The other day, my friend Jane was invited to a 40th birthday party. The time printed on the invitation was 7:30 pm．Jane went off with her husband, expecting a merry evening of wine, food, and song．
By 9:45, everybody was having great fun, but no food had appeared. Jane and David were restless. Other guests began whispering that they, too, were starving．But no one wanted to leave, just in case some food was about to appear. By 11:00, there was still no food, and everyone was completely off their heads. Jane and David left hungry and angry．
Their experience suggests that the words on the printed invitations need to be made clearer. Everyone reads and understands the invitations differently. Most of us would agree that 6:30 - 8:30 pm means drinks only, go out to dinner afterwards; 8:00 pm or 8:30 pm means possible dinner, but 9:30 pm and any time thereafter means no food, eat beforehand, arrive late．
But this is not always the case．If asked to a students’ party at 6:30 pm, it is unaccepted for guests to appear on time. Being the first to arrive — looking eager — is social death. When my mother is asked to a party at 6:30, she likes to be there, if not on time, then no later than seven．My age group (late thirties) falls somewhere between the two, but because we still think we’re young, we’re probably closer to student-time than grown-up time．
The accepted custom at present is confusing, sometimes annoying, and it often means you may go home hungry, but it does lend every party that precious element of surprise．
1.The underlined words “off their heads” probably mean _______．
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A．tired |
B．crazy |
C．happy |
D．encouraging |
2.Jane and David’s story is used to show that _______．
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A．party invitations can be confusing |
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B．party-goers usually get hungry at parties |
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C．people should ask for food at parties |
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D．birthday parties for middle-aged people are dull |
3.For some young people, arriving on time for a students’ party will probably be considered _______．
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A．very difficult |
B．particularly thoughtful |
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C．friendly and polite |
D．socially unacceptable |
4.What is the general idea of the text?
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A．It’s safe to arrive late just when food is served． |
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B．It’s wise to eat something before going to a party． |
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C．It’s important to follow social rules of party-going． |
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D．There’s no need to read invitations carefully． |
The first time I saw Carlos I would never have believed he was going to change my life．I had my arms full of books and I was rushing into the classroom when 1 ran into something solid. It was Carlos.
"My... you're tall," he said. The whole class burst out laughing .
“Take that seat,” Mr. McCarthy told the cocky(骄傲自大的) newcomer Carlos，pointing to the only empty one , in the back of the room.
Carlos laughed widely. "But I need a couple of dictionaries."
The bell rang for classes. As I stood up to go, I saw Carlos coming toward me. "I'm sorry I embarrassed you," he said . I looked straight ahead over the top of his black hair. "That's all right."
"I ought to know better." He was still blocking my way. "What's your name?" "Karen Forbes." He held out his hand. Unwillingly, I shook hands with him. He looked up at me seriously with his brown eyes. " I am Carlos . I don't see why you're so touchy."
It was the school elections that made me think of Carlos again. Carlos was voted vice-president．“How come ?”I kept asking myself, "How come this shrimp（虾）who’s only been in town for a little over a month gets to be so popular?"
So on that morning，I stopped Carlos and said，“It doesn't seem to bother you — being short.” He looked up at me, "Of course I mind being short．But there isn’t anything I can do about it. When I realized I was going to have to spend my life in this undersized skin, I just decided to make the best of it and concentrate on being myself." "You seem to get along great,” I admitted, "But what about me? The trouble with you is you’re afraid to be yourself. You’re smart. And you could be pretty. In fact, you might be more than pretty.” I felt myself turning red…
1.It is a story about a short boy who .
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A．won the school election |
B．is ashamed of his height |
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C．has learned to accept his size |
D．is embarrassed by his class |
2.From the text, we can see Carlos is .
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A．handsome and proud |
B．humorous and confident |
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C．diligent but shy |
D．honest but sensitive |
3.The underlined word "touchy" in paragraph 8 probably means .
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A．moved |
B．cheerful |
C．curious |
D．annoyed |
4.According to the text, which is the most likely ending?
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A．The author didn’t want to make friends with Carlos |
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B．Carlos and the author argued with each other. |
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C．The author changed her attitude towards Carlos. |
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D．Carlos was elected president of the student committee. |
One morning I wasted nearly an hour watching a tiny ant carry a huge feather．Several times, it 36 obstacles（障碍物in its path．And after a pause it made the necessary detour. At one point, the ant had to 37 a crack(裂缝) about 10 mm wide．After some brief thoughts, the ant laid the 38 over the crack, walked across it and 39 up the feather on the other side, then continued on its way．I was 40 by the cleverness of this ant．It was only a small insect, lacking in 41 yet equipped with a brain to reason, explore, discover and overcome. 42 this ant, like the other two-legged creatures 43 on the earth, also shares human feelings．
After some time the ant finally reached its 44 – a flower bed and a small hole that was the entrance to its 45 home．It was there that the ant met its 46 . How could that large feather possibly 47 such a small hole? Of course, it couldn’t．So the ant, after all this trouble and using great brightness, overcoming problems all along the way, just 48 the feather and went home. The ant had not thought the problem through 49 it began its journey and in the end the feather was 50 more than a burden. Isn’t our 51 like this?
We worry about our families; we worry about our money or the 52 of it; and we worry about all kinds of things．These are all 53 —the things we pick up all the life, and drag them around the obstacles and over the cracks that life will bring, only to 54 that at the destination they are 55 and we can’t take them with us．
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——Whose advice do you think I should take?
——_________________________.
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A．I agree absolutely |
B．I go wild about it |
C．It’s up to you |
D．You got it. |
It is not until January ,2013 the Presidential election of the United States comes to an end we’ll know who is the new president.
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A．before; that |
B．that; that |
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C．that ;when |
D．when ; that |
A jobless man applied for the position of “office boy” at Microsoft. The HR manager interviewed him and then watched him cleaning the floor as a test.
“You are employed,” he said. “Give me your e-mail address and I’ll send you the application to fill in, as well as date when you may start.”
The man replied，“But I don’t have a computer, neither an e-mail.”
“I’ m sorry，” said the HR manager.“If you don’t have an e-mail，that means , you do not exist. And who doesn’t exist cannot have the job.”
The man left with no hope at all. He didn't know what to do with only ten dollars in his pocket. He then decided to go to the supermarket and buy 10 kg tomatoes. He then sold the tomatoes from door to door. In less than two hours, he managed to double his capital. He repeated the operation three times, and returned home happily with 60 dollars.
The man realized that he could survive in this way, and started to go every day earlier, and return late. Thus, his money doubled or tripled every day. Shortly, he bought a cart, then a truck, and then he had his own fleet of delivery vehicles. Five years later, the man is one of the biggest food retailers(销售商) in the US.
He started to plan his family’s future and decided to have a life insurance. He called an insurance broker（经纪人）and chose a protection plan.
When the conversation was concluded the broker asked him his e-mail. The man replied, “I don’t have an e-mail.”
The broker answered curiously,“You don’t have an e-mail, and yet have managed to build an empire. Can you imagine what you could have been if you had an e-mail?" The man thought for a while and replied,“Yes，I’d be an office boy at Microsoft!”
1.The underlined word “tripled” can be replaced by .
A. became large B. became 3 times
C. increased quickly D. decreased quickly
2.According to the passage，which of the following is TRUE?
A. The man is one of the biggest food retailers in the world.
B. The man didn’t give up though he failed the interview.
C. He started his career by selling tomatoes in the Supermarket.
D. Those who have e-mails can work at Microsoft.
3.The man can be described as .
A. helpful and considerate B. positive and generous
C. smart and hardworking D. stubborn and unselfish
4.Which proverb can best describe the story?
A. Misfortune may be an actual blessing. B. Where there is a will, there is a way.
C. Accidents will happen. D. No pains, no gains.
