In most languages, a greeting is usually followed by “small talk”. Small talk means the little things we talk about at the start of a conversation. In English-speaking countries people often make small talk about the weather. “Nice day, isn’t it?” “Terrible weather, isn’t it?” But there is something special about small talk. It must be about something which both people have the same opinion about. The purpose of small talk is to let both people agree on something. This makes meeting people easier and more comfortable. People usually agree about the weather, so it is a safe topic for small talk. But people often disagree about religion(宗教) or politics(政治) so these are not suitable topics for small talk. The topics for small talk also depend on where the conversation is taking place. At football matches, people make small talk about the game they are watching. “Great game, isn’t it?” At bus-stops, people may comment on the transport system. “The bus service is terrible, isn’t it?”

1.Small talk is _______________.

A．a kind of conversation with short words

B．a greeting used when people meet each other

C．to let people disagree about something

D．something we talk about to start a conversation

2.The favorite topic of small talk for English people is _________.

A．the weather       B．politics            C．games            D．languages

3.The passage suggests that when we learn a language _________.

A．we should learn about the transport system of the country

B．we should only master the grammar and the vocabulary

C．we should learn the culture of the country

D．we should understand the importance of the language

4.When we say “Great game, isn’t it?”, we are in fact __________.

A．asking a question                       B．having a conversation

C．greeting each other                     D．making small talk

5.What we learn from the passage is that __________.

A．different languages have different grammar

B．small talk is an important part of a language

C．small talk depends on the purpose of the conversation

D．in English-speaking countries we should talk about the weather

If you ask people to name a person who had the greatest effect on the English language, you will get answers like “Shakespeare” “Samuel Johnson” and “Webster”, but none of these men had any effect at all compared to a man who didn’t even speak English—William the Conqueror.

Before 1066, in the land we now call Great Britain lived people in two main language groups. One was a Celtic language, the other was what we now call Anglo-Saxon (or old English), a Germanic language. If this had lasted, English today would be close to German.

But this didn’t last. In 1066 the Normans led by William began their rule over England. For about a century, French became the official language of England while Old English became the language of farmers. As a result, English words of politics (政治) and the law come from French rather than German. In some cases, modern English even shows a difference between upper-class French and lower-class Old English in its words. We even have different words for some foods, meat in particular, depending on whether it is still out in the fields or at home ready to be cooked. This shows the fact that the lower-class farmers were doing farming, while the upper-class Normans were doing most of the eating.

When Americans visit Europe for the first time, they usually find Germany more “foreign” than France because the German they see on signs and ads seems much more different from English than French does. Few realize that the English language is actually Germanic in its beginning and that the French influences are all the results of one man’s ambition (野心).

Before 1066, the two main languages spoken in the place which we now call “Great Britain” were __________.

A. Germanic and French

B. Nordic and Germanic

C. Celtic and Old English

D. Old English and Germanic

According to the passage, which of the following groups of words are most probably from French?

   A. President, lawyer and beef.

   B. President, bread and water.

   C. Bread, field and sheep.

   D. Pig, cow and government.

Why do Americans find France less foreign than Germany?

   A. Many signs and ads are in English.

   B. They know little about the history of the English language.

   C. Many French words are similar to English ones.

   D. They know French better than German.

Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

   A. The History of Great Britain.

   B. The Similarity (相似点) between English and French.

   C. The Rule of England by William the Conqueror.

D. The French Influence on the English Language.

Dog walkers provide a 20 to 60-minute daily walk for a client’s（客户）dog, making sure the dog answers the call of nature and gets proper exercise. They often walk more than one dog at a time. Some walkers work for dog-walking services, especially when starting out. Others have their own businesses, and build by word of mouth and advertising. Dog walkers often work part-time, and some provide other services like pet sitting or transporting.
In N.Y.C., dog walkers usually earn about $25 an hour. If you work for a dog-walking business, you may earn less-if you are on your own dealing with several dogs at the same time, it may be more.
What do you have to do to be a dog walker?
First, have a real love of dogs, and have a good knowledge of how to get on with dogs. Try calling dog-walking services to find out about openings. If you’re on your own, you’ll need to network and market yourself. You might advertise your services in pet offices, grooming businesses, or neighborhood papers. You will need business cards and a mobile phone, and have good references and a clean background. You’ll also have to deal with taxes and insurance. You should be physically fit, friendly, neatly dressed and extremely dependable. Many dog walkers are bonded（被担保的）and insured, and this is a definite selling point to clients.
Of course, you will be cleaning up dog waste! You will also be outside in all kinds of weather. You may have to deal with dogs that don’t like each other ,and difficult owners. It’s also an up and down kind of business-clients can come and go.
For pet lovers, spending the workday with dogs instead of navigating office politics is its own reward! You are your own boss-you can dress casually, your doggy clients will love you unconditionally, and you’ll get some great exercise!
71. By writing the passage the writer tries to         .
A. introduce you to a job           B. enrich your knowledge about pets
C. advertise for a business         D. tell you more about life in New York
72. The passage offers no information about how to         as a dog walker.
A. find a client                    B. train a dog
C. get prepared                     D. make more money
73. One who wants to         may find the passage helpful.
A. take up a weekend job            B. keep a good pet dog
C. make money in his daily spare time  D. be a part-time office worker
74. The last paragraph but one (beginning with “Of course”) is meant to tell you         .
A. what dog-walking is like         B. why dog-walking is worth trying
C. the unknown part of dog-walking  D. the bad side of dog-walking
75. What does the underlined word casually in the last paragraph possibly mean?
A. as you like                      B. like a boss   
C. in a dog-friendly way            D. in nice clothes

III, Reading Comprehension

Section A

Directions: For each blank in the following passages there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D.  Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.

The world was sharply separated into men and women, because that was the way we believed it should be.  We hold this firm belief and made efforts to keep this ___50___.  When a baby came to the world, he or she was expected to play different roles—boys were portrayed as noisy and naughty ones who people were more likely to ___51___ while girls were bound by strict social requirements to be lovely and ___52___.  People became the product of their sex.  Their social roles were determined when they were ___53___.  Males were the producers of cool reasoning and were capable of ___54___.  And being emotional was considered as the feature of females and their main activity location was ___55___.

___56___, with the development of civilization and women’s self-consciousness, more and more women have realized that such natural and physical differences between man and woman have no ___57___ with the differences between male and female excellence.  Women are now confident to ___58___ the concepts as “male leadership” and “male power”, which are only terms invented by men and serve in men’s ___59___.

Such remarkable change in people’s viewpoint may well explain the gradual ___60___ of single-sex schools.  The aim of education is to stimulate imagination, encourage free thinking and keep alive various interests.  But the single-sex school follows the same regulations and ___61___ a set of separate subjects for males or females.  In single-sex schools, instead of being offered a rich expansion of experience, students have access to ___62___ knowledge.  Such education harms individual freedom and kills the possibility for a young person to develop into a(n) ___63___ human.  Furthermore, such sexual distinction is also dangerous as it breaks up the sense of community by ___64___ people into two sex groups, which eventually damages the development of human civilization.

50.   A. regret     B. division            C. union          D. step

51.   A. spoil            B. control             C. teach          D. face

52.   A. active          B. humorous       C. famous            D. gentle

53. A. born              B. grown         C. praised            D. retired

54.   A. friendship       B. failure     C. leadership        D. relationship

55.   A. at home          B. at work place       C. in politics        D. in education

56.   A. In particular         B. Furthermore        C. In addition   D. However

57.   A. contact            B. attempt          C. connection  D. excuse

58.   A. reject          B. reflect     C. pardon             D. measure

59.   A. truth           B. sex              C. interest           D. belief

60.   A. extinction       B. prospect         C. foundation   D. definition

61.   A. sets up            B. brings down         C. sticks to          D. gives up

62.   A. objective         B. wrong         C. vivid            D. limited

63.   A. complete        B. simple     C. domestic         D. ordinary

64.   A. guiding            B. uniting     C. isolating          D. transporting

If you ask people to name a person who had the greatest effect on the English language, you will get answers like “Shakespeare” “Samuel Johnson” and “Webster”, but none of these men had any effect at all compared to a man who didn’t even speak English—William the Conqueror.

Before 1066, in the land we now call Great Britain lived people in two main language groups. One was a Celtic language, the other was what we now call Anglo-Saxon (or old English), a Germanic language. If this had lasted, English today would be close to German.

But this didn’t last. In 1066 the Normans led by William began their rule over England. For about a century, French became the official language of England while Old English became the language of farmers. As a result, English words of politics (政治) and the law come from French rather than German. In some cases, modern English even shows a difference between upper-class French and lower-class Old English in its words. We even have different words for some foods, meat in particular, depending on whether it is still out in the fields or at home ready to be cooked. This shows the fact that the lower-class farmers were doing farming, while the upper-class Normans were doing most of the eating.

When Americans visit Europe for the first time, they usually find Germany more “foreign” than France because the German they see on signs and ads seems much more different from English than French does. Few realize that the English language is actually Germanic in its beginning and that the French influences are all the results of one man’s ambition (野心).

1.Before 1066, the two main languages spoken in the place which we now call “Great Britain” were __________.

A. Germanic and French

B. Nordic and Germanic

C. Celtic and Old English

D. Old English and Germanic

2.According to the passage, which of the following groups of words are most probably from French?

   A. President, lawyer and beef.

   B. President, bread and water.

   C. Bread, field and sheep.

   D. Pig, cow and government.

3. Why do Americans find France less foreign than Germany?

   A. Many signs and ads are in English.

   B. They know little about the history of the English language.

   C. Many French words are similar to English ones.

   D. They know French better than German.

4.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

   A. The History of Great Britain.

   B. The Similarity (相似点) between English and French.

   C. The Rule of England by William the Conqueror.

D. The French Influence on the English Language.