“Have a nice day!” may be a pleasant gesture or a meaningless expression. When my friend Maxie says “Have a nice day” with a smile, I know she sincerely cares about what happens to me. I feel loved and secure since another person cares about me and wishes me well.
“Have a nice day. Next!” This version of the expression is spoken by a salesgirl at the supermarket who is rushing me and my groceries out the door. The words come out in the same tone(腔调)with a fixed procedure. They are spoken at me, not to me. Obviously, the concern for my day and everyone else’s is the management’s attempt to increase business.
The expression is one of those behaviors that help people get along with each other. Sometimes it indicates the end of a meeting. As soon as you hear it, you know the meeting is at an end. Sometimes the expression saves us when we don’t know what to say. “Oh, you just had a tooth out? I’m terribly sorry, but have a nice day.”
The expression can be pleasant. If a stranger says “Have a nice day” to you, you may find it heart-warming because someone you don’t know has tried to be nice to you.
Although the use of the expression is an insincere, meaningless social custom at times, there is nothing wrong with the sentence except that it is a little uninteresting. The salesgirl, the waitress, the teacher, and all the countless others who speak it without thinking may not really care about my day. But in a strange and comfortable way, it’s nice to know they care enough to pretend they care when they really don’t care all that much. While the expression may not often be sincere, it is always spoken. The point is that people say it all the time when they like.
小题1: How does the author understand Maxie’s words?
A．Maxie shows her anxiety to the author.
B．Maxie really wishes the author a good day.
C．Maxie encourages the author to stay happy.
D．Maxie really worries about the author’s security.小题2: What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 mean?
A．The salesgirl is rude.
B．The salesgirl is bored.
C．The salesgirl cares about me.
D．The salesgirl says the words as a routine.小题3:By saying “Have a nice day,” a stranger may .
A．try to be polite to you
B．express respect to you
C．give his blessing to you
D．share his pleasure with you小题4:According to the last paragraph, people say “Have a nice day” .
A．sincerely
B．as thanks
C．as a habit
D．encouragingly小题5: What is the best title of the passage?
A．Have a Nice Day — a Social Custom
B．Have a Nice Day — a Pleasant Gesture
C．Have a Nice Day — a Heart-warming Greeting
D．Have a Nice Day — a Polite Ending of a Conversation
