Question

【題目】 To us, it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains. But actually the umbrella was not invented as protection against the rain. Its first use was as a shade against the sun!

Nobody knows who first invented it, but the umbrella was used in very ancient times. Probably the first to use it were the Chinese in the 11th century BC.

We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade. And there was a strange thing connected with its use: it became a symbol of honor. In the Far East in ancient times, the umbrella was allowed to be used only by royal people or by those in high class.

In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade. And the umbrella was commonly used in ancient Greece. But it is believed that the first persons in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans.

During the Middle Ages, the use of the umbrella practically disappeared. Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And again it was considered as a symbol of power. By 1680, the umbrella appeared in France and later in England. By the eighteenth century, the umbrella was used against the rain in all parts of Europe.

Umbrellas have not changed much in style during all this time, though they have become much lighter in weight. It wasn’t until the twentieth century that women’s umbrellas began to be made in different kinds of colors.

【1】The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refers to ________.

A.ItalyB.the 16th centuryC.the umbrellaD.the use of the umbrella

【2】The umbrella was first widely used against the rain ________ around Europe.

A.in the Middle AgesB.by 1680C.by the 18th centuryD.in the 20th century

【3】Which of the following statements is true about the umbrella?

A.Some researchers exactly know who the inventor of the umbrella was.

B.The umbrella was first invented to be used as protection against the sun instead of rain.

C.The umbrella changed much in style and became lighter in weight in the 18th century.

D.In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a kind of modern fashion.

【4】This passage mainly talks about ________.

A.the history and use of the umbrellaB.why the umbrella was so popular in Europe

C.the process of making an umbrellaD.when and how the umbrella was invented

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】D

【2】C

【3】B

【4】A

【解析】

本篇文章難度適中，主要講述雨傘的歷史以及人們對(duì)雨傘的使用情況。

【1】代詞指代題。代詞代指上文中出現(xiàn)的內(nèi)容。根據(jù)“During the Middle Ages, the use of the umbrella practically disappeared. Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And again it was considered as a symbol of power”在中世紀(jì)，傘的使用幾乎消失了。16世紀(jì)晚期，它又出現(xiàn)在意大利。它再次被認(rèn)為是權(quán)力的象征�？芍�，it代指雨傘的使用，故選D。

【2】細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)“By the eighteenth century, the umbrella was used against the rain in all parts of Europe”到了18世紀(jì)，歐洲各地的人們都用傘來避雨”可知，在18世紀(jì)，雨傘首先被廣泛地用于避雨，故選C。

【3】細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)“Nobody knows who first invented it, but the umbrella was used in very ancient times”沒有人知道是誰首先發(fā)明了它，但傘在非常古老的時(shí)代就被使用了�？芍�，排除A；根據(jù)“Umbrellas have not changed much in style during all this time, though they have become much lighter in weight”在這段時(shí)間里，盡管它們的重量減輕了很多，雨傘的風(fēng)格沒有太大變化”可知，排除C；根據(jù)“In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade”在歐洲，希臘人是最早使用傘作為遮陽傘的”可知，排除D；根據(jù)“But actually the umbrella was not invented as protection against the rain. Its first use was as a shade against the sun!”但實(shí)際上，雨傘并不是用來防雨的。它最初的用途是遮擋陽光”可知，傘最初被發(fā)明出來是用來遮擋陽光而不是用來擋雨的，故選B。

【4】主旨大意題。根據(jù)“It wasn’t until the twentieth century that women’s umbrellas began to be made in different kinds of colors.”直到二十世紀(jì)，婦女的傘才開始用各種顏色制作”以及全文可知，主要講述雨傘的歷史以及人們對(duì)雨傘的使用情況，故選A。