In the United States, sixteen, eighteen, and twenty-one are important ages in a person's life. There are
no special celebrations for these birthdays, but each is a time when a person can do new things to mark
their transition (转变) into adult-hood (成人时期).
     After turning sixteen a person can work, get a driver's licence and leave home. Many high school
students learn to drive and get part-time jobs soon after celebrating their sixteenth birthday.
     At the age of eighteen a person in the United States can vote and smoke, but they are prohibited from
going into many nightclubs, buying wine or gambling (赌博) until they are twenty-one.
     In many Latin (拉丁的) cultures, a young woman's fifteenth birthday is important. At this age, she is
regarded as an adult. To mark this special day, families with teenage daughters have a celebration called a
Quinceanera. The day begins with the young woman and her family going to church. Later, there is a party
and many guests are invited.
    In Japan, young people become adults at twenty. At this age, they can legally (合法的) vote, drink wine
and smoke. The second Monday in January is a national holiday called Coming of Age Day. On this day,
twenty-year-olds celebrate by first going to a church to pray with their families. Later, they listen to
speeches given by city and school leaders. Afterward, many celebrate with family or friends late into the
night.
    In some countries, birthday celebrations continue through adulthood. Some people celebrate their fortieth
and fiftieth birthdays, or their retirement (退休) year, with a huge party.

1. In the United States, age sixteen marks the time when you can ______.

A. vote and drive
B. drive and get a job
C. drink wine and smoke
D. go into nightclubs

2. In some Latin cultures, the fifteenth birthday is important for ______.

3. In Japan, young people are considered adults at age ______.

A. sixteen
B. eighteen
C. twenty
D. twenty-one

4. Which of the following is not the turning point in a person's life in the USA?

A. The 15th birthday.
B. The 16th birthday.
C. The 18th birthday.
D. The 21st birthday.

A. 允许
B. 禁止
C. 终止
D. 支持

     The people in the USA and England both speak English of course. But sometimes it does not seem
like the same language. In fact, there are some important differences between (1) _________ English
and _________ English.
      First of all, they sound very different. Often, Americans don't say each word separately. They say
several words together. Americans may say "I dunno" instead of "I don't know." Or they may say
"Whaddya say?" instead of"What did you say?" However, the British are more careful in their speech.
They usually say all the words and keep them separate.
     (2)Sound is not only the difference between British English and American English. Words sometimes
have different meanings too. Some American words are never used in England. The same thing is true
of some British words in America. For example, the vocabulary for cars and driving is very different.
Americans drive trucks, but in England people drive lorries. 
     Many expressions are also different in the two countries. In England, if you are going to telephone
your friends, you "phone them up". In America, you "give them a call". When you are saying goodbye
in England you might say "Cheerio!" In America you might say "See you later." 
    There're also some differences in grammar. For example, Americans usually use the helping verb "do"
when they ask a question. They say "Do you have a storybook?" But the British often leave out the
helping verb. They say "Have you a storybook?" 
    All these differences can be confusing (易混淆的) if you are learning English. But most languages are
like this. Languages change over time. When people live in separate places, the languages change in
different ways. This is what has happened to English. It can also happen to other languages, such as
French. Many people in Canada speak French. (3)但是他们的法语和法国的法语不一样.

1. 在(1)处填上合适的词 ________________ ________________
2. 将(2)处的英语译成汉语:
    ____________________________________________________________________
3. 将(3)处的汉语译成英语:
   ____________________________________________________________________
4. 找出Languages change because of the time and the different places.的同义句。 
   _____________________________________________________________________
5. 找出或写出主题句.
                                                                                                                           

     For your next vacation, why not consider (1)v            Paris? Paris is the (2)c             of France and is
one of the liveliest (3)c             in Europe. It doesn't have any beaches or mountains, but there are still many
things to (4)d           . For example, it has some fantastic sights, including the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame
Cathedral, one of the most famous churches in the (5)w            . 
    (6)T             around Paris by taxi can cost a lot of money, but it's usually convenient to take the
underground train to most places. In (7)g            , though, France is (8)q             an expensive place. One
thing that is not expensive in France, however, is the (9)w            . 
     Most people in France have learned English. But many people don't like to speak English, especially in
Paris. So unless you speak French yourself, it's best to travel with someone (10)w             can translate
things for you.

     December 25th is Christmas Day. In Western countries it is the most important day in the year. All the
people come back to their homes and have the day with their parents or their children. On Christmas Day
bells ring everywhere. The ringing bell tells people Christmas is coming. People sing and dance day and night.
They have a good time.
     Most families buy Christmas trees for their children. And there are some presents hanging from the trees
here and there. On Christmas Eve children are very happy. They put stockings at the end of their beds so
that their parents can put presents in them. In many places, Father Christmas brings presents to them. He is
a kind man in red clothes. There is a big bag on his back. In it there are a lot of presents.

根据短文内容判断下列正(T)误(F)。
(     ) 1. In Western countries December 25th is the most important day because it is Christmas Day.
(     ) 2. The day before December 25th, the bells ring here and there.
(     ) 3. Parents usually buy Christmas trees and put all presents under them.
(     ) 4. On Christmas Eve, children usually put their stockings at the end of their parents' beds.
(     ) 5. Father Christmas often wears red clothes with a big bag on his back.

     Sandwich was an Englishman. He lived in the 18th century. Sandwich was rich, but he liked to play
cards for money. He often played for 24 hours, and didn't even stop to have his meals. He ordered his
servants to bring him some meat and bread. He put the meat between the two pieces of bread and held
the food in his left hand while he played cards with his right hand. People liked Sandwich's idea, and
from then on they ate bread and meat as Sandwich did.
     From the name of the man, Sandwich, we have the word of the food "sandwich" today.

1. Sandwich was the ______.

A. name of a servant
B. name of a man with a lot of money
C. poor man who lived on playing cards
D. name of food which was liked by the rich

2. Sandwich ______.

3. People liked Sandwich's idea because ______.

A. bread, together with meat was cheap
B. he always won when he played cards
C. they liked Sandwich himself
D. when they ate with one of their hands they could do something with the other

4. Today, "sandwich" is ______.

A. also a name of a rich man
B. two pieces of bread with meat in between
C. not interested in playing cards
D. not liked by most of the people

A. is usually made of bread and chicken
B. sometimes smells good, but sometimes not
C. is made of bread and meat
D. is easy for us to play.

     Long ago, people in Rome talked to one another in Latin. Pupils in school learned to read and write in
Latin. Books are in Latin.
     Some Romans went to other parts of the world. They took their language with them. Soon Latin was
used in many countries. It became a world language. 
     People in other countries did not talk in Latin the same way. In each land, they changed the language
a little. As time went by, they made more changes. At last they did not talk in Latin any more. New
languages had come from the old one.   
     People do not talk to one another in Latin today. But they still use many Latin words. You do, too.
Street, wall, city, and salt are some of the Latin words we use. You are a pupil in school. Pupil is a Latin
word. It means "little doll".

1. Latin was used by people in _____.

A. Rome
B. the United States
C. Greece
D. Texas

2. The story says, "People do not talk to each other in Latin today. But they still use many Latin words,"
    The word they means _____.

3. Which of the following does this story lead you to believe?

A. It is not good to change a language.
B. Pupils in schools today play with dolls.
C. Not many people can read Latin today.