Although English is not as old as Chinese, it is spoken by many people around the world every day. English speakers are always making up new words, and we are often able to know where most come from.
Sometimes, however, no one may really know where a word comes from. Did you ever think about why hamburgers are called “hamburgers”, especially when they are not made with ham(火腿)? About a hundred years ago, some men went to America from Europe. They came from a big city in Germany called Hamburg. They didn’t speak good English, but they ate good food. When some Americans saw them eating round pieces of beef, they asked the Germans what they were. The Germans didn’t understand the question and answered, “We come from Hamburg.” One of these Americans owned a restaurant, and had an idea. He cooked some round pieces of bread with beef in them and started selling them. Such bread came to be called “hamburgers”. Today, “Hamburgers” are sold in many countries around the world.
Whether this story is true or not, it certainly is interesting. Knowing why any word has a certain meaning is interesting, too. This reason, for most English words, can be found in any large English dictionary.
小题1:English is spoken by many people around the world every day, but English is ______.

A．as old as Chinese	B．older than Chinese
C．younger than Chinese	D．older than German

小题2:Hamburg is ______.

A．a kind of food	B．a round piece of beef
C．the name of a country	D．a city in Germany

小题3:According to the story, the word “hamburger” comes from ______.

A．English speakers because they’re always making up new words

B．the round piece of beef which those people from Hamburg ate

C．English because Germans don’t speak good English

D．a large English dictionary

小题4:. Which of the following is TRUE?

A．Few Americans like hamburgers.

B．Hamburgers are made with ham.

C．Hamburgers were first sold a century ago.

D．Hamburgers were some people.

小题5:. Which of the following can be found in any large dictionary?

A．Where Germans came from.

B．Where all the new words came from.

C．The reason why a new word has a certain meaning.

D．Why English is spoken all over the world.

Dear Eric: Linda and I have been best friends since we were six years old. We often study and play together. It’s great! But she often gets unhappy when I get better grades than her –she really gets jealous. Should I keep taking her as my friend? Yours, Alice

Hi Alice, I think friendship is important in our lives. You should talk to your friend. Tell her you’re both studying and it’s common that sometimes you get a better grade and sometimes she does better. Tell her you’re going to compete(比赛) with her and try to beat her in every test . maybe you can tell her that if she beats you, you’ll buy her some chocolate or something like that. If you can make your schoolwork into a game, you’ll both win in the long run (从长远看), and you will both start to get better grades in your subjects. If it’s a game, you’ll both enjoy school a lot more, and you’ll still be best friends. Your, Eric

小题1: The word “jealous” means “   ” in Chinese.

A．崇拜的

B．嫉妒的

C．同情的

D．担心的

小题2:From Alice’s letter, we know Linda

A．is an unfriendly girl	B．iS Eric’s best friend
C．often has a fight with Alice	D．knew Alice many years ago

小题3: What’s Alice’s problem?

A．She doesn’t know how to get better grades.

B．She doesn’t know what to do to help Linda with her schoolwork.

C．She doesn’t know whether she would be friends with Linda anymore.

D．She doesn’t know how to get along with her teachers and classmates.

小题4:Eric asks Alice to talk to her best friend and

A．compete with her	B．say sorry to her
C．lose to her in each test	D．help her with her homework

小题5:What may happen if Alice and Linda follow Eric’s suggestions?

A．They’ll never speak with each other

B．Both Alice and Linda will do better at school

C．Linda will get mad at Alice and argue with her

D．Alice will get some chocolate from Linda after each game.