As the English language has changed at a fast speed in this century, so has the use of the English language.
After the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was founded in 1927, the particular style of speech of the BBC announcers was recognized as Standard English or Received Pronunciation (RP) English. Now, most people still consider that the pronunciation and delivery of BBC announcers is the clearest and most understandable spoken English.
English has had a strong association with class and social status. However, since the Second World War there has been a considerable change of attitude towards speech snobbery, and hallmarks of class distinction such as styles of speech have been gradually discarded, especially by the younger generation.
As the need has arisen, new words have been invented or found from other languages and incorporated into English. Similarly, old words and expressions have been discarded as their usefulness has diminished or the fashions have passed. This also happens to styles and modes of speech which became fashionable at a particular time and in specific circumstances.
By the end of the 1960s it became apparent that it was not necessary to speak Standard English or even correct grammar to become popular, successful and rich. The fashionable speech of the day was no longer the prerogative of a privileged class but rather a defiant expression of class lessness.
The greatest single influence of the shaping of the English language in modern times is the American English. Over the last 25 years the English used by many people, particularly by those in the media, advertising and show business, has become more and more mid-Atlantic in style, delivery and accent.
In the 1970s, fashion favored stressless pronunciation and a language full of jargon, slang and “in” words, much of it quite incomprehensible to the outside world. What is considered modern and fashionable in Britain today is often not the kind of English taught in schools and colleges.
1. Which one of the following is NOT true?
2. What does the author imply by saying “there has been a considerable change of attitude towards speech snobbery” (Para. 3)?
3. According to the author, there was a trend in the U.S. for the young people ______.
4. The word “mid-Atlantic” in the passage (Para. 6) probably means ______.
5. It can be concluded from the passage that ______.
问题1选项
A.The use of the English language has not changed much in this century.
B.The BBC announcers speak Standard English.
C.English has no association with class and social status now.
D.Young people all speak English in the same way.
问题2选项
A.People all speak English like BBC announcers.
B.There is a great change of attitude about how English should be spoken.
C.Some people still think their way of speaking is inferior.
D.Most people don’t believe their way of speaking is inferior.
问题3选项
A.to speak Standard English
B.to speak English without class distinction
C.to speak English with class distinction
D.to speak English with grammar mistakes
问题4选项
A.American and European
B.American and British
C.the Atlantic Ocean
D.in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean
问题5选项
A.Standard English is taught in school and colleges
B.the young people are defiant because they refuse to speak Standard English
C.English language is influenced by American English in the last 25 years
D.there has been a great change in the English language in this century
第1题:A
第2题:D
第3题:B
第4题:B
第5题:D
第1题:
【选项释义】
Which one of the following is NOT true? 下列哪一项是不正确的?
A. The use of the English language has not changed much in this century. A. 英语的使用在本世纪没有多大变化。
B. The BBC announcers speak Standard English. B. 英国广播公司的播音员说标准英语。
C. English has no association with class and social status now. C. 英语现在与阶级和社会地位无关了。
D. Young people all speak English in the same way. D. 年轻人都以同样的方式说英语。
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据文章第一段“As the English language has changed at a fast speed in this century, so has the use of the English language.（随着英语语言在本世纪发生了快速的变化，英语语言的使用也发生了变化。）”可知，在本世纪英语的使用发生了变化。因此A选项“英语的使用在本世纪没有多大变化。”不符合原文，符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
B选项“英国广播公司的播音员说标准英语。”，根据第二段第一句“the particular style of speech of the BBC announcers was recognized as Standard English or Received Pronunciation (RP) English.（英国广播公司播音员的特殊讲话风格被认为是标准英语或标准发音英语。）”可知，英国广播公司的播音员说的是标准英语，符合原文，属于反向干扰；
C选项“英语现在与阶级和社会地位无关了。”和D选项“年轻人都以同样的方式说英语。”，根据第三段第二句“However, since the Second World War there has been a considerable change of attitude towards speech snobbery, and hallmarks of class distinction such as styles of speech have been gradually discarded, especially by the younger generation.（然而，自第二次世界大战以来，人们对言语势利的态度发生了相当大的变化，说话风格等阶级区分的标志逐渐被抛弃，尤其是年轻一代。）”可知，英语现在已经与阶级和社会地位无关，年轻人的说话风格趋于一致，符合原文，属于反向干扰。
第2题:
【选项释义】
What does the author imply by saying “there has been a considerable change of attitude towards speech snobbery” (Para. 3)? 作者说“对言语势利的态度已经发生了相当大的变化”（第3段），这是在暗示什么?
A. People all speak English like BBC announcers. A. 人们都像BBC播音员一样讲英语。
B. There is a great change of attitude about how English should be spoken. B. 人们对如何说英语的态度发生了很大的变化。
C. Some people still think their way of speaking is inferior. C. 有些人仍然认为他们说话的方式是低劣的。
D. Most people don’t believe their way of speaking is inferior. D. 大多数人并不认为自己说话的方式低人一等。
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】由题干可以定位到文章第三段第二句“However, since the Second World War there has been a considerable change of attitude towards speech snobbery, and hallmarks of class distinction such as styles of speech have been gradually discarded, especially by the younger generation.（然而，自第二次世界大战以来，人们对言语势利的态度发生了相当大的变化，说话风格等阶级区分的标志逐渐被抛弃，尤其是年轻一代。）”，“言语势利”是指通过言语判断社会阶层，说明英语现在已经与阶级和社会地位无关，大部分人不认为标准英语有什么了不起了。因此D选项“大多数人并不认为自己说话的方式低人一等。”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“人们都像BBC播音员一样讲英语。”，文中没有提及，属于无中生有；
B选项“人们对如何说英语的态度发生了很大的变化。”，文中说的是对于言语势利的态度发生了变化，而不是对如何说英语的态度，属于曲解原文；
C选项“有些人仍然认为他们说话的方式是低劣的。”，与原文意思相反，属于反向干扰。
第3题:
【选项释义】
According to the author, there was a trend in the U.S. for the young people ______. 根据作者的说法，在美国有一种年轻人______的趋势。
A. to speak Standard English A. 说标准英语
B. to speak English without class distinction B. 不分阶级地说英语
C. to speak English with class distinction C. 说英语有阶级差别
D. to speak English with grammar mistakes D. 说有语法错误的英语
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据第三段第二句“hallmarks of class distinction such as styles of speech have been gradually discarded, especially by the younger generation.（说话风格等阶级区分的标志逐渐被抛弃，尤其是年轻一代。）”可知，年轻人使用英语没有了阶级划分。因此B选项“不分阶级地说英语”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“说标准英语”和D选项“说有语法错误的英语”，文中没有提及，属于无中生有；
C选项“说英语有阶级差别”，与原文意思相反，属于反向干扰。
第4题:
【选项释义】
The word “mid-Atlantic” in the passage (Para. 6) probably means ______. 文章（第6段）中的“mid-Atlantic”一词可能是______的意思。
A. American and European A. 美国和欧洲
B. American and British B. 美国和英国
C. the Atlantic Ocean C. 大西洋
D. in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean D. 在大西洋中间
【考查点】词义推测题。
【解题思路】由题干关键词mid-Atlantic（大西洋中部）可以定位到文章第六段“The greatest single influence of the shaping of the English language in modern times is the American English. Over the last 25 years the English used by many people, particularly by those in the media, advertising and show business, has become more and more mid-Atlantic in style, delivery and accent.（对现代英语形成影响最大的是美式英语。在过去的25年里，许多人使用的英语，特别是媒体、广告和演艺界人士使用的英语，在风格、表达方式和口音上越来越接近大西洋中部的英语。）”，由此可知，美式英语对英语影响很大，前文第二段又说到BBC英式英语一直是标准英语，那么现在的英语就必定是受美式英语很大影响的英式英语，而地理上大西洋正好位于英、美之间。因此B选项“美国和英国”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“美国和欧洲”、C选项“大西洋”和D选项“在大西洋中间”，均不是该词所表达的意思，属于无中生有。
第5题:
【选项释义】
It can be concluded from the passage that ______. 从文章中可以得出结论______。
A. Standard English is taught in school and colleges A. 学校和大学教授标准英语
B. the young people are defiant because they refuse to speak Standard English B. 年轻人是叛逆的，因为他们拒绝说标准英语
C. English language is influenced by American English in the last 25 years C. 在过去的25年里，英语受到了美式英语的影响
D. there has been a great change in the English language in this century D. 英语在本世纪发生了很大的变化
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据文章第一段“As the English language has changed at a fast speed in this century, so has the use of the English language.（随着英语语言在本世纪发生了快速的变化，英语语言的使用也发生了变化。）”结合全文内容可知，在本世纪英语发生了很大变化。因此D选项“英语在本世纪发生了很大的变化”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“学校和大学教授标准英语”，由原文可知，标准英语就是BBC英语，学校不可能都在教BBC英语，属于曲解原文；
B选项“年轻人是叛逆的，因为他们拒绝说标准英语”，由原文可知，年轻人主要是不想在讲话时显出阶级差别，不能根据这一点说明年轻人是叛逆的，属于曲解原文；
C选项“在过去的25年里，英语受到了美式英语的影响”，由原文可知，语言的影响是一个长期的过程，不能说在特定一段时间影响，属于曲解原文。
