A well-known poem by Tang dynasty poet Du Mu tells of a sad scene in early April: “Rains fall heavily as Qingming comes, and passers-by with lowered spirits go.”
This scene takes place on Tomb Sweeping Day, also known as Qingming Festival. Tomb Sweeping Day is a traditional Chinese festival. It began in the Zhou dynasty, over 2500 years ago. Chinese people celebrate it to remember and honor their ancestors(祖先). This year, it falls on April 4. Tomb Sweeping Day became a public holiday in the Chinese mainland in 2008. People have on day off for that day.
On this day, families bring flowers, food and wine to the grave sites(墓地)of their ancestors. They place cakes, fruits in front of the graves and some may burn joss paper, as money for the dead. After that, they sweep the tombs and cherish(怀念)the memories of their dead family members.
Tomb Sweeping Day gives us a chance to show respect to our ancestors and family members who have passed away and show that we miss them. This tradition shows that family values are an important part of Chinese culture.
Tomb Sweeping Day is also the beginning of the time for gardening and outdoor activities in China. Families often get together for outings or fly kites at this time.
1.The Chinese meaning of the underlined word “passers-by” is_______.
A、行人 B、陌生人 C、故人
2.Tomb Sweeping Day is celebrated for people to _______.
A、go out to fly kites
B、have a public holiday
C、remember and honor their ancestors
3.What can people take to the grave sites according to the passage?
A、Flowers, food, fruits and umbrellas.
B、Flowers, food, wine and joss paper.
C、Food, fruits, joss paper and kites.
4.Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
A、We have one day off for Tomb Sweeping Day.
B、Tomb Sweeping Day began in the Zhou dynasty.
C、People in the world celebrate Tomb Sweeping Day.
5.What does the passage mainly discuss?
A、People bring many things to the grave sites.
B、Du Mu wrote a poem about Qingming.
C、Tomb Sweeping Day is a traditional Chinese festival.
Winter solstice, as the name shows, means the coming of winter.
As an important solar term in the traditional Chinese calendar, it is also a traditional holiday for Chinese, which is also called “冬节”, “长至节”, “亚岁”, etc. Generally, winter solstice occurs between December 21st and 23rd. According to the traditional Chinese calendar, five days constitutes a pentad and three pentads constitutes a solar term. One year is divided into twelve periods and twelve climates which are regarded as twenty-four solar terms. The Winter Solstice is one of twenty-four solar terms. On this day, in the Northern Hemisphere the period of daytime is the shortest of the year and the period of night is longest. In Northern China during winter solstice there is a custom of eating dumplings.
1.There are_________solar terms in a year.
A、twelve B、five C、twenty-four
2.People often eat_________during winter solstice
A、mooncakes B、dumplings C、noodles
3.Winter solstice is in __________.
A、December B、September C、October
4.On winter solstice the period of night is ________in China.
A、the longest B、the shortest C、darkest
5.Which day has the longest daytime in China?
A、The beginning of spring
B、Summer solstice
C、Grain full
完形填空
Once there lived two brothers. The elder was called Simon and the younger Victor. They________each other very much, and always took care of one another. Every day they worked from morning ________ night, getting as much gain(谷物) as possible from their fields.
One late autumn evening, after their work in the ________ was done, Simon said to his wife, “Victor got married last month. He has many bills(账单) to pay. I think I will put a bag of rice in his barn(谷仓).” “Oh, that’s a good idea,” said his wife. “But please don’t tell him, ” said Simon, “If he knows I put the rice there, he will ________ take it.”
So, late that night Simon took a bag of rice to Victor’s barn. The next day, when he looked at his own barn, he found ________strange. “I took a bag of rice to Victor’s house last night, ________ I still have the same number of bags in my barn. ________ did that happen?”
Simon decided to take another bag of rice to his brother’s barn that night. But the next morning, he found the ________ number of bags in his barn again! “This is very strange,” he thought.
That night he ________ again. He carried a large bag of rice on his shoulder(肩膀), and walked down the road to his younger brother’s house. In the bright moonlight, he could see another ________ coming down the road. He was carrying something on his ________ too.
“Young Brother!” Simon cried, “What are you doing?”
“I was ________ you, Older Brother,” said Victor, “Your family is ________ than mine. I thought you needed more rice.” The two brothers quickly ________ that they had been taking rice to each other. They ________ what they had done. “It is good to have a brother like you,” they both said. And they lived happily ever after.
1.A、disliked B、hated C、loved
2.A、until B、at C、through
3.A、shops B、fields C、hospitals
4.A、never B、sometimes C、usually
5.A、everything B、anything C、something
6.A、so B、and C、but
7.A、How B、What C、Why
8.A、small B、different C、same
9.A、planned B、failed C、tried
10.A、brother B、person C、sister
11.A、back B、shoulder C、head
12.A、proud of B、polite to C、worried about
13.A、smaller B、richer C、larger
14.A、remembered B、realized C、imagined
15.A、laughed about B、dreamed about C、shouted at
—Is she really ill? —_____. She’s in hospital.
A、I am afraid so
B、I hope so
C、Not at all
That woman has a bag in her right hand. What’s in her______hand?
A、another B、the other C、one
I still can’t believe it! My bicycle last night.
A、is stolen B、stole C、was stolen
