-
This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.
One of the sweetest gifts of nature is a red, ripe strawberry. There are three basic kinds of strawberries: June bearing, ever bearing and day neutrals.
June bearing are ready in the spring, so they are also called spring bearing. But gardeners will not get a crop during the first spring after planting. Ever bearing , when planted after the last winter freeze, will produce fruit during spring or early summer. A second or sometimes third crop will be ready in late summer. Day neutrals produce fruit throughout the summer months.
The University of Illinois Urban Extension says ever bearers and day neutrals are especially good for home gardens. Plant strawberries in the spring as soon as the soil is dry enough. Try to plant late in the day or on a cloudy day. The soil should cover just the roots and not the crown on top of the plant. Runners will appear in a few weeks.
Strawberries grown in containers（容器） need a soil depth of about twenty-five to thirty centimeters. Be sure the container has holes in the bottom.
Strawberries grow well in loamy soil（沃土） that lets water pass through easily. Carl Wilson at the Colorado State University Extension suggests mixing about three to five percent organic（有机的） material into the soil.
根据短文内容，判断下列句子正误。正确的用“A”表示，不正确的用“B”表示。
1.The strawberry is a kind of fruit with red color and sweet taste.
2.June bearing is usually planted in winter of last year.
3.Strawberries can grow both in gardens and in containers.
4.The right time to plant strawberries is on a wet day.
5.Strawberries only produce fruit once.
九年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
-
Singles Day (光棍节)falls on every November 11th, and as the name suggests, this holiday is one specially for people who are still living the single life. It’s surprising that China is the only country in the world that has set up a special day for singles to celebrate(庆祝) their lives. To find out more about this celebration, read on.
An old story goes that once there were four single men, leading very boring lives. None of them were married, or had lovers, or did anything exciting. They just sat around all day and played Mahjong（麻将）.
One day they played Mahjong from 11 in the morning until 11 at night. During the game, no matter who won, the winning card was always the 'Sitiao' card. And that day happened to be November 11th. In order to remember the day, they called it Singles Day.
For breakfast on Singles Day, singles often eat four youtiao, which means the four "ones" in "11.11". Many singles also choose to say goodbye to their single lives on this day. So they take part in 'blind date' parties , trying to find someone they love and many people choose to marry on this day. Besides the meaning 'single', the four 'ones' of the date can also mean 'only one' as in 'the only one for me.' Some people will use this date and this meaning to tell their special someone that they are the only 'one' in their heart.
1.__________ first called November 11th Singles Day.
A. The Chinese government
B. People who have been married
C. Four people playing Marjong
D. People who don’t want to get married
2.The Chinese meaning of the word “'blind date' parties” in this passage is “________”.
A. 盲人聚会 B.相亲会 C. 化妆舞会 D. 盲人党派
3.Singles often have ________ for breakfast on Singles Day.
A. some bread B. noodles C. 4 youtiao D. nothing
4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Singles Day is on November 11th.
B. Singles Day is celebrated by no countries but China.
C. Singles Day is for people who don’t have lovers.
D. To celebrate Singles Day, people play Marjong from 11 in the morning
until 11 at night.
九年级英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
-
Singles Day (光棍节)falls on every November 11th, and as the name suggests, this holiday is one specially for people who are still living the single life. It’s surprising that China is the only country in the world that has set up a special day for singles to celebrate(庆祝) their lives. To find
out more about this celebration, read on.An old story goes that once there were four single men, leading very boring lives. None of them were married（结婚）, or had lovers, or did anything exciting. They just sat around all day and played Mahjong（麻将）.
One day they played Mahjong from 11am until 11 pm. During the game, no matter who won, the winning card was always the 'Sitiao' card. And that day happened to be November 11th. In order to remember the day, they called it Singles Day.
For breakfast on Singles Day, singles often eat four youtiao, which means the four "ones" in "11.11". Many singles also choose to say goodbye to their single lives on this day. So they take part in 'blind date' parties , trying to find someone they love and many people choose to marry on this day. Besides the meaning of 'single', the four 'ones' of the date can also mean the 'only one' in one’s heart.
1.__________ first called November 11th Singles Day.
A. The Chinese government
B. People who have been married
C. Four people playing Marjong
D. People who don’t want to get married
2.The Chinese meaning of the word “'blind date' parties” in this passage is “________”.
A. 盲人聚会 B.相亲会
C. 化妆舞会 D. 慈善晚会
3.Singles oft
en have ________ for breakfast on Singles Day.A. some bread B. noodles
C. 4 youtiao D. nothing
4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Singles Day is on November 11th.
B. Singles Day is celebrated by no countries but China.
C. Singles Day is for people who are still living the single life.
D. Singles Day should be celebrated by playing Marjong from 11am to 11pm.
九年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
-
Singles Day (光棍节)falls on every November 11th, and as the name suggests, this holiday is one specially for people who are still living the single life. It’s surprising that China is the only country in the world that has set up a special day for singles to celebrate(庆祝) their lives. To find out more about this celebration, read on.
An old story goes that once there were four single men, leading very boring lives. None of them were married, or had lovers, or did anything exciting. They just sat around all day and played Mahjong（麻将）.
One day they played Mahjong from 11 in the morning until 11 at night. During the game, no matter who won, the winning card was always the 'Sitiao' card. And that day happened to be November 11th. In order to remember the day, they called it Singles Day.
For breakfast on Singles Day, singles often eat four youtiao, which means the four "ones" in "11.11". Many singles also choose to say goodbye to their single lives on this day. So they take part in 'blind date' parties , trying to find someone they love and many people choose to marry on this day. Besides the meaning 'single', the four 'ones' of the date can also mean 'only one' as in 'the only one for me.' Some people will use this date and this meaning to tell their special someone that they are the only 'one' in their heart.
1.__________ first called November 11th Singles Day.
A. The Chinese government
B. People who have been married
C. Four people playing Marjong
D. People who don’t want to get married
2.The Chinese meaning of the word “'blind date' parties” in this passage is “________”.
A. 盲人聚会 B.相亲会
C. 化妆舞会 D. 盲人党派
3. Singles often have ________ for breakfast on Singles Day.
A. some bread B. noodles
C. 4 youtiao D. nothing
4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Singles Day is on November 11th.
B. Singles Day is celebrated by no countries but China.
C. Singles Day is for people who don’t have lovers.
D. To celebrate Singles Day, people play Marjong from from 11 in the morning until 11 at night.
九年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
-
In Germany, there is a special museum. It is the only one of this kind in the world and few people know it.Every year，the number of people who come to visit the museum is only one thousand.What kind of museum is it?
It is a museum about taxes (税收)．In this museum，you can see the history of taxes and all kinds of taxes in different countries in the world.
After visiting the museum，people can draw a conclusion(得出结论)．That is from 3000 B．C.(公元前)，the kings，dictators(独裁者)and finance ministers(财政部长)could tax people freely.They taxed people heavily because of such things as wars，weddings(婚礼)or road building.They needed money and they got money by taxing their citizens (公民)．
In the early times of Egypt，farmers had to pay heavy taxes if the water level(水面)of the River Nile rose.The kings said that if the water level rose，there would be much more earth in farmers' fields.So the farmers could get a good harvest and they should pay more taxes.
A strange kind of tax—Window Tax appeared(出现)in England.It lasted more than one hundred years.How? If there were more windows in the wall，the people must pay more taxes.So in those years, people built as few windows as possible in the wall.
Russian people once paid a tax for their beards (胡子)．The people who had paid this tax would get a special piece of paper.But what about the people who didn't pay for their beards? Of course，their beards would be cut.But without a beard for a man is a way to scorn(蔑视)God.He would also be punished.
1.Which is right about the museum?
A. It is in Germany.
B. It is a museum about taxes in German history.
C. It is the only museum in the world.
D. It is very famous in the world.
2.Which is the best title for this museum?
A. A German museum
B. A tax museum
C. The only museum in the world
D. A very small museum
3.The history of taxes may have lasted ________ years at least.
A. 3, 000 B. 5, 000
C. 6, 000 D. 2, 000
4.Which is right?
A. Only Egypt, England and Russia have taxes.
B. The taxes are free now.
C. The taxes were heavy.
D. The taxes were completely used for people.
5.Which is right?
A. Egypt—Window Tax，England—Water Level Tax，Russia—Beard Tax
B. Egypt—Water Level Tax，Russia—Window Tax，England—Beard Tax
C. Egypt—Water Level Tax，Russia—Beard Tax，England—Window Tax
D. Egypt—Beard Tax，Russia—Water Level Tax，England—Window Tax
九年级英语阅读单选中等难度题查看答案及解析
-
She always does very well in the English exams. But she can understand VOA Special English.
A. always B. hardly
C. already D. easily
九年级英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析
-
Now the VOA Special English program Words and Their Stories.
( MUSIC)
Many everyday American expressions are based on colors.
Red is a hot color. Americans often use it to express heat. When they are red-hot, they are very angry about something. Fast loud music is popular with many people. They may say such music is red-hot.
Pink is a lighter kind of red. People sometimes say they are in the pink when they are in good health. The expression was first used in America at the beginning of the 20th century. It probably comes from the fact that many babies are born with a nice pink color that shows that they are in good health.
Blue is a cool color. The blues music in the United States is the opposite of red-hot music. Blues is slow and sad. Someone who is blue is very sad.
The color green is natural for trees and grass. But it is an unnatural color for humans. A person who has a sick feeling in the stomach may say he feels a little green. A passenger on a boat who is feeling very sick from high waves may look very green. Sometimes a person may be upset because he does not have something as nice as a friend has, like a fast new car. That person may say he is green with envy. Some people are green with envy because a friend has more dollars or greenbacks. Dollars are called greenbacks because that is the color of the back of the paper money.
The color black is used often in expressions. People describe a day on which everything goes wrong as a black day.
(MUSIC)
I’m Warren Scheer. Listen again next week for another Words and Their Stories program in Special English on the Voice of America.
1.We say you are in the pink when you are _______________.
A. very sad B. very happy
C. in good health D. feeling well
2.What does the word “ upset” mean ?
A. happy B. sad
C. satisfied D. active
3.We describe a day on which everything goes wrong as a __________ day.
A. red B. green
C. pink D. black
4.Which of the following sentences is TRUE according to the passage?
A. People in the USA use black to express heat.
B. If you are blue, you are very happy.
C. Green is a natural color for humans.
D. If you have a sick feeling in the stomach, you feel a little green.
5.What is this passage probably written for?
A. A radio program. B. A news report.
C. A telephone call. D. A TV play.
九年级英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
-
Now the VOA Special English program Words and Their Stories.
( MUSIC)
Many everyday American expressions are based on colors.
Red is a hot color. Americans often use it to express heat. When they are red-hot, they are very angry about something. Fast loud music is popular with many people. They may say such music is red-hot.
Pink is a lighter kind of red. People sometimes say they are in the pink when they are in good health. The expression was first used in America at the beginning of the 20th century. It probably comes from the fact that many babies are born with a nice pink color that shows that they are in good health.
Blue is a cool color. The blues music in the United States is the opposite of red-hot music. Blues is slow and sad. Someone who is blue is very sad.
The color green is natural for trees and grass. But it is an unnatural color for humans. A person who has a sick feeling in the stomach may say he feels a little green. A passenger on a boat who is feeling very sick from high waves may look very green. Sometimes a person may be upset because he does not have something as nice as a friend has, like a fast new car. That person may say he is green with envy. Some people are green with envy because a friend has more dollars or greenbacks. Dollars are called greenbacks because that is the color of the back of the paper money.
The color black is used often in expressions. People describe a day on which everything goes wrong as a black day.
(MUSIC)
I’m Warren Scheer. Listen again next week for another Words and Their Stories program in Special English on the Voice of America.
1.We say you are in the pink when you are _______________.
A. very sad B. very happy
C. in good health D. feeling well
2.What does the word “ upset” mean ?
A. happy B. sad
C. satisfied D. active
3.We describe a day on which everything goes wrong as a __________ day.
A. red B. green
C. pink D. black
4.Which of the following sentences is TRUE according to the passage?
A. People in the USA use black to express heat.
B. If you are blue, you are very happy.
C. Green is a natural color for humans.
D. If you have a sick feeling in the stomach, you feel a little green.
5.What is this passage probably written for?
A. A radio program. B. A news report.
C. A telephone call. D. A TV play.
九年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
-
Here is a report(成绩单) of the students’ English competition. Find the right answers to the following questions.
Items
Group One
Group Two
Group Three
Group Four
1.Answer correctly
67
71
76
78
2.Answer quickly
75
80
79
62
3.Answer humorously(幽默地)
69
68
81
77
4.Speak freely
81
83
84
85
5.Speak clearly
88
86
83
86
6.Speak loudly
90
93
91
91
7.Have good manners
79
74
75
79
8.Co-operate well
82
63
88
84
Average(平均数)
79
77
82
80
1.______ is the most humorous of the four groups?
A. Group One B. Group Two C. Group Three
2.Group Two spoke as _____ as Group Four.
A. clearly B. quickly C. freely
3.Group Two did worst in “______”.
A. speak freely B. have good manners C. co-operate well
4.In answer correctly, Group Three got _____ more marks than Group One.
A. 4 B. 5 C. 9
5.According to the report, which of the following is NOT true?
A. Group Three is the winner of the competition.
B. Group One did as well as Group Four in “Answer quickly”.
C. All groups did best in “Speak loudly” of all the items.
九年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
-
This past month saw one of the most devastating storms in history brings death and destruction on the Philippines. The number of lives lost is still being calculated, but it is already sitting above five thousand. In the flurryof news about the storm and its after－math, the cries of “I told you so” from environmentalists rang out loud and clear.
These scientists were especially vocal during the United Nations Climate Change Conference, which just wrapped up in Warsaw, Poland. The timing of the conference and Typhoon Haiyan was an eerie coincidence, but perhaps the concurrence offered a wakeup call for all.
Christiana Figures, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said, “We are witnessing ever more frequent extreme weather events, and the poor and vulnerable are already paying the price.”
Scientists claim that storms like Typhoon Haiyan are an inevitable result of the effect greenhouse gases are having on our environment. Environmental analysts claim that rising temperatures around the globe and changing weather patterns are all part of the same problem.
This isn’t breaking news. We’ve heard the warnings for years. The UN has been hosting the Climate Change Conference since1995.But the changes that need to be made are huge. Added to this, the developed nations and developing countries have competing interests that are difficult to settle. The issue of who takes responsibility becomes difficult to resolve.
We may feel far away from Poland and resolving conflicts between countries, but we mustn’t feel far away from the issue. When we watch neighboring countries suffer in severe weather, when we hear reports of increasing global temperatures, when we walk outside and find it difficult to breathe the Shanghai air, we know we have a very real problem. So what are we going to do about it? Are we making every-day choices that can have a positive impact? Are we reducing our carbon footprint? Are we choosing to walk, ride a bicycle or take public transportation instead of a car? Are we recycling? Are we turning off the lights and electronics whenever possible?
The problem is complex, but saving our earth starts with each of us taking simple steps.
1.What is the most terrible typhoon in 2013? It is _________.
A. Haiyan B. Bebinca C. Danas D.Cimaron
2.Warsaw isn’t in Poland，is it?
A. Yes, it is B. No, it isn’t C. Yes, it isn’t D. No, it is
3.How many years have we heard the warnings? For nearly ______years.
A. 21 B. 18 C. 19 D. 20
4.Which of the following is NOT FALSE?
A. The environment is worse and worse and we have no ideas about it.
B. The environment is worse and we needn’t do anything about it.
C. Saving our environment is not so complex.
D. The environment is a big problem and we must take simple steps
九年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
out more about this celebration, read on.
en have ________ for breakfast on Singles Day.