There lived a king who liked art. One day an artist offered to paint the most
beautiful picture in the world on the wall of his palace.
So the king said, “All right, you may work on one of the walls in the new hall.” Just then, another artist said, “ Please allow me to work on the opposite wall. I shall make exactly what that man will make on the opposite wall. Moreover, I shall do so without looking at his work. I would even request you to have a thick curtain put up between the two walls so the either of us cann’t see the other.”
Everyone in the king’s court, including the king and the first artist was surprised. So the king decided to give the man a chance.
The following day a thick curtain was put into place and both the artists got to work. The first artist brought in a regular supply of paint, oil and water. But the second one would come with a cloth and a bucket of water every day.
A month later the first artist said that his work was completed and invited the king to come.
So the king sent the message to the second artist, saying he was coming to see their works that evening.
After seeing the first artist’s wall, the king was very impressed with the painting and gave him a huge sum of money as a reward. He then asked for the curtain to be opened up.
The same painting was seen on the opposite wall too! It was exactly like the one on the first wall. But this man had not seen what was going on, on the other side of the curtain.
The man said simply, “It’s very easy I just polished the wall every day!”
It was a wall made of white marble. The fellow polished it till it shone like a mirror.
The reflection of the painting across the room showed up in it!
1.A thick curtain was put up between the two walls in order to _____________.
A．help them concentrate on their work.
B．keep the first artist’s painting a secret.
C．prevent their painting from being seen.
D．make it hare for them exchange ideas.
2.Why did the first artist receive a large sum of money from the king?
A．His painting satisfied the king.
B．His painting was the best the king has ever seen.
C．He painted better than the second artist.
D．The king promised to give him a reward.
3.How was the king feeling when he saw second wall?
A．Surprised and excited. B．Fascinated and doubtful.
C．Satisfied and curious. D．The paintings on the wall.
4.What would be the best title of the text? _____________
A．A king who loved art. B．Two artists and the king.
C．Whose painting is better? D．The painting on the wall.
My friend Michelle is blind, but you’d never know it. She makes such good use of her other __1 , including her “sixth sense”, that she seldom gives the impression (印象) that she’s 2__ anything. It’s really amazing.
Michelle 3 her children pretty much like the rest of us, except that she isn’t too hard on them. Her children really benefit a lot from her 4 __attitude. She knows when to clean the house, and she moves around so fast that 5 often don’t realize she’s blind.
I 6 this the first time after my six-year-old daughter, Kayla, went to play there. When Kayla came home, she was very 7 about her day. She told me they had baked cookies, played games and done art projects. But she was 8 excited about her finger-painting project.
“Mom, guess what?” said Kayla, all smiles. “I learned how to 9 colors today! Blue and red make purple, and yellow and blue make green! And Michelle 10 with us”.
To my great 11 , my child had learnt about color from a blind friend! Then Kayla continued, “Michelle told me my 12 showed joy, pride and a sense of accomplishment (成就). She really 13 what I was doing!” Kayla said she had never known how good finger paints felt 14 Michelle showed her how to paint without looking at her paper.
I realized Kayla didn’t know that Michelle was blind. It had just never come 15 in conversation. When I told my daughter Michelle was blind, she was 16 for a moment. At first, she didn’t believe me. “But Mommy, Michelle knew exactly what was in my picture!” Kayla __17 . I knew my child was _18 because Michelle had listened to Kayla describe her art work. Michelle had also “heard” Kayla’s 19 in her work.
We were silent for a minute. Then Kayla said slowly, “You know, Mommy, Michelle did ‘see’ my picture. She just used my __20__.” Indeed, she uses a special type of “vision” that all mothers have.
1. A．ways B．means C．methods D．senses
2. A．enjoyed B．found C．missed D．held
3. A．comes across B．looks after C．picks out D．learns from
4. A．relaxed B．nervous C．anxious D．secret
5. A．parents B．family C．guests D．friends
6. A．realized B．heard C．forgot D．witnessed
7. A．sad B．calm C．excited D．puzzled
8. A．especially B．seldom C．frequently D．hardly
9. A．paint B．draw C．create D．mix
10. A．stayed B．painted C．talked D．competed
11. A．excitement B．encouragement C．delight D．surprise
12. A．attitude B．color C．picture D．paper
13. A．touched B．considered C．saw D．understood
14. A．after B．unless C．until D．if
15. A．up B．down C．back D．on
16. A．curious B．quiet C．angry D．worried
17. A．whispered B．insisted C．introduced D．informed
18. A．right B．wrong C．worried D．uncertain
19. A．shortcomings B．difficulties C．pride D．disappointment
20. A．paper B．pens C．hands D．eyes
—I have tried very hard to find a solution to the problem, but in vain.
—Why not discuss with Frank? You see, _________.
A．two heads are better than one
B．a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
C．it’s better to think twice before doing something
D．great minds think alike
As we all know, the English language ________ the grammar and vocabulary that people from different countries and cultures brought to Britain.
A．is consisted of B．makes up of C．consists of D．makes up
— It was cloudy yesterday.
—_________ today.
A．So it is B．So is it C．Neither it is D．Neither is it
It is reported that the United States uses ________ energy as the whole of Europe.
A．as twice B．twice much C．twice much as D．twice as much
