As we have noted many times, it is hard to find out how these expressions begin. Sometimes, we get some hard facts. But more often we have to depend on guesswork. And that is true of this phrase, which came from England.
Before 1932, English law did not permit a doctor to cut open a dead human body for scientific examination, unless it was the corpse (尸體) of an executed (處決) criminal.
But when it became legal, more and more doctors demanded skeletons for a more scientific study of medicine. It was helping in the advance of modern medicine. The demand had become so strong that men began to rob tombs and sell skeletons to doctors at high prices.
We are told that a doctor would usually buy just one skeleton for scientific study. It became very important in his work. But he had to keep it hidden because most people objected to keeping such a thing. As a rule, the doctor would keep his skeleton in some dark corner where it could not be seen, or hide it in a closet.
After a time, people began to suspect (懷疑) every doctor of hiding a skeleton in the closet. From this suspicion, the phrase "a skeleton in the closet" took on a broader, more general meaning to describe anything that a man wanted to keep others from discovering. It could be proof of a criminal act, or something much less serious. Well, that is one theory.
One writer, however, believes that the phrase might have come from something that really happened. It is his guess that a hidden closet in some old English country home may have turned up a real skeleton, clear proof of some old family shame or crime. Well, one man’s guess is as good as another. But this sounds like a story by the great French novelist, Balzac.
Baizac tells us of a man who suspected his wife of having a lover. The husband comes home by surprise. But she hears him and quickly hides her lover in the closet of her bedroom. He enters her room and asks her if she is hiding her lover. He says he will not open the door to the closet if she promises him there is no one there; He will believe her. She answers firmly that she is not hiding anyone in the closet.
The husband then begins to build a solid brick wall against the closet. His wife watches, knowing that her lover will never come out alive. But she will not change her story and admit her guilt.Which of the following situations is suitable for using the phrase "skeleton in the closet"
A. You have stolen something precious and don’t want it discovered.
B. You are a doctor and have to keep a skeleton for research.
C. If you have cut open a dead human body for scientific examination you
should keep the skeleton secret.
D. You have done a crime or done something foolish, but you want to keep
other from discovering it.
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It would seem that there are three kinds of travel books. The first are those that give a personal, subjective (主觀的) account of travels which the author has actually made himself, if they are informative and have a good index (索引), then they can be useful to you when you are planning your travels. The second kind are those books whose purpose is to give a purely objective (客觀的)description of things to be done and seen. If a well-read, cultured person has written such a book, then it is even more useful. It can be sorted as a selected guide book. The third kind are those books which are called "a guide" to some place or other. If they are good, they will, in addition to their factual information, give an analysis or an explanation. Like the first kind they can be inspiring and interesting. But their basic purpose is to help the reader who wishes to plan in the most practical way.
Whatever kind of travel book you choose you must make sure that it does not describe everything as "wonderful", "excellent" or "magical". You must also note its date of publication because travel is a very practical affair and many things change quickly in the twenty-first century. Finally, you should make sure that the contents are well presented and easy to find.The following travel books may be of use when you plan your travels except ().
A. the book written by some people who have had the same travel experience
themselves
B. the book which tells you what is worth doing and seeing based on the
facts
C. the book in which a lot of big adjectives are used to draw your
attention
D. the book which offers you a lot of useful information like a tour
guide
In fact, it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an adequate (足夠的) working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages. The purpose for English learning and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.
The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its present-day importance as a world language. Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers, English is a language in which some of important works in science, technology, and other fields are being produced, and not always by native speakers. It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications, international conferences, and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations. It is a language of wider communication for a number of developing countries, especially former British colonies. Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication in such matters as government, commerce, industry, law and education as well as for international communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.What type of developing countries would be most likely to use English
A. Those geographically close to the United States.
B. Those interested in the culture of the United States.
C. Former colonies of Great Britain.
D. Countries where international conferences are held.
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