I am a writer. I spend a great deal of my time thinking about the power of language-the way it can evoke
(喚起) an emotion, a visual image, a complex idea, or a simple truth. Language is the tool of my trade. And
I use them all-all the Englishes I grew up with.
     Born into a Chinese family that had recently arrived in California, I've been giving more thought to the kind
of English my mother speaks. Like others, I have described it to people as "broken" English. But feel
embarrassed to say that. It has always bothered me that I can think of no way to describe it other than "broken",
as if it were damaged and needed to be fixed, as if it lacked a certain wholeness. I've heard other terms used,
"limited English," for example. But they seem just as bad, as if everything is limited, including people's
perceptions (認(rèn)識(shí)) of the limited English speaker.
     I know this for a fact, because when I was growing up, my mother's "limited" English limited my perception
of her. I was ashamed of her English. I believed that her English reflected the quality of what she had to say.
That is, because she expressed them imperfectly, her thoughts were imperfect. And I had plenty of evidence to
support me: the fact that people in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did
not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.
     I started writing fiction in 1985. And for reasons I won't get into today, I began to write stories using all the
Englishes I grew up with: the English she used with me, which for lack of a better term might be described as
"broken", and what I imagine to be her translation of her Chinese,her internal (內(nèi)在的) language.and for that I
sought to preserve the essence, but neither an English nor a Chinese structure:I wanted to catch what language
ability tests can never show; her intention, her feelings, the rhythms of her speech and the nature of her
thoughts.

1. By saying "Language is the tool of my trade", the author means that _____.

A. she uses English in foreign trade
B. she is fascinated by languages
C. she works as a translator
D. she is a writer by profession

2. The author used to think of her mother's English as _____.

A. impolite
B. amusing
C. imperfect
D. practical

3. Which of the following is TRUE according to Paragraph 3?

A. Americans do not understand broken English.
B. The author's mother was not respected sometimes.
C. The author' mother had positive influence on her.
D. Broken English always reflects imperfect thoughts.

4. The author gradually realizes her mother's English is _____.

A. well structured
B. in the old style
C. easy to translate
D. rich in meaning

5. What is the passage mainly about?

A. The changes of the author's attitude to her mother's English.
B. The limitation of the author's perception of her mother.
C. The author's misunderstanding of "limited" English.
D. The author's experiences of using broken English.

     It was a cool, rainy day and it was the day before Thanksgiving-the first one my three children and I would
be spending without their father, who passed away several months ago. Now the two older children were sick
with the flu. I hurried around, trying to care for each child:thermometers, medicine, juice, bread. I found the
children had run out of fruits. But what almost broke me down was that I only had $2.50 left-and this should
last until the end of the month.
     That's when I heard the phone ring. It was the secretary from our former church,and she told me that they
had been thinking about us and had something to give us. I called at the church on my way to the market just
before lunch. The church secretary met me at the door and handed me two currency notes (流通券), each
worth $20. I was so moved that I cried.
     Then I drove on to a store near our home for something needed for the children. The things I picked up cost
me a little over $14.00, and I handed the cashier (收銀員) one note. She took it and looked at it for a long time.
I thought something might be wrong and told her that I was a single parent and how I got it. With tears in her
eyes, the cashier said that morning she had prayed (祈禱) to help someone, and I gave her the chance. She
added a turkey to my items (貨物), took out two $20 bills and paid for my items. Once more I was moved to
tears.
     As I walked to my car, I was still moved by the stranger's love and realized that God loves my family. He
shows us his love through others' hands.

1. What made the author become sad the day before Thanksgiving?

A. It was cool and raining outside.
B. Her two older children got the flu.
C. Her children had no fruits to eat.
D. She almost had no money to support her family.

2. Why did the cashier look at the author's note for a long time?

A. Because she wanted to know how the author got it.
B. Because she couldn't believe the author was so poor.
C. Because she thought the auhor stole it from somebody else.
D. Because she was glad she had a chance to help someone.

3. What did the cashier do for the author?

A. She paid for all the author's items in the store.
B. She gave the author $40 and a turkey for free.
C. She made sure the note was true.
D. She believed the author and moved her to tears.

4. We can infer from the passage that _____.

A. the author's husband lived in another place
B. people often do good things only near Thanksgiving
C. life was hard for the author and her children
D. the author was a person who always cried

     One day, when we had been riding in the burning sun for five hours, we came to a narrow, shaky bridge
where a railway crossed a stagnant (發(fā)臭的) pond. For 30 feet there was nothing but the widely-spaced
wooden sleepers under our wheels, and nothing to stop us from falling into the steaming bot below if we
overbalanced. Right under the bridge lay the body of a dead cow. I watched Mat as hc approached the bridge
and rode straight over, without even slowing down. I stopped.
     "What's up?" he shouted, from the other side.
     "I'm not riding over that thing. If I fail, I'll be there with that cow!"
     "There's nothing to it. I just did it, didn't I?"
     "You're stronger and taller. My feet can't touch the ground. You do it for me!"
     Mat said strength didn't come into it and rode off,leaving me staring down into the sickly brown soup. He
would be waiting for me around the next corner, but I knew he would oive me at least ar hour before coming
to help. The sun burned my face; sweat ran off my forehead into my eyes and stuck my shirt to my body;
mosquitoes flew into my mouth when I breathed. To stand still in this place was to kill myself; anyway, to sit
around waiting for Mat to help was more than my feminist pride could take. I rode back along the track a f'ew
hundred yards to get a good run-up (助跑) and over I went. Mat was right: all the obstacles were in my mind.

1. The author stopped near the bridge because _____.

A. she was tired and wanted to have a rest
B. she found a dead cow under the bridge
C. she was afraid of failing off the bridge
D. she didn't know how to cross the bridge

2. Why did Mat refuse to help the author?

A. He wanted to finish the journey as soon as possible.
B. He felt she should overcome her fear by herself.
C. He didn't believe she was really afraid.
D. He knew she was too proud to accept his help.

3. What does the underlined part "sickly brown soup" in the last paragraph ref'er to?

A. The body of a dead cow.
B. The mud on the wheels.
C. The dirty water in the pond.
D. The author's food for the journey.

4. According to the last paragraph,the author seems to believe that _____.

A. nothing is difficult to the man who will try
B. a friend in need is a friend indeed
C. you can't make something out of nothing
D. well begun is half done

     When his young son was ill, Mr Wei took him to a clinic (診所). They were the first of the day and did
not have to wait long. The nurse took the boy into the doctor's room while Mr Wei waited outside. After a
few minutes, the doctor came out of his room and spoke to the nurse.
     "Have we got a screwdriver (螺絲刀)?" he asked her. The nurse looked in a drawer (抽屜) and found a
screwdriver. She gave it to the doctor and he went back into his room.
     A few minutes later he came out again. "I need a saw (鋸)," he said to the nurse this time. Again the nurse
looked in the drawer. She found a saw and gave it to the doctor. He went back into his room.
     A few minutes later the doctor came out of his room for the third time. "I'm going to need a hammer," he
said. For the third time the nurse looked in the drawer. Shp found a hammer and gave it to the doctor.
     This time, Mr. Wei could not keep quiet." Excuse me," he said:"but what is wrong with my son? And what
are you doing to him?"
     "I haven't examined him yet," the doctor said. "I'm still trying to get my hag open."

1. Mr. Wei's son was _____.

A. waiting in a queue
B. angry about his waiting
C. impatient (不耐煩) to get in to see the doctor
D. the first person to be seen by the doctor

2. The doctor came out to _____.

A. ask for some tools
B. shout at the nurse
C. look in the drawer
D. explain something to Mr. Wei

3. The underlined word "hammer" in the 4th paragraph means _____.

A. a kind of medicine
B. a piece of medical equipment
C. a kind of everyday tool
D. a piece of furniture

4. At last, Mr. Wei _____.

A. offered to help the doctor get his bag open
B. wanted to be there when his son was examined
C. was worried about his son
D. helped the nurse look for the hammer

5. Which would be the best title for this passage?

A. Mr. Wei and His Son
B. The Doctor's Job
C. The Right Tools for the Bag
D. A New Way to Treat Patients