Sometimes ______ you’re paying attention in class, certain subjects seem too hard.

A．ever since      B．now that       C．even though        D．even as

.

_______he is working much harder, he won't have any trouble passing the entrance exams.

__________ winter is still with us, and will be for a few more weeks, warm days may still be in the forecast for your area．

　　　 A．As long as　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B．Even though

　　　 C．Now that　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D．Ever since

English is the native or official language of one-fifth of the land area of the world. It is spoken in North America, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. In South Africa and India it is one of the official languages.
More people study English than any other language. In many countries, the textbooks in universities are in English. Many university classes are taught in English even though the native language is not English.
English is the language of international communication. It is the language of international business, research, and science. More than three-fourths of the world’s mail is written in English. More than half of the scientific research journals are in English. Most other languages have borrowed many English words.
Why did English become the international language? In the middle of the nineteenth century, French was the international language. The Britain became very powerful in the world. England started colonies in North America and India in the seventeenth century. By 1900 England also had colonies in other parts of Asia, Africa and the South Pacific. The people in the colonies had to use English. Slowly it became more important than French internationally. After the Second World War, the United States became very powerful, and even more people began to learn English.
Is English a good international language? It has more words than any other language. The grammar is simpler than in other major languages. However, English spelling is difficult. Foreigners all have trouble spelling English. So do native speakers!
Since 1880, people have invented over fifty artificial (not natural) languages. No one speaks them as a native language. However, none of them has ever become popular. Some people don’t want to study English, but it is the international language. There is no way to change that now.
【小题1】English is the native language of ______.