2017高考英语阅读理解解析版汇编（117）
阅读理解。阅读下列短文, 从给的四个选项 (A、B、C和D) 中, 选出最佳选项。
The number of speakers of English in Shakespeare's time is estimated (估计) to have been about five million.Today it is estimated that some 260 million people speak it as a native language，mainly in the United States，Canada，Great Britain，Ireland，South Africa，Australia and New Zealand.In addition to the standard varieties of English found in these areas，there are a great many regional and social varieties of the language as well as various levels of usage that are employed both in its spoken and written forms.
In fact，it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an adequate(足够的) working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages.The purpose for English learning and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.
The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its present importance as a world language.Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers，English is a language in which some of important works in science，technology，and other fields are being produced，and not always by native speakers.It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications，international conferences，and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations.It is a language of wider communication for a number of developing countries，especially former British colonies.Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication in such matters as government，commerce，industry，law and education as well as for international communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.
1．What would be the best title for this passage?
A．The Difficulties of Learning English
B．International Communications
C．The Standard Varieties of English
D．English as a World Language
答案：D 主旨大意题。根据第3段第1句及全文的内容：英语在各个国家的各个领域的应用，可推知此题的答案为D。
．Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A. Some 260 million people in the world have an adequate working knowledge of English.
B．There are some 260 million native speakers of English in the world.
C．It is almost impossible to estimate the number of people with an adequate working knowledge of English.
D．People learn English for a variety of reasons.
答案：A 细节理解题。根据文章第1段中第2句及第2段的第1句的描述可推知此题的答案为A。
．According to the passage，what is the main reason for the widespread use of English?
A. It was popular during Shakespeare's time.
B．It is used in former British colonies.
C．It serves the needs of its native speakers.
D．It is a world language that is used for international communication.
答案：D 推理判断题。根据文章最后一段的描述，英语在世界不同领域、不同的地区的使用，可推知此题的答案为D。
．What type of developing countries would be most likely to use English?
A. Those geographically close to the United States.
B．Those interested in the culture of the United States.
C．Former colonies of Great Britain.
D．Countries where international conferences are held.
答案：C 细节理解题。根据文章最后一段倒数第2句可推知此题答案为C。
阅读理解体裁 题材 词数 难度 建议用时
说明文 社会文化 262 ★★ 6分钟
(2017·新课标全国卷)In 1947 a group of famous people from the art world headed by an Austrian conductor decided to hold an international festival of music，dance and theatre in Edinburgh.The idea was to reunite Europe after the Second World War.
It quickly attracted famous names such as Alec Guinness，Richard Burton，Dame Margot Fonteyn and Marlene Dietrich as well as the big symphony orchestras(交响乐团)．It became a fixed event every August and now attracts 400
At the same time，the“Fringe”appeared as a challenge to the official festival.Eight theatre groups turned up uninvited in 1947，in the belief that everyone should have the right to perform，and they did so in a public house disused for years.
Soon，groups of students firstly from Edinburgh University，and later from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge，Durham and Birmingham were making the journey to the Scottish capital each summer to perform theatre by little－known writers of plays in small church halls to the people of Edinburgh.
r outgrown the festival with around 1，500 performances of theatre，music and dance on every one of the 21 days it lasts.And yet as early as 1959，with only 19 theatre groups performing，some said it was getting too big.
A paid administrator was first employed only in 1971，and today there are eight administrators working all year round and the number rises to 150 during August itself.In 2004 there were 200 places housing 1，695 shows by over 600 different groups from 50 different countries.More than 1.25 million tickets were sold.
【解题导语】 本文主要介绍了爱丁堡边缘(Fringe)艺术节的成立以及发展壮大的情况。
A．To bring Europe together again.
B．To honor heroes of World WarⅡ.
C．To introduce young theatre groups.
D．To attract great artists from Europe.
答案 A [细节理解题。根据第一段的The idea was to reunite Europe after the Second World War.可知成立爱丁堡边缘艺术节的目的是使二战后的欧洲重新团结。故选A。]
A．They owned a public house there.
B．They came to take up a challenge.
C．They thought they were also famous.
D．They wanted to take part in the festival.
答案 D [细节理解题。根据第三段的in the belief that everyone should have the right to perform可知他们认为他们有权利参加这个节日。故选D。]
A．Popular writers.
B．University students.
C．Artists from around the world.
D．Performers of music and dance.
答案 B [细节理解题。根据第四段的内容可知在爱丁堡边缘艺B。]
________．
－official event
C．gives shows all year round
D．keeps growing rapidly
答案 D [推理判断题。根据文章内容尤其最后一段可知爱丁堡边缘艺术节是一个官方组织的活动只在每年八月举行现在发展很迅速。由此可知选D。]阅读理解, 从给的四个选项 (A、B、C和D) 中, 选出最佳选项。
The number of speakers of English in Shakespeare’s time is estimated to have been about five million. Today it is estimated that some 260 million people speak it as a native language, mainly in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.In addition to the standard varieties of English found in these areas, there are a great many regional and social varieties of the language as well as various levels of usage that are employed both in its spoken and written forms.
In fact, it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an enough working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages. The purpose for English learning and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.
The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its present－day importance as a world language. Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers, English is a language in which some of important works in science, technology, and other fields are being produced, and not always by native speakers. It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications, international conferences, and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations. It is a language of wider communication for a number of developing countries, especially former British colonies. Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication in such matters as government, commerce, industry, law and education as well as for international communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.
1. What would be the best title for this passage?
A. The Difficulties of Learning English
B．International Communications
C．The Standard Varieties of English
D．English as a World Language
2. Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A．Some 260 million people in the world have an adequate working knowledge of English.
B．There are some 260 million native speakers of English in the world.
C．It is almost impossible to estimate the number of people with an adequate working knowledge of English.
D．People learn English for a variety of reasons.
3. According to the passage, what is the main reason for the widespread use of English?
A．It was popular during Shakespeare’s time.
B．It is used in former British colonies.
C．It serves the needs of its native speakers.
D．It is a world language that is used for international communication.
4. What forms an adequate working knowledge of English?
A．The ability to read a newspaper.
B．It is difficult to judge because it differs for each situation.
C．Being a multilingual.
D．Being a native speaker.
[解题导语] 本文介绍了英语的发展变化情况，说明了英语最后成为世界语言的原因及英语在当代社会中的重要性。
1. 解析：选D。主旨大意题。全文讲述的是英语在全世界的广泛应用。第三段第一句又特别提出英语作为一种世界语言的原因，故选D项。A项文中并未涉及；B项和C项只是文中细节，不能概括全文。
2. 解析：选A。推理判断题。根据文章第一段中第二句及第二段的第一句的描述可推知B、C两项正确，A项错误。由第二、三段可知D项正确。
3. 解析：选D。推理判断题。根据文章最后一段的描述，英语广泛应用于气象和机场的交流，国际会议和信息传播等，可推知此题的答案为D。
4. 解析：选B。细节理解题。根据文章第二段最后一句可知，环境不同，所要求的英语水平等级也有所不同，因此很难判断一个人的英语程度。故此题答案为B。
阅读理解, 从给的四个选项 (A、B、C和D) 中, 选出最佳选项。
English around the world
Today，nearly 350 million people across every continent use the English vocabulary as a mother tongue.Three quarters of the world's mails and letters are in English.So are more than half the world's technical and scientific periodicals(期刊)—it is the language of technology from Silicon Valley(硅谷) to Shanghai.English is the medium for 80 percent of the information stored in the world's computers.Nearly half of all business deals in Europe are conducted in English.It is also the language of sports and glamour(魅力)—the official language of the Olympics and the Miss Universe competition.Five of the largest broadcasting companies in the world(CBS，NBC，ABC，BBC，CBC)transmit in English to audiences that regularly exceed one hundred million.
Though
English is a language as old as Greek or Chinese，its truly significant development has occurred only in the last one hundred years or so.Taking the most conservative estimates，there are three or four hundred million people using English，but not as a native language.English has become a second language in countries like India，Nigeria or Singapore where it is used for administration，broadcasting and education.In these countries，English is a vital alternative language，often unifying huge districts and diverse populations.When Rajiv Gandhi appealed for an end to the violence that broke out after the murder of his mother，he went on television and spoke to his people in English.Then English is used as a foreign language in some countries，like Holland or Yugoslavia，where it is backed up by a tradition of English teaching.It is used to have contact with people in other countries ，usually to promote trade and scientific progress.A Dutch poet is read by a few thousands.However，translated into English，he can be read by hundreds of thousands.As either a first，second or foreign language，English has been a global phenomenon.
1．According to the passage，which of the following is
TRUE?
A．Nearly half of the world's mails and letters are written in English.
B．70 percent of the information in the world's computers is stored in English.
C．English is not as old as Chinese.
D．In
the last one hundred years，English developed greatly.
答案：D 细节判断题。从文章第一段第二句可排除A项，第四句话排除B项，第二段第一句话排除C项。
2．In the countries like India，Nigeria or Singapore English is used for the following purposes except________.
A．administration
B．broadcasting
C．education
D．business
答案：D 细节判断题。从文章第二段第三句可看出A，B，C项都提到了，只有D项没有提到。所以选择D项。
3．Which of the following words can be used to explain the underlined one in paragraph one?
A．broadcast
B．send
C．take
D．translate
答案：A 词义猜测题。从本句可看出这句话的主语是广播公司，所以它的谓语应该是向听众广播。
阅读理解, 从给的四个选项 (A、B、C和D) 中, 选出最佳选项。
Language is a major problem for the European Union (EU). The
agreement
or
treaty
which
created
the organization that eventually became the EU，the Treaty of Rome，stated that each country' s language must be treated equally.The original six countries had only three languages between
them：French, German
and
Dutch/Flemish.However，there are now 15 countries in the EU，with a total of 12 languages.EU documents must be translated into all these languages，and at official meetings the speeches must be translated into all the languages by interpreters.
All
this
translating
is
very
expensive
and
time consuming(费时的)．It is said that nearly half of all employees of the EU are engaged in translating documents and speeches，and nearly half of the EU's administrative(管理方面的)costs are spent on this task.In the near future it is probably that several more countries，most of them having their own languages，will join the EU，thus making the situation even worse.The problem is not just
cost：there
are
practical difficulties as well.With 12 languages，there are 132 possible “translation situations” that might be needed.It is often difficult to find people in the right place at the right time who can translate from (for example) Danish into Greek，or Dutch into Portuguese，at a high professional standard.
In practice the problem has been made less severe by the use of English in many contacts between EU officials，since almost all of them speak some English.However，any move to reduce the number of official languages(perhaps to four or five)would be a blow to the price of the smaller countries.Another commonly suggested solution is to make English the official language for all EU business.However，this is strongly resisted by powerful member countries like France and Germany.
1．What's the main purpose of this passage?
A. To give a solution to a problem.
B．To find out a problem and show how severe it is.
C．To criticize the European Union for ill efficiency.
D．To show that the problem cannot be solved.
答案：B 推理判断题。本文的主题是说明欧盟内部语言问题的严重性，故选D。
2．According to the writer，the use of English in contacts among EU officials has________.
A. angered the officials who don't speak English
B．reduced the number of official languages
C．lessened the effect of the problem
D．been opposed by powerful member countries
答案：C 推理判斯题。根据文章第四段第一句可知本题选C。
3．The writer mentions “Danish into Greek”as an example of________.
A. a situation that might be difficult to deal withB．a situation that occurs often
C．one of the 12 situations that require an interpreterD．languages easily being interpreted
答案：A 细节理解题。由文章第三段最后一句可知本题A项正确。
4．The writer suggests that if the number of official languages was reduced________.
A. the EU would not know which official languages to chooseB．countries whose languages were not used officially would be unhappy
C．only languages which are easy to translate would be used officially
D．the smaller member countries would be pleased
答案：B 推理判断题．由文章最后一段第二句可知本题选B。