Stranger in the Flames

On the morning of May 29, Donna left unusually early for her 5:30 a.m. work at Noone’s Restaurant. She drove along a rural road,    1    as she often did to admire the old farmhouse she passed each day. But as she looked more    2   , she saw flames on one of the porch’s(门廊) posts. Donna pulled into the driveway and honked her horn(喇叭).

No response. With flames cutting her    3    from the front entrance, she ran to a side door, which was   4   . “Wake up,” she cried, running through the house. “   5   !”

    Just hours earlier Corinne Allin had put 18-month-old Benjamin, Devon, seven, and Amy, nine, to   6   . Now, awakened by the shouts, she stumbled(踉跄) down the steps into a    7    and saw the fire immediately. “My children , my husband ---they’re   8    upstairs,” Corinne said.

    “I’ll get them,” Donna said. “Call 911.”

    Donna    9    her way up the stairs through the    10   . While Hugh Allin went to see if he could put the fire    11    with the hose(水管), Devon dashed into Amy’s room. “Get up,” he cried. Amy lifted Benjamin from his bed. With windows exploding and smoke surrounding them, they made their way out of the    12   door.

In the disorder that followed, Donna slipped away to work. Passing the blackened house that evening, she stopped and left a note. Later that night the Allin family paid a    13   . Corinne explained that the fire began when she pressed out a    14    in a potted plant on the front porch. “But thanks to you,” she said with tears in her eyes, “we’re    15   .”

1. A. speeding B. slowingC. getting off　　  D. going out

2. A. closely    B. quietly　　　　    C. proudly   D. tightly

3. A. up　　　　  B. in　　　　　　　　  C. around　　　　   D. off

4. A. closed    B. open　　　　　　  C. locked　　　　   D. unlocked

5. A. Fire　　    B. Help　　    C. Hello　　　　　　  D. Come on

6. A. bed　　    B. desk　　    C. playground　　 D. school

7.A. room　　   B. heat　　    C. stranger   D. street

8.A. already    B. just　　　　 C. still　　　　　　  D. even

9.A. found　　  B. stepped   C. made　　　　　　 D. moved

10A. flames    B. smoke　　　　    C. rubbish    D. ashes

11.A. out　　    B. down　　　　　　 C. up　　　　   D. over

12.A. room    B. back      C. front　　　　　　  D. side

13.A. bill　　    B. visit　　    C. look　　   　　   D. part

14.A. match    B. wood　　　　　　 C. cigarette  D. oven

15.A. free　　   B. awake　　　　    C. alive　　 &ntbs?

p;  D. successful

As our exams were over, my friends and I went to a fast food restaurant. We         hamburgers and Coca Colar at the counter. When our        came, I started walking towards an empty table. By bad luck, my purse strap(带子) got      on a chair and the tray(托盘) that I was holding slipped      my hands and went flying in the air. The tray, and its contents,     on a man who was just about to     a bite of his sandwich. I stared, greatly      , as the drinks soaked(浸湿) his white shirt.

  Then I      my eyes and prepared myself for his burst of       . Instead, he said “It’s OK” to       me before he disappeared into washroom.

   Still shaky and unsure      to do next, my friends and I went to a table and sat there, trying our best to look     . A moment later, the man came out of the washroom and        our table. My heart almost stopped     . I though he was going to ask for my father’ s       and call him.

  To my surprise, he merely smiled at us, handed us some cash and said, “       yourself new hamburgers.” He then walked        without even finishing his food.

   He could have made what was already an uncomfortable situation worse,         he chose a different way and gave us a reason to believe that there is still     in this world. I’ll never       his actions.

1.A. made       B. ordered       C. arranged      D. demanded

2.A. food         B. turn          C. bill            D. menu

3.A. fixed         B. cut           C. tied           D. caught 

4.A. out          B. by            C. in            D. from       

5.A. knocked      B. fell           C. stood         D. hung

6.A. taste         B. take          C. swallow       D. chew

7.A. discouraged   B. disappointed   C. shocked      D. annoyed

8.A. rolled         B. rubbed       C. narrowed     D. closed

9.A. bitterness     B. anxiety       C. anger         D. sorrow

10.A. satisfy        B. comfort       C. encourage    D. praise

11.A. what         B. how          C. who          D. which

12.A. mild         B. honest        C. calm         D. modest

13.A. approached   B. pushed       C. drew         D. laid

14.A. breaking     B. sinking       C. trembling     D. beating

15.A. help         B. position      C. number       D. job

16.A. Prepare      B. Buy         C. Find          D. Cook

17.A. away        B. on           C. around       D. up          

18.A. so           B. since        C. although      D. but

19.A. kindness     B. happiness    C. politeness     D. brightness

20.A. refuse       B. forget       C. oppose        D. ignore

 

In the United States there was an unusual tale telling of the daughter of a mechanic （技工）. One day while walking along the bank of a lake, the girl  36   to see 20 eggs laid by a wild goose. After some time the girl   37   the mother would not return to her eggs and she   38   to take them home. There she carefully   39   the eggs in the heat of a lamp. Several days   40   the eggs broke and the baby geese came into the   41  .

Geese are known to take the first living thing they see as their mother.   42  , to these young geese, the girl was their mother.

As they   43  , the girl was able to   44   her birds to run across the grass, but she could not teach them to   45  . The girl became increasingly worried about this, both when   46   and in her dreams. Later, she had an   47  : She would pilot a plane to guide them in   48  . She asked her father for a plane and he assembled（组装）a small aircraft for her.

Caring about   49   safety, the father decided to pilot the plane himself. However, the birds did not   50   or follow him, and   51   slept in the grass.

One day, the girl   52   into the plane, started it and soon left the   53  . Seeing their mother take to the air, the birds   54   flapped（拍打）their wings and   55  . She flew the plane freely in the sky, her young birds following.

36. A. managed            B. attempted                 C. happened          D. supposed

37. A. realized                    B. expected                  C. imagined          D. admitted

38. A. helped               B. decided                          C. afforded           D. meant

39. A. placed               B. protected                 C. treated              D. examined

40. A. ago                   B. out                         C. later                         D. long

41. A. family               B. lake                               C. home               D. world

42. A. But                           B. Also                       C. Thus                D. Still

43. A. increased                   B. improved                 C. rose                 D. grew

44. A. ask                           B. lead                               C. want                D. allow

45. A. fly                    B. race                               C. swim                D. sing

46. A. asleep                B. away                              C. around             D. awake

47. A. idea                  B. opinion                   C. explanation      D. excuse

48. A. sky                           B. heaven                    C. flight               D. plane

49. A. his                            B. her                                 C. their                        D. its

50. A. respect              B. remember                C. recognize          D. receive

51. A. so                     B. instead                    C. hardly              D. too

52. A. climbed             B. looked                     C. reached            D. fell

53. A. house                 B. floor                              C. water               D. ground

54. A. secretly              B. disappointedly          C. patiently           D. eagerly

55. A. looked away      B. set out                     C. went by            D. turned back

A little girl lived in a simple and poor house on a hill. Usually she _____ play in the small garden. She could see over the garden fence and across the valley a wonderful house with shining golden windows high on another hill. ______ she loved her parents and her family, she desired （渴望）to live in such a house and ______ all day about how wonderful and exciting _____ must feel to live there.

   At the age when she gained（获得） some ______ skill and sensibility (识别力), she ____ her mother for a bike ride ____ the garden. Her mother finally allowed her to go, ____ her keeping close to the house and not ____ too far. The day was beautiful. The little girl knew ____ where she was heading! ____ the hill and across the valley, she rode to the ____ of the golden house.

   ____ she got off her bike and put it against the gate post, she focused on the path（小路） ____ to the house and then on the house itself. She was very disappointed （失望）when she ____ that all the windows were ____ and rather dirty.

   So ____ and heart-broken, she didn’t go any further. She ____ and all of a sudden she saw an amazing （令人惊奇的）____. There on the other side of the valley was a little house and its windows were golden. Looking at her little home, she ____ that she had been living in her golden house filled with love and care. Everything she dreamed was right there in front of her nose!

1.A. might B. should  C. would   D. must

2.A. Unless        B. Although       C. Since     D. But

3.A. dreamed    B. worried         C. asked    D. shouted

4.A. this    B. that       C. it   D. which

5.A. different    B. scientific        C. musical D. basic

6.A. begged       B. blamed责备 C. invited  D. paid

7.A. inside         B. outside C. through         D. along

8.A. insisting on         B. relying on      C.arguing about         D.wondering about

9.A. traveling    B. running          C. riding    D. walking

10.A. madly       B. rapidly  C. exactly  D. possibly

11.A. Over         B. Down    C. Around D. Beside

12.A. windows  B. steps     C. center  D. gate

13.A. Until         B. As C. While    D. Because

14.A. getting     B. introducing   C. leading D. moving

15.A. felt  B. Learned C. concluded   D. found

16.A.transparent       B. bright    C. plain      D. wide

17.A. anxious    B. angry    C. serious D. sad

18.A. turned around B. cheered up   C. settled down          D. dropped in

19.A. hill   B. valley    C. background  D. sight

20.A. imagined B. decided         C. realized         D. guessed