A
The other day, my friend Jane was invited to a 40th birthday party. The time printed on the invitation was 7:30pm. Jane went off with her husband, expecting a merry evening of wine, food, and song.
By 9:45, everybody was having great fun, but no food had appeared. Jane and David were restless. Other guests began whispering that they, too, were starving. But no one wanted to leave, just in case some food was about to appear. By 11:00, there was still no food, and everyone was completely off their heads. Jane and David left hungry and angry.
Their experience suggests that the words in the printed invitations need to be made clearer. Everyone reads and understands the invitations differently. Most of us would agree that 6:30 -8:30pm means drinks only, go out to dinner afterwards; 8:00pm or 8:30pm means possible dinner, but 9:30pm and any time thereafter means no food, eat beforehand, roll up late.
But this is not always the case. If asked to a students' party at 6:30pm, it is normal for guests not to appear before midnight, if at all, and no one cares. Being the first to arrive - looking eager - is social death. When my mother is asked to a party for 6:30, she likes to be there, if not on time, then no later than seven. My age group (late thirties) falls somewhere between the two, but because we still think we’re young, we're probably closer to student-time than grown-up time.
The accepted custom at present is confusing, sometimes annoying, and it often means you may go home hungry, but it does lend every party that precious element (成分) of surprise.
21. The underlined words “off their heads” probably mean_________________.
A. tired B. crazy C. curious D. hopeless
22. Jane and David’s story is used to show that_________________.
A. party-goers usually get hungry at parties
B. party invitations can be confusing
C. people should ask for food at parties
D. birthday parties for middle-aged people are dull
23. According to the writer, people in their late thirties_______________________.
A. are likely to arrive late for a party B. care little about the party time
C. haven't really grown up yet D. like surprises at parties
【答案】21. B 22. B 23. A
【解析】
本文是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍了了解和遵循社交习俗的重要性。
【21题详解】
词义猜测题。根据文章第二段划线词前半句“By 11:00, there was still no food,( 到11点的时候，仍然没有食物，)”和后句“Jane and David left hungry and angry.( 简和大卫离开时又饿又生气。)”可知，参加晚会的人都没有吃晚饭，每个人都完全饿疯了。所以“off their heads”为“疯的”之意。故选B。
【22题详解】
细节理解题。根据文章第三段“Their experience suggests that the words in the printed invitations need to be made clearer.(他们的经历表明，印刷邀请函上的文字需要写得更清楚。)”和最后一段“The accepted custom at present is confusing(目前公认的习俗是混乱的)”可知，简和大卫的故事是用来说明了聚会邀请令人困惑。故选B。
【23题详解】
推理判断题。根据文章第四段“If asked to a students' party at 6:30pm, it is normal for guests not to appear before midnight, if at all, and no one cares. (如果被邀请参加下午6:30的学生聚会，客人在午夜之前不出现是正常的，就算真的有的话，没有人会在意。)”和“When my mother is asked to a party for 6:30, she likes to be there, if not on time, then no later than seven. My age group (late thirties) falls somewhere between the two, but because we still think we’re young, we're probably closer to student-time than grown-up time.(当我妈妈被邀请参加一个六点半的聚会时，她喜欢准时到那里，如果不能准时，那么也不迟于七点。我的年龄群(接近40岁)介于两者之间，但因为我们仍然认为自己年轻，比起成年人，我们可能更接近学生时代。)”可知，作者认为自己的年龄处于学生与父母之间，可以推断这个年龄群(接近40岁)的人参加聚会很可能会迟到。故选A
