The number of speakers of English in Shakespeare's time is estimated to have been about five million. Today it is estimated that some 260 million people speak it as a native language, mainly in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In addition to the standard varieties of English found in these areas, there are a great many regional and social varieties of the language as well as various levels of usage that are employed both in its spoken and written forms.
In fact, it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an adequate working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages. The purpose for English learning and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.
The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its presentday importance as a world language. Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers, English is a language in which some of important works in science, technology, and other fields are being produced, and not always by native speakers. It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications, international conferences, and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations. It is a language of wider communication for a number of developing countries, especially former British colonies. Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication in such matters as government, commerce, industry, law and education as well as for international communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.
1.Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A. Some 260 million people in the world have an adequate working knowledge of English.
B. There are some 260 million native speakers of English in the world.
C. It is almost impossible to estimate the number of people with an adequate working knowledge of English.
D. People learn English for a variety of reasons.
2.According to the passage, what is the main reason for the widespread use of English?
A. It was popular during Shakespeare's time.
B. It is used in former British colonies.
C. It serves the needs of its native speakers.
D. It is a world language that is used for international communication.
3.What forms an adequate working knowledge of English?
A. The ability to read a newspaper.
B. It is difficult to judge because it differs for each situation.
C. Being a multilingual.
D. Being a native speaker.
4.What type of developing countries would be most likely to use English?
A. Those geographically close to the United States.
B. Those interested in the culture of the United States.
C. Former colonies of Great Britain.
D. Countries where international conferences are held.
Boys need friends, suffer when they don't believe they have any, and worry over the ups and downs of relationships. Many adults believe that somehow boys need friends less than girls do, in truth, though, no boy is an island; boys value their friends throughout childhood and adolescence and are happier and healthier when they have solid relationships with peers.
Despite the common belief that girls are better at relationships, most boys consider their friends a very important part of their lives, and boys may actually be better at keeping friendships than girls are. A recent study of 10 to 15yearold boys and girls found that girls' friendships are actually more fragile. Girls tend to say and do hurtful things to each other more frequently than boys, and girls are more hurt by the end of a friendship.
Boys are the living definition of the phrase “peer group”; they love games with rules, competition, and doing things together. Boys seem to enjoy, even need the opportunity to test themselves against others, and many lasting friendships begin in karate (空手道) class or on the basketball court. Competence and skill are widely respected; being picked last for a team or left out altogether is an experience that can haunt (萦绕心头) a boy for years.
As boys mature, the friendship becomes even more important, and it frequently widens to include girls. During the teen years, friends can become the most important part of a boy's life—and a part in which his parents are not included. The confusion of being a teenager leads boys to form close bonds with friends. There is the sense for many boys that a friend is someone who is “always there for me”， someone he can trust. They may be partners in crime or partners in study, but the friendship of adolescent boys can run surprisingly deep.
1.According to the text, boys' friendship________.
A. is usually built around active play
B. tends to be in small groups
C. can bear mutual hurt between friends
D. doesn't suffer from failure
2.The author mentions the study in the second paragraph to prove ________.
A. many people believe girls are better at relationships
B. most boys consider their friends very important
C. boys may be better at keeping friendships than girls
D. boys may be more active in a friendship
3.As a boy gets older, he tends to________.
A. widen his circle of friends to include different kinds of people
B. shift his focus from his friends to himself
C. leave his parents out of his friendship
D. be confused about what a friendship is
4.What's the best title for the text?
A. Friendships between Boys and Girls
B. Boys and Their Friendship
C. Childhood and Adolescent Friendship
D. Tips on Making Friends with Boys
China is going green. In order to reduce air pollution and oil shortages, automobile manufacturers have announced their plans to develop hybrid vehicles (混合燃料汽车) for the Chinese market. Toyota's hybrid car Prius will be ready to drive in China this week. Let's have a look at the new car.
Any vehicle is a hybrid when it combines two or more sources of power. Hybrid cars run off a rechargeable battery and gasoline. Hybrid cars have special engines, which are smaller than traditional gasoline engines. They run at 99 percent of their power when the car is cruising (匀速行驶). A specially designed battery motor provides extra power for running up hills or when extra acceleration is needed.
Step into a Prius, and turn on the engine. The first thing you notice is how much quieter it is than a traditional car. At this point, the car's gasoline engine is dormant (休眠). The electric motor will provide power until the car reaches about 24 km/h. If you stay at a low speed, you are effectively driving an electric car, with no gasoline being used, and no waste gas gives off.
The onboard (车载的) computer makes the decision about when to use a gas engine, when to go electric, and when to use a combination of the two. If you go over 24 km/h, when you step on the gas pedal (油门), you are actually telling the computer how fast you want to go.
The electronic motor recharges automatically using a set of batteries. When driving at high speed, the gasoline engine not only powers the car, but also charges the batteries. Any time you use the brake, the electric motor in the wheels will work like a generator and produce electricity to recharge the batteries. As a consequence, the car's batteries will last for around 200,000 miles.
1.The author writes this passage mainly to________.
A. teach people how to drive a hybrid car
B. introduce a new kind of “green” car
C. show how to save their gasoline when driving a car
D. announce plans to develop hybrid vehicles for China
2.Which of the followings is NOT true?
A. The hybrid cars reduce air pollution and oil shortages.
B. The car's gasoline engine doesn't work until it reaches about 24 km/h.
C. This kind of car is completely controlled by an onboard computer.
D. A specially designed battery motor provides extra power when needed.
3.What is the most important feature of hybrid cars?
A. They are powered by both a rechargeable battery and gasoline.
B. They are much quieter than traditional cars.
C. They only use 99 percent of their power to run up hills.
D. They have smaller engines than traditional gasoline ones.
4.What can we conclude from the story?
A. The batteries can be recharged at any time you want.
B. Using the brake suggests that the gasoline engine should work.
C. The batteries will last for 200, 000 miles without being recharged.
D. The gasoline engine charges the batteries as well as powers the car.
It was the summer of 1965. Deluca, then 17, visited Peter Buck, a family friend. Buck asked Deluca about his plan for the future. “I'm going to college, but I need a way to pay for it,” Deluca recalls saying, “Buck said, ‘you should open a sandwich shop.’”
That afternoon, they agreed to be partners. And they set a goal: to open 32 stores in ten years. After doing some research, Buck wrote a check for $1,000. Deluca rented a storefront (店面) in Connecticut, and when they couldn't cover their startup costs, Buck kicked in another $1,000.
But business didn't go smoothly as they expected. Deluca says, “After six months, we were doing poorly, but we didn't know how badly, because we didn't have any financial controls.” All he and Buck knew was that their sales were lower than their costs.
Deluca was managing the store and to the University of Bridgeport at the same time. Buck was working at his day job as a nuclear physicist in New York. They'd meet Monday evenings and brainstorm ideas for keeping the business running. “We convinced ourselves to open a second store. We figured we could tell the public, ‘We are so successful; we are opening a second store.’” And they did—in the spring of 1966. Still, it was a lot of learning by trial and error.
But the partners' learnasyougo approach turned out to be their greatest strength. Every Friday, Deluca would drive around and handdeliver the checks to pay their supplies. “It probably took me two and a half hours and it wasn't necessary but as a result, the suppliers got to know me very well, and the personal relationships established really helped out,” Deluca says.
And having a goal was also important. “There are so many problems that can get you down. You just have to keep working toward your goal,” Deluca adds.
Deluca ended up founding Subways Sandwich, the multimilliondollar restaurant chain.
1. Which of the following is true of Buck?
A. He put money into the sandwich business.
B. He was a professor of business administration.
C. He was studying at the University of Bridgeport.
D. He rented a storefront for Deluca.
2.What can we learn about their first shop?
A. It stood at an unfavorable place.
B. It lowered the prices to poor management.
C. It made no profits due to poor management.
D. It lacked control over the quality of sandwich.
3.They decided to open a second store because they ________.
A. had enough money to do it
B. had succeeded in their business
C. wished to meet the increasing demand of customers
D. wanted to make believe that they were successful
4.What contributes most to their success according to the author?
A. Learning by trial and error.
B. Making friends with supplies.
C. Finding a good partner.
D. Opening chain stores.
I lost my sight when I was four years old by falling off a car and landing on my head. Now I am thirty-two. I can vaguely remember the brightness of _____ and what color red is. It would be _____ to see again, but a (n) ____ can do strange things to people. I don’t mean I would ____ to go without my eyes. I simply mean that the loss of them made me appreciate more what I had ____.
My parents and my teachers saw something in me ----- a ____ to live ---- which I didn’t see, and they made me want to fight in out with ___.
The ____ lesson I had to learn was to believe in myself. I am not talking about simply the kind of ____ that helps me down so unfamiliar staircase alone. I _____ something bigger than that: a confidence that I am, despite being ____, a real, positive person; that there is a special place where I can make myself fit.
It took me years to discover and strengthen this confidence. It had to start with the easy and simple things. _____ a man gave me an indoor baseball. I thought he was laughing at me and I was ____. “I can’t use this,” I said. “Take with you,” he urged me, “and roll it around.” The words _____ in my head. “Roll it around!” By rolling the ball I could ____ where it went. This gave me an idea how to achieve a goal I had thought ___ before; playing baseball. At Philadelphia’s Overbrook School for the Blind I ___ a successful variation of baseball. We called it ground ball.
I have set ahead of me a series of goals and then tried to reach them, one at a time. I had to be clear about my ___. It was no good crying for something that I knew at the start was ____ out of reach because that only invited bitterness of failure. I would fail something anyway, _____ on the average I made progress.
1.A. sky B. cloud C. sunshine D. mist
2.A. helpful B. wonderful C. hopeful D. successful
3.A. disaster B. environment C. incident D. wonder
4.A. manage B. try C. want D. prefer
5.A. lost B. left C. used D. cared
6.A. purpose B. potential C. pressure D. preparation
7.A. energy B. happiness C. luck D. blindness
8.A. hardest B. dullest C. simplest D. easiest
9.A. self-respect B. self-control C. self-confidence D. self-defence
10.A. think B. consider C. guess D. mean
11.A. imperfect B. perfect C. unfair D. fair
12.A. Later B. Soon C. Once D. Then
13.A. worried B. encouraged C. shocked D. hurt
14.A. stuck B. impressed C. occupied D. held
15.A. see B. hear C. notice D. observe
16.A. important B. unimportant C. possible D. impossible
17.A. invented B. discovered C. instructed D. directed
18.A. experience B. advantages C. knowledge D. limitation
19.A. hardly B. wildly C. highly D. deeply
20.A. so B. for C. but D. and
The driver wanted to park his car near the roadside, but was asked by the police _________.
A .not to do B. not to C. not do D. do not
