高考英语阅读理解训练（十六）

 American and British people both speak English of course．But sometimes it does not seem like the same language．In fact，there are some important differences between British English and American English．

【趣味英语】春节小知 世界节日（1）Spring

    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“Whatddya 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．

    Also，some letters have different sounds．For example，the Americans say the“a”in half like the“a”in cat．But the British say the“a”in half like the“o”in soft．

    Sound is not the only 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 they drive lorries．The back of a car is called a trunk in America．In England it is a boot．The American words for the front of the car is hood，but the British say bonnet．

    Many expressions are also different in the two countries．In England，if you are going to telephone friends，you“ring 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 are also sometimes differences in grammar．For example，Americans usually use the helping verb“do”when they ask a question．They say“Do you have class today？”But the British often leave out the helping verb．They say“Have you class today？”

    All these differences can be confusing 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 happened to English．It can also happen to other languages，such as French．Many people in Canada speak French but their French is very different from the French of France．

    1．This passage is about __________ ．

    A．the way the British say words B．English vocabulary

    C．How American sounds are different from British sounds

    D．Differences between American and British English

    2．Compared to the British，Americans are usually __________ ．

    A．more careful about saying words B．less careful about saying words

    C．easier to understand D．slower speakers

    3．Some letters in English __________ ．

    A．always sound the same

    B．have different sounds in the US and England

    C．don't change D．have an unusual sound

    4．The vocabulary for cars and driving is __________ ．

    A．an example of British English B．different in the US and England

    C．an example of modern technology

    D．the same in the US and England

    5．English can be confusing __________ ．

    A．because it never changes

    B．because it is different in different places

    C．when you ask questions

    D．because British English is the only kind of English

    参考答案：1．D 2．B 3．B 4．B 5．B