Question

The English language is the result of the invasion(入侵) of the island of Britain over many hundreds of years. The first invasions were by a people called Angles about 1, 500 years ago. The Angles were a German tribe who crossed the English Channel(英吉利海峽). Later two more groups crossed to Britain. They were the Saxons and the Jutes. Through many years, the Saxons, Angles and the Jutes mixed their different languages. The result is what is called Anglo-Saxon or old English.

The next great invasion of Britain was done by Vikings about 1, 100 years ago. Many English words used today come from these ancient Vikings.

The next invasion of Britain took place more than 900 years ago, in 1066. History experts call this invasion the Norman Conquest. The Normans were a French-speaking people from Normandy in the north of France. These new rulers(統治者) spoke only French for several hundred years. It was the most important language in the world at that time. It was the language of educated people. But the common people of Britain still spoke old English.

Old English took many words from the Norman French. Some of these include “damage”, “prison”, and “marriage”. The French language used by the Norman rulers greatly changed the way English was spoken 800 years ago. English became what language experts call Middle English. Middle English sounds like Modern English. But it is difficult to understand now. The history of the English language continues as Middle English becomes Modern English, which is spoken today.

1.Who was the first invaders(入侵者) of Britain?

A. The Angles. B. The Saxons.

C. The Jutes. D. The Normans.

2.How many groups of invaders are mentioned in the passage?

A. Three. B. Four.

C. Five. D. Six.

3.Which of the following is TURE about Middle English?

A. It sounds like Old English.

B. It’s quite different from Modern English.

C. Few people understand it now.

D. It stopped developing.

4.During the rule of the Normans, the language people spoke showed their ______.

A. races (種族) B. social positions

C. ability D. names

5.What is mainly discussed in this passage?

A. The historical invasions of Britain.

B. Other languages that have influenced English.

C. The origin (起源) and development of English.

D. Old English and Modern English.

Answer 1

1.A

2.C

3.C

4.B

5.C

【解析】

試題分析：文章主要介紹了英語的起源和發展歷史。英語是幾百年間不斷有人入侵英國的結果。最先入侵英國的是德國的一個叫Angles的部落，接著是Saxons和Jutes。第四次入侵英國的是北歐海盜，第五次是法國的諾曼人。對英語影響最大的是法語，英語中的許多詞匯都來自法語。

1.The first invasions were by a people called Angles about 1, 500 years ago.”可知，第一個入英國的是Angles部落，故選A。

2.The first invasions were by a people called Angles...Later two more groups crossed to Britain. They were the Saxons and the Jutes.”和第二段“The next great invasion of Britain was done by Vikings”及第三段“The next invasion of Britain took place more than 900 years ago, in 1066. History experts call this invasion the Norman Conquest.”可知，文章提到了五個入侵者，故選C。

3.Middle English sounds like Modern English. But it is difficult to understand now.”可知，Middle English雖然聽起來跟現代的英語很像，但是現在的人們卻很難理解Middle English，故選C。

4.It was the language of educated people. But the common people of Britain still spoke old English.”可知，諾曼人侵占英國之后使用的語言是法語，法語是受教育的人使用的語言，而平民百姓仍然使用古英語。說明從人們使用的語言能夠判斷出他們的社會地位，故選B。

5.The English language is the result of the invasion(入侵) of the island of Britain over many hundreds of years. ...The result is what is called Anglo-Saxon or old English.”和第二段“Many English words used today come from these ancient Vikings.”及最后一段“Old English took many words from the Norman French. ...The history of the English language continues as Middle English becomes Modern English”可知，文章主要介紹了英語這種語言的起源和發展史，故選C。

考點：歷史類短文閱讀