Question

    In a foreign country, a man visited a local restaurant. He didn’t speak their language. He ordered something indecipherable off the menu. When the waiter brought him a plate of delicious looking fried noodles, he smiled and made an OK sign at the waiter with his thumb and forefinger linked in a circle. Looking angry, the waiter then picked up the dish and thrown it to his lap. What he did wrong, he wondered. Well, nothing is quite as it seems when it comes to using hand gesture in another country.

Gestures have been used to replace words in many countries, and they are often specific to a given culture. Gesture may mean something complimentary in one culture, but is highly offensive in another.

The gesture “thumb-up” is commonly misinterpreted. In English, it is popularly known as ‘thumbs up’, despite the fact that the action is commonly performed with only one hand. English-speaking Caucasians use it to signal ‘OK’, which is the same meaning as O.K. ring gesture. The two can in fact be used almost interchangeably.

Avoid using this gesture in Southern Sardina or Northern Greece unless you want to invite a fight. While American, British and Australian would use the thumb up to signal hitch-hiking to the drivers, this message will not encourage a Greek driver or motorist to stop to give them a ride.

There are no right or wrong signals, only cultural differences. Lack of cultural understanding will lead to disharmony among people from different cultures. When we know what to look for, such encounters with other cultures are actually very interesting, fascinating and fun. It is certainty a great topic to discuss over a cup of coffee and cakes.

1.What did the man in the first paragraph do wrong?

A.He misunderstood the waiter. B.He made the signal in a rude way.

C.He ordered something off the menu. D.He didn’t realize cultural differences.

2.What does the underlined word in the second paragraph mean?

A.Full of aggression. B.Full of admiration.

C.Full of complexity. D.Full of certainty.

3.What will happen if you make a thumb up toward a man in Northern Greece?

A.He will stop to give you a lift.

B.He will ask you to give him a HA.

C.He will get annoyed and fight against you.

D.He will make the same signal toward you.

4.What’s the purpose of the passage?

A.To tell stories about different cultures.

B.To advise us to have an understanding of cultural differences.

C.To explain the meaning of different gestures.

D.To persuade people from different countries to live in harmony.

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.C

4.B

【解析】

本文是一篇说明文。本文作者通过一则故事，说明了我们要理解文化的差异，才能与别人更好地相处。

1.细节理解题。由第一段Well, nothing is quite as it seems when it comes to using hand gesture in another country.可知，在另一个国家，这个手势表达的意思是不同的。由此可知，故事中的那个人没有意识到文化的差异，这是他的错误所在，选D。

2.词义猜测题。由下文内容but is highly offensive in another.可知，在另一个国家是冒犯的意思。所以划线词与下文内容是转折关系。是offensive的反义词，所以划线词的意思是表示赞美、赞赏。故选B项。

3.细节理解题。由倒数第二段Avoid using this gesture in Southern Sardina or Northern Greece unless you want to invite a fight.可知如果你向一个北希腊的人伸出大拇指，他可能会被惹怒，和你打架，选C。

4.推理判断题。由最后一段There are no right or wrong signals, only cultural differences. Lack of cultural understanding will lead to disharmony among people from different cultures. 可知，没有对错的信号，只有文化差异。缺乏对文化的理解会导致不同文化背景的人之间的不和谐。由此判断出作者写这篇文章的目的是建议我们很好的理解文化差异，选B。