Question

    When we want to find out what the weather will be like tomorrow, we usually turn on the radio or TV. But in the time before radio and TV, people needed to forecast (预测) the weather. How did they do it? Let’s learn about two weather rhymes (押韵的诗) together.

Red sky at night, Sailor’s delight!

Red sky in the morning, Sailors take warning!

This weather rhyme was written a long time ago, but it still works today. As the sun is setting, a red sky at night usually means there are no clouds coming in from the west, a sign of good weather for tomorrow. But a red sky in the morning always means drier air is moving away to the east and moister air is moving in from the west. The moist air could bring clouds, rain and stormy weather.

When leaves show their undersides (底部), Be very certain, rain betides.

The rhyme shows us how trees forecast the weather. Tree leaves turn upside down just before it rains. In the period before a storm, strong winds can lift the leaves and show their undersides.

Animals, insects and plants are natural forecasters. When a summer storm is coming, you may notice that dogs, cows, horses, and geese grow restless (不安的) and frogs come out of their hiding places. These animals don’t have some sixth sense. Scientists think the animals can hear the low frequency (频率) sound waves made by thunderstorms many miles away.

Get outside and observe nature carefully, and soon you’ll be your own weather forecaster.

1.The underlined word “moist” can be replaced by the word “________”.

A.wet B.Cold C.warm D.clean

2.What is helpful for some animals to forecast the stormy weather?

A.Their sense of sight. B.Their sense of hearing.

C.Their sense of smell. D.Their sense of touching.

3.Which of the following is TRUE?

A.The two rhymes are both about winter weather.

B.When leaves show their undersides, it will be fine.

C.If you see a red sky in the morning, you can travel outside.

D.If you see a frog come out of its hiding place, you’d better stay at home.

4.What’s the writer’s main purpose in writing this passage?

A.To introduce two famous weather rhymes to us.

B.To tell us we should read as many rhymes as possible.

C.To show us the way to observe different animals.

D.To encourage us to get close to nature and observe the weather on our own.

Answer

1.A

2.B

3.D

4.D

【解析】

文章大意：文章主要是关于在没有收音机和电视的时期，人们是如何预测天气的。文章通过两首有关天气的押韵诗，告知人们通过观察晚霞、动物、昆虫和植物来预测天气。鼓励人们要走出家门，观察大自然来预测天气。

1.词句猜测题。根据文章第九行“could bring clouds, rain and stormy weather”“会带来云、雨和暴风雨”可推知moist是湿的意思，wet湿的；cold冷的；warm暖和的；clean干净的，故选A。

2.细节理解题。根据文章倒数第二段的倒数第一、二行“Scientists think the animals can hear the low frequency (频率) sound waves made by thunderstorms many miles away”“科学家认为这些动物能听到许多英里外雷暴产生的低频声波”，故选B。

3.细节理解题。根据文章两首韵律诗都是描述雨的，不是冬天的天气，A说法是错误的；根据文章倒数第四段第一行“When leaves show their undersides (底部), Be very certain, rain betides”“当叶子露出下侧时，一定要下雨”可知，B说法是错误的；根据文章第四段第三、四行“But a ……weather”“但早晨的红天总是意味着干燥的空气正在向东移动，潮湿的空气正在从西移动。潮湿的空气会带来云、雨和暴风雨”可知，C说法是错误的；根据文章倒数第二段的第一、二、三行“When a summer ……of their hiding places”“当夏季暴风雨来临时，你可能会注意到狗、牛、马和鹅变得不安，青蛙也从它们的藏身之处出来”可知，D说法是正确的，故选D。

4.主旨大意题。通读全文可知，文章主要讲的是预测天气，主要鼓励我们亲近自然，自己观察天气，故选D。