Henry was an office worker in a big city. He worked very hard and enjoyed traveling in his holidays.
He usually went to the seaside, but one year he saw an advertisement in a newspaper. “Enjoy country life. Spend a few weeks at West Hill Farm. Goodfood. Fresh air. Horse riding. Walking. Fishing. Cheap and interesting.”
“This sounds a good idea,” he thought. “I’ll spend a month at West Hill Farm.I think I can enjoy horse riding, walking and fishing. They’ll make a change from sitting by the seaside and swimming.”
He wrote to the farmer. In the letter he said that he would like to spend all of July there. Then on the first of July, he left for West Hill Farm.
But four days later, he returned home.
“What was wrong with West Hill Farm?” his best friend, Ed, asked him. “Didn’t you enjoy country life?”
“Country life was very good,” Henry said. “But there was another problem.”
“Oh. What?”
“Well,” he said, “the first day I was there a sheep died, and we had roast mutton for dinner.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Ed asked. “Fresh meat is the best.”
“I know, but on the second day a cow died, and we had roast beef for dinner.”
“Lucky you!”
“You don’t understand,” Henry said. “on the third day a pig died and we had roast pork for dinner.”
“A different meat every day,” Ed said loudly, “and you are complaining!”
“Let me finish,” Henry said. “on the fourth day the farmer died, and I didn’t dare (敢)stay for dinner!”
1.How did Henry find out about the farm?
A. He saw it in a newspaper advertisement.
B. His best friend told him.
C. He wrote to the farmer.
D. Maybe he learned it from the radio.
2.Henry came back home several days later because ______________.
A. he didn’t like the country life at all
B. the farmer wasn’t friendly to him
C. his holiday was over
D. he thought he might have to eat the farmer
3.“…and you are complaining!”, the word “complain” means _______
A. 夸奖 B. 说三道四
C. 抱怨 D. 故弄玄虚
4.Which of the following sentences is TRUE?
A. Ed could eat a different kind of meat every day.
B. Henry thought he could enjoy a change.
C. Henry couldn’t think of anything else to do, so he went to the farm.
D. The farmer died because of the bad meat he ate.
5.Which is the best title for the passage?
A. What a beautiful farm! B. Have a good time.
C. A short holiday D. Henry and the farmer
An eight-year-old child heard her parents talking about her little brother. All she knew was that he was very sick and they had no money. Only a very expensive operation could save him now and there was no one to lend them the money.
When she heard her daddy say to her tearful mother, “Only a miracle can
save him now,” the little girl went to her bedroom and pulled her money from itshiding place and counted it carefully.
She hurried to a drugstore (药店) with the money in her hand.
“And what do you want?” asked the salesman. “It’s for my little brother,” the girl answered. “He’s really, really sick and I want to buy a miracle.” “Pardon?” said the salesman.
“My brother Andrew has something bad growing inside his head and my daddysays only a miracle can save him. So how much does a miracle cost?” “We don’t sell a miracle here, child. I’m sorry,” the salesman said with a smile.
“Listen, if it isn’t enough, I can try and get some more. Just tell me how much it costs.”
A well-dressed man heard it and asked, “What kind of a miracle does your brother need?”
“I don’t know,” she answered with her eyes full of tears. “He’s really sick and mum says he needs an operation. But my daddy can’t pay for it, so I have brought all my money.”
“How much do you have?” asked the man. “$ 1.11, but I can try and get some more,” she answered.
“Well, what luck,” smiled the man. “$ 1.11, the price of a miracle for little brothers.”
He took up the girl’s hand and said, “Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let’s see if I have the kind of miracle you need.”
That well-dressed man was Dr Carlton Armstrong, a famous doctor. The operation was successful and it wasn’t long before Andrew was home again.
How much did the miracle cost?
1.What was the trouble in the little girl’s family?
A. Her brother was seriously ill.
B. They had no money.
C. Nothing could save her brother.
D. Both A and B.
2.In the eye of the little girl, a miracle might be _______.
A. something interesting
B. something beautiful
C. some wonderful medicine
D. some good food
3. The little girl said again and again “...I can try and get some more.” That shows _______.
A. she had still kept some money
B. she hoped not to be refused
C. There was no need to worry about money
D. she thought money was easy to get
4. What made the miracle happen?
A. The girl’s love for her brother.
B. The girl’s money.
C. The medicine from the drugstore.
D. Nobody can tell.
5. From the passage we can infer (推断) that _______.
A. The doctor didn’t ask for any pay
B. A miracle is sure to happen if you keep on
C. The little girl is lovely but not so clever
D. Andrew was in fact not so sick as they had thought
Little Tommy was doing very badly in math. His parents had tried everything—tutors (家庭教师), cards, special learning centers—in short, everything they could think of. Finally they took Tommy to a catholic (天主教的) school.
After the first day, little Tommy came home with a very serious look on his face. He didn’t kiss his mother hello. Instead, he went straight to his room and started studying. Books and papers were spread (铺开) out all over the room and little Tommy was hard at work. His mother was surprised. She called him down
to dinner and as soon as he finished eating, he went back to his room, without aword. In no time he was back hitting the books as hard as before. This went on for some time, day after day while the mother tried to understand what was happening.
Finally, little Tommy brought home his report card. He quietly put it on the table and went up to his room and hit the books. His mom looked at it and to her surprise, little Tommy got an A in math. She could no longer hold her curiosity (好奇心). She went to his room and asked, “Son, what was it? Was it the nuns (修女)?”
Little Tommy looked at her and shook his head, “No. ”
“Well then,” she asked again. “WHAT was it?”
Little Tommy looked at her and said, “Well, on the first day of school, when I saw that man nailed (钉) to the plus sign (加号), I knew they weren’t joking. ”
1.Why did Tommy’s parents send him to a catholic school?
A. Because he could eat well there.
B. Because he could earn more about nuns.
C. Because his parents wanted him to do better in his math.
D. Because his parents didn’t want him to learn math any more.
2.Tommy’s mother felt surprised that his son _______.
A. was still the same as usual
B. ate so much at dinner
C. kissed her hello after school
D. worked hard but said little
3.“Hitting the books” means “_______” in Chinese.
A. 用功
B. 捶书
C. 发泄
D. 振作
4.The last sentence in the passage shows that _______.
A. Tommy felt sorry for the mail
B. Tommy was afraid of being nailed
C. Tommy didn’t like the plus sign
D. Tommy liked playing jokes on others
5. From the passage, we can infer (推断) that _______.
A. teachers should be strict with their students
B. mistaking (误解) might do good sometimes
C. a catholic school is much better than other ones
D. nuns are good at helping children with their math
One day a poor man was traveling on horseback. At noon, he tied his horse to a tree and then down to eat something. A few minutes later, a rich man came along and tied his horse to the same tree.
“Please tie your horse to another tree,” said the poor man. “My horse is wild. It will kill yours.”
the rich man said, “I shall tie my horse as I like!” he tied up his horse and had his lunch nearby. After a moment they heard a terrible , the two horses were fighting. They went up to them, but it was too . The rich man’s horse was killed. “See what your horse has done!” cried the rich man. “You will have to for it.” And he brought the poor man before Mr. Know.
Mr. Know asked the poor man some questions. But he made no . At last Mr. Know said, “This man is dumb. He cannot speak.”
“Oh,” the rich man shouted . “He can! He spoke to me when I met him.”
“Are you sure?” asked Mr. Know. “What did he ?”
“He told me not to tie my horse to the same tree because his horse was wild and would kill my horse.”
“Oh,” said Mr. Know. “So he you. Then can you expect to get money him? ”
The rich man said nothing and left silently.
1.A. put B. set C. sat D. turned
2.A. So B. But C. And D. Though
3.A. song B. word C. bell D. noise
4.A. late B. slow C. hard D. quick
5.A. pay B. look C. wait D. care
6.A. idea B. mistake C. money D. answer
7.A. quietly B. angrily C . happily D. heavily
8.A. speak B. tell C. talk D. say
9.A. helped B. thanked C. warned D. ordered
10.A. for B. from C. with D. about
Do you know__________? –He came here by train.
A.when did the train arrive
B.how did he come here
C.when the train arrived
D.how he came here
I prefer__________ at home rather than____________ with you .
A.stay; go B.staying; going
C.to stay; go D.to stay; to go
