Katie always wanted to be a performer. She, the youngest of, the three kids from Cleveland, was crazy about musicals and Disney movies from an early age and would often watch them singing with her mom, Karen. However, Katie’s happy childhood took a turn when her mother was diagnosed(诊断)with cancer. When the doctor informed the family that Karen’s disease was terminal, they decided to make a trip to Disney World.
The family spared no expense for their once-in-a-lifetime vacation and stayed at Disney’s hotel for eight nights. They spent their days in the parks, seeing the sights, greening characters, all the while pushing Karen in her wheelchair and watching her face light up with joy. They all shared in the merriment of experiencing the parks for the first time with Karen. The trip to Disney World at the height of Karen’s battle with cancer slowed them to escape into a world of magic and laughter. This was the day Katie decided she wanted to work for Disney.
Sadly, Karen lost the battle and died later, but the whole family remembered her every day and often thought of that Disney vacation Katie went on to go after her dream. After she received her degree in musical theater, she struggled for years, working as a waitress and trying to be a performer. Her hard work finally paid off when she was hired to work for Disney.
As a Disney performer, Katie is aware that many other families visit the parks and have similar stories to her own. She encourages everyone, especially children, who may be experiencing a hard time. “Every moment -is meant for you, even the painful ones.” she says. “It’s just like in your favorite Disney movie: There is always some kind of conflict or hardship or pressure. Remember to celebrate those moments, too, because they are taking you to whatever your version of a happy ending is.”
1.What made Katie decide to work for Disney?
A.The dream that she wanted to live a lire full magic.
B.The memory that she watched Disney movies as a kid.
C.The great joy the Disney vacation brought to her family.
D.The great courage her mother showed in fighting cancer.
2.Which of the following words best describe Katie?
A.Kind and curious. B.Patient and helpful.
C.Strict and independent. D.Tough and determined.
3.What message does Katie convey in the last paragraph?
A.Sweet is pleasure after pain. B.Experience must be bought.
C.Many drops make a shower. D.Good medicine tastes bitter.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
While “they” may seem small, this gender-neutral(性别中立的) word is clearly making its mark on culture. On Tuesday, Merriam-Webster announced “they” was the 2019 Word of the Year.
“Our Word of the Year ‘they’ reflects a surprising fact,” the dictionary publisher wrote. “Even a basic term- a personal pronoun(代词)- can rise to the top of our data.” The word secured the top spot when Merriam-Webster’s annual traffic report showed searches for the term increased by 313 percent. And while the reason for the increase was likely affected by many things, Merriam-Webster believes the power of the pronoun cannot be overstated.
“English famously lacks a gender-neutral pronoun to correspond neatly pronouns like ‘everyone’ or ‘someone’. As a consequence, ‘they’ has been used for this purpose for over 600 years. However, ‘they’ has also been used to refer to one person whose gender identity is non-binary, that is, neither male nor female,” Merriam-Webster explained.
The publisher also pointed out major events in culture that arouse interest in the word, such as Sam Smith’s switch to use the pronouns “they” and “them”, as well as the American Psychological Association’s recommendation that “they” be used when referring to someone whose gender is unknown, or who prefers “they” over “he or she”.
In September, Merriam-Webster added gender-neutral pronouns “they” and “themselves” to the dictionary. Many were thrilled by the news, and non-binary people expressed thanks. They felt “accepted” and “seen”.
Emily Brewster, a senior editor at Merriam-Webster, was also excited. “Pronouns are among the language’s most commonly used words, and they tend to be mostly ignored by dictionary users,” Brewster said in a statement to NBC. “But over the past year or so, as people have increasingly come across the non-binary use, we’ve seen searches for ‘they’ grow rapidly.”
1.What does the Merriam-Webster publisher think of the pronoun “they”?
A.It is quite powerful. B.It is almost worthless.
C.It has been overused. D.It has nothing to do with culture.
2.What do the underlined words “this purpose” refer to in paragraph 3?
A.Discouraging people from using “someone”.
B.Matching other pronouns such as “everyone”.
C.Mentioning someone whose gender is unknown.
D.Replacing personal pronouns like “he” or “she”.
3.Which of the following may Emily Brewster agree with?
A.Pronouns are the most commonly used words by senior editors.
B.Dictionary users tend to completely ignore pronouns in real life.
C.The non-binary use contributes to the popularity of the word “they”.
D.More searches for the word “they” can be seen in the past few years.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
If one more person talks about the benefits of mindfulness, I will throw cabbage at them. Just kidding. But I do have lots of cabbage happily rotting away in my, kitchen thanks to the wellness obsession(着迷) that failed to keep my attention. This is a symptom of a phenomenon known as “wellness tiredness”.
Wellness is seriously big business with a worth of $3.72 trillion and a healthy annual growth of 14 percent. To satisfy this consuming desire, brands of super foods and various exercise classes crowd in. “The problem with all this constantly changing information on what to eat or which exercise class to take is that people begin to form distorted(扭曲的) mindsets towards the idea of a healthy lifestyle,” explains Dr Bijal, a psychologist at Nightingale Hospital. “The least harmful result of a distorted mindset will be confusion. The most harmful would be serious physical and mental disorders like extreme dieting or over-exercising.”
It’s little wonder that many people are beginning to reject the idea of wellness and the lifestyle it advocates. “I can’t tell you the number of wellness accounts I’ve unfollowed on Instagram,” one fitness-enthusiast friend tells me. When I ask her why, she tells me that the public pursuit(追求) of wellness has reached “the eye-roll stage”. Meanwhile, sales of fitness trackers and wearable wellness things have dropped sharply.
Speaking of gym culture, which offers classes like Hula Hoop and Yoga, it’s also beginning to show signs that people are returning to more conventional forms of exercise-some that wouldn’t look out of place on a school timetable.
The whole point of wellness is that it should become such an everyday thing that you forget about seeking it. Living a healthy lifestyle becomes a given rather than something singled out as impressive and worth applauding. Now, more people are starting to cycle to and from work, swim on lunch breaks and even try to buy old school exercise bikes.
1.What is the main idea of paragraph 2?
A.The wellness business costs people a great deal of money.
B.People are faced with too many food and exercise choices.
C.Distorted mindsets to wellness cause harmful consequences.
D.The wellness industry has been developing at a steady speed.
2.Why is the author’s friend mentioned in paragraph 3?
A.To inform us wearable wellness things are not popular.
B.To advocate the idea of wellness and a healthy lifestyle.
C.To tell us that online wellness accounts are hard to follow.
D.To show the public’s unfavorable attitude to wellness obsession.
3.Why are people starting to return to traditional forms of exercise?
A.Sports such as cycling are more impressive.
B.People are treating wellness as an everyday thing.
C.Classes like Hula Hoop and Yoga are too expensive.
D.People have come to know wellness is not so necessary.
4.Which of the following is the best title for the text r?
A.The Importance of Living a Healthy Lifestyle
B.Are You Suffering from Wellness Tiredness?
C.The Benefits of Mindfulness in Wellness Industry
D.What is the Real Meaning of Wellness Obsession?
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Do you know what makes you happy? Write a list of all the things that make you happy. How many of them are fun? Most of them? So, if you spend your time doing all these fun things, you’ll be really happy, won’t you?
Well, maybe not. For most people, fun isn’t enough for real happiness. Paul Dolan wrote a book called Happiness by Design. 1. If most of the things on your list are about pleasure, that is what you think makes you happy. But you also need activities with purpose.
2. It’s easy to do well in subjects you like, but subjects you don’t like are less motivating. They’re not fun for you, but you have to study them so you need to find purpose. An “A” in a subject you hate won’t help the world. 3. Each person can study one part until they understand it and then teach it to the rest of the group. The purpose becomes helping the team.
Go back to your list of things that make you happy. 4. Can you add any? Remember, some activities might bring both pleasure and purpose.
Now you need to design a happy life. Paul Dolan believes people should “decide, design, do”. First decide what brings you pleasure and/or purpose -that means your two lists. 5. For example, you might love riding a bike but never have time to do it. So, ride to school or the library or the shops. Some parts of our lives are good or bad luck, but we can still design the rest to make more happiness.
A.But can you be part of a study team with friends?
B.How many of them are activities that bring purpose?
C.There are different ways we can find pleasure in things.
D.He thinks happiness comes from both pleasure and purpose.
E.If you’re a student, your “job” is studying and passing exams.
F.If you think something makes you happy, then it makes you happy.
G.Then, don’t just think about these activities, fill your life with them.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
When I was a boy I loved walking in the woods around my home. My mom ______ me not to travel so far that I would ______ the house. Being a naughty boy, ______ , I soon found myself hiking further, ______ just how far I could go into the woods. But after losing my way once for two hours, I ______ I’d better leave a track the next time I went for a walk.
One day when I ______ into the woods, I broke a small branch on a young tree to ______ my place. I wandered further in and broke one branch and then another. In a few ______ where there were no branches, I ______ the heads of flowers that were growing. When I decided to ______ , turning around I ______ found my tracks, but instead of being proud I felt ______ . I could see the track of damage I had ______ in the woods. Looking at the broken branches and dead flowers I was ______ , so I determined never to do that again. ______ , I’d sit by the streams listening to them sing, watch the birds and ______ down to smell the flowers.
As an old saying goes, “We will be ______ forever by the tracks we leave.” As I grow older and ______ , I have done my best to never leave a track of ______ in my life as I did in the woods that day. I have instead ______ to leave tracks of love and goodness.
1.A.persuaded B.warned C.allowed D.forced
2.A.keep track of B.take care of C.lose sight of D.have control of
3.A.besides B.therefore C.otherwise D.however
4.A.testing B.describing C.stressing D.explaining
5.A.regretted B.predicted C.decided D.proved
6.A.dived B.knocked C.jumped D.escaped
7.A.check B.mark C.report D.search
8.A.cycles B.processes C.spots D.backgrounds
9.A.picked B.counted C.touched D.lifted
10.A.move on B.give up C.run away D.head back
11.A.abruptly B.easily C.randomly D.strangely
12.A.nervous B.shy C.impatient D.sad
13.A.left B.designed C.found D.followed
14.A.annoyed B.confused C.ashamed D.scared
15.A.Still B.Meanwhile C.Somehow D.Instead
16.A.lie B.bend C.look D.fall
17.A.known B.respected C.led D.inspired
18.A.happier B.braver C.calmer D.wiser
19.A.doubt B.harm C.worry D.terror
20.A.afforded B.happened C.attempted D.continued
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Ashrita Furman is holding the record - for records! Furman has always been 1. (interest) in Guinness World Records. When he was still 2. teenager he, would preferably spend a lot of time reading the Guinness book, and today, he holds the most amazing record 3. all: The record for having the most current Guinness World Records at the same time. He 4. (succeed) in setting 245 records since the year 1979. 5. other people have broken over half of his records, today he still holds up to 94 records.
Most of the records Furman has set include lots of physical activity. For example, Furman has walked 103 kilometers while 6. (balance) a milk bottle on his head. 7. took him 23 hours and 35 minutes. He has also pushed a car just over 27 kilometers within 24 hours. A few years 8. , Furman set three new records in less 9. an hour on the same day.
Furman will never finish. His life is all about breaking records, and by the time you read this, he’s 10. (probable) already broken a few more.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定你是李华，你的英国朋友Alex即将来你校参加国际中学生汉语夏令营，请写一封电子邮件告知其相关信息，内容包括：
1.表示欢迎；
2.介绍活动内容；
3.你的期待。
注意：1.词数80左右；
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面短文，根据所给情节进行续写，使之构成一个完整的故事。
Missus Sommers one day found herself the unexpected owner of fifteen dollars. It seemed to her a very large amount of money. For a day or two she walked around in a dreamy state as she thought about her choices. Her daughter Janie was wearing worn shoes and needed new ones. She would buy cloth for new shirts for the boys. Her daughter Mag should have another dress. And still there would be enough left for new stockings for her children. The idea about how to spend the dollars made her restless with excitement.
On the day she planned to go shopping with the money, she ate a light meal- no! Between getting the children fed and the house cleaned, and preparing herself to go shopping, she forgot to eat at all!
When she arrived at the large department store, she spotted a pile of silk stockings at the entrance. A sign nearby announced that they had been reduced in price a young girl behind the counter asked her if she wished to examine the silky leg coverings. She smiled as if she had been asked to inspect diamond jewelry, and started to feel the soft, expensive items. Missus Sommers picked up a black pair and looked at them closely. Two red marks suddenly showed on her pale face. She looked up at the shop girl and said proudly, “Well, I will buy this pair.”
Missus Sommers changed her cotton stockings for the new silk ones in the ladies’ rest area. She had let herself be controlled by some machine-like force that directed her actions and freed her of responsibility. How good was the touch of the silk on her skin! Then she put her shoes back on and put her old stockings into her bag. Next, she went to the shoe department, where she tried on a pair of new boots. Her foot and ankle looked lovely. She could not believe that they were a part of herself.
注意：1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2.至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4.续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1：
After buying a pair of new boots, she walked into the clothing department.
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Paragraph 2：
She was about to leave the store when a kid running around reminded her of something.
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析