Although English is not as old as Chinese, it is spoken by many people around the world every day. English speakers are always making up new words, and we are often able to know where most come from.
Sometimes, however, no one may really know where a word comes from. Did you ever think about why hamburgers are called “hamburgers”, especially when they are not made with ham(火腿)? About a hundred years ago, some men went to America from Europe. They came from a big city in Germany called Hamburg. They didn’t speak good English, but they ate good food. When some Americans saw them eating round pieces of beef, they asked the Germans what they were. The Germans didn’t understand the question and answered, “We come from Hamburg.” One of these Americans owned a restaurant, and had an idea. He cooked some round pieces of bread with beef in them and started selling them. Such bread came to be called “hamburgers”. Today, “Hamburgers” are sold in many countries around the world.
Whether this story is true or not, it certainly is interesting. Knowing why any word has a certain meaning is interesting, too. This reason, for most English words, can be found in any large English dictionary.English is spoken by many people around the world every day, but English is ______.
A.as old as Chinese | B.older than Chinese |
C.younger than Chinese | D.older than German |
Hamburg is ______.
A.a kind of food | B.a round piece of beef |
C.the name of a country | D.a city in Germany |
According to the story, the word “hamburger” comes from ______.
A.English speakers because they’re always making up new words |
B.the round piece of beef which those people from Hamburg ate |
C.English because Germans don’t speak good English |
D.a large English dictionary |
. Which of the following is TRUE?
A.Few Americans like hamburgers. |
B.Hamburgers are made with ham. |
C.Hamburgers were first sold a century ago. |
D.Hamburgers were some people. |
. Which of the following can be found in any large dictionary?
A.Where Germans came from. |
B.Where all the new words came from. |
C.The reason why a new word has a certain meaning. |
D.Why English is spoken all over the world. |
An artist(画家)went to a beautiful place of the country for a holiday, and stayed with a farmer. Every day he went out and painted from morning to evening. When it got back, he came back to the farm and had a good dinner before he went to bed.
At the end of his holiday he wanted to pay the farmer, but the farmer said, “No, I don’t want money but give me one of your pictures. What is money? In a week it will all be finished, but your painting will be here.”
The artist was very pleased and thanked the farmer for saying such kind words. The farmer smiled and said, “I have a son in London. He wants to become an artist. What he comes here next month, I will show him your picture, and then he will not want to be an artist any more, I believe.”The artist liked to _________ near a nice place.
A.sing songs | B.dance |
C.paint pictures | D.write something |
He liked painting ________.
A.in a house | B.because he would do well in painting |
C.in the open air | D.with the most important artist |
The farmer thought that the artist ________.
A.was not good at painting | B.was really a great man |
C.did well in painting | D.was the most important artist |
The farmer’s son wanted to ________ some day.
A.be an artist | B.become a popular singer |
C.write twenty novels | D.dance around the world |
The farmer _________.
A.was a foolish man |
B.didn’t want his son to be a painter |
C.liked the artist’s picture very much |
D.couldn’t pay for his son about his paintings |
Whenever the sun dropped and the blue sky came up, my father and I used to climb the mountain near my house. Walking together, my father and I used to have a lot of conversations through which I learned lessons from his experiences. He always told me, “You should have goals like climbing the mountain.” Without the mountain-climbing that we both enjoyed, we couldn’t have enough time to spend together because my father was very busy. I really got a lot from the mountain-climbing. It gave me time to talk with my father and to be in deep thought as well as develop my patience.
Once we climbed a very high mountain. It was so challenging for me because I was only ten years old. During the first few hours of climbing, I enjoyed the flowers and trees, and the birds’ singing. But as time passed, I got a pain in both of my legs. I wanted to quit(放弃) climbing, but my father said to me, “You can always see a beautiful sky at the top of the mountain, but you can’t see it before you reach the top. Only there can you see all of the nice things, which is just like your life.”
At that time, I was too young to understand his words. But later after that, I got to know the meaning of hope in life. I found myself standing at the top of the mountain, and the sky was as clear as crystal. The passage tells us that mountain-climbing was ______ for the father and the son.
A.hard | B.enjoyable |
C.painful | D.comfortable |
The underlined word “crystal” in the passage means _______.
A.岩石 | B.火焰 | C.水晶 | D.寒冰 |
Which of the following is the closest in meaning to the father’s words in the second paragraph?
A.You will get all you need at the top of the mountain. |
B.The sky is always as clear as crystal. |
C.You can find life is full of nice things. |
D.Never give up half-way. |
“Tom? Are you in bed yet?” called Mrs. White. There was no answer. Mrs. White put down her book and went to her 14-year-old son’s room. Tom was sitting in front of a bright computer screen on which a motorbike was running fast.
“Oh, Tom. You’re still playing that computer game. You must stop now, because it’s half past eleven. If you don’t go to bed soon, you’ll be very tired tomorrow. ” said Mrs. White.
“But I’ve nearly won the game. ” Tom said to Mrs. White. She could see the excitement on his face. She sat down beside him.
“You’re always playing on the computer. You spend more time on this machine than on your homework. ”
Today more and more families have computers. Parents hope computers can help their children improve their study at school. But many of their children use computers to play games and watch videos instead of studying. We often see that computer net bars are crowded with people, especially young boys. They spend a lot of money competing(竞争) with the computerized (用计算机控制的) machines. The more they lose, the more they want to win. The result is that they don’t want to work or study.
In some countries, even scientists hate computers. They say computers cause millions of people to lose their jobs or cause them a lot of trouble. Computer game addiction(瘾) is a serious problem in social(社会的) life. Something should have to be done to solve the problem.How did Mrs. White feel when she saw her son playing late?
A.She felt excited. | B.She felt happy. |
C.She felt worried. | D.She felt wonderful. |
Parents hope computers can _____.
A.help their children improve their study at school |
B.help their children play well |
C.help their children know a lot of Internet knowledge |
D.help their children relax themselves |
Many children use computers to _____.
A.watch videos B.listen to songs
C.play games D.A、B and CThe writer thinks _____.
A.the boys can go to the computer net bars, but the girls can’t |
B.the computer net bars are very useful |
C.the children spend too much money on computer games |
D.the children should play computer games |
Why do some scientists hate computers?
A.They think computers cause millions of people to lose their jobs.
B.They think computers cause millions of people a lot of trouble.
C.They think it’s a waste of time to use computers.
D.Both A and B.
A kind of little cars may take the place of today’s big ones many years later. If everyone drives such cars in the future, there will be less pollution in the air. There will also be more space for parking in cities, and the streets will be less crowded.
The little cars of the future will cost less. Driving will be safer, too, since these little cars can go only 65 kilometers an hour. The cars of the future will be fine for going around a city, but they will not be useful for a long way. Little cars will go 450 kilometers before they need to stop for more gasoline (汽油). If big cars are still used with the small ones, two kinds of roads will be needed in the future. Some roads will be needed for the big, faster cars and other roads will be needed for the small, slower ones.
根据短文内容,选择正确答案。There is much pollution in the air today because _____.
A.people drive big cars |
B.people drive little cars |
C.small cars will go 450 kilometers before they need to stop for more gasoline |
D.the usual size of cars today is too small |
The usual size of cars today is _____.
A.much smaller than the future one |
B.as big as the future ones |
C.as small as the future ones |
D.bigger than the future ones |
Which of the following statements (陈述) is NOT true?
A.Big cars cost more. |
B.Big cars are not useful for a long way. |
C.The cars of the future will be smaller than today’s cars. |
D.Small cars are slower than big ones. |
The streets will be less crowded because _____.
A.there will be fewer cars in the future |
B.there will be fewer people in the streets |
C.three kinds of roads will be built |
D.future cars will be smaller |
Two kinds of roads will be needed in the future because _____.
A.there will be too many cars in the future |
B.more and more people will go to cities |
C.big cars run faster and little cars run slower |
D.it looks more beautiful to have two kinds of roads |
Daniel wakes up in the morning and collects his post. There’s a letter for him with a picture of a sick horse. It’s from a charity(慈善机构), asking him to give money to help save the animals. The doorbell rings and there is an old woman on Daniel’s doorstep(门外的台阶). She is asking for money to help old people. When he turns on the TV, he hears sad music and sees a picture of a weak child who is dying of hunger in Africa. He knows those poor children need money. He is always ready to help those in trouble.
In May 2003, Yao Ming, a basketball star, held a TV show in Shanghai and he collected$300, 000 to help scientists with medical research.“We must do something to help our country at this difficult time.”he said.
People such as Daniel and Yao Ming feel good about helping others with money.
根据短文内容, 判断正(T)误(F)。Daniel always collects letters in the evening.
Daniel often looks after a sick horse.
From this passage, we learn that Yao Ming is kind and helpful.
Many people such as Daniel and Yao Ming like helping others with money.
This passage is mainly about charity.