阅读理解

  Halloween is a festival celebrated on October 31st. The name of the holiday means “hallowed” or “holy evening” because it happens the day before All Saints Day(万圣节) .

  It is said that Halloween is the children's New Year's Eve. they dress up with special costumes(服装) , they eat too much, and stay up too late celebrating.

  Children go around the neighbourhood wearing make-up, and dressed masks and colorful costumes. The most common costumes are witches, ghosts, skeletons, and popular TV, movie and storybook characters. Sane costumes are homemade, others are bought in stores. The children go door to door saying “trick or treat” . People give them candy, cookies, fruit or money. Sometimes money is to help UNICEF ( United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund) .

  Homes, stores and classrooms are decorated in the traditional Halloween colors, orange and black. Usual decorations are witches, black cats, ghosts, skeletons, and jack-o-lanterns (灯笼) . Jack-o-lanterns are pumpkins that are carved to look like faces. They ace placed on doorway entrances and in windows. Horror movies and ghost stories are shown on TV on this day.

  Adults and older children also celebrate Halloween with parades, festivals and costume parties. Some people create their costumes, other people rent them. Contests are held where the beat costume receives a prize. One of the party events popular with children is dunking(浸泡) for apples. Apples are put in tubs filled with water. People try to get the apples using only their , hands cannot be used.

1.Why is it said that Halloween is the children's New Year's Eve?

[  ]

A.Because Halloween comes the day before All Saints Day.

B.Because only on that day can children go around the neighbourhood.

C.Because children can get money from their parents on Halloween.

D.Because children dress up with special costumes, eat a lot, and stay up late celebrating.

2.Which of the following is NOT true about the common costumes according to the passage?

[  ]

A.They are colorful.

B.Some of the costumes are homemade.

C.They are witches, skeletons, ghosts and popular TV characters, and so on.

D.All of the costumes are homemade.

3.What are the traditional Halloween colors?

[  ]

A.Red and green.

B.Orange and black.

C.Black and white.

D.Orange and brown.

4.Which of the following about Halloween is WRONG?

[  ]

A.Jack-o-lanterns are pumpkins that are carved to look like faces.

B.Adults also celebrate Halloween together with children.

C.Horror movies are shown on 1'V on 31st October.

D.Apples are the favourite fruit people eat on Halloween.

When you are in another country, it is important to know the language, but it is equally important to know how to communicate nonverbally(非语言地), before saying anything by making gestures. According to a pioneer in nonverbal communication, only 30 to 35 percent of our communication is verbal. When people don't know the language, the most common way to communicate is through gestures. However, many gestures have different meanings, or no meaning at all, in different parts of the world.

In the United States, for example, nodding your head up and down means “yes”. In some parts of Greece and Turkey, however, this motion can mean “no”. In Southeast Asia, nodding your head is a polite way of saying “I've heard you”.

In ancient Rome, when the emperor wanted to spare someone's life, he would put his thumb up. Today in the United States, when someone puts his / her thumb up, it means “Everything is all right”. However, in Sardinia and Greece, the gesture is insulting and should not be used there.

In the United States, raising your clasped hands above your head means “I’m the champion” or “I’m the winner”. It is the sign prizefighters make when they win a fight. When a leading Russian statesman(政治家) made this gesture after a White House meeting, Americans misunderstood and thought he meant he was a winner. In Russia, however, it is a sign of friendship.

In the United States, holding your hand up with the thumb and index finger in a circle and the other three fingers spread out means “Everything is O.K.” and is frequently used by astronauts and politicians. In France and Belgium, it can mean “You’re worth nothing.”

There are other nonverbal signals that people should be aware of when they go to another country, such as the distance to maintain between speakers. Americans usually feel comfortable when speaking with someone if the distance between them is about eighteen inches to arm’s length. Anything closer makes them feel uncomfortable.

When talking to Americans, it is also important to make eye contact. If you look down when talking to an American, he / she may feel that you are embarrassed, afraid, or trying to hide something.

In addition to knowing how to communicate nonverbally in a country, it is important to know what you and he cannot discuss. In the United States, there are certain topics to avoid when you first meet someone, For example, don’t ask people their age, weight, religion, marital status(婚姻状况), how much money they earn, or how much something costs. You can talk about work, the weather, traffic problems, sports, food, news of the day, where one lives, consumer subjects (computers, car repairs, and so forth), and travel or vacation plans.

These few examples illustrate that your actions can speak louder than your words. In a particular cultural contest, what you say and what you don’t say are equally important.

Which of the following is true?

A. People all over the world only communicate verbally.

B. Most of our gestures have no meaning at all.

C. Some people think that 65 to 70 percent of our communication is nonverbal.

D. Gestures are the most common way to common way to communicate.

As we can see from the passage there are ______ kinds of nonverbal communication signals. 

A. four                B. five                  C. six                    D. seven

Please paraphrase the clause“…your actions can speak louder than your words. 

A. Your deeds are better than your words

B. What you do is better than what you say

C. You try to show your best manners

D. you are better understood by your gestures than through your words

The main idea of the passage is that when you are in another country, ______.

A. it is unimportant to know the language

B. it is important to know what you can talk about to a foreigner

C. to know how to communicate nonverbally is as important as to know the language

D. to communicate the rough gestures is more important than to know the language

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