If you ask people to name the one 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 peoples belonging to two major language groups.In the west?central region lived the Welsh,who spoke a Celtic language,and in the north lived the Scots,whose language,though not the same as Welsh, was also Celtic.In the rest of the country lived the Saxons,actually a mixture of Anglos,Saxons,and other Germanic and Nordic peoples,who spoke what we now call Anglo?Saxon(or Old English),a Germanic language.If this state of affairs had lasted,English today would be close to German.

But this state of affairs did not last.In 1066 the Normans led by William defeated the Saxons and began their rule over England.For about a century,French became the official language of England while Old English became the language of peasants. As a result,English words of politics and the law come from French rather than German.In some cases,modern English even shows a distinction (区别) between upper class  French and lower?class Anglo?Saxon 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,which shows the fact that the Saxon peasants were doing the 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 advertisements 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 result of one man's ambition.

1.The two major languages spoken in what is now called Great Britain before 1066 were_________.

A.Welsh and Scottish         B.Nordic and Germanic

C.Celtic and Old English      D.Anglo Saxon and Germanic 

2.Which of the following groups of words are,by inference,rooted in French?

A.president,lawyer,beef      B.president,bread,water

C.bread,field,sheep          D.folk,field,cow 

3.Why does France appear less foreign than Germany to Americans on their first visit to Europe?

A.Most advertisements in France appear in English.

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

C.Many French words are similar to English ones.

D.They know French better than German. 

4.What is the subject discussed in the text?

A. The history of Great Britain.

B. The similarity between English and French.

C. The rule of England by William the Conqueror.

D. The French influences on the English language. 

If you ask people to name one 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 peoples belonging to two major language groups. In the west-central region lived the Welsh, who spoke a Celtic language, and in the north lived the Scots, whose language, though not the same as Welsh, was also Celtic. In the rest of the country lived the Saxons, actually a mixture of Anglos, Saxons, and other Germanic and Nordic peoples, who spoke what we now call Anglo-Saxon (or Old English), a Germanic language. If this state of affairs had lasted, English today would be close to German.

But this state of affairs did not last. In 1066 the Normans led by William defeated the Saxons and began their rule over England. For about a century, French became the official language of England while Old English became the language of peasants. As a result, English words of politics and the law come from French rather than German. In some cases, modern English even shows a distinction (区别) between upper-class French and lower-class Anglo-Saxon 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, which shows the fact that the Saxon peasants were doing the 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 advertisements 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 result of one man’s ambition.

The two major languages spoken in what is now called Great Britain before 1066 were

 ________.

A. Welsh and Scottish              B. Nordic and Germanic

C. Celtic and Old English            D. Anglo-Saxon and Germanic

Which of the following groups of words are, by inference, rooted in French?

A. president, lawyer, beef            B. president, bread, water

C. bread, field, sheep            D. folk, field, cow

Why does France appear less foreign than Germany to Americans on their first visit to

 Europe?

A. Most advertisements in France appear in English.

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

C. Many French words are similar to English ones.

D. They know French better than German.

What is the subject discussed in the text?

A. The history of Great Britain.   

B. The similarity between English and French.

C. The rule of England by William the Conqueror.     

D. The French influences on the English language.

If you ask people to name the one 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 peoples belonging to two major language groups. In the west-central region lived the Welsh, who spoke a Celtic language, and in the north lived the Scots, whose language, though not the same as Welsh, was also Celtic. In the rest of the country lived the Saxons, actually a mixture of Anglos, Saxons, and other Germanic and Nordic peoples, who spoke what we now call Anglo-Saxon（or Old English）, a Germanic language. If this state of affairs had lasted, English today would be close to German.

But this state of affairs did not last. In 1066 the Normans led by William defeated the Saxons and began their rule over England. For about a century, French became the official language of England while Old English became the language of peasants. As a result, English words of politics and the law come from French rather than German. In some cases, modem English even shows a distinction（区别） between upper-class French and lower-class Anglo-Saxon 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, which shows the fact that the Saxon peasants were doing the 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 advertisements 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 result of one man's ambition.

67. The two major languages spoken in what is now called Great Britain before 1066 were _____.

A. Welsh and Scottish    B. Nordic and Germanic

C. Celtic and Old English      D. Anglo-Saxon and Germanic

68. Which of the following groups of words are, by inference, rooted in French?

A. president, lawyer, beef      B. president, bread, water

C. bread, field, sheep     D. folk, field, cow

69. Why does France appear less foreign than Germany to Americans on their first visit to Europe?

A. Most advertisements in France appear in English.

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

C. Many French words are similar to English ones.

D. They know French better than German.

70. What is the subject discussed in the text?

A. The history of Great Britain.   

B. The similarity between English and French.

C. The rule of England by William the Conqueror.     

D. The French influences on the English language.

If you don’t prepare yourself now, retirement may be some of the most boring and dull years of your life. To have a happy, fulfilling retirement, you need to start preparing right away.
The most obvious thing for people to do when they retire is to take up a hobby. The most important step to take before retiring, though, is to make sure that you actually have started some hobbies. Once you’re retired, unless you ‘ve already started a hobby, you’ll find it very hard to get into something new. Some hobbies aren’t for everyone. Think about what you enjoy doing and start participating on a casual basis now.
Another thing many people participate in is volunteering. Not only does volunteering give you something to do, it also gives you a sense of accomplishment(成就) and can add meaning to your life .Volunteering is also rewarding in other ways, too. There are hundreds of different types of volunteer services and you’ll always be able to meet new and interesting people. Also, don’t think that volunteering is always only about helping someone for free. Many companies pay their volunteers after they’ve had enough experience and prove themselves to be valuable workers.
There are plenty of other potions, as well. Going back to school is a great way to keep yourself feeling young. Taking a vacation around the world with your loved ones is another great way to spend your retirement.
Ultimately, though, the key to a happy retirement is simply keeping yourself busy and doing whatever you love. If there’s nothing you love doing now, then you’ll find that once you have a vast amount of free time, your life will be pretty empty. Now is the time to find out what you want to do when you retire.
【小题1】Why does the author suggest starting a hobby before retirement?

If you ask people to name the one 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 peoples belonging to two major language groups. In the west-central region lived the Welsh, who spoke a Celtic language, and in the north lived the Scots, whose language, though not the same as Welsh, was also Celtic. In the rest of the country lived the Saxons, actually a mixture of Anglos, Saxons, and other Germanic and Nordic peoples, who spoke what we now call Anglo-Saxon (or Old English), a Germanic language. If this state of affairs had lasted, English today would be close to German.
But this state of affairs did not last. In 1066 the Normans led by William defeated the Saxons and began their rule over England. For about a century, French became the official language of England while Old English became the language of peasants. As a result, English words of politics and the law come from French rather than German. In some cases, modern English even shows a distinction between upper-class French and lower-class Anglo-Saxon 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, which shows the fact that the Saxon peasants were doing the 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 advertisements 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 result of one man’s ambition.
36. The two major languages spoken in what is now called Great Britain before 1066 were _________.
A. Welsh and Scottish                 B. Nordic and Germanic
C. Celtic and Old English              D. Anglo-Saxon and Germanic
37. Which of the following groups of words are, by inference, rooted in French?
A. president, lawyer, beef              B. president, bread, water
C. bread, field, sheep                 D. folk, field, cow
38. Why does France appear less foreign than Germany to Americans on their first visit to Europe?
A. Most advertisements in France appear in English.
B. They know little of the history of the English language.
C. Many French words are similar to English ones.
D. They know French better than German.
39. What is the subject discussed in the text?
A. The history of Great Britain.
B. The similarity between English and French.
C. The rule of England by William the Conqueror.
D. The French influences on the English language.
40. Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A. The Old English was originated from Germanic language.
B. William the Conqueror invaded England and conquered the whole country in 1066.
C. William the conqueror’s great ambition was to introduce French words into the English language.
D. According to the text, Shakespeare’ contribution to the development of the English language is less than that William the conqueror made.