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.

【小题1】What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．The story behind the word “OK”.	B．The origin of abbreviations.
C．The celebration of “Global OK Day”.	D．The different meanings of “OK”.

【小题2】Why does the author mention the Providence-Boston joke?

A．To show readers why OK was invented.

B．To show the fierce competition between editors.

C．To draw our attention to the humour in Bostonians.

D．To present the first recorded use of “OK” in printed form.

【小题3】BTW and LOL are mentioned in the passage to tell us that __________ .

A．there are other abbreviations widely used in English

B．OK is the most popular one compared with other abbreviations

C．we should hold more anniversaries for the abbreviations

D．each abbreviation has its own story

【小题4】What’s Metcalf’s attitude towards “Global OK Day”?

A．Puzzling.	B．Doubtful.
C．Favourable.	D．Unconcerned.

   Wouldn't it be wonderful to travel to a foreign country without having to worry about the headache of communicating in a different language？

In a recent Wall Street Journal article，technology policy expert Alec Ross argued that，within a decade or so，we would be able to communicate with one another via small earpieces with built-in microphones. That's because technological progress is extremely rapid. It's only a matter of time. Indeed，some parents are so convinced that this technology is imminent that they're wondering if their kids should learn a second language.

It's true that an increase in the quantity and accuracy of the data loaded into computers will make them cleverer at translating“Noes Bueno dormer mucho” into“It's not good to sleep too much”. Replacing a word with its equivalent（对等词）in the target language is actually the easy part of a translator's job. But even this seems to be a discouraging task for computers.

It's so difficult for computers because translation doesn't — or shouldn't — involve simply translating words，sentences or paragraphs. Rather，it's about translating meaning. And in order to infer meaning from a specific expression, humans have to interpret a mass of information at the same time. Think about all the related clues that go into understanding an expression: volume, gesture, situations, and even your culture. All are likely to convey as much meaning as the words you use.

Therefore, we should be very skeptical of a machine that is unable to interpret the world around us. If people from different cultures can offend each other without realizing it, how can we expect a machine to do better? Unless engineers actually find a way to breathe a soul into a computer, undoubtedly when it comes to conveying and interpreting meaning using a natural language, a machine will never fully take our place.

【小题1】What does the underlined word“imminent”in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Ready.	B．Approaching.
C．Unpractical.	D．Confusing.

【小题2】Why is it hard for computers to replace a word with its equivalent?

A．Their data is not adequate enough.

B．The real meaning of words can vary.

C．Their accuracy needs big improvement.

D．A soul hasn't been breathed in them.

【小题3】What view does the author hold about translation?

A．Proper translation can be tough for humans.

B．Slight distinctions matter little in translation.

C．Some machines will interpret our world properly.

D．Cultures deserve more attention than words used.

【小题4】What is the best title for the text?

A．An Expert's Precise Prediction

B．The Complexity of Translation

C．Who Will Be a Better Translator？

D．Will the Language Barrier Actually Fall？

   There are some differences between American English and British English. Some differences are quite interesting.

When my friend Lily from London used the word "larder", I didn't know what it meant. Realizing I didn't follow her, she used another word. I finally knew she wanted to find something to keep some food.

The next word came up when we were planning a lunch date. She jotted down the date and time in her diary, while I marked my calendar. If she called me on the phone, she would ring me up. But if the line was busy, she would say the line was engaged.

Most times, I can know what Lily means. Last week, she regretted sending her boys to watch an early morning tennis game without their fleeces. I thought that she meant without their jackets or something like those. Other times, we have to ask each other. She recently told me a funny tale about a woman who was pissed. I wondered what had made the lady angry. It turns out that pissed means drunk.

Here is one more example. My British friend Jane was filling out a ticket at the grocery store（食品杂货店）recently. She asked the young man if he had a rubber. When she noticed he didn't follow her, she quickly asked for an eraser, which, in England, is often called a rubber.

In order to communicate well with the British, we Americans should learn some words that the British use differently. And I think people who learn English as a second language should also realize that there are differences between American English and British English.

【小题1】When Lily used the word "larder", she was probably looking for a ________.

A．cup	B．ladder
C．cupboard	D．cooker

【小题2】What does the underlined phrase "jotted down" in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．Wrote down.	B．Left behind.
C．Looked for.	D．Settled down.

【小题3】According to the passage, Lily regretted sending her boys to watch a tennis game mainly because ________. .

A．the game was boring

B．she wanted to spend time with her boys

C．she didn't dress her boys in thick clothes

D．her boys got lost

【小题4】What is the passage mainly about？

A．The British way of using words.

B．Some new words the writer's British friends taught her.

C．The reasons why Americans can't follow the British at times.

D．Some words used differently in British English and American English.

语法填空

Good afternoon, everybody. Welcome to this class 【小题1】 English words. I am Professor John Morris ; I 【小题2】 ( be) your teacher for the next thirteen weeks. As you can 【小题3】 ( probable) tell, this is one of the most popular — and crowded — classes; indeed, every time this course 【小题4】 ( offer), this room is very full. Why is that? Well, in order to use the English language, it is very important to have at least a basic 【小题5】( understand) of how words are formed. Just to mention one figure — and there are many — there are about one million words in English. If you are an English learner, you might wonder 【小题6】 you can possibly remember all of these words. Well, you know, there are shortcuts. For example,【小题7】 you know how words are formed by using parts of words from other 【小题8】 (language), such as Greek and French, you’ll understand a good number of English words when you first come across 【小题9】 ( they) . Let me put it this way,【小题10】 (know) the rules will help you to master a large number of words. This is probably the number one reason why this class is so popular.