Big Ben is not the name of a man. It is the name of a big clock in London. London is the capital of England. This clock has four faces. So, no matter （无论）where you stand, you can read the time on the face of Big Ben. Each face is the size of a bus. The hands are about four meters long. It is about the size of two people standing on top each other. If you go to London, you may want to visit the Houses of Parliament. （国会大厦）In that place you will find Big Ben sits at the top of the clock tower in the Houses of Parliament. You will probably hear it and see it. The big clock makes such a loud noise. “Ding dong, ding dong.” It goes, every quarter of an hour. The name of Big Ben comes from a big builder. Big Ben is _____.
| A．a bus | B．a clock | C．the name of Ben | D．a house |
Big Ben is in _______.
| A．China | B．the USA | C．Japan | D．the UK |
The clock strikes (敲；打) every _______ minutes of an hour.
| A．ten | B．fifteen | C．thirty | D．forty-five |
You can read the time of Big Ben _______.
| A．at the top of the clock tower |
| B．in the Houses of Parliament |
| C．on the hands of the huge clock |
| D．on the four faces of the clock |
The underlined (划线部分) word “ hands” means ___ in Chinese.
| A．手 | B．标志 | C．指针 | D．发条 |
【2013北京】
The willful blindness in hockey toward concussions (头部撞击) has dropped. Hockey Canada has followed the lead of USA Hockey in preventing bodychecking (身体拦截) below age 13. A bad head injury of Sidney Crosby, the hockey's greatest star, opened the eyes of hockey people everywhere. This country's children have been facing similar danger at early ages, and Hockey Canada had to deal with a deep worry in the minds of Canadians to make the rule change. The liking for bodychecking from an early age is part of what makes Canadian hockey what it is.
The change in rules should be taken as a chance to draw special attention to skill development in an environment free of danger. It may also control the loss of thousands of young players who don't enjoy that environment.
For years, many Canadian hockey parents and coaches have insisted that bodychecking at early ages is necessary to ensure that players can do it safely at older ages. True or not, there may be a safer way to teach hitting than to make younger players pay a price for it in head injuries. When USA Hockey changed its rules for the 2011-2012 season, it also created bodychecking-education programs that will be mandatory(强制的) for all coaches, including those teaching players in the pre-checking ages. And it began to encourage more "touch" - without real bodychecking - from 9 t0 12. It also made the rules for 13 and up stricter. The USA is trying to show that it's possible to teach hockey protective skills without putting11 and 12-year-olds in greater danger. It's worth the try.
Hockey Canada has taken serious steps to do away with hits on the head. However, it's hard to change a sports culture so connected with who we are as a country. Too often, bodychecking has been used to try to separate a player from his head rather than from the ball. Children were paying a price for this country's love of the game.
There are always changes in Canada's game, and the change in the bodychecking age sends the clearest message yet to coaches and parents that player safety is paramount(至上的) in the game.
We can tell that the problem of bodychecking in Canada____________.
| A．is controlled strictly |
| B．is taken more seriously now |
| C．is caused by players' carelessness |
| D．is connected with players' interest |
What does the writer want to tell us in Paragraph 2?
| A．The safe ways of controlling the loss. |
| B．The steps of drawing special attention. |
| C．The possible results of changing the rules. |
| D．The methods of improving the environment. |
What can we learn from the passage?
A. The USA found a safer way to teach bodychecking.
B. Bodychecking-education programs in the USA are successful.
C. Bodychecking is a good way to value players' skills in the USA.
D. The USA has tried to create an environment of less bodychecking.
What is probably the best title' for this passage?
| A．Which is more important? |
| B．How do we change the rules? |
| C．Why is hockey a dangerous game? |
| D．When should bodychecking be prevented? |
【2013年重庆】Sometimes the easiest way to get somewhere is on the back of a bike.
More and more people are using cars in many places in Africa today. However, things are different in Malawi( 马拉维 ).Bikes are the most popular in this African country.
Bike riding is a way of life in Malawi. People use them to carry heavy things. They also use bikes to carry people, especially tourists. These years, taking a “ bicycle taxi” to travel around Malawi has become quite popular among tourists from all over the world.
If you go to Malawi, you will find a lot of bike taxis waiting on the sides of the roads. The riders make the bikes comfortable for passengers to sit on . You can jump on a bike taxi and get around at a very low cost.
Alice is a 21-year-old student from Canada. She enjoys the special bike riding a lot. “I really like the bike taxi,” she says. “It’s easy and cheap.” Alice usually pays just $1 for going shopping in town.
28-year-old Panjira Khombe began to ride a bike taxi two years ago. The young man enjoys this job.“I used to make boats for a living, but that’s a hard job. Being a bike taxi rider is easy for me and I don’t mind carrying heavy people,” he says.In Malawi ________ are the most popular way for people to get somewhere.
| A．cars | B．bikes |
| C．trains | D．buses |
The passage tells us that Alice enjoys the bike taxi because it’s________.
| A．on the side of the road | B．popular and heavy |
| C．all over the country | D．cheap and easy |
From the passage we can learn Panjira Khombe thinks that________.
| A．going shopping is easy |
| B．making boats is difficult |
| C．riding a bike taxi is cheap |
| D．carrying heavy people is interesting |
The best title of the passage may be “________ ” .
| A．Bike Riders | B．A Special Country |
| C．Bike Taxis | D．A Cheap Journey |
【2013年安徽】Many people say that they are working too many hours. They don't have enough time to relax or to stay with their family.
Work hours are different from one country to another. In France, people spend about 1,646 hours a year at work. In Japan, however, people work about 2,159 hours a year. That means a Japanese worker works 513 more hours a year than a French worker.
Why do people work so many hours? Some people workextrahours because they want to make more money. However, many companies don't pay overtime. Their workers don't get more pay for more work. Some people think it's their duty to work more hours. Some are afraid of losing their jobs if they don't work more hours.
Many people say that their vacations are too short. In France, people get five weeks of paid vacation a year. In Germany, they get four to six weeks, and in the United States, two weeks. One study shows fewer than half of workers used all their vacation days. In Great Britain, there is a saying, "All work and no play makes Jack a dull (迟钝的) boy." If that is true, there must be a lot of dull people in the world.
A Japanese worker works _ _ more hours a year than a French one.
| A．513 | B．1,646 |
| C．2,159 | D．3,805 |
The word "extra" in Paragraph 3 means ".
| A．正常的 | B．额外的 | C．有用的 | D．少量的 |
People in ________ get only two weeks of paid vacation a year.
| A．France | B．Germany |
| C．the United States | D．Great Britain |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．No companies offer vacations to their workers. |
| B．Many people say they have enough time to relax. |
| C．Not all companies pay their workers for more work. |
| D．More than half of workers use all their vacation days. |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Many workers have to work long hours. |
| B．Many people have vacations long enough. |
| C．Work hours are the same around the world. |
| D．There are a lot of dull people in the world. |
【2014年江苏省无锡市中考】
阅读下面的短文，然后根据短文内容，在每小题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Hawaii is a truly beautiful place. Most people know Hawaii for its lovely beaches. However, Hawaii is also a land full of legends(传奇). One of the oldest legends tells of a special dance called the hula, which started here around 300 years ago.
One hula teacher tells the story of how the dance started. “The hula started, as far as the legend tells it, when Hi’iaki and her good friend Hopoe went down to the beach. And then, when they were there, they noticed the waves(波浪)…and they imitated the waves. And then started to use their hands…like showing the waves.That is how the hula started.”
However,not everyone has always liked the hula.In 1820,some religious(宗教的) people from Western countries came to Hawaii.The visitors were shocked by the hula because the dancers were not wearing many clothes.So they asked the local government to ban(制止) the dance.
After that,most Hawaiians were not allowed to perform the hula in public for almost 60 years.But that did not mean the dancing stopping.Many dances still performed the hula in secret.The dance was always there.
Things have changed.At the moment,people of all ages want to study the old culture.They want to learn how to dance the hula.As a result,more and more people are attending halaus. Halaus are special schools that hula in the traditional way.
Kumano is a hula teacher. For him, the dance is a way to bring the best of old Hawaii culture to people today. Kumano says that the dance is not really about the body.He feels that it is more about the mind.He explains this feelings,”…the hula is more… not so much a physical thing,but more of a mental thing.For new dances,the dancing means very little,because for Hawaiians today,many of them don’t speak the Hawaiian language. So,what I try to do is to mind the real thing they see today.”Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined word”imitated”in this passage?”
| A．Absorbed | B．Chased. | C．Recorded. | D．Copied. |
Why was the hula banned for almost 60 years?
| A．Because the local government found the movements of the dance were rude. |
| B．Because the religious visitors thought that the dances did not dress properly. |
| C．Because the dances realized it was not suitable to perform the dance in public. |
| D．Because the Hawaiian people believed the dance was not in fashion any more. |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Hi iaki and her good friend Hopoe got the idea of the dance from nature. |
| B．The hula had already had a history had a history of over 200 years when it was banned. |
| C．Many people attend hulaus because they teach the hula in a modern way. |
| D．Kumano thinks that the hula dance is good exercise for people of all ages. |
How do we understand that Kumano tries to bring to mind the real thing they today?
| A．He tries to help young Hawaiian understand the old culture better. |
| B．He tries to let new dances feel the beauty of the Hawaiian language. |
| C．He tries to advise his students to pay more attention to the mind. |
| D．He tries to show local people that the hula can be different today. |
【2014年江苏省宿迁市中考】
Jenny wanted to encourage students to read more famous books, so she decided to put an introduction to some interesting children’s story books in the school newspaper.
The Little Prince (《小王子》is a famous work written by French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. In the book, the little prince leaves his own planet to explore the universe (宇宙). In his journey, he finds that the adult world is really strange and boring. Finally, he goes back to his planet which is full of love. The book is really popular throughout the world.
Charlotte’s Web (《夏洛特的网》is a famous children’s novel written by American author E. B. White. The novel tells the story of a pig named Wilbur and his friendship with a spider named Charlotte on a farm. When Wilbur is in danger of being killed for his meat by the farmer, Charlotte writes messages to praise Wilbur in her web and saves him. Wilbur becomes famous in the village and he is safe in the end. When it came out in 1952, the book was welcomed by both adults and children. And it is still very popular today.
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane (《爱德华的奇妙之旅》is a 2006 novel written by Kate DiCamillo. The book is about an unusual journey of a china rabbit named Edward Tulane. He travels from one place to another, meeting many people. During his journey, he learns to love and finally finds love again. This book is popular nowadays and was mentioned many times in the famous South Korean TV series My love from the Star (《来自星星的你》. The warm and sweet story will surely make you understand more about love. Jenny introduced some interesting children’s story books to ________.
| A．encourage students to read more |
| B．encourage students to write more |
| C．show off the books she has read |
| D．make money by selling books |
The underlined word “praise” properly means “________” in Chinese.
| A．欺骗 | B．批评 | C．赞扬 | D．攻击 |
Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The three books mentioned in the passage are popular today. |
| B．The writers of the three books are all Americans. |
| C．When Charlotte’s Web came out, it was only popular with adults. |
| D．My Love from the Star is a famous Chinese TV series. |
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