Is it possible that the people of the world today could agree upon a single international language that everyone would be able to speak and understand?

　　In the United Nations there are five official languages-English, Chinese,

Russian, French and Spanish. How about making one of them into an international language? English has been worked on for this purpose. A basic word list of 850 English words named Basic English was made. These are the only verbs in the entire list,“come, go, give, keep, let, do, put, make, say, be, seem, may, will, have, send.”Writing in Basic English may require you to use a greater number of words-as in having to say“It came to my ears”instead of I heard-but you can still say anything you want to with just 850 different words and a few sufixes（后缀）and prefixes（前缀）．This is a much smaller number of words to have to remember than the ordinary number offered to the students of a foreign language.

　　But people have always had a need to do more than simply“Tell it as it is”. Language is for reporting not only one's work. For this, a language needs idioms, needs all kinds of grammar and style（文体）that show its history and development just as a person needs eyebrows（眉毛）. Is there some special reason why our lips should be a different color from the rest of our face? Perhaps not, but this is how people-real people-are. For communication between people, languages of all kinds will remain to reflect（反映）the growth and soul of the societies that speak them.

(1) The phrase“tell it as it is”in the third paragraph means __________.

[　　]

A．people can use Basic English to say what they want to

B．people think Basic English can express what they see or hear

C．people say what they want to according to the fact

D．people tell something they like to

(2) If we write a composition in Basic English, it will be________.

[　　]

A．longer than usual

B．shorter than usual

C．hard for us to express what we want to

D．able to express ourselves in different style as we like to

(3) Which of the following Statements is NOT true?

[　　]

A．Basic English is easier for students to learn.

B．Languages are like mirrors which can reflect the growth of the mankind.

C．Grammar and idioms are still necessary for us when we are learning a language.

D．Basic English will take the place not only of Queen's English, but also of the other languages in the world.

(4) This passage begins with a question．According to the writer's opinion, the answer to the question may be _________.

[　　]

A．it will be possible in the future

B．it seems to be possible if people agree to use Basic English

C．it seems impossible that people can use a simple language to express them-selves in various lives

D．it is impossible except that five official UN languages are used at the same time

(5) Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

[　　]

A．The words used in Basic English are strictly limited to 850, and nothing more.

B．Basic English is not a natural development of the English language.

C．Basic English can be used to express our thought easily.

D．Basic English seems not so easy to learn.

　　Hong Kong action star and tourism ambassador Jackie Chan apologized for his disruption and insults (辱骂) to the audience at Jonathan Lee's concert in Hong Kong but refused to admit that he was drunk.

　　Chan told the media backstage on Monday, "I was drunk and I feel ashamed." Alex Fong, Chan's son, also apologized for his father's behavior and promised the media there would he no such things next time.

　　However, on Wednesday, Chan denied that he was drunk. "I would call it excitement on stage. I only made some jokes with Lee, not a big deal," he said.

　　Lee also defended his friend Chan, saying there was no smell of alcohol in his breath. "He is a forthright (直率的) person. We always use dirty words with each other in daily life but it is not right to say them in public," Lee said.

　　Actually, it was the second time that day that Chan disturbed an event. Guangzhou-based Information Times reported yesterday that at a TVB party, Chan criticized the Hong Kong public TV channel for keeping singers signed with the station from being interviewed by other media.

　　Since Chan is Hong Kong's tourism ambassador, his gaffe on stage drew attention of the Hong Kong Tourism Hoard. A spokeswoman for the board said they had contacted Chan but he was on a business trip. She refused to comment on whether Chan's behavior had hurt Hong Kong's image. No complaints have received so far according to the Hong Kong Leisure and Cultural Service Department.

(1) What did Jackie Chan do at Lee's concert according to this passage?

[　　]

A．He refused to admit that he was drunk.

B．He was drunk and felt ashamed.

C．He made some jokes with Lee.

D．He said some dirty words.

(2) Which of the following can best describe Lee's attitude towards Chan?

[　　]

A．He understood Chan well.

B．He made some remarks in favour of Chan.

C．He didn't think highly of Chan's behavior.

D．He criticised Chan's behavior.

(3) What would be the best title for this passage?

[　　]

A．Dirty Words on Stage

B．Jackie Chan's Story

C．Excitement on Stage

D．Jonathan Lee's Concert

(4) The underlined word "gaffe" in the last paragraph means ________.

[　　]

A．an improper behavior

B．ill-treatment

C．an excellent performance

D．an exciting remark

(5) Where can we probably read this passage?

[　　]

　　Armstrong’s gift was obvious from the start of his career. His earliest recordings—first with a band led by his former teacher, Joe “King” Oliver, and then with his own band-earned Armstrong international fame for technical originality （独创性）. He freed his playing from the ordinary rhythms of early jazz by creating musical phrases that seemed to oppose the pulse of a song, only to combine them in the place later. His deep and rough voice became as special as his cornet（短号）playing, especially in his scat performances. Scat is a singing style in which meaningless syllables（音节）are repeated without preparation. Armstrong’s scat was among the earliest ever recorded.

　　By 1930, Armstrong had turned to more commercial, less experimental jazz. Some musicians criticized（批评）him for this. But others insisted that the real power of Armstrong’s art lay in its grace and sensitivity, fine qualities of the heart which remained in his music.

　　In the following years, Armstrong traveled around the world as the leading “goodwill ambassador（大使）”of American jazz music. The gentleness and great attraction of “Satchmo” filled his music and made him one of the world’s most beloved performers for over forty years.

　　1．Which of the following best tells what this passage is about?

　　A．Armstrong’s personal attraction.

　　B．Armstrong’s best work.

　　C．A praise for Armstrong’s contribution to jazz.

　　D．A comparison of Armstrong’s music with that of earlier musicians.

　　2．Why was “Satchmo” criticized by some of his workmates in the 1930s?

　　A．For making fewer recordings.

　　B．For losing interest in music.

　　C．For giving up his scat performances.

　　D．For turning his attention away from making changes

　　3．Which of the following is not mentioned as one of the reasons for Armstrong’s success?

　　A．His technical originality.

　　B．His personality.

　　C．His early experiences in “King” Oliver’s band.

　　D．His recordings were the first ever made.

　　4．According to the author, what made Armstrong the “goodwill ambassador” of American jazz music?

　　A．His world travels.

　　B．His attraction and sensitivity.

　　C．His scat singing.

　　D．His preference for commercial, less experimental jazz.

阅读理解

　　The dark, narrow streets of London were dangerous places for a lad to wander during the ruling of Charles Ⅱ (1660-1685). Bands of hoodlums(强盗), in the pay of some ships' captains, were found everywhere. Their job was to seize as many boys as they could find and carry them off to waiting ships in the harbor. Many a pale city lad would wake up from a drugged sleep, or a blow on the head, to find himself on the high seas, bound for the New World. There he might become a farmhand, an apprentice, or perhaps a household servant.

　　Thousands of unsuspecting youths were kidnapped who were never to return to the land of their birth. The traffic in young boys became, in time, a great public scandal, and this is the way it had come about.

　　America desperately needed colonists. At first, many people had come willingly, lured by tales of quick wealth and unlimited opportunity. But once they arrived, they found it to be a far rougher place than they had imagined. It was true that, there was opportunity, but hard work was needed to make it pay off. Many of the new colonists, hoping for easy fortuned, were not used to the difficulties of hard manual labour.

　　Nor could they manage the large farms by themselves. They needed help of every sort: for planting, for harvesting, for building their houses, etc. Some few skilled workers had come and set up shops--blacksmiths, carpenters, wheelwrights(修造轮子的工匠) and such--but they, too, were in need of help. Without apprentices and laborers, they could not possibly do all the work that the colonists required.

　　British shipowners offered free transportation to all those who would come, in return for an agreement to work for seven years without wages. Thousands of immigrants accepted the offer. After seven years of service they were farmers in their own right--and needed help. So there was an increasing need for workers. When the captains could not get colonists any other way, they hired hoodlums to seize any young boys they could lay hands on.

　　Over 100000 youngsters were taken to America in this way. Kidnapping became such an open scandal that in 1682 the London Council passed a law forbidding any person under fourteen to be bound into service without the knowledge and consent of his parents.

1．What shocked the London citizens in the late 17th century?

[　　]

A．The British shipowners needed hands in their business.

B．Bands of hoodlums wandered in the dark streets of London.

C．Many young boys turned to drugs and violence.

D．Many young boys were captured and shipped to America.

2．According to the passage, many British people were willing to settle in America because _____.

[　　]

A．they were poor and desperate

B．they thought they could find jobs easily and soon make a fortune

C．they were desperately tired of the bad conditions in London

D．they learned that skilled workers were badly needed there

3．According to the passage, the colonists were in need of hands for the following reasons except that _____.

[　　]

A．many rail tracks had to be built

B．there was a lot of work on the farms

C．many houses had to be built

D．there was a lot of work in various kinds of shops

4．Why did thousands of immigrants sign the agreement to work for seven years without pay?

[　　]

A．Because they had no money to pay for their voyage to the New World.

B．Because they could become farmers in their own right after their seven-year work.

C．Because they had no land of their own when they just arrived in America.

D．Because they were kidnapped and forced to sign it.

5．We can infer from the passage that the British government passed a law in 1682 because _____.

[　　]

A．the shipowners had seized a great fortune of the country apart from the young boys

B．it intended to stop the employment of the young workers under the age of fourteen

C．the public strongly condemned the kidnapping of young boys

D．it did not want to lose a lot of its young residents