7 . English is now the first language of about 400 million people, the mother language of 12 countries and the official language of 34 more countries. That means one in every seven people in the world speaks English. English has become the new Latin (拉丁语) of the century. One must know English is a part of the 21st century. In Italy, for example, English is a must for many technical (技术的) jobs. In China, English is the most important foreign language learned at school. Now no other language on the earth is better suited (适合) to play the role of the world language. Because English is easier to learn than any other language, and it easily borrows local words and phrases from other countries to expand (扩大) its vocabulary.
English is so widely used that it has become the standard language for all kinds of international communications. Now 75% of the world’s mail is in English, 60% of the world’s telephone calls are made in English. 60% of the world’s radio stations are broadcast (广播) in English and over half of the world’s books and magazines are written in English. In a word, English is now the world’s first language.
1.
countries speak English as their mother language.
2. “English has become the new Latin of the century” means
.
| A．English has a long history |
| B．English is as important as Latin |
| C．English has borrowed lots of words from Latin |
| D．English is as difficult to learn as Latin |
3. If you want to ask for a technical job in Italy, you must be able to
.
| A．speak Latin | B．speak French | C．speak English | D．speak Italian |
4.
of the world’s magazines are written in English.
| A．More than 50% | B．75% | C．60% | D．Less than 50% |
5. Which is the best title of the passage?
| A．English as a Native Language | B．English as the World Language |
| C．English as an Official Language | D．English as the Latin Language |
