Question

Geographical position, climate The United States of America stretches from the Atlantic Ocean across North America and far into the Pacific. It borders on Canada in the north and Mexico in the south. The waters of the Atlantic Ocean wash the USA in the east and the waters of the Pacific Ocean wash the country in the west.

As to population, it is the fourth largest country in the world. Nearly 240 million people of different nationalities live there, that’s why America is called “a melting pot”.

Washington is the capital of USA. English is the official language. The flag of the USA is known as the “Stars and Stripes” or “Gold Eagle”. The flag is also called the “Star-Spangled Banner”, the name of the national anthem of the United States.

The United States territory consists of three separate parts different in size, natural features, level of development and population. They are: 1) the main part, the United States proper; 2) Alaska, which occupies the north-western part of the continent of North America, including a lot of islands and 3) Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The total area of the country is over 9 million square kilometers.

About half of the United States’ territory is covered by plateaus and mountains. The continental part of the USA consists of the highland regions and two lowland regions. The highland regions are the Appalachian Mountains in the east and the Cordillera in the west. Between the Cordillera and the Appalachian Mountains there are the central lowlands which are called the prairie and eastern lowlands which are called the Mississippi valley. West of the Appalachians stretch the Central Plains, the Great Plains and the Mexican Lowland. There are many mountains especially in the west and south-west. The Rocky Mountains extend all the way from New Mexico to Alaska but greater part of the country is a plain.

Many rivers cross the country. The principal rivers of the USA are the Mississippi, the longest river in the world (7,330km), the Missouri, the Colorado and the Hudson River. The main lakes in the USA are the Great Lakes in the north. They contain about half the world’s total supply of fresh water. The five Great Lakes are joined together by short rivers and canals and the Saint Lawrence River joins them to the Atlantic Ocean. So the lakes are now accessible to ocean-going vessels from the Atlantic via the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Because of such a huge size of the country the climate differs from one part of

the country to another. The coldest climate is in the northern part, where there is heavy snow in winter and the temperature may go down to 40 degrees below zero. The south has a subtropical climate, with temperature as high as 49 degrees in

summer.

EXERCISES:

I. Complete the sentences with the information from the text.

1. The waters of the Atlantic Ocean wash the USA in the east and.

2. The United States territory consists of three separate parts .

3. There are many mountains especially .

4. So the lakes are now accessible to ocean-going vessels from.

5. Because of such a huge size of the country the climate .

Answer 1

1. The waters of the Atlantic Ocean wash the USA in the east and the waters of the Pacific Ocean wash the country in the west.

2. The United States territory consists of three separate parts.They are:  the main part, the United States proper;  Alaska, which occupies the north-western part of the continent of North America, including a lot of islands and  Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean.

3. There are many mountains especially the Appalachian Mountains in the east and the Cordillera in the west.

4. So the lakes are now accessible to ocean-going vessels from the Atlantic via the St. Lawrence Seaway.

5. Because of such a huge size of the country the climate differs from one part of  the country to another. The coldest climate is in the northern part with the temperature 40 degrees below zero in winter, the south has a subtropical climate with the temperature about 49 degrees in  summer.

Объяснение: