Question

This may be sad to hear, but the number of Britain’s famous red telephone boxes has been falling for decades. The phone box is iconic (标志性的) to foreign fans of Britain and visitors to the country. There are still many left to enjoy, however.

There is deep feeling for the bright red iron-and-glass boxes with the Queen’s coat of arms. The places that still have the red box are mostly small and in the countryside. In these places, the phone box may be a symbol of community, as well as a landmark.

But there are still several cities, including London, that still have original red phone boxes in place.

For tourists, they probably make the perfect background for a selfie (自拍照). Visit London any day in the summer and you’ll see people with their smart phones taking photos with the red box behind them. People who receive the photo will have no trouble guessing where the selfie was taken.

Ever since mobile phones became more widespread, there has been less and less point in public phones. But although the red boxes are no longer popular places to make a call from, new uses are being found for them all the time. The famous design created by Giles Gilbert Scott back in 1924 lives on, but in ways the British architect would never have imagined.

Some of the new ways the phone boxes are being used are quite unusual. For example, some have been changed into tiny coffee shops. Others are hat stores. In one remote area of the country, a red box that had not been used for a long time has been turned into a small lending library.

Even back in their heyday in the last century, phone boxes were put to other uses. Some people even used them as toilets in an emergency.

But for many, they were a safe place to hide if you were caught up in the rain. Britain’s weather is unpredictable: sun one moment, heavy rain the next. So if you are planning to visit the UK and want the perfect British selfie, standing inside a red telephone box in a rainstorm may be your best bet.

1.According to the author, the red phone boxes in Britain are special because       .

A. they can be put into different kinds of use

B. they are only found in the British countryside

C. they hold great meaning to some British communities

D. they have a deep connection with the royal family

2.We can learn from the article that British red phone boxes       .

A. are mostly made of wood and glass

B. first appeared in big cities such as London

C. were designed by a British architect in the 1930s

D. are not used much for phone calls these days

3.The underlined word “heyday” in the second to last paragraph probably means       .

A. a popular time    B. a bad time

C. an unusual time    D. a happy time

4.The purpose of the last paragraph is to       .

A. explain how to deal with Britain’s changeable weather

B. describe a common way of making use of a red phone box in the UK

C. advise visitors to take a selfie standing inside a red telephone box

D. show how to use a red phone box in the case of an emergency

Answer

1.C

2.D

3.A

4.B

【解析】文章主要讲述英国著名的标志性的建筑物红色电话亭随着移动电话的使用，公用电话就越来越少，红色电话亭开始有了更多的用途。

1.推理判断题。根据“The phone box is iconic (标志性的) to foreign fans of Britain and visitors to the country.”电话亭对于外国球迷与其他国家的来访者是标志性的。可知红色电话亭对英国来说有很大的意义。根据题意，故选C。

2.推理判断题。根据“There is deep feeling for the bright red iron-and-glass boxes with the Queen’s coat of arms.” 鲜红的铁和玻璃盒子里有女王的纹章。可知选项A错误；文章中并未提及电话亭首次出现在哪个城市，选项B错误；根据“The famous design created by Giles Gilbert Scott back in 1924 lives on”著名的设计是由Giles Gilbert Scott在20世纪20年代设计的，选项C错误；根据“But although the red boxes are no longer popular places to make a call from” 尽管红色盒子不再是人们打电话的热门地方，根据题意，故选D。

3.词义猜测题。根据“Even back”即使过去，与现在相比，过去为电话亭使用的鼎盛时期。故选A。

4.主旨大意题。根据“But for many, they were a safe place to hide if you were caught up in the rain.” 但对许多人来说，如果你被雨淋了，那是个安全藏身的地方。可知最后一段讲述了一个在英国使用红色电话亭的常用方法。故选B。

【名师点睛】推理判断型

推理判断题属于高层次阅读理解题。这种题型包括判断题和推理题。这两类题常常相互依存，推理是为了得出正确的判断，正确的判断又依赖于合乎逻辑的推理。做好该题型要从整体上把握语篇内容，在语篇的表面意义与隐含意义、已知信息与未知信息间架起桥梁，透过字里行间，去体会作者的“弦外之音”。推理判断题常常可以分为如下几类：(1)细节推断。如时间、地点、人物关系等；(2)逻辑推断。根据已知的结果推断导致结果产生的可能原因；(3)目的、意图、态度推断。根据文章的论述，推断作者的写作目的以及作者的情感态度；(4)预测想象推断。文章没有明确说明，要求根据语篇对文章可能涉及的内容进行预测判断。例如：本题中的第2小题。

【解题剖析】此题属于推理判断型中的(2)逻辑推断。根据已知的结果推断导致结果产生的可能原因。