There are hundreds of types of birthday cake ...

There are hundreds of types of birthday cake in the world. You are likely to enjoy one during at least one of your birthday parties. But have you ever stopped and wondered, “Why am I eating this? What makes this dessert fit to celebrate the day of my birth?”

It’s because you are as important and beloved as the gods.

The ancient Egyptians are thought to have “invented” the celebration of birthdays. They believed when pharaohs (法老) were crowned, they became gods, so their coronation (加冕) day was their “birth” as a god.

Ancient Greeks borrowed the tradition, but realized that a dessert would make the celebration more meaningful. So they baked moon-shaped cakes to offer up to the goddess of the moon. They decorated them with lighted candles to make the cakes shine like the moon. It is the reason why we light our birthday cakes on fire.

Modern birthday parties are said to get their roots from an 18th century German celebration. On the morning of a child’s birthday, he or she would receive a cake with lighted candles that added up to the kid’s age, plus one. This extra candle was called the “light of life,” representing the hope of another full year lived.

And then, torture — because no one could eat the cake until after dinner. The family replaced the candles as they burned out throughout the day. Finally, when the moment came, the birthday child would make a wish, try to blow out all the candles in one breath, and dig in.

Since the ingredients (原料) to make cakes were pretty expensive, this birthday custom didn’t become popular until the Industrial Revolution. More ingredients were available, which made them cheaper, and bakeries even started selling pre-baked cakes.

1.What is the passage mainly about?

A.The origin of birthday cakes. B.The significance of birthday cakes.

C.The history of birthday parties. D.The introduction of cake production.

2.Who established the tradition of celebrating birthdays with cakes according to the passage?

A.Germans. B.Pharaohs.

C.Ancient Greeks. D.Ancient Egyptians.

3.The underlined word “torture” in Paragraph 6 is closest in meaning to ________.

A.pleasure B.replacement

C.sharing D.suffering

4.Why was the birthday cake custom unpopular before the Industrial Revolution?

A.The transport was inconvenient.

B.The ingredients of cakes were expensive.

C.The cake could not be eaten before dinner.

D.The bakeries would not sell pre-baked cakes.

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health, wealth and other comforts of life, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, offend (冒犯) many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was sounded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation. It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors. The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when those who have realized its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.

Although in fact it is chiefly all act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people offend many others: nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrong doings. These people should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

1.People who are unhappy　　　　　　　　　　　　　 ．

A. always consider things differently from others

B. usually are affected by the results of certain things

C. usually misunderstand what others think or say

D. always discover the unpleasant side of certain things

2.The phrase “sour the pleasure of society” most probably means“　　　　　　　　　　 .”

A. have a good taste with social life　　     B. make others unhappy

C. tend to scold others openly             D. enjoy the pleasure of life

3.We can conclude from the passage that__________.

A. we should pity all such unhappy people

B. such unhappy people are dangerous to social life

C. people can get rid of the habit of unhappiness

D. unhappy people can not understand happy persons

4.If such unhappy persons insist on keeping the habit, the author suggests that people should_______.

A. prevent any communication with them

B. show respect and politeness to them

C. persuade them to recognize the bad effects

D. quarrel with them until they realize the mistakes

5.In this passage, the writer mainly __________.

A. describes two types of people

B. laughs at the unhappy people

C. suggests the unhappy people should get rid of the habits of unhappiness

D. tells people how to be unhappy in life

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other comforts of life, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, hurt many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation. It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors. The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.

Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people hurt many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings. These should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

1.People who are unhappy _______.

A. always consider things differently from others

B. always discover the unpleasant side of certain things

C. usually misunderstand what others think or say

D. usually are affected by the results of certain things

2.The phrase “sour the pleasure of society” most nearly means “_______”.

A. makes others unhappy

B. has a good taste with social life

C. tend to scold others openly

D. enjoy the pleasure of life

3.We can conclude from the passage that _______.

A. we should pity all such unhappy people

B. such unhappy people are dangerous to social life

C. people can get rid of the habit of unhappiness

D. unhappy people can not understand happy persons

4.If such unhappy persons insist on keeping the habit, the author suggests that people should _______.

A. show no respect and politeness to them

B. prevent any communication with them

C. persuade them to recognize the bad effects

D. quarrel with them until they realize the mistakes

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other comforts of life, one becomes happy, the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

　People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things. The pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine, the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, offend(or hurt) many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation. It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors. The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.

　Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people offend many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings. These should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

1.The phrase“sour the pleasure of society” most nearly means__________.

2.We can conclude from the passage that__________.

3.If such unhappy persons insist on keeping the habit, the author suggests that people should ______.

4.In this passage, the writer mainly________.

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other comforts of life, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, offend (hurt) many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing(批评) and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation(模仿). It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors(拥有者). The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.

Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people offend(冒犯) many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings. These should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact(接触) with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

1.People who are unhappy________.

2.The underlined phrase “sour the pleasure of society” most nearly means________.

3. We can conclude (推断) from the second paragraph that________.

4. In this passage, the writer mainly________.

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other comforts of life, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, hurt many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation. It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors. The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.

Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people hurt many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings. These should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

1. People who are unhappy _______.

A. always consider things differently from others

B. always discover the unpleasant side of certain things

C. usually misunderstand what others think or say

D. usually are affected by the results of certain things

2.The phrase “sour the pleasure of society” most nearly means “_______”.

A. makes others unhappy

B. has a good taste with social life

C. tend to scold others openly

D. enjoy the pleasure of life

3. We can conclude from the passage that _______.

A. we should pity all such unhappy people

B. such unhappy people are dangerous to social life

C. people can get rid of the habit of unhappiness

D. unhappy people can not understand happy persons

4.If such unhappy persons insist on keeping the habit, the author suggests that people should _______.

A. show no respect and politeness to them

B. prevent any communication with them

C. persuade them to recognize the bad effects

D. quarrel with them until they realize the mistakes

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Every year there are hundreds of earthquakes in different parts of the world. In September, 1923, Tokyo and Yokohama were both destroyed by an earthquake and the fires that followed it. They had to be completely rebuilt. One of the most serious earthquakes was in China’s Shanxi province in 1556. It killed almost one million people.

We measure an earthquake’s strength on the Richter Scale. The Richter Scale was introduced in 1935 in Southern California in the USA. It measures earthquakes on a scale of one to ten. Any earthquake measuring five or more is usually serious.

The Earth’s crust(地壳) is made up of rock called plates. As these plates move, they sometimes crash against each other, causing the crust to quake. In cities such as Tokyo, where small quakes happen quite often, many modern buildings are designed to be flexible so when the Earth moves, they move with it.

Earthquakes can also break up gas and oil pipes. This can cause fires to break out, which can do as much damage as the earthquake itself.

Another effect of earthquakes is tsunamis. These are huge waves created by earthquakes beneath the sea. They can be many meters high and cause great damage to coastal towns and cities, China, Japan, Russia and the USA have the highest occurrence(发生) of earthquakes in the world.

1.The passage is mainly about ________.

A. scientists who study earthquakes     B. the way of measuring earthquakes

C. a usual natural disaster             D. what people should do in the earthquake

2.The earthquake in Shanxi Province ________, which in NOT true?

A. happened in 1556                 B. killed one million people

C. was the only earthquake in China     D. caused a lot of damage

3. Earthquakes ________

A. don’t cause much damage             B. are not serious

C. most possibly happen in Japan            D. happen all over the world

4.According to the passage we know that tsunamis .

A. can cause earthquakes

B. are caused by earthquakes

C. only happen on land

D. are a way of measuring earthquakes

高一英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

Every year there are hundreds of earthquakes in different parts of the world. In September, 1923, Tokyo and Yokohama were both destroyed by an earthquake and the fires that followed it. They had to be completely rebuilt. One of the most serious earthquakes was in China’s Shanxi province in 1556. It killed almost one million people.

We measure an earthquake’s strength on the Richter Scale. The Richter Scale was introduced in 1935 in Southern California in the USA. It measures earthquakes on a scale of one to ten. Any earthquake measuring five or more is usually serious.

The Earth’s crust(地壳) is made up of rock called plates. As these plates move, they sometimes crash against each other, causing the crust to quake. In cities such as Tokyo, where small quakes happen quite often, many modern buildings are designed to be flexible so when the Earth moves, they move with it.

Earthquakes can also break up gas and oil pipes. This can cause fires to break out, which can do as much damage as the earthquake itself. Another effect of earthquakes is tsunamis. These are huge waves created by earthquakes beneath the sea. They can be many meters high and cause great damage to coastal towns and cities, China, Japan, Russia and the USA have the highest occurrence(发生) of earthquakes in the world.

1.The passage is mainly about ________.

A．scientists who study earthquakes

B．the way of measuring earthquakes

C．a usual natural disaster

D．what people should do in the earthquake

2.The earthquake in Shanxi Province ________, which in NOT true?

A．happened in 1556

B．killed one million people

C．caused a lot of damage

D．was the only earthquake in China

3.Earthquakes ________

A．don’t cause much damage               B．are not serious

C．most possibly happen in Japan              D．happen all over the world

4.According to the passage we know that tsunamis .

A．can cause earthquakes

B．are caused by earthquakes

C．only happen on land

D．are a way of measuring earthquakes

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Every year there are hundreds of earthquakes in different parts of the world. In September, 1923, Tokyo and Yokohama were both destroyed by an earthquake and the fires that followed it. They had to be completely rebuilt. One of the most serious earthquakes was in China’s Shanxi province in 1556. It killed almost one million people.

We measure an earthquake’s strength on the Richter Scale. The Richter Scale was introduced in 1935 in Southern California in the USA. It measures earthquakes on a scale of one to ten. Any earthquake measuring five or more is usually serious.

The Earth’s crust(地壳) is made up of rock called plates. As these plates move, they sometimes crash against each other, causing the crust to quake. In cities such as Tokyo, where small quakes happen quite often, many modern buildings are designed to be flexible so when the Earth moves, they move with it.

Earthquakes can also break up gas and oil pipes. This can cause fires to break out, which can do as much damage as the earthquake itself.

Another effect of earthquakes is tsunamis. These are huge waves created by earthquakes beneath the sea. They can be many meters high and cause great damage to coastal towns and cities, China, Japan, Russia and the USA have the highest occurrence(发生) of earthquakes in the world.

1.The passage is mainly about ________.

A. scientists who study earthquakes     B. the way of measuring earthquakes

C. a usual natural disaster             D. what people should do in the earthquake

2.The earthquake in Shanxi Province ________, which in NOT true?

A. happened in 1556                 B. killed one million people

C. was the only earthquake in China     D. caused a lot of damage

3.Earthquakes ________

A. don’t cause much damage             B. are not serious

C. most possibly happen in Japan            D. happen all over the world

4.According to the passage we know that tsunamis .

A. can cause earthquakes

B. are caused by earthquakes

C. only happen on land

D. are a way of measuring earthquakes

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

There are about fifteen hundred languages in the world. But 21 a few of them are very  22 . English is one of these. Many, many people use it, not only in England and the U.S.A., but in other parts of the world. About 200,000,000 speak it as their own language. It is difficult to say how many people are learning it as a 23 language. Many millions are 24 to do so.

Is it easy or difficult to learn English? Different people may have different 25  . Have you ever 26 ads of this kind in the newspapers or magazines? “Learn English in six weeks, or your 27 back.”.“Easy and funny! Our records and tapes 28 you master(掌握) your English in a month. 29the first day your 30  will be excellent. Just send us ... ” Of course, it never 31  quite like this.

The only language that seems easy to learn is the mother tongue. We should 32 that we all learned our own language well when we were 33. If we could learn English in the same way, it would not seem so difficult. 34 what a small child does. He listens to what people say. He tries what he hears. When he is using the language, talking in it, 35 in it all the time. Just imagine how much 36 that gets!

So it is 37  to say that learning English is easy, because a good command of English  38 upon a lot of practice. And practice needs great effort and 39 much time. Good teachers, records, tapes, books, and dictionaries will 40. But they cannot do the student's work for him.

1.                A．not            B．quite           C．only D．very

2.                A．difficult         B．important       C．necessary D．easy

3.                A．native          B．foreign         C．useful    D．mother

4.                A．learning        B．enjoying        C．trying    D．liking

5.                A．questions       B．problems       C．ideas D．answers

6.                A．found          B．watched        C．noticed   D．known

7.                A．knowledge      B．time           C．money   D．English

8.                A．make          B．help           C．let   D．allow

9.                A．From          B．On            C．Since D．After

10.               A．spelling        B．grammar        C．English    D．pronunciation

11.               A．happened      B．looked         C．seemed   D．felt

12.               A．know          B．remember      C．understand D．think

13.               A．students        B．children        C．babies D．grown-ups

14.               A．Imagine        B．Mind          C．Do   D．Think of

15.               A．using          B．thinking        C．trying D．practicing

16.               A．time           B．money         C．language  D．practice

17.               A．hard           B．easy           C．funny D．silly

18.               A．depends        B．tries           C．has   D．takes

19.               A．uses           B．takes          C．gets  D．costs

20.               A．do            B．work           C．help  D．master

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析