英语六级

单选题Questions are based on the following passage.
Variety is the spice of language. The words listed in this book are not intended to replace those that most people use most of the time. Rather, they are variations on the theme. We tend to use the same old words over and over again, to limit our powers of expression by limiting our vocabulary. There is nothing wrong with the "old words", but why not enhance your speech and writing by learning to use new ones from time to time as alternatives?
How often have you spoke of having an accident? Why not use the alternative mishap (小事故. once in a while? Everyone talks of the usual thing to do or expect. Might not one, to enrich his speech, speak of the customary thing? Or why not occasionally describe a situation as aggravated instead of worsened?
Don't throw away the "old words". Vary them with the "new words". English is an especially rich language, and often there are delicate shades of difference between two words that are generally regarded as equivalent or synonymous. Thus, a mishap is not merely an accident; it is an unfortunate accident. (There can be fortunate accidents, like bumping into an old friend you haven't seen for years and whose address you've lost. . So, in using mishap instead of accident, you must be sure of the distinction. Again, you'd never say "as customary" rather than "as usual", because the latter phrase has become art of the language. But wouldn't it sometimes be pleasant and perhaps more interesting to describe a kind act by someone as having been done with his customary rather than his usual thoughtfulness? Other examples: fragrant, for smelling good, or having a nice smell; morsel, for bit; wayward, for disobedient; deft, for skillful or clever.
No doubt a good many words in the list will be familiar to you, but do you use them, or do they remain the  "property" of others? They are included to introduce variety, and, more often than not, subtle shades of meaning into your speech and writing. Try to make these words your own, as companions or friendly rivals of the ones you have managed with in the past. Let them compete, and make your language all the richer.
Many words have more than one meaning. In such cases, I have given the meaning or meanings most likely to be used in everyday speech, omitting the rest. As an example, the word docile means not only   "easily led" or "manageable", but also "easily taught" or "teachable". (Docile comes from the Latin docilis, whose first meaning is  "teachable", and is based on the Latin verb docere, meaning to teach, a form of which, doctus, meaning "taught", gave us our word doctor. . In this book, only the meaning "easy to manage or lead" is given, because the other use "teachable" is very rare in everyday English usage. Or take ghastly, which means "ghostlike" as well as "horrible, dreadful"  (as in a ghastly accident or a ghastly mistake.. The first meaning is sufficiently rare, for the purposes of this book, to warrant omission.
What will happen if we conf'me ourselves to words we always use?

A. Our expression ability will be affected.
B. Our mind will be narrowed down.
C. Our interest in learning will be discouraged.
D. Our emotional world will be restricted.

参考答案:A进入在线模考
【参考译文】
多样化是语言的调味料。这本书里所列的单词并不是用来取代多数人大部分时间所用的词汇的,而是提供同一主题可用的不同词汇。[46]我们常常反复不断地使用同样的旧词,这使我们的词汇量受限,丛而,我们的表达能力也受限了。使用“旧词”没有什么问题,但我们为什么不学着时不时地替换使用新词,从而提高我们的说话及写作水平呢?
你多常说起发生 “意外事故”?为什么不偶尔用另一个词“灾祸”来代替呢?每个人都说“通常要做或期待的事情”。难道就不可能丰富一下自己的词汇,说“惯常的事情”?或者说,当我们要描述一种形势时,为什么不偶尔用“恶化”来代替“变坏”呢?
不要扔掉这些 “旧词”。用“新词”来使词汇多样化。[47]英语是词汇尤其丰富的语言,在通常被认为是同义词的两个词之间经常有细微的差别。因此,“灾祸”不仅仅是“意外”,而是“不幸的意外事故”。(“意外”可能是幸运的,比如,无意中遇到一个多年未见、你已经丢失其联系地址的老朋友.。因此,如果你使用“灾祸”而不是“意外”时,你一定要确保自己知道它们的区别。同样,你从来不会说“按习惯”,而是会说“同往常一样”,因为后面这个词组已经成了一种语言习惯。[48]不过,如果我们在描述某人的善意举动时,偶尔说他的体贴周到是出于“习惯性的”而非“通常的”,不是更讨人喜欢,或许,也更有趣吗?举一些其他的例子:用“芳香的”来代替“闻着不错的”或“味道好闻的”;用“少量”代替“一点儿”;用“任性不羁的”代替“不顺从的”;用“灵巧的”代替“娴熟的”或“机灵的”。
无疑,这个列表里的很多词你都熟悉,但是,你用过它们吗?或者说, [49]它们仍然是别人的“财产”?这些词被收录进来以使你的讲话及写作多样化,通常也可以让你表达一些微妙的含义。[49]试着使这些词变成你自己的。使它们成为你以前掌握的那些词的同伴或友好对手。让它们竞争,使你的语言变得愈发丰富。
很多词是一词多义的。在这种情况下,我提供了日常讲话中最可能用到的意思,略去其他意思。例如。 “docile”这个词不仅有“易受引导的”或“易管理的”的意思,而且还有“易受教育的”或“可教的”的意思。([50]“docile”这个词来源于拉丁语“docilis”。其第一含义是“可教的”,是根据意为“教”的拉丁动词“docere”而来。这个词的过去式“doctus”成了我们今天的单词doctor“博士”。.在本书中,我们只给出“易管理的或易受引导的”的意思,因为另一个用法“可教的”在日常英语中很少使用。还有,例如“ghastly"这个词,它有“灵魂似的”的意思,也有“恐怖的,可怕的”的意思(比如,“在一场可怕的事故里”或“一个可怕的错误”.。这个词的第一个意思是极其罕见的,因此,出于这个书的宗旨,这个意思被略去了。
【答案解析】
定位:根据题干中的信息词confine和words we always use定位到第一段第三句。
解析:题干问如果我们只用自己常用的词汇会怎样。根据第一段第四句可知: “我们常常反复不断地使用同样的旧词,这使我们的词汇量受限,从而,我们的表达能力也受限了。”显然,通过本句的因果关系可判断,局限于常用词的结果是词汇量受限,表达能力受限。因此A项与原文意思相符。故为答案。B项中narrow down及D项中restrict虽与原文相似或相同,但两项中涉及的mind和emotional world均与原文powers of expression不符,故均可排除。C项文中未提及。

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1According to the passage, English is a rich language in that

A.a lot of its words are from various languages
B.there are minor differences between even equivalents
C.its words are blended by the old and new words together
D.its words are grouped according to their differences in meanings

2When we turn to some expressions which are less frequently used, we

A. may find them amusing and interesting
B. always feel unsure and worried
C. are not accustomed to the switch
D. probably feel strange and dismayed

3According to the author, words

A. add shades of color to our social life
B. are also a kind of assets to people
C. cannot be owned by speakers if not used
D. also compete with each other for survival