | B．British and American English. | | C．The history of American English. | | D．The man who made spelling simple. |
小题2:Which is the right order according to the text?
①Webster graduated from Yale University.
②American Dictionary of the English language came out.
③Webster"s book was selling one million copies a year.
④Webster took part in the American War of Independence.小题3:What can we learn from the text?
A. All the spelling of words does not represent the sound.
B. The Elementary Spelling Book was published in the 1850s.
C. Webster"s suggestions were accepted completely.
小题4:What attitude do the British have towards Webster"s dictionary?| A．They thought highly of it. | | B．They found fault with it. | | C．They argued bitterly about it. | | D．They followed the examples of it. |
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