日本将把成年年龄从20岁降至18岁
日本将把成年年龄从20岁降至18岁

Adulthood is about to come a lot earlier in life for many in Japan.
The government has enacted a bill lowering the age of adulthood from 20 to 18, which will affect millions across the country when it takes effect in 2022. It's the first time the age of adulthood has been changed since it was set in 1876.
What will 18-year-olds be allowed to do? The biggest change is that they will be able to get married without parental agreement. Now, males at over the age of 18 and females at 16 and over can marry, but only with the permission of their parents. Otherwise you need to be 20. But the new Civil Code raises the age at which women can get married and it means all 18-year-olds will be able to wed without parental agreement.
They'll also be able to apply for credit cards and make loans(贷款) without parental approval and, if they want, they can get a passport valid for 10 years. Now, minors(未成年人) are only allowed passports valid for five years, and need a parent or guardian's signature.
As part of the lowering of the adulthood age, revisions have been made to more than 20 laws, including those on nationality and certain professional qualifications such as being a chartered accountant. Those who have been diagnosed with Gender Identity Disorder will be able to apply to have their gender legally changed at the age of 18.

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1.How long does the age of adulthood being 20 last?

A 146 years.

B 145 years.

C 18 years.

D 20 years.

解析：选A。A 数字计算题。根据第二段内容：日本的成年年龄从20岁将至18岁，这一法案将于2022年生效，而设定成20岁是在1876年，所以成年年龄为20岁这一法案持续了146年（2022-1876=146）。故选A。

2.What does the underlined word “wed” mean in Chinese?

A 离开.

B 结婚.

C 改变.

D 同意.

解析：选B。B 词义猜测题。 第三段主要在讲日本成年男性女性的结婚年龄问题。由最后一句句意“……那意味着所有18岁以上的人都能够在没有父母允许的情况下结婚”，可推断，wed表示“结婚”，故选B。

3.Girls could get married at the age of __________ at the youngest after the bill comes into effect.

A 16

B 18

C 20

D 22

解析：选B。B 细节理解题。根据第三段最后一句But the new Civil Code raises the age at which women can get married and it means all 18-year-olds will be able to wed without parental agreement.可知法案生效后不管男女都是18岁就可以结婚，故选B。

4.Which of the following is TRUE?

A Without parents’ agreement, Japanese can’t marry before the bill comes into effect.

B Japanese should get their parents’ agreement to get a 10 years of passport valid.

C People can can get their gender legally after 18 after the bill comes into effect.

D Parents can help the children get loans under the adulthood age.

解析：选C。C 推理判断题。根据最后一段最后一句Those who have been diagnosed with Gender Identity Disorder will be able to apply to have their gender legally changed at the age of 18.可知那些有性别认知障碍的人可以在18岁成年后合法地改变自己的性别，故选C。

5.In which column of a newspaper can you read this passage?

A Education.

B History.

C World.

D Sports.

解析：选C。C 推理判断题。根据文章内容：日本把成年年龄从20岁将至18岁，可知这应该属于国际新闻，故选C。