We've all heard the old saying，“Sticks and stones can break my bones，but words can never hurt me.” Don't you believe it？Words are powerful，and they can hurt—a lot. In fact，if you're not careful，you can even hurt yourself，by using the wrong word in your writing.
Recently a friend sent me a copy of an e-mail she received from the customer service department of her credit card company，after she contacted them with a question about her account. She was happy with their positive response. But as I read the e-mail，one line jumped out at me：“In lieu of good customer service...”
Did they really mean they were offering her a few extra reward points instead of good customer service？I doubt it. More likely，what the customer service department meant to say was，“Because good customer service is important to us...” followed by the details of what they were doing to make sure she remained a happy customer.
So why didn't the writer say that？I can only guess that perhaps the writer liked the phrase “in lieu of”，thought it sounded more interesting than saying “because”，and so used it—without bothering to check the true meaning.
Have you ever done that？Try to impress others with a big word，only to find out you've used the word incorrectly？It's just the opposite effect，isn't it？You may impress people all right，but it's not the impression you were going for.
When you write，remember to choose your words carefully. People may still disagree with what you say，but they won't be able to dismiss you because you made careless mistakes in how you said it.
1.What's the writer's purpose in giving the saying?
A．To amuse the reader. B．To persuade the reader.
C．To support a conclusion. D．To lead to the topic.
2.What does the phrase “in lieu of” most probably mean?
A．Because of B．In honour of C．Instead of D．In favour of
3.According to the writer，the customer service department ______.
A．didn't prefer to use familiar words to attract customers
B．didn't express what they really meant
C．didn't need to offer their customers extra reward points
D．succeeded in impressing their customers
Most recently, it's very common in students that they need a parent present for job interviews．
Naturally, it's easy to blame the students in these situations, but the bigger problem is us．We—as parents—are so eager to shelter our kids that we fail to realize that this in itself is harming them．As the mother of two young sons, I have to remind myself constantly that the biggest responsibility I have as a parent is to help them develop the skills needed to live without me．So, I'll let them fail．
I'll let them fail because as long as they are safe and warm inside their comfort zones, they will never grow．Although failure comes along with loss, heartbreak, disappointment, etc, these will be part of growth for them．And leaving them alone is my way of helping them become equipped to fit in this world as we know it today．From terrorism and seemingly endless natural disasters, to our national debt and beyond, if we expect the next generation to stand up to the very real problems of our time, we need to stop feeding them and start teaching them how to fish．
My children now are becoming little masters of compromise(妥协），but they try to negotiate （协商） everything now．It's a small price to help them learn a skill they'll use for the rest of their lives, including when I don't accompany them on job interviews．
1.Why do parents accompany their kids on job interviews?
A．Because they want to protect their kids from difficulties．
B．Because they think they can help them on the questions．
C．Because their kids are too shy to attend interviews．
D．Because their kids strongly request them to do so．
2.According to the author, what is beneficial to kids' development?
A．Sheltering them． B．Keeping them safe．
C．Leaving them alone． C．Blaming them．
3.Why does the author stress failure in kids' life?
A．To make them stronger than other kids．
B．To help them grow in this tough world．
C．To help them develop all social skills．
D．To make them learn to compromise．
4.Which of the following might be the best title for the text?
A．Never Shelter Your Kids B．Let Your Kids Fail
C．Be Eager to Grow Up D．Live Without Parents
If you have a chance to go to Finland, you will probably be surprised to find how “foolish” the Finnish people are.
Take the taxi drivers for example. Taxis in Finland are mostly high-class Benz with a fare of two US dollars a kilometer. You can go anywhere in one, tell the driver to drop you at any place, say that you have some business to attend to, and then walk off without paying your fare. The driver would not show the least sign of anxiety.
The dining rooms in all big hotels not only serve their guests, but also serve outside diners. Hotel guests have their meals free, so they naturally go to the free dining rooms to have their meals. The most they would do to show their good faith is to wave their registration（登记）card to the waiter. With such a loose check, you can easily use any old registration card to take a couple of friends to dine free of charge.
The Finnish workers are paid by the hour. They are very much on their own as soon as they have agreed with the boss on the rate. From then on they just say how many hours they have worked and they will be paid accordingly.
With so many loopholes （漏洞） in everyday life, surely Finland must be a heaven to those who love to take “petty advantages”. But the strange thing is, all the taxi passengers would always come back to pay their fare after they have attended to their business; not a single outsider has ever been found in the free hotel dining rooms. And workers always give an honest account of the exact hours they put in. As the Finns always act on good faith in everything they do, living in such a society has turned everyone into a real “gentleman”.
1. The underlined words in this passage means to “______”.
A. be ready to help others B. make good use of one’s friends
C. be a little ahead of others D. gain something at other’s expense
2. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. While taking a taxi in Finland, you can get off without first paying your fare.
B. In a big hotel in Finland, you can enjoy free meals if you’re living in the hotel.
C. The bosses in Finland pay the employees according to registration of their working hours.
D. The workers are always honest with their working hours.
3.We can learn from the passage that ______.
A. the Finnish society is of very high moral （道德） level
B. there are many loopholes in everyday life in Finland
C. in Finland, most taxi drivers will not charge you anything
D. everyone in Finland is like a gentleman, for they have faith in themselves
4.Which of the following is the best title of the passage ?
A. Life in Finland B. A Society with “Foolish” People
C. What a Life D. Honest accounts of the Finns
A new study suggests that the more teenagers watch television, the more likely they are to develop depression as young adults .
The researchers used a national long-term survey of adolescent（青少年的）health to investigate （调查）the relationship between media use and depression. They based their findings on more than four thousand adolescents who were not depressed when the survey began in 2000.
As part of the survey, the young people were asked how many hours of television or videos they watched daily. They were also asked how often they played computer games and listened to the radio. Media use totaled an average of five and one-half hours a day. More than two hours of that was spent watching TV.
Seven years later, in 2007, more than seven percent of the young people had signs of depression. The average age at that time was twenty-one.
The researchers say they did not find any such relationship with the use of other media such as movies, video games or radio, etc. But the study did find that every extra hour of television meant an eight percent increase in the chances of developing signs of depression. Young men were more likely than young women to develop depression given the same amount of media use.
The study didn't explore if watching TV causes depression. But one possibility is that it was taking time away from activities that could help prevent depression.
Last December, the journal Social Indicators Research published a study of activities that help lead to happy lives. Sociologists from the University of Maryland found that people who describe themselves as happy spend less time watching television than unhappy people. The study found that happy people are more likely to be socially active, to read, to attend religious services and to vote.
1.The best title for this passage should be____________.
A. Teens, Television and Depression
B. Men Develop Depression Easier than Women
C. Media Use is Harmful to Adolescents
D. Take Great Care of Teenager's Depression
2.The result of the research seems to prove______________.
A. teenagers are more likely to develop depression than adults
B. other media uses do no harm to adolescents
C. TV probably causes teenagers to grow up with depression
D. those who watch no TV will not develop depression
3.We can learn from the survey that of all the media use
A. computer games are teenagers' favourite
B. most teenagers prefer to listen to the radio
C. teenagers enjoy watching TV very much
D. newspaper is not included in the survey
4.We can conclude that a teenager should _____
A. play more video games instead of watching TV
B. be active in taking part in outdoor activities
C. be more active in watching educational TV programmes
D. attend religious services and care for politics
He lost his arms in an accident that claimed his father’s life who was the main 36 of support for the family. He had to _37__ the arms of his younger brother，and his younger brother became his ___38 _ ，never leaving him alone for years. Except for writing with his toes，he was completely unable to do _39_ in his life.
One late night，his younger brother accompanied him into the toilet and went back to __40__ . But being so 41___ ，his younger brother fell asleep，leaving him on the toilet for two hours. As the two brothers grew up together，they had their share of problems and they would often __42__ . His younger brother wanted to live _43__ from him，living his own life，as many normal people do. So he was 44 __ and didn't know what to do.
A _45__ misfortune befell(降临) a girl. One night her mother，who suffered from mental illness ___46_ . So her father went out looking for her mother，leaving her alone at home. She tried to prepare a __47_ for her parents，only to overturn the stove， _48 __ in a fire which took her hands away.
Though her elder sister who was studying in another city，showed her _49__ to take care of her，she was determined to be completely _50__ . At school，she always studied hard.
One day，the boy and the girl were both invited to appear on a television interview program. They were both asked to write something on a piece of paper with their toes. The boy wrote： My younger brother’s arms are my arms； 51_ the girl wrote: Broken wings，flying heart.
Disasters can 52_ at any time. If you choose only to complain and 53 from the ordeal(苦难的经历)，it will always follow you wherever you go. But if you decide to be ___54 ，the hardship will turn out to be a(n) 55 on which new hopes will arise.
1.A. cause B. strength C. source D. course
2.A. live on B. take on C. turn on D. depend on
3.A. shadow B. volunteer C. bodyguard D. servant
4.A. something B. anything C. nothing D. everything
5.A. play B. work C. wait D. wash
6. A. tired B. angry C. impatient D. unfair
7.A. support B. separate C. quarrel D. avoid
8.A. lonely B. different C. separated D. divided
9. A. heartless B. heart-broken C. kind-hearted D. heart-warming
10.A. same B. similar C. simple D. strange
11.A. died B. disappeared C. dismissed D. failed
12.A. meal B. medicine C. heating D. plan
13.A. leading B. resulting C. taking D. bringing
14.A. willingness B. anxiety C. contribution D. respect
15.A. independent B. relaxed C. disabled D. energetic
16.A. since B. while C. as D. though
17.A. strike B. afford C. form D. return
18.A. hide B. remain C. survive D. escape
19.A. careful B. strong C. healthy D. polite
20.A. difficulty B. fortune C. occupation D. attitude
We know that the Black Sea, one thousand years ago, was a fresh water lake about ________ and unconnected with the Mediterranean.
A. its two thirds present size B. two-thirds size of the present
C. its two-thirds of the present size D. two- thirds its present size
