Module 1 British and American English

1. confusing   adj.   令人困惑的;难懂的

The instructions on the box are very confusing.

盒子上的使用说明令人费解。

confuse  vt.   使糊涂，使迷惑

confuse A with/and B   将A与B混淆

Im always confusing Jack with James.

我总是分不清杰克与詹姆斯。

confused   adj.   糊涂的;迷惑的;混乱的

2. compare   vt.   比较，对比

I compared the copy with the original， but there wasnt much difference.

我比较了复印件和原件，但差别不是很大。

（1） compared to/with...   和……相比

Compared to many students， he is lucky.

和许多学生比起来，他是幸运的。

My own problems seem insignificant compared with other peoples.

与别人的问题相比，我自己的问题算不了什么。

（2） compare... to...   把……比作……

Shakespeare compared the world to a stage.

莎士比亞把世界比作一个舞台。

（1）compare   n.   比较

without/beyond compare   无与伦比

The height of the new building is without compare in the world.

这座新楼的高度在世界上是无与伦比的。

Its a diamond beyond compare.

这是一颗独一无二的钻石。

（2）comparison   n.   比较;对比

by comparison   比较起来;相比之下

by/in comparison （with sb/sth）（与……）相比较

3. differ   vi.   不同，有区别

Customs differ in different countries.

各国风俗不同。

（1） differ from...   和……不同

Their house differs from ours because they have no garage.

他们的房子和我们的不同，因为他们没有车库。

（2）differ in...   在……方面不同

The two boxes differ in color but not in size.

这两个盒子的颜色不同，但大小相同。

（3） differ with sb about/on/over sth   和某人在某事上持不同看法

We differ with them on that question.

我们在那个问题上跟他们的意见不同。

4. present  vt.陈述;提出（观点、计划等）;

展现;显示

adj.出席的;到场的;现存的;当前的

n. 礼物，礼品

When is the committee presenting their report？

委员会什么时候提出他们的报告？

The book presents an interesting picture.

这本书呈现了一幅有趣的画面。

How many people were present at the meeting？

参加会议的有多少人？

We do not have further information at the present time.

目前我们没有进一步的消息。

What can I get him for a birthday present？

我送他什么生日礼物呢？

5. attempt   n.   努力;尝试

v.   努力;尝试;试图

They made no attempt to escape.

他们没有企图逃跑。

I will attempt to answer all your questions.

我将努力回答你的全部问题。

be in an attempt to do sth   试图做某事

make an attempt to do/at doing sth   打算做某事

attempt to do sth   试图做某事

6. have... in common   有相同的特点

I married her because we have so much in common.

我之所以跟她结婚，是因为我们俩有很多共同点。

7. lead to   引起;导致;通向

Too much work and too little rest often lead to illness.

过量的工作和过少的休息通常会引发疾病。

This will lead to trouble in the future.

这将导致以后的麻烦。

All roads lead to Rome.

条条大路通罗马。

lead   vt.   过（某种生活）

lead a happy/hard/simple life  过着幸福/艰苦/简朴的生活

8. in favour of   同意;支持;看中，选择

They were in favour of free trade.

他们赞成自由贸易。

Im in favour of equal pay for equal work.

我支持同工同酬。

He abandoned teaching in favour of a career as a doctor.

他弃教从医。

9. refer to... as...   称……为……

People refer to this kind of food as cheese.

人们称这种食物为奶酪。

People who work in offices are usually referred to as “white collar” workers.

那些在办公室工作的人通常被称为“白领”。

refer to   提到;谈论;参考;参照;与……相关

Please refer to a dictionary if you dont know the meaning of the word.

如果你不知道这个词的意思，就请查查词典。

What I have to say refers to all of you.

我要讲的话与你们大家都有关。

10. pick up   （偶然）学会;拿起;捡起;

（开车）接人;得到;感染

She picked up Spanish when she was living in Mexico.

她旅居墨西哥时顺便学会了西班牙语。

I picked up the book for her.

我替她捡起了那本书。

Ill pick you up at five.

我五点钟来接你。

I seem to have picked up a terrible cold from someplace.

我似乎从什么地方染上了重感冒。

11. wear off   逐渐消失;消逝;磨掉;磨损

The smell of the new paint will wear off in about a month.

新漆的味道一个月左右就会消失。

I bought those new plates cheaply， and the pretty rose pattern has been worn off already.

那些新盤子我买得很便宜，上面漂亮的玫瑰花纹都已经磨掉了。

wear out   穿破;用坏;（使）精疲力竭;耗尽

He wore out two pairs of shoes last year.

去年他穿坏了两双鞋。

Youll wear yourself out if you carry on working so hard.

你要是继续这样拼命工作，身体会吃不消的。

幽默小故事

I Didnt Want to Walk Home

Tom is a very old man. After dinner， he likes walking in the street. And he goes to bed at seven oclock.

But tonight， a car stopped at his house. A policeman helped him get out. He told Toms wife， “The old man couldnt find his way in the street. He asked me to take him in the car.”

After the policeman left， his wife asked， “Tom， you go to the street every night， but tonight you cant find the way. Whats the matter？”

The old man smiled like a child and said， “I couldnt find my way？ I didnt want to walk home.”

跟蹤导练（一）

阅读理解

Bogre Udell met Frederico Andrade at the Parsons New School in New York City. In 2014， they started a project to make the first public records of every language in the world. Theyve already recorded more than 350 languages， and plan to hit 1，000 in the coming years.

“When humans lose a language， we also lose greater diversity （多样化） in art and traditions，” said Bogre Udell. Between 1950 and 2010， 230 languages disappeared. Today， a third of the worlds languages have fewer than 1，000 speakers left. Every two weeks a language dies with its last speaker， and 50 to 90 percent of them are said to disappear by the next century.

Wikitongues （维基语言） has asked for volunteers in 40 countries to film native speakers talking in the past， present， and future tenses of their mother languages. Native speakers are asked to recall childhood， share their stories， and discuss their hopes and goals. One volunteer in the South Pacific islands of Vanuatu recorded a language that had never been studied by language experts before. Another volunteer found a speaker of Ainu， a language in Japan that has no relation to any other known language， and he also recorded it. However， priceless recording opportunities disappear regularly. Not long ago， one of the last two speakers of a Saami language in the Russian steppes died right before his recording session with Wikitongues.

A lack of protection and globalization are responsible for reducing language diversity. For much of the 20th century， governments across the world forced some local people to use official languages. More than 100 languages in Australia have disappeared since European settlers arrived. However， most languages die today because of other factors; climate change and urbanization （城市化） lead greatly to the disappearance of languages.

1. What are Bogre Udell and Frederico Andrade doing？

A. Testing peoples language levels. B. Offering language courses to people.

C. Finding out the reasons for language loss. D. Recording all the languages in the world.

2. What does Paragraph 2 say about language loss？

A. It is becoming very serious. B. People are worried about it.

C. It makes communication difficult in some way. D. The process of it should be slowed down.

3. What do volunteers do with the native speakers to help protect languages？

A. Write down their stories.

B. Learn languages from them.

C. Improve their living conditions.

D. Video their talks.

4. What can be the best title for the text？

A. The Birth of Languages B. The History of Languages

C. The Disappearance of Languages D. The Diversity of Languages

阅读七选五

Many people say “thank you” by using text messages or chat these days. 1 Its a meaningful way to express gratitude （感激） when you receive a gift or become the recipient of someones thoughtful action. Write your letter warmly and make it personal and sincere.

Open with a salutation （称呼语）. Begin your thank-you letter by addressing the person in the way that feels most natural. 2 Whether the note is for your best friend， your teacher or your mom， this works.

Express your gratitude sincerely. Thank-you notes are usually short and to the point， so start by thanking the person right away. 3 Describing the gift a little will make it clear that youve thought about it and its something you cherish （珍惜）.

4 Even if you dont love the gift， think about the trouble and expense the person went to for your benefit. Show them that this effort and the gift itself is important to you. Try to be honest and sincere.

Ask the other person questions or share a little news. Its time to show you care about the person. Ask some questions， and share information about your life. This makes all the difference between a dashed-off note and an actual thank-you letter， and the recipient will take even more pleasure in receiving your words.

Close the letter. Think about the nature of your relationship and choose the closing that seems most suitable. 5

A. Be specific about what youre grateful for.

B. Let them know why their specific gift is cherished.

C. If you cant decide， its fine to just sign your name.

D. Either a handwritten or typed letter is totally acceptable.

E. In almost every situation， starting with “Dear ××” is suitable.

F. However， nothing beats writing an old-fashioned thank-you letter.

G. Its nice to write another few lines to show your care about the person.

1.____________   2.____________   3.____________   4. ____________  5.____________

跟蹤导练（二）

完形填空

History has some very special qualities about it. It is a1of what has happened in the past， and the really interesting thing is that much of history has been2again and again. It allows us to learn from the past， both the3made and the successes achieved.

One of the4of history is that it allows us to know how famous people5when they were faced with challenges in their life. Although these6happened at a certain time in the past or in a7country or culture， all of them can always teach us something8 .

Take the9of Thomas Edison for example and how many times he10while on the road to finally inventing the light bulb. He could be held up as an example of a person who11stopped trying. I am sure he was12by those difficulties but he did not let them stop him. He had a13and he just kept trying until he reached success.

Or， think about the story of Abraham Lincoln who14to become President of the United States even though he suffered15losses. Most of us only know about his success. In fact， his life was not16 . His story makes us keep moving forward no matter what17we have in life.

These true history stories will make you stop to reconsider18or going after your dreams even though you may not think you have the courage or the19for now to get what you have always wanted. They could help you make decisions and20when you have no idea what to do. They could inspire （鼓舞） you to be all that you can be.

1. A. note B. belief C. chance D. record

2. A. repeated B. taught C. reported D. corrected

3. A. agreements B. jokes C. mistakes D. efforts

4. A. results B. advantages C. successes D. periods

5. A. dealt B. escape C. learn D. reacted

6. A. changes B. accidents C. challenges D. problems

7. A. different B. poor C. developed D. famous

8. A. clear B. useful C. special D. simple

9. A. name B. character C. position D. story

10. A. observed B. approached C. hurt D. failed

11. A. never B. yet C. still D. also

12. A. shocked B. discouraged C. beaten D. controlled

13. A. job B. duty C. dream D. power

14. A. happened B. prepared C. managed D. pretended

15. A. money B. weight C. slight D. personal

16. A. hard B. popular C. happy D. easy

17. A. difficulties B. improvements C. permissions D. directions

18. A. giving up B. passing by C. setting off D. calming down

19. A. habit B. ability C. goal D. choice

20. A. introductions B. conversations C. judgments D. impressions

跟蹤导练（三）

阅读理解

A

You may think that the story of Pygmalion—in which people are judged by the way they talk—is something that only existed in the days of British high society. But thanks to etiquette （礼仪） expert and author William Hanson， we realize that little has changed during the past 100 years.

In a BBC radio program， Hanson released （公布） a list of common words used in British English that could reveal whether a person is “common” or “fashionable”.

And yet here comes the interesting part： While some of us might go through life using fancy words， dressing in ways that make us appear more well-off than we really are， there are wealthy people in the world who try to hide their riches because they want to be seen as “normal” instead of “showy”.

Beatrice， for example， is a New Yorker who inherited （繼承） millions of dollars. She told The New York Times that she has a habit of removing the price tags （标签） from her clothes so her house staff dont see them or feel uncomfortable.

“We dont want that ‘Wow，” said Scott， also a New Yorker， who had just inherited over $50 million. “Were just not the type of people who wear it on our sleeve.”

1. What has been a fact in the past 100 years？

A. People tend to use more polite words. B. People failed to judge others manners.

C. People meet impolite persons frequently. D. People judge others by their way of talking.

2. What do rich people prefer to do according to the text？

A. Hide their wealth. B. Earn more money.

C. Think highly of their wealth. D. Judge others by their wealth.

3. Why did Beatrice remove the price tags on her clothes？

A. To pretend to be normal. B. To show off her fashion sense.

C. To change peoples attitude to rich people. D. To avoid making others uncomfortable.

4. What does the underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refer to？

A. The New York Times. B. The brand label.

C. The inheritance contract. D. The price tag.

B

UN Chinese Language Day is celebrated annually on April 20. The event was set up by the UN Department of Public Information （DPI） in order to get equal use of all six of its official working language throughout the organization.

The first Chinese Language Day was celebrated in 2010 on the 12th of November. But since 2011， the date has been the 20th of April. Its because Chinese Guyu， which is the 6th of 24 solar terms in the traditional Chinese calendar， usually begins around April 20. Guyu is important to Chinese people. Each year they will celebrate Guyu in memory of the person： Cangjie， who was believed to create Chinese characters. Theres a story that when Cangjie created Chinese characters， it rained millet （粟）; Guyu in some way means “rain of millet”.

The Chinese Language Day for 2021 is especially to help people learn about Chinese characters based on symbols. In the building of the UN in New York， three events， which were organized by an organization connected to the UN， focused on three types of Chinese characters based on symbols. The three events were， a guided tour of the Liangzhu Museum， a language class on Dongba words， and a lecture on the history of Chinese characters. The three events were held from April 19 to 21， 2021.

Chinese was allowed to be an official language of the United Nations in 1946. However， in the early years， Chinese was not commonly used in the work of the United Nations. The situation improved after the restoration （恢復） of the lawful rights of the Peoples Republic of China in the United Nations in 1971. And in 1973， the General Assembly （联合国大会） included Chinese as a working language. Then more and more UN offices and work members work with the Chinese language.

5. What can we learn about the UN Chinese Language Day？

A. It was first celebrated in 2011.

B. It was celebrated on the same day with Guyu.

C. It was set up to preserve the Chinese language.

D. It was set up by the UN DPI.

6. Why was the UN Chinese Language Day moved to April 20？

A. To show respect for Guyu. B. To promote Chinese characters.

C. To protect various Chinese symbols. D. To support the equal use of Chinese language.

7. What can we know about the three events？

A. They were held for four days.

B. They were organized by the UN.

C. They paid attention to three types of Chinese characters.

D. They focused on helping people learn Chinese characters.

8. What does the last paragraph mainly tell us about the Chinese language？

A. Its origin and evolution. B. Its change in the long history.

C. Its growing popularity at the UN. D. Its significance to Chinese people.

跟踪导练（四）

完形填空

Alison Teal， born to an adventure-loving mom and a National Geographic photographer dad， was already exploring the world as a child. The family traveled the globe1in a six-foot-wide tent. From mountaintops to jungles， they2themselves in local nature and culture.

Between3they would return home in Hawaii. Their front yard was the ocean， and her friends were dolphins. Alison would dive into the water and release a4 . A dolphin would5it on its nose and pass it to the next dolphin. Over the years， the dolphins grew to6Alison. They looked for her and7her in the water.

After studying archaeology at UC Berkeley and then8from USC film school， she went on her world travels. During her exploration， what surprised her was the amount of9that washed up on the shore. “After that， I couldnt10our plastic problem，” says Alison. “I11made my decision to protect our greatest resource， the12 .”

She didnt need to go far to do so. Swimming in13waters back home， she found her dolphin friends were no longer passing sea leaves to each other， but bits of plastic. “It14my heart，” says Alison. “Dolphins are15 ， joyful and caring. Weve had such a special16through the years. Of course， I want to protect them.”

Along with sharing her17with her large Instagram following， she also gave a TED talk to help ban plastic bags in California. Her book， Alisons Adventures， is filled with travel tales and18lessons.

Alison believes all of us can make19to protect the Earth and， in turn those we love. “ 20 ， the pandemic has made us realize how connected we all are， and we can love each other to give us health and life.” she says.

1. A. staying B. working C. exercising D. cooking

2. A. imagined B. enjoyed C. found D. stopped

3. A. holidays B. weekdays C. journeys D. weekends

4. A. leaf B. volleyball C. shell D. bottle

5. A. eat B. catch C. greet D. accept

6. A. blame B. examine C. dislike D. trust

7. A. annoyed B. teased C. fed D. approached

8. A. graduating B. retiring C. surviving D. benefiting

9. A. dolphin B. shrimp C. plastic D. fish

10. A. give way to B. deal with C. lose sight of D. explain about

11. A. personally B. difficultly C. firmly D. slowly

12. A. land B. ocean C. wood D. fuel

13. A. mysterious B. familiar C. distant D. polluted

14. A. cures B. opens C. touches D. breaks

15. A. smart B. ordinary C. precious D. professional

16. A. similarity B. connection C. behavior D. moment

17. A. idea B. question C. experience D. example

18. A. painful B. environmental C. illegal D. practical

19. A. friends B. achievements C. changes D. voyages

20. A. Necessarily B. Completely C. Eventually D. Hopefully

跟蹤导练（五）

阅读理解

People often talk about cultural differences between western and eastern countries， but how about the western world itself？ Surprisingly， a closer look at it can reveal a good many curious details.

The most obvious characteristic of the majority of Americans is that they smile a lot. It does not matter whether they have a strong reason to smile; they do it， sometimes simply because they have to. A smile is not just a powerful marketing tool but also a way to show that someone is friendly， and that life in general is fine. Europeans， on the contrary （相反） prefer to keep a more neutral （中性的） facial expression. They smile mostly when they are in a good mood， or feel amused; if not， a Europeans face will remain neutral， or even dull. In Russia， for example， there is a proverb saying that laughing for no reason is a sign of a fool. It does not mean that Europeans are serious， or that they do not have a sense of humor.

The same refers to communication in general. Americans are extremely communicative; small talks and chats are common. Europeans talk mostly when there is something to say， and rarely enter communication just for the purpose of talking to other people. American people prefer to express what they think carefully， considering how it might affect surrounding people. Europeans are more straightforward， even with unfamiliar people. A European friend will almost always voice his opinion on different occasions， and will not hesitate （猶豫） to remind you that you need to lose some weight or take a shower.

It can be said that Americans are people of contrasts. They are open-minded， flexible， and ready to accept everything new enthusiastically; but at the same time， American society manages to bring up unbelievable conservatives （保守者）. Americans are extremely politically correct， which， in most cases， is indeed a safe and useful practice， but it can also mess up daily or even private communication， sometimes preventing having close relationships. Europeans， on the contrary， are more straightforward， preferring to tell the truth in direct ways. Each way of communication is different—neither is correct or incorrect.

1. What does the author say about smiling？

A. It is culture-related within western countries.

B. It is regarded as a social necessity in Europe.

C. It is thought of as a sign of a fool in America.

D. It is a powerful marketing tool across cultures.

2. What is the typical characteristic of Europeans communication？

A. Becoming worried about giving their opinions.

B. Having small talks and chats.

C. Hiding their feelings carefully.

D. Expressing themselves openly.

3. What does the underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refer to？

A. Being straightforward. B. Being politically correct.

C. Accepting everything new. D. Raising unbelievable conservatives.

4. How is the text mainly developed？

A. By making comparisons. B. By classifying body language.

C. By analyzing cause and effect. D. By discussing research findings.

選词填空

用方框里单词的正确形式填空，使其句意完整。

announce confuse compare simplify present

refer remark steady settle variety

1. There are several____________ books which can help you make your choice.

2. The teacher asked each of us to make a short____________of the term plan in the first class.

3. What he said was very____________and I couldnt understand.

4.____________ with our first house， this new one has a better view.

5. So far， the application forms____________several times to make them easier to fill in.

6. There are wide ____________of projects to choose from in building this house.

7. Early____________had an extremely difficult life in opening up and developing the new continent.

8. James____________ upon the subject when I came into the room.

9. The darkness was____________growing， and the people were becoming more and more worried.

10. ____________ of births， marriages and deaths appear in some newspapers.

语法填空

In recent years，1increasing number of people start to learn Chinese. Maya lance， 14， from Huston in America，2（learn） Chinese at the school for more than 3 years. Her mother says， “I hope it can help her in some way in the future， like3（employ）. We all know China is the second4（big） economy now and is on its way to number one.”

The Confucius Institute may also have played a role5the rapid development of the Chinese language. Established in 2004 by China6（promote） Chinese language and culture around the world， there are now more than 500 Confucius Institutes at colleges and universities all over the world7（offer） language classes and cultural tours to students and the public.

Students could also8（draw） to Chinese because， as the official language of China and one of the four official languages of Singapore， it is the most popular language in the world. This is one of the9（reason） that Agata decided to learn Chinese， “I thought if I learn Chinese， I could communicate with a billion more people10speak it，” she says.

1.____________ 2. ____________ 3.____________4. ____________ 5.____________

6.______________7.____________8.____________ 9. ____________ 10.____________

跟踪导练（六）

短文改错

Mr Zhang， our English teacher， telling us that the ability to write in English is becoming increasingly important in English communication as well as in examinations. Therefore， it was worth focusing our attention.

In order to write the good essay， we should have an excellently command of over 2，000 frequently-used English words. Its necessary and useful for us to read or even recite beautiful English articles from that we can learn useful structures of sentence. As we all know， that practice makes perfect， so you should take every possible chance to write in English.

According to my personal experience， keep a diary every day is a good means to achieve

the aim.

書面表达

假如你是李华，你校将举办英语电影配音比赛，你打算参赛，但是不知道该选什么电影。请给你的笔友Peter写一封电子邮件，请他推荐。内容包括：

1﹒说明事由;

2﹒说明比赛要求（主题、时间等）;

3﹒表达期待与感谢。

注意：

1﹒词数100左右;

2﹒可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

参考词汇：配音比赛 dubbing contest

背景大链接

How Is English Changed Online？

网络发展如何改变英语？

English has become a common language for users from around the world online. In the process， the language itself is changing.

英语已经在网络上成为全球范围内的通用语言。在此过程中，英语本身也在不断发生着变化。

When America emerged from the ashes of a bruising war with Britain in 1814， the nation was far from united. Noah Webster thought that a common language would bring people together and help create a new identity that would make the country truly independent of Britain.

1814年英美战争结束后，当美国从战后的废墟中发展起来时，它还是一个四分五裂的国家。诺亚·韦伯斯特认为，共同的语言会将人们凝聚在一起，并帮助其获得新的身份，这有助于美国真正地脱离英国而独立。

The American Dictionary of the English Language took Webster 18 years to complete and Webster learned 26 other languages in order to research the etymology of its 70，000 entries.

韦伯斯特花了18年时间写成《美国英语词典》。为了研究词典中的7万个单词的词源，韦伯斯特又学习了26种语言。

Websters Dictionary adopted the Americanized spellings familiar today—“er” instead of “re” in “theatre”， dropping the “u” from “colour”， and losing the double “l” from words such as “traveller”. It also documented new words that were uniquely American such as skunk， opossum， hickory， squash and chowder.

《韦氏词典》采用我们现在熟悉的美式拼写——“theatre”中的“re”变为“er”，去掉“colour”中的“u”，把一些单词中的两个“l”，如：“traveller”变为一个“l”。词典中也收录了一些美国独有的新词汇，如：skunk（北美臭鼬）、opossum（负鼠）、hickory（山核桃木）、squash（南瓜小果）和chowder（杂烩羹）。

The Internet is creating a similar language evolution， but at a much faster pace.

互联网为类似的语言演变创造了一个平台，但速度要快得多。

Some linguists predict that English will dominate the Internet—but in forms very different from what we accept and recognize as English today.

一些语言学家预测，英语将成为互联网的主导语言，但其形式将和我们今天接受和认可的英语有很大不同。

Thats because people who speak English as a second language already outnumber native speakers. And increasingly they use it to communicate with other non-native speakers， particularly on the Internet where less attention is paid to grammar and spelling and users dont have to worry about their accent.

这是因为将英语作为第二语言的人数已经超过以英语为母语的人数。而且非英语国家的人相互进行交流时使用英语情况越来越多，尤其是在互联网上，使用者不太注重语法和拼写，也不用担心口音问题。

The increasing prevalence of the Internet in everyday life means that language online is not a zero-sum game. Instead， it allows multiple languages to flourish.

互联网在日常生活中的日益普遍意味着网络语言并非一场零和博弈。相反，它让不同的语言蓬勃发展。