Question

Passage 8(2014 广东，B) 

     To us,it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains. But in fact the umbrella was not invented as protection against the rain.Its first use was as a shade ( jSK) against the sun.

     Nobody knows who first invented it,but the umbrella was used in very ancient times.Probably the first to use it were the Chinese,back in the eleventh century BC.

     We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade. And there was a strange thing connected with its use: it became a symbol of honor and power (权力) .In the Far East in ancient times,the umbrella was allowed to be used only by those in high office or by royal people such as the kings or queens.

     In Europe,the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade.The umbrella was in common use in ancient Greece,but it is believed that the first people in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans. During the middle ages in Europe,the use of the umbrella almost disappeared. Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And again it became a symbol of power.

     Umbrellas have not changed much in style during all this time,though they have become much lighter in weight.lt wasn’t until the twentieth century that the umbrellas for women began to be made in all kinds of colors.

1. Ancient people first used umbrellas as       .

   A. a symbol of honor   B. protection against the sun

   C. a symbol of power   D. protection against the rain

2. According to the passage,the umbrella was probably first used in ancient       .

   A. Egypt   B. Babylon   C. Rome   D. China

3. The underlined word royal might mean       in Chinese.

   A. 皇室的   B. 富裕的   C. 中产的   D. 平民的

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

   A. The ancient Greeks used the umbrella in their daily life.

   B. Europeans hardly used the umbrella during the middle ages.

   C. The umbrellas for women were made colorful in ancient times.

   D. The style of the umbrella hasn^ changed a lot since it was invented.

5. This passage is mainly about       .

   A. the sales of the umbrella

   B. the differences among umbrellas

   C. the invention of the umbrella

   D. the history and the use of the umbrella

Answer 1

1. B 2. D 3. A 4. C 5. D

Passage 8

[语篇解读]本文是一篇说明文，介绍了伞的用途及其发展史。

1. B细节理解题。由文章第一段的最后一句可知答案为B项。

2. D细节理解题。文章的第二段第二句直接给出了答案，中国很可 能是最早用伞的国家。故D项正确。

3. A词义猜测题。由画线单词后的such as the kings or queens可推知 royal意为“皇室的”，故选A.

4. C细节理解题。由最后一段的最后一句可知C项说法错误，与文 章不符。

5. D主旨大意题。结合全文可知D项的描述准确。整篇文章都在介 绍伞的用途和发展历史。

[长难句] The umbrella was in common use in ancient Greece,but it is believed that the first people in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans.伞在古希腊被普遍使用，但人们认为，在欧洲最先使用伞遮挡雨水的人是古罗马人。

本句是一个表转折关系的并列句。后一分句中包含一个that引导的主语从句。It is believed that...为常用句式，意为“人们认为……”。