Question

Societies all over the world name places in similar ways. Quite often there is no official naming ceremony but places tend to be called names as points of reference by people. Then an organized body steps in and gives the place a name. Often it happens that a place has two names: One is named by the people and the other by the government. As in many areas, old habits died hard, and the place continues to be called by its unofficial name long after the meaning is lost.

Many roads and places in Singapore are named in order that the pioneers will be remembered by future generations. Thus we have names such as Stamford Road and Raffles Place. This is in keeping with traditions in many countries ---- in both the West and the East.

Another way of naming places is naming them after other places. Perhaps they were named to promote friendships between the two places or it could be that the people who used to live there were originally from the places that the roads were named after. The mystery is clearer when we see some of the roads named in former British bases. If you step into Selector Airbase you will see Piccadilly Circus ---- obviously named by some homesick Royal Air Force personnel.

Some places were named after the activities that used to go on at those places. Bras Basah Road is an interesting example, “Base Basah” means “wet rice” in Malay. Now why would anyone want to name a road “Wet Rice Road”? The reason is simple. During the pioneering days, wet rice was laid out to dry along this road.

   A few roads in Singapore are named by their shapes. There is “Circular Road” for one. Other roads may have parts of their names to describe their shapes, like “ Paya Lebar Crescent”. This road is called a crescent (月牙) because it begins on the main road, makes a crescent and comes back to join the main road again.

1.We learn from Paragraph 1 that _____.

A. the government is usually the first to name a place

B. a ceremony will be held when a place is named

C. people prefer the place names given by the government

D. many places tend to have more than one name

2.Which of the following places is named after a person?

A. Selector Airbase.     B. Raffles Place.

C. Piccadilly Circus.     D. Paya Lebar Crescent.

3.What does the underlined phrase “die hard” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?

A. Change suddenly.           B. Change greatly.

C. Disappear very slowly.       D. Disappear quickly.

4.Bras Basah Road is named _______.

A. after a place       B. after an activity

C. after a person      D. by its shape

5.What can be inferred from the passage?

A. The way Singaporeans name their places is unique.

B. Some places in Singapore are named for military（军事） purposes.

C. Young Singaporeans have forgotten the pioneers.

D. Some place names in Singapore are the same as in Britain.

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.D

2.B

3.C

4.B

5.D

【解析】

试题分析：一个地方的名字是怎么来的？人们喜欢用不同的名字称呼一个地方，这并不奇怪，但人们会用各种不同的方式给一个地方命名。并且不同的地方取地名的方式也不一样。

1.细节理解题。第一段表明世界上的地方有许多名字，有的是政府官方的名称，有的则是沿用或当地人的称呼。所以D项“许多地方趋向于有几个名字”准确。故选D。

2.细节理解题。由“Many roads and places in Singapore are named in order that the pioneers will be remembered by future generations. Thus we have names such as Stamford Road and Raffles Place. ”可知， Raffles Place是由人名来命名的。故选B。

3.词义猜测题。由“the place continues to be called by its unofficial name long after the meaning is lost.

”可知，人们仍然继续在非官方的名字的含义消失前这样称呼很长一段时间。所以应该是“渐渐消失”的意义。旧的名称不是“改变”，所以A、B不对。 故选C。

4.细节理解题。由“Some places were named after the activities that used to go on at those places. Bras Basah Road is an interesting example”可知Bras Basah Road 是由活动命名的。故选B。

5. 推理判断题。根据第三段The mystery is clearer when we see some of the roads named in former British bases. If you step into Selector Airbase you will see Piccadilly Circus ---- obviously named by some homesick Royal Air Force personnel.因为一些想家的皇家空军人员命名了新加坡的一些地方。所以推断，新加坡的一些地名和英国一样。选D。

考点：科普类文章阅读。