No one knows how man learned to make words. Perhaps he began by making sounds like those made by animals. Perhaps he grunted like a pig when he lifted something heavy. Perhaps he made sounds like those he heard all round him—water splashing, bees humming, a stone falling to the ground. Somehow he learned to make words. As the centuries went by, he made more and more new words. This is what we mean by language.

People living in different countries made different kinds of words. Today there are about fifteen hundred different languages in the world. Each contains four or five hundred thousand words. But we do not need all these. Only a few thousand words are used in everyday life. The words you know are called your vocabulary. You should try to make your vocabulary larger. Read as many books as you can. There are plenty of books written in easy language. Your dictionary is your most useful book.

1. What do we mean by language?

A. Sounds made by man.???????

B. All the words made by man.

C. Different kinds of sound.?????

D. The way man learns.

2. Form the passage we know that long long ago________.

A. no one learned how to make sounds or words

B. animals taught man to learn the language

C. man learned the language by lifting heavy things, falling to the ground,and so on

D. man followed a lot of things in nature to make sounds and words

3. What is the number of languages spoken in the world today?

A. 500. ????????????? ????????????? B. 5,000.????????????? ????????????? C. 1,500.????????????? ????????????? D. 15,000.

4.In which sentence can the word "contain(s)" be put so that it is a right one?

A. I________ several dictionaries. ????????????? B. Sea water________ salt.

C. A dog _______ four legs.????? ????????????? D. Mr. Smith _____ glasses on his nose.

5. Which of the followings is the best if we want to make our vocabulary larger?

A. To read more books.????????????? ????????????? ???

B. To use the words in everyday life.

C. To use the words in class.????? ?????????????

D. To write the words.

　　It is sometimes said that the English are polite people. This can make life difficult for foreigners. Suppose a foreign boy asks an English girl to go out with him and she says, “If I finish my work, I'll meet you in the cafe at 7 o'clock.” Is she saying “yes” or “no” to his invitation?

　　In grammatical terms, she is using the conditional structure. By using the conditional, speakers of English can avoid giving a “yes” or “no” answer to a question. It enables people to be diplomatic. If the girl doesn't want to go out with the boy, she won't turn up at the cafe. She will let him understand she is still working. If she wants to go out with him, but doesn't want to appear too easy to catch, she has achieved that with her reply. But in this case, as she uses the first conditional which shows probability, she is quite likely to turn up at the cafe. Being polite can make life very difficult!

　　The conditional is often used by people in the news－politicians, for example－who wish to avoid speaking out their ideas. This is very important if they are on their way to discuss an agreement. No one wants to give away his or her points before he or she starts. A government spokesman might say to a group of workers, “If we could pay you more, we would.” The use of the conditional here makes room for argument although the speaker is using the second conditional form, which shows improbability. So it is unlikely the workers will get their rise.

　　“If” is a small word, which appears often in the English language. It can show politeness, reported speech and conditionals such as the First－probability－if I can come to your party, I will; the Second－improbability－if I saw you tomorrow, I'd give you the book; and the Third－impossibility (meaning it is too late to change something that has happened)－if you have told me, I would have helped you.

　　注：conditional structure表示条件的句式，avoid避免，diplomatic婉转的，achieve达到，politician政客

1．The using of the conditional can make a speech ________.

[　　]

2．Which of the following is TURE according to the passage?

[　　]

A．Language used in the news should make room to argue.

B．Usually English girls are not easy to catch.

C．English people never speak out their ideas in public.

D．The word “if” can show different meanings.

3．In the passage, “If we could pay you more, we would.” probably means ________.

[　　]

A．the workers will make more money

B．the spokesman doesn't give any promise

C．the spokesman keeps his word

D．the workers' problems aren't difficult

4．This passage is mainly talking about ________.

[　　]

A．the conditional in communication

B．how to invite a girl in Britain

C．British people and their life

D．some language points in daily English

　　No one knows how man learned to make words. Perhaps he began by making sounds like those made by animals. Perhaps he grunted(发出呼噜) like a pig when he lifted something heavy. Perhaps he made sounds like those he heard all round him——water splashing(场所飞溅), bees humming(嗡嗡作响声), a stone falling to the ground. Somehow he learned to make words. As the centuries went by, he made more and more new words. This is what we mean by language.

　　People living in different countries made different kinds of words. Today there are about fifteen hundred different languages in the world. Each contains four or five hundred thousand words. But we do not need all these. Only a few thousand words are used in everyday life.

　　The words you know are called your vocabulary. You should try to make your vocabulary bigger. Read as many books as you can. There are plenty of books written in easy language. Your dictionary is your most useful book.

1．What do we mean by language?

[　　]

A．Sounds made by man.

B．All the words made by man.

C．Different kinds of sound.

D．The way man learns.

2．From the passage we know that long long ago ________.

[　　]

A．no one learned how to make sounds or words

B．animals taught to learn the language

C．man learned the language by lifting heavy things, falling to the ground, and so on

D．man followed a lot of things in nature to make sounds and words

3．What is the number of language spoken in the world today?

[　　]

4．In which sentence can the word “contain (s)” be put so that it is a right one?

[　　]

A．I ________ several dictionary.

B．Sea water ________ salt.

C．A dog ________ four legs.

D．Mr Smith ________ glasses on his nose.

5．Which of the following is the best if we want to make our vocabulary larger?

[　　]

A．To use the words in every day life.

B．To read more books.

C．To read easy books.

D．To look up new words in the dictionary.

　　No one knows how man learned to make words. Perhaps he began by making sounds like those made by animals. Perhaps he grunted (发出呼噜声) like a pig when he lifted something heavy. Perhaps he made sounds like those he heard all round him－water splashing (飞溅), bees humming (嗡嗡作响声), a stone falling to the ground. Somehow he learned to make words. As the centuries went by, he made more and more new words. This is what we mean by language.

　　People living in different countries made different kinds of words. Today there are about fifteen hundred different languages in the world. Each contains many thousands of words. A very large English dictionary, for example, contains four or five hundred thousand words. But we do not need all these. Only a few thousand words are used in everyday life.

　　The words you know are called your vocabulary. You should try to make your vocabulary bigger. Read as many books as you can. There are plenty of books written in easy English for you to read. You will enjoy them. When you meet a new word, find it in your dictionary. Your dictionary is your most useful book.

1．What do we mean by language?

[　　]

A．Sounds made by man.

B．All the words made by man.

C．Different kinds of sounds.

D．The way man learns.

2．From the passage we know that long long ago ________.

[　　]

A．no one learned how to make sounds or words

B．animals taught man to learn the language

C．man learned the language by lifting heavy things, falling to the ground, and so on

D．man followed a lot of things in nature to make sounds and words

3．What is the number of languages spoken in the world today?

[　　]

4．In which sentence can the word“contain(s)”be put so that it is a right one?

[　　]

A．I ________ several dictionaries.

B．Sea water ________ salt.

C．A dog ________ four legs.

D．Mr. Smith ________ glasses on his nose.

5．Which of the following is the best if we want to make our vocabulary larger?

[　　]

A．To use the words in everyday life.

B．To read more books.

C．To read easy books.

D．To look up new words in the dictionary.