Why does night fall but never break and day break but never fall?
Why are people who ride motorcycles called bikers and people who ride bikes called cyclists?
In what other language do people drive in a parkway and park in a driveway?
In what other language do they call the third hand on the clock the second hand?
Let’s face it: English is a crazy language. There is no egg in an eggplant, neither pine nor apple in a pineapple and no ham in a hamburger. Sweet-meats are candy, while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.
We take English for granted. But when we explore its paradoxes (探讨它的矛盾), we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, public bathrooms have no baths in them.
And why is it that a writer writes, but fingers don’t fing, grocers don’t groce, and hammers don’t ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, shouldn’t the plural of booth be beeth? One goose, two geese — so one moose, two meese?
How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee be opposites, while quite a lot and quite a few are alike? How can the weather be hot as hell one day and cold as hell the next?
English was invented by people, not puters, and it reflects the creativity of human beings. That’s why, when stars are out, they are visible; but when the lights are out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my watch, I start it; but when I wind up this essay, I end it.
【小题1】 According to the passage . A．sweet-meats and sweetbreads are different thingsB．there should be egg in an eggplantC．pineapples are the apples on the pine treeD．boxing rings should be round【小题2】Which of the following includes two items which have the similar meaning?A．A wise man and a wise guy.B．Overlook and oversee.C．Quite a lot and quite a few.D．Hot as hell and cold as hell.【小题3】The underlined words “wind up” in the last paragraph probably mean “ ”.A．blowB．roll upC．get hurt D．finish【小题4】 Through the many paradoxes in the English language, the writer wants to show that human beings are .A．cleverB．crazyC．lazyD．dullA【小题1】C【小题1】D【小题1】A
网友回答
(答案→)A【小题1】C【小题1】D【小题1】A
解析：
【小题1】A 细节题，从文章第三段的句子：Sweet-meats are candy, while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.可以看出sweet-meats and sweetbreads are different things。
【小题1】C 从文章倒数第二段的句子：How can overlook and oversee be opposites, while quite a lot and quite a few are alike?可以看出Overlook and oversee.里面有相似的东西。
【小题1】D 猜词题：从文章最后一段的句子：when I wind up my watch, I start it; but when I wind up this essay, I end it.看出wind up有“完成”的意思。
【小题1】A 从文章最后一段的句子 English was invented by people, not puters, and it reflects the creativity of human beings看出作者是想表示人类是 聪明的。