Three years ago when I was still in the university, I also worked at a restaurant.
An old man named Mr. Candido Filio was one of our regular customers at the restaurant. He was one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever known.
Every Sunday the Philippine Star Newspaper had a special page for word puzzles and among his peers (同龄人), Mr. Filio held the record for solving all the puzzles in less than five minutes. He encouraged me to solve them too and for months and months, I did my best to beat him but failed.
Then one Sunday, I did it! I was able to complete them before anyone else. Everyone cheered for me. He came up to me with a smile and said, “No one has ever beaten me before. You’re the first. I’ll have a prize for you tomorrow.”
The next day, he gave me a special Scrabble (拼字游戏) set. I would have never been able to afford one like that by myself. Then he said to me, “Kate, what do you think is man’s final goal in life? Happiness, isn’t it? You are happy and that should be considered as a success. Many people spend a lifetime searching for that. Be thankful that you have found it.” I looked at him and knew that my life had changed, probably forever. He must have known that I always felt sad about not having much money.
He encouraged me to learn the game and love words. And true to his words, I was never able to beat him again.
1.We can learn from the text that Mr. Filio ______.
A. was generous to young people B. was good at word puzzles
C. lived quite near the restaurant D. won a prize from the Philippine Star Newspaper
2.The author got a gift because ______.
A. Mr. Filio was thankful for her help
B. Mr. Filio was satisfied with her service
C. she was the first person to beat Mr. Filio
D. she was the new record keeper in the restaurant
3.After she heard what Mr. Filio said, the author probably felt ______.
A. amazed B. excited
C. touched D. inspired
4.What would be the best title of the text?
A. Happiness is also a success B. Interest is the best teacher
C. Scrabble makes a difference D. His words change my life
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
We all love our children and we all know how competitive the world is these days. What’s it going to be like when our children leave school? Will they have the skills they need to stay ahead of the competition?
All children need two basic skills to succeed. They must be able to read and they must be able to write. And with so much information available to them these days, they must be able to read quickly and accurately. That’s why your children need to be able to speed-read.
It’s ironic (讽刺的) that at this time of space-age technology, we’ve gone back to one of the earliest forms of mass communication—the written word. The Internet has introduced a revival (重新流行) of writing, and if you can’t keep up, you’ll be left behind. You certainly don’t want your children to be left behind.
You can help to make sure that your children are excellent writers—you can help them to learn how to use their language. Better still, you can learn with them!
You and your children can spend time together in a worthwhile pursuit (事业)—learning how to write. Forget the theme parks, the computer games, the expensive movies and interesting sports. If you want your children to have treasured memories of time spent with you, learn together.
For less than you would pay for tickets to a theme park, you can invest in your children’s future—help them learn to write well with my six-part writing course.
Don’t stand by while your child is left further and further behind.
1.From the last two paragraphs, we can know the main purpose of the passage is_______
A. To encourage students to be better prepared for the future.
B. To list the qualities children must have for their future success.
C. To persuade parents to choose a writing course for their kids.
D. To explain the difficult situation children have to face at present.
2.In the author’s opinion, ______.
A. speed-reading is the first step in a child’s formal education
B. children today waste too much time on games, movies and sports
C. children’s success depends much on good skills in reading and writing
D. writing helps people communicate more effectively in modern society
3.What does the author think of writing as a form of communication now?
A. Important. B. Funny.
C. Informal. D. Old-fashioned.
4.What’s the advantage of children’s learning together with their parents?
A. They will learn more quickly and accurately.
B. They will not be affected by games and sports.
C. It will encourage them to work for a higher pursuit.
D. They will have good memories of time spent with parents.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Tess was eight years old. Her little brother Andrew was very sick and their parents were completely out of money. She heard Daddy say to her tearful Mother, "Only a miracle can save him now."
Tess took her money and made her way six blocks to Rexall's Drug Store.
"And what do you want?" the chemist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. "I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen for ages."
"Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone. "He's really sick. He has something bad growing inside his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?"
"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but I can't help you," the chemist said, softening a little.
"Listen, I can help you." The chemist's brother was a well-dressed man. He asked Tess, "What kind of miracle does your brother need?"
"I don't know," Tess replied. "Mommy says he needs an operation. But my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money."
"How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago. "One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered. "And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more, if I need to."
"Well，what a coincidence (巧合)," smiled the man. "A dollar and eleven cents － the exact price of a miracle for your little brother. Take me to where you live. Let's see if 1 have the kind of miracle you need."
That man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon in neurosurgery (神经外科). The operation was completed without charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well．
Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost… one dollar and eleven cents… plus the faith of a little child.
1.What can we learn from the first paragraph?
A. Tess's brother would recover because there was a miracle.
B. Tess's brother would die because his family had no money to treat his illness.
C. Tess's family would look for a miracle to treat Andrew's illness.
D. Andrew should go to hospital for a miracle.
2.Why did the chemist get annoyed first？
A. Because he was a nervous man．
B. Because Tess didn't buy his medicine.
C. Because Tess had bothered him and his brother.
D. Because Tess was poorly dressed.
3.What can we learn about Dr. Carlton Armstrong?
A. He was a stone－hearted man.
B. He cared for only a little money.
C. He never helped others unless given a lot of money．
D. He was a kind gentleman and ready to help others.
4.What can be the best title？
A. A dying boy and her sister B. A miracle of $ 1.11
C. A kind doctor and his brother D. A poor girl and a doctor
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
In the United States, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it. And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That is what "keeping up with the Joneses" is about. It is the story of someone who tried to look as rich as his neighbors.
The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand. He told this story about himself. He began earning $ 125 a week at the age of 23. That was a lot of money in those days. He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood. When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding every day. When he saw that rich people had servants. Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.
It was like a race, but one could never finish this race because one was always trying to keep up. The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer pay for their new way of life. They had to move back to an apartment in New York City. Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich lifestyle of their neighbors. He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories. He called it "Keeping up with the Joneses" because "Jones" is a very common name in the United States. "Keeping up with the Joneses" came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you. Momand's series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses. And there are "Joneses" in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr. Jones always seems to be ahead.
1.Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they ______.
A. want to be as rich as their neighbors
B. want others to know or to think that they are rich.
C. don't want others to know they are rich
D. want to be happy
2.It can be inferred from the story that rich people like to ________.
A. live outside New York City B. live in New York City
C. live in apartments D. live with many neighbors
3.What's the author's attitude to keeping up with the Joneses?
A. Negative. B. Positive.
C. Supportive. D. Objective.
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
How to Read a Book
Books can be your best friends．1.They can introduce you to things you may never see …But do you know how to read them in order to get the fullest enjoyment possible? The following tips should help．
◆2.Look in the library or in one of the large bookstores．You could also ask friends if you could have a look at their book shelves. Search the shelves until you find a book that looks good．Read the first page to see how it reads, and the cover text on the back of the book, if it has any．If you are already concentrating，then buy it or borrow it.
◆Do not start to read it until you have the time．3.And set aside time to do nothing else but read，as it can be，at times，suspenseful(悬疑的)，exciting and relaxing．
◆Get comfortable on the couch．Have a lamp behind you, lighting the area where you are reading．Make sure the television is off and that anything else that could distract(使分心) you has been attended to．4.
◆Start the book by turning the pages and really enjoy it．Do not think about anything else but what you are reading．Put yourself into the action or location in the story．Once you concentrate completely, it will be difficult to put the book down．And remember that reading is not running your eyes over a book．5.However，if you need to read the book quickly，then you do not need to pay attention to every word．
A. Find a book.
B. Look for a place.
C. Otherwise, you will miss it.
D. You should read it actively and enjoy it completely.
E. They can take you to places that you may never go.
F. Get warm if you are going to be sitting still for a few hours.
G. If you are busy doing other things, you should wait until you have finished them.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
In the clinic, I asked if Michael could be retested, so the specialist tested him again. To my ___1___, it was the same score.
Later that evening, I ___2___ told Frank what I had learned that day. After talking it over, we agree that we knew our ___3___ much better than an IQ test. We ___4___ that Michael’s score must have been a ___5___ and we should treat him ___6___ as usual.
We moved to Indiana in 1962, and Michael studied at Concordia High School in the same year. He got ___7___ grades in the school, especially ___8___ biology and chemistry, which was a great comfort.
Michael ___9___ Indiana University in 1965 as a pre-medical student, soon afterwards, his teachers permitted him to take more courses than ___10___. In 1968, he was accepted by the School of Medicine, Yale University.
On graduation day in 1972, Frank and I ___11___ the ceremony at Yale. After the ceremony, we told Michael about the ___12___ IQ score he got when he was six. Since that day, Michael sometimes would look at us and say ___13___, “My dear mom and dad never told me that I couldn’t be a doctor, not until after I graduated from medical school!” It is his special way of thanking us for the ___14___ we had in him.
Interestingly, Michael then ___15___ another IQ test. We went to the same clinic where he had __16___ the test eighteen years before. This time Michael scored 126, an increase of 36 points. A result like that was supposed to be ___17___.
Children often do as ___18___ as what adults, particularly parents and teachers, ___19___ of them. That is, tell a child he is “ ___20___”, and he may play the role of a foolish child.
1.A. joy B. surprise C. dislike D. disappointment
2.A. tearfully B. fearfully C. cheerfully D. hopefully
3.A. student B. son C. friend D. doctor
4.A. argued B. realized C. decided D. understood
5.A. joke B. mistake C. warning D wonder
6.A. specially B. strictly C. naturally D. carefully
7.A. poor B. good C. average D. standard
8.A. in B. about C. of D. for
9.A. visited B. chose C. passed D. entered
10.A. allowed B. described C. required D. offered
11.A. missed B. held C. delayed D. attended
12.A. high B. same C. low D. different
13.A. curiously B. eagerly C. calmly D. jokingly
14.A. faith B. interest C. pride D. delight
15.A. looked for B. asked for C. waited for D. prepared for
16.A. received B. accepted C. organized D. discussed
17.A. imperfect B. impossible C. uncertain D. unsatisfactory
18.A. honestly B. much C. well D. bravely
19.A. hear B. learn C. expect D. speak
20.A. wise B. rude C. shy D. stupid
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或括号内单词的正确形式。
In an English lesson, the teacher noticed Xiao Ming busily 1. (type)messages on her cellphone. To the teacher's surprise, Xiao Ming wasn't just texting her friends the2.(late) small talk. She was blogging about what she was learning in the classroom, sharing her opinions3. her classmates.
The case caused 4.heated discussion among teachers and students citywide. Miss Li, another English teacher said, “I am 5. (amaze) at how creative the students can be when writing on their blogs. To me it's a great way for students to improve their writing skills while writing about personal feelings and experiences.” But 6. made other teachers worried was the blog addiction which may disturb the students' study.
A supporter and classmate of Xiao Ming said, “We love her blog! We all read it each day and can't wait to see what she writes about next. Many of her 7. (suggest) on study really help to encourage us. And we can relax8. (we) while reading her blog.” Another student blogger9. (admit) that he often works late into the night, writing his blog. He said, “Sometimes I don't even have time10.(finish) my homework. I can't help myself. I really have a lot to say.”
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
短文改错
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。
Be an excellent student with all-round development, Li Hua has been honored as Star of all the subjects but often ranks among the top three in the class. After class, she is active in the playground, music club and some community. The sport he likes most is playing the basketball. He also took great delight in Chinese opera as well singing popsongs. Besides, he takes an actively part in all sorts of social practices. In a word, Li Hua is an outstanding student, which has set a good example to us.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假如你叫李明，在伦敦学习期间，你呆在 Jonathan 的家里。请你给 Jonathan 写一封电子邮件表示感谢，并邀请他明年暑假来你家。
内容要点：1. 感谢 Jonathan 让你住在他家;
2. 他们给你创造了一个很好的家庭氛围；
3. 明年你将中学毕业，届时你将有两个月的假期，你和家人诚邀 Jonathan 暑期来西安度假。
注意：1.词数100左右；2.内容应包括以上要点，可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Jonathan，
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours，
Li Hua
难度: 中等查看答案及解析