When I was in seventh grade, I was a candy striper (护士助手) at a local hospital in my town. I volunteered about 30 to 40 hours a week during the summer. Most of the time I spent there was with Mr. Gillespie. He never has any visitors, and nobody seemed to care about his condition. I spent many days there holding his hand and talking to him, helping with anything that needed to be done. He became a close friend of mine, even though he responded with only an occasional squeeze (紧握) of my hand. Mr. Gillespie was in a coma (昏迷).
I left for a week for a vacation with my parents, and when I came back, Mr. Gillespie was gone. I didn’t have the courage to ask any of the nurses where he was, for fear they might tell me he had died. So with many questions unanswered, I continued to volunteer there through my eighth-grade year.
Several years later, when I was a junior in high school, I was at the gas station when I noticed a familiar face. When I realized who it was, my eyes were filled with tears. He was alive! I got up the nerve to ask him if he was Mr. Gillespie, and if he had been in a coma about five years ago. With an uncertain look on his face, he replied yes. I explained how I knew him, and that I had spent many hours talking to him in the hospital. His eyes welled up with tears, and he gave me the warmest hug I had ever received. He began to tell me how, as he lay there comatose (昏睡的), he could hear me talking to him and could feel me holding his hand the whole time. He thought it was an angel, who was there with him. Mr. Gillespie firmly believed that it was my voice and touch that had kept him alive. Then he told me about his life. We exchanged a hug, said our good-byes and went our separate ways.
Although I haven’t seen him since, he fills my heart with joy every day. I know that I made a difference between his life and his death. As importantly, he has made a great difference in my life. I will never forget him and what he did for me: He made me an angel.
1.When the author volunteered at a local hospital, she .
A. mainly helped the nurses with their paper work
B. made up her mind to become a nurse herself one day
C. spent most of her time taking care of a man in a coma
D. became friends with Mr. Gillespie’s visitors
2.The author didn’t ask where Mr. Gillespie had gone because .
A. she knew for sure that he had recovered
B. she forgot all about him when she returned to the hospital
C. she had been concerned that he might stay in coma forever
D. she feared that he might have died
3.Judging from the article, which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. The author continued her volunteer work in the hospital until eighth-grade.
B. The author met Mr. Gillespie at a gas station several years later.
C. Mr. Gillespie recognized the author’s voice the moment he met her.
D. No one in the hospital believed that Mr. Gillespie would recover from his coma.
4. Which of the following statements best summarizes the point of the story?
A. Those with faith in themselves will succeed.
B. If you spread happiness you will be happy yourself.
C. Respect people and they will try hard to improve.
D. Kindness is loving people more than they deserve.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Good readers know that reading isn’t just about knowing words — it’s a way of thinking. Smart readers think before, during and after reading. Here are some tips that may be of some help.
Think before you read. Before you read the text, ask yourself the questions why you are reading it and what you want to get from it. Answering the questions will help you choose what words you need to know and what words you can skip or scan.
Think while you are reading. Can you get the meaning of the text without looking up new words in a dictionary? Are there any clues in the text? A text will often give examples that may help you understand what some of the words mean. Let’s take the following sentence for example: Many large Russian cities, such as Chelyabinsk and Irkutsk, have taken steps to protect their culture. The words “Chelyabinsk” and “Irkutsk” may be new to us, but the sentence tells us that they are examples of ______.
Think after you read. Do you understand the text? What is the main idea of the text? Can you guess the meaning of the new words? Which words do you need to look up? Is the text too easy or too hard for you?
If you practice reading and thinking in this way you will become a smarter reader and you will learn faster and better.
1.This passage is probably taken from _______.
A. a newspaper for general readers
B. a magazine for language teachers
C. a book for language learners
D. an advertisement for a new book
2.Which of the following can best be put in the blank in the passage?
A. countries B. mountains
C. rivers D. cities
3.The author of the passage advises us to do all the following EXCEPT_______.
A. we should think before, while and after we read a passage
B. we’d better look up every new word in a dictionary
C. we should learn to guess the meanings of new words
D. the clues in a passage should be made use of
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman. A man goes shopping because he needs something. His purpose is settled and decided in advance. He knows what he wants, and his objective is to find it and buy it; the price is a secondary consideration. All men simply walk into a shop and ask the assistant for what they want. If the shop has it in stock, the salesman promptly produces it, and the business of trying it on goes forward at once. All being well, the deal can be and often is completed in less than five minutes, with hardly any chat and to everyone's satisfaction. For a man, slight problems may begin when the shop does not have what he wants, or does not have exactly what he wants. In that case the salesman, as the name implies, tries to sell the customer something else, he offers the nearest he can to the article required. No good salesman brings out such a substitute without least consideration; he does so with skill and polish（完美）: “I know this jacket is not the style you want, sir, but would you like to try it for size. It happens to be the color you mentioned." Few men have patience with this treatment, and the usual response is: “This is the right color and may be the right size but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on.
Now how does a woman go about buying clothes? In almost every respect she does so in the opposite way. Her shopping is not often based on need. She has never fully made up her mind what she wants, and she is only “having a look round". She is always open to persuasion: indeed she sets great store by what the saleswoman tells her, even by what companions tell her. She will try on any number of things. Uppermost in her mind is the thought of finding something that everyone thinks suits her. Contrary to a lot of jokes, most women have an excellent sense of value when they buy clothes. They are always on the lookout for the unexpected bargain. Faced with a roomful of dresses, a woman may easily spend an hour going from one rail to another, to and fro often retracing her steps, before selecting the dresses she wants to try on. It is a tiresome process, but apparently an enjoyable one. Most dress shops provide chairs for the waiting husbands.
1.According to the passage, a man’s shopping is based on _______.
| A．his money | B．his hobbies | C．his need | D．his friends |
2.Why does a lady welcome suggestions from anyone while buying a dress?
| A．Because she wants to buy a dress that everyone thinks suits her. |
| B．Because she doesn’t know how to buy a dress. |
| C．Because she doesn’t know whether to buy it or not. |
| D．Because she wants to show herself off in public. |
3.Which of the following statements is TURE according to the passage?
| A．Most men have patience with trying it on while buying a jacket. |
| B．Most women have a poor sense of value when buying a dress. |
| C．A woman’s shopping is based on her need. |
| D．Price is not the first thing to consider when a man buys clothes. |
4.The passage mainly talks about the ______ between men shoppers and women shoppers for clothes.
| A．similarities | B．differences | C．varieties | D．intentions |
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
As any homemaker who has tried to keep order at the dinner table knows, there is far more to a family meal than food. Sociologist Michael Lewis has been studying 50 families to find out just how much more.
Lewis and his co-workers carried out their study by videotaping (录像) the families while they ate ordinary meals in their own homes. They found that parents with small families talk actively with each other and their children. But as the number of children gets larger, conversation gives way to the parents’ efforts to control the loud noise they make. That can have an important effect on the children. “In general the more question-asking the parents do, the higher the children’s IQ scores,” Lewis says. “And the more children there are, the less question-asking there is.”
The study also provides an explanation for why middle children often seem to have a harder time in life than their siblings (兄弟姐妹). Lewis found that in families with three or four children, dinner conversation is likely to center on the oldest child, who has the most to talk about, and the youngest, who needs the most attention. “Middle children are invisible,” says Lewis. “When you see someone get up from the table and walk around during dinner, chances are it’s the middle child.” There is, however, one thing that stops all conversation and prevents anyone from having attention: “When the TV is on,” Lewis says, “dinner is a non-event.”
1.The writer’s purpose in writing the text is to _________.
A. show the relationship between parents and children
B. teach parents ways to keep order at the dinner table
C. report on the findings of a study.
D. give information about family problems
2. Parents with large families ask fewer questions at dinner because _________.
A. they are busy serving food to their children
B. they are busy keeping order at the dinner table
C. they have to pay more attention to younger children
D. they are tired out having prepared food for the whole family
3. By saying “Middle children are invisible” in paragraph 3, Lewis means that middle children _________.
A. have to help their parents to serve dinner
B. get the least attention from the family
C. are often kept away from the dinner table
D. find it hard to keep up with other children
4. Which of the following statements would the writer agree to?
A. It is important to have the right food for children.
B. It is a good idea to have the TV on during dinner.
C. Parents should talk to each of their children frequently.
D. Elder children should help the younger ones at dinner
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Everyone wants to be self-confident, but maybe we just don’t know how to be. Here are some tips on how you can feel more confident about yourself.
1. Everyone has shortcomings. When you have found your shortcomings, work to overcome them. If you are a shy person, take part in social activities, such as parties, and speak to at least one or two people there.
Second, try to spend more time with positive people. Successful and confident people have their own ways of settling problems. 2.
Third, set goals for yourself. With each goal you achieve, your self-confidence will increase. 3. We are afraid that we might lose. Stop thinking like that and give yourself a chance.
Fourth, start each day with a sense of opportunity. 4. Think positively about yourself.
Actually everyone has his or her own way of becoming confident. 5. Friends might have useful suggestions, too. In short, as long as you try new things, you are sure to become more confident.
A. Pay attention and learn from them.
B. You should talk with your friends.
C. First, don’t think about your weak points.
D. It’s not always right to ask friends for help.[
E. Sometimes We might be afraid of trying new things.
F. Start your day by reading something encouraging.
G. First, you should know what your weak points are.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
Once there was a man who had lost one of his arms in an accident. Day by day he got more and more , thinking of not being able to do lots of things he used to do. One day he got so disappointed that he to kill himself. He found a tall building and to the top of it. Standing on the edge of the building, he was looking down to have a look at the world before off. Then he caught sight of a man along the sidewalk, whistling and kicking up his heels. When the man came , he found that this man didn’t have any arms at all. He thought to himself, “What am I doing here? sorry for myself? I have one good arm to do things with. the man with no arms dancing on the side-walk is so , maybe I should go on with my life.” He hurried down to the man. He wanted to tell him how he was to see him and how stupid he was to have the of killing himself. He thanked him again for his life and now he knew that he could it with one arm since that guy could go on his life without arms.To his , the man with no arms said nothing began dancing and whistling again.The man with one arm felt even more and finally asked, “Can you tell me why you are so happy, please?”The man replied, “I’m not happy. My body itches (痒)!”
1.A. nervous B. surprised C. depressed D. angry
2.A. when B. whether C. that D. if
3.A. failed B. decided C. liked D. refused
4.A. climbed B. turned C. flew D. rose
5.A. fast B. best C. last D. first
6.A. shaking B. taking C. showing D. jumping
7.A. yelling B. drinking C. dancing D. sleeping
8.A. closer B. further C. nearly D. away
9.A. Saying B. Feeling C. Begging D. Asking
10.A. almost B. still C. only D. just
11.A. Not only B. As if C. So that D. Now that
12.A. strange B. happy C. kind D. sad
13.A. teach B. check C. beat D. catch
14.A. glad B. hard C. slow D. silly
15.A. pride B. joy C. fear D. thought
16.A. loving B. finding C. saving D. losing
17.A. play B. use C. finish D. make
18.A. surprise B. regret C. delight D. shame
19.A. as B. so C. or D. and
20.A. dangerous B. comfortable C. pleased D. curious
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Last summer, my friend and I hired a car and headed for Toronto. We didn't book a hotel room 1.________ it was at the beginning of September and we thought it would be easy for us 2._______ (find) a hotel.
we 3._______ (drive) for five hours when the weather changed and it looked like a thunderstorm was coming. We got lost and both were4._______(hunger) when I saw an old lady parking her car. I stopped and asked 5.________she knew a hotel nearby. She said there was a hotel down the road，6._______it might have been closed. The lovely old lady looked at me and said，“Why don't you girls just stay the night at 7._______house? I'll cook for you.”
We ended up going to a little island in Lake Muskoka, 8._______ her family lived. We slept in the 9._______ (comfort) beds they built for their kids and they cooked for us. We stayed at their house for three nights in all and also met their friends. Those days were the 10.______ (good) part of our three-week trip! We were glad that we got lost and met the old lady.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
短文改错
请你对下面文章进行修改。文中共有10处错误，错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。增加：在缺词处加一个漏词符号（^），并在此符号下面写出该加的词。删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。注意：1．每处错误及其修改均仅限一词。 2．格式错误不得分。3. 只允许修改10处，从第11处起）不计分。
Here is my idea about how a friend is like. Firstly, a friend is someone you can share your secrets . If you tell him a secret, he will never talks about it with anybody else. Besides, a friend is always good listener when you need one. After hear your sad stories, he will say some words that is nice and warm. Still, your happiness makes him happily too. What’s more, a good friend is willing to offer the help to which you need, or can at least give you some advices. In a word, friends are those you like and trust, and you will enjoy every minute that you spent with them.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
随着人们生活水平的提高，越来越多的人们喜欢走出家门去领略祖国的秀丽风光，请你以 The advantages of Travel 为题，谈谈旅行的好处，内容包括：
1. 旅行可以开拓眼界，增长知识。
2. 旅行可以帮助人们结识更多的朋友。
3. 旅行可以提高人们解决问题的能力。
注意：1. 字数100左右； 2. 适当发挥想象，增加细节，以使行文连贯。
难度: 中等查看答案及解析