閱讀理解精練

閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的四個選項（A、B、C和D）中，選出最佳選項。

（一）

You are a German living in Berlin. One day youre walking down the street， minding your own business， when suddenly a stranger comes up with a smile on his face. After stopping you， he holds a small electronic device[裝置] close to his face and speaks slowly into it， saying， in English， “Can you tell me where I can buy some sauerkraut？” What should you do？ （a） Run away; （b） Call the police; or （c） Listen closely for the device to say in German，“Konnen Sie mir bitte sagen， welches sauerkraut haufen kann？”

The most proper answer would be （c） because the person in front of you is only a tourist trying to enjoy himself. The device is said to be the worlds first portable[便攜的] translator — a hand-held microcomputer that at the same time translates one spoken language into another. The four-pound， battery operated product is called the Voice， and it is the invention of Advanced Products and Technologies， an American electronics company. When the Voice is introduced in the Unite States in late April — at a price of （1，500 — it will be used to translate spoken English into Italian， German， French and Spanish. The product comes with separate cartridges[盒式存儲器] for each of the four languages， which can be changed when the user travels from one country to another. It will be sold in Europe soon after the US introduction， with cartridges that translate Italian， German， French and Spanish into English.

The Voice uses a microchip[微型集成電路片] to translate languages. It is Started by voice command and produces voice output through a built in speaker. When the user makes a statement or asks a question， the Voice immediately repeats what has been said in another language.

1. The device held by the stranger is probably a kind of________.

A. a two-way radio? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? B. language translator

C. easily-carried speaker? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? D. a multi-functioned computer

2. What does the last sentence of the first paragraph mean？

A. Can you tell me where I can buy some sauerkraut？

B. Can I ask for some information from the police？

C. Would you like to try my device？

D. Would you not run away if I ask you where to buy some sauerkraut？

3. When the stranger says， “Can you tell… sauerkraut？” he is ________.

In recent years research on infant development has shown that the standard a child is likely to reach， within the range of his inherited[遺傳的] abilities， is largely determined in the first three years of his life. So a babys ability to benefit from the right play materials should not be underestimated. A baby who is encouraged， talked to and shown things and played with， has the best chance of growing up successfully.

In the next stage， from three to five years old， curiosity knows no bounds. Every type of suitable toys should be made available to the child， for trying out， experimenting and learning， for discovering his own particular ability： Bricks and jigsaws[七巧板] and construction toys; painting， scribbling[涂鴉] and making things; sand and water play;toys for imaginative and pretending play — the first so-cial games for learning to play and get on with others.

But at the third stage of play development — from five to seven or eight years old — the child is at school. But for a few more years play is still the best way of learning， at home or at school. It is easier to see which type of toys the child most enjoys.

Until the age of seven or eight， play and work mean much the same to a child. But once reading has been mastered， then books become the main source of learning. Toys are still interesting and valuable， which lead up to new hobbies， but their significance has changed — to a child of nine or ten years old， toys and games mean， as to adults， relaxation and fun.

1. according to the first passage we know that as a child grows up________.

A. he should be allowed to choose his own toys

B. he should be given the same toys

C. he should be given different toys

D. he should be given fewer and fewer toys

2. according to the passage， the abilities a child has inherited from his parents________.

A. determine his character

B. will not change after the age of three

C. partly determine the standard he is likely to reach

D. to a large extent determine the choice of toys

3. We learn from the passage that a child has boundless curiosity________.

A. when he is two? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? B. when he is around four

C. when he is six? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?D. when he is eight

4. The passage is mainly about________.

A. the importance of pre-school education

B. the importance of schooling

C. the role of play in a childs development

D. the choice of toys for youngster

（四）

In the last 500 years， nothing about people — their clothes， ideas， or languages—has changed as much as what they eat. The original chocolate drink was made from the seeds of the cocoa tree[可可樹] by South American. Indians. The Spanish introduced it to the rest of the world during the 1500s. And although it was very expensive， it quickly became fashionable. In London， shops where chocolate drinks were served became important meeting places. Some still exist today.

The potato is also from the New World. Around 1600， the Spanish brought it from Peru to Eu-rope， where it soon was widely grown. Ireland became so dependent on it that thousands of Irish peo-ple starved when the crop failed during the “Potato Famine[饑荒]” of 1845—1846， and thousands more were forced to leave their homeland and move to America.

There are many other foods that have traveled from South America to the Old World. But some others went in the opposite direction. Brazil is now the worlds largest grower of coffee， and coffee is an important crop in Colombia and other South American countries. But it is native to Ethiopia， a country in Africa. It was first made into a drink by Arabs during the 1400s. according to an. Arabic legend， coffee was discovered when a person named Kaldi noticed that his goats were attracted to the red berries on a coffee， bush. He tried one and experienced the “wide-awake” feeling that one third of the worlds population now starts the day with.

1. according to the passage， which of the following has changed the most in the last 500 years？

A. Food.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? B. Clothing.

C. Ideology.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? D. Language.

2. The word “some” in the last sentence of the first paragraph refers to________.

A. some cocoa trees? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? B. some chocolate drinks.

C. some shops? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? D. some South American Indians

3. Thousands of Irish people starved during the “Potato Famine” because________.

A. they were so dependent on potatoes that they refused to eat anything else

B. they were forced to leave their homeland and move to America

C. the weather conditions in Ireland were not suitable for growing potatoes

D. the potato harvest was bad

4. according to the passage， which of the following statements is NOT true？

A. One third of the worlds population drinks coffee.

B. Coffee is native to Colombia.

C. Coffee can keep one awake.

D. Coffee drinks were first made by Arabs.

（五）

People living on parts of the south coast of England face a serious problem. In 1933， the owners of a large hotel and of several houses discovered， to their surprise that their gardens had disappeared overnight. The sea had eaten into the soft limestone cliff[懸崖] on which they had been built. While experts were studying the problem， the hotel and several houses disappeared altogether， sliding down the cliff and into the sea.

Erosion [侵蝕] of the white cliffs along the south coast of England has always been a problem but it has become more serious in recent years. Dozens of homes have had to be abandoned as the sea has crept farther and farther inland. Experts have studied the areas most affected and have drawn up a map for local people， forecasting the year in which their homes will be eaten up by the hungry sea.

Angry owners have called on the Government to erect sea defenses to protect their homes. Government surveyors have pointed out that in most cases， this is impossible. New sea walls would cost hundreds of millions of pounds and would merely make the waves and currents further along the coast， shifting the problem from one area to another. The danger is likely to continue， they say， until the waves reach an inland area of hard rock， which will not be eaten as limestone is. Mean while， if you want to buy a cheap house with an uncertain future， apply to a house agent in one of the threatened areas on the south coast of England. You can get a house for a knock down price but it may turn out to be a knockdown home.

1. What is the cause of the problem that people living on parts of the south coast of England face？

A. The rising of the sea level.

B. The experts short of knowledge.

C. The washing-away of limestone cliff.

D. The disappearance of hotels， houses and gardens.

2. The erosion of the white cliffs in the south of England ________.

A. will soon become a problem for people living in central England

B. has now become a threat to the local residents

C. can be stopped if proper measures are taken

D. is quickly changing the map of England

3. The experts study on the problem of erosion can ________.

A. warn people whose homes are in danger

B. provide an effective way to slow it down

C. help to its eventual solution

D. lead to its eventual solution

4. It is not feasible to build sea defenses to protect against erosion because ________.

A. house agents along the coast do not support the idea

B. it is too costly and will endanger neighboring areas

C. the government is too slow in taking action

D. they will be easily knocked down by waves and currents

參考答案與解析

（一）

本文介紹了一種叫Voice的便攜式語言翻譯機，主要講述它的功能。

1. B。細節(jié)題。第二段第二句話給出了答案。

2. A。句意題。listen closely for the device to say in German暗指通過這個裝置可以聽見……，應該是與上文一樣的句子。

3. B。推斷題。第二段第一句話中a tourist trying to enjoy him并沒有取笑、嘲笑某人或開玩笑的意思，只是想方便自己。

4. D。細節(jié)題。第二、三段中均有敘述。價格、功能、開發(fā)商都已明確提到。

（二）

本文是發(fā)言稿，短小精煉，但充分表達了對Bill Masters工作能力的肯定以及對其未來的祝福。

1. C。推斷題。由全文最后一句話wishing him the best of luck in his new work可推知。

2. C。細節(jié)題。由第一段第四行：In only six years可知。

3. D。細節(jié)題。由第一段第三行almost single-handed可知。

4. B。細節(jié)題。由第一段outsell all but one of our competitors可知。But one除了一個，意思是第二。

（三）

文章主要討論了玩具對不同年齡的孩子所產生的影響不同。

1. C。細節(jié)題。由第一段中的Therefore it is important to choose suitable toys for different stages of a childs development可知。而由常識可知太小的孩子還沒有自已選擇玩具的能力的，排除A。B和D的與文章內容不符。

2. C。細節(jié)題。由第二段開頭的句子知道：嬰兒能力的發(fā)展必須在他的遺傳能力范圍之內，而這種發(fā)展主要取決于他生命中的前三年。

3. B。細節(jié)題。由第三段開始的In the next stage，from three to five years old，curiosity knows no bounds 可知。

4. C。主旨題。由文章首句可知。文章主要談論玩具在孩子成長中的作用。

（四）

文章主要介紹了人類食物的發(fā)展和變化情況。

1. A。主旨題。由文章的第一句這一主題句可知。

2. C。詞義題。根據(jù)In London， shops where chocolate drinks were served became important meeting places. Some still exist today可知，some指的是London現(xiàn)存的一些出售chocolate drinks的商店。