阅读理解 In the United States today, nearly half of us live in areas that we refer to as the suburbs. Any dictionary will define the suburbs as those areas, usually residential, that lie outside cities and towns. But, for millions of Americans in the last thirty years, the suburbs have come to mean much more than that.
For those who moved to the developing suburbs after the Second World War, they represented an escape from urban congestion to a home of one's own—preferably one with an attached two-car garage on a little half-acre of tree-shaded land. It also meant daily communication to work by railroad or expressway, a lawn to mow, and a mortgage to pay off over the year.
Nobody approves of life in the suburbs but the people who live there. Urban cities argue that suburbanites enjoy all the cultural, educational, and commercial advantages that cities offer without paying for them. Farmers worry about losing their farms to uncontrolled suburban sprawl. The suburbs have also been criticized for the monotonous sameness of their design and for their ability to insulate their inhabitants from the problems of larger society in which they live.
On the other hand, defenders of the suburbs argue that the life-style that they offer is more varied and more inclusive than the critics admit; there are many different kinds of suburbs and a variety of people living in them. While the development of the suburbs has created problems, it also has provided substantial modern housing for millions of people. Suburban living offers the best of two worlds—the city and the country—at a price that many are able to afford.
Many people will always prefer the hectic pace and excitement of life in the city, while others will want the more tranquil pace of life in the country. But, for those in either city or country who are willing to compromise, the suburbs are waiting.
单选题 Evidence in the third paragraph suggested that________.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】由文章第三段可知,郊区居民也可以享用一切文化、教育和商业设施,这说明他们各方面的生活水准并不比城市居民低,而选项D所说的教育水准就是其中一个方面。
单选题 The strongest argument against the suburbs is that________.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】由题干关键词against可知,本题是对郊区生活的批评。文章第三段第四句The suburbs have also been criticized for the monotonous sameness of their design and for their ability to insulate their inhabitants from the problems of larger society in which they live.谈到,郊区生活因其单调、千篇一律而受到批评。
单选题 What can we learn about the suburban life?
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】文章第二段最后一句It also meant daily communication to work by railroad or expressway, a lawn to mow, and a mortgage to pay off over the year.讲到了郊区生活的特点,其中就包括要偿付住房贷款。
单选题 What can we learn from the fourth paragraph?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】从文章第四段可知郊区风格各异,居民也是形形色色。
单选题 The best title for this passage is________.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】本文讲述了郊区生活的定义、特征和相关的争议及其优势,因此把“郊区生活”作为本文的题目最恰当。