Paris’ most famous street was transformed into an open-air mass “dictation” competition site on Sunday, with thousands of France’s smartest bookworms competing against one another.

Revealing a very French love affair with words, over 50,000 people applied to participate in the event at the Champs-Elysees — a world first — in which participants attempted to faithfully and without error transcribe (写下) a text read to them. Over 5,000 applicants aged 10 to 90 were chosen to participate in three sessions led by novelist Rachid Santaki. With 1,779 desks laid out on Paris’ most famous boulevard (林荫大道) in each session, organizers had sought to break the world record for a dictation spelling competition.

In the first round, an excerpt from La Mule du Pape by renowned French writer Alphonse Daudet was read by journalist Augustin Trapenard of Libraries Without Borders. Silence fell when the first session started. But for 10-year-old Samson, the dictation was “too fast”, so he gave up. Top student Antoine, who is in his final year of primary school, attended it with his father. But despite being a star pupil, he had struggled to fill his page. He thought it was impossible and that the dictation was for adults. His father Adrien Blind, 42, was equally relieved when the session finished, saying he “was in a state of stress and worry”. But 65-year-old Touria Zerhouni was more upbeat. “I only made two mistakes,” she said. “I expected it to be much harder.”

The competition went beyond the French classics, with a sport-themed round read by rugby player Pierre Rabadan, and another with a contemporary flavor read by writer and journalist Katherine Pancol. Marc-Antoine Jamet, president of the Champs-Elysees Committee that hosted the dictation, said the event went beyond spelling. “Dictation helps us to live together,” he said. “It’s unifying.”

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1.What can we know about the “dictation” competition?

A Its cost and preparation.

B Its rule and site.

C Its budget and cost.

D Its purpose and preparation.

解析：选B。B细节理解题。根据第二段第一句的“the event at the Champs-Elysees”和“in which participants attempted to faithfully and without error transcribe a text read to them”可知，在这场在香榭丽舍大街举行的活动中，人们需要忠实无误地写下给他们读的文字，因此介绍了地点和规则。故选B。

2.What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A Support from experts from around the world.

B Incidents happening during the dictation.

C The winner of the dictation competition.

D People’s reaction to the dictation.

解析：选D。D段落大意题。根据该段内容可知，该段主要讲了不同的人对这次听写比赛难易程度的看法。故选D。

3.What does the underlined word “upbeat” mean?

A Positive.

B Sensitive.

C Responsible.

D Embarrassed.

解析：选A。A词义猜测题。根据划线部分后面的“I only made two mistakes”和“I expected it to be much harder.”可知，65岁的图里亚·泽尔胡尼认为自己“只错了两处”，并坦言称原以为比赛会更难些，由此可知她在这次听写大赛中的表现很积极。故选A。

4.What is Marc-Antoine Jamet’s attitude to the dictation?

A Skeptical.

B Supportive.

C Tolerant.

D Conservative.

解析：选B。B推理判断题。根据最后一段的“Dictation helps us to live together”和“It’s unifying.”可知，主办方香榭丽舍大街委员会主席马克·安托万·贾梅表示：听写有助于我们共同生活，它将我们团结起来，由此可知他对此次听写大赛持积极态度。故选B。