单选题 I have mentioned that English surnames can be like Smith or Baker, indicating how the original bearer of the name earned his living, or like Johnson and Nixon, they can mean "son of" a particular person.
Another group of surnames describes what the first person to bear the name looked like, or comments on some aspects of his personality. Brown is a typical example of such a name, indicating a man who had brown hair. In the Middle Ages, when surnames were becoming hereditary (世袭的), most Englishmen probably had fair hair, so the man with brown hair was unusual. Similar surnames are Grey, for someone whose hair was that color, and Read or Reed, for a red-head.
A man who was noted for his great strength might be known simply as Strong. He could also be called Turnbull because of his ability to take a bull by the horns and roll it over. If he was both strong and courageous, then he might earn the right to be called Hardy.
Names which are comments on someone's behavior include Wild and Savage. More complimentary are names like Goodfellow, for a popular man, and Jolly, for someone who laughed a great deal.
The modern form of a surname may be rather misleading, having changed its spelling or its meaning. A man called Blackbird, for instance, had an ancestor with a black beard. Simple now suggests someone of limited wisdom, but it used to refer to an honest person.

单选题 What is the best title for this passage?
[A] How English Surname Come into Being
[B] Why Are People Called Strong
[C] The Ancestors of Goodfellow
[D] How Surnames Became Hereditary

【正确答案】 A

【答案解析】[解析] 本题为综合概括题。通过阅读全文，我们发现文章说明的是各种英文名字的由来以及它们所包含的意思。因此，[A]选项能概括全文，[B][C]两个选项具体说明某个姓氏的由来，[D]选项则说明姓氏如何成为世袭，不是本文所讨论的内容。

单选题 Baker refers to the person ______.
[A] who hunted animals for meat
[B] who sold bread for a living
[C] who made a living by baking bread
[D] who made metal tools for a living

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查文中细节。文章第一句话“I have mentioned that English surnames can be like Smith or Baker，indicadng how the original bearer of the name earned his living”，说明Smith和Baker都是指姓氏所有人谋生的手段，所以Baker应该指烤面包为生的人。

单选题 The names Brown and Grey refer to those with ______.
[A] uniforms of those colors [B] beards of those colors
[C] eyes of those colors [D] hair of those colors

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查文中细节。文章第二段第二句话“Brown is a typical example of such a name，indicating a man who had brown hair”，以及该段最后一句话“Similar surnames are Grey,for someone whose hair was that color,and Read or Reed，for a red-head．”合在一起表示Brown和Grey部是指其所有人头发的颜色。

单选题 If someone was called Mr. Simple, he used to be regarded as ______.
[A] a stupid man [B] an honest man
[C] a popular man [D] an honorary man

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查文中细节。本题解题关键是读懂题目he used to be regarded as 表示问题的重点在过去Simple代表什么意思，因此，文章最后一句话 but it used to refer to an honest person就清楚地给出答案了。