What’s a “gift”? If you look it up in the dictionary, you’ll see that it’s anoth

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What’s a “gift”? If you look it up in the dictionary, you’ll see that it’s another word for a present. For example, “They brought him some gifts.” However, if you’re German, “gift” means something completely different: poison!
This word “gift” is an example of a false friend--- a word that looks the same in two languages, but which actually has two different meanings. As English is basically a mixture of German, French and Latin, there are many words that are similar in these languages. For example, the English word “education” is “education” in Spanish. And the English words “word, book, nine, house” are “Wort, Buch, Neun, Haus” in german.
These similar-looking words can be very helpful when learning other languages --- they’re our “friends”. However, sometimes they can turn out or be “false friends”. Here are a few examples.
In English, someone who is “sensible” thinks before they act and shows good judgement. For example , “The sensible thing to do would be to consult a lawyer.” However, in Spanish, “sensible ” means “sensitive” (showing understanding of other people’s problems, needs or feelings).
The English word “coin” refers to a piece of money made of metal. For example, “I had a few coins in my pocket.” But the French word “coin” means “corner”.
The English word “library” is a place where you can go to borrow books. For example, “I borrowed six books from the library.” But the Spanish word “libreria” refers to a bookshop (where you buy books).
The English word “actually” means “in fact”. For example, “Actually I’m not Italian, I’m form American.” But the Spanish word “actualmente” means “currently” or “at the moment”.
Finally, the English word “embarrassed” means “ashamed”. For example, “They looked a bit embarrassed.” However, the Spanish term “embarazada” means “pregnant” (with a child).
小题1: We can learn from the first two paragraphs that English _______.

A．is easy to master

B．is simpler than Spanish

C．has a complex background

D．has changed greatly throughout history

小题2: Which of the following pairs of words are true friends according to the author?

A．Nine and Neun.	B．Library and libreria.
C．Actually and actualmente.	D．Embarrassed and embarazada.

小题3: According to the text, in Spanish ______.

A．“coin” means “corner”

B．“gift” refers to something negative

C．“educacion” simply means “book”

D．“sensible” doesn’t necessarily means “wise”

小题4: The author develops the text mainly by ______.

A．following the order of space	B．comparing different ideas
C．providing typical examples	D．analyzing the cause and effect

答案

小题1:C
小题2:A
小题3:D
小题4:C

解析

试题分析：本文讲的是英语是德语、法语、拉丁语的混合语言，有很多单词看起来很相似，这对学习其他语言是有帮助的，但还有很多单词虽然看起来相似，意思上却有很大的不同，即false friend 。文章中举了很多这样的例子

。

小题1:细节理解题。根据文章第二段第二句话，English is basically a mixture of German、French and Latin 可知答案选C。

小题2:细节理解题。根据文章第二段最后一句话可知选A。
小题3:细节理解题。根据文章第四段内容可知选D。
小题4:作者意图题。纵观全文可知本文中作者给出了很多的例子来说明。
考点：

举一反三

Tourism probably started in Roman times．Rich Romans visited friends and family who were working in another part of the Roman empire．But when the empire broke down, this kind of tourism stopped．
In the early 17th century, the idea of the “Grand Tour” was born．Rich young English people sailed across the English Channel（英吉利海峡）．They visited the most beautiful and important European cities of the time, including Paris in France, and Rome and Venice（威尼斯）in Italy．Their tours lasted for two to four years, and the tourists stayed a few weeks or months in each city．The “Grand Tour” was an important part of young people’s education—but only for the rich．
In the 18th century, tourism began to change．For example, people in the UK started to visit some towns, such as Bath to “take the waters”．They believed that the water there was good for their health．So large and expensive hotels were built in these towns．
In the 19th century, travel became much more popular and faster．When the first railways were built in the 1820s, it was easier for people to travel between towns, so they started to go for holidays by the sea．And some started to have holidays in the countryside as cities became larger, noisier and dirtier．
Traveling by sea also became faster and safer when the first steamships were built．People began to travel more to far-away countries．
The 20th century saw cars become more and more popular among ordinary people．Planes were made larger, so ticket prices dropped and more people used them．
Thus tourism grew．In 1949, Russian journalist Vladimir Raitz started a company called Horizon Holidays．The company organizes everything—plane tickets, hotel rooms, even food—and tourists pay for it all before they leave home．The package tour and modern tourist industry was born．
The first travel agency in China was set up as early as 1949．But tourism did not take off until 1978．In 2002, the industry was worth 500 billion Yuan and became an important part of China’s social development．
小题1:In the early times, the travelers __________．

A．all came from Roman

B．had lots of money

C．were very young and strong

D．traveled by boat

小题2:Which of the following is true？

A．The young men learned little from Grand Tour．

B．Tourism became faster and safer when the first railways were built in the 18^th century．

C．More people chose planes for its cheap price．

D．In 2002, tourism became a significant part of China’s social development．

小题3:_________played the most important role in the tourism development．

A．Education

B．Transportation

C．Money

D．People’s ideas

小题4:Modern tourism was born ___________．

A．in 1978

B．in Roman times

C．in the early 17th century

D．in 1949

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A fellow speaker from California named Geri flew to Japan, in her favorite jeans and a casual jacket, to give her first speech. Fourteen hours later, four perfectly dressed Japanese gentlemen greeted her at Narita Airport. Smiling and bowing low, they handed her their business cards. With her bag in one hand, Geri took their cards with the other. She thanked them, glanced briefly at the cards, and put them into her jeans pocket quickly.
When the five of them arrived at the hotel, they invited Geri to tea in the lobby (大厅). While sipping tea, the gentlemen presented her with a small gift which she eagerly opened. She was thrilled with the gift and shouted excitedly, “Oh, it’s beautiful!”
At this point, the four Japanese gentlemen stood up and, bowing only very slightly, said “Sayonara” and left immediately. Poor Geri was left astonished. What did she do wrong?
Everything! Her jeans were the first gaffe. Even if you’re coming off a bicycle in Japan, you do not meet c1ients (客人) casually dressed. The second mistake was Geri’s handling of their business cards rudely. In Japan, the business card is one of the most important communicative tools. It is always presented and accepted respectfully with both hands. However, Geri put their cards away much too quickly. In Japan, people use business cards as a conversation starter. You chat about each other’s cards and work and do not put theirs away until they gently and respectfully place yours in safekeeping. Putting it carelessly into her jeans pocket was the ultimate disrespect.
Then, the fourth horror of horrors was that Geri should not have opened the gift in front of her clients. In a land where saving face is critical, it would be embarrassing to discover the gift they gave was not as nice as the one they received. What is worse, Geri hadn’t even given them a gift!
小题1:In the four Japanese gentlemen’s eyes, Geri took their cards _____________.

A．excitedly

B．embarrassingly

C．politely

D．disrespectfully

小题2:Why did the four Japanese gentlemen leave Geri suddenly?

A．Because they couldn’t bear Geri’s behavior any longer.

B．Because they had finished the task.

C．Because Geri had something more important to do.

D．Because Geri felt embarrassed.

小题3:What does the underlined word “gaffe” in Paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．ignorance

B．sadness

C．mistake

D．carelessness

小题4:The third mistake Geri made was that she _____________.

A．used her own card as a conversation starter

B．took her clients’ cards with one hand

C．kept her clients’ cards in a wrong place

D．met her clients in jeans

小题5:What lesson can we draw from this story?

A．Honesty is the best policy.

B．Think twice before you take any action.

C．When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

D．Don"t claim to know what you don"t know.

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

Businesses put lots of time and money into new plans, programs and excellent employees with the hope things will change. Yet, at the end of the effort, not much changes. What happens?
In most cases, those new plans, programs and employees enter a company with an existing culture (文化). And plans, programs and new employees have a way of conforming to(顺应)the existing culture. The culture of your business is the result of a particular mindset, or a particular way of thinking and the general feelings about certain things. Most often, it is the mindset of the founder or people managing the business.
The founder has gotten to where he is because of his skill sets, knowledge base and personal beliefs, which unfortunately all come with inherent (固有的)limits. Why Skills, knowledge and beliefs come from what he or she already knows or has experienced. In other words, it comes from the past. We (people) try to make the past fit the future. Just because something worked in the past, doesn"t mean it is suitable for the future. As the saying goes, if you do and think what you have always done and thought, you will have what you have always had.
Therefore, lasting changes have to start with the way people think. To make changes in the way you think, you will be required to set goals beyond your basic abilities and continuously think them through. It is a way to train yourself and people to get out of the comfort zone where you feel happy with your knowledge and skills.
小题1:Which question does the author try to answer?

A．What past experience is useful for businesses

B．How much time is needed for making plans

C．How can changes be made in businesses

D．What kinds of employees are the best

小题2:Where does the business culture mainly come from?

A．The founder

B．The progress

C．The new employees

D．The collective effort

小题3:What does the author think about the mindset of the company leader?

A．It can prevent the enrichment of experience

B．It is useful far skill and knowledge learning

C．It is important for personal beliefs build-up

D．It may limit the company"s development

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

Producing money requires both artistic and technological skills. Dollar bills are made so that they are interesting to look at but very hard to copy. In total, there are sixty-five separate steps required to make a dollar bill．
The money making process begins when a yearly order is sent by the Federal Reserve Board. That order will then be divided in half. Half will be done here in Washington, D.C. and the other half will be done in Fort Worth, Texas. Next, the Bureau orders special paper which is actually cloth since it is 75% cotton and 25% linen．
This paper is made so that it can last a long time. And, it is made with details that make it hard to copy. For example, bills contain security threads. These narrow pieces of plastic are inside the paper and run along the width of the bill. This special paper is also made with very small blue and red fibers．
Once the money is printed, guillotine cutters (切纸机) separate the sheets into two notes, then into individual notes．The notes are organized in "bricks," each of which contains forty one-hundred-note packages. The bricks then go to one of twelve Federal Reserve Districts, which then give the money to local banks. Ninety-five percent of the bills printed each year are used to replace money that is in circulation, or that has already been removed from circulation．
You may know that America"s first president, George Washington, is pictured on the one- dollar bill. But do you know whose face is on the two, five, ten, twenty, fifty and one hundred-dollar bills? They are, in order. President Thomas Jefferson, President Abraham Lincoln, Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton, President Andrew Jackson, President Ulysses Grant and statesman Benjamin Franklin．
The average life span of a one-dollar bill is twenty-one months. But a ten-dollar bill lasts only about eighteen months．The one hundred-dollar bill lasts the longest, eighty-nine months．One popular question is about the two-dollar bill. This bill is not printed very often. This is because many Americans believe two-dollar bills are lucky, so they keep them．
小题1:During money production, we must consider all EXCEPT that it must .

A．last a long time	B．be hard to copy
C．be done by the president"s order	D．be interesting to look at

小题2:We can learn from the passage that the security threads .

A．are narrow pieces of plastic

B．are pressed outside the bills

C．are longer than the width of the bills

D．are actually made of cotton and linen

小题3: How many presidents are printed on the American money?

A．Four

B．Five

C．Six

D．Seven

小题4:Why are the two-dollar bills not made often?

A．Because no one wants them．

B．Because they aren"t damaged quickly like other bills．

C．Because they aren"t used in America any more．

D．Because their material is a bit more expensive．

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

Is there a limit to the number of years that a person can expect to live? Can changes in life-style add years to one’s life? Throughout history people have sought answers to these questions and others.
Various myths offer the hope of great longevity. In the imaginary land of Shangri-La, for example, people are said to lead a charmed existence for a thousand years. The Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon was convinced that he would find the Foundation of Youth in what is now the state of Florida. According to the Bible, Methuselah lived to be more than 900 years old.
The subject of longevity is fascinating, and scientists study individuals such as Jeanne Calment to learn about the aging process. Calment died in 1997 in Arles, France, at the age of 122. She never married, and she lived in her own apartment until moving to a retirement community when she was 109.
Most scientists agree that bodies will last, at best, about 125 years. This potential has changed little since modern human beings appeared more than 100 thousand years age. Recent improvements in medicine and the environment have extended life expectancy, especially for those from poorer parts of the world. It is not clear, however, whether such improvements will lengthen life expectancy beyond a certain point.
Life expectancy is the number of years an infant can be expected to live, given the conditions into which it is born. Life expectancy, therefore, is affected by nutrition, medical care, and social and political circumstances. An individual’s genetic makeup is also an important factor. Children from long-lived families can hope to enjoy long lives themselves. According to recent data, the average life expectancy worldwide in 1998 was 67 years. This can be compared with an average life expectancy of 77 in the United States.
In 1970 the average life expectancy worldwide was 61 years, or 6 years less than it was in 1998. This same period saw a drop in infant mortality -— the death of a child before the first birthday-—from 80 births out of 1,000 to 54 births out of 1,000. According to some researchers, the rise in the average life expectancy is due primarily to the drop in infant mortality. It is not so much that adults are living to an older age. It is, rather, that more people are living into adulthood because more children are surviving beyond their first birthdays.
小题1:Infant mortality is defined as ________ .

A．the number of children born alive

B．the kinds of behavior typical of very young children

C．the number of children, out of 1,000 births, who die before their first birthday

D．the typical and obvious thoughts of very young children

小题2:Although it may be possible to improve the life expectancy of a particular group of people, ________ .

A．it is more difficult to affect the rate of infant mortality

B．it is unlikely that one will be able to extend the potential life span of human beings in general

C．the process of evolution is extending the potential life span beyond 125 years

D．the potential that bodies will last, at best, about 125 years has changed much since modern human beings appeared

小题3:One can infer that people have at times imagined that ________ .

A．people live longer in the state of Florida

B．a long life is a burden rather than a blessing

C．it is possible to find a way to live for centuries

D．life expectancy is affected by a couple of factors

小题4:One can conclude that ________ .

A．the aging process can be stopped.

B．the aging process is inevitable.

C．life expectancy in the United States will soon reach 125 years.

D．the average life expectancy worldwide is decreasing

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案