Question

The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. Grain Rain (谷雨), as the last term in spring, starts on April 19 and ends on May 4.

Grain Rain comes from the old saying, “Rain brings up the growth of hundreds of grains”, which shows that this period of rainfall is very important for the growth of crops. Here’s something that you may not know about the Grain Rain.

1. ________ Grain Rain falls between the end of spring and the beginning of summer, and the temperature rises much higher than it does in March. With dry soil and heavy winds, sandstorms may happen more often.	2. ________ There is an old custom in southern China that people drink tea on the day of Grain Rain. Spring tea during Grain Rain is good for the eyes. It is also said that drinking tea on this day would prevent bad luck.
3. ________ People in northern China have the tradition to eat the vegetable toona sinensis during Grain Rain. An old Chinese saying goes “toona sinensis before the rain is as tender as silk (嫩如丝)”. The vegetable is good for the stomach and skin.	4. ________ The Grain Rain Festival is celebrated by fishing villages in northern China. Grain Rain marks the start of the fishermen’s first voyage (航行) of the year. The custom dates back to more than 2000 years ago.

1. When Grain Rain ends, ________ starts.

A. spring B. summer C. autumn

2.The underlined word “crops” refers to ________.

A. plants in the field B. trees in the forest C. fishes in the sea

3. The people in southern China ________ on the day of Grain Rain.

A. drink tea

B. eat toona sinensis

C. start the first voyage

4.We can infer that “toona sinensis” must be a kind of vegetable which ________.

A. can bring good luck

B. is delicious and healthy

C. grows at the seaside

5.The right order of the titles from 1 to 4 should be ________.

a. Eating toona sinensis

b. Sandstorms happen

c. Grain Rain Festival

d. Drinking tea

A. b-a-d-c B. b-c-a-d C. b-d-a-c

Answer 1