Some myths are stories told since ancient times to explain the causes for natural happenings. The Greek myth that explains why there are changes of (36) _______ is about Demeter, the goddess of the harvest. She had a daughter, Persephone, whom she loved very much. Hades, god of the underworld, fell in love with Persephone, and he asked Zeus, the ( 37) _______ of the gods, to give Persephone to him as his (38) _______. Zeus did not want either to disappoint Hades or to upset Demeter, so he said he would not agree to the marriage, but neither would he (39) _______ it. Hades, therefore, decided to take the girl without (40) _______. When Persephone was picking flowers in the garden, he seized her and took her to the underworld. When Demeter (41) _______ what happened to Persephone, she became so (42) _______ that she caused all plants to ( 43 ) _______. People were in (44) _________ of starving. But Demeter was determined not to let crops grow (45 ) _______ her daughter, Persephone, was returned to her. (46) __________, still not wanting to disappoint Hades, decided upon a condition for Persephone's (47) ______ . She could go back to her mother if she had not (48) ________ anything while she was in the underworld. Demeter (49) ________ it because she did not know that Persephone had eaten several pomegranate (石榴) seeds in the underworld. When Zeus (50) ______ this, he agreed that Persephone could spend part of the year with her (51) _______, but he added that since she had eaten the seeds, she must spend part of the year in the underworld. And so it (52) ________ that when Persephone is in the underworld, Demeter is sad and therefore (53) _______ not let the crops grow. That is (54) ______ we have winter when plants do not grow. When Persephone returns, Demeter is (55)______ , it is spring, and plants begin to grow again.
36. A. periods B. seasons C. time D. age
37. A. winner B. ruler C. advisor D. fighter
38. A. wife B. lover C. partner D. daughter
39. A. forbid B. forgive C. admit D. accept
40. A. arrangement B. warning C. reason D. permission
41. A. let out B. worked out C. thought out D. found out
42. A. excited B. tired C. angry D. serious
43. A. grow fast B. start growing C. stop growing D. grow slowly
44. A. danger B. hope C. turn D. case
45. A. since B. until C. after D. when
46. A. Persephone B. Zeus C. Demeter D. Hades
47. A. return B. change C. marriage D. journey
48. A. stolen B. found C. eaten D. heard
49. A. understood B. refused C. doubted D. accepted
50. A. discovered B. studied C. forgot D. prepared
51. A. daughter B. mother C. god D. ruler
52. A. works B. remains C. happens D. starts
53. A. should B. can C. dare D. will
54. A. where B. because C. why D. how
55. A. nice B. friendly C. fresh D. happy