Many American names come from England. But where did most English names come from? Centuries ago, most people in England had only one name--their first name. In the 11th century, five or six of the 50 people in a village might be named William, and it was easy to get confused(困惑). But in the Middle Ages, people found a way to describe each person exactly. If there were four Williams in one village, one might be referred to as William the son of John. A second might be called William from the hill. A third, William the blacksmith(铁匠). And a fourth, William the brown haired. In conversation, people might refer to the four Williams as William John’s son, William hill, William smith, and William brown.

It was 300 or 400 years before the extra(附加的) names gradually developed into last names, or surnames. They were passed on from generation to generation. By the 1300s, Robert, the son of William smith, had the name Robert smith, even if he was not a blacksmith like his father. As the last name became widely accepted, the first letter was capitalized, as in Robert Smith. By the 15th century, most people of the upper and middle classes had surnames.

Many surnames were based on father-son relations. The “son of” part was added to the father’s first name, like Johnson, meaning John’s son. Sometimes it was shortened to just “s”, as in Jones or Evans. Surnames like Hill described the place where a person lived. They are the most common type of surname. A third kind of surname was based on a person’s job. Forester was someone who looked after the forest. In the Middle Ages, occupation names such as Baker, Carpenter, and Miller became common. The fourth kind of surname was nickname(绰号). A man whose surname was Bear might be as fierce as a bear.

Have you ever wondered why some surnames are so common? The most common surname in the English language is Smith. Being able to make metals(金属) into tools was an important skill in the Middle Ages, so many people were trained as blacksmiths. The most common American surnames are Smith, Johnson, William and Brown.

【1】When did people find a way to describe each person exactly?（不超过4个词）

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【2】How long did it take for extra names to develop into last names?（不超过5个词）

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【3】Why were many people trained blacksmith in the Middle Ages?（不超过l5个词）

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These four sisters live with their mother. Meg and Jo March, the elder sister, both work outside the home for money to support the family. Meg teaches four children in a nearby family, while Jo helps her grand-aunt March, who is very rich. Beth helps with the housework, and Amy attends school. Their nearest neighbor is a rich man whose orphaned(孤儿) grandson lives with him. The sisters introduce themselves to the handsome shy boy, Laurie, who is the age of Jo.

……

Meg is the beautiful sister; Jo is the tomboy(爱打闹的女孩); Beth is the musician; and Amy is the charming artist with the blond curls. Jo is easy to get angry. One of her challenges(挑战) in the growing up is to control her anger. Laurie enjoys his neighbors, joining the family often in play. His grandfather, Mr. Laurence, is charmed(吸引) by Beth, and gives her the piano sued(请求) by Laurie’s late sister.

【1】Who wrote the novel Little Women?

A. Louisa May Alcott. B. Jo March. C. Laurence. D. Laurie.

【2】What does Little Women tell about?

A. About the lives of four sisters when they are young.

B. About the lives of four sisters when they are old.

C. About the lives of four sisters after they get married.

D. About the lives of four sisters when they grow up.

【3】What is Amy and what does she look like?

A. She is an artist and has blonde curly hair.

B. She is a musician and charming.

C. She is a teacher and has blond curls.

D. She is an artist and easy to get angry.

【4】What do we know about Laurie from the passage?

A. He lives with the four sisters. B. He is an orphan.

C. He is easy to get angry. D. He doesn’t like his late sister.

A. Certainly.

B. What's the most important part of speaking English?

C. I always write down the new words on the notebook.

D. I listen to some English news, songs and other materials while I am on the way home.

E. What else do you think can help improve spoken English?

F. “Crazy English” might be helpful.

G. But how can I enlarge my vocabulary?

A: Could you tell me how you can speak English so well?

B: Well, I think listening more is very important. 【1】

A: Some people say watching English movies is good for English learners.

B. 【2】 I have watched about 30 English movies since 2012, and that really helps a lot.

A: 【3】

B: Um,I think vocabulary is the most important. You can express yourself freely when you have a larger vocabulary.

A: 【4】

B: Reading. I have read many English books. That really helps with my English vocabulary.

A: 【5】

B: Never be afraid of making mistakes. The more you speak the language, the more freely you can express yourself. Enjoy losing face, then you can learn English。

【1】有些人天生就有好的方向感。

Some people ________ _________ _________ a good sense of direction.

【2】请认真听老师讲。

Please ________ _________ _________ _______ to the teacher carefully.

【3】令我吃惊的是，我发现自己和这个陌生人之间有很多共同之处。

To my surprise, I found I ________ _________ _________ ________ _________ with this stranger.

【4】你不能永远依靠父母。

You cann't _______ _________ your parents forever.

【5】一个好的听者一定擅长问问题。

A good listener must ________ _________ _________ _______ questions.

______ no evening classes were offered in the area Ellen lived in，she ______ to study online. She took an English course(课程) on the Internet.

Ellen began with easy courses and studied ______．“My son always said，‘Mom，you are a bit ______．’He couldn't understand why I spent so many hours ______，but I love it，” she said. “Maybe I wanted to do too much in a short time. I ______ all my courses after two years，but I found I still had ______ with grammar.”

Instead of giving up，she chose to ______．After another two years，she's still studying in the online classroom. But now to make her English better，she has set new goals(目标) for ______．

“Studying online is ______ boring，but you need self－discipline(自律)，” said Ellen. “If you really want to learn，never ______ when you face difficulties and when you think you haven't made any progress.”

Ellen said studying English wasn't all about hard work. “It was ______．I have learned so much ______ other cultures and traditions，” she said.

Ellen has been ______ to put her English to use by visiting England five times. “I'm very thankful to the Internet. My life has changed a lot，” said Ellen.

【1】A. computer B. singing C. English D. science

【2】A. Because B. Unless C. Though D. Before

【3】A. refused B. advised C. volunteered D. chose

【4】A. hard B. cheaply C. suddenly D. beautifully

【5】A. nervous B. crazy C. lazy D. careless

【6】A. preparing B. studying C. discussing D. playing

【7】A. forgot B. started C. remembered D. finished

【8】A. fun B. time C. trouble D. influence

【9】A. continue B. remind C. hold D. lead

【10】A. himself B. yourself C. herself D. themselves

【11】A. never B. ever C. also D. even

【12】A. cheer up B. get up C. give up D. stay up

【13】A. terrible B. interesting C. boring D. meaningless

【14】A. about B. without C. towards D. from

【15】A. ready B. used C. afraid D. able

【1】How to get there ___________(取决于) where you live.

【2】Please ___________(注意) your pronunciation.

【3】Zhao Juan and her good friend have hobbies ___________(共同)．

【4】Haven't you ever heard of the saying “___________ (熟能生巧)”？

【5】My brother ___________(天生具有) the voice of a singer.

【1】Mr. Smith's daughter always studies ___________(wise) and often gets good grades.

【2】Some students don't have much ___________(know) of American history.

【3】Do you think I have the ___________(able) to do the job well?

【4】Though my grandmother is eighty years old，she is still very ___________(act)．

【5】What ___________learn) habit do you have to help you become successful?

【1】The more you use your ___________(大脑)，the cleverer you will be.

【2】Cindy and Sandy are ___________(终身的) friends. Nothing can make them part.

【3】The famous writer ___________(创造) lots of wonderful characters in his play.

【4】Remember to ___________(复习) the words you learned last week.

【5】No one can be successful ___________(一夜之间)．So we must work hard if we want to succeed.

【1】With the development of the ____（现代的）medicine, more and more diseases can be cured.

【2】—How ____（礼貌地）British people behave in public! —Exactly, they do.

【3】—Do you know how much a common Chinese family ____（花费）for education every year?

—Sorry, I’m not sure about it.

【4】My parents go to work every day except ____（星期天）. They try hard to support our family.

【5】Though money is not everything, it still ____（要紧）a lot to the poor.

【6】Premier Li Keqiang noted “ the ____（精神）of craftsmanship（工匠）” in his government work report.

【7】As a middle school student, we should be brave and clever enough to guard ____（对抗）school bullying（校园欺凌）.

A. I hope your English will improve soon.

B. I can't get the pronunciation right.

C. I have some problems with my English.

D. Keeping a diary can improve your writing skills.

E. Then you can look them up n a dictionary if necessary.

F. I'm afraid to speak English in front of others.

G. And I can't understand the teacher when she talks to the class

A: Hello. This is Hope English Club. Can I help you?

B: Yes. 【1】

A: What are your problems?

B: First of all, 【2】

A: This is easy. Why not read aloud to practice it? It will improve your speaking skills.

B: OK, I will. 【3】

A: Listening to more tapes will help improve your listening skills.

B: What about new words?

A: First, you should try to guess the meaning of them. 【4】

B: OK, I will do as you say. Thanks a lot.

A: You're welcome.【5】