When I worked as a waitress in Chicago, US, my coworkers and I would sigh whenever we heard someone with a foreign accent coming into our restaurant. We knew what it meant to serve a non-American: no tip. We would work just as hard as we always did, but we might not get paid.
Americans have an unspoken rule about tipping: they give tips to almost everyone who offers them a service of some kind. Americans tip their waiters, barbers and taxi drivers. An appropriate tip is between 15 and 20 percent of the amount charged for the service (But the charge for the tip doesn’t appear on the bill. The customer is expected to add it himself/herself.) Tipping less than this sends a message to your waiters that you think they’ve done a bad job serving you. And to leave no tip at all is simply unacceptable.
It’s not that American waiters are greedy. In many countries, waiters are paid a salary for their work. They’ll earn money even if no one comes into the restaurant. This system offers much more safety for waiters than the American version. In the US, waiters know that a night without customers means a night without pay.
Some countries include a tip for waiters – a “service charge” – on the bill itself. Since the tip is included with the other charges, waiters don’t need to worry about people forgetting to tip. But in the US, waiters do not receive a salary, and service charges only appear on bills when there are six or more customers at the table.
Since almost all American customers are familiar with the system, they know to add a tip without being told. But visitors to the US may expect waiters to be paid a salary, or think that the tip is included on the bill.
So much as we waiters loved hearing stories about other places from our foreign customers, we were always nervous when they got ready to leave the restaurant. We were never sure what to expect.
小題1:If you order $200 worth of food, which of the following is a proper total payment?
A.$200B.$215C.$220D.$230
小題2:Why don’t some foreigners tip a waiter according to the writer?.
A.because they are unfamiliar with the American tip system .
B.because they are too mean to give tips to any waiter.
C.because they have difficulty communicating with waiters.
D.because they are not really easy to become satisfied.
小題3:What can we learn from the passage?
A. The service charge never appear on the bill in the USA.
B. Customers are usually expected to tip waiters in the USA.
C. Dining out in other countries is much more expensive than in the USA.
D. Waiters in other countries earn much more money than those in the USA.
小題4:What is the main purpose of the passage?
A.To complain about the difficult life of American waiters.
B.To warn other waiters not to serve any foreign customer.
C.To call on foreign customers to leave tips for American waiters.
D.To tell us something about American waiters’ salary system.

小題1:D
小題2:A
小題3:B
小題4:D

試題分析:本文敘述在美國(guó)服務(wù)行業(yè)的小費(fèi)是普遍現(xiàn)象,是一個(gè)不成文的規(guī)定,因?yàn)樵诿绹?guó),服務(wù)員沒有工資,只有客人給的服務(wù)費(fèi),才是自己的收入。
小題1:這是細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)An appropriate tip is between 15 and 20 percent of the amount charged for the service (But the charge for the tip doesn’t appear on the bill. 故選D。
小題2:這是細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)But visitors to the US may expect waiters to be paid a salary, or think that the tip is included on the bill.外國(guó)人不熟悉這里小費(fèi)的事情,故選A。
小題3:這是細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)Americans have an unspoken rule about tipping: they give tips to almost everyone who offers them a service of some kind.故選B。
小題4:這是寫作意圖題。根據(jù)從全文來看,講述了美國(guó)的服務(wù)人員的小費(fèi)問題,故選D。
點(diǎn)評(píng):閱讀理解題目中的作者意圖題目可以包括意圖、態(tài)度、目的題目, 在考試中出現(xiàn)的比率很大。不同的文章可能有不同的寫作意圖,但寫作意圖通常有以下三種:1)to entertain readers(娛樂讀者,讓人發(fā)笑) 2) to persuade readers(說服讀者接受某種觀點(diǎn))3) to inform readers(告知讀者某些信息)
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科目:高中英語 來源:不詳 題型:閱讀理解

Are you a compulsive spender, or do you hold on to your money as long as possible? Are you a bargain hunter? Would you rather use charge accounts than pay cash? Your answers to these questions will reflect your personality. According to psychologists, our individual money habits not only show our beliefs and values, but can also stem from past problems.
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There is even a special psychology of bargain hunting. To save money, of course, most people look for sales, low prices, and discounts. Compulsive bargain hunters, however, often buy things that they don’t need just because they are cheap. They want to believe that they are helping their budgets, but they are really playing an exciting game: when they can buy something for less than other people, they feel that they are winning. Most people, experts claim, have two reasons for their behavior: a good reason for the things that they do and the real reason.
It is not only scientists, of course, who understand the psychology of spending habits, but also business people. Stores, companies, and advertisers use psychology to increase business: they consider people’s needs for love, power, or influence, their basic values, their beliefs and opinions, etc. in their advertising and sales methods.
Psychologists often use a method called “behavior therapy(療法)” to help individuals solve their personality problems. In the same way, they can help people who feel that they have problems with money: they give them “assignments”. If a person buys something in every store that he enters, for instance, a therapist might teach him self-discipline in this way: on the first day of his therapy, he must go into a store, stay five minutes, and then leave. On the second day, he should stay for ten minutes and try something on. On the third day, he stays for fifteen minutes, asks the salesclerk a question, but does not buy anything. Soon he will learn that nothing bad will happen to him if he doesn’t buy anything, and he can solve the problem of his compulsive buying.  
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D.finding out what people will do in front of a bargain
小題4:The underlined word “those” in Paragraph 3 refers to ____.
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B.There are many reasons for violence at sports events.
C.One cause of violence at sports events is alcohol.
D.David Sampson and Dennis Brock have the same opinion.
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B.“ It’s safe to do what many people are doing.”
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D.“I must drink some alcohol to stop myself feeling shy.”
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A.how to turn games into big parties
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C.why to fix cameras in stadiums
D.how to avoid oneself behaving badly
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A.Never drink any alcohol no matter where you are.
B.Whenever you are watching a game, you should keep quiet.
C.Never follow blindly no matter how many people are doing something.
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So far, most UN members have agreed on it, but some still haven’t,  including the United States.
小題1:From the first passage, we can learn that ________________.
A.experts encourage women to take paying jobs.
B.men encourage women to take paying jobs
C.government encourage women to take paying jobs.
D.more and more people begin to care about women’s life
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科目:高中英語 來源:不詳 題型:閱讀理解

Everyone needs recognition(賞識(shí)) for his achievements,but few people make the need known quite as clearly as the little boy who said to his father,“Let’s play darts(飛鏢).I’ll throw and you should say ‘Wonderful!’”
Fran Tarkenton,former Minnesota Vikings quarterback,once called a play that required him to block onrushing tacklers.
FEL quarterbacks almost never block.They’re usually vastly outweighed by defenders,so blocking exposes them to the risk of severe injury.
But the team was behind,and a surprising play was needed.Tarkenton went into block,and the runner scored a touchdown.The Vikings won the game.
Watching the game films with the team the next day,Tarkenton expected a big pat on the back for what he’d done.    It never came.
After the meeting,Tarkenton approached coach Bud Grant and asked,“You saw my block,didn’t you,Coach?How come you didn’t say anything about it?”
Grant replied,“Sure,I saw the block.It was great,but you’re always working hard out there,Fran.I figured I didn’t have to tell you.”
“Well,”Tarkenton replied,“if you ever want me to block again,you do!”
小題1:What does the author intend to tell us in the passage?
A.Praise can have people take risky actions.
B.Encouragement can make people achieve greater progress.
C.No recognition,no progress.
D.People will be discouraged without praise.
小題2:The author gave the little boy as an example in order to            .
A.show the importance of encouragement
B.show father’s deep love to the son
C.show the boy was complete understanding of his father
D.prove the boy was cleverer than the coach
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A.Quick,brave,exciting.B.Brave,risky,successful.
C.Brave,successful,kind.D.Fast,clever,strong.
小題4:What did Fran Tarkenton expect while watching the game films?
A.Recognition.B.Pride.C.Cheers.D.Reward.
小題5:It can be inferred from the passage that    .
A.Fran Tarkenton was angry with the coach
B.the coach learned a lesson from Fran Tarkenton
C.Fran Tarkenton might not take a risk in blocking again
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