Question

Etymology, the study of words and word roots, may sound like the kind of thing done by boring librarians in small, dusty rooms. Yet etymologists actually have a uniquely interesting job. They are in many ways just like archaeologists (考古学家) digging up the physical history of people and events. The special aspect of etymology is that it digs up history, so to speak, through the words and phrases that are left behind.

The English language, in particular, is a great field to explore history through words. As a language, English has an extraordinary number of words. This is partly due to its ability to adapt foreign words so readily. For example, “English” words such as kindergarten (from German), croissant (from French), and cheetah (from Hindi) have become part of the language with little or no change from their original sounds and spellings. So English-language etymologists have a vast world of words to explore.

Another enjoyable thing about etymology for most word experts is solving word mysteries (谜). No, etymologists do not go around solving murders, like the great detective Sherlock Holmes. What these word experts solve are mysterious origins of some of our most common words.

One of the biggest questions English language experts have pursued is how English came to have the phrase OK. Though it is one of the most commonly used expressions, its exact beginning is a puzzle even to this day. Even its spelling is not entirely consistent-- unless you spell it Okay, it is hard even to call it a word.

Etymologists have been able to narrow OK’s origin down to a likely, although not certain, source (来源). It became widely used around the time of Martin Van Buren’s run for president in 1840. His nickname was Old Kinderhook. What troubles word experts about this explanation is that the phrase appeared in some newspapers before Van Buren became well known. It is likely that Van Buren could be called its primary source. Etymologists will doubtlessly keep searching for the original source. However, it is clear that OK’s popularity and reputation have topped those of the American president to whom it has been most clearly linked.

1.The author mentions the words like “croissant” in Paragraph 2 to show _______.

A. words have changed a lot in the two languages

B. what English-language etymologists are exploring now

C. English has absorbed many words from other foreign languages

D. the English vocabulary is difficult to the non-English-speaking people

2.The underlined word “pursued” in Paragraph 4 means _______.

A. looked upon   B. dug up   C. put in    D. set down

3.We can learn from the passage that etymologists _______.

A. discover the possible origin of words

B. help detectives to solve mysterious murders

C. write interesting stories for some newspapers

D. explore the English language as well as the recent events

4.What most probably is the major purpose of the passage?

A. To present the history of English words.

B. To explain what an etymologist does for his job.

C. To introduce the pleasure of the study of words and word roots.

D. To teach readers how to tell English words from non-English words·

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.A

4.B

【解析】

试题分析: 本文是一篇议论文，词源是词与词的根源的研究，听起来像是在小图书馆里布满灰尘的房间做的无聊的事情，但是现在词源研究已经越来越丰富和有趣，他们像考古学家一样研究单词的历史和来源，词源的运用也更加多样。

1.C细节理解题。根据第二段，This is partly due to its ability to adapt foreign words so readily这部分是因为它拥有能很容易地适应外来词的能力。croissant是法国外来词，这里作者是想表明英语里吸收了很多外来词，故选C。

2.B词义猜测题。根据第四段， One of the biggest questions English language experts have pursued is how English came to have the phrase OK英语专家们一直追求的最大问题之一就是英语怎么会有“OK”这个短语。这里dug up是“探索，深究”的意思，和pursued的意思最接近，故选B。

3.A推理判断题。根据第三段，What these word experts solve are mysterious origins of some of our most common words专家们解决我们最常见的词的神秘起源的问题。所以专家们发现词的可能的起源是正确的，故选A。

4.B主旨大意题。本文是一篇议论文，词源是词与词的根源的研究，听起来像是在小图书馆里布满灰尘的房间做的无聊的事情，但是现在词源研究已经越来越丰富和有趣，他们像考古学家一样研究单词的历史和来源，词源的运用也更加多样，故选C。

考点：考查议论文阅读

【名师点睛】

英语高考阅读理解细节题解题技巧

一、语义转换题——跳读查找法这是做事实细节题最基本也是最常用的方法。在通常情况下，细节题主要考查考生对某句话或某几句话的理解，同学们若能根据题干内容从原文中找到相关的句子，然后进行比较和分析，便可确定最佳答案。

运用跳读查找法时，同学们要特别注意试题（包括选项）与原文之间的适当变换。根据近几年的考题情况来看，现在很少有直接用原文中的句子进行考查和测试的，而通常要进行一定的处理。而这种“处理”主要就是指进行语义转换，其中包括同义变换、概念解析、归纳事实等。比如第21小题，细节理解题。根据第二段，This is partly due to its ability to adapt foreign words so readily这部分是因为它拥有能很容易地适应外来词的能力。croissant是法国外来词，这里作者是想表明英语里吸收了很多外来词，故选C。

比如第23小题，推理判断题。根据第三段，What these word experts solve are mysterious origins of some of our most common words专家们解决我们最常见的词的神秘起源的问题。所以专家们发现词的可能的起源是正确的，故选A。

二、生活应用题——常识理解法生活应用题要求考生在读懂文章的基础上结合一定的生活常识进行判断。不过，有趣的是，高考有时会出现一些“低级”常识判断题，即无需看懂文章，也可选出最佳答案。

三、细节排序题——首尾定位法

这种试题要求考生根据动作发生的先后顺序和句子之间的逻辑关系，找出事件发生的正确顺序。同学们在做这种题时可采用“首尾定位法”，即最先找出第一个动作和最后一个动作，迅速缩小选择范围，从而快速选出正确答案。

四、寻找信息题——题干定位法快速寻找信息题一般为功能阅读题，主要形式有广告、公告、演出信息、航班时间表等。做这类题时没有必要阅读全文，宜采用“题干定位法”。