English Around the World
There are more than 3,000 languages 1.（speak）in the world. Of all these languages, English is the most 2.(wide) used. Recent 3.(survey) show that more than 500 million people speak English as their mother tongue.
From its roots in England, the language was spread around the world 4.English traders and English governments in new lands. One of these new lands 5.(become) the United States of America. The population of the United States is 309 million, 6.(make) it the country with the 7.(large) number of native English speakers.
About 300 million people speak English as their second language. There are even more people, like some in Europe as well as in China and Japan, 8. study English as a foreign language.
English has become the base language for international business, for the world’s airlines and even for the Internet. Whatever language people speak, they need 9.(know) some English if they work in these fields. 10. is clear that the English language is becoming more important.
1.We are going to have a basketball game _______(对着) Class Three on Sunday.
2.A: What’s your _________(最喜欢的) sport?
B: Basketball, of course.
3.Kangkang, Michael, please don’t _______(吵架). Michael doesn’t do well in soccer but he did his best.
4.A: Shall I take you to the ________(医院)？
B: No, thank you. I’ll go home and have a rest.
5.I’m reading an article about ________(抽烟) in the newspaper.[
6.These days many people have the flu. So what should we do ________（阻止）it?
7.A: Do you like classical music?
B: No, I don’t like it at all. It’s too _______(严肃).
8.A terrible earthquake _______(侵袭) Yushu in Qinghai Province early this morning.
9.Mr. Brown feels _________(沮丧) because he couldn’t get a ticket to The Sound of Music.
10.Li Hong is very ________(严格) with herself.
11.If we are not ________(自信) about ourselves, we may feel upset or nervous.
12.Let’s find out some _________(信息) about the cost.
13.While you were enjoying your trip to Mount Tai, I was busy ________(准备) for my exams.
14.Tian anmen Square can _______(容纳) one million people.
15.If we break the traffic rules, we may get a _______(罚单) and even be in danger.
One evening, Mr. Green was driving in his car along a lonely country road. He had _____ to a bank where he had drawn $ 50. At the loneliest part of the road a man in ____ clothes stopped him and asked for a lift. Mr. Green allowed him _____and drove on. As he talked to the man, he ____that the man had been in ____ for robbery(抢劫) and had broken out of prison that very evening. Mr. Green was very ____ about his 50 dollars.
Suddenly he saw a police car and had a ____ idea. He had just reached a small town where the speed limit was 30 miles per hour. He drove the car as ____ as possible. A moment later, the police car overtook(超过) him and ____ him to stop. Mr. Green ____ to tell the policeman about the escaped robber, but the man put a gun to his_____. The policeman took out a ____ and demanded Mr. Green’s name and ____. Mr. Green asked to be taken to the police station but was ____.
Mr. Green started up his ____ again. As he drove out of the town, the man wanted to ____ “ Thank you for the lift. You’ve been so _____ to me. This is the least I can do for you in ___.” The man handed Mr. Green the ____ , which he stole from the ____ pocket while Mr. Green was being cr
iticized(批评).
1.A. driven B. been C. gone D. visited
2.A. dirty B. good C. warm D. beautiful
3.A. out B. off C. down D. in
4.A. told B. said C. learnt D. remembered
5.A. school B. prison C. office D. forest
6.A. happy B. pleased C. excited D. worried
7.A. strange B. bright C. foolish D. sad
8.A. fast B. slowly C. carefully D. soon
9.A. begged B. invited C. ordered D. advised
10.A. hoped B. agreed C. decided D. thought
11.A. face B. head C. pocket D. back
12.A. notebook B. gun C. wallet D. menu
13.A. age B. address C. birth date D. birth place
14.A. refused B. invited C. welcome D. accepted
15.A. idea B. plan C. gun D. car
16.A. get on B. get down C. get out D. get up
17.A. kind B. well C. polite D. bad
18.A. turn B. time C. return D. surprise
19.A. money B. pen C. notebook D. gun
20.A. policeman’s B. driver’s C. prisoner’s D. robber’s[
My students often tell me they don’t have “enough time” to do all their schoolwork. My reply is often brief—You have as much time as the president. I usually carry on a bit about there being 24 hours in the day for everyone, and suggest that “not enough time” is not an acceptable explanation of not getting something done.
Once in graduate school, I tried to excuse myself to one of my professors by saying that I was working hard. His answer to me was, “That’s irrelevant. What’s important is the quality of your work.” Since then I have had time to think about the “hard worker” dodge (伎俩), and I have come to some conclusions — all relevant to the issue of how much time we have.
If you analyze(分析) the matter, you can identify(确定) two parts of the problem: There is, of course, the matter of “time”, which we can think of as fixed. Then there is the problem of “work” during that time. But, as my professor suggested, it’s not how hard one works but the quality of the product that is important.
That led me to a new idea: the quality of the work. That concept is perhaps best explained by a sign I once saw on the wall in someone’s office---Don’t work harder but work smarter. There’s a lot of sense in that idea.
If you can’t get more time, and few of us can, the only solution(解决方法) is to improve the quality of the work. That means thinking of ways to get more out of the same time than we might otherwise get. That should lead us to an analysis of our work habits. Since “work” for students usually means “homework”, the expression “work habits” should be read as “study habits”.
Then, as a smart student, you will seek to improve those skills that you use in study, chiefly reading and writing. If you learn to read better and write better, there are big benefits that pay off in all your studies.
1.From the passage, we know that the author is ______ .
A. a poet B. a editor
C. an educator D. an director
2.We can infer from the first two paragraph that we students _____ .
A. have enough time B. can meet the president
C. get something done well D. should accept the explanation
3.The underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 means_________.
A. That is impossible B. That is not acceptable
C. That is unbearable D. That is not important
4.The main purpose of writing the passage is to give_______.
A. advice B. encouragement
C. criticism D. information
Everybody in this world is different from one another. But do you know that understanding differences can help you better manage your money?
As we grow up, we gradually develop a set of our own values or beliefs. These are influenced by society, our family, the education we receive and so on. Once this value system is set up, it’s not easy to change later in life.
Financial (金融) experts say that everyone also has their own belief of how to manage their finances. This is part of our value system and it has a great impact on the way we look after our money.
According to our different values, experts put us in three categories. They are: the ant, the cricket and the snail.
The ant—works first
Just like ants who work heart and soul in summer in order to store food for winter, these people don’t care about enjoying the moment. They work very hard and save money they earn so that they can enjoy life when they get old and retire. The ant loves to save but they could make more out of their money if they were willing to invest(投资) in some funds and stocks with low risk.
The cricket—fun first
The cricket wants to enjoy everything now and doesn’t think too much about the future. They even borrow money when they really want something. Many young people now belong to this group. These people have little savings. When they get old, they might have problems. They should learn to save and buy insurance(保险).
The snail—lives under pressure(压力)
The snail refers to people who make life difficult for themselves. They take big long-term loans (贷款)from the bank in order to buy things such as luxury(奢华的) houses. They are happy to take big loans even though they are not sure they can afford it. This can cause problems in the future. They should plan more carefully.
1.People with the character of the snail would like to _______.
A. enjoy life at the moment without thinking much about the future
B. live a luxury life at all costs
C. put work before everything else.
D. take the risk of investing a large sum of money
2.Our beliefs and values are affected by the following except ______.
A. society B. money
C. education D. our family
3.This passage mainly talks about _______.
A. the reaction between man and insects
B. the problems with dealing with money
C. the insects in nature
D. the spending nature of people
4.Which of the following has the character that the author prefers?
A. The ants B. The cricket
C. The snail D. None of the above
From: Wendy and Jack Brown
Date: September 22, 2014
To: 8th and 9th graders at R.L.S. Junior School
Subject: Bonjour!
Bonjour! (That means hello in French.)
We hope you all had a great summer. Ours was a lot of fun. We have seen so many new things and met so many wonderful people. The French gave us a warm welcome and helped us get used to living here soon. We have so many things to share with all of you. We are going to send you more emails, but here are the best parts of
our holiday in France so far.
We had a fantastic time seeing t
he Tour de France this summer. It is the most famous bicycle race in the world. The riders travel more than two thousand miles in about a month! We got a quick look at the riders as they sped past! After the race, our family rented bikes, and rode along part of the route that the cyclists used.
A few of you asked whether the French really eat snails(蜗牛). The answer is yes. We went out to dinner the other day, and our parents ordered some. We each tried one and it didn’t taste too bad. The snails, called escargots, are served with lots of butter. They feel a little rubbery when you bite into them, but they don’t really have much taste. Mum’s favourite food here is the French pastries. Dad loves the red wine. Our favourite is the fresh bread from the shop down the street.
We went to visit the Eiffel Tower a few weeks ago. We went all the way to the top. It was a sunny day, so we could see for miles and miles into the distance. Dad doesn’t like heights, so he stayed at the bottom of the tower and took pictures from the ground.
We miss all of you a lot. Write back to us and let us know what is new at home.
Au revoir! (Can you guess what that means in French?)
Wendy and Jack Brown
1.What do the 
Browns think of French people?
A. Friendly. B. Funny.
C. Welcome. D. Popular.
2.Jack’s favourite food in France is .
A. tasty snails B. French pastries
C. fresh bread D. red wine
3.Which of the following is NOT true according to the email?
A. Wendy and Jack got used to the life in France soon.
B. Tour de France is the best-known bicycle race in the world.
C. The Browns have seen many wonderful things in France.
D. The Browns went to the top of the Eiffel Tower together.
4.Wendy and Jack wrote this email to .
A. tell a story about riding bicycles in France
B. tell a story about their experiences in France
C. advise the readers to try escargots in France
D. advise the readers to visit France in summer
