When John and Victoria Falls arrived in New York City for one-year stay, they did not bring very many things with them. They had planned either to live in a furnished apartment or to buy used furniture. But they soon learned about a new system that more and more people are using. The renting of home furnishings (bed, tables, dishes, and so on) has become one of America’s fastest growing businesses.
What kinds of people rent their home furnishings instead of buying them? People who are international business or government officials, foreign students, airline workers, young married couples - people whose job or business may force them to move frequently from one city to another. They save a lot of trouble and the cost of moving their furniture each time. They simply rent new furniture when they reach their new homes. Young people with little money do not want to buy cheap furniture that they may soon dislike. They prefer to wait until they have enough money to buy furniture they really like. Meanwhile, they find they can rent better quality furniture than they could afford to buy.
One family, who now have a large, beautiful home of their own, liked their rented furniture so much that they decided to keep renting it instead of buying new things. But usually people don’t like to tell others about it. The idea of renting home furnishings is still quite new, and they are not sure what their neighbors might think.
(1).Which of the following has become one of America’s fastest growing businesses?
单选题
A. A. Selling home furnishings.
B. B. Renting furnished apartments.
C. C. Selling used furniture.
D. D. Renting home furnishings.
(2).Why do some people prefer to rent furniture?
单选题
A. A. Because the furniture they get in this way is new.
B. B. Because it saves them a lot of money.
C. C. Because it saves them much trouble and money.
D. D. Because they can always get better quality furniture in this way.
(3).What can you infer from the passage?
单选题
A. A. The idea of renting furniture is not acceptable.
B. B. Renting furniture is not popular in the couple’s home town.
C. C. Only those who don’t have enough money to rent furniture.
D. D. People usually grow to like the furniture they have rented.
(4).Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
单选题
A. A. Rent or Buy?
B. B. A New Way of Getting Home Furnishings
C. C. Furnished Apartments.
D. D. A New Idea.
(5).Young people liked renting home furniture because_________
单选题
A. A. they have less money.
B. B. they don’t want to buy old furniture.
C. C. the new furniture is of good quality.
D. D. they don’t have much money and don’t want to buy the cheap furniture.
Now, you’ll be coming back here to brush up your English, so you’ll want to make as much conversation as possible. Whatever you do, don’t stay in a place full of overseas students, especially if they come from our country. This is fatal. Don’t believe all the stories you hear about how unfriendly the English are. It’s just that many of them are a little shy, and they have this idea about minding their own business. In a train, or restaurant, for example, or anywhere else they will talk to you; but you must break the ice first. Then see them talk! Any subject will do--the weather, their dogs, food. Pardon me, not any subject. Don’t be nosy (爱打听的) about their private life, their incomes and expenditures, or their ages. These English worship (尊重) their privacy. Avoid religion too. The best place to talk is in pubs, but as you are a girl, go with someone else, and don’t go to the pubs in Piccadilly, Leicester Square and so on. Find one near where you are living and go there regularly. Someone’s bound to talk to you. Oh! Make sure to let them see you are a foreigner. Pretend to have difficulty in ordering, or something. That should be easy enough.
(1).The writer suggests that they had better not stay in a place where there are a lot of young people.
单选题
A. A. T
B. B. F
(2).According to the passage, we should believe the English are mostly friendly.
单选题
A. A. T
B. B. F
(3). We can talk about anything with English except their dogs.