Question

As is often the case, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer. But there is one question that has millions of current answers. That question is "What's your name?" Everyone gives a different answer, but everyone is correct.

Have you ever thought about people's names? Where do they come from? What do they mean?

People's first names, or given names, are chosen by their parents. Sometimes the name of a grandparent or other member of the family is used. Some parents choose the name of a well-known person. A boy could be named George Washington Smith; a girl could be named Helen Keller Jones.

Some people give their children names that mean good things. Clara means "bright"; Beatrice means "one who gives happiness"; Donald means "world ruler"; Leonard means “as brave as a lion”.

The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names. A family with the name Brook or Brooks probably lived near brook(小溪); someone who was called Longstreet probably lived on a long, paved road. The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest.

Other early surnames came from people's occupations. The most common occupational name is Smith, which means a person who makes things with iron or other metals. In the past, smiths were very important workers in every town and village. Some other occupational names are: Carter — a person who owned or drove a cart; Potter — a person who made pots and pans.

The ancestors of the Baker family probably baked bread for their neighbors in their native village. The Carpenter's great-great-great-grandfather probably built houses and furniture.

Sometimes people were known for the color of their hair or skin, or their size, or their special abilities. When there were two men who were named John in the same village, the John with the gray hair probably became John Gray. Or the John was very tall could call himself John Tallman. John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer.

Some family names were made by adding something to the father's name. English-speaking people added –s or –son. The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family's ancestor was Robert. Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O. Perhaps all of the MacDonnell’s and the McDonnell’s and the O’Donnell’s are descendants of the same Donnell.

1.Which of the following aspects do the surnames in the passage NOT cover?

A. People's characters.

B. Talents that people possessed.

C. People's occupations.

D. Places where people lived.

2.According to the passage, the ancestors of the Potter family most probably ________.

A. made things with metals

B. made kitchen tools or contains

C. built houses and furniture

D. owned or drove a cart

3.Suppose an English couple whose ancestors lived near a leafy forest wanted their new-born son to become a world leader, the baby might be named ________.

A. Leonard CarterB. George Longstreet

C. Donald GreenwoodD. Beatrice Smith

4.The underlined word "descendants” in the last paragraph means a person's ________.

A. friends and relatives

B. colleagues and partners

C. grandparents

D. later generations

Answer

1.A

2.B

3.C

4.D

【解析】

试题分析：本文讲述英语中姓氏的来源和意义。

1. 细节理解题。根据文中介绍可知，最早的姓氏来自：1.人们生活的地点；2.人们的工作；3.与他们的特殊能力有关。没说人的姓与人的性格有关。故选A项。

2. 细节理解题。根据Potter—a person who made pots and pans.（Potter是一个制作锅的人。）可知，选B。

3. 推理判断题。根据The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest.和Donald means “world ruler”可知，如果一对夫妇他们的祖先住在茂密的森林附近，想让他们新出生的孩子将来成为一个“世界的统治者”，那么叫Donald Greenwood最合适，故选C。

4. 词义猜测题。根据本段的主题句子Some family names were made by adding something to the father's name. 一些家庭的名字是在父亲的名字基础上加东西形成的。English-speaking people added –sor –son. The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family's ancestor was Robert.说英语的国家加上–sor –son。Johnsons是John的后代，the Roberts家族的祖先是Robert。 Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O. 爱尔兰和苏格兰人加上Mac ，Mc或者O.。故这里划线的句子Perhaps all of the MacDonnell’s and the McDonnell’s and the O’Donnell’s are descendants of the same Donnell.或许，所有的MacDonnell’s，McDonnell’s和O’Donnell’s都是Donnell的后代。故descendants的意思是“后代”，故选D。

考点：考查文化类短文阅读。

【名师点睛】

我们在做阅读理解时的具体步骤：

（1）先精读问题，了解题后做到心中有数。

（2）用目光略读全文，捕捉有关信息。可利用标题、主题句等。例如，读记叙文时我们要问5W，即为何(Why)、什么(What)、谁(Who)、何时(When)、何地(Where)、怎样(How)。例如要找一个人名，我们可以直接找到含有这个人名的句子。（3）停下来读这个句子。如果是答案。我们这个问题就解决了，如果不是，可以继续搜寻查找。同时注意一些关键的提示词和标点符号。如本文的57小题，根据The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest.和Donald means “world ruler”可知，如果一对夫妇他们的祖先住在茂密的森林附近，想让他们新出生的孩子将来成为一个“世界的统治者”，那么叫Donald Greenwood最合适，所以选C。