Every year on April 1, April Fools’ Day is celebrated in many countries around the world. In France, it’s called Poisson d’Avril or “Fish of April.” In Scotland, the holiday is often called “Gowkie Day.” In Iraq, the holiday is called Kithbet Neesan or “April Lie.”
History experts say people have celebrated April Fools’ Day for a long time. Some believe the tradition comes from the ancient Romans more than two thousand years ago. It was a day of playing games and pretending to be someone else.
Others say the day for fooling began in France in 1564, when King Charles changed the yearly calendar（日历）. He moved New Year’s Day from April 1 to January 1. Many people did not know about the change because of communication problems back then. Some people continued to celebrate New Year’s Day on April 1. Other people called them April Fools and played jokes on them.
In the United States, April Fools’ Day is just a day of joking and playing tricks on friends. These kinds of jokes are also called pranks. These jokes typically end in the prankster shouting “April Fools’!”
Simple pranks, like telling a friend a funny lie or making prank phone calls, are still common. But, major companies also get in on April Fools’ Day fun in a much bigger way. A few years ago, on April 1, Starbucks announced it was introducing new coffee cup sizes -- Plenta and Micra. The very large cups, bigger than a human head, remained useful for customers even after finishing all that coffee. According to Starbucks, the cups could be used as a rain hat, a pot for plants, or a lampshade（灯罩）.
It did not take long for customers to catch on to the prank!
More and more, people use social media or smart phone apps（应用程序）to play pranks on their friends on April Fools’ Day. One very annoying smart phone app, Cat Facts, sends funny facts about cats to your friends’ phones, every day.
1.What is not true about “April Fools’ Day”?
A. It has been celebrated for a long time.
B. Its tradition comes from the ancient Romans.
C. French people celebrated it because of not knowing that King Charles changed the yearly calendar.
D. Different countries have different names for it.
2. In the United States, April Fools’ Day is .
A. a day of joking and playing tricks on friends.
B. a day when you can play jokes on any people.
C. a day when people can’t shout “April Fools’!”
D. a day when Starbucks introduced new coffee.
3.What’s the meaning of the underlined word “pranks”(para4)?
A. friends B. methods
C. jokes D. jokers
“幽默感”被认为是人类最重要的品质之一。请你用英语写一篇短文陈述幽默的好处。要点如下：
1．促进学习；2. 有益健康；3. 缓解压力；4. 增进友谊。
注意：1. 词数：100左右；
2．可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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下面短文中共有10处错误，错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏词符号（∧），并在此符号下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1．每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2．只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分
Union is strength. Whenever you’re faced with difficulties, and cooperation plays an important part in getting you out of trouble.
There was a time that I was so proud that I overlooked my classmate, refusing to work together with them.Therefore, it was no doubt that I was left alone,suffering from loneliness and failure. Unluckily, a teacher impressed on me the value of cooperation.From then on, I learned to help others and turn to my friends for the help whenever I had difficulty finish a task on my own. Surely cooperation makes a great difference. Now I am getting on well with his friends.
My experience has teach me that only if we place great stress cooperation can we go beyond ourselves. As the saying go, “United we stand; divided we fall.”
Everyone may have a complex and different process of 1. (grow up). There are many 2. (influence)factors in a person's growth and development of his personality.
As for me,what has affected me most in my growth and personality is my family and friends, the two 3. （equal） important factors. As we know, children who 4. (bring up)in a good atmosphere have a better character than those 5. are not. 6. (fortune), I belong to the former. Besides, friends in some ways affect me a lot. 7. we my have many different opinions and personalities, I have really learned something positive from them. In 8. (conclude), I get lots of valuable things from them. My family offers me warmth and cares, 9. my friends give me 10. (strong) and courage. Both of them have influenced me most since I was born.
Two young girls were proud of their beautiful hands. One put them in shining water, and the 1. looked like diamonds dripping (滴下) from them.“What beautiful hands I have！” she said, and then2. her hands for others to admire. They were very soft and white, for she had done 3. but wash them in clear water.
The other girl crushed some flowers in her hands, and they 4. like perfume (香水). “What beautiful hands I have！” she said. Her hands smelled like flowers, 5. she’d never done anything but wash them with 6. every morning.
Another girl nearby didn’t show her hands. She hid them in the 7. of her coat.
An old woman came down the road and 8. before the girls. The first two 9. their hands and asked her whose hands were more beautiful. She10. her head at them and then asked to see the hands of the11. girl.
“Oh, these hands are clean, 12. ,” said the old woman,“but they are hard from 13. .These hands have been helping the girl’s mother and father dry the dishes, sweep the floor, water the garden, 14. for the baby, and show the little brother 15. to build blocks. These hands have been 16. making the house a happy home.” 17. the old woman brought out a ring set (镶嵌) 18. a diamond.“Here, wear this ring, my child. You deserve the 19. for the most beautiful hands that are always the most 20. .”
1.However, all floods are not alike. Some floods develop slowly, sometimes over a period of days. But flash floods can develop quickly, sometimes in just a few minutes and without any signs of rain. Flash floods often have a dangerous wall of roaring water. It carries rocks and mud and can sweep away most things in its path. Overland flooding occurs outside a river but still can be harmful. Flooding can also occur when a dam breaks, producing effects similar to flash floods.
If a flood is likely to occur in your area, you should:
Listen to the radio for information. 2. Don’t wait for instructions to move.
If you have time to prepare, you should:
Make your home safe by bringing in outdoor furniture. More essential items to an upper floor. 3. Do not touch any electrical equipment if you are wet or standing in water.
4.
Don’t walk through moving water. Six inches of moving water can make you fall. If you have to walk in water, walk where the water is not moving. Use a stick to check the firmness of the ground in front of you.
Don’t drive into flooded areas. If flood water rises around your car, give up the car and move higher ground if you can do so safely. 5.
The following are guidelines for the period following a flood:
Listen to news reports to learn whether the community’s water supply is safe to drink. Stay away from downed power lines, and report them to the power company.
A. Turn off all pieces of electrical equipment.
B. Otherwise you and the car can be quickly swept away.
C. The following are tips about escaping from floods.
D. Floods are one of the most common disasters in the United States.
E. If you have to leave your home right away, remember the following tips.
F. If there is any possibility of a flash flood, move immediately to higher ground.
G. There are many natural disasters like floods, storms, hurricanes in the US every year.
