Our village carpenter(木匠), John Hill, came one day and made a dining table for my wife. He made it just the right size to fill the space between the two windows. When I got home that evening, John was drinking a cup of tea and writing out his bill for the job.
My wife said to me quietly, “It’s his ninth cup of tea today.” But she said in a loud voice, “It is a beautiful table, dear, isn’t it?”
“I will decide about that when I see the bill, ” I read:
One dining table, 10 November, 1989.
Cost of wood: ＄17.00
Paint: ＄1.50
Work: 8 hours (＄1 an hour) ＄8.00
Total: ＄36.50
When I was looking at the bill, John said, “It’s been a fine day, hasn’t it? Quite sunny.” “Yes,” I said, “I’m glad it is only the 10th of November.”
“Me, too,” said John. “You wait. It’ll be a lot colder by the end of the month.”
“Yes, colder…. And more expensive! Dining tables will be ＄20 more expensive on November 30th, won’t they, John?” John looked hard at me for half a minute. Was there a little smile in his two blue eyes? I gave his bill back to him.
“If it isn’t too much trouble, John,” I said, “Please add it up again and you can forget the date.”
I paid him ＄26.50and he was happy to get it.Why did John talk about the weather when the writer was looking at the bill?_______
| A．Because he didn’t want the writer to go through the bill carefully. |
| B．Because it was really a fine day. |
| C．Because he wanted the writer to check the bill carefully. |
| D．Because he wanted to tell the writer what the weather was like. |
Why did the writer say that dining table would be＄ 20 more expensive on November 30th ?__________
| A．Because it was difficult to make dining tables in cold weather. |
| B．Because paint would be more expensive. |
| C．Because the cost of wood would be more expensive. |
| D．Because he thought John would certainly add to the cost of the dining table. |
From the story we know that _____________
| A．John made a mistake in the bill. |
| B．John tried to fool the writer in order to get more money for his work |
| C．John had written out the bill before the writer got home. |
| D．John still wanted to get ＄36.50 for his work in the end. |
Despite the fact that it has never been seen almost everyone is familiar with the legendary unicorn(独角兽). Descriptions of unicorns have been found dating from ancient times. The great philosopher Aristotle theorized that there were two types of unicorn--- the so-called Indian Ass and the Oryx, a kind of antelope. Unicorns are often used in the logo of a noble family, town council or university as their special sign. Even Scotland is represented by a unicorn.
According to the legend, anyone attempting to catch a unicorn had to be extremely careful as it was very fierce and dangerous. A clever trick suggested by unicorn-trappers, in order to catch this amazing animal without being hurt by its horn, was for the hunter to stand in front of a tree and then to move quickly behind it as the unicorn dashed angrily. Hopefully, the creature could then be caught when its horn was stuck in the tree.
When hollowed out and used as a drinking-cup, the unicorn’s horn was said to have the power to offer protection against person. It was believed that nobody could be harmed-by drinking the contents of a unicorn’s horn. Right up until the French Revolution in 1789, the French court was said to have used cups made of “unicorn” horn in order to protect the king. In addition, the horn was said to have medicinal value, so much so that it could be sold for more than ten times the price of the same weight of gold. What, then, was “unicorn” horn? We know at times the rhino(犀牛) was confused with this legendary creature. A drinking-cup supposedly made of “unicorn” horn was discovered to be made of the horn of a rhino.Which of the following is TRUE of the unicorn?
| A．It was not historically recorded |
| B．Its horn was first used in France |
| C．It was similar to the Indian Ass and the Oryx |
| D．It could be the symbol of a university |
To catch a unicorn, the unicorn-trappers had to try all of the following EXCEPT ____.
| A．attracting the unicorn to attack |
| B．making use of the tree as a defense |
| C．hiding quickly behind the unicorn |
| D．having the unicorn horn stuck in the tree |
The last paragraph is mainly about ____.
| A．the functions of the unicorn horn |
| B．the users of the unicorn horn |
| C．the price of the unicorn horn |
| D．the comparison between the unicorn horn and the rhino horn |
The 16-year-old girl Jessica Watson is said to be the youngest person to sail non-stop alone around the world. But her record has been questioned because someone thought that she has not sailed far enough. She will also not be recognized by the World Speed Sailing Record Council, as it was too dangerous for someone under 18 years old.
Ms Watson sailed into Sydney port on Saturday, seven months after leaving on a hard voyage. Family, friends and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd have gathered to greet her. Thousands of well-wishers waited at the port and watched from boats as Ms Watson sailed her pink, 10m boat over the finishing line. Many more Australians watched the event broadcast live on television. Watson said she was just an “ordinary girl who believed in her dream”.
Ms Watson left Sydney on 18 October, despite that some people disagreed her plan. Watson traveled northeast through the South Pacific and across the equator (赤道), south to Cape Horn at the tip of South America, across the Atlantic Ocean to South Africa, through the Indian Ocean and around southern Australia. The route took her through some of the world’s most changeful waters, and she battled through huge storms and suffered seven accidents of her boat.
People around the world have followed Ms Watson’s adventures on her blog, which she has daily updated (更新). On her blog, she wrote down beautiful sunrise over seas, the excitement of meeting a blue whale and the bright, terrible sight of a shooting star flying across the night sky above her boat. Ms Watson has reportedly sold her story to a news company for $700,000. She is planning to write a book on her experience. Which of the following oceans didn’t Ms Watson cross through in her voyage?
| A．The Pacific Ocean | B．The Atlantic Ocean |
| C．The Indian Ocean | D．The Arctic Ocean. |
Ms Watson’s voyage will NOT be considered an official world record mainly because ____.
| A．no one can prove that her route was dangerous enough |
| B．she hasn’t applied for the record |
| C．girls are not allowed to take part in the dangerous sports |
| D．teenagers re not encouraged to take such a dangerous adventure |
We can make a conclusion from this passage that Watson ____.
| A．would make another voyage for money |
| B．made the world round voyage for money |
| C．had no way to communicate with others during the voyage. |
| D．is so confident and brave that she could overcome troubles on her own |
All the following can be inferred from this passage EXCEPT that ____.
| A．her book about her voyage is a best seller |
| B．people in Australia had much interest in her voyage |
| C．she spent more than 200 days alone at sea |
| D．people have different attitudes towards her voyage |
Friendship Day in India falls on the first Sunday of August every year. It is celebrated with many activities.
Young people in India spend the day with their closest friends and have fun together. Most youngsters in India plan a movie or have a meal with their friends. Many friends may go on a drive to tourist places or make a plan for camping. Some friends go to the supermarket to do some shopping. On Friendship Day, most stores offer discounted prices for customers and it is the perfect day to buy something for friends.
Some friends go to parties that are organized by many restaurants in order to attract youngsters. Such parties are very enjoyable. You can get food at a discounted price. Some friends just decide to meet up (碰头，相聚) at someone’s home and talk about their happy time. The time good friends spend sitting together and talking over a cup of coffee is precious and unforgettable.
Long-distance friends call up each other on this day and wish each other with warm feelings. Some of them even plan to meet up on this particular day. Yet some others plan a surprising visit just to see their friend gasp (喘息) in shock!
In 2009, Friendship Day in India falls on August 2nd.So don’t forget to celebrate it with your friends. When is Friendship Day celebrated in India?
| A．On August 2nd every year. | B．On the third weekend of August every year. |
| C．On August 1st every year. | D．On the first weekend of August every year. |
According to the text, which of the following is the most popular way that youngsters in India celebrate Friendship Day?
| A．Traveling with friends | B．Seeing a film with friends |
| C．Dancing with friends | D．Going shopping with friends. |
How many ways are discussed in Paragraph 3 that friends spend Friendship Day together?
| A．Two | B．Three | C．Four | D．Five |
The underlined phrase “a surprising visit” in Paragraph 4 refers to “____”.
| A．a visit to a friend who hasn’t expected it |
| B．a visit to a friend who has dreamed of it for a long time |
| C．a visit to a friend who tries to avoid it |
| D．a visit to a friend who lives in a faraway place |
You may know the English letters A, B and C. But do you know there are people called ABC? You may like eating bananas. But did you know there is a “banana person”? How strange! Are these people from “another Earth”? No. They are just Chinese people like you and me.
ABC means American-Born Chinese. An ABC is a Chinese, but was born in the United States. Sometimes, people call an ABC a “banana person”. A banana is yellow outside and white inside. So, when a person is a banana, he or she is white inside—thinking like a Westerner and yellow outside—looking like a Chinese.
Do you know why? Usually, ABCs know little about China or the Chinese language. Some of them don’t speak Chinese.
But if ABCs cannot speak Chinese, can we still call them Chinese people? Yes, of course. They are Chinese. They are overseas (海外) Chinese. These people may be citizens(公民) of another country like the US, Canada or Singapore. But they have Chinese blood. Their parents, grandparents or even great-grandparents were from China. They all have black eyes and black hair.
But they are not Chinese citizens. They are not the people of the People’s Republic of China. For example, we all know the famous scientist C.N. Yang(杨振宁). He got the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1957. The Chinese love him, but he is an American citizen.What’s the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
| A．He wants to tell us something about “ABC”. |
| B．He wants to show that Chinese are well respected in America. |
| C．He wants to tell us some knowledge about the English language. |
| D．He wants to introduce the American culture to us. |
Chinese in Western countries are called “banana persons” because ____.
| A．their bodies are white inside but yellow outside |
| B．they think like Westerners but look like Chinese |
| C．they were born in China but go to study in America |
| D．they like to eat bananas |
C.N. Yang is mentioned here to show that ____.
A. American Chinese are great. B. we love American Chinese
C. The Chinese can win Nobel Prizes D. American Chinese are not Chinese citizens
Two thieves came to a house to steal something. They dug a hole in the wall of the house.
There lived many mice in the house. The woman in the moonlight saw a mouse crawl(爬行) into the house. “Look! In comes one,” she said to the man in the house. The thief was so frightened that he hurriedly crawled out of the house and said to the one waiting outside, “She found me when I was just in.” But the thief outside didn’t believe him, so he said, “Let us try to crawl into the house together.” At that time two mice happened to crawl into the house, too. The woman saw the mice and shouted, “In come two, catch them!” The two thieves were terribly frightened. The man in the house said, “You saw them come in but where are they? I will catch them tonight.” The two thieves started running away at once.
The two thieves wanted to make it clear whether they had been found or not the night before. The next day they acted as men selling sweet potatoes and came before the house. The man and the woman were ploughing in their fields. The rope broke and the woman came home for a rope. She saw two men selling sweet potatoes and wanted to buy some. She picked out two which looked like mice. At the time the man couldn’t wait for her any longer in the fields and he ran back from the fields to hurry her up. The woman showed the sweet potatoes to the man and said, “How they look like the two of last night.” The man said, “I asked you to fetch a rope, why don’t you hurry for it?” The two thieves ran away very quickly without their sweet potatoes.The two thieves failed to steal anything from the house because _____.
| A．they were found out |
| B．they were frightened by what they had heard in the house |
| C．they didn’t work together well with each other |
| D．mice stopped them from doing so |
From the last paragraph, we know that _____.
| A．the two thieves were famous selling sweet potatoes |
| B．the woman recognized the two thieves |
| C．the woman pretended to know nothing about the two thieves and made fun of them |
| D．the two thieves didn’t know that they were not found at all |
When the woman said, “How they look like the two of last night,” _____.
| A．she referred to the two thieves | B．she meant nothing |
| C．she said it on purpose | D．she referred to the mice |
The best title for the passage may be ____.
| A．Two Clever Thieves | B．Terrible Mice |
| C．Hit the Mark by a Fluke | D．A Clever Couple |
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