Question

8．Languages keeps developing，and English is no exception．It is a language that embraces new words that may be cool today bill gone tomorrow．
     There are，however，some words and phrases that have stood the test of time．OK．which has become the international standard for expressing agreement，is a good example．
     But why is this rather odd expression so popular and so useful when we could use any number of other words to say the same thing？-
     Writing in The Times，Alien Metcalf，author of OK：．The Improbable Story of America's Greatest Word，writes："What OK provided that the others did not was neutrality（中性），a way to express agreement without having to offer an opinion．"
     For example，if someone asks you"Shall we go for a walk after lunch？"you can simply respond"OK"．There you go-no extra opinions．Just straight，plain old OK．
     So just where did this rather curious expression come from？The origins of OK have been widely disputed．Some people have guessed that OK was the name of a person or a product．
     Speakers of many different languages have had their say on this question，keen to claim the term as their own．．
     Writing an article for London's Metro newspaper，Metcalf states；"0 arid K are present in every language of the world，as expressions that can be abbreviated（缩写） OK．"For example； French-"o qu-oui"，"yes indeed"； German-"Ohne Korrektur"，"without correction needed"； and in Latin or Greek，"Olla kalla"．"all good"．
     But，does it sound a little too informal with this popular little expression？
     Apparently not．
     In a speech where he stated that his election would not be a radical （激进的） result to all problems．President Obama said："…？even though I am president…，AI-Qaida is still a threat and that we cannot pretend somehow that because Barack Hussein Obama got elected as president，suddenly everything's going to be OK，"he said．
     So，there you go，straight from the president．It's OK to say OK，and thanks to the expression's widespread usage across the world，you can be understood anywhere．
41．What is the article mainly about？B
A．The origin of OK．
B．Popularity of OK across the world．
C．A debate over the usage of OK．
D．The development of the English language．
42．According to Alien Metcalf，OK differs from other terms to express agreement in thatC．
A．it is easiest to say
B．it is the most commonly used
C．it doesn't involve emotion           
D．it is the most informal and casual
43．The underlined word"disputed"in Paragraph 6 probably meansD，
A．understood       B．agreed       C．believed         D．argued
44．Using the example of Obama，the author intends to show thatA
A．OK is widely used even on formal occasions
B．Obama likes to use'OK when he speaks
C．there is still a long way to go to defeat AI-Qaida
D．the use of OK is encouraged in formal speech and in documents．

Answer 1

分析 作者在文中主要介绍了语言发展的规律；即各种语言都是在不断发展的，有些语言所包含的新词汇可能现在会很受欢迎，以后就会被淡忘了；但是有些词汇却能经受住时间的考验，并能够在世界各地得以普及；另外作者还重点介绍了OK能够成为国际上表达同意的统一标准的原因及其被广泛使用的情况．

解答 答案：
41．B   主旨大意题     通读全文可知，本文主要介绍了语言发展的规律，并重点分析了OK为什么能够成为国际上表达同意的统一标准，即OK在世界各地的普及；故选B．
42．C   细节理解题      根据第四段中的"What OK provided that the others did not was neutrality（中性），a way to express agreement without having to offer an opinion"可知此处强调了 OK是一个具有中性意义的词汇，它不包含任何的感情色彩；故选C．
43．D   词义猜测题     根据第六段中的"this rather curious expression（这种非常奇特的表达）"以及"have guessed（猜想）"可知，人们并不知道OK这一词的起源，这是一个容易引起争议的话题；故选D．
44．A   内容归纳题    结合上文讲述了OK在非正式场合中的使用情况以及下文Obama在总统竞选中的讲话用到了OK；并根据倒数第三段"But，does it sound a little too informal with this popular little expression？Apparently not．"可知，作者举Obama的例子是为了表明：OK被广泛运用于即使是非常正式的场合里；故选A．

点评 做本题时，首先应快速浏览全文，把握文章的大意以及作者的写作思路；其次，可以通过对相关细节的理解，概括段落大意，以及通过逻辑推理或内容归纳，选出正确的答案．