Question

As we know, there are differences between western culture and Chinese culture. We can see differences when we pay attention to the way words are used. Let’s look at the words about animals and plants. Most expressions in Chinese about the dog, for example, “a homeless dog”, “a mad dog”, “a running dog” and “a dog catching a mouse”, have negative meanings. But in western countries, dogs are thought to be honest and good friends of humans. In English, people use the dog to describe positive actions. For example, “you are a lucky dog” means you are a lucky person. And “every dog has its day” means each person has good luck sometimes. To describe a person’s serious illness, they say “sick as a dog”. The word “dog-tired” means very tired. However, Chinese love cats very much. But in western culture, “cat” is often used to describe a woman who is cruel（無情的、令人痛苦的）.

The rose is a symbol（標(biāo)志）of love in both China and some western countries. People think the rose means love, peace, courage and friendship. And the rose is the national flower of England, America and many other countries.

The words about plants and animals are used in positive or negative ways in different cultures. We can learn about many differences in cultures by comparing how some words are used.

1.“Every dog has its day.” means “ ”

A. Everybody in the world is lucky.

B. Each person lives his own way of life.

C. If one works hard, he’s sure to succeed.

D. Everybody has a time in life to be lucky.

2.The underlined word “negative” means in Chinese.

A. 正面的 B. 負(fù)面的 C. 中性的 D. 有趣的

3.From the passage, we can infer（推斷）that the word “copycat” is most likely to describe a person who in western countries.

A. likes following（效仿）others B. enjoys writing books

C. is good at copying notes D. loves drawing cats

4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. Words show differences in culture.

B. Chinese people prefer dogs to cats.

C. Western people think cats to be good friends.

D. Rose is the national flower of all western countries.

5.What’s the best title for the passage?

A. Negative or Positive.

B. Different Countries Have Different Culture.

C. Rose Means the Same in Chinese and English.

D. What Dog and Cat Mean in English and Chinese.

Answer 1