20．I learned my first lesson from my grandparents when I was young．They both grew up in very large families and lived through the Great Depression．Saving for a rainy day was their life philosophy．Rather than seeking fulfillment through material items，they chose to spend really simple life together with their family．
   Over the years my grandparents notice dramatic changes in their community．Every year more farmland was destroyed to build larger and larger homes．As real estate（地产） prices rose，many of their neighbors sold their little homes and land．Soon theirs was the only small house surrounded by a sea of mansions．My grandparents built and lived in a small 600-square-foot cottage for most of their adult lives．Lots of family members encouraged my grandparents to expand their little old house．But they didn't want a bigger one．They loved their little house and were content with what they had．
   My grandparents avoided a consumptive  （浪费的 ）  lifestyle by painting and repairing the house themselves．They lived in a small home，but had a huge garden．They loved gardening and planting because it reduced their grocery bill，improved their health，and gave them an excuse to be outside．They also reused and recycled many things．For in-stance．they had driven the same car for over 15  years and didn't buy a new one until the old Chevrolet was worn out．
   From my grandparents，I learned an important lesson：it is possible to live a simple life．My grandparents taught me that living a simple life isn't about self-deprivation（自我牺牲）．Instead，it's about giving yourself the time，freedom，and money to pursue your dreams．Becoming debt free，downsizing to a smaller home，and going out on foot instead of by car are good ways to take control of your life and start pursuing your dreams．
56．The community's changes include all the following EXCEPT thatD
A．many mansions were built there       B．many neighbors sold their houses
C．the houses became more expensive     D．people built more farmland
57．The author's grandparents didn't expand their house becauseC
A．they didn't understand the family members'advice
B．their house was really new and large enough
C．they were satisfied with the house they lived in
D．they were too old to do any house-building job
58．Which of the following is a consumptive lifestyle in the grandparents'opinion？
A
A．Changing cars in a short time．
B．Planting vegetables in the garden．
C．Reusing and recycling things．
D．Repairing the house themselves．
59．Which can be the best title of this passage？D
A．How to Live Simply                
B．My Grandparents
C．A Simple Lifestyle                 
D．A Lesson from My Grandparents．

19．I once met a well-known botanist at a dinner party．I had never talked with a botanist before，and I found him fascinating．I sat there absorbed and listened while he spoke of unusual plants and his experiments （he even told me astonishing facts about the simple potato）．I had a small indoor garden of my own---and he was good enough to tell me how to solve some of my problems．
As I said，we were at a dinner party．There must have been a dozen other guests，but I broke an important rule of politeness．I ignored everyone else and talked for hours to the botanist．
Midnight came，I said good night to everyone and departed．The botanist then turned to our host and said many nice things about me，including that I was a"most interesting conversationalist．"
An interesting conversationalist？I had said hardly anything at all．I couldn't have said anything if I had wanted to without changing the subject，for I didn't know any more about plants than I knew about sharks．But I had done this one thing：I had listened carefully．I listened because I was really interested．And he felt it．Naturally that pleased him．That kind of listening is one of the the best ways to show respect to others，and it makes them feel great too．"Few human beings，"wrote Jack Woodford in Strangers in Love，"can resist the sweet effect ofrapt attention．"I went even further than that．I was"sincere in my admiration and generous in my praise．"
I told him that I had been hugely entertained and instructed．I had．I told him I wished I had his knowledge．I told him that I should love to wander the fields with him．What's more，it was all true．
And so I had him thinking of me as a good conversationalist when，in reality，I had been merely a good listener and had encouraged him to talk．
 
26．From Paragraph 1，we can learn that the writerB
A．was deeply moved by the botanist's talk
B．was amazed by what he was hearing
C．was not in a comfortable situation
D．behaved politely and properly
27．Which of the following does the writer describe as a rule of politeness at dinner parties？D
A．Avoiding discussions about politics and religion．
B．Listening carefully to what another guest says．
C．Arriving and leaving at the appropriate time．
D．Giving attention to all those in attendance．
28．The underlined expression"rapt attention"in Paragraph 4 is closest in meaning toB
A．full understanding 
B．strong interest
C．great uncertainty  
D．little curiosity
29．According to the writer，which of the following is an important characteristic of a good conversationalist？A
A．Listening attentively and encouraging the other side to continue．
B．Encouraging he other side by sharing his/her own opinions．
C．Promising a future meeting for more communication．
D．Expressing respect by nodding his/her head．
30．What is the purpose of the passage？C
A．To prove the writer is an interesting conversationalist．
B．To share an interesting experience at a dinner party．
C．To explain what makes a good conversationalist．
D．To show that botanists can be really talkative．

18．-         an iPhone 5for me，Mum？You promised．
-Oh，dear!I forgot．（　　）

A．

Will you buy

B．

Did you buy

C．

Have you bought

D．

Would you buy？

17．Do you remember a certain occasion ________ you were in trouble and at that moment I gave you a hand？（　　）

A．

where

B．

which

C．

why

D．

when

16．根据对话情景和内容，从对话后所给的选项中选出能填入每一空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑．选项中有两个为多余选项．
Clerk：Renmin Theatre Box Office．Can I help you？
Li Hua：Yes．Have you got any tickets for Twelve Chinese Zodiac for this Saturday evening？
Clerk：（6）A  5pm．or 8：30pm．？
Li Hua：8：30pm．，please．
Clerk：（7）D
Li Hua：Well，have you got any tickets for the 5pm．performance？
Clerk：（8）G
Li Hua：I'd like to reserve two seats at 60yuan，please．
Clerk：Right．That's two tickets at 60yuan．（9）C  What's the name，please？
Li Hua：Li Hua．
Clerk：Thank you．（10）F
Li Hua：Yes，of course．Thank you．Goodbye．
Clerk：You are welcome．

A．Which performance？
B．Saturday，8：30pm．，Twelve Chinese Zodiac．
C．Saturday，5pm．performance．
D．Sorry，thickets for that performance are sold out．
E．When will you come to pick up the tickets？
F．You'll collect the tickets before 3pm．on Saturday，won't you？
G．Yes，we have tickets at 50yuan，60yuan and 80yuan．

15．smoked（　　）

A．

danced

B．

banned

C．

paused

D．

Reported

14．smart（　　）

A．

reward

B．

forward

C．

standard

D．

market

13．actual（　　）

A．

accident

B．

central

C．

official

D．

social

12．cheat（　　）

A．

area

B．

beneath

C．

feather

D．

break

11．noble（　　）

A．

apology

B．

another

C．

remote

D．

copy