He met her at a party. She was so outstanding, while he was so normal. At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him. They sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, she felt uncomfortable, and she thought to herself, “Please let me go home… ”
Suddenly he asked the waiter, “Would you please give me some salt? I'd like to put it in my coffee. ” Everybody stared at him, so strange! His face turned red, but, still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it. She asked him curiously, “Why do you have this hobby?” He replied, “When I was a little boy, I was living near the sea, I liked playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of the sea, just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee. I always think of my childhood and hometown.” While saying that, tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched. A man who can tell out his homesickness, must be a man who has responsibility of home. Then she started to speak about her faraway hometown, her childhood, her family.
That was a really nice beginning of their story. They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who meets all her damands. He was such a good person but she almost missed him! Thank to his salty coffee! They got married. Every time she made coffee, she put some salt in the coffee, as she know that’s the way he liked it.
After 40 years, he passed away, left her a letter which said, “My dearest, please forgive my whole life lie. This was the only lie I said to you—the salty coffee. Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous actually I wanted some sugar, but I said salt. It was hard for me to change so I went ahead. I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life, but I was too afraid to do that, as I have promised not to lie to you for anything. I'm afraid of nothing so I tell you the truth; I don't like the salty coffee, what a strange bad taste. But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life! Since I knew you, I never feel sorry for anything I do for you. If I call live for a second time. I still want to know you and have you for my whole life, even though I have to drink the salty coffee again.”
Her tears made the letter totally wet. Someday, someone asked her, “What's the taste of salty coffee?” she replied. “sweet,”
1.The reason why the woman wanted to leave is that _______．
A．the man was normal while the woman was outstanding
B．the woman was too nervous to stay
C．the woman felt uncomfortable to be with the man
D．the man asked for salty coffee
2.Why did she think the salty coffee tasted sweet?
A．Because the salty coffee represented her husband's endless love for her．
B．Because she mistook the sugar for salt．
C．Because her husband switched salt with sugar in her coffee．
D．Because the salty coffee was a white lie with a good intention．
3.What can we learn from the man's letter?
A．The man wasn't brave enough to tell the truth because he was scared of the woman,
B．The man had never thought of telling the truth before he was dying．
C．The man fell in love with the salty coffee gradually after many years of taking it out of his love for his wife．
D．The man would still, choose to drink salty coffee if he had to know and have her through it．
4.In what way does the writer develop this story?
A．Cause and effect． B．Problem reasoning．
C．The time order． D．Statistics analyzing,
完型填空（共20小题；每小题1．5分，满分30分）
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上涂黑。
A daughter thought life was unpromising to her and complained to her father about it．She did not know how she was going to__36_and wanted to give up．She was__37_of fighting and struggling．It seemed as if one problem was just solved before a new one__38__．
Her father, a cook, took her to the__39 _．He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high 40 Soon the pots came to a 41 __．In one he placed carrots, in the second he placed eggs, and the last he placed ground coffee beans．He let them sit and boil, without saying a word．
The daughter sucked her teeth and_42_waited, asking repeatedly what he was doing．In about twenty minutes he turned offthe__43_ He fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl．He pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl．Then he spooned the coffee out and placed it in another．Turning to her he asked, "Darling, what do you see?"
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied．
He brought her closer and asked her to 44 the carrots．She did and noted that they were soft．He then asked her to take an egg and break it．After pulling off the 45 , she observed the hard-boiled egg! Finally, he asked her to taste the coffee．She smiled_46_she tasted its rich flavor．She humbly asked, "What does it mean, Father?"
He explained that each of them had faced the same 47 , boiling water, but each_ 48 differently．The carrot went in 49 and hard．But after being subjected to the boiling water, it _50_and became weak． The egg had been 51 .Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior．But after sitting__52_the boiling water, its inside became hardened．The ground coffee beans were unique, 53 ．After they were in the boiling water, they had__54_the water．
"Which are you?" he asked his daughter．"When adversity knocks on your door, __55 _do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?"
1.A．make out B．make it C．make up D．make through
2.A．typical B．conscious C．tired D．warned
3.A．raised B．arose C．disappeared D．faded
4.A．room B．market C．kitchen D．grocery
5.A．shelf B．temperature C．fire D．table
6.A．boil B．cool C．hot D．smoke
7.A．happily B．calmly C．casually D．impatiently
8.A．lights B．burners C．tap D．water
9.A．see B．carry C．feel D．fetch
10.A．shell B．pack C．bag D．cover
11.A．since B．as C．before D．if
12.A．occasion B．point C．variety D．adversity
13.A．reflected B．answered C．abandoned D．reacted
14.A．stable B．weak C．strong D．sensitive
15.A．softened B．widened C．shortened D．sharpened
16.A．half-done B．easily-broken C．easily-got D．hard-boiled
17.A．over B．for C．through D．on
18.A．however B．otherwise C．besides D．moreover
19.A．melted B．absorbed C．polluted D．changed
20.A．what B．how C．when D．why
Unreasonable ________, it turned out to be effective．
A．though sounded the plan B．though the plan sounded
C．the plan sounded though D．sounded the plan though
Due to bad weather we have to put ___ off until next week to go camping in the mountains．
A．it B．that C．one D．this
—Do you know how to start the machine?
—________．I'm a green hand．
A．Not a clue B．Exactly C．By all means D．Just so-so
We are a team so we must assist one another _____ completing the task．
A．with B．to C．at D．in
