I’ve loved my mother’s desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it as mother sat doing letters. Standing by her chair, looking at the ink bottle, pen, and white paper, I decided that the act of _______ must be the most _________ thing in the world.
Years later, during her final illness, mother _________ different things for my sister and brother. “But the _________”, she said, “is for Elizabeth”.
I never saw her angry, and never saw her cry. I knew she _______ me, she showed it in action. But _________ a young girl, I wanted heart-to-heart talks _________ mother and daughter. They never happened. And a gulf(深渊) opened between us. I was “too emotional”. _________ she lived “on the surface”.
As years passed and I graduated from college, I loved my mother and I wrote to her in _________ words and asked her to let me know in any way she chose that she did __________ me.
I posted the letter and waited for her answer. ________ came. My hope turned to __________, then little interest, finally, peace --- it seemed that nothing happened. I couldn’t be sure that the ________ had even got to Mother. I only knew that I had written it, and I could __________ trying to make her into someone she was not.
Now the __________ of her desk told me, as she’d __________ been able to, that she was __________ that writing was my chosen work. I __________ the desk carefully and found some papers __________---- a photo of my father and a one-page letter, folded and refolded many times.
“Give me an answer”, my letter asks, “in any way you chose”. Mother, you always chose the ________ that speaks louder than words.
1.A.speaking B.writing C.looking D.listening
2.A.wonderful B.tiring C.funny D.productive
3.A.bought B.gave C.designed D.kept
4.A.pen B.paper C.chair D.desk
5.A.loved B.disliked C.appreciated D.sympathized
6.A.like B.as C.be D.unlike
7.A.with B.among C.beside D.between
8.A.So B.And C.But D.Or
9.A.careful B.active C.thankful D.serious
10.A.ignore B.accept C.forgive D.dislike
11.A.No one B.None C.Something D.Neither
12.A.surprise B.joy C.disappointment D.happiness
13.A.ideas B.information C.news D.letter
14.A.stand B.stop C.continue D.practice
15.A.present B.appearance C.shape D.sight
16.A.always B.ever C.never D.often
17.A.sorry B.encouraged C.regretful D.pleased
18.A.moved B.cleaned C.fixed D.emptied
19.A.inside B.outside C.below D.above
20.A.gesture B.method C.action D.way
Garlic
Some people can’t stand garlic. “That smell is too strong. And it doesn’t go away! There’s nothing worse than garlic,” they say. 1.Chester Aaron grows eighty-seven kinds of garlic on his farm. He wrote a book called Garlic Is Life. It seems that people either love garlic or hate it.
2.The first wild garlic probably grew somewhere in western Russia. Later, travelers carried garlic to China, Europe, and North Africa. Farmers began planting it over 5,000 years ago.
People in many cultures shared similar ideas about garlic. For example, it was believed that garlic made it possible for slaves to work harder and longer. In Greece, the athletes of the first Olympic Games ate garlic, because they wanted to become stronger and faster. 3.In some places, garlic was called “food for lovers”. People added it to other foods because it tasted good.
People in many cultures ate garlic when they got sick. 4.It was also supposed to help with different kinds of pain.
Is eating garlic actually good for you, or should we just laugh at these old ideas? The truth is, doctors today are telling their patients, “Eat garlic!” Recent research shows that garlic is good for your heart.
5. In many cultures, people trusted garlic to protect them from all kinds of bad luck. Garlic is great, but it can’t do that!
A.But garlic wasn’t only for slaves and athletes.
B.It was supposed to make a cold or fever go away.
C.In China, people also used garlic to keep meat fresh.
D.Maybe you don’t know that garlic has a long history.
E.Recent research shows that garlic is bad for our health.
F.Other people say it tastes great and it’s good for you, too.
G.However, we can’t accept every idea about garlic from the past.
There was once a professor of medicine, who was very strict with the students. Whenever he took the chair on the exam committee(担任考试委员会主席), the students would be in fear, because he was seldom pleased with the answers they gave. A student would be lucky enough if he or she could receive a good mark from him. At the end of the term, the students of medicine would take their exam again. Now a student entered the exam room and got seated before the committee. This student was a little nervous as he knew it would not be so easy to get through the exam at all.
The professor began to ask. The student was required to describe a certain illness, his description of which turned to（结果是）be OK.
Then the professor asked about the cure (药剂) for illness, and the student, too, answered just as right.
“Good,” said the professor, “and how much will you give the patient?”
“A full spoon”, answered the student.
“Now you may go out and wait for what you can get.”, said the professor. At the same time, the committee discussed carefully the answers the student had given. Suddenly the student noticed that there was something wrong with his last answer. “ A full spoon is too much,” he thought to himself. Anxiously he opened the door of the room and cried, “Mr Professor, I’ve make a mistake! A full spoon is too much for a patient. He can take only five drops.”
“I’m sorry, sir.” Said the professor coldly, “But it’s too late. Your patient has died.”
1.The students were afraid of the professor because _________.
A.they often angered and disappointed him
B.their answers often astonished him
C.their answers seldom satisfied him
D.he often misunderstood (误解) them and give them bad markers
2.The student’s description of the illness was _____.
A.not correct
B.not satisfied
C.completely discouraging
D.accepted.
3.Before he left the room the student was almost sure that ______.
A.he had passed the exam, and the only thing was to wait for the mark
B.his last answer was satisfying
C.he had made a mistake
D.he had not done well in the exam.
4.Which of the following is Not true?
A.The patient will be in danger if he’s taken as much as a full spoon.
B.The doctor will be in trouble if he’s given the patient a full spoon.
C.Since one spoon is less than five drops, the patient will be all right soon if he takes only one full spoon at a time.
D.If the patient wants to remain safe, he should take no more than five drops at a time.
5.Which guess is the most reasonable from the passage?
A.The student must have passed the exam.
B.The students may not have passed the exam.
C.The student must have been very happy when he heard, “Your patient has died.”
D.The professor must have been very pleased and given the student a good mark.
My son was a second-grader. He went to school by bus every day. He was the first student on in the morning, as we were farthest from school, and the last student off in the evening. I was a teacher myself and it was a comfort to realize the school staff (职员) were all working as hard as I was to provide a safe learning environment.
One day I came home from work and waited for my son to get home for a long time. Then I called the school. “Perhaps he’s just a bit late,” said the secretary. “I will call the driver to see if those children are home.” A few minutes later, I answered the phone to hear that the other students were home. Then I called his friends’ parents, to see if perhaps he had gotten off at their stop to play. The answers were all “No.”
By that time, it was dark and I was scared. My home was in the mountain areas, and it was said that a wolf had come up somewhere. My husband wasn’t at home, so I forced myself to calm down and decided to go out to look for him. I was about to go out when the telephone rang; it was from the driver. “He’s okay,” I heard. “He was asleep on the seats in the back, under a couple of jackets. Since it’s dark, can he spend the night with my family?”
I was relieved and agreed. Since my son had a great adventure, the school started giving a copy of the list to the driver, so he could check off the children’s names when they got off the bus. I think highly of the school for taking the cautionary (警戒的) step ahead; it is a sign of their concern for students, parents, and staff.
1.From Paragraph 1 we learn that ________.
A.the author’s son went home by bus every after-noon
B.the author’s son came to school earlier than other students
C.the author’s home was farther than that of any other student
D.the author was a teacher in her son’s primary school
2.At first the secretary thought ________.
A.the author’s son was still at school
B.the author’s son was at his friend’s home
C.the school bus would arrive in a while
D.there might be something wrong with the school bus
3.The author’s son probably spent the night _________.
A.in the bus B.at his own home
C.at the driver’s home D.in the secretary’s office
4.The author wrote the text to ________.
A.praise the school for its thoughtful action
B.thank the bus driver for his kindness
C.complain about the secretary of the school
D.show her concern for kids safety
Most of the flowers in nature are red, orange and yellow. If we have seen a black flower, it’s a chance in million. People have made a census (普查) to colors of more than four thousand kinds of flowers and discovered that only eight of them are black. As we know, sunlight is formed by seven different colored lights. The wave length of each light is different, so the quantity of heat in each light is also different. Flowers, especially their petals (花瓣), are easy to be harmed by high temperature. Black flowers can take in all the light waves which cause the flowers to dry up in a high temperature. So black flowers can rarely survive sunlight. But red flowers, orange flowers and yellow flowers can protect themselves from sunlight by reflecting the red light, orange light and yellow light, each of which has a large quantity of heat.
1.It is _________ to see a black flower.
A.impossible B.seldom
C.common D.no chance
2.The passage tells us that ________________.
A.black flowers are so weak that it is difficult for them to grow up.
B.there is only eight black flowers in nature.
C.sunlight is formed by seven different colored lights, so the wave length of each light is different.
D.black flowers can take in the light of all the wave lengths which make them dry up because of high temperature.
3.Which of the following ideas is NOT true?
A.People have found that only a few kinds of flowers are black.
B.Flowers are easy to be harmed by very high temperature.
C.Red, orange and yellow flowers can also absorb the light of all wave lengths.
D.The black flowers cannot protect themselves from sunlight.
Americans like to travel on their yearly holiday. Today, more and more travelers in the United States are spending nights at small house or inns(客栈)instead of hotels. They get a room for the night and the breakfast the next morning.
Rooms for the night in private(私人的)homes with breakfast have been popular with travelers in Europe for many years. In the past five to ten years, these bed-and-breakfast places have become popular in the United States. Many of these America’s bed-and-breakfast inns have only a few rooms; others are much larger. Some inns do not provide telephones or televisions in the rooms, others do.
Staying at a bed-and-breakfast inn is much different from staying at a hotel. Usually the cost is much less. Staying at an inn is almost like visiting someone’s home. The owners are glad to tell about the areas and the interesting places to visit. Many vacationers say that they enjoy the chance to meet local families.
1.Americans take a holiday trip _________.
A.all the year round B.for years C.every year D.every other year
2.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?
A.Some Americans like to stay at bed-and-breakfast homes instead of at hotels.
B.The bed-and-breakfast inns are private homes open to vacationers.
C.The bed-and-breakfast inn owners provide a morning meal for their visitors and a room for the night.
D.The bed-and-breakfast inns have been popular in America for a long time.
3.Staying at the bed-and-breakfast inns, _________.
A.the travelers needn’t pay anything
B.the travelers don’t have to pay for the telephone or television
C.the travelers can meet and talk with the local people
D.the owners will show the travelers around the area
