A student is learning to speak British English. He wonders: Can I communicate with Americans? Can they understand me? Learners of English often ask: What are the differences between British and American English? How important are these differences?

Certainly there are some differences between British and American English. There are a few differences in grammar. For example, speakers of British English say “in hospital” and “Have you a pen?” Americans say “in the hospital!” and “Do you have a pen?” Pronunciation is sometimes different. Americans usually sound theirs in words like “bird” and “hurt”. Speakers of British English do not sound theirs in these words. There are differences between British and American English in spelling and vocabulary. For example, “colour” and “honour” are British, “color” and honor” are American.

These differences in grammar, pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary are not important. However, for the most part, British and American English are the same language.

21. According to this passage, a student who is learning to speak American English might be afraid that_______.

A.  British people cannot understand him

B.  American people cannot understand him

C.  the grammar is too hard for him

D.  the spelling is too hard for him

22. American English and British English are different in ________.
A. spelling         B. pronunciation           C. grammar      D. all of the above

23. What is not mentioned in the passage?

A. Whether there are differences between British English and American English.

B. Whether British English and American English are one language or two.

C. How the differences between British Eng­lish and American English happened.

D. How important the differences are.

Pat O’Burke was a poor Irishman with a large family, and one morning, waking up very early from cold and hunger, he decided to go shooting in a wood near his cottage. The wood belonged to Lord Northwood, a rich gentleman. Pat had no right to go there, but in it there were swarms of rabbits and flocks of birds that were good to eat, and Pat determined to take the risk. Suddenly he saw the owner, with a group of friends, coming towards him in the wood. There was a look of anger on Lord Northwood's face as he caught sight of the gun in Pat's hands.

Pat's heart sank with fear, but he saw there was no hope of escape, so he walked boldly(大胆) up to the group and said to Lord Northwood, “Good morning, sir, and what has brought you out so early this morning?”

 Lord Northwood, rather surprised, said he and his friends were taking a little exercise to get an appetite(食欲) for their breakfast. Then, looking at Pat with suspicion(怀疑), he said, “but why are you out so early in the morning?”

 “Well, sir” said Pat, “I just came out to see if I could get a breakfast for my appetite.”

The whole crowd burst into laughter at Pat's ready wit, and with a smile Lord Northwood walked on, leaving Pat to try his luck with the rabbits.

24. This is a story about _____.

A. a rich man who owned a big wood

B. a poor Irishman who lived all by himself

C. a clever man who tried to get something to eat  

D. an Irish hunter with a large family

25. There was a look of anger on Lord Northwood's face. Why?

A. He was not expecting Pat at this early hour.

B. He knew Pat was coming for shooting.

C. He didn't like the poor Irishman at all.

D. Pat had not told him he would come.

26. Why was Lord Northwood surprised?

A. He had not expected such a bold question from Pat.

B. He wondered why Pat didn't run away.

C. Pat wasn't afraid of him.

D. Pat had a gun in his hands.

27. What made the whole crowd burst into laughter?

A. Pat's funny looks.                B. Pat's interesting remarks.

C. Pat's quick and humorous response.  D. Pat's promise to leave fight away.

There is a story about a man who lost his legs and left arm in an accident. After the accident, only a finger and thumb on his right hand remained.

He was a brilliant, creative, and educated man. He had gained a lot of experience while traveling around the world, so he became very depressed after his accident. He was afraid that he would spend the rest of his life suffering and would no longer be able to spend his life in a meaningful way. Then, he realized that he still had partial function of his right hand and could still write even though it was very difficult. An idea occurred to him. “Why not write to other people who need encouragement? ”

He wrote to the prison ministry about sending letters to the prisoners. The prison minister replied, “Writing to the prisoners is acceptable, but your letters will not be answered. ”

Filled with excitement, the man knew he could write his letters. He began sending one-way messages of God’s love, hope, strength, and encouragement. He wrote twice a week, testing his strength and ability to the limit. He poured his heart and soul into his words and shared his experience, sense of humor, optimism, and faith.

It was difficult to write those letters, especially without hope of a reply. One day he received a letter from the prison ministry. It was a short note from the officer who monitored and checked the prison mail.

  The letter said, “Please write on the best paper you can afford. Your letters are passed from cell to cell until they literally fall to pieces! ”

No matter what circumstances life may present, we all have unique experiences, abilities, and God-given talents. We can discover ways to reach others who desperately need messages of encouragement and strength.

28. In order to live in a meaningful way, the man began to____________. 

A. receive the school education

B. write to other people who need encouragement

C. meet the people who are depressed

D. help other people with lost arms and legs

29. According to the prison minister,_______________.    

A. the man was not allowed to write to the prisoners

B. the man couldn’t go to see the prisoners himself

C. the prisoners were not allowed to answer the letters

D. he was not sure if the prisoners would receive the letters

30. From the officer’s short note we are told that_____________.

A. the man would be offered free paper to write letters on

B. some of the prisoners were not satisfied with his letters

C. the prisoners eagerly wanted to write back to the man

D. his letters were very popular among the prisoners

31. What can be the best title for the passage?

A. Stories about a Humorous Person

B. Popularity of Special Letters

C. Special Letters of Encouragement

D. Relationship between writers and prisoners.

    Have you ever run into a careless cell phone user on the street? Perhaps they were busy talking, texting or checking updates on WeChat without looking at what was going on around them. As the number of this new “species” of human has kept rising, they have been given a new name — phubbers（低头族）.

    Recently, a cartoon created by students from China Central Academy of Fine Arts put this group of people under the spotlight. In the short film, phubbers with various social identities(身份) bury themselves in their phones. A doctor plays with his cell phone while letting his patient die, a pretty woman takes selfie in front of a car accident site, and a father loses his child without knowing about it while using his mobile phone. A chain of similar events eventually leads to the destruction of the world.

    Although the ending sounds overstated, the damage phubbing can bring is real.

    Your health is the first to bear the effect and result of it. “Constantly bending your head to check your cell phone could damage your neck,” Guangming Daily quoted doctors as saying. “the neck is like a rope that breaks after long-term stretching.” Also, staring at cell phones for long periods of time will damage your eyesight gradually, according to the report.

    But that’s not all. Being a phubber could also damage your social skills and drive you away from your friends and family. At reunions with family or friends, many people tend to stick to their cell phones while others are chatting happily with each other and this creates a strange atmosphere, Qilu Evening News reported.

    It can also cost you your life. There have been lots of reports on phubbers who fell to their death, suffered accidents, and were robbed of their cell phones in broad daylight.

32. For what purpose does the author give the example of a cartoon in Paragragh2?

A. To inform people of the bad effects of phubbing.

B. To advertise the cartoon made by students.

C. To indicate the world will finally be destroyed by phubbers.

D. To warn doctors against using cell phones while treating patients.

33. Which of the following is NOT a risk a phubber may have?

A. His social skills could be affected.

B. His neck and eyesight will be gradually harmed.

C. He will cause the destruction of the world.

D. He might get separated from his friends and family.

34. Which of the following may be the author’s attitude towards phubbing?

A. Supportive.      B. Opposed.        C. Optimistic.      D. Objective.

35. What may the passage talk about next?

A. Advice on how to use a cell phone.

B. People addicted to phubbing.

C. Measures to reduce the risks of phubbing.

D. Consequences of phubbing.

The Winner’s Guide to Success

Do you know what makes people successful? To find out the answers, an American reporter recently visited some of the most successful people around the world.   36    .

Be responsible for yourself
     Sometimes you may want to blame others for your failure to get ahead. In fact, when you say someone or something outside of yourself is stopping you from making success, you're giving away your own power.  37     .

Write a plan.

It’s very difficult to try to get what you want without a good plan. It’s just like trying to drive through strange roads to a city far away.    38    . Without this “map”, you may waste your time, money and also your energy; while with the “map”, you will enjoy the “trip” and get what you want in the shortest possible time.

   39     .

Nothing great is easy to get. So you must be ready to work hard---even harder than you have ever done. If you are not willing to pay the price, you won’t get anything valuable.

Never give up.

  40    When you are doing something, you must tell yourself again and again: Giving up is worse than failure because failure can be the mother of success, but giving up means the death of hope.

A. A good plan is like a map to you.

B. It seems to us that everyone knows this, but it is easier said than done.

C. Some people achieve success much later in life because they don’t work hard earlier.

D. You're saying, "You have more control over my life than I do."

E. Someone else’s opinions of you don’t have to become your reality.

F. Be willing to pay the price.

G. Here are some keys to success that they give.