The number of speakers of English in Shakespeare’s time is estimated(估计) to have been about five million. Today it is estimated that some 260 million people speak it as a native language, mainly in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In addition to the standard varieties of English found in these areas, there are a great many regional and social varieties of the language as well as various levels of usage that are employed both in its spoken and written forms.

In fact, it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an adequate(足够的) working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages. The purpose for English learning and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.

The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its present-day importance as a world language. Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers, English is a language in which some of important works in science, technology, and other fields are being produced, and not always by native speakers. It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications, international conferences, and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations. It is a language of wider communication for a number of developing countries, especially former British colonies. Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication in such matters as government, commerce, industry, law and education as well as for international communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.

1.What would be the best title for this passage?

A．The Difficulties of Learning English	B．International Communications
C．The Standard Varieties of English	D．English as a World Language

2.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Some 260 million people in the world have an adequate working knowledge of English.

B．There are some 260 million native speakers of English in the world.

C．It is almost impossible to estimate the number of people with an adequate working knowledge of English.

D．People learn English for a variety of reasons.

3.According to the passage, what is the main reason for the widespread use of English?

A．It was popular during Shakespeare’s time.	B．It is used in former British colonies.
C．It serves the needs of its native speakers.
D．It is a world language that is used for international communication.

4.What forms an adequate working knowledge of English?

A．The ability to read a newspaper.
B．It is difficult to judge because it differs for each situation.
C．Being able to speak several languages.	D．Being a native speaker.

5.What type of developing countries would be most likely to use English?

A．Those geographically close to the United States.

B．Those interested in the culture of the United States.

C．Former colonies of Great Britain.

D．Countries where international conferences are held.

6.C。细节题。根据文章最后一段倒数第2句可推知此题

阅读下面的文字，完成下列各题。

梵  高

张  炜

我们终于谈到梵高了，神圣的梵高。在当代，他已经是不同艺术领域中的崇拜人物。他的作品在商人那儿已经化为金子，或者是远比金子还要昂贵十倍的珍奇。但是像他那样的心灵不仅用金钱无法沟通，就是用一般的艺术和精神也无法接近。他会在任何时候任何地点，拒绝那些流行的艺术热望者、大知音和中产阶级的高雅情调。因为他只是最平凡的人群中的一个灵魂，一个底层的感受者和传达者，一个不屈服者和抗争者，一个实践善良和使用决心的人。他是贫民的儿子，是他们痛苦而尖锐的眼睛。在这样的一双眼睛面前，我们往往只有在无可奈何的沉默中压住自己心底的惊叹才行。他的境界是高不可攀的，因为那是底层艺术家所守护的最后一道防线，也是权利。这其实也是人的防线与权利。梵高可以让我们明白，当一个人面对无情的外部世界时，顽强的精神会怎样迸溅出火花，直至燃烧为熊熊烈焰。

我走在慕尼黑、曼哈顿、巴黎等最著名的艺术博物馆里，在星光灿烂之中，在无法穷尽的艺术、不同时代不同流派的大荟萃面前，常常有一种无可逃匿的眩晕感。在跨越时空而来的多角度多层次、频繁急促和陡然有力的各种撞击之下，那根本来敏感的神经已经麻木疲萎。可是，几乎是无一例外，只要一走近梵高，一走近他的展出单元，立刻就会感到一片辉煌之光扑面而来。就这样，最昂扬的音乐陡然奏响。世界马上改变了，双眼睁大了，一切又重新开始了。

这是怎样神秘的力量，这力量又从何而来？

当然，一切只能源于他的这个生命。他的生命仍然在持续不断地发散----首先是从源头，从他执笔之时，从那一刻的怦怦心跳开始震动我们，使我们至今不能安宁。他眼中的一切原来与我们有巨大区别，就是这区别让我们双眼大睁、心上一凛。这区别当然是来自他的目光，它有强大的剥落和穿凿的力量：世界上的所有事物都被我们的眼睛蒙上了一层庸常的布幔，但这布幔在梵高那儿马上被刺破，或被抽揭一空。世界裸露了，本真显现了，所以他让我们看到的就是强烈的光，是逼人的颜色，是疾旋与燃烧，是轰响和炸裂，是呼叫和奔突......我们每个人本来都拥有这种直视的能力，不幸的是后来的生活给予我们每个人无尽的磨损，我们丧失了这种能力，而只有神奇的梵高保留了。

梵高做过教师、画店营业员、传教士、书店店员、画家。这些职业是那么不同，可是在梵高那儿并没有人们想像的那么大的差异。因为他以同样的心情去做，同样用力，同样真实。他赋予任何工作的，都仅仅是一份生命的虔诚。也正是由于这种对于工作的非同常人的理解，他差不多把每一样工作都给做“砸了”。最后是作画----他现在被公认为最伟大的画家之一，可是当时却被看成是最不成功的画家，几乎没有卖出过一幅作品。他没有一般专业人士看好的技法，简直没有受到什么正规的、更不要说是深入独到的专业训练了。他的画被看成可笑的涂抹，形式上一塌糊涂。那些直接而强悍的笔触、生猛可怖的画面，能够毫不费力地逼退那些艺术沙龙的宠儿。其实比起梵高而言，许多人等于生活在温室中，他们没有经历真实的风雨阳光，当然也没有接受过催逼，没有倾听过号叫，没有接受过起码的人生打击。他们怎么具有理解梵高的能力呢？

真实的生活，底层的生活，有时候、许多时候都是刺目的。但是在漫长的人生旅途中，生活的真实面目还是要显现----最后总是要显现。这是一个顽强的规律。每到这个时刻，人们也就开始理解了梵高，只不过稍微晚了些。

梵高的艺术，像许多真正的艺术一样，是直到最后才被接受下来的。

他保留下了大量书信。人们阅读这些书信时，才知道他是多么热情、对生活多么挚爱的人。人们读得泪眼汪汪。其实他的画作已经再好不过地表达了这种热烈。他的巨大的慈爱并不需要直接说出，他的柔情也并不需要，因为他全部都画出来了。他正是为这种爱，而不是为这种艺术，交出了自己全部的生命。

——《远逝的风景》

文章指出梵高的“心灵不仅用金钱无法沟通，就是用一般的艺术和精神也无法接近”，为什么？尽量用文中的语言作答，不超过14个字。

文章第三自然段：“这是怎样神秘的力量”中“这”所指代的具体内容是什么？

画线的句子问：“这力量又从何而来？”文中除从总的方面回答：“源于他的这个生命”以外，还说了两个具体的答案，请用自己的话予以归纳。

下列对文章的理解有误的两项是：（     ）

    A．梵高的作品现在已经成为商人们以高价竞相购买的收藏品，而且成了商人们心中的无价之宝。

    B．梵高让我们明白了顽强的精神可以使人在面对无情的外部世界时迸溅出火花，以至成为熊熊燃烧的烈焰

    C．由于在慕尼黑等地的最著名的艺术博物馆里，艺术家众多，不同时代的艺术流派纷至沓来，使人常常有一种无可逃匿的眩晕感，故尔使作者对他们的作品产生了反感。

    D．梵高现在已被公认为最伟大的画家之一，但在梵高的一生中做过教师、画店营业员、传教士、书店店员、画家，均未达到成功的目的，虽然他如同做画那样以同样的心情去做，同样用力，同样真实。

    E．梵高的画以逼人的颜色，强烈的光，强悍的笔触，生猛可怖的画面，裸露、显现了世界的真实面目，逼退了当时艺术沙龙中的宠儿，因而遭到当时人们的否定。

你将阅读的是一篇关于鲨鱼袭击的文章。有五处段落从文章中被取出了。请从A-F这六个选项中选出正确的选项填入空格中。选项中有一项是多余选项。
When I was eight, my parents, my younger brother, Stewart, and a girl called Margo Edwards, who was at school with us, went on holiday to Mozambique. One day, we took out a small rowing boat with an outboard motor on it, and went fishing on a lagoon at a place called San Martina.

【小题1】

Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, there was this disturbance in the water. I remember at first everyone thought it was a dolphin, but it wasn't leaping in and out of the water, and before long we could see this grey fin moving purposefully towards us.
It then circled around our rowing boat, and I remember my father saying: 'Well, I think that's a shark . . .'

【小题2】

My mother was screaming, and father was shouting obscenities at this thing, which he was to bash (痛击) back with one of the oars. I had never seen my parents in obvious terror before, and that's something which never leaves you.

【小题3】

My mother clutched the three of us around her. I remember she had a navy blue robe, with huge starfishes and sunflowers on it, and us three kids gratefully huddled together inside it.

【小题4】

As soon as we were in the fishing boat there was this almost hysterical laughter, and I remember feeling very cold, and being unable to stop trembling.

【小题5】

We all talked about it continually, too, and probably made out we were far braver than we were. And there was lots of re-enactment(表演). I remember that we made mud pools. One of us would be crawling along, playing the shark, and the others screaming and shouting: 'Kill the shark'.

A．For the longest time this thing kept circling around us, and hitting our rowing boat, while Dad continued fighting it off, stabbing at it with his oar, which was probably the worst thing to have done because it must have made the beast even angrier than it already was. B．Our story went back to the town. It spread like wildfire. Everybody knew about it, and people talked about it endlessly. My father was regarded as a bit of a hero: Dad the sharkbasher. If he'd caught the thing, then I suppose he would have been completely heroic. C．The shark became a legend in the town and there were many local fishermen who claimed to have seen it moving around the bay. But despite all the stories of sightings, nobody ever managed to catch the thing. D．It was early evening when the motor stopped, and we were stranded (搁浅). We started to shout in the hope that somebody would hear us; we knew the sound could travel because of the water being very flat and calm.

E. Eventually, people in a fishing boat heard us screaming, and came alongside, and a fisherman tied our boat up to his. He was very careful, or he seemed to be, and he and my father handed first us kids, and then mother, through to his boat, and our rowing boat was towed behind.

F. This monster started bashing our boat, which began rocking from side to side. We were just terrified because the boat was by now rocking so much we thought we were going to be tipped into the water and bitten up by this thing. I remember assuming that we were going to die.