Question

There was a gardener who looked after his garden with great care. To water his flowers, he used two buckers. One was a shiny and new bucket. The other was a very old and dilapidated one, which had seen many years of service, but was now past its best.

Every morning, the gardener would fill up the two buckets. Then he would carry them along the path, one on each side, to the flowerbeds. The new bucket was very proud of itself. It could carry a full bucket of water without a single drop spilled . The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes: before it reached the flowerbeds, much water had leaked along the path.

Sometimes the new bucket would say, “See how capable I am! How good it is that the gardener has me to water the flowers every day! I don't know why he still bothers with you. What a waste of space you are!”

And all that the old bucket could say was, “I know I’m not very useful, but I can only do my best. I’m happy that the gardener still finds a little bit of use in me, at least.”

One day, the gardener heard that kind or conversation. After watering the flowers as usual, he said, “You both have done your work very well. Now I am going to carry you back. I want you to look carefully along the path.”

Then the two buckets did so. All along the path, they noticed, on the side where the new bucket was carried, there was just bare earth; on the other side where the old bucket was carried, there was a joyous row of wild flowers, leading all the way to the garden.

1.What does the underlined word “dilapidated” probably mean?

A．Dirty             B．Dark             C．Worn-out         D．Plain-looking.

2.What was the old bucket ashamed of?

A．His past.          B．His aging.          C．His manner.        D．His leaking.

3.The new bucket made conversations with the old one mainly to

A．laugh at the old one

B．take pity on the old one

C．show off its beautiful looks

D．praise the gardener’s kindness

4.Why was the old bucket still kept by the gardener?

A．Because it was used to keep a balance

B．Because it stayed in its best condition

C．Because it was taken as a treasure

D．Because it had its own function

Answer

1.C

2.D

3.A

4.D

【解析】

试题分析：本文讲述了两只桶的不同的作用，一只很新，另外一只却漏水。但是两只桶都有自己的作用。

1.C 推理题。根据本句One was a shiny and new bucket. The other was a very old and dilapidated one说明这里的dilapidated与上一句的shiny意思相反，故C正确。

2.D 细节题。根据第二段最后3行The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes: before it reached the flowerbeds, much water had leaked along the path.说明是是也自己漏了很多的水，故D正确。

3.A 细节题。根据第三段最后2句I don't know why he still bothers with you. What a waste of space you are!”说明那只新的桶进行这样的对话是为了取笑对方，故A正确。

4.D 根据文章最后一段Then the two buckets did so. All along the path, they noticed, on the side where the new bucket was carried, there was just bare earth; on the other side where the old bucket was carried, there was a joyous row of wild flowers, leading all the way to the garden.说明这只漏的桶有自己的功能。能让路边的花得到浇灌。故D正确。

考点：考查人生哲理类短文阅读