Some children cannot wait to grow up. Because once you become an adult, you are free to make your own decisions. More importantly, you can do all those things that you cannot do now because you are too young. So, the question is, ‘At what age do you really become an adult?' Well, people become adults at different ages in different places.
In Australia, the 18th birthday is a very important event for young Australians because it means they can do almost anything they want. They can vote, learn to drive a car, get married, join the army and even buy their own houses. However, even if they can do all these things, most Australians have to wait until their 21st birthday to really celebrate becoming an adult. This is the traditional adult age not only in Australia, but also in the USA and the UK. It is their first year of true independence (獨(dú)立).Traditionally, people were given a key to their houses by their parents when they turned 21, meaning they could come and go as they like.
Even though 21 is the traditional adult age in many English-speaking countries, the law nowadays is different in each country. In the UK, you can join the army at 16 and even get married at 16 if your parents allow. Young people in the UK can learn to drive a car at 17 as in Australia, although they have to wait until they are 18 to vote.
In China, there is a different age for each of the stages of becoming an adult. You can vote and learn to drive a car when you are 18, but if you want to get married, women have to wait until they are 20 and men until they are 22. Chinese people celebrate important birthdays every 10 years--so when young people turn 20, they can expect a big party!
No matter what age you are, becoming an adult is really about learning how to be independent and responsible（負(fù)責(zé)任的）. Once you are finally able to take care of yourself and make your own decisions, then you can say that you are truly all grown-ups.
【小題1】Which of the following are truly adults according to the passage?

A．Independent grown-ups.	B．Married people.
C．People who can drive.	D．People in the army.

【小題2】At what age do Australians really become adults?

A．17.

B．18.

C．20.

D．21.

【小題3】What is the writer’s opinion about the age people become adults?

A．The age people become adults depends on whether they can vote or not.

B．The age people become adults depends on their own independence and responsibility.

C．The age people become adults depends on if they are eighteen years old.

D．The age people become adults depends on when they get the key to their houses.

【小題4】Why do people in Australia get the key to the houses when they really become adults?

A．Because the law decides it.

B．Because they can leave when they want.

C．Because they can come home when they want.

D．Because it is a tradition.

【小題5】What are adults free to do according to the passage?

A．They are free to decide when to celebrate their own birthdays.

B．They are free to look after themselves well.

C．They are free to make their own decisions.

D．They are free to make time move faster.

America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon. They don’t feel hurt. If the same two people meet again, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand. Friendships between us develop more slowly but may become lifelong feelings, extending（延伸）deeply into both families.
There is another difficult point for us to understand .Although Americans treat friends warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to them if it requires a great deal of time. But in China, we are usually generous with our time. We, as hosts, will appear at an airport even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off from our work to act as guides to our friends: It is opposite in America, Americans cannot manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily plans. They will probably expect the visitors to get themselves from the airport to the hotels. And they expect the visitors will phone them from there. Once the visitors arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real.
For Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to restaurants, except for business matters. Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. So accept their hospitality（好客）at home and enjoy your visit in America!
【小題1】The underlined phrase “pick up” in Paragraph 1 may mean “_______”.

A．keep out

B．give up

C．pay no attention to

D．continue

【小題2】Which of the following is the typical way of American hospitality?         

A．Treating friends at home.

B．Taking days off to be with friends.

C．Meeting friends at the airport at midnight.

D．Sharing everything they have.

【小題3】Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?         

A．Americans are always generous with their time.

B．Americans don’t feel hurt if their friendships disappear soon.

C．Chinese friendships develop more slowly but will never disappear.

D．Chinese friendships are more sincere than American friendships.

【小題4】This passage is most probably written for _____          .

A．American students

B．Chinese students

C．Chinese visitors to America

D．American visitors to China

America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon. They don’t feel hurt. If the same two people meet again, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand. Friendships between us develop more slowly but may become lifelong feelings, extending（延伸）deeply into both families.
There is another difficult point for us to understand. Although Americans treat friends warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to them if it requires a great deal of time. But in China, we are usually generous with our time. We, as hosts, will appear at an airport even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off from our work to act as guides to our friends: It is opposite in America, Americans can not manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily plans. They will probably expect the visitors to get themselves from the airport to the hotels. And they expect the visitors will phone them from there. Once the visitors arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real.
For Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to restaurants, except for business matters. Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. So accept their hospitality（好客）at home and enjoy your visit in America!
【小題1】The underlined phrase “pick up” in Paragraph 1 may mean “_______”.

A．keep out

B．give up

C．pay no attention to

D．continue

【小題2】Which of the following is the typical way of American hospitality?

A．Treating friends at home.

B．Taking days off to be with friends.

C．Meeting friends at the airport at midnight.

D．Sharing everything they have.

【小題3】Which of the following statements in True according to the passage? 

A．Americans are always generous with their time.

B．Americans don’t feel hurt if their friendships disappear soon.

C．Chinese friendships develop more slowly but will never disappear.

D．Chinese friendships are more sincere than American friendships.

【小題4】This passage is most probably written for         .

A．American students

B．Chinese students

C．Chinese visitors to America

D．American visitors to China

America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon. They don’t feel hurt. If the same two people meet again, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand. Friendships between us develop more slowly but may become lifelong feelings, extending（延伸）deeply into both families.
There is another difficult point for us to understand. Although Americans treat friends warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to them if it requires a great deal of time. But in China, we are usually generous with our time. We, as hosts, will appear at an airport even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off from our work to act as guides to our friends: It is opposite in America, Americans can not manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily plans. They will probably expect the visitors to get themselves from the airport to the hotels. And they expect the visitors will phone them from there. Once the visitors arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real.
For Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to restaurants, except for business matters. Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. So accept their hospitality（好客）at home and enjoy your visit in America!
【小題1】The underlined phrase “pick up” in Paragraph 1 may mean “_______”.

A．keep out

B．give up

C．pay no attention to

D．continue

【小題2】Which of the following is the typical way of American hospitality?

A．Treating friends at home.

B．Taking days off to be with friends.

C．Meeting friends at the airport at midnight.

D．Sharing everything they have.

【小題3】Which of the following statements in True according to the passage? 

A．Americans are always generous with their time.

B．Americans don’t feel hurt if their friendships disappear soon.

C．Chinese friendships develop more slowly but will never disappear.

D．Chinese friendships are more sincere than American friendships.

【小題4】This passage is most probably written for         .

A．American students

B．Chinese students

C．Chinese visitors to America

D．American visitors to China