Usually, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer. But there is one question that has millions of current answers. That question is “What’s your name?” Everyone gives a different answer, but everyone is correct.
Have you ever wondered about people’s names? Where do they come from? What do they mean?
People’s first names, or given names, are chosen by their parents. Sometimes the name of a grandparent or other member of the family is used. Some parents choose the name of a well-known person. A boy could be named George Washington Smith; a girl could be named Helen Keller Jones.
Some people give their children names that mean good things. Clara means “bright”; Beatrice means “one who gives happiness”; Donald means “world ruler”; Leonard means “as brave as a lion”.
The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names. A family with the name Brook or Brooks probably lived near brook(小溪)；someone who was called Longstreet probably lived on a long, paved road. The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest.
Other early surnames came from people’s occupations. The most common occupational name is Smith, which means a person who makes things with iron or other metals. In the past, smiths were very important workers in every town and village. Some other occupational names are: Carter — a person who owned or drove a cart; Potter  —a person who made pots and pans.
The ancestors of the Baker family probably baked bread for their neighbors in their native village. The Carpenter’s great-great-great-grandfather probably built houses and furniture.
Sometimes people were known for the color of their hair or skin, or their size, or their special abilities. When there were two men who were named John in the same village, the John with the gray hair probably became John Gray. Or the John was very tall could call himself John Tallman. John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer.
Some family names were made by adding something to the father’s name. English-speaking people added –s or –son. The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family’s ancestor was Robert. Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O. Perhaps all of the MacDonnells and the MacDonnells and the O’Donnells are descendants of the same Donnell.
【小題1】Which of the following aspects do the surnames in the passage NOT cover?

A．Places where people lived.
B．People’s characters.
C．Talents that people possessed.
D．People’s occupations.
【小題2】 According to the passage, the ancestors of the Potter family most probably _______.
A．owned or drove a cart
B．made things with metals
C．made kitchen tools or contains
D．built houses and furniture
【小題3】Suppose and English couple whose ancestors lived near a leafy forest wanted their new-born son to become a world leader, the baby might be named _______.
A．Beatrice Smith B．Leonard Carter
C．George Longstreet D．Donald Greenwood
【小題4】The underlined word “descendants” in the last paragraph means a person’s _____
A．later generations B．friends and relatives
C．colleagues and partners D．later sponsors


【小題1】B
【小題2】C
【小題3】D
【小題4】A

解析試題分析: 本文講述了英語(yǔ)中名字的由來(lái)，和祖先的職業(yè)，技能，或者地名有關(guān)。
【小題1】B細(xì)節(jié)題；根據(jù)第五段The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names.說(shuō)明地名是名字的來(lái)源之一，可知A正確；根據(jù)第六段第一行“Other early surnames came from people’s occupations.”說(shuō)明職業(yè)也是名字的來(lái)源之一，可知D正確；根據(jù)倒數(shù)第二段最后一行“John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer.”說(shuō)明人的技能也是名字的來(lái)源之一，可知C正確；只有B項(xiàng)人的性格是名字的來(lái)源，文章中沒(méi)有提及。故選B。
【小題2】C推理題；根據(jù)倒數(shù)第四段Potter —a person who made pots and pans.說(shuō)明potter是制作鍋和罐子的，都是廚房用具。故選C。
【小題3】D推理題；根據(jù)第五段The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest.說(shuō)明這家人的名字可能是Greenwood。故選D。
【小題4】A推理題。根據(jù)最后一段中“Some family names were made by adding something to the father’s name. English-speaking people added –s or –son. The Johnsons are descendants of John”說(shuō)明該詞是指Johnson是John的兒子，該詞應(yīng)該是指后代的意思。故選A。
考點(diǎn)：文化類閱讀。

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