Mark Twain left school when he was twelve. Though he had little school education, he became the most famous writer of his time. He made millions of dollars by writing. His real name was Samuel Langhorne Clements, but he is better known all over the world as Mark Twain, his penname.
Mark Twain was born in 1835 and he was not a healthy baby. In fact, he was not expected to live through the first winter. But with his mother’s tender care, he managed to survive. As a boy, he caused much trouble to his parents. He used to play jokes on all his friends and neighbors. He didn’t like to go to school, and he ran away from home from time to time. He always went in the direction of the nearby Mississippi. He was nearly drowned(淹死) nine times.
After his father’s death in 1847, Mark Twain began to work for a printer, who only provided him with food and clothing. Then, he worked as a river-boat pilot and later joined the army. But shortly after that he became a miner, during this period, he started to write short stories. Afterwards he became a full-time writer.
In 1870, Mark Twain got married. In the years that followed he wrote many books including Tom Sawyer in 1876, and Huckleberry Finn in 1884, which made him famous, and brought him a great fortune（财富）.Unfortunately, Mark Twain got into debts in bad investments（投资） and he had to write large numbers of stories to pay these debts. In 1904, his wife died and then three of their children passed away.
He died on April 21, 1910 at the age of 70.
1.Mark Twain was ________ in his childhood.
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A．a naughty boy |
B．a good student |
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C．a handsome boy |
D．a strong boy |
2.Mark Twain began to write short stories when he _______.
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A．was at school |
B．was in the army |
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C．worked for a printer |
D．was a miner |
3.Before he became a full time writer Mark Twain had not been ___
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A．a printer. |
B．a miner |
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C．a tailor |
D．a soldier |
4.Mark Twain’s wife died _________
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A．soon after she give birth to three children |
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B．at the same time with her children |
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C．before three of her children died |
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D．after Mark Twain had died |
I truly hope that at the end of this short essay(短文) you will know how to learn English.
I was born in Somalia, and Italian is my mother tongue. 31 enough, soon after I arrived in London when I was 17, I was admitted to a sixth-form college. I found caring (体贴的) teachers there, who 32 taught me English. This, I think, was a(n) 33 factor(因素) that encouraged me to learn the language. The most important thing, 34, is to work hard. So those of you who don’t have such good teachers should not 35. When I was in London, I 36 myself to English learning as I 37 to go to university very much. Mastering the language was the only 38 to achieve my goal.
Now I have 39 my master’s degree from Oxford University. Looking back, I 40 I was quite innocent (天真的),for I never imagined learning English was going to be so much 41. The more fluent I become, the 42 the language became. One can master it only 43 years of tireless efforts(努力).
Some basic 44 which I would give to people who are interested in learning the language are:
1. Buy a good dictionary. 45 English learners use their dictionaries all the time.
2.46 English newspapers. Don’t forget to 47 the new words in your dictionary.
3. Listen to the radio 48 watching TV as listening to the radio helps you more.
4. Talk, talk and talk to 49 at anytime and anywhere.
And even though at times it may be embarrassing(尴尬的) to make 50，you will finally correct them and remember them. Soon you will start to become fluent.
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The old man lives at home but he never feels _________.
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A．alone; lonely |
B．lonely; lonely |
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C．lonely; alone |
D．alone; alone |
My classmate Lily is in English because she once stayed in the U.S. for several years.
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A．loose |
B．active |
C．fluent |
D．good |
Gerneally speaking, it is difficult to breathe at a high of Tibet (西藏).
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A．altitude |
B．attitude |
C．length |
D．width |
When I was tired of my work, I would my belongings and go on a short trip.
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A．use up |
B．make up |
C．give up |
D．pack up |
