English is changing faster than ever with the development of society. Do you long to keep up with the times? If so, here are some old-fashioned words you should remove from your vocabulary list.
Whippersnapper
As an alteration of the term "snippersnapper'', the word first appeared in the 17th century, expressing our ancestors' annoyance at ill-mannered children. In its more contemporary version, the word relates to a young person who is too confident and does not show enough respect to older.
Tape
Are you born in the 1980s? If so, you may still be using the term "tape" when speaking of recording music or TV shows. Today, though digital media has made data storage on magnetic an outdated thing, this old linguistic habit still exists.
Stewardess
In the earlier age of air travel, female crew members serving airline passengers were called stewardesses. It was the development of women's rights movement in the 1960s that the word fell out of use. "Stewardess" was replaced by a more gender-neutral term, "flight attendant”. Dungarees
What we know as "jeans" today were once called “dungarees" to refer to trousers made of denm （蓝粗棉布）.As traders began importing the cloth from Genoa in Italy, this kind of trousers got a new name ’jeans”. So don't be surprised if you catch your grandpa saying dungarees.
1. Who can be described as a whippersnapper nowadays?| A．A child who is bad-tempered. |
| B．An elder who doesn't like children. |
| C．An elder who has confidence and influence. |
| D．A teenager who is overconfident and impolite. |
| A．Whippersnapper. | B．Tape. | C．Stewardess. | D．Dungarees. |
| A．To show readers how to stay young. |
| B．To explain how to keep up with the times. |
| C．To analyze the differences among modern words. |
| D．To advise readers not to use some old-fashioned words. |
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【推荐1】The English language is full of phrases about the weather. Some of these phrases are easy to understand, but others are not really about the weather at all. If you say you “hit rough weather”, you may not be struck by a real storm, but you do experience difficulties or problems. If you don’t know what such phrases mean, they might leave you “in a fog (雾)”!
In English, you can “shoot the breeze”, or have an informal chat. But things can also be a breeze. If you take an exam and find it very easy, you’d tell your friends: “It was a breeze!” The wind can also bring information. You can “get wind of” a piece of news, and if someone “knows which way the wind blows”, they have a good idea about how things will work out. But don’t “throw caution (警惕) to the wind” — that means taking a great risk!
Clouds sometimes bring rain, and in English they often represent problems or difficulties. If someone “sees a cloud on the horizon (地平线)”, there may be problems ahead. And if someone is “under a cloud”, then people think the person might have done something wrong. But clouds are not always bad; in fact, people say that “every cloud has a silver lining”. This means that there is a good side to every situation, no matter how bad it may seem. You may even end up “on cloud nine”, which means you are very happy! But some people have their “heads in the clouds”, not paying attention to reality.
No one likes to be stuck in the rain or storm, so it’s no surprise that phrases about them are generally negative. When someone says “it never rains but it pours”, they are complaining (抱怨) that when things go wrong, they go very wrong. People who talk about “weathering a storm” just want to get through a difficult period or situation.
1. It may be dangerous when you _____.| A．know which way the wind blows | B．find that something is a breeze |
| C．get wind of a piece of news | D．throw caution to the wind |
| A．you are under a cloud | B．your head is in the clouds |
| C．every cloud has a silver lining | D．you see a cloud on the horizon |
| A．changeable | B．unfavorable |
| C．acceptable | D．unbelievable |
【推荐2】“Long time no see.” is a very interesting sentence. When I first read this sentence from an American friend’s e-mail, I laughed. I thought it was a perfect example of Chinglish.
Obviously, it is a word-by-word translation of the Chinese greeting with wrong English grammar and structure! Later on, my friend told me that it is a standard American greeting. I was too surprised to believe her. Her words were unbelievable at all. So I did research on Google.com. To my surprise, there are over 60 thousand web pages containing “Long time no see.”. Though it is sort of informal, it is part of the language that Americans use daily. Interestingly, if you type this phrase in Microsoft Word, the software will tell you that the grammar needs to be corrected.
Nobody knows the origin of this Chinglish sentence. Some people believe that it came from Charlie Chan’s movies. In the 1930s, Hollywood movie-makers successfully created a worldwide famous Chinese detective(侦探) named “Charlie Chan” on wide screens. Detective Chan liked to teach Americans some Chinese wisdom by quoting Confucius. “Long time no see.” was his symbol. Soon after Charlie Chan, “Long time no see.” became a popular expression in America thanks to the popularity of these movies.
Some experts compare America to a huge melting pot. All kinds of cultures are mixed in the pot together, and they change the colour and taste of each other. Language is usually the first thing to be influenced in the mixed pot.
You can have some examples from other countries, such as pizza from Italian, sushi from Japanese, and déjà vu from French etc. There is a long list! Since Americans think highly of Chinese culture more and more nowadays, I believe more Chinese words will become American English in the future. In this way, the American’s melting pot keeps adding richness and flavour.
1. What did the writer feel surprised at according to paragraph 2?| A．The Chinglish expression “Long time no see.”. |
| B．Americans using the expression with wrong grammar. |
| C．Other translations of such expressions used in America. |
| D．“Long time no see.” being used as standard American greeting. |
| A．A mixture of culture. |
| B．A mixed dish in the pot. |
| C．A mixture of color and taste. |
| D．A mixed expression in the movie. |
| A．The mixed pot greatly affects all the languages. |
| B．Hollywood made “Long time no see.” popular. |
| C．Cultures cannot be changed in the mixed pot. |
| D．Detective Chan taught Chinglish in America. |
| A．Some American expressions can be used in China. |
| B．Some Chinese expressions are introduced into English. |
| C．American English keeps being enriched by different cultures. |
| D．The phrase “Long time no see.” is widely accepted in America. |
【推荐3】What makes one person feel loved isn't always the same for another. In fact, everyone understands and receives love in a specific language—four to be exact —which speaks more deeply to you than all the others. Since we all give and receive love differently, discovering each other’s language promotes a healthy relationship.
Language one: Words of Acknowledgement
Language two:
Actions speak louder than words. It's what you do that eases your partner's burden of responsibility. These service acts could be opening a door, doing their laundry, or picking up a prescription.These acts show that you care about your partner and your life together.
Language three: Quality Time
It is about spending time with each other and giving each other your undivided attention.
Language four：Physical Touch
It is a direct way to communicate affection; it's healing, reassuring, and calming. People who speak this love language enjoy any kind of physical touch whether it is hand-holding, kissing pats on the back or hugs.
| A．Acts of Service. |
| B．Housework Matters. |
| C．The appreciation doesn’t have to be complicated. |
| D．They communicate and emphasize love without words. |
| E．Read on to learn and understand more about the four 1anguages of love |
| F．Due to technology, people often are texting, or scrolling through social media instead of spending quality time together. |
| G．On the contrary, negative comments can hurt this person and be aware that he or she may take longer to forgive than others. |
The Headrow, Leeds. Tel. 430808
Oct. 10-11 only A Night at the Varieties. All the fun of an old music hall with Barry Cryer, Duggle Brown, 6 dancers, Mystina, Jon Barker, Anne Duval and the Tony Harrison Trio. Laugh again at the old jokes and listen to your favourite songs.
Performances: 8 p.m. nightly.
Admission: ￡5; under 16 or over 60:￡4.
York Theatre Royal
St Leonard’s Place, York. Tel. 223568
Sept. 23-Oct. 17 Groping for Words—a comedy by Sue Townsend, best known for her Adrian Mole Diaries. Townsend now writes about an evening class which two men and a woman attend. A gentle comedy.
Admission: First night, Mon.:￡2; Tues.-Fri.:￡3.25-5.50; Sat.:￡3.50-5.75.
Halifax Playhouse
King’s Cross Street, Halifax. Tel. 365998
Oct. 10-17 On Golden Pond by Ernest Thompson. This is a magical comedy about real people. A beautifully produced, well-acted play for everyone. Don’t miss it.
Performances: 7:30 pm.
Admission: ￡2. Mon.; 2 seats for the price of one.
Grand Theatre
Oxford Street, Leeds. Tel. 502116
Restaurant and Cafe.
Oct. 1-17 The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13. Sue Townsend’s musical play, based on her best-selling book.
Performances: Evenings 7:45. Oct. 10-17, at 2:30 pm. No Monday performances.
Admission: Tues.-Thurs.:￡2-5; Fri. & Sat.:￡2-6.
1. If you are free to go to a theater on September 25, which phone number will you ring to book a seat?
| A．502116 | B．223568 | C．365998 | D．430808 |
| A．City Varieties Theatre | B．York Theatre Royal |
| C．Halifax Playhouse | D．Grand Theatre |
| A．an actress | B．a writer | C．a musician | D．a director |
【推荐2】Ajarn Recruitment, a new and successful educational organization, mainly provides teaching jobs for people with teaching experience as well as exam preparation courses for teenagers and adults.
We are now looking for:
• 2 English speakers for part-time conversational teaching from Tuesday to Thursday at a primary school, which is only 5 minutes’ walk away from the Downtown Square. Teaching is from 3 pm to 5 pm. The hourly fee is 400 Thailand baths.
• 2 full-time English speakers for a conversational English program at a governmental school near Sao Ching Cha in Phra Nakhon district. The monthly pay starts at 28,000 Thailand baths and up depending on your performance in your work.
You must:
• have the ability to lead and encourage your students
• have at least 1 year of teaching experience for the full-time position
• have the ability to adapt yourself to the new living environment in a developing country
• be a native speaker of English, holding a passport from Australia, New Zealand or America
If interested, please send the following required information to ajarn@ ajarnexpress. Com
• your resume
• your teaching certificates
• your own photo and the photo of your passport
We will get in touch with you through e-mails only. Since we have a great number of candidates, we don’t have much time to go through your resume carefully. So we only offer chance of an interview to those candidates with a short and brief list.
TEL: 02-108-7217.
1. The passage is mainly written to .| A．advertise four job offers | B．provide exam preparation courses |
| C．encourage students to study abroad | D．introduce an educational organization |
| A．A local English teacher in Thailand |
| B．A university English teacher from England |
| C．A graduate of an American teachers’ college |
| D．An experienced English teacher from Australia |
| A．leave your phone number | B．introduce yourself in detail |
| C．make a brief self-introduction | D．call 02-108-7217 as soon as possible |
【推荐3】There are hundreds of non-profits welcoming students under the age of 18 as volunteers. In these activities, students can develop important life skills, cultural awareness and a lifelong passion for service.
Union Station Homeless Services
Whether you volunteer in our kitchens to prepare meals or in our offices to help with administrative projects, you will be a valuable member of our family. We do our best to match volunteers with a position that suits their interests and skills.
Minimum Age: 12
Call: 626-240-4550
Northeast Animal Shelter
The Northeast Animal Shelter, established in 1976, is one of New England’s largest non-profit shelters where the pets can be taken good care of. We have placed thousands of dogs and cats since we opened our doors. As soon as a dog or cat arrives, our staff begin searching for the perfect host for them. While waiting for a warm home, the dogs and cats receive the best of care.
Minimum Age: 16
Call: 745-988-8305
Needham Community Farm
The mission of Needham Community Farm is to deepen our community’s connection to nature and the food system by providing farm-based education, increasing access to healthy produce and encouraging environmental protection.
Minimum Age: 13
Call: 781-449-5300
Arlington Public Library
Serving more than 1.5 million people a year, Arlington Public Library holds more than 600,000 items, from books, eBooks, and DVDs, to digital photo collections and provides funded kits for parents and teachers. We only accept the volunteers with community service experience.
Minimum Age: 14
Call: 817-459-6900
1. Which non-profit cares for people in need?| A．Arlington Public Library. |
| B．Northeast Animal Shelter. |
| C．Needham Community Farm. |
| D．Union Station Homeless Services. |
| A．Cook healthy meals. |
| B．Build perfect homes. |
| C．Find adoptive families. |
| D．Search for their owners. |
| A．They are skillful at sorting out items. |
| B．They ought to be at least 12 years old. |
| C．They have experience in community service. |
| D．They should be capable of taking digital photos. |
【推荐1】Spring is in the air, as is romance. Perhaps you're even thinking of taking the plunge and making a honey trip with your significant other?
Before you do, why not take a look at a list of the top three places in the world to propose (求婚)? With suggestions for traditionalists and private types, you just might find the perfect spot to pop the question.
New York
If you pay attention to romantic comedies, New York is the place for romance. Ever since the Dutch first entered this harbor in 1624 it has become a historic landmark and a must visit dreamland.
Every stretch of this island is packed full of fun that will keep everyone busy. Take a leaf out of sleepless in Seattle and head to the top of the Empire State Building at night, or how about run to your loved one on the streets of NYC this New Years even like in when harry Met Sally?
Paris
Sweeping views? Check. Grand old stately home? Check. Luxurious spots to propose? Check. Pack your passports and say goodbye to your daily routine life-it's less than three hours to Paris from London by Eurostar. Famous for its breathtaking architecture, and many cultural attractions, France's capital is a must-see destination. While we're not suggesting you climb the Eiffel Tower for the big moment. There's a reason why this is the city of love, if you keep your proposal original. So gentleman, take your lady to the Louvre, turn your back on the Mona Lisa and declare she is more beautiful than the famous work of art.
Las Vegas
Do you want to bundle the proposal and wedding all-in-one? Plead to. Las Vegas, get down on one knee, show your love and get married in less time than it takes to order 'honeymoon suit’ and if it doesn't work out. There's still plenty of entertain. Once the playground of the rich and famous, from Elvis Presley to Marilyn Monroe, Las Vegas now attracts millions of visitors by its bright lights and thrills each year. Whether you're to try your luck at the casinos (赌场), or watch a show, there's a wonder to explore in Las Vegas.
1. Which of the following city on the top-3 list would be the ideal place for film fans to propose?| A．New York | B．Paris. |
| C．Las Vegas. | D．None. |
| A．On the top of the Eiffel Tower | B．In the Eurostar train from London |
| C．Any luxurious spot in Pairs | D．In front of the Mona Lisa in the Louvre |
| A．a honeymoon suite | B．a package wedding |
| C．a bundle of flowers | D．various ways to entertain |
When I was nine, Lili quitted her job and started her own business. She said she didn’t want to stay at home and work as a housewife: “It’s a waste of life.” Lili became so busy that she spent less and less time with me. She didn’t help me with my schoolwork. It was, in her words, “so that you can develop your independence”. We quarreled because she rarely showed up at parents’ meetings.
Like mother, like daughter. I have many things in common with Lili. I want everything to be under control. I want to be perfect and I don’t expect other people to help me. I push myself hard to achieve my goals.
After I started to go to high school, Lili and I were too busy to communicate much with each other.
In biology class I began to be depressed. When the teacher showed us a picture of a butterfly, I was scared and screamed. I had a vision of thousands of butterflies flying toward me.
That night I told Lili about it. The next morning, I saw that she had red eyes with black circles around them.
She took me to see a therapist (治疗师). Three hours later, the therapist told Lili that my life was like a wheel spinning (旋转) faster and faster and that was the reason for what had happened to me. I only realized it when my body couldn’t stand the pressure anymore. At these words, Lili burst into tears. “It’s all my fault, she’s just a kid and I didn’t have time to take care of her….” To be honest, I had never seen Lili cry before.
After that, Lili began to spend more time at home, cooking and dragging me to do sports. I realized she was the one who would always be there when I was in real trouble. No mom is perfect, but she is the one who really cares about her kid.
1. Lili quitted her job and started her own business because _________.
| A．she wanted to make more money | B．she was not willing to look after me |
| C．she didn’t want to waste her life | D．she likes keeping busy |
| A．she began to spend less and less time with me |
| B．she didn’t help me with my schoolwork. |
| C．she seldom attended the parents’ meetings in my school. |
| D．Lili and I were too busy to communicate much with each other. |
| A．Most women don’t want to be a housewife. |
| B．Most children want their mothers to accompany them at home. |
| C．We need to understand our mothers’ busy life. |
| D．Although mothers are not perfect, they all love the children |
| A．Lili is a quiet, strong-willed woman. |
| B．Lili began to spend more time at home after visiting the therapist. |
| C．I was scared and screamed in biology class because I hate butterflies. |
| D．I only realized my life was like a wheel when my body couldn’t stand the pressure anymore. |
| A．Mom Does Care. | B．A Busy but Successful Mother. |
| C．Change From Mother to Businessman. | D．A Student’s Opinion on Mother. |
【推荐3】In the United States in recent years, camping has become very popular. Every summer, thousands of families leave the city behind to spend weekends and vacations outdoors. Some families take along trailers(拖车). Others load their cars with tents, small stoves, and airfilled sleeping mattresses(床垫). Then they head for one of the country's many campgrounds.
Some campgrounds offer campers little more than clean water and places to pitch their tents or park their trailers. People who go to these places like to “rough it.” Other campgrounds offer campers such comforts as electricity, outdoor fireplaces, and even showers.
In the United States, most campgrounds are publicly owned. The national parks and many national monuments and national forests have land set aside for campers. State governments also run campgrounds in stateowned parks and forests. Even countries and cities may have their own campgrounds.
A few years ago, campers could always find room to camp in a public campground. But today, governmentowned campgrounds are often overcrowded. To meet the needs of the evergrowing number of campers, some businessmen are opening privately owned land to campers.
More private campgrounds are opening across the country. The campers usually pay a higher fee than they pay at governmentowned grounds. But many private parks also offer more comforts. And as public parks and forests become greatly overcrowded, private campgrounds will give more people the chance to enjoy camping.
1. The story is mainly about ______.| A．new campgrounds that will give more people a chance to camp |
| B．the problems of running the national parks and national forests |
| C．how countries and cities can have their own campgrounds |
| D．why camping has become so popular in the USA |
| A．national monuments | B．governed by cities |
| C．privately owned | D．publicly owned |
| A．campgrounds | B．fee |
| C．comforts | D．campers |
| A．Each country and city will have to build its own campgrounds. |
| B．All people who go camping like to “rough it”. |
| C．Many people who go camping live in big cities. |
| D．Fewer and fewer people like to camp in the country. |
【推荐1】Last year, the bushfires in Australia burned more than 12.35 million acres of land. At least 25 people were killed and 2000 homes destroyed. According to the BBC, that was the most casualties(伤亡) from wildfires in the country since 2009. The University of Sydney estimates that 480 million animals have died in South Wales alone.
Zeke Hausfather, an energy systems analyst and climate researcher at Berkeley Earth, said warmer temperatures and extreme weather made Australia more susceptible to fires and increased the length of the fire season. "The drier conditions combined with record high temperatures in 2019 created main conditions for the disastrous fires. Australia's fires were worsened by the combination of those two. 2019 was the perfect storm for being the warmest year on record for Australia and the driest year on record for Australia," Hausfather added on Friday.
Kevin Trenberth, a senior scientist at the US National Center for Atmospheric Research, said warmer ocean temperatures are also contributed to more variable weather around the world. Trenberth believes that global warming contributed to energy imbalances and hot spots in the oceans, which can create a wave in the atmosphere that locks weather patterns in places, causing longer rain events in Indonesia, for example, and at the same time contributing to drought in Australia. He said that once an area experiences drought conditions for two months or more, it increases the risk of fires catching and spreading. Those changing weather patterns due to global warming make drought events longer.
Climate experts stress that climate change is not the only factor in the severity(严重) of wildfires. How land is managed can also impact the amount of fuel available for fires. Practices like controlled bums and other factors can impact the risk to people and property, such as warning systems and the type of development in a given area. Changing those policies has great potential to limit future damage from wildfires along with changes to how fire management resources are dispatched(派遣).
1. What are the numbers about in paragraph 1?| A．The causes of Australian fires. | B．The results of Australian fires. |
| C．The damaged areas of Australian fires. | D．The property destruction of Australian fires. |
| A．Very quickly to adapt to. |
| B．Very seriously to focus on. |
| C．Very likely to be influenced by. |
| D．Very easily to be protected against. |
| A．Longer dry weather contributes to global warming. |
| B．Global wanning is also a main cause of the bushfires. |
| C．Warmer ocean temperatures leads to the fires directly. |
| D．The imbalanced energy leads to the temperature rising. |
| A．To stress the effects of Australia fires. |
| B．To show the methods for land management. |
| C．To predict the seriousness of Australia fires. |
| D．To provide some advice about reducing fire damage. |
War broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming, "Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!" Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.
The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled (爬) under her covers, sobbing.
Obviously, that was something she should not go through phone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.
Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn't noticed Kate had sat up.
She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me. "Thanks."
Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn't always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.
1. What made Kate angry one evening?
| A．She couldn't find her books. |
| B．She heard the author shouting loud. |
| C．She got the news that her grandma was ill. |
| D．She saw the author's shoes beneath her bed. |
| A．she was scared by Kate's anger |
| B．she hated herself for being so messy |
| C．she wanted to show her care |
| D．she was asked by Kate to do so |
| A．My Friend Kate | B．Hard Work Pays Off |
| C．How to Be Organized | D．Learning to Be Roommates |
【推荐3】Jack Andraka was 15 when he came up with an idea for a new way to test for pancreatic (胰腺) cancer. When Andraka was 14, a family friend died of the disease, and this affected him deeply. This kind of cancer is particularly serious because there is no test you can have done to find it in the early stages. By the time standard tests determine you have the disease, it is often too late. Realizing that this was the case, Andraka decided to try to develop a test that might catch problems at the earliest stages.
The road ahead looked difficult for Andraka. He was still a high school student, and he wanted to create something that no one else had done. But Andraka read endlessly about the disease, wrote a proposal for his idea, and sent it out to 200 cancer researchers. Only one professor, Dr.Anirban Maitra, responded positively. Dr.Maitra agreed to work with Andraka on his idea, giving him guidance and access to a laboratory.
The next big reward for Andraka’s perseverance was winning the grand prize at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. This great award is given to young innovators who have developed a world-changing idea. Developing the test is likely to take many years, but Andraka hopes the test will eventually improve people’s lives and maybe save them.
Jack Andraka is not alone as a young innovator. After all, there were 1,499 other contestants for the Intel award, and all of them had ground-breaking ideas. For Andraka, having a family that loves science and encourages creative thinking gave him an advantage. But the key for Andraka is that reading, research, and discovery are just plain fun, and the chance to improve the world around him in the process makes it even better.
1. Why did Andraka decide to develop a test for pancreatic cancer?| A．His friend’s encouragement. | B．An upsetting experience. |
| C．His extensive reading. | D．An important test. |
| A．Lack of positive replies from experts. | B．Heavy pressure from his schoolwork. |
| C．Little access to research equipment. | D．Great need of money to develop a test. |
| A．The competition with other contestants. | B．His determination to improve the world. |
| C．The support from his family. | D．His passion for discovery. |
| A．Practice makes perfect. | B．Hard work leads to success. |
| C．One good turn deserves another. | D．Failure is the mother of success. |
