Not long ago, my fifth-grade son Kevin asked me about the meaning of a word in a novel. “Look it up,” I responded. “But my screen time is off,” he said. I looked pointedly at the bookshelf that held at least three dictionaries, and Kevin sighed dramatically. “Can’t you just use your phone?” he asked. Suddenly it occurred to me that he did not even know how to use a dictionary.

I took down one of the dictionaries, and we read it together for a few minutes before I handed it to him. It took him a few tries to find the word in question. While going through the pages, he kept saying, wide-eyed: “How can there be this many words?” After a while, he looked at me and asked, “Do you know all these words, Mom?” I smiled. “I definitely do not know all these words,” I said. “But that’s why this is one of my favorite books.”

I had my first dictionary as a gift for my 13th birthday. I decided that I wanted to learn as many words as I could and started marking every entry I looked up with a pencil to measure my progress. I continued to make these pencil marks for years, and when I went off to college, I packed that dictionary in my suitcase.

Kevin wanted to see the dictionary. I felt a small pain in my chest. The dictionary was stolen at the end of my freshman year of college. “That’s so sad,” he said, “but you still know all those words, even without the book.” I realized that this was true. I still made it through the next three years of college, even without the book. And it wasn’t, ultimately, the dictionary that got me there — not really.

Now I understand that although my son may be learning differently, he is still learning. It’s not about the words themselves or how we learn them, but the wanting to know them, the curiosity and the appetite.

1.1. What does Kevin usually do to get the meaning of a word?

A Use electronic devices.

B Consult a paper dictionary.

C Guess from the context.

D Turn to his English teacher.

解析：选A。推理判断题。文中两处细节暗示凯文的查词习惯：他说 "But my screen time is off"（我的屏幕使用时间关掉了）—— 说明他平时查词依赖电子屏幕；随后又问 "Can't you just use your phone?"（你就不能用手机吗？），直接把 "用手机查词" 当作理所当然的方式。由此推断他通常使用电子设备（手机等）查词，故选 A。干扰项辨析：B"纸质词典" 正是他不会用的工具（文中明确 "he did not even know how to use a dictionary"）；C"上下文猜测" 和 D"问老师" 文中均无提及。此题考查依据对话细节推断人物习惯。

2.2. How did Kevin feel while looking up the word in the dictionary?

A Annoyed.

B Disappointed.

C Encouraged.

D Astonished.

解析：选D。细节理解题。第二段有两处直接证据：Kevin"kept saying, wide-eyed"（睁大眼睛不停地说），以及 "How can there be this many words?"（怎么会有这么多单词？）。wide-eyed（瞪大眼睛）和 "怎么会有这么多" 的惊叹语气都表明他非常惊讶，astonished（惊讶的）最贴切。A annoyed（恼怒的）—— 他虽起初嫌麻烦，但查词过程中流露的是惊叹而非恼怒；B disappointed（失望的）、C encouraged（受鼓舞的）均无对应细节。此题考查抓住表情描写和感叹语气推断情感。

3.3. What can we learn about the author’s first dictionary?

A It helped her through college.

B It was given to Kevin as a gift.

C It bore witness to her efforts.

D It was a valuable limited edition.

解析：选C。细节理解题。第三段详细描写作者与第一本词典的故事：13 岁生日获赠→决定学尽量多的单词→"started marking every entry I looked up with a pencil to measure my progress"（用铅笔标记查过的每个词条来衡量进步）→坚持多年并带去大学。词典上的铅笔标记正是她刻苦学习的见证，故 C 项 "It bore witness to her efforts"（它见证了她的努力）正确。干扰项辨析：A 与原文矛盾 —— 词典在作者大一时就被偷了，且作者明确说 "it wasn't, ultimately, the dictionary that got me there"（最终带我到那里的并不是词典）；B 张冠李戴 —— 词典并未送给凯文（被偷了，凯文根本没见到）；D 无中生有 —— 文中未提版本价值。此题考查对细节与文中否定的准确把握。

4.4. What has the author come to realize about learning?

A It is never too late to start.

B Motivation is what really matters.

C Children need role models.

D Dictionaries are still a useful tool.

解析：选B。主旨大意题。末段是全文主旨所在："It's not about the words themselves or how we learn them, but the wanting to know them, the curiosity and the appetite."（重要的不是单词本身，也不是我们如何学习它们，而是想要认识它们的渴望、那份好奇心和求知欲。）"the wanting to know""curiosity""appetite"（渴望、好奇、求知欲）正是 "学习动机 / 内驱力"，且作者强调 "how we learn"（怎么学）不重要 —— 呼应前文凯文用手机还是词典学习都不重要，故 B 正确。干扰项辨析：A"永不嫌晚" 文中无时间维度的讨论；C"需要榜样"—— 作者并未说自己是凯文的榜样；D"词典仍有用" 恰恰是作者淡化的点 —— 她强调的不是工具本身。此题考查把握文章主旨句，末段 "not...but..." 对比结构是解题关键。