An old woman had two large pots, one on each ...

An old woman had two large pots, one on each end of a pole. She carried the pole with the pots across her neck.

One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full pot of water. At the end of the long walk from the well to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half-full.

For two years this happened daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection.

One day, the cracked pot spoke to the woman by the well: “I am ashamed of myself because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house.”

The old woman smiled: “Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot’s side? That’s because I have always known about your crack, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path. And every day while we walk back, you water them.”

“For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, I would not have this beauty.”

Each of us has our own cracks. But it’s these cracks that make our lives together so interesting and meaningful.

1.What does the underlined word “crack” mean?

A．Very narrow space between two things or two parts of something.

B．Line of division where something is broken, but not into separate parts.

C．Fault in an idea, system, or organization.

D．Sudden sharp noise like the sound of a stick being broken.

2.How did the cracked pot feel about itself at first?

A．Proud.            B．Disappointed.      C．Annoyed.          D．Embarrassed.

3.Where were the flowers growing?

A．On both sides of the path.                 B．In the woman’s house.

C．On the perfect pot’s side of the path.       D．On the cracked pot’s side of the path

4.Which is the correct order of the following events?

① The woman picked the flowers and decorated the table.

② The woman told the truth to the cracked pot.

③ The cracked pot talked to the woman about its crack.

④ The woman found a crack on one pot.

⑤ The woman planted some flower seeds.

A．④⑤①③②                           B．⑤④③②①

C．④③①②⑤                           D．④⑤③①②

5.What does the passage mainly want to tell us?

A．Never laugh at imperfection.               B．No pains, no gains.

C．Imperfection makes life meaningful.         D．It’s never too late to learn.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

In one of the old buildings near our school，one could see an old man sitting by a large window on the first floor．His name was James．During the three years at school, I had hardly ever found him missing from his usual position．

He was a high-ranking government official and lived happily with his wife．Once there was a bus accident，in which a number of passengers were seriously injured and were taken to the hospital for treatment．James was responsible for the rescue operation．It was a big hospital，but James was shocked to notice how ill-equipped it was．There were no enough life-saving drugs and life—supporting equipment． The injured and their companions had to struggle there．James attempted to help．However，though he emptied his pockets，many of them died that day．

That was a turning point in his life．He made a decision to devote his life to helping others，particularly the poor and needy patients and their companions．He began spending much of his income on these people．Since this required a lot of time and energy，he found it difficult to fulfill(履行) his official duties and therefore chose to retire，which，in turn，reduced his income considerably．

His wife was deeply worried. Most of the time，James was out and paid least attention to home affairs．Meanwhile，as he was spending a lot helping others，she had to struggle even to meet the household expenses．Though she was not opposed to his helping the poor，she urged him not to overlook his own life and home，but it had no effect on him．One day they had a heated argument and in the end she left him，never to return．Though he continued with his work，this was a great blow and did serious harm to his health and enthusiasm and was soon forced to stay indoors．That was when he took his position by the window，spending his time looking outside．

A few weeks after my graduation，I returned to school，only to find the buildings gone．I heard that they were torn down．All the people left except James．He refused to go and the next morning，he was found at his usual place by the window，dead．

1.What changed James’ view towards life?

A. The difficulties in his career．

B. The deaths in the bus accident．

C. The bad conditions in the hospital．

D. The responsibilities in the operation．

2.James chose to retire in order to____________________.

A. spare more time and energy to help others

B. find a better job to increase his income

C. take care of the injured passengers

D. stay away from the difficult official duties

3.James’ wife left because_________________________．

A. she was strongly against his deeds

B. James paid too little attention to his work

C. her work to support their daily life was too tiring

D. James failed to keep a balance between charity and home

4.What is possibly the reason why James sat by the window every day?

A. He expected his wife to return.

B. He looked forward to going out.

C. He desired to watch the students.

D. He attempted to know the outside life.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

In one of the old buildings near our school，one could see an old man sitting by a large window on the first floor．His name was James．During the three years at schoo1, I had hardly ever found him missing from his usual position．

He was a high-ranking government official and lived happily with his wife．Once there was a bus accident，in which a number of passengers were seriously injured and were taken to the hospital for treatment．James was responsible for the rescue operation．It was a big hospital，but James was shocked to notice how ill-equipped it was．There were no enough life-saving drugs and life—supporting equipment． The injured and their companions had to struggle there．James attempted to help．However，though he emptied his pockets，many of them died that day．

That was a turning point in his life．He made a decision to devote his life to helping others，particularly the poor and needy patients and their companions．He began spending much of his income on these people．Since this required a lot of time and energy，he found it difficult to fulfill his official duties and therefore chose to retire，which，in turn，reduced his income considerably．

His wife was deeply worried. Most of the time，James was out and paid least attention to home affairs．Meanwhile，as he was spending a lot helping others，she had to struggle even to meet the household expenses．Though she was not opposed to his helping the poor，she urged him not to overlook his own life and home，but it had no effect on him．One day they had a heated argument and in the end she left him，never to return．Though he continued with his work，this was a great blow and did serious harm to his health and enthusiasm and was soon forced to stay indoors．That was when he took his position by the window，spending his time looking outside．

A few weeks after my graduation，I returned to school，only to find the buildings gone．I heard that they were torn down．All the people left except James．He refused to go and the next morning，he was found at his usual place by the window，dead．

1.What changed James’ view towards life?

A. The difficulties in his career．

B. The deaths in the bus accident．

C. The bad conditions in the hospital．

D. The responsibilities in the operation．

2.James chose to retire in order to____________________.

A. take care of the injured passengers

B. find a better job to increase his income

C. spare more time and energy to help others

D. stay away from the difficult official duties

3.James’ wife left because_________________________．

A. she was strongly against his deeds

B. James paid too little attention to his work

C. her work to support their daily life was too tiring

D. James failed to keep a balance between charity and home

4.The underlined word “this” in Paragraph 4 refers to ____________.

A. His decision to retire　　 B. The departure of his wife

C. The argument with his wife　　 D. His devotion to helping others

5.What is possibly the reason why James sat by the window every day?

A. He expected his wife to return.

B. He looked forward to going out.

C. He desired to watch the students.

D. He attempted to know the outside life.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

By 1938, Europe had been experiencing an increased number of attacks on Jews. With no end in sight, Jewish refugee(难民) agencies requested the British government to allow them to bring in only Jewish children under 17 years of age. This was to be only temporary, until the situation in their home countries was improved.

Kindertransport, meaning “children transport” in German, was then born. Children from Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Poland and other Nazi-occupied regions were transported to the United Kingdom. There they were either placed with other families or in hostels. Later, it was found that many of these children were the only survivors of their families. Nicholas Winton was among those people who helped to save Jewish children. He managed to rescue 669 children from Czechoslovakia and bring them safely to England. In 1938 around Christmas, 29-year-old Nicky was about to leave for a skiing holiday. Suddenly, Martin Blake, one of his good friends, contacted (联络) him from Czechoslovakia, asking him to travel there to help political refugees on the run from the Nazis. And Nicholas agreed.

Nicky spent his entire holiday of 3 weeks in the capital city of Prague where he saw the situation first-hand. Once back in England, he immediately started organizing the evacuation(撤离) of children from the Czech region. From advertising for the necessary permits, Nicky worked tirelessly. By August 1939, 669 children had been helped by Nicky and his friends. Haplessly, the last group of children due to leave Prague in the beginning of September could not do so— World War Ⅱ broke out, and swallowed them up.

Nicky did not discuss his particular task with his wife, Grete. It was only when she found a scrapbook in 1988, with names of the rescued children, their (lost) parents and the foster families that had taken them in, that his heroism came to light. Nicky has received several awards in Britain and the Czech Republic.

1.Many Jewish children were brought to the United Kingdom because 　　　　　 .

A. they made serious mistakes

B. they were treated badly in their own country

C. they lost their homes

D. they went to the United Kingdom to study

2.Kindertransport aimed to_____.

A. help the homeless　　　　　　　　 B. transfer the affected

C. save Jewish children　　　　　　 D. stop German attacks

3.We can learn from the text that Nicholas Winton _____.

A. did a lot to help Jewish children out of danger

B. knew nothing about what happened in Prague

C. always told his wife what he was doing

D. saved 669 children and their parents

4.The underlined word “Haplessly” in Paragraph 4 can best be replaced by “___”.

A. Importantly　　 B. Hopefully

C. Strangely 　　 D. Unfortunately

5.Which of the following can best describe Nicholas Winton?

A. Strict but caring.

B. Proud but patient.

C. Hard-working and humorous.

D. Warm-hearted and cautious.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

D

There are an extremely large number of ants worldwide. Each individual (个体的) ant hardly weigh anything, but put together they weigh roughly the same as all of mankind. They also live nearly everywhere, except on frozen mountain tops and around the poles.For animals their size, ants have been astonishingly successful, largely due to their wonderful social behavior.

In colonies (群体) that range in size from a few hundred to tens of millions, they organize their lives with a clear division of labor. Even more amazing is how they achieve this level of organization. Where we use sound and sight to communicate, ants depend primarily on pheromone (外激素), chemicals sent out by individuals and smelled or tasted by fellow members of their colony. When an ant finds food, it produces a pheromone that will lead others straight to where the food is. When an individual ant comes under attack or is dying, it sends out an alarm pheromone to warn the colony to prepare for a conflict as a defense unit.

In fact, when it comes to the art of war, ants have no equal. They are completely fearless and will readily take on a creature much larger than themselves, attacking in large groups and overcoming their target. Such is their devotion to the common good of the colony that not only soldier ants but also worker ants will sacrifice their lives to help defeat an enemy.

Behaving in this selfless and devoted manner, these little creatures have survived on Earth, for more than 140 million years, far longer than dinosaurs. Because they think as one, they have a collective (集体的) intelligence greater than you would expect from its individual parts.

1.We can learn from the passage that ants are ____________.

A.not willing to share food

B.not found around the poles

C.more successful than all other animals

D.too many to achieve any level of organization

2.Ants can use pheromones for______.

A.escape B.communication

C.warning enemies D.arranging labor

3.What does the underlined expression "take on" in Paragraph 3 mean?

A.Accept. B.Employ.

C.Play with. D.Fight against.

4.Which of the following contributes most to the survival of ants?

A.Their behavior. B.Their size.

C.Their number. D.Their weight

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

There are an extremely large number of ants worldwide. Each individual ant hardly weigh anything, but together they weigh almost the same as all of mankind. They also live nearly everywhere, except on frozen mountain tops or around the Antarctic. For animals their size, ants have been surprisingly successful, largely due to their wonderful social conduct.

In groups that vary in size from a few hundred to tens of millions, they organize their lives with a clear distribution of labor. Even more amazing is how they achieve this level of organization. While we use sound and sight to communicate, ants depend mostly on pheromone (信息素), which is a kind of chemical released by individuals and smelled or tasted by fellow members of a group. When an ant finds food, it produces a pheromone that will lead others straight to where the food is. When an ant comes under attack or is dying, it sends out an alarm pheromone to warn the whole group to prepare for a defensive fight.

In fact, when it comes to the art of war, ants have no equal. They are completely fearless and will take on an animal much larger than themselves, attacking in large groups and beating their target. They show so much devotion to their group that not only soldier ants but also worker ants will sacrifice their lives to help defeat an enemy.

United and devoted, these little animals have survived on the earth for more than 140 million years, far longer than dinosaurs. Because they think as one, they have a united intelligence greater than you would expect from one small individual ant.

1.We can learn from the passage that ants are__________.

A. unwilling to share food

B. more successful than mankind

C. not used to living in cold environment.

D. too many to achieve any organization.

2.Ants can use pheromones for __________.

A. tasting food　 　 B. communication

C. warning enemies D. arranging labor

3.What does the underlined expression "take on" in Paragraph 3 mean?

A. Help out. 　　　　 B. Give in to.

C. Show favor to.　 D. Fight against.

4.Ants have survived for so long mainly because of ____________.

A. their social cooperation.

B. their large group size.

C. their fearless attack.

D. their individual intelligence.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

We all wish we had just a bit more time. Just think what you could do with an extra hour or two each day: you could finally stick to an exercise routine, or spring­clean the house, or write your novel, or learn the guitar and so on.

1. But I can help you find more hours in your day for the things that really matter.

◆ Get Out of Bed Earlier

If you normally get up at 7：30 a．m., try getting up at 7：00 a．m. That half­hour might not sound like much, but it could be time that you use to exercise, to read that book you've been meaning to finish. 2.

◆ Do the Important Tasks First

Once you get to work, get the important ones done first (not the easy ones, or even the urgent ones). You can afford to spend at least an hour working on big, important tasks rather than on all those little urgent ones.

3. The urgent tasks will still get done, and you won't miss the important ones.

◆ Reduce Interruptions

If colleagues have a habit of hanging around your desk to chat, or if the phone is constantly ringing, you might find that it takes you half the day to finish a simple task like writing a letter. Constant interruptions don't just eat up time, they also break your concentration.

When you've got a big task to focus on, let your calls go to voicemail.　 4. Wearing headphones makes it less likely that people will try to strike up a conversation.

◆　 5.

A few minutes' chatting, browsing the web, and so on, can easily turn into hours of wasted time over the course of a day.

When you're working, work. If your concentration is slipping, take a proper break: go and get a glass of water, or stretch your legs a bit. And if you're facing a difficult task, try breaking it into small steps or stages so that it's easier to deal with.

A．Stay Focused on Your Work.

B．Take Breaks When Necessary.

C．If you have an office door, close it.

D．If you work like this, you'll usually save time.

E．Would you want me to make your day longer?

F．I can't magically make all your days 25 hours long.

G．Or simply to get your day off to a calm and organized start.

高二英语七选五中等难度题查看答案及解析

We all wish we had just a bit more time. Just think what you could do with an extra hour or two each day: you could finally stick to an exercise routine, or spring-clean the house, or write your novel, or learn the guitar and so on. 1. But I can help you find more hours in your day for the things that really matter.

1. Get Out of Bed Earlier

If you normally get up at 7: 30 a. m. , try getting up at 7: 00 a. m. That half-hour might not sound like much, but it could be time that you use to exercise, to read that book you’ve been meaning to finish. 2.

2. Do the Important Tasks First

Once you get to work, get the important ones done first (not the easy ones, or even the urgent ones). You can afford to spend at least an hour working on big, important tasks rather than on all those little urgent ones. 3. The urgent tasks will still get done, and you won’t miss the important ones.

3. Reduce Interruptions

If colleagues have a habit of hanging around your desk to chat, or if the phone is constantly ringing, you might find that it takes you half the day to finish a simple task like writing a letter. Constant interruptions don’t just eat up time, they also break your concentration.

When you’ve got a big task to focus on, let your calls go to voicemail. 4.Wearing headphones makes it less likely that people will try to strike up a conversation.

4. 5.

A few minutes chatting, browsing the web, and so on, can easily turn into hours of wasted time over the course of a day. When you’re working , work. If your concentration is slipping, take a proper break: go and get a glass of water, or stretch your legs a bit. And if you’re facing a difficult task, try breaking it into small steps or stages so that it’s easier to deal with.

A. Or simply to get your day off to a calm and organized start.

B. I can’t magically make all your days 25 hours long.

C. Would you want me to make your day longer?

D. Take Breaks When Necessary

E. If you have an office door, close it.

F. If you work like this, you’ll usually save time.

G. Stay Focused on Your Work

高二英语七选五中等难度题查看答案及解析

We all wish we had just a bit more time. Just think what you could do with an extra hour or two each day: you could finally stick to an exercise routine, or spring-clean the house, or write your novel, or learn the guitar and so on.

1. But I can help you find more hours in your day for the things that really matter.

◆ Get Out of Bed Earlier

If you normally get up at 7：30 a．m., try getting up at 7：00 a．m. That half-hour might not sound like much, but it could be time that you use to exercise, to read that book you've been meaning to finish. 2.

◆ Do the Important Tasks First

Once you get to work, get the important ones done first (not the easy ones, or even the urgent ones). You can afford to spend at least an hour working on big, important tasks rather than on all those little urgent ones.

3. The urgent tasks will still get done, and you won't miss the important ones.

◆ Reduce Interruptions

If colleagues have a habit of hanging around your desk to chat, or if the phone is constantly ringing, you might find that it takes you half the day to finish a simple task like writing a letter. Constant interruptions don't just eat up time, they also break your concentration.

When you've got a big task to focus on, let your calls go to voicemail. 4. Wearing headphones makes it less likely that people will try to strike up a conversation.

◆ 5.

A few minutes' chatting, browsing the web, and so on, can easily turn into hours of wasted time over the course of a day.

When you're working, work. If your concentration is slipping, take a proper break: go and get a glass of water, or stretch your legs a bit. And if you're facing a difficult task, try breaking it into small steps or stages so that it's easier to deal with.

A．Or simply to get your day off to a calm and organized start.

B．I can't magically make all your days 25 hours long.

C．Take Breaks When Necessary

D．Would you want me to make your day longer?

E．If you have an office door, close it

F．If you work like this, you'll usually save time.

G．Stay Focused on Your Work

高二英语七选五中等难度题查看答案及解析

The British Isles consist of two large islands. One is called Ireland and ___ Britain. Britain, or Great Britain, is the larger one of these two islands, and it is ___ into three parts: Scotland, Wales and England.

The United Kingdom is that part of the British Isles ___ by the Queen. It is made up of Scotland, Wales and England, that is, the ___ of Britain, and also about one sixth of Ireland, the northern part. The ___ of Ireland is self-governing. The ___ name of the United Kingdom is ___ “The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”.

England is____ and richer than Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland，and has the most ___ of the United Kingdom, so people often use the ____ “England” and “English” when they ____ “Britain” and “British”. This sometimes makes the Scots and the Welsh a little ____. The Scots in particular are very ____ of their separate nationality. The Welsh too do not ____ themselves as the English, and have a culture and ____ a language of their own.

Ireland became part of the United Kingdom in 1801, but for forty years the “Irish ____ “was the greatest headache of the United Kingdom. ____, Ireland was divided into two: Northern Ireland still ____ to the United Kingdom, and in 1922 the rest of Ireland ____ to found an Irish Free State，later called Eire and now the Republic of Ireland.

The Republic of Ireland does not regard itself as part of Britain, and is not now even a supporter of the Commonwealth of Nations. Unlike the major Commonwealth countries, it did not lift a finger to ____ British in the Second World War and now wants the whole of Ireland to be a republic.

1.A. the one　　 B. the other　　 C. another　　 D. other

2.A. divided　　 B. cut　　 C. broken　　 D. separated

3.A. watched out　　 B. taken up　　 C. defended against　　 D. ruled over

4.A. half　　 B. part　　 C. most　　 D. whole

5.A. smaller　　 B. bigger　　 C. rest　　 D. island

6.A. correct　　 B. true　　 C. full　　 D. last

7.A. so　　 B. therefore　　 C. likely　　 D. perhaps

8.A. meaner　　 B. wider　　 C. poorer　　 D. larger

9.A. colleges　　 B. officials　　 C. cities　　 D. population

10.A. words　　 B. names　　 C. spellings　　 D. pronunciations

11.A. say　　 B. cover　　 C. show　　 D. write

12.A. angry　　 B. cautious　　 C. enjoyable　　 D. lonely

13.A. proud　　 B. tired　　 C. fond　　 D. careful

14.A. respect　　 B. rank　　 C. elect　　 D. regard

15.A. ever　　 B. even　　 C. seldom　　 D. never

16.A. Country　　 B. Question　　 C. Disease　　 D. Republic

17.A. Finally　　 B. However　　 C. Meanwhile　　 D. Instead

18.A. returns　　 B. belongs　　 C. refers　　 D. adds

19.A. turned away　　 B. run away　　 C. broke away　　 D. kept away

20.A. unite　　 B. reject　　 C. fight　　 D. help

高二英语完形填空中等难度题查看答案及解析