What is the purpose of the passage?

Simply being bilingual doesn't qualify someone to interpret. Interpreting is not only a mechanical process of converting one sentence in language A into the same sentence in language B. Rather, its a complex art in which thoughts and idioms that have no obvious counterparts from tongue to tongue _ or words that have several meanings must be quickly transformed in such a way that the message is clearly and accurately expressed to the listener.

At one international conference, an American speaker said, "You can't make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear", which meant nothing to the Spanish audience. The interpretation was, "A monkey in a silk dress is still a monkey" _ an idiom the Spanish understood and that expressed the same idea.

There are 2 kinds of interpreters, simultaneous and consecutive. The former, sitting in a separated booth, usually at a large multilingual conference, speaks to listeners wearing headphones, interpreting what a foreign language speaker says _ actually a sentence behind. Consecutive interpreters are the ones most international negotiations use. They are employed for smaller meetings without sound booths and headphones. Consecutive interpretation also requires two-person teams. A foreign speaker says his piece while the interpreter, using special shorthand, takes notes and during a pause, tells the client what was said.

1. What is the purpose of the passage?

A. To differentiate between simultaneous and consecutive interpreters.      B. To state the qualifications of an interpreter.

C. To point out the importance of an interpreter.                                          D. To explain the scope of interpreting.

2. What is a difference mentioned between a simultaneous interpreter and a consecutive interpreter?

A. The type of dictionary they use                                   B. Their proficiency in the language.

C. The size of group with whom they work.                      D. The money they are paid.

3. The word "rather" is closest in meaning to….

A. on the contrary                    B. in brief                    C. in general                   D. as a result

4. What would a simultaneous interpreter be most in need of?

A. Shorthand skills and a notepad B. Headphones and a booth. .

C. A dictionary or phrase book.     D. Advanced technical style in writing.

5. The phrase "the former" refers to…

A. simultaneous interpreters   B. the conference           C. consecutive interpreters                D. the booth