Question

Every year, as soon as Halloween is over, our son Matthew waits for the lights. He's been doing it for more than a dozen ______. As the days grow shorter and the nights longer, as the temperatures ______ and the leaves fall, he waits for the ______.

The neighbors across the street always put up a  ______ and brilliant light display for the holidays and Matthew loves to wait for them to be turned on, which usually  ______ right after Thanksgiving.______ he begins his monitoring a month before their arrival. And then, each day between Thanksgiving and ______ the lights are turned off, he waits, ______， from mid­afternoon on.

And when each evening's moment comes, you don't have to be with ______. You know it no matter where you are in the house. The rhythmic ______. The dancing around the house. Pure ______ on his face! And it happens every single night.

Despite all his ______， in the world's view — his severe mental disabilities, his two­-year-­old  ______ in a twenty­-three-year­-old body, his inability to speak — Matthew knows  ______ very profound, that light will shine in the darkness, that no matter how dark, how long the  ______ eventually, and without ______， those lights will shine again. No matter how many seasons of the year without them, there will come a season when those lights will shine again.

Life ______ its own seasons of darkness，desperate, lonely, ______ and full of fear at times. ______those seasons, a new season can come and the light can be seen again. Whatever  ______ I find within and around me, I look to my son, and remember that a light can break the darkness.

1.A. hours    B. seconds    C. decades    D. years

2.A. rise    B. change    C. drop    D. stay

3.A. lights    B. neighbors    C. tricks    D. holidays

4.A. tasteful    B. beautiful    C. strong    D. strange

5.A. happens    B. tests    C. obtains    D. delivers

6.A. Instead    B. Then    C. Therefore    D. However

7.A. unless    B. until    C. after    D. since

8.A. nervously    B. impatiently    C. excitedly    D. quietly

9.A. it    B. her    C. one    D. him

10.A. poems    B. excitement    C. fighting    D. clapping

11.A. surprise    B. sadness    C. glory    D. delight

12.A. limitations    B. advantages    C. characters    D. beliefs

13.A. brother    B. sister    C. mind    D. memory

14.A. nothing    B. something    C. everything    D. anything

15.A. holiday    B. display    C. street    D. wait

16.A. fail    B. pity    C. stop    D. plan

17.A. receives    B. proves    C. supports    D. brings

18.A. satisfying    B. unwilling    C. painful    D. peaceful

19.A. In spite of    B. Thanks to    C. Regardless of    D. As to

20.A. happiness    B. darkness    C. sympathy    D. warmth

Answer

1. D

2. C

3. A

4. B

5. A

6. D

7. B

8. C

9. D

10. D

11. D

12. A

13. C

14. B

15. D

16. A

17. D

18. C

19. A

20. B

【解析】

本文是一篇夹叙夹议文，作者的儿子马修患有智力障碍，非常喜欢在节日期间看邻居们进行的灯展，无论多晚，他都会等着看灯，每次灯被点亮时，他都会高兴得手舞足蹈，作者从马修身上得到启示：生活有黑暗的季节，令人感到痛苦、孤独和绝望，但要坚信光明终会打破黑暗。

1.考查名词词义辨析。A. hours小时；B. seconds秒；C. decades 十年；D. years年。根据本空前的“Every year, as soon as Halloween is over, our son Matthew waits for the lights. He's been doing it for more than a dozen”可知，每年万圣节一结束，Matthew都等着看灯，他已经这样做了12年，故D选项切题。

2.考查动词词义辨析。A. rise升起；B. change变化、交换；C. drop 掉落、下降；D. stay停留、保持。根据本空后的“the leaves fall”可知，气温下降，树叶落了，故C选项切题。

3.考查名词词义辨析。A. lights灯、光；B. neighbors邻居；C. tricks诀窍；D. holidays假期。根据上文中的“our son Matthew waits for the lights”可知，Matthew等着看灯，故A选项切题。

4.考查形容词词义辨析。A. tasteful有滋味的；B. beautiful好看的；C. strong强壮的；D. strange奇怪的。根据本空后的“and brilliant light display for the holidays”可知，街上的邻居们会进行一场好看的灯展，故B选项切题。

5.考查动词词义辨析。A. happens发生；B. tests测试；C. obtains获得；D. delivers传递。灯展上的灯通常是在感恩节一结束就被点亮，故A选项切题。

6.考查副词词义辨析。Instead相反；B. Then然后；C. Therefore所以；D. However然而。根据本空后的“he begins his monitoring a month before their arrival.”可知，然而，他在它们到达一个月之前就开始监测，前后是转折关系，故D选项切题。

7.考查连词词义辨析。A. unless除非；B. until直到；C. after在……以后；D. since自从。上文说他喜欢看灯，从感恩节到灯被关闭的每一天他都兴奋地在那等着看灯，故B选项切题。

8.考查副词词义辨析。A. nervously紧张地；B. impatiently不耐烦地；C. excitedly兴奋地；D. quietly安静地。喜欢看灯的Matthew应该是兴奋地等着，故C选项切题。

9.考查代词词义辨析。A. it它；B. her她；C. one一个；D. him他。每当灯展开始的时候，你都不必和Matthew在一起，因为他每次都是高兴得有节奏地拍手，围着房子跳舞，此处指代Matthew，故D选项切题。

10.考查名词词义辨析。A. poems诗；B. excitement兴奋；C. fighting战斗；D. clapping掌声、拍手。句意参考上题解析。指拍手，故D项切题。

11.考查名词词义辨析。A. surprise惊讶；B. sadness悲伤；C. glory光荣；D. delight高兴。灯一被点亮，Matthew就有节奏地拍手，围着房子跳舞，脸上洋溢着喜悦，故D选项切题。

12.考查名词词义辨析。A. limitations限制、缺陷；B. advantages优势；C. characters特征；D. beliefs信念。根据本空后的“in the world's view — his severe mental disabilities,”可知，Matthew有很严重的精神障碍，也就是身体有缺陷，故A选项切题。

13.考查名词词义辨析。A. brother兄弟；B. sister姐妹；C. mind智力；D. memory记忆。Matthew有很严重的精神障碍，23岁的他只有两岁孩子的智商，故C选项切题。

14.考查代词词义辨析。A. nothing什么也没有；B. something某（一些）；C. everything每一；D. anything任何。根据本空后的“very profound, that light will shine in the darkness”可知，Matthew知道有些东西很奥妙，那些灯会在黑夜里闪闪发亮，故B选项切题。

15.考查名词词义辨析。A. holiday假期；B. display展览；C. street街道；D. wait等待。无论多晚，无论等多久，无一意外，最后灯都会闪亮，故D选项切题。

16.考查名词词义辨析。fail失败、不及格；B. pity可惜；C. stop停止；D. plan计划。句意参考上题解析，此处用without fail表示“无疑、必定”，故A选项切题。

17.考查动词词义辨析。A. receives收到；B. proves证明；C. supports支持；D. brings带来。根据本空后的“its own seasons of darkness，desperate, lonely”可知，生活自有黑暗的季节，让人感到绝望孤独和痛苦，故D选项切题。

18.考查形容词词义辨析。A. satisfying令人满意的；B. unwilling不情愿的；C. painful痛苦的； D. peaceful平静的。句意参考上题解析，此处语义与前面的“desperate, lonely”相近，故C选项切题。

19.考查介词短语辨析。A. In spite of尽管；B. Thanks to幸亏；C. Regardless of不管；D. As to至于。根据本空后的“those seasons, a new season can come and the light can be seen again.”可知，尽管有这些季节，新的季节仍会到来，光明会再次出现，故A选项切题。

20.考查名词词义辨析。A. happiness快乐；B. darkness黑暗；C. sympathy同情；D. warmth温暖。根据本空后的“I find within and around me, I look to my son, and remember that a light can break the darkness.”可知，无论我身处于什么样的黑暗，我都想想我的儿子，并记住，光明终会打破黑暗，故B选项切题。