.閱讀理解

　　(2014·東北三省四市第一次聯(lián)考)

　　In the past, they were laughed at for being eggheads(書呆子) wearing glasses with a passion for the pointless. But now, being a member of their group has become a source of pride, with Collins online dictionary naming the term “geek” as UK's “Word of the Year” on December 16.

　　“Geek” tops the list for 2013 because of its “positive makeover”， a spokeswoman for Collins Dictionary told The Scotsman newspaper.

　　The word originally appeared in the 19th century as a variant(變形) of “geck”， meaning “a simpleton(傻瓜)”.

　　“In the 1980s, the word still had a negative meaning, referring to someone who was boring and socially awkward. However, from the late 20th century, due to the increasing importance of technology in society, the word has come to mean a clever, switched­on and cool person，” noted The Scotsman.

　　In September, the dictionary changed the main definition of “geek” from “someone preoccupied with computing” to “a person who is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about a specific subject”.

　　“‘Geek’ is a great example of a word that has evolved from having a negative meaning to having a positive one，” Ian Brookes, consultant editor to Collins Dictionary told The Guardian. “This change in meaning represents a positive change in views of specialist expertise(專長，專業(yè)知識), and is a result of the influence of technology on people's lives.”

　　The Telegraph's John Bingham believes that the transformation of the word was helped along by the success of the US movie The Social Network, about the creation of the US website Facebook. “Commentators said the film showed that it had become fashionable to be a geek”， Bingham wrote.

　　文章大意：本文是一篇說明文。戴著瓶底眼鏡的書呆子們曾經(jīng)被嘲笑為無用的“geek”，然而時代在變化，咸魚也有翻身的一天!柯林斯字典給了這個詞一個全新的、積極的含義。

　　1.The underlined word “makeover” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to ________.

　　A.evolution　　　　　　 B.result

　　C.influence D.response

　　答案：A　詞義猜測題。根據(jù)文章第一段的第二句“But now, being a member of their group has become a source of pride, with Collins online dictionary naming the term ‘geek’ as UK's ‘Word of the Year’ on December 16.”和第三段“The word originally appeared in the 19th century as a variant(變形) of ‘geck’， meaning ‘a(chǎn) simpleton(傻瓜)’.”前后對比可知，此處makeover意為“華麗轉(zhuǎn)身”，與倒數(shù)第二段的第一句“‘Geek’ is a great example of a word that has evolved from having a negative meaning to having a positive one”相呼應(yīng)。evolution意為“進(jìn)化”;result意為“結(jié)果”;influence意為“影響”;response意為“回應(yīng)”。故選A項(xiàng)。

　　2.When did the word “geek” begin to have a positive meaning?

　　A.In the 20th century. B.From the 1990s.

　　C.In the 1980s. D.At the end of 2013.

　　答案：B　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第四段的第一句“In the 1980s, the word still had a negative meaning...”和第二句“However, from the late 20th century... the word has come to mean a clever, switched­on and cool person”對比可知，“geek”這個詞實(shí)現(xiàn)意義上的華麗轉(zhuǎn)身是在20世紀(jì)90年代。故選B項(xiàng)。

　　3.According to the article，“geek” now mainly refers to ______.

　　A.someone who is addicted to computing and new technology

　　B.someone who is boring and unfashionable

　　C.someone who is smart but awkward in social situations

　　D.someone who is well­informed and devoted to a certain field

　　答案：D　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)倒數(shù)第三段中的“a person who is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about a specific subject”可知，“geek”現(xiàn)在主要指那些博學(xué)的學(xué)者型人物。故選D項(xiàng)。

　　4.What helped to transform the meaning of “geek” from negative to positive according to the article?

　　a.The effect of technology.

　　b.The news media's promotion.

　　c.The influence of Collins Dictionary.

　　d.The popularity of The Social Network.

　　A.a，b B.b，c

　　C.a，d D.c，d

　　答案：C　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)文章最后一段第一句...“by the success of the US movie The Social Network, about the creation of the US website Facebook.”可知，“geek”詞義的華麗轉(zhuǎn)身來源于電影The Social Network的成功。根據(jù)倒數(shù)第二段最后一句中的“is a result of the influence of technology on people's lives”可知，這是科技進(jìn)步對人們生活影響的結(jié)果。故選C項(xiàng)。