This dictionary tells you about English words and how to use them in reading, writing and speaking English. It gives the meaning of words, and it can help you with spelling, word building, grammar and pronunciation as well.
To use your dictionary correctly, you need to understand how the dictionary works. At the front of the book, you will find some exercises to help you make the most use of your dictionary. If you look up the word “centre”, you will find two spellings for this word. “Centre” is used in British English, while “center” is used in American English. When there are differences between British and American spelling, the dictionary shows it with the word “BrE” for British English and “AmE” for American English.
The dictionary also helps you pronounce words correctly. If you turn to the inside back face, you will see all the phonetic letters(音标) with some words to show you how they are pronounced. Just have a look at this page when you’re not sure how to say a word.
The most important reason for using a dictionary is to find out the meaning of a word— its definition. In this dictionary, the definitions have been written using only 2000 words. This means that the definitions of even the most difficult words are simple and easy to understand.According to the passage, “theater” is used in _______ English.
| A．Australian | B．Canadian |
| C．American | D．British |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．All of the words in the dictionary have two spellings. |
| B．You can turn to the inside back face if you are not sure about the pronunciation. |
| C．There are two thousand words in this dictionary. |
| D．The dictionary can help you with listening, speaking, reading and writing. |
The dictionary explains ________.
| A．some of the difficult words |
| B．the words of two meanings |
| C．all the easy words |
| D．all the words in a simple way |
Long long ago, there lived two girls named Emily and Tina. Both of them had long black hair and blue eyes. One day while they were playing in the back yard (庭院), Emily heard a tinkling (叮当) sound. She jumped up. “Listen,” she told her twin. They listened. The noise came again.
This time Tina heard it. She sat up. “It came from over there,” She whispered, looking at the zinnias (鱼尾菊) far away. They came near to find it out. Then something flew out, making the same tinkling sound they had heard before. The children looked at one another. “Was it a bee?” asked Tina. “I don’t think so,” replied Emily. “Do bees make a sound like bells?” “Let’s call it the Tinkle Bee anyway,” said Tina. Emily nodded, listening with a little difficulty. What had made that noise?
The next day, Emily and Tina brought their cookies outside. Tina took her plate by the zinnias. Suddenly she caught something. “Emily!” she called. “I’ve got the Tinkle Bee!” Emily rushed over. They sat down on the grass. Tina opened her hand very carefully. There was that sound! Something was shining in Tina’s hand. They smiled. Then Emily cried, “It’s a fairy (仙女)!” Tina looked down at it in her hand. It looked like a girl. A tiny girl with wings! Tina dropped it before she noticed that a wing was torn (撕裂). The little fairy could not fly away so she took a piece of grass out of the ground and sat on it.
Emily and Tina were surprised at what they saw. The fairy turned to Emily and said, “Hello, I am Marabella.” Then she said again, “Marabella the Fairy.” Emily smiled. “I’m Emily,” she said. Tina said, “I’m Tina. Are you really a fairy?” “Oh, yes!” replied Marabella. “I’ve always been a fairy.”Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined word “tiny” in this passage?
| A．Weak. | B．Nice. | C．Little. | D．Sick. |
How did the sound come out?
| A．A bee behind the zinnias made the sound. |
| B．It came out from the fairy’s flying. |
| C．It came out when the fairy shouted for help. |
| D．The bell by the zinnias rang. |
What does the passage mainly tell us?
| A．Emily and Tina found a tinkling sound when they were playing in the yard. |
| B．Emily and Tina were very interested in the tinkling sound. |
| C．How a fairy by the zinnias was saved by the twins. |
| D．The process of Emily and Tina’s finding a fairy. |
We were doing the best to control the fire of the burning garage (车库). Outside, I heard the sounds of cats crying. I couldn’t stop—I would have to look for the cats after the fire was put out.
It took a long time to finally bring the big fire under control. No one inside was hurt. At that point I was free to find out where the cat noises were from. There was still a lot of smoke and heat coming from the building. I followed the meowing to the sidewalk in front of the garage. There, crying and huddled (挤作一团) together, were five frightened kittens (小猫). They must have been inside the building, as their fur was badly hurt.
I wanted to find the mother cat. It was clear that she had gone into the burning garage and carried out all her babies, one by one—unbelievable.
We finally found her. Her paws and face were blackened, and her fur was burned all over. You could even see her reddened skin under the burned fur. She could hardly move. I picked her up, and she relaxed in my arms as much as her pain would allow. I decided to save this brave little cat and her family.
The vet told me they would watch the kittens and their mother for the night, but they weren’t confident about the mother’s chances.
About a week later, I found out she was going to live. We named her Scarlet because of her reddened skin.
I was happy to see Scarlet get together with the kittens again. She touched each of them, nose to nose. She had been in danger for five times and it had paid off. All of her babies had survived.
As a fireman, I see heroic acts every day. But what Scarlet showed me that day was the kind of bravery that can only come from a mother’s love.Which of the following is TRUE according to the story?
| A．The writer went to look for the cats as soon as he heard them crying. |
| B．The firefighters put out the fire quickly and no one was hurt. |
| C．The writer didn’t find the cats until the smoke and heat were gone. |
| D．The mother cat moved all her babies out of the fire to a safe place. |
Why did the writer decide to save the cats?
| A．Because he was amazed at the mother cat’s courage. |
| B．Because the cats attracted many people’s attention. |
| C．Because he didn’t want to see any living things die. |
| D．Because it had taken him much time and effort to save them. |
The writer talks about the cat’s story to show that ________________.
| A．animals should be taken good care of |
| B．mother’s love can be great and brave |
| C．it is meaningful to help others |
| D．a cat always has nine lives |
Learning about the environment is very important. There are many good books that will help you learn. To get started, ask your teacher or your friends for some advice. You can also look at some good websites with information about the environment and climate change. Climate change may be a big problem, but there are many little things we can do to make a difference.
Driving a car or using electricity is not wrong. We just have to be smart about it. Some people use less energy by sharing a car. For example, four people can ride together in one car instead of driving four cars to work. Whenever we use electricity, we put greenhouse gases into the air. By turning off the lights, the television, and the computer when they aren’t needed, you can help a lot.
Don’t buy products (产品) that use too much energy. Some products, like certain cars, are made specially to save energy. These cars can travel longer on less gasoline (汽油). They don’t pollute as much, either. Products like computers, TVs and VCRs with the ENERGY STAR label (标签) are made to save energy. Buying products with these labels will help protect the environment.
Buy recyclable (可循环再用的) products instead of non-recyclable ones. Recyclable products are usually made out of things that have already been used. It usually takes less energy to make recyclable products than to make new ones. So when you go shopping, look for the recycle mark on the package. The less energy we use, the better.The passage is mainly about ________________.
| A．some suggestions about cars |
| B．an advertisement |
| C．the changes to the climate |
| D．the ways to protect the environment |
From the passage, we can learn that ________________.
| A．turning off the electricity when it isn’t needed can do good to the environment |
| B．electricity won’t cause great trouble to our environment |
| C．cars using less energy will not put greenhouse gases into the air |
| D．recyclable products are marked with the ENERGY STAR label |
I am a teenager. I want to use the Internet. I know that there are rules about what I should do online. I agree to follow these rules, and my parents agree to help me follow these rules:
1. I will not call or meet anyone alone that I meet online unless my parents say it’s okay.
2. I will not buy or order anything online without my parents’ permission.
3. I will not fill in any form online that asks me for any information about myself or my family without asking my parents first.
4. If someone sends me any pictures or any e-mails using bad language, I will tell my parents.
5. If someone asks me to do something that I am not supposed to do, I will tell my parents.
6. I know that my parents want to make sure I’m safe online, and I will listen to them when they ask me not to do something.
| Rules for going online for teenagers |
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| Things teenagers Shouldn’t do |
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| Things teenagers Should do |
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| Things parents do |
Have you ever had an embarrassing experience? Last week we asked readers to tell us about embarrassing experiences. We received thousands of letters! Here is a selection.
Tony:
My most embarrassing experience happened when I had just left university. I had just started teaching in a Liverpool middle school. One morning my alarm clock didn’t ring. I woke up at half past eight and school began at nine. I quickly washed, dressed, jumped into my car and rushed to school. When I arrived, the students had already gone into class. I didn’t go to the office, but went straight into class. After two or three minutes the students began laughing, and I couldn’t understand why! Suddenly I looked down and understood. I had put on one black shoe and one brown shoe!
Henry:
The most embarrassing experience I’ve ever had happened two years ago. After seeing a film, my wife and I had lunch in our favorite restaurant in town. Then we decided to take a walk along the street. The street was very busy and we started holding hands. Suddenly my wife saw a dress that she liked in a shop window, and stopped. I started looking at some watches in the next window. After a minute or two I reached for my wife’s hand. There was a loud scream, and a woman slapped my face. I hadn’t taken my wife’s hand. I’d taken the hand of a complete stranger（陌生人）!Tony arrived at school late that morning because .
| A．he couldn’t find hid shoes | B．his alarm clock didn’t ring |
| C．he washed and dressed slowly | D．his car went wrong on the way |
The students began laughing when they saw Tony .
| A．wearing a wrong shoe | B．his alarm clock didn’t ring |
| C．looking down suddenly | D．rushing into the classroom |
Henry and his wife held hands .
| A．at the cinema | B．in the shop | C．at the restaurant | D．along the street |
What does the underlined word “scream” mean in Chinese?
| A．尖叫声 | B．笑声 | C．哭声 | D．呼救声 |
Henry was embarrassed because he .
| A．slapped the woman in the face |
| B．took the hand of a complete stranger |
| C．heard hid wife screaming in the street |
| D．knocked over some watches in the shops |
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