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

When a first-time father saw his newborn son, he immediately noticed the baby's ears obviously standing out from his head. He expressed his concern to the nurse that some children might be made fun of his child. A doctor examined the baby and reassured the new dad that his son was healthy---- the ears presented only a small problem with its appearance.
But the nervous father continued. He wondered if the child might suffer psychological effects of ridicule, or if they should consider plastic surgery(整形手术). The nurse assured him that it was really no problem, and he should just wait to see if the boy grows into his ears.
The father finally felt more optimistic about his child, but now he worried about his wife's reaction to those large ears. She had been delivered by operation, and had not yet seen the child.
“She doesn't take things as easily as I do,” he said to the nurse.
By this time, the new mother was settled in the recovery room and ready to meet her new baby. The nurse went along with the dad to lend some support in case this inexperienced mother became upset about her baby's large ears.
The baby was in a blanket(毛毯) with his head covered for the short trip through the cold air-conditioned corridor. The baby was placed in his mother's arms, who eased the blanket back so that she could look at her child for the first time.
She took one look at her baby's face and looked to her husband and gasped, “Oh, Honey! Look! He has your ears!”
No problem with Mom. She married those ears...and she loves the man to whom they are attached.
The poet Kahlil Gibran said, “Beauty is not in the face; beauty is a light in the heart.” It's hard to see the ears when you're looking into the light.
【小题1】When the father first saw his baby, he was worried that________.

A．The baby might not grow up healthily.

B．The baby might be laughed at by others.

C．The baby might disappoint its mother.

D．the baby might have mental problems.

【小题2】According to the doctor and nurse, the baby’s ears________.

A．could not function well.

B．looked the same as others.

C．only caused a small problem.

D．needed to have plastic surgery.

【小题3】What is true about the baby’s mother?

A．She blamed her husband for the baby’s big ears.

B．She was the first to discover the baby’s large ears.

C．She suggested having an operation on the baby immediately.

D．She found something similar between the baby and its father.

【小题4】What does the underlined word they refer to in the last but on paragraph(倒数第2段)?

A．The ears.

B．The parents.

C．The doctor and nurse.

D．The problems

【小题5】What’s the function of the last paragraph?

A．To advise readers to listen carefully.

B．To draw a conclusion from the story.

C．To criticize the wrong attitude to physical beauty.

D．To stress the importance of doctor-patient relationship.

 

    第一节  听力理解(5段共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)

    每段播放两遍。各段后有几个小题，各段播放前每小题有5秒钟的阅题时间。请根据    各段播放内容及其相关小题，在5秒钟内从题中所给的A、B、C项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

听第一段对话，回答第1—3题。

1.What does the girl want her father to buy7

   A. A ruler.   B. High-tech things.   C. Pencils and erasers.

2.Which of the following does the father consider buying for his daughter?

   A. A calculator.    B. A computer.    C. An MP3.

3.Which of the following could be a reason for her father to buy what she wants7

    A. She volunteers to use some of her own money.

    B. She asks her father to buy a cheap one online.

C. She tells her father she is the best in school.

听第二段对话，回答第4—6题。

4.What do the speakers think of San Francisco?

   A. It is a big city.   B. They both love the city.   C. It isn't so expensive to live there.

5.What does the woman think of cell phone interruption?

   A. She likes it.   B. She doesn't mind it.   C. She considers it rude.

6.What reason does the man give to answer his cell phone?

    A. He feels like answering.

    B. He wants to know who's calling.

    C. He thinks that it could be something important.

听第三段对话，回答第7—9题。

7.What is the man complaining about?

   A. Not accepting any gift from his friend.

   B. Not receiving any answer from his friend.

   C. Not hearing any good news from his friend.

8.According to the woman, when should you write a thank-you card?

   A. You receive a gift from your friend.

   B. You are invited to a birthday party.

   C. You spend a holiday with your friend.

9.What's the speakers' attitude towards writing thank-you cards?

   A. They think it out-dated. B. They think it inconvenient.

   C. They think it good to keep the custom.

听第四段独白，回答第10—12题。

10.What does the speaker imply about traffic in big cities?

   A. Buses are slow, but comfortable.

   B. Parking in the rush hour is very difficult.

   C. All the people use private transport instead of public transport.

11.What does the speaker recommend to do to improve the situation?

   A. To enlarge city centers.

   B. To move to the areas outside the city.

   C. To make good use of existing space.

12.How many aspects of our lives does the speaker mention as affected by overcrowding?

    A. Two.  B. Three. C. Four.

听第五段对话，回答第13—15题。

13.Why does the man like The Times?

     A. It has 20 pages every day.

     B. It carries a lot of sports news.

     C. It doesn't devote 5 pages every day to baseball results.

14.In what way is the jobs section on The Times useful to the local people?

     A. It carries job ads from the local businesses.

     B. It is the place where local businesses hire people.

     C. It provides much information about local economy.

15.What does the woman think will happen to job ads if The Times closes down?

     A. The other two newspapers will open a local jobs newspaper.

     B. The local economy will be much affected but not destroyed.

     C. The job ads will be carried in either of the other two newspapers.

第二节  听取信息(共5小题；每小题1分，满分5分)

听下面一段独白，请根据题目要求，从所听到的内容中获取必要的信息，填入答题卡  标号为16.—20.的空格中。听录音前，你将有10秒钟的阅题时间。录音读两遍，你将有80秒钟的作答时间。

Season	Period	Temperature	Weather	Activities
winter	December~early March	Drop (16.)	snowy	skiing, snowshoeing
spring	from(17.)	around 50 degrees during the day	windy	going on a picnic, strolling through parks and playing (18.)
summer	from June	around 80 defrees	rry with (19.)	hiking, fishing, etc.
fall	from late September		cool	rriving into the mountains, viewing the fall colors, cleaning up (20.)