Great Albums
Golden Hour
By Kacey Musgraves
Price: $10.49
It’s no surprise that many people forecast Golden Hour will be one of the best country albums of the 2010s. Country music superstar Musgraves makes listeners feel like she is speaking directly to them, thanks to her honesty and attention to detail. Although Musgraves is famous for her clever wordplay and humorous expressions about small-town life, she says she likes more direct songwriting.
Honky Tonk Time Machine
By George Strait
Price: $11.49
Honky Tonk Time Machine is a successful return for the best country music singer of all time. Radio stations often play it. Though you can listen to this album at home, the cover is a good enough reason for owning the album. The album is a must for fans of George or true country music.
Stronger Than the Truth
By Reba McEntire
Price: $9.49
If you are a country music fan, then this album is for you. There is something for everyone on this album. As the Queen of love songs, McEntire has some beautiful songs and she sings them to perfection. This may be her best country album to date.
Under Pressure
By Logic
Price: $9.49
On this album, the American rap singer talks about his growth. Under Pressure is a how of Logic’s life, his new fame, and most importantly, his family. Although Logic shows his skillful flow on this album, what makes it really special is the autobiographical (自传的) detail. The album is actually a successful project for a guy who worked hard.
1.What do we know about Kacey Musgraves?
A.She often talks with her fans face to face.
B.She cares about detail in golden hour.
C.She is the best songwriter in the 2010s.
D.She likes writing in small towns.
2.Whose music style is different from the other three?
A.Kacey Musgraves. B.George Strait.
C.Reba McEntire. D.Logic.
3.Which album is the most expensive?
A.Golden Hour. B.Stronger Than the Truth.
C.Honky Tonk Time Machine. D.Under Pressure.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Every year, usually in November, famous British people go to London for a special award ceremony Pride of Britain Awards. It celebrates Britain’s heroes—ordinary people who have shown bravery in a dangerous situation or who have done a lot to help others. When the nation needs a bit of cheering up, maybe we need more people like Dante Marvin.
Dressed in a tiny white suit, Dante was focused on in a wheelchair. He was a pocket rocket of positivity, taken to the stage with a loud “What’s up, London?” like a rock star. Dante Marvin told all celebrities present that he would not let a bone disease get in the way of his Raising efforts. Despite his own illness, he inspires everyone he meets. He often beams at others and works hard to spread happiness to others as an ambassador for the children’s charity, Variety.
Dante, 11, from Liverpool, suffers much more than most. He had 16 broken bones in his mum Rachael’ s body and was born with fragile bone disease and scoliosis (脊柱侧凸). He has broken 92 bones in his life—as a sneeze or slap can injure him—and has received 17 separate operations to insert metal chips. Rachael says, “I don’t prevent Dante doing anything. He just gets on with it. He hates seeing other children sad. If I take him to the hospital, he is more bothered about the crying children and tries to comfort them. I am so proud of him.”
Dante is so grateful for his new yellow wheelchair that has been donated by Variety. He said, “My message to anyone with a disability is ‘don’t give up.’ He reminds people of his motto—there are no disabilities, just abilities. Presenting Dante with the award—Child of Courage, Jason Manford, a famous comedian, asked if he’d like to be a comedian and Dante told him he never stops laughing.
1.Who is Pride of Britain Awards intended for?
A.Special talents. B.Civilian heroes.
C.Outstanding children. D.Super stars acting modestly.
2.What’s the meaning of the underlined word “beams” in paragraph 2?
A.Glares. B.Fires.
C.Smiles. D.Guesses.
3.What does the author mainly want to tell us in paragraph 3?
A.Dante’s suffering and quality of helping others.
B.The importance of good family education.
C.Examples of Dante’s spreading happiness.
D.The symptom of fragile bone disease.
4.What can be inferred according to the text?
A.Dante’s dream is to be a comedian.
B.Jason Manford is a humorous host.
C.The award helps achieve one’s goal.
D.Dante is always optimistic and joyful.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Many people have become accustomed to saying “bless you” or “gesundheit” when someone sneezes. No one says anything when someone coughs, blows their noses or burps (打嗝), so why do sneezes get special treatment? What do those phrases actually mean, anyway?
Wishing someone well after he sneezes probably originated thousands of years ago. The Romans would say “Jupiter preserve you!” or “Salve!” which meant “good health to you” and the Greeks would wish each other “long life”. The phrase “God bless you” is due to Pope Gregory the great, who spoke it out in the sixth century during a bubonic plague epidemic (黑死病) (sneezing is an obvious symptom of one form of the plague).
The alternative term “gesundheit” comes from Germany, and it literally means “health”. The idea is that a sneeze typically comes ahead of illness. It entered the English language in the early 20th century, brought to the United States by German-speaking immigrants.
Actually every country around the globe has its own way of wishing sneezers well. People in Arabic countries say “Alhamdulillah!” which means “praise be to God”. Hindus say “Livel” or “Live well!”. Some countries have special sneezing responses for children. In Russia, after children are given the traditional response, “bud zdorov (be healthy)”, they are also told “rosti Bolshoi (grow big)”. When a child sneezes in China, he or she will hear “bai sui” which means “may you live 100 years.”
For the most part, the various sneeze responses originated from ancient superstitions (迷信). Some people believed that a sneeze caused the soul to escape the body through the nose, Saying “bless you” would stop the devil from claiming the person’s freed soul. However, some people believed that those evil spirits used the sneeze as an opportunity to enter a person’s body. There was also the misconception that the heart temporarily stopped during a sneeze (it doesn’t), and that saying “bless you” was a way of welcoming the person back to life.
1.What’s the purpose of paragraph 1?
A.To lead in the topic of the text. B.To explain the definition of blessing.
C.To introduce the evidence of the text. D.To tell the cause of saying “bless you”.
2.Why do people say “bless you” to sneezers?
A.To avoid illness. B.To wish them health.
C.To comfort their family. D.To get a get-well card from others.
3.How does the author state people’s ideas in the last paragraph?
A.By raising questions. B.By analyzing data.
C.By making comparisons. D.By listing causes.
4.What does the text mainly talk about?
A.How “bless you” is introduced into English.
B.Why we wish sneezers health in various ways.
C.How people from various countries avoid sneezers.
D.Why people say the blessing when someone sneezes.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
People often think that blue light before bedtime can make it harder to sleep. It’s true that the screens on phones, computers and televisions send out plenty of blue light. But if you’re focused on blue light as a major problem affecting your sleep or your eye health, it’s time to look at it from another aspect.
As Philip Yuhas, a professor of vision, writes at The Conversation, blue light isn’t a uniquely technological evil. It’s part of sunlight, and your eyes are exposed to plenty of it all the time. You’re fine. There are studies in mice that have found blue light can damage their eyes, but mice are nocturnal creatures (夜行动物) whose eyes are different from ours. The pigments (色素) and the lenses (晶状体) of our eyes actually block blue light fairly well—so in a sense, we already have built-in blue blocking protection.
Adding more protection isn’t likely to help, though. You can buy glasses and screen filters (滤光片) that block blue light, but Yuhas points out they are probably a waste of money. These products do not block out much blue light. The leading blue-blocking anti-reflective coating, for example, blocks only about 15% of the blue light that screens send out. You could get the same reduction just by holding your phone another inch from your face.
The American Academy of Ophthalmology doesn’t recommend blue-blocking products, either. Instead, if you’re concerned about your eye health or your ability to get to sleep on time, you already know what to do.
Put the screens away at bedtime. Read a book or find something else to do. While you’re using screens, take a 20-second break every 20 minutes to look at something 20 feet away (the “20-20-20” rule). If you get dry eyes when you look at screens for a long time, use eye drops labeled artificial tears.
1.What do people often think of blue light?
A.It is magical and rare. B.It is the most part of sunlight.
C.It is harmful to people’s skin. D.It is a factor affecting peoples sleep.
2.What did the studies in paragraph 2 find?
A.Mice can see clearly in the dark.
B.Blue light can damage mice’s eyes.
C.Human eyes actually absorb blue light well.
D.Human eyes need extra protection against blue light.
3.What can we know about blue-blocking products according to Yuhas?
A.They block a little blue light.
B.People should buy a better one.
C.They are thought highly of by experts.
D.Most can prevent plenty of harmful lights.
4.What could be the best title for the text?
A.What will Blue Light Affect Actually?
B.Are Blue Light Really from Screens?
C.Does Blue Light Affect People’s Health?
D.Why Does Blue Light Make Sleeping Hard?
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Imagine that a close friend ignores you when you arrive at his party. 1. But if you think about the situation differently, you would calm down. Using a particular emotion management strategy called reappraisal, which involves viewing an upsetting event in a positive light, is often effective in contributing to positive outcomes.
2. The research showed that if people believed feelings were malleable (可塑造的), they used reappraisal more frequently, and in return they had greater emotional health and life satisfaction.
University of Toronto researcher Brett Ford and her colleagues did another study. 3. The researchers found that the youths who believed emotions were controllable used reappraisal more and were less depressed than those who didn’t.
Does accepting our feelings impact our well-being? 4. In one research, the researchers stressed out participants by requiring them to give an impromptu (即兴的) talk. In another research, people kept daily diaries about how they handled stressors (紧张性刺激). In both cases participants who accepted their feelings experienced less negative emotions than people who judged their feelings.
“However, while emotions may be changed with efforts, that doesn’t mean they’re completely controllable,” says Eric Smith of Stanford University, “we shouldn’t expect to completely avoid or immediately remove certain of feelings. 5.”
A.It found a similar pattern.
B.You would be angry or upset, right?
C.We have beliefs about our emotions.
D.According to Ford and her colleagues, it does.
E.But we can learn to reduce them in hard times.
F.They were also less depressed and more satisfied with life.
G.Now, new research suggests our beliefs about our feelings affect us greatly.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
My dear grandmother passed away 18 years ago. However, I still ________ her every single day. She is such a(n) ________ part of my life. My Mom, Dad, brothers and I lived in her old house for most of my ________. And when I close my eyes and open my heart. I could see her ________ face. I could hear her say “HELLO” in a high ________, as I opened the door after school. And then she would open her ________ to give me a big hug and kiss. And when she ________ me, I could feel the love and joy coming from her ________ into mine.
I thought I ________ everything about my “Nana” but ________ I am still learning more about her even today. Just yesterday a(n) ________ family friend stopped to talk to me at the local post office. She told me what happened once when she ________ my Nana when I was still a little boy. They were ________ around the dining-table, chatting. Our ________ noticed the lovely earrings my Nana was ________. She told Nana how much she liked them and asked if Nana could ________ them to her in her will. Without a second ________ my sweet Nana took them off and gave them to her on the spot.
After our friend left, I stood there for a few minutes in ________. I had never known this and as far as I could tell, Nana never ________ it to anyone. That was just like her. She may have been excited and temperamental (喜怒无常的) at times but she was the person who loved others deeply and she ________ freely. She lives in my heart forever.
1.A.indicate B.remember C.miss D.respect
2.A.accessible B.believable C.evident D.important
3.A.memories B.childhood C.achievements D.adulthood
4.A.tiring B.artificial C.embarrassing D.kind
5.A.noise B.voice C.position D.quality
6.A.arms B.hands C.legs D.fingers
7.A.noticed B.hugged C.blamed D.helped
8.A.heart B.appearance C.reflection D.motivation
9.A.forgot B.resisted C.classified D.knew
10.A.increasingly B.amazingly C.fortunately D.gradually
11.A.humorous B.passive C.old D.troublesome
12.A.opposed B.appreciated C.admired D.visited
13.A.going B.turning C.sitting D.pushing
14.A.friend B.neighbor C.doctor D.grandpa
15.A.cleaning B.watching C.holding D.wearing
16.A.distribute B.deliver C.leave D.lend
17.A.thought B.assumption C.remark D.performance
18.A.disappointment B.surprise C.delight D.horror
19.A.mentioned B.demonstrated C.recommended D.introduced
20.A.donated B.invested C.gave D.interrupted
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。
When I finished all of my exam, my family drove to the countryside for a holiday. On our way, my favorite scarf flew out of the window suddenly and is gone. I felt very sad, regretting that when I hadn’t kept the scarf well. Soon after, we stopped at a service station. Feel upset, I found a bench and was about to ate my sandwich when a motorcyclist pulled into the station, “Is that your blue car?” he asked me. Although I felt surprising, I nodded quickly. A man pulled out the very scarf from my backpack and handed it to me. He then returned his motorcycle and wanted to leave. I went up and repaid him thankful by giving him a hug.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定你是李华，最近，你校成功举办了以“最美中国文化”为主题的文艺表演活动。请给你的英国朋友David写一封邮件，内容包括：
1. 活动的时间、地点、参加者；
2. 表演的节目；
3. 参加活动的感受。
注意：
1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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难度: 困难查看答案及解析