When I was growing up in America, I was ashamed of my mother’s Chinese English. Because of her English, she was often treated unfairly. People in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.
　　My mother has long realized the limitations of her English as well. When I was fifteen, she used to have me call people on the phone to pretend I was she. I was forced to ask for information or even to yell at people who had been rude to her. One time I had to call her stockbroker (股票经纪人). I said in an adolescent voice that was not very convincing, "This is Mrs. Tan.”
　　And my mother was standing beside me, whispering loudly, "Why he don’t send me check, already two week late.”
　　And then, in perfect English I said, "I’m getting rather concerned. You agreed to send the check two weeks ago, but it hasn’t arrived. "
　　Then she talked more loudly.  "What he want? I come to New York tell him front of his boss. "And so I turned to the stockbroker again, "I can’t tolerate any more excuse. If I don’t receive the check immediately, I am going to have to speak to your manager when I am in New York next week. "
　　The next week we ended up in New York. While I was sitting there red-faced, my mother, the real Mrs. Tan, was shouting to his boss in her broken English.
　　When I was a teenager, my mother’s broken English embarrassed me. But now, I see it differently. To me, my mother’s English is perfectly clear, perfectly natural. It is my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, and full of observation and wisdom. It was the language that helped shape the way I saw things, expressed ideas, and made sense of the world.
【小题1】Why was the author’s mother poorly served?

A．She was unable to speak good English.	B．She was often misunderstood.
C．She was not clearly heard.	D．She was not very polite.

【小题2】From Paragraph 2,we know that the author was        .

A．good at pretending	B．rude to the stockbroker
C．ready to help her mother	D．unwilling to phone for her mother

【小题3】After the author made the phone call,       .

A．they forgave the stockbroker	B．they failed to get the check
C．they went to New York at once	D．they spoke to their boss at once

【小题4】What does the author think of her mother’s English now?

A．It confuses her.	B．It makes her ashamed
C．It helps her understand the world.	D．It helps her bear rude people.

【小题5】We can infer from the passage that Chinese English       .

A．is clear and natural to non-native speakers

B．is interesting and straight to non-native speakers

C．leaves a very bad impression on America

D．may bring inconvenience in America

Everyday, 340 million people speak it. One billion people are learning it and it is said that by 2050, half of the world’s population will be using it. What are we talking about? That is the global language—English.

The English language started in Britain in the 5th century. It is a mixed language. It was built up when German. Scandinavian and French invaders settled in England and created a common language for communication.

Today it is the official language of the UK, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Ireland as well as many islands in the Caribbean. Many other countries and regions use it for politics and business, for example, India. Pakistan, Nigeria and the Philippines. English is also one of the official languages of Hong Kong.

But global advertising and pop music mean that in most countries, you will see or hear some English. Thanks to McDonalds, we all know about “burgers”. “fries” and “milkshakes”. Songs by Madonna, Britney Spears and Celine Dion are in English. We can sing along, even if we do not understand what we are singing!

English is a messy (杂乱的) language. Every year, dictionaries include new words that talk about popular culture, for example, computer-related words such as "blogging", "download" and "chartroom". Also included are words that teenagers use. Who does not know “cool”, “OK” and “hello”?

Other languages also influence English. Many English words come from French. Words like “café” and expressions like “c'est la vie” (that is life) are all part of the English language. On the other hand, the French language includes English words like "le weekend" and "le camping". German words are also part of English. Words like "kindergarten" come from the German language.

Recently, British people have become interested in “yoga”. But the word comes from an ancient Hindu language in India.

1. The English language has a history of ______.

A. over 2000 years             B. over 500 years 

C. over 1500 years             D. over 1000 years

2.The underlined expression “thanks to” can be replaced by ______.

A. because of       B. in order to     C. as usual    D. as if.

3.Which of the following statements is true about the language of English?

A. It has been changing all the time.

B. It has borrowed words from all the other languages.

C. French words are used by the English because dictionaries have French words.

D. Singers and film stars have the greatest influence on language.

4. How many people in the world are using English now?

A. One billion people                B. 340 million

C. almost all the people in the world.

D. not mentioned above, but the number is growing rapidly.

5. Many countries and regions use it for politics and business except______.

A. the USA      B. Nigeria   C. the Philippines     D. Norway

 

Tom, who _________English for 20 years in English, now has been appointed headmaster of our school．

A．had taught

B．has taught

C．taught

D．had been teaching

 

 

Ⅲ.阅读（共两节，满分40分）

阅读理解（共15小题；每小2分，满分30分）

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

   When I was growing up in America, I was ashamed of my mother’s Chinese English. Because of her English, she was often treated unfairly. People in department stores, at banks,

And at restaurants did not take her seriously ,did not give her good service ,pretended not to

Understand her ,or even acted as if they did not hear her .  

My mother has realized the limitations of her English as well. When I was fifteen, she used to have me call people on phone to pretend I was she . I was forced to ask for information or even to yell at people who had been rude to her. One time I had to call her stockbroker (股票经纪人).I said in an adolescent voice that was not very convincing, “This is Mrs.Tan..”

   And my mother was standing beside me ,whispering loudly, “Why he don’t send me cheek already two week lone.”

And then , in perfect English I said : “I’m getting rather concerned .You agreed to send the check two weeks ago, but it hasn’t arrived.”

Then she talked more loudly. “What he want? I come to New York tell him front of his boss.” And so I turned to the stockbroker again, “I can’t tolerate any more excuse. If I don’t receive the check immediately , I am going to have to speak to your manager when I am in New York next week.”

The next week we ended up in New York. While I was sitting there red-faced, my mother, the real Mrs.Tan, was shouting to his boss in her broken English.

  When I was a teenager, my mother’s broken English embarrassed me. But now, I see it differently. To me, my mother’s English is perfectly clear, perfectly natural. It is my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, and full of observation and wisdom. It was the language that helped shape the way I saw things, expressed ideas, and made sense of the world.

1.Why was the author’s mother poorly served?

         A.She was unable to speak good English.

         B.She was often misunderstood.

         C.She was not clearly heard.

         D.She was not very polite.

2.From Paragorph 2, we know that the author was____________.

         A.good a pretending

         B.rude to the stockbroker

         C.ready to help her mother

         D.unwilling to phone for her mother

3.After the author made the phone call, __________

A.they forgave the stockbroker

         B.they failed to get the check

         C.they went to New York immediately

         D.they spoke to their boss at once

4.What does the author think of her mother’s English now?

         A.It confuses her.

         B.It embarrasses her.

         C.It helps her understand the world.

         D.It helps her tolerate rude people.

5.We can inter from the passage that Chinese English__________.

         A.is clear and natural to non-native speakers

         B.is vivid and direct to non-native speakers

         C.has a verv bad reputation in America

         D.may bring inconvenience in America

 

English nowadays is widely used in science, business, the media and popular culture. For example, 80% of e-mails on the internet are in English. But where will English be at the end of the 21^st century?
One view is that English is going to become even more important as a global language, being most widely used in trade and media while some other languages will become less important or just disappear. Another view is that English is already breaking up into several separate languages. There are already dictionaries of the “New Englishes”, such as Australian English, full of words that a British English speaker would not recognize.
Hopefully, neither of these things will happen. Although different varieties of English will continue to develop around the world, standard English will survive for international       communication. However, it is impossible for one language to totally control the world. Already, other languages are fighting back against the control of English on the net. Governments around the world are also starting to protect smaller languages and recognize the importance of keeping a variety of cultures and languages. English will probably stay in control for a long time, but it certainly won’t become the only language in the world.
【小题1】 According to the situation, how many people do you think speak English now?

A．200 million

B．300 million

C．500 million

D．a billion

【小题2】At present, what is the most important language in the world?

A．Chinese

B．English

C．French

D．German

【小题3】What is the best title of the passage?

A．The Change of English	B．Different Varieties of English
C．The Future of English	D．The Cause of English Change