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a man’s running after him. Can you see them?”
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A woman’s running along street very fast, and
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quite darkness. Then Mrs. Jones said. “Look, Bill.
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into their car and began driving their home. It was
A story from the Bible tells of old Babylon, where the men decided to build a tower that would touch the sky. But God was unhappy, and he made them speak different languages. They couldn’t understand each other, so their dream never came true.
Yet the dream remains alive: if all men speak the same language, they can do anything. L. L. Zamenhof from Poland was among the men who pursue this dream. He developed Esperanto（世界语）between 1877 and 1885.
As the most successful man-made world language, it is spoken by over two million people around the world. Last month, the World Esperanto Congress（大会）, dealing with language rights, ended in Sweden. Most Esperanto speakers are in Central and Eastern Europe and in East Asia, particularly Chinese mainland.
Esperanto has two advantages. First, it’s easy. Each letter has exactly one sound and there are just 16 basic grammar rules. The second advantage is that it belongs to no one country. But Esperanto has only reached a small number of people compared with natural languages widely used around the world---such as English or Chinese. While these languages are deeply connected with their nations and cultures, Esperanto doesn’t have this background.
Will Esperanto really become a global language? It remains a question.
1.The writer tells us a story at the beginning to .
A. explain why men have been making the effort to create a language shared by all
B. explain why men now speak different languages
C. show the relationship between man and God
D. prove that language is very important
2.What does the underlined word “pursue” in the second paragraph mean?
A. “realize”. B. “work for”.
C. “be against”. D. “follow”.
3.What is the basic difference between Esperanto and other natural languages?
A. More people speak English than Esperanto.
B. Esperanto words are easier to spell.
C. Esperanto has fewer grammar rules.
D. Esperanto is not supported by any country or culture.
4.What does the story mainly talk about?
A. Advantages and disadvantages of Esperanto.
B. Man’s dream of sharing the same language has come true.
C. The most successfully planned language---Esperanto.
D. Comparison of Esperanto and other languages like English and Chinese.
When we do not understand each other’s language, we can talk with the help of signs.
A Frenchman was once traveling in England. He could not speak English at all. One day, he went into a restaurant and sat down at a table. When the waiter came, he opened his mouth, put his fingers in it and take them out again. He wanted to say, “Bring me something to eat.”
The waiter soon brought him a cup of tea. The man moved his head from side to side. The waiter understood him and took the tea away. In a moment he came with a cup of coffee and put it on the table. The man again refused his offer. He shook his head whenever the waiter brought him something to drink, for drinks are not food.
When the man was going away, another man came in. This man saw the waiter, and he put his hands on his stomach. This was enough. In a few minutes there was a large plate of meat and vegetables on the table in front of him.
So you see, we can understand the language of signs as well as we can understand the language of words.
1.A Frenchman signed to the waiter ______.
A. to translate B. to tell him what he said
C. to bring him a cup of tea D. to ask him for food
2.The waiter brought the Frenchman ______.
A. different kinds of drinks B. a large plate of meat and vegetables
C. another man to help him D. a piece of paper to write something on
3.By putting his hands on his stomach, the second man meant ______.
A. he was hungry B. he had had enough
C. he was very thirsty D. he had a stomachache
4.From the story, we learn that ______.
A. people can only understand the language of words
B. proper body language can help people to understand each other
C. waiters should understand body language
D. it is important to learn a foreign language
