英语学习在我国已轰轰烈烈地开展了几十年。英语学习书籍各种各样。从小学,初中,高中到大学不断贯彻英语教学,可以说英语学习已成为一个热门话题。小编精心收集了关于每天必读英语短文，供大家欣赏学习!

关于每天必读英语短文：The Big Ben Clock

大本钟

The Big Ben is located in the tower at the eastern end of the Houses of Parliament, Westminster, Greater London. It was designed by Edmund Beckett and Baron Grimthorpe.

大本钟在伦敦威斯敏斯特英自治领会议院的最东边。它的设计者是埃德蒙·贝克特和拜伦·格里姆索普。

The Big Ben is very famous throughout the world, but nobody really knows why it is called Big Ben. There are two hearsays about this. Some people say that it was named after Benjamin Caunt, a boxer, who was called Big Ben. More people believe it was called after Welshman, Sir Benjamin Hall. He was the commissioner of the work at the time of its installation in 1859.

大本钟在世界上家喻户晓，但实际上没有多少人知道为何它叫大本钟。关于这个问题有两个传言：有人认为它是从一个叫做本杰明·考特的拳击家而来。更多人认为它以一个威尔士人——本杰明·霍尔先生的名字命名的。他是安装工程的监督者。

A story was told that during a debate in the Commons on what to call the bell, Sir Benjamin was about to give his ideas when a MP who sat behind the front bench shouted, "Let's call it Big Ben!" Then this name came into being.

在经过在下议院讨论中应该叫什么名字后，本杰明先生准备给出结果时，一位在前凳后的国会议员喊道：“我们叫它‘大本’吧!”于是这个名字就诞生了。

The bell hasn't gone through a smooth road since the beginning of its design. Because there was great disagreement about the design of the clock, it took fifteen years to build. In 1857, the bell was completed and tested on the ground, but a four-foot crack appeared and the bell had to be cast again. Finally, the clock started ticking on 31 May, 1859, and struck its first chime on 11, July.

从大本钟的设计到建造结束，这个钟诞生的道路就荆棘满途。因为当时关于这个钟的设计大家有着很大的分歧，建造它就用了15年。1857年，大本钟完工，并在地上做了测试。但是当钟要挂上去时，4尺长的裂缝就出现了。1859年5月31日，大钟的指针终于开始移动并在7月11日进行了它的第一次报时。

Then in September, the bell cracked again. It was silent for four years but was eventually turned a quarter of a revolution. In this way, the crack was not under the striking hammer. Craftsmen made a square above the crack to stop it graving longer and it can still be seen today.

然而在九月份的时候，钟又裂开了。它沉静了四年，直到在革命后裂缝终于被转了一个角。这样，裂缝就不在敲钟槌的下面。工匠在裂缝上做了一个方框，以此来阻止裂缝的延长，所以现在我们还能看到它。

The Big Ben is famous not only for its 13-ton weight, but also for its accuracy which is a result of its precise mechanism. Even one extra penny's weight on the balance will cause a gain of two fifths of a second in twenty four hours. Although there have been several problem, the bell is still striking today. Its chimes can be heard all over the world on the B.B.C.

大本钟闻名全球不仅仅因为它的13吨重量，还因为它的精准——那是因为它严谨的机械结构。在平衡上增添额外的一便士重量都会造成每24小时多五分之二秒的后果。尽管有过几次故障，直到今天大钟仍然在报时。它的钟鸣会通过B.B.C.广播电台传遍全球。

关于每天必读英语短文：Cairo

开罗

Few other countries are so dominated by their capital: for Egyptians to speak of one is to speak of the other. The "Mother of the World" nurtures more than 16 million Egyptians, Arabs, Africans and sundry international hangers-on in a collision of East and West, old and new, African and Arabic.

很少有其他国家的首都是像开罗这样占据着国家大部分的资本：开罗就是埃及的代名词。对于埃及人来说，两者的意义是等同的。有“世界母亲”之称的埃及培育了超过1,600万人口，包括埃及人、阿拉伯人、非洲人和其他人种。各种各样的碰撞在这里发生，东与西，新与旧，非洲和阿拉伯。

She's overburdened with one of the world's highest population densities, which makes for a seething mass of people, buildings and cacophonous traffic.

作为世界上人口密度最高的国家，埃及不堪重负，这些造就了这里复杂的人口、建筑以及嘈杂的交通环境。

Cairo has been the heart of Egypt for more than 1,000 years. Here the medieval world and the contemporary Western world clash in a confusion of mud-brick houses and towering modern office buildings, of flashy cars and donkey-drawn carts.

开罗成为埃及的心脏已经超过1,000年。这里是中世纪世界和当代西方世界冲突的集中体现。泥砖屋的混乱和高耸的现代化办公大楼、迟钝的驴车和浮华小车都形成鲜明的对比。

Cairenes see nothing strange in this. They aren't driven by the Western obsession to update and upgrade. The resulting pervasive sense of timelessness is one of the city's great charms. At the end of the day, it's a city travelers either love or hate; few come away indifferent.

但在开罗人眼里，这些都不足为奇。他们不是痴迷于西方世界的更新和升级。由此普遍产生的永恒感是这个城市的巨大魅力之一。一天下来，要么喜欢这里要么讨厌这里，很少有旅客对这里的一切无动于衷。

Finding your way about Cairo's vast sprawl is not as difficult as it may seem. Midan Tahrir is at the center. Northeast of Tahrir and centered on Sharia Talaat Harb is Downtown, a bustling commercial district.

寻找你对开罗的巨大张力的方式并不是像看起来那么困难。塔利尔是在中心。东北塔利尔和沙里亚·塔拉特·哈布为中心城区，是一个繁华的商业区。

The city' main train station at Midan Ramses marks Downtown's northernmost extent. Heading east, Downtown ends at Midan Ataba and the old medieval heart of the city known as Islamic Cairo takes over.

米丹·拉美西斯火车站是市区的最北端。向东，市区结束于米丹·阿塔巴，这里是中世界的中心，之后被伊斯兰开罗接管。

Bordering Downtown to the west is the Nile River, which is obstructed by two sizeable islands. The more central of these, connected directly to Downtown by three bridges, is Gezira, home to the Cairo Tower and the Opera House complex.

市区的西面是尼罗河，它被两个相当大的岛阻碍着。这里是更加中央的位置，其中三座桥直接连接到市中心，是吉齐拉，也是开罗塔河复杂的开罗歌剧院的地址所在。

The west bank of the Nile is less historical and much more residential. The primary districts are Mohandiseen, Agouza, Doqqi and Giza, all of which are light on charm and heavy on concrete. Giza covers by far the largest area of the four, stretching some 20km (12.4mi) west on either side of the long, straight road that ends at the foot of the Pyramids.

尼罗河西岸有着更短的和少得多的住宅。主要地区是Mohandiseen, Agouza, Doqqi和吉萨，所有这些都带着明亮、深层的魅力。吉萨到目前为止，包括四大领域，在长直路的两侧向西延伸20千米，一直伸展到金字塔的脚下。

关于每天必读英语短文：全世界的奇特婚礼习俗

Early African American: Jumping the Broom. In the times of slavery in this country, African American couples were not allowed to formally marry and live together. To make a public declaration of their love and commitment, a man and woman jumped over a broom into matrimony, to the beat of drums. The broom has long held significant meaning for the various Africans, symbolizing, the start of home - making for the newlywed couple. In Southern Africa, the day after the wedding, the bride assisted the other women in the family in sweeping the courtyard, indicating her dutiful willing ness to help her in-laws with housework till the newlyweds could move to their new home. Some African-American couples today are choosing to include this symbolic rite in their wedding ceremony.

早期非洲裔美国人：跳扫帚在美国的黑奴时代，黑人男女是不允许正式结婚生活在一起的。为了向世人宣布他们的爱情和婚约，一对黑人男女和着鼓声的节奏，一起跳过一把扫帚。(扫帚对各种非洲人长期来都具有很重要的意义，因为它意味着新婚夫妇组成家庭的开始。在南部非洲，新娘在婚后的第一天要帮助夫家的其他女性清扫院子，以此表明在住进自己的新家前，她愿意尽职地帮助丈夫的家人承担家务劳动。)直至今日，一些美国黑人还在他们的婚礼上举行这种象征性的仪式。

Armenia: Two white doves may be released to signify love and happiness. The bride may dress in red silk and may wear cardboard wings with feathers on her head. Small coins may be thrown at her.

亚美尼亚：人们放飞两只白鸽，以示爱情和幸福。新娘穿着红色丝绸的服装，头戴饰有羽毛的纸翼。人们还可向新娘投掷硬币。

Bermuda: Islanders top their tiered wedding cakes with a tiny sapling. The newlyweds plant the tree at their home, where they can watch it grow, as their marriage grows.

百慕大：百慕大岛民在他们的多层婚礼蛋糕的顶层插上一株小树苗，新婚夫妇要将这株树苗种在家中，这样他们可以目睹树苗伴随着他们的婚姻一起长大。

Bohemia: The groom gives the bride a rosary, a prayer book, a girdle with three keys to guard her virtue, a fur cap, and a silver wedding ring. The bride gives the groom a shirt sewn with gold thread blended with colored silks and a wedding ring. Before the ceremony, the groomsman wraps the groom in the bride's cloak to keep evil spirits from creeping in and dividing their two hearts.

波黑人：新郎向新娘赠送一串念珠，一本祈祷文，一根上面串着三把钥匙的腰带(用以保护她的贞洁)，一顶毛皮帽，一个银的结婚戒指。新娘则向新郎赠送一件用金线和彩色丝绸缝制的衬衣和结婚戒指。婚礼前，伴郎将新郎裹进新娘的斗篷里，以防恶魔侵入，拆散他们相爱的心。

Caribbean: A rich black cake baked with dried fruits and rum is especially popular on the islands of Barbados, Grenada and St. Lucia. The recipe, handed down from mother to daughter. It is considered a "pound" cake with the recipe calling for a pound each of flour, dark brown sugar, butter, cherries, raisins, plus a dozen eggs and flavorings. The dried fruits are soaked in rum and kept in a crock anywhere from two weeks to six months.

加勒比地区：在巴巴多斯，格林纳达和圣卢西亚，用干果和朗姆酒制作的味道浓郁的蛋糕十分常见。蛋糕的制作方法，由母亲亲手传给女儿，并且各自对其加以修饰。人们把这种蛋糕叫作“一磅”蛋糕，因为制作这种蛋糕需要面粉、棕糖、黄油、糖霜樱桃、葡萄干、李子、红醋栗各一磅，加上一打鸡蛋和调味品。制作蛋糕的干果要在朗姆酒中浸泡并在瓦罐中保存两个星期至6个月。

Czech: Friends would sneak into the bride's yard to plant a tree, then decorate it with ribbons and painted eggshells. Legend said she would live as long as the tree. Brides in the countryside carry on the very old custom of wearing a wreath of rosemary, which symbolizes remembrance. The wreath is woven for each bride on her wedding eve by her friends as a wish for wisdom, love, and loyalty.

捷克共和国：朋友们溜进新娘的院子去种一棵树，然后再用彩带和彩绘的蛋壳将树加以装饰。传说新娘将与这树活得一样长。乡村的新娘还保留着佩带迷迭香花环的古老习俗，以表怀念之情。花环是在婚礼前夕由新娘的朋友编织而成，它象征着智慧、爱情和忠诚。

Egypt: Families, rather than grooms, propose to the bride. In Egypt, many marriages are arranged. The zaffa, or wedding march, is a musical procession of drums, bagpipes, horns, belly dancers, and men carrying flaming swords. It announces that the marriage is about to begin.

埃及：在埃及，由新郎的家人，而不是新郎本人，向新娘求婚。许多婚姻还是父母之命，媒妁之言。Zaffa，也就是婚礼，其实是一个充满音乐的列队游行，有鼓、风笛、号角及肚皮舞，男人们手持火红的剑。这个仪式宣告，婚姻即将开始。

England: Traditionally, the village bride and her wedding party always walk together to the church. Leading the procession: a small girl strewing, blossoms along the road, so the bride's path through life will always be happy and laden with flowers.

英格兰：按照传统，乡村的新娘和参加婚礼的人们总是一起步行走向教堂。一个小姑娘走在队列最前面，她一路抛撒鲜花，预示着新娘一生的道路上也将开满鲜花，永远幸福。