We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. But most mistakes are about people. Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen? When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it, as a friend? Or did he envy my luck? And Paul-why didn t pick up that he was friendly just because I had a car? When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad. But when we look back, it s too late.

　　Why do we go wrong about our friends-or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meaning. And if we don t really listen we miss the feeling behind the words. Suppose someone tells you, You re a lucky dog. That s being friendly. But lucky dog? There s a bit of envy in those words. Maybe he doesn t see it himself. But bringing in the dog bit puts you down a little. What he may be saying is that the doesn t think you deserve your luck.

　　Just think of all the things you have to be thankful foris another noise that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole. But is he? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn t important. It s telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven t got a date for Saturday night.

　　How can you tell the real meaning behind someone s words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says agree with the tone of voice? His posture? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people to you may save another mistake.

　　26. This passage is mainly about .

　　A)how to interpret what people say

　　B)what to do when you listen to others talking

　　C)how to avoid mistakes when you communicate with people

　　D)Why we go wrong with people sometimes

　　27. According to the author, the reason why we go wrong about our friends is that .

　　A)We fail to listen carefully when they talk

　　B) People tend to be annoyed when we check what they say

　　C)People usually state one thing but means another

　　D)We tend to doubt what our friends say

　　28. In the sentence Maybe he doesn t see it himself. in the second paragraph, the pronoun it refers to.

　　A) being friendly

　　C) lucky dog

　　B) a bit of envy

　　D) your luck

　　29. When we listen to a person talking, the most important thing for us to do is .

　　A)notice the way the person is talking

　　B)take a good look at the person talking

　　C)mind his tone, his posture and the look in his eyes

　　D)examine the real meaning of what he says based on his manner, his tone and his posture

　　30. The author most probably is a .

　　A) teacher

　　C) philosopher

　　B) psychologist

　　D) doctor

　　答案：1.C 2.C 3.B 4.D 5.B

　　The poverty line is the minimum income that people need for an acceptable standard of living. People with incomes below the poverty line are considered poor. Economists study the causes of poverty in order to find solutions to the problem.

　　As the general standard of living in the country rises, the poverty line does, too. Therefore, even with today s relatively high standard of living, about 10 percent of the people in the United States are below the poverty line. However, if these people had stable jobs, they could have an acceptable standard of living. Economists suggest several reasons why poor people do not have jobs.

　　For one thing, more than half of the poor people in the United States are not qualified to work. Over 40 percent of the poor people are children. By law, children less than 16 years old cannot work in many industries. A large number of poor people are old. Many companies do not hire people over 65 years old, the normal retirement age.

　　Some poor adults do not look for jobs for a variety of personal reasons: they are sick, they do not have any motivation. they have family problems, or they do notbelieve that they can find a job.

　　Other poor people look for a job but cannot find one. Many poor adults never went to high school. Therefore, when they look for jobs, they have few skills that they can offer.

　　At the present time, the government thinks it can reduce poverty in the country in the following ways.

　　First, if the national economy grows, businesses and industries hire more workers. Some of the poor who are qualified to look for jobs may find employment. Then they will no longer be below the poverty line.

　　Second, if society invests in the poor, the poor will become more productive. If the government spends money on social programs, education, and training for poor people, the poor will have the skills to offer. Then it is more likely that they can find jobs.

　　Finally, if the government distributes society s income differently, it raises some poor people above the poverty line. The government collects taxes from the non-poor and gives money to the poor. These payments to the poor are called welfare. In 1975 over 18 million people in the United States received welfare.

　　Some economists are looking for better solutions to the poverty problem. However, at the present time, many people depend on welfare for a minimally acceptable standard of living.

　　46. The author s main purpose to write this article is .

　　A) to define what the poverty line is

　　B) to explain why some people live the poverty line

　　C) to find solutions to the problem of poverty

　　D) to show sympathy for those poor people

　　47. Which of the following is NOT true?

　　A) Ten percent of the Americans live a poor life.

　　B) Poor people are those who love below the poverty line.

　　C) The poverty line rises as the general standard of living rises.

　　D) The poverty line tends to be at the same level.

　　48. More than 40 percent of the poor people are children. This is mainly because .

　　A) they do not have enough motivation

　　B) they are so young that they are deprived of chances to work

　　C) they fail to get enough education

　　D) they are very poor in health

　　49. Most of the American poor people are not qualified for employment because .

　　A) they to not have any motivation to work

　　B) they are not very self-confident

　　C) they are too young or too old to work

　　D) they have physical and family problems

　　50. We may conclude from the passage that .

　　A) better solutions to the poverty problem are not yet found

　　B) welfare will enable people to be rich

　　C) poor people are bound to go out of the poverty line if they have chances to do business

　　D) employment is the best solution to the poverty problem

　　答案：1.C 2.D 3.B 4.C 5.A