People use colour expressions to show their feelings and describe the world. Many colour-related phrases are common in our speech. Let’s see where they came from.
•The Blues
The phrase is a short form of “the blue devils”, which also stands for sad feelings. This expression is also used to describe a type of jazz music that became popular in the south of America in the 1940s.
•Black Sheep of the Family
The phrase refers to a member of a family or a group who is unacceptable. In the old days, the black sheep were sold at a lower price than the white ones at the market, because their fleece(羊毛) could not be coloured. This made the black sheep an unwelcome member of the group.
•A Red-letter Day
A Red-letter Day is a day when something really exciting and memorable(难忘的) happens. It came from the practice of marking special western days, holidays, or other festivals in red on the calendar. Today, some calendars still use red numbers for special holidays, even weekends.
•Green with Envy
Writers such as Shakespeare in the 16th century used the colour green to stand for envy, but it was the Greeks who connected it with sickness caused by envy. When a person was full of envy, his or her body produced too much bile(胆汁), giving his or her skin a greenish colour. That is green with envy.
阅读以上信息，用恰当的单词完成下面的短文，每空一词。
People use colours to express their feelings and describe the world. Many colour-related phrases are often
相似题推荐
Many English words come from Latin, the old language of Rome, and also from ancient Greek (希腊语). From Latin we get words like “wine”, “use” and “day”. From ancient Greek we have words such as “ink”. Because these two languages are dead languages the words have most often come through other languages such as French, or the old German languages. There are also many modern words made up from both Greek and Latin roots – “television”, for example. The word is made up of “tele”, Greek for “far”, and “vision”, a word from Latin meaning “seeing”.
Many common English words come from very strange places. “Tea”, for example, comes from China, and “banana” comes from West Africa. “Potato” came into English language from the island of Haiti, in the West Indies, and “tomato” first came from Mexico.
One reason why the English language has so many words from other languages is that people from many different countries have come to live in Britain. Two thousand years ago the Romans came from Italy, and stayed for over four hundred years. After they left, the Anglo Saxons and Jutes came from the northern part of modern Germany. In the ninth and tenth centuries Scandinavians came into the northern and eastern parts of the country. Finally, in the eleventh century William of Normandy came from France, and became King of England. With him came the French language.
In modern Britain there are four separate languages: English, Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic. And the English itself borrowed many words from the other three languages.
The English language continues to grow and borrow words from other languages. It is not only the language of Britain, but also of Canada, the U.S.A., Australia and New Zealand. It is used by millions of people in Africa and Asia.
1. Why is the vocabulary of the English language very large?
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2. Which language does the word “ink” come from?
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3. When did the Scandinavians arrive in Britain?
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4. How long did the Romans stay in Britain?
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5. What does this passage mainly talk about?
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There are about fifteen hundred languages in the world. But only a few of them are very important. English is one of them. Many, many people use it, not only in England and the USA, but also in other parts of the world. About 200,000,000 people speak it as their own language. It is difficult to say how many people are learning it as a foreign language. Many millions of people are trying to do so. Is it easy or difficult to learn English? Different people may have different answers. Have you ever noticed ads(广告) of this kind in the newspapers or magazines? “Learn English in six weeks, or give your money back…” “Easy and funny” “Our records and tapes help you master English in a month”. Of course, it never happens quite like that.
The only language that seems easy to learn is the mother tongue. We should remember that we all learned our own language well when we were children. If we could learn English in the same way, it would not seem so difficult. Think of what a small child does. He listens to what people say. He tries what he hears.
So it is hard to say that learning English is easy. We must do a lot of practice. And practice needs great efforts and takes much time. Good teachers, record, tapes, books, and dictionaries will be helpful, but they cannot do the student’s work for him.
1. How many languages are very important in the world?2. Which countries use English as the mother tongue? (至少两个例子)
3. What does the writer think of the ads in the newspapers or magazines?
4. Which language is easy to learn?
5. If we want to learn English well, we should
【推荐3】Have you heard of the word “hygge”(小确幸)? It’s Danish, representing a lifestyle practiced by Danish people.
There is no English word for the exact meaning of “hygge”, according to Oxford Dictionaries. It might be translated to “comfort” in English, but it is more than that.
Enjoying beautiful music or having a movie night is hygge. Lighting candles or making real tea in china cups—that’s hygge too. There’s nothing more hygge than sitting around a table with your family or friends, discussing the big and small things in life. Hygge pays attention to making ordinary daily activities special or meaningful, according to the BBC.
For Danish people, hygge is a way of fighting the cold winter, although it doesn’t have to be a winter—only thing. In Denmark, there can be up to 17 hours of darkness per day in winter, and the average temperature is around 0℃, according to the BBC. As a result, people spend more time indoors and relax themselves.
Now the idea of hygge is traveling abroad and becoming fashionable in some other countries too. In the United Kingdom and the United States, there are more and more hygge-themed cookbooks and lifestyle guides, as well as Danish restaurants, cafes and bars.
“The rest of the world seems to be slowly waking up to what Danes (丹麦人) have been wise to for ages,” Helen Russell, author of The Year of Living Danishly, told the BBC.
Hygge: a word representing a Danish | |
| What does it mean in English? | It might be translated to comfort, but there is no English word for the meaning of it |
| How is it achieved? | Hygge ordinary daily activities special, or meaningful, for example, having a movie night. |
| Why is it necessary in Denmark? | It is cold there in winter. There can be as Therefore, Danish people spend more time |
| Its spread | Hygge is becoming fashionable in countries such as the UK and the US. Hygge-themed cookbooks and lifestyle guides are |
| Helen Russell’s idea | The rest of the world seems to slowly |
In our life, we can see colors everywhere. Some colors make us feel relaxed and peaceful while others make us feel upset and nervous. Scientists have studied colors and feelings for a long time. Many believe that colors can make a difference to our feelings.
Warm, bright colors such as yellow and red positive (积极的) colors. They can give people a pleasant feeling. Cool colors such as blue, purple, and green are relaxing colors. They help people have peaceful feelings.
Orange makes people feel hungry, so many restaurants are painted in this color. Blue is a peaceful color. It helps people rest, so it is a very good color for a bedroom. Green means new life, so sick people need this color to make themselves feel better.
However, colors can cause bad feelings, too. Some types of blue make people feel sad. Red can make people full of strong feelings. People may become impatient (没有耐心的) or even get angry more easily because of it.
How do you feel right now? Now look at the color of the walls around you. Does it match your feeling?
1. Scientists believe that colors make a difference to2.
3. Why are many restaurants painted in orange?
4. Who needs the color green most?
5. What is your favorite color? Why?
【推荐2】(1) Many scientists find that colors can change people’s feelings. It’s very interesting. Some colors can make people feel relaxed, and come colors can make people feel nervous. Now, this kind of knowledge is being used in many places. For example, school walls are always painted green because green makes students feel relaxed. It is also good for the students’ eyes. Some books are also green or light blue for the same reason. (2)Restaurant owners not only have to know how to make food, but also have to know how to make money. Here are some thing they’ve learned from scientific studies. The color red makes people hungry. Many fast food restaurants have red furniture or walls. Soft colors like pink and light blue make people feel relaxed, so they spend more time eating. Loud music may be nice at first, but it soon makes people want to leave. Hard seats also make customers want to eat first. But it soon makes people want to leave. Hard seats also make customers want to eat quickly and leave. Many restaurants, especially fast food restaurants, use this knowledge to make customers eat faster.
根据短文内容回答问题。
1. How does the color green make the students feel? (Please answer within 15 words.)
2. What do many taste food restaurants do? (Please answer within 20 words.)
将文中划线的句子翻译成汉语。
3. (1)
4. (2)
5. 请给短文拟一个适当的标题。
【推荐3】Colors can influence moods. For example, blue has a way of creating a peaceful and calm feeling. That’s because blue can slow the pulse and lower the body temperature.
A large number of people choose blue or green as their favorite color. Green, in many people’s minds, means nature, good luck or spring. Having some greeneries(绿色植物) in each room of a house is a nice way to make the atmosphere(氛围) a little more relaxing.
Red is a color that draws attention. It’s considered as the warmest color and often creates feelings of passion and love. But, too much red can easily make people angry. Don’t use too much red inside your home, especially in the living room. If you love red, consider some red touches, like a red lamp.
Choose the color white if you want a room to look clean and peaceful. White creates feelings of youth, purity and simplicity(简约). However, maybe a white room can easily remind people of hospitals. Add touches of other colors, here and there, when going with a mostly white room.
1题完成句子；2、3题简略回答问题；4题找出并写下全文的主题句；5题将文中划线部分译成汉语。
1.
2. How do people feel when they use too much red?
3. How many kinds of colors are there in the article?
4.
5.
【推荐1】What can you do to help people around you? The answer is to be a volunteer. Volunteering means spending time helping others.
How can you volunteer in your community(街区)? You can do volunteer work with your family members because volunteering is a great way to have fun with them. Talk to your parents, brothers, or sisters and see what they might be interested in. Find something you all agree on. For example, you can clean up a park or along a river. You can also plant trees or flowers in the local community. Besides, it is also a good idea to clean up a school or other public buildings.
Volunteering has many advantages. First, volunteering gives kids a taste of responsibility (责任). Second, volunteering can also help kids learn important things about themselves — like what kinds of things they’re best at. Finally, a volunteer job can even help some kids decide what they want to do when they grow up. So what are you waiting for? Start volunteering today!
1. What does volunteering mean?2. Who will you do volunteer work with?
3. Where can you plant trees and flowers?
4. Do the kids learn important things about themselves when doing volunteering work?
5. How many advantages of volunteering are mentioned(提及) in this passage?
【推荐2】New high school students in the US have more to worry about than their test. Often, high school are up to 10 times larger than middle schools. Students become small fish in a very, very big pond.
In the past, American kids knew that high school would bring bullying from elder students. Young students felt lonely and confused.
Nowadays, things are improving. Schools are creating “teams” to make students feel welcome. A team is smaller, friendlier, and easier to become a part of than the school as a whole.
Teams are made up of a few students from each grade level. Teachers choose team leaders to act as role models. Within a team older students protect and advise the younger students, who will do the same for the later. The teams stay together for all four years of school. Some teams even create their own flags!
Students meet on campus before school starts at “orientation”(新生训练). At orientation, students get to know the members of their team. Orientation may go on for as long as one week. During orientation, experts guide students through “trust games”. In one popular game, a student is blindfolded(蒙起眼睛的) and led by a partner through some obstacles(障碍物). In scavenger-hunt(寻物) type games, students have to find out the interests and hobbies of their teammates. These activities help students to get close to each other. Students can go to their team members questions, problems and even friendship. This way, high school doesn’t seem quite so scary.
1. High schools are up to 10 times larger than middle schools, aren’t they?_________________________________________________________________
2. How did young high school students feel in the past?
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3. What is a team made up of?
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4. How long may an orientation last?
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5. What is the aim of the activities at orientation?
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6. What activities do you expect to have in your future high school? Why? (please give at least two reasons)
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There are four seasons in Beijing, the capital of China—short windy spring, long hot summer, cool pleasant autumn and long cold winter. The hottest month is July and the coldest is January. ①参观北京最好的时间是九月和十月。
Spring
To visit this city in spring (early April till the end of May) you need to bring light (薄型的) clothing: long-sleeved shirts (长袖衬衫) or T-shirts, one or two jackets and sweaters. It is warm, windy and dry but very cold at night. Dress warmly when going out at night.
Summer
②Summer in Beijing is very hot with much rain. This calls for light clothes as the temperature in July and August ranges (变化) between 30℃ and 40℃. Short and heavy rain-storms may come suddenly in the afternoon on sunny days.
Autumn
The short but beautiful autumn (from mid-September to the end of October) is travellers’ all-time favourite. Autumn in this city enjoys mild temperature and a lot of sunshine. Long-sleeved shirts and thin coats are necessary for autumn. From late October the temperature comes down, so warm clothing is a must.
Winter
This city has a cold, dry and long winter from early November to the next March. The cold days have no let up (缓和) despite (尽管) sunny days. The average temperature in December, January and February is below 0℃. Be sure to wear wool sweaters and thick coats for winter.
1. 把①处划线句子翻译成英语。2. 把②划划线句子翻译成汉语。
3. What does the underlined word “it” refer to (指的是)?
4. What’s the weather like in Beijing in Spring?
5. 从文中找出与下面所给句子意思相同的句子。
The temperature comes down from late October, so you must wear warm clothing.
