Question

    Josh Katz works at the New York Times. His common job is to use information to tell interesting stories. In December 2013, Katz built a quiz on the Times website. It asked people about the words they used to describe things and events. It also asked how they pronounced common words. The quiz then used people’s answers to decide where in the United States they were from.

The quiz got more than 350, 000 results. Katz turned the results into a book. In Speaking American, he studies regional differences in how Americans talk.

“A lot of people’s language shows who they are and where they are from, in a very personal way”, Katz said.

Katz says people are often surprised to learn that the way they talk can show where they grew up. Most Americans don’t realize they use regionalisms --- or words and phrases specific to a particular part of the country. But just about everyone does. Almost every major U.S. city has a few unique terms. For example, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the night before Halloween is known as Mischief Night. Anyone who calls it that is likely to be connected to the city.

Katz himself was surprised by how many common words are regional. “There are a lot of words I use that I just thought were standard words,” he says. “Then I found out some of these words were actually a product of my upbringing.”

For example, he says, “I thought everyone said ‘sneakers’ (运动鞋) and not ‘tennis shoes’.”  But it turns out “sneakers” is connected mostly to the Northeast. That’s where Katz is from.

Some scholars think that language in the U.S. is growing more homogeneous (同类的). But Katz disagrees. “These regional differences are here to stay.” he says.

Not only are people still using common regionalisms, but there are new ones appearing all the time, according to Katz. There’s no way to predict how language will change in the future. But Katz sees more changes coming. “The only sure thing about language is that it’s going to keep moving.” he says.

1.What’ s the purpose of the quiz?

A.To test people on common knowledge.

B.To find out what words are mostly used.

C.To help people learn about their hometown better.

D.To see whether people’s language shows their backgrounds.

2.How do most Americans look at their using regionalisms?

A.They are proud of it.

B.They do it unintentionally.

C.They find it quite interesting.

D.They have no idea why everybody does it.

3.Why does Katz mention “ sneakers” in the 6th paragraph?

A.Because it’s different from “tennis shoes”.

B.Because it’s an example of a standard word.

C.Because his hometown is possibly the birthplace of it.

D.Because many common words come from a specific area.

4.What is Katz’s opinion on regional differences?

A.They will finally disappear in the future.

B.They have a bad influence on people’s life.

C.They will remain a part of people’s everyday life.

D.They prevent language from being homogeneous.

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.D

4.C

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章主要讲述了人们的日常用语可以表现出一个人的生活和文化背景，同时这种区域用语也是一种人们日常生活的必不可少的部分。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段中The quiz then used people's answers to decide where in the United States they were from．（测试以人们的答案来决定他们来自美国的哪里）可知测试的目的是看人们的语言是否反映了他们的背景。故选D。

2.细节理解题。根据第四段中Katz says people are often surprised to learn that the way they talk can show where they grew up. Most Americans don’t realize they use regionalisms --- or words and phrases specific to a particular part of the country.（Katz说，人们常常惊讶地发现，他们说话的方式可以显示他们在哪里长大。大多数美国人没有意识到他们使用的是地区特征——或者是针对美国特定地区的词汇和短语）可知大多数美国人都是在无意中使用地区特征。故选B。

3.细节理解题。根据倒数第三段中“I thought everyone said ‘sneakers’ (运动鞋) and not ‘tennis shoes’.” But it turns out “sneakers” is connected mostly to the Northeast.（“我以为每个人都说‘运动鞋’，而不是‘网球鞋’。但结果是运动鞋这个现在普遍使用的词其实是来自于东北部地区的）可知Katz在第6段中提到“sneakers”，是因为许多常用词汇其实来自于某些特定的区域。故选D。

4.细节理解题。根据倒数第二段Some scholars think that language in the U.S. is growing more homogeneous (同类的). But Katz disagrees. “These regional differences are here to stay.” he says.（一些学者认为美国的语言越来越同质化。但Katz不同意。“这些地区差异将持续下去。”他说）由此可知，Katz对区域差别的看法是区域差别不会消失，它将成为人们日常生活的一部分。故选C。