NMT Reading Task 3 Test 1

Read the text below. Match choices. There are three choices you do not need to use

Divided by a Common Language

1. __________ English is the mother tongue of approximately 450 million people today. But because of its importance as a language of business, science and popular culture, it is spoken and/or understood by roughly one-third of the 5.5 billion people in the world.

2. __________Because of this, there are many varieties of English (American, British, Canadian, Australian, Jamaican, Indian etc), as well as regional dialects. But despite the differences, all English speakers recognize that they are speaking the same basic language. Or do they?

3. __________When the English colonists arrived in North America, they found new people and languages. As they lived, fought, and traded with these people, many words, phrases, and usages were adopted into English. As early as 1720, people began to notice that a new, distinct English was forming.

4. __________The industrial revolution in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries increased the differences between American and British English. Because technology developed separately in both countries, different words were used to describe the same object.

5. __________As the twentieth century moved on, opportunities for communication between the two nations grew more frequent. World War II brought millions of American troops to Great Britain. Although there was some tension the end result was a closer relationship and language.

But the real driving force for coming together was popular culture. 'Talking pictures' from the late 1920s, television, and rock music narrowed the gap by introducing idioms, words, and usages. This trend is accelerating today, with cheaper and quicker phone lines which allow data and video transmission throughout the world, and the spread of Hollywood movies and American TV worldwide.

Read the text below. Match choices. There are three choices you do not need to use

Divided by a Common Language

1. __________ English is the mother tongue of approximately 450 million people today. But because of its importance as a language of business, science and popular culture, it is spoken and/or understood by roughly one-third of the 5.5 billion people in the world.

2. __________Because of this, there are many varieties of English (American, British, Canadian, Australian, Jamaican, Indian etc), as well as regional dialects. But despite the differences, all English speakers recognize that they are speaking the same basic language. Or do they?

3. __________When the English colonists arrived in North America, they found new people and languages. As they lived, fought, and traded with these people, many words, phrases, and usages were adopted into English. As early as 1720, people began to notice that a new, distinct English was forming.

4. __________The industrial revolution in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries increased the differences between American and British English. Because technology developed separately in both countries, different words were used to describe the same object.

5. __________As the twentieth century moved on, opportunities for communication between the two nations grew more frequent. World War II brought millions of American troops to Great Britain. Although there was some tension the end result was a closer relationship and language.

But the real driving force for coming together was popular culture. 'Talking pictures' from the late 1920s, television, and rock music narrowed the gap by introducing idioms, words, and usages. This trend is accelerating today, with cheaper and quicker phone lines which allow data and video transmission throughout the world, and the spread of Hollywood movies and American TV worldwide.

Read the text below. Match choices. There are three choices you do not need to use

Divided by a Common Language

1. __________ English is the mother tongue of approximately 450 million people today. But because of its importance as a language of business, science and popular culture, it is spoken and/or understood by roughly one-third of the 5.5 billion people in the world.

2. __________Because of this, there are many varieties of English (American, British, Canadian, Australian, Jamaican, Indian etc), as well as regional dialects. But despite the differences, all English speakers recognize that they are speaking the same basic language. Or do they?

3. __________When the English colonists arrived in North America, they found new people and languages. As they lived, fought, and traded with these people, many words, phrases, and usages were adopted into English. As early as 1720, people began to notice that a new, distinct English was forming.

4. __________The industrial revolution in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries increased the differences between American and British English. Because technology developed separately in both countries, different words were used to describe the same object.

5. __________As the twentieth century moved on, opportunities for communication between the two nations grew more frequent. World War II brought millions of American troops to Great Britain. Although there was some tension the end result was a closer relationship and language.

But the real driving force for coming together was popular culture. 'Talking pictures' from the late 1920s, television, and rock music narrowed the gap by introducing idioms, words, and usages. This trend is accelerating today, with cheaper and quicker phone lines which allow data and video transmission throughout the world, and the spread of Hollywood movies and American TV worldwide.