A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms, though my teacher stressed the importance again and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.
One day, I happened to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be astonished. Gently shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders, he said, “You don’t say!” “You don’t say!” I was puzzled. I thought, perhaps this is not a proper topic. “Well, I’d better change the topic.” So I said to him, “Well, shall we talk about the Great Wall? By the way, have you ever been there?” “Certainly, everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing it. It was wonderful.” He was deep in thought when I began to talk like a tourist guide. “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are very proud of it”. Soon I was interrupted again by his words：“You don’t say!” I couldn’t help asking, “Why do you ask me not to talk about it?” “Well, I didn’t request you to do so,” he answered, greatly surprised. I said, “Didn’t you say ‘you don’t say’?” Hearing this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to explain, “‘You don’t say’ actually means ‘really?’ It is an expression of surprise. Perhaps you don’t pay attention to English idioms.” Only then did I know I had made a fool of myself. Since then I have been more careful with idiomatic expressions.
Always remember: what the English teachers say is always right to us students.
小题1:A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms because _______.
A．I didn’t have the slightest interest in them
B．English idioms are not important
C．My teacher didn’t emphasize the importance of them
D．I was not careful with English idioms小题2:At first, on hearing “You don’t say,” I thought the foreigner meant _______ .
A．I had talked too much
B．he was not interested in the topic
C．he was only interested in the Great Wall
D．he had something to tell me小题3:Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A．The Englishman left China without seeing the Great Wall.
B．The Englishman wanted to see the Great Wall after I talked about it.
C．The Englishman wanted me to act as his guide.
D．The Englishman visited the Great Wall and thought it worth visiting.小题4:After the Englishman explained the idiom, _______.
A．I felt very silly
B．the Englishman became a real fool
C．I thought he had made me a fool
D．I became more careful in everything
