20.YANG YUANQING,Lenovo's boss,hardly spoke a word of English until he was about 40:he grew up in rural poverty and read engineering at university.But when Lenovo bought IBM's personal-computer division in 2005he decided to immerse himself in English:he moved his family to North Carolina,hired a language tutor and--the ultimate sacrifice--spent hours watching cable-TV news.
Lenovo is one of a growing number of multinationals from the non-Anglophone world that have made English their official language.The fashion began in places with small populations but global ambitions such as Singapore and Switzerland.
Corporate English is now invading more difficult territory,such as Japan.Rakuten,a cross between Amazon and eBay,and Fast Retailing,which operates the Uniqlo fashion chain,were among the first to switch.Now they are being joined by old-economy companies such as Honda,a carmaker,and Bridgestone,a tyremaker.Chinese firms are proving harder to handle/crack:they have a huge internal market and are struggling to enroll/recruit competent managers of any description,let alone English-speakers.But some are following Lenovo's lead.Huawei has introduced English as a second language and encourages high-flyers(ambitious employees) to become fluent.
There are some obvious reasons why multinational companies want a lingua franca(共同語).Adopting English makes it easier to recruit global stars (including board members),reach global markets and assemble global production teams.Such steps are especially important to companies in Japan,where the population is shrinking.
Tsedal Neeley of Harvard Business School says that"Englishnisation"can stir up a hornet's nest of emotions.Ms.Neeley argues that companies must think carefully about implementing a policy that touches on so many emotions.Senior managers should explain to employees why switching to English is so important,provide them with classes and conversation groups,and offer them incentives(刺激) to improve their fluency,such as foreign postings.Those who are already proficient in English should speak more slowly and try not to dominate conversations.And managers must act as referees and enforcers,resolving conflicts and discouraging staff from returning to their native tongues.
Intergovernmental bodies like the European Union are obliged to pretend that there is no predominant global tongue.But businesses worldwide are facing up to the reality that English is the language on which the sun never sets.
74.Lenovo's boss made all the efforts to familiarize himself with English exceptC.
A.hiring a language tutor
B.resettling in an English-speaking environment
C.expanding the business overseas
D.exposing himself to English Cable-TV news.
75.What can we infer from the passage?D
A.Most Chinese firms would like to introduce corporate English.
B.Chinese firms are in great need of English majors as their managers.
C.Huawei followed Lenovo as the second largest multinational in China.
D.Adopting corporate English is more difficult in places with a large population.
76.Which of the following is true according to the passage?C
A.The decrease in population pushes the Japanese to learn English well.
B.Neither the governmental bodies nor businesses will regard English as a global tongue.
C.Companies should handle employees'emotions carefully during the switch.
D.Those good at English should be encouraged to speak more in the company.
77.Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?A
A.English-Global Tongue in Business.
B.English-Chinese Business Leaders'New Fashion.
C.English-The Best Tool in Communication.
D.English-Dominating Factor of Successful Business.
分析 本文通過講述聯(lián)想的老板楊元慶學(xué)習(xí)英語引出企業(yè)英語,現(xiàn)在很多公司都在努力轉(zhuǎn)換成英語企業(yè),但這樣的轉(zhuǎn)變是困難的.
解答 74.C 細(xì)節(jié)理解題,由第一段But when Lenovo bought IBM's personal-computer division in 2005he decided to immerse himself in English:he moved his family to North Carolina,hired a language tutor and--the ultimate sacrifice--spent hours watching cable-TV news.可知他為了學(xué)英語搬到北卡羅萊納,聘請了一位英語家教,花了幾個小時看電視新聞,故選C.
75.D 理解推斷題,全文均在講述將公司轉(zhuǎn)變?yōu)橛⒄Z公司的困難,可以推知在人口多的國家采用英語公司更困難.故選D.
76.C 細(xì)節(jié)理解題,由第五段Ms.Neeley argues that companies must think carefully about implementing a policy that touches on so many emotions.可知公司在轉(zhuǎn)換期間要考慮到職員的情緒,所以C正確;誤解分析:;由第四段Such steps are especially important to companies in Japan,where the population is shrinking.只是說明日本人口在減少,學(xué)習(xí)英語是必要的,所以A錯;選項B與文中內(nèi)容相反;由第五段Those who are already proficient in English should speak more slowly and try not to dominate conversations.可知已經(jīng)擅長英語的人應(yīng)該更慢的講英語,所以D錯;故選C.
77.A 主旨大意題,本文主要講述了英語在全球商業(yè)中的重要地位,故選A.
點評 本文考察日常生活類閱讀,要把握好人物的活動內(nèi)容,時間和地點,根據(jù)題目中關(guān)鍵詞尋找文中答案,查找文中細(xì)節(jié)后作出合理推斷.