The word “ OK”, the most frequently spoken expression on the planet, celebrated its 178th anniversary (周年纪念日) on March 23.

Henry Nass, a 66-year-old retired English teacher, had spent the last few weeks handing out cards supporting “ Global OK Day” in advance of the coming anniversary.

The term “ OK” was born in the 19th century. Late etymologist Allen Walker Read found the twoletter word in 1839, when editors at The Boston Morning Post signed off on articles as “ all correct” with an “ OK” or “ oll correct”.

The word made it into print on March 23 of that year in an article against an editor in Providence who had said, wrongly, that a group of Bostonians heading for New York would pass through the Rhode Island capital. “We didn’t say a word about our group passing through the city of Providence,” The Boston Morning Post reported. “O. K. — all correct.”

The humour of the Providence-Boston joke has been lost to history — but the word OK took off from there, soon meaning agreement, acceptance, satisfaction, quality or likability. In 1840, it served as a slogan (口号) for President Martin Van Buren’s unsuccessful re-election campaign. OK was picked up by telegraph operators as an easy abbreviation (缩写词) to say they received transmission. “Buzz Aldrin’s first words spoken on the moon were ‘ OK. Engine stop,’” says Allan Metcalf, author of “OK: The Improbable Story of America’s Greatest Word”.

Modern texting has produced a new generation of abbreviations — BTW (by the way) and LOL (laugh out loud) among them, but none has replaced OK. That’s why many people support the English teacher’s call for an OK birthday celebration.

“We happen to know the exact date and place of the very first OK and that’s not very usual for many words, so why not celebrate that day?” says Metcalf.

   When I saw Pamela tonight, she smiled and I smiled back to her. She was looking more _____ than before.

Pamela _____ at the express checkouts (快速结账台) in a busy supermarket. She helps when the selfserve checkout comes across a (n) _____ like no price on products. Usually she has hardly _____ one before another is created.

When I shopped there, _____ there weren’t any problems with the checkout, I called Pamela to the checkout I was _____. My concern was about Pamela. She looked _____ and was under great stress as she _____ moved from one checkout to the next.

I told Pamela that she needed to _____ I told her that it was ______ for her to put herself under such pressure and that we could wait. I ______ her that our expectations as ______ weren’t as severe as the ones she had set for herself. Pamela said she felt ______ because I not only ______ her stress but also talked to her about it. I gently told her things had to ______ I told her I’d be looking out for her in future to see if she’d take my ______.

Well, Pamela has taken it. Tonight, she was still doing her job but there was a ______ . She looked cool and calm. She told me that she shared what I said with her ______ As I walked away from Pamela, I was ______ of myself. Not only have I caused Pamela to think about her stress but also she has ______ her coworkers to do so.

Hi! Welcome to my webpage. My name’s Tom Wood and I’m an English teacher. I【小题1】 (design) this webpage last week so that my students can learn more about me. I think it is important 【小题2】 (know) my students well. And it is fair 【小题3】 my students know me well, too.

I was born in London, England, but I’ve lived and worked in China for the past 15 years and I really like living here.

I can speak Putonghua and even a little bit of Cantonese, 【小题4】 is my wife’s dialect (方言). I practice 【小题5】 (speak) Chinese every day and my Chinese is improving. 【小题6】 (fortunate ) , there are many people in my town who are ready to help me with my Chinese! I particularly enjoy talking to my neighbors.

My favourite sport is football. I play football once a week with some of the other teachers at the school. We’re going to organize a 【小题7】 (compete) with teams of teachers from other schools this summer.

My other great love is my motorbike. I love getting on my motorbike and riding out to the countryside. But my wife thinks it’s too 【小题8】 (noise) and dangerous. If anyone wants to send me an email, just 【小题9】 (do) as you like. I’d love to hear 【小题10】 you.

   When you step into a new environment, you must have a strong wish to fit in. Fitting in means making more friends, having more influence on others and getting more chances to live a happier life. 【小题1】

Be confident. Confidence attracts most people. Everyone is special and unique in this world. Spend some time thinking about your strong points. 【小题2】 And you won’t have much difficulty fitting in.

Be kind to everyone. Kindness is the bridge to your own happiness. When people notice your kindness, they will return it one day. Always give more than you receive, and think more of others than of yourself. 【小题3】

【小题4】Various activities like playing football can help you to be known by others. You may add more friends to your circle. At the same time, you’ll be amazed to see how much they like you. Instead of wasting time being alone, go out to dance and sing together with others to develop friendships.

Do smile at everyone every day. It makes both you and others feel happy. 【小题5】 Humour catches others’ attention as well. People will like you for making them live happily.

If you follow what is mentioned above, you will be accepted by people around you. As a result, you will fit in very well and enjoy your new life.

China Daily is an English language daily newspaper 【小题1】 in Beijing, China.

China Daily 【小题2】 all the usual sections (版面) of a newspaper, 【小题3】 Home News — news about China, International News —news from 【小题4】, Business News, Travel News and Sports News.

There are 【小题5】 pictures and a weather report every day. Every Saturday there is a section about things to do at the weekend and the TV 【小题6】 in the coming week.

Many foreigners like to read this newspaper. It is also popular with students. Sun Yao, a student in Beijing, said, “I like reading China Daily. Learning new words and useful expressions can make great 【小题7】 to my progress in English. Besides, I enjoy learning about new things from 【小题8】 to sports and music.”