Do you want to go abroad to make money? If you’ve decided to invest（投资）overseas, you may be wondering which countries are the best, and which countries will give you the biggest returns. In some locations, investment is easier than others. Here are the top 4 best countries to invest in housing:
◆Italy
A charming hillside area, Abruzzo makes for a great investment. This beautiful place has lots of local housing resources, and you can buy a home that needs just $45,000. With proper repair, selling for at least four times that much, you can easily make money.
◆Argentina
Central America’s Argentina’s tourism is popular, so it has a lot to offer locals and tourists alike. This coastal country is affordable, too, especially in the busy city of Buenos Aires. As the city is rapidly expanding, now it’s time to get this hot investing opportunity.
◆Mexico
In the south of the border, you can find unbelievable investment. Playa del Carmen will give you the most for your money. Plus its tourism is popular and it’s a nice place to visit and easily accessible from the United States.
◆Panama
Historic and lively, Panama is a safe place for shopping. You’ll enjoy great tax（税金）benefits in Panama. Panama does not charge income tax for the first 10 years of your investment.
No matter where you choose to buy, these four countries will provide you with a great location and return on investment.
1.What do Argentina and Mexico have in common according to the text?
A. Their tourism is popular.
B. They are rapidly expanding.
C. They lie on the United States.
D. Their natural resources are extremely rich.
2.Which of the following has an advantage in tax policy in investment?
A. Italy. B. Mexico.
C. Panama. D. Argentina.
3.What’s the purpose of the text?
A. To introduce some tourist attractions.
B. To show different building styles in the world.
C. To show four countries for tourists to buy clothes.
D. To introduce some countries for investment in housing.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
A dog can keep us company. Sweetie is a big dog who spends every Friday of the month in the Children’s Area of our local library. Earlier today, I was so lucky to be nearby when she was partnering with a boy who was reading a mystery of Magic Tree House. Every time Sweetie listened to the boy reading the most challenging words, she would softly lick（舔）his hand which was holding the book. With his mom in the background, Sweetie and the young boy shared a l0-minute happy partnership, and he was rewarded by Sweetie’s great attention to his every word.
Next Sweetie had an appointment with the twins who took turns reading poetry. With each girl giggling over the funny words, Sweetie was also smiling with her tongue dropping a bit as they each read. After the 10-minute interaction was done, each girl gave Sweetie a gentle hug and were rewarded by Sweetie’s foreleg bow.
In speaking with Sweetie’s owner and transportation “captain”, I learned that Sweetie had been specially trained to work as a service dog. She has retired（退休）after a career of wonderful service, and now she is “in her sunset years” in her service at the library.
Sweetie has a special resting carpet behind the scenes in the Children’s Area, so that she can refresh herself with fresh water and some food when she is tired and hungry. This is Sweetie’s third summer that she has been the “regular” partner. On Fridays from 2 pm~4 pm, Sweetie is ready to listen and act as a devoted partner.
1.What do we know about Sweetie?
A. She is a good listener. B. She likes playing tricks on people.
C. She dislikes children. D. She is stupid.
2.How did the boy feel when Sweetie listened to him reading?
A. Frightened. B. Happy.
C. Astonished. D. Upset.
3.What does the underlined word “giggling” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
A. Crying loudly. B. Keeping silently.
C. Speaking in a rude way. D. Laughing in a silly way.
4.Which of the following can best describe Sweetie?
A. Violent. B. Lazy.
C. Mysterious. D. Friendly.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Many students are involved in social practice besides study. On Monday, April 17, 2017, a unique partnership between Saint Agatha and Phalanx Family Services began. Saint Agatha is a primary school and day care program. Phalanx Family Services is a full-service, nonprofit （非盈利的）organization offering various programming for in-need families living in Chicago.
Thirteen in-school youths, between the ages of 16~18, started training as young reporters in an eight-week camp organized by the two organizations. The program is designed to teach them how to become city reporters. After completing the program successfully, they will receive a job reporting for one of nine online news about the project.
The very thought of 13 youths’ improving reading and writing levels and hunting for career opportunities in journalism（新闻业）is exciting! Imagine, Chicago youths report positive and inspiring stories about the happenings around Chicago’s black and brown communities, which are much better than frightening stories coming from local and national medium.
I admire Saint Agatha and Phalanx Family Services for training youths in a needed skill set. As I see it, technology has harmed youths’ reading and writing abilities. My father often says, “Youth is wasted on the young.” It sounds like the wisdom of the old. But Saint Agatha offers training and the opportunity for youths to take an active part in reporting the happenings and events they experience day to day in order to prove students don’t waste youth.
1.What is the main purpose of the eight-week camp?
A. To improve students’ interest in study.
B. To help students become more independent.
C. To teach youths how to become city reporters.
D. To let youths know about their local culture and customs.
2.What does Saint Agatha mainly show to us?
A. What our father said is right.
B. Youth is not wasted by students.
C. Technology harms youths’ reading and writing abilities.
D. Technology provides the youth with more opportunities.
3.The underlined word “It” in the last paragraph refers to “________”.
A. Youth is wasted on the young B. Reporting the happenings and events
C. Youth D. Technology
4.What can be inferred from the text?
A. The history of the city is mainly recorded by youths.
B. Phalanx Family Services is aiming to make money.
C. The author is in favor of the eight-week camp.
D. The thirteen in-school youths refused the program.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
It is generally believed that humans can’t live without sleep. As any person suffering from lack of sleep knows, dark circles under the eyes usually stand out after a bad night’s sleep.
But why do people get these dark eye bags? The answer is both genetic (that is, relating to your DNA) and environmental (a result of your everyday living, such as rubbing your eyes or getting too little sleep), said Dr. Carol Clinton, a skin-care researcher in Dublin, Ohio.
But “the biggest reason is genes,” Clinton told Live Science. Eye bags are generally more noticeable in people who, because of genes, have thin or pale skin. When people are tired or very nervous, blood circulation in the eye area becomes slow, allowing blood to pool there, Clinton said. Capillaries（毛细血管）stand out, leading to dark eye circles, she said.
Besides, eye bags result from eyes’ fat moving forward. An age-connected increase in fat beneath the eyeballs leads to eye bags. “Anyway, when your eyes’ fat is moving forward, you may think about having an operation in that area,” Clinton said, “A person can get 9 hours of sleep a night, but still have eye bags because of a genetic development.”
In other cases, environmental problems cause eye bags. For example, allergies（过敏）—especially seasonal allergies—can cause capillaries to stand out. Getting too much sun can also damage and thin the skin, making dark circles under the eyes easy to see. Besides, eating salty foods can cause the body to hold more water, which makes eye bags worse, according to the Mayo Clinic.
1.In Clinton’s opinion, what is the main cause of the formation of dark eye bags?
A. Genes. B. Habits.
C. Age. D. The environment.
2.What can remove your eye bags according to the text?
A. Getting much sun.
B. Drinking plenty of water.
C. Having an operation on the fat in the eye area.
D. Slowing your blood circulation in the eye area.
3.What can we learn from the text?
A. It’s possible to change genes.
B. Rubbing your eyes might cause dark eye bags.
C. People with thick skin don’t get dark eye bags.
D. You can’t get dark eye bags if you get enough sleep.
4.What’s the best title for the text?
A. What Can You Do to Protect Your Eyes?
B. The Importance of Sleep to People’s Health
C. Several Measures to Remove Your Eye Bags
D. Why Do People Get “Bags” Under Their Eyes?
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
As a member of the “global village”, an international leader should master various skills. One of the primary things international leaders need today is the ability to manage cultural differences. 1.. So in order to get the best out of any multicultural team, leaders should keep the following tips in mind.
2.
Try and communicate with your team face to face as much as you can. Nothing replaces face-to-face communication, as it allows you to read body language, judge levels of understanding, and build relationships.
Be clear
Be clear about your own cultural profile（简况）. Only when you are clear about your cultural profile and how it influences your work, your communication style, feelings and actions, can you direct your team. 3..
Build trust
4.. Make sure you are responsible for your actions and honest in your dealings with others. Do you do what you promise? Breaking your promise will destroy trust and credibility every time.
State the rules of the game
5.. The rules of the game have to be discussed and people need to be comfortable with their own roles. The team leader must act as a safe base, so members know who to turn to.
A. Communicate face to face
B. Try not to make mistakes
C. Trust builds over time and with every action
D. There is no need to communicate with your team
E. Rules and roles have to be set and understood by everyone
F. Today’s leaders have to work in both international and cross-cultural environments
G. This approach to your own cultural identity can help improve your team’s performance
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Kindness is a key value that God desires us to have. When you give kindness to others, it will be returned to you. Finally, we ________ having the whole house ________ today. It was hard to work in this situation. But I ________ good coffee and beautiful biscuits, which made our work easier. We didn’t complain and moved the ________ each night, so the painting could be completed ________.
I became friends with this young ________ over the two weeks while he painted. We weren’t going to paint the bathroom area ________ painting there possibly made it inconvenient to use the bathroom. Instead, we ________ to paint it later. But he ________ a suggestion about getting it ________ quickly for me and also painted the front door in this shiny paint.
When we went to ________ him, he refused my money. He said the bathroom and the door were free of ________, which was a gift to me. Because I had never experienced such things before, I felt ________. He explained that I had made him so ________ that he wanted to do this.
On the last day, I also bought him a ________ to go to the entertainment center in the city in order to ________ himself. We went there. A meal was part of it and the seats lay back, which were very safe and ________ to sit on. He was thankful and satisfied. I told him that I wanted to show my ________ on how well he had been working in my ________. I said I would really like to thank him. He loved my treat. We did have a good ________ there.
1.A. risked B. finished C. hated D. limited
2.A. repaired B. destroyed C. painted D. built
3.A. drank B. sold C. tasted D. supplied
4.A. furniture B. clothes C. coffee D. packs
5.A. carelessly B. smoothly C. slightly D. difficultly
6.A. worker B. traveller C. neighbor D. boss
7.A. though B. because C. before D. unless
8.A. refused B. disagreed C. disliked D. planned
9.A. held back B. gave up C. came up with D. put up with
10.A. done B. produced C. broken D. replaced
11.A. arrest B. blame C. praise D. pay
12.A. damage B. protection C. charge D. entrance
13.A. surprised B. disappointed C. worried D. terrified
14.A. thin B. strong C. welcome D. wealthy
15.A. door B. ticket C. place D. newspaper
16.A. ignore B. punish C. relax D. judge
17.A. comfortable B. terrible C. strange D. upset
18.A. sadness B. appreciation C. honestly D. regret
19.A. office B. shop C. car D. house
20.A. friend B. idea C. customer D. time
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
This is a meaningful and impressive story. A man came to the USA. After settling down at 1. island, he went into a cafeteria to get something 2. (eat). He sat down at an empty table 3. (silent) and waited for someone to take his order, 4. nobody did. Finally, a woman with a plate full of food 5. (sit) opposite him and informed him 6. the cafeteria worked. “Start out at that end,” she said. “Just go along the line and pick out what you want. At the other end, they’ll tell you how much you have to pay.”
“I soon learned how everything worked in the USA,” the man told a 7. (rely) friend. He said, “Life’s a cafeteria here. You can get anything as long as you are 8. (will) to pay the price.”
You can even get success, but you’ll never get it if you wait for someone to bring it to you. You have to get up and get it 9. (you). You can’t change the things that you can’t avoid or prevent. The only thing you can do is control your attitude. Once you reach that point in life, 10. (achieve) won’t be too far away.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
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. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
I am very fond of watching movies. When I’m free, the first thing I’d like do is buy some snacks and then found a hot movie to watch. Before watching so many movies, I’m impressing by The Lord of the Rings most. This movie has three series and I like it all. Though the movie was shot many years ago, it is still not out of the date. It was shot in New Zealand, and the scenery in the movie is such beautiful that I can’t move my eye away every time I watch it. I plan to travel to New Zealand in what I can have a look on the beautiful scenery.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定你是李华，你家最近要迁往新居，想要处理掉一批旧家电。你听说美国留学生朋友Gary想要购买一台旧电视，请用英语给他写一封信，内容包括：
1. 阐述你卖电视的原因；
2. 向他推荐你的电视。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，已使行文连贯；
3. 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Gary,
Hope you are doing well.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I’m looking forward to your early reply.
Yours,
Li Hua
难度: 困难查看答案及解析