Question

Hundreds of years ago, no dandelions (蒲公英) grew in North America. Then people

came from Europe.They had dandelion seeds on their clothes. The seeds fell from their clothes onto the ground. Since then, dandelions have spread all over.

Most people believe that dandelions are weeds. They do not want them in their gardens. But some people think that dandelion flowers are pretty. And others think that dandelions taste good. They cook dandelion leaves or put them into a fresh salad. The leaves must be picked before the flowers come out or they will not taste good. Some people make dandelion flowers into wine.

Dandelions do not die easily. If the winter is not very cold, their leaves may stay green.

When the spring arrives, their flowers come out. Each night their bright yellow flowers close

up. When the sun shines the next day, they open up again. Dandelion flowers are very unusual. They do not have to get pollen (花粉) from another dandelion flower in order to form seeds. So after several days, the yellow flower turns white and soft. A tiny brown seed forms at the bottom of each white petal (花瓣). When the wind blows,  the petals float away.

Each white petal carries a seed away. This lets the dandelions spread their seeds all over.

New dandelions grow where the seeds land.

1.The underlined word “weeds” means       .

A. pretty flowers    B. fresh vegetables    C. wild plants    D. green trees

2.When is the best time to pick dandelion leaves to eat?

A. After their flowers come out.    B. After their flowers turn white.

C. Before their flowers come out.    D. Before their flowers close up.

3.What is the best title for this passage?

A. The History of Dandelions    B. Dandelions: Flowers or Food

C. The Use of Dandelions    D. How to Grow Dandelions

Answer

1.C

2.C

3.B

【解析】

这篇短文给我们介绍的是一种植物—蒲公英，包括蒲公英的历史、人们对它的利用、它的花以及种子的形成和传播。

1.词义猜测题。根据这个单词所在的句子Most people believe that dandelions are weeds. They do not want them in their gardens.可知，人们不想在他们的花园里种植蒲公英，因为他们认为蒲公英是weeds，由此我们可以推断，人们觉得蒲公英是不好的，因此这个词的意思不是美丽的花、新鲜的蔬菜或绿色的树，它的意思是“野草”，故应选C。

2.细节理解题。根据短文中And others think that dandelions taste good. They cook dandelion leaves or put them into a fresh salad. The leaves must be picked before the flowers come out or they will not taste good.可知，蒲公英的叶子必须在开花之前采摘，否则味道就不好了。由此可知应选C。

3.主旨大意题。这篇短文给我们介绍了蒲公英这种植物，第一段主要是蒲公英的历史；第二段讲述了人们如何使用蒲公英；第三段讲述的这种植物的生命力顽强以及它的种子是如何形成和传播的。因此A和C两个选项都太片面，概括不了整篇文章的内容；D选项根本在文章中没有提到。故应选B，“蒲公英—花还是食物？”，这个题目体现了文章的关键词Dandelions，比较全面。