“Long time no see” is a very interesting sentence. When I first read this sentence from an American friend’s email, I laughed. I thought it was a perfect example of Chinglish.
Obviously, it is a word-by-word literal translation of the Chinese greetings with a ruled English grammar and structure! Later on, my friend told me that it is a standard American greeting. I was too thrilled to believe her. Her words could not convince me at all. So I did a research on google.com. To my surprise, there are over 60 thousand web pages containing “Long time no see.” This sentence has been widely used in emails, letters, newspapers, movies, books, or any other possible places. Though it is sort of informal, it is part of the language that Americans use daily. Ironically, if you type this phrase in Microsoft Word, the software will tell you that the grammar needs to be corrected.
Nobody knows the origin of this Chinglish sentence. Some people believe that it came from Charlie Chan’s movies. In the 1930s, Hollywood moviemakers successfully created a world wide famous Chinese detective named “Charlie Chan” on wide screens. Detective Chan likes to teach Americans some Chinese wisdom by quoting Confucius. “Long time no see” was his trademark. Soon after Charlie Chan, “Long time no see” became a popular phrase in the real world with thanks to the popularity of these movies.
Some scholars refer to America as a huge pot of stew. All kinds of culture are mixed in the stew together, and they change the color and taste of each other. American Chinese, though a minority ethnic(少数民族的成员) group in the United States, is also contributing some changes to the stew! Language is usually the first thing to be influenced in the mixed stew.
You can have some other examples than adoptions from Chinese, such as pizza from Italian, susi from Japanese, and déjà vu from French etc. There is a long list! Americans do not just simply borrow something from others. They will modify it and make it their own, so you would not be surprised to find a tofu and peanut butter hamburger in a restaurant, or to buy a bottle of iced Chinese green tea with honey in a grocery store. Since Americans appreciate Chinese culture more and more nowadays, I believe more Chinese words will become American English in the future. In this way the American stew keeps adding richness and flavor.
1.The writer himself felt surprised at ______.
A．the Chinglish expression “Long time no see”
B．“Long time no see” used as standard American English
C．so many literal translation of the expressions used in America
D．finding out Americans use the expression every day
2.The word “stew” in the 4th paragraph probably means ______.
A．mixture literature B．Confucius’ words
C．a kind of cooked dish D．American changing cultures
3.According to the passage, it can be inferred that ______.
A．detectives translate the phrase “Long time no see”
B．Hollywood made “Long time no see”popular
C．the huge pot of stew greatly affects all kinds of languages
D．cultures can be changed in the huge pot of stew
4.The main idea of the passage is that ______.
A．some Chinese expressions are introduced into English
B．you’ll not be surprised at a tofu in a restaurant in America
C．some American expressions can be used in China
D．American English keep being enriched from different cultures
5.According to the passage, which of the following statements is not true?
A．Informal language sometimes doesn’t go with grammar and structure.
B．Languages are always ruled by grammar and structure.
C．Long time no see” has been used in at least four media mentioned in the passage.
D．There are four languages mentioned to be adopted in the American stew.
While watching the Olympics the other night, I came across an unbelievable sight. It was not a gold medal, or a world record broken, but a show of courage.
The event was swimming and started with only three men on the blocks. For one reason or another, two of them false started, so they were disqualified. That left only one to compete. It would have been difficult enough, not having anyone to race against, even though the time on the clock is important.
I watched the man dive off the block and knew right away that something was wrong. I’m not an expert swimmer, but I can tell a good dive from a poor one, and this was not exactly medal quality. When he resurfaced, it was evident that the man was not out for gold – his arms were waving in an attempt at freestyle. The crowd started to laugh. Clearly this man was not a medal competitor.
I listened to the crowd begin to laugh at this poor man who was clearly having a hard time. Finally he made his turn to start back. It was pitiful. He made a few desperate strokes and you could tell he was worn out.
But in those few awful strokes, the crowd had changed.
No longer were they laughing, but beginning to cheer. Some even began to stand and shout “Come on, you can do it!” and he did.
A clear minute past the average swimmer, this young man finally finished his race. The crowd went wild. You would have thought that he had won the gold, and he should have. Even though he recorded one of the slowest times in Olympic history, this man gave more heart than any of the other competitors.
Just a short year ago, he had never even swum, let alone race. His country had been invited to Sydney.
In a competition where athletes remove their silver medals feeling they have somehow been cheated out of gold, or when they act so proudly in front of their competitors, it is nice to watch an underdog.
1.From the passage we can learn that the young man .
A．made his turn to start back pitifully B．was skillful in freestyle in the game
C．swam faster than the average swimmer D．was not capable enough to win the medal
2.The crowd changed their attitudes because .
A．they felt sorry for the young man B．they were moved by the young man’s courage
C．they wanted to show their sympathy D．they meant to please the young man
3.According to the passage, “it is nice to watch an underdog” probably means .
A．it’s amazing to watch an ordinary man challenging himself
B．it’s amusing to watch a man with awful swimming skills
C．it’s cheerful for athletes to act proudly before their competitors
D．it’s brave enough for some athletes to remove the silver medals
4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A．The event started with three men, two of whom were disqualified later.
B．The crowd started to laugh at the athlete’s arms waving in an attempt at freestyle.
C．The athlete, as well as the author, is an expert swimmer.
D．The swimming event is a show of courage rather than a fierce competition.
5.What’s the best title for the passage?
A．Compete for Gold! B．Try again!
C．Break a Record! D．Go for it!
A jobless man applied for the position of “office boy” at Microsoft. The HR manager interviewed him and then watched him cleaning the floor as a test.
“You are employed,” he said. “Give me your e-mail address and I’ll send you the application to fill in, as well as date when you may start. ”The man replied, “But I don’t have a computer, neither an e-mail. ”
“I’m sorry,” said the HR manager. “If you don’t have an e-mail, that means you do not exist. And who doesn’t exist cannot have the job. ”
The man left with no hope at all. He didn’t know what to do, with only ten dollars in his pocket. He then decided to go to the supermarket and buy 10kg tomatoes. He then sold the tomatoes from door to door. In less than two hours, he succeeded to double his capital. He repeated the operation three times, and returned home happily with 60 dollars.
The man realized that he can survive in this way, and started to go every day earlier, and return late. Thus, his money doubled or tripled every day. Shortly, he bought a cart, then a truck, and then he had his own fleet of delivery vehicles. Five years later, the man is one of the biggest food retailers in the US.
He started to plan his family’s future and decided to have a life insurance. He called an insurance broker and chose a protection plan.
When the conversation was concluded the broker asked him his e-mail. The man replied, “I don’t have an e-mail. ”
The broker answered curiously, “You don’t have an e-mail, and yet have succeeded to build an empire. Can you imagine what you could have been if you had an e-mail?” The man thought for a while and replied, “Yes, I’d be an office boy at Microsoft!”
1.Why can’t the man have the job at Microsoft?
A．Because he was lazy. B．Because he didn’t pass the test.
C．Because he didn’t have an e-mail. D．Because he didn’t have a computer.
2.The underlined word “triple” can be replaced by ______.
A．become large B．become 3 times
C．increase quickly D．decrease quickly
3.According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
A．The man is one of the biggest food retailers in the world.
B．The man didn’t give up though he failed the interview.
C．He started his career by selling tomatoes in the supermarket.
D．Those who have e-mails can work at Microsoft.
4.The man can be described as _______.
A．helpful and considerate B．positive and generous
C．smart and hardworking D．stubborn and unselfish
5.Which proverb can best describe the story?
A．Misfortune may be an actual blessing. B．Where there is a will, there is a way.
C．Accidents will happen. D．No pains, no gains.
Life became hard when I was 14. My mother and I moved to New York to 36 my father, who’d moved there to find 37 work when I was three years old. He had a job at a restaurant and only visited us 38 every couple of years.
Before I moved, I knew that people in the US spoke English. But honestly, I didn’t stop to analyze the 39 when I was 40 to leave. Just like I assumed I could easily become a doctor or a lawyer. I assumed that I had the skills to learn English in a few weeks.
When I 41 in the US and started 8th grade at Ditmas Middle School in Brooklyn, everyone was speaking a(n) 42 language I couldn’t understand. I 43 that life had subtitles, like in foreign movies. School was such a serious place here. Sometimes I felt like I was in a geek（呆子） class. The teachers were always 44 my moves so I couldn’t even throw a paper ball at a classmate’s head. And the worst thing was having to read 45 .
46 after almost seven months of complaining about everything, I realized that complaining didn’t change things. 47 just made my life worse. If I was going to 48 in this new concrete jungle, I had to 49 . I began to learn English by reading newspapers on my own 50 school. After about four months, I started enjoying reading the crime and sports stories. After six months of studying, my teachers 51 my improvement and moved me into a more 52 English class. I could go to the store and ask for things that I wanted to buy without 53 frustration. For the first time I felt like I was living on earth again, 54 I didn’t hear foreign talk. I 55 understand people.
1. A．find B．join C．see D．help
2. A．good-looking B．well-dressed C．better-paying D．highly-thought
3. A．once B．other C．each D．only
4. A．case B．condition C．situation D．state
5. A．packing B．trying C．managing D．arranging
6. A．reached B．entered C．got D．arrived
7. A．strange B．unusual C．standard D．foreign
8. A．hoped B．wished C．expected D．demanded
9. A．staring B．looking C．checking D．watching
10. A．texts B．newspapers C．English D．poems
11. A．Although B．Even if C．But D．Since
12. A．It B．They C．I D．Things
13. A．live B．study C．survive D．continue
14. A．adapt B．adopt C．adore D．admire
15. A．for B．in C．after D．at
16. A．made B．noticed C．concerned D．remember
17. A．modern B．advanced C．difficult D．convenient
18. A．even B．ever C．some D．any
19. A．if B．though C．ever D．because
20. A．could B．should C．would D．might
The number of people ________ this happens is not very large.
A．with whom B．to which C．to whom D．on which
I have no _____ that you will succeed, but I wonder whether you have really got everything ready.
A．doubt B．wonder C．chance D．point
