Almost every family buys at least one copy of a newspaper every day.Some people subscribe to as many as two or three different newspapers.But why do people read newspaper?

Five years ago,news of important happeningsbattles lost and won,kings or rules overthrown or killedtook months and even years to travel from one country to another.The news passed by word of mouth and was never accurate.Today we can read in our newspapers of important events that occur in faraway countries on the same day they happen.

Apart from supplying news from all over the world,newspapers give us a lot of other useful information.There are weather reports,radio,television and film guides,book reviews,stories,and,of course,advertisements.There are all sorts of advertisements.The bigger ones are put in by large companies to bring attention to their products.They pay the newspapers thousands of dollars for the advertising space,but it is worth the money for news of their products goes into almost every home in the country.For those who produce newspapers,advertisements are also very important.Money earned from advertisement makes it possible for them to sell their newspapers at a low price and still make a profit.

Newspapers often have information on gardening,cookery and fashion,as well as small but very popular section on jokes and cartoons.

1.The habit of reading newspapers is ___________.

A.widespread

B.found among a few

C.not popular

D.uncommon

2.In the past,news was ___________.

A.sent by telegraph

B.sent by letter

C.sent by telephone

D.passed from one person to another

3.The money spent on advertisements is ___________.

A.wasted

B.not much

C.worthwhile

D.of no use to anyone

4.Which of the following statements is not true?

A.Large companies put big advertisements in the newspapers because they want to draw people’s attention to their products.

B.Five hundred years ago news did not take a long time to reach other countries.

C.The news that we need in our newspapers is up-to-date.

D.Though the newspaper is sold at a low price,people still gain profit.

5.Some people subscribe to as many as two or three different newspapers.Here the phrase“subscribe to”means _________.

A.contribute to

B.write to

C.agree to buy for a specified time

D.appreciate

答案

1-5 ABBCD

解析

1.A 细节题.答案在第一段前两句Almost every family buys at least one copy of a newspaper every day.Some people subscribe to as many as two or three newspapers.即“几乎每个家庭都每天至少买一份报纸.一些人订两到三份.”A选项“世界上不常见的；”B选项“在美国不流行的”,popular adj.流行的；D选项“在一些家庭中建立了”.只有C项“在世界上是很普遍的”符合原文含义,widespread“广布的,遍及的.”

2.B 推理题.答案在第二段第一句Five hundred years ago,news of important…took months and even years to travel from one country to another,即“五百年前,一些重要的消息…需要几个月甚至几年才能从一个国家传到另一个国家.”注意问题中有个not,因此B“传播快”符合原文含义.A项“受到关注”；C项“传播到其他国家”,spread“扩散,传播”；D项“需要很长时间才能传播到别的国家.”考虑到问题中的not,这三项均不正确.

3.B 信息题.答案在第二段第二句The news passed by word of mouth and was never accurate.即“这些消息口口相传,从来都不确却”,“口口相传”意即“从一个人传到另一个人.”A选项“通过电报传播”、C选项“通过信件传播”以及D选项“通过电话传播”均与原文含义相差甚远.

4.C 推理题.答案在第三段第四句They pay the newspapers thousands of dollars for the advertising space,but it is worth the money,for…,即“他们花费巨额资金做广告,但这是值得的…”.worth the money意为“钱花得值,”C选项worthwhile“值得的”正是此意.

5.D 信息题.答案依据最后一段Newspapers often have information on gardening…as well as a small but very popular section on jokes and cartoons,即“报纸上经常会有关于园艺…的信息,以及刊登笑话和漫画的非常受欢迎的小板块.”popular“受欢迎的,被广泛关注、阅读的”,因此D选项“被广为阅读”正确.A选项“只有孩子们阅读”；B选项“没有价值”,value n.价值,of no value没有价值,of great value有很大价值,of some value有些价值,of little value几乎没有价值；C项“没有帮助”.