阅读理解 

　　In most languages, a greeting is usually followed by “small talk”. Small talk means the little things we talk about at the start of a conversation. In English-speaking countries people often make small talk about the weather, “Nice day, isn't it?” “Terrible weather, isn't it?” But there is something special about small talk. It must be about something which both people have the same opinion about. The purpose of small talk is to let both people agree on something. This makes meeting people easier and more comfortable. People usually agree about the weather, so it is a safe topic for small talk. But people often disagree about religion or politics so these are not suitable topics for small talk in English. The topics for small talk also depend on where the conversation is taking place. At football matches, people make small talk about the game they are watching, “Great game, isn't it?” At bus-stops, people may comment about the transport system, “The bus service is terrible, isn't it?”

　　Greetings and small talk are an important part of conversation in any language. The way people greet each other and the things they talk about, however, may be different from one language to another. This shows that there is much more to learn when we learn a language than just the vocabulary and the grammar of the language. We also have to learn the social behavior of the people who speak it.

(1)Small talk _______.play the role of the doctor

[　　]

A. is a kind of conversation with short words

B. is a greeting when people meet each other

C. is to let people disagree about something

D. is something we talk about to start with a conversation

(2)The favorite topic of small talk is about _______.

[　　]

(3)The passage suggests that when we learn a language _______.

[　　]

A. we should learn about the transport system of the country

B. we should only master the grammar, and vocabulary

C. we should know the culture about the country

D. we should grasp the importance of the language

(4)When we say “Great game, isn't it?”, we in fact _______.

[　　]

A. ask a question

B. have a conversation

C. greet each other

D. begin a small talk

(5)What we learn from the passage is that _______.

[　　]

A. different language has different grammar

B. small talk is an important part in a language

C. small talk depends on the purpose of the conversation

D. in English-speaking countries we should talk about the weather

There was a temple, in front of  which stood an ancient banyan ( 菩提树 ). One ____

morning, a monk got up to____the courtyard and noticed the fallen leaves were everywhere. He couldn’t help worrying and stared at the tree to____. Suddenly he dropped the broom and rushed to his master’s room. He knocked at the door to request for____.

When the master caught sight of his worried____，he thought something must have taken place. He asked with ____,“Why are you in a panic？”

The young monk was full of____and questioned，“Master, you persuade us to struggle to____our moral character and grasp the truth. However, even though I learn them well, it is hard to avoid____. Till then, aren't we just like the leaves in autumn or the deadwood in winter? And we will be buried by a handful of soil？”

Having heard it, the master pointed at the ancient banyan and____to him,“There is no____to worry about it. With winds blowing hard and the snow falling down heavily，the leaves in autumn and the deadwood in winter will climb back to the trees____and become the flowers in spring and grow up into the leaves in summer.”

“Why don't I see it？”

“The____is that there isn't any view in your heart, so you can't see the bloom.”

Facing the dancing leaves and____they will be in bloom, you need to be optimistic.  There are always some miseries which may____you when you are unprepared, but we don't need to worry for the____of this day.

Treat life with the attitude of optimism, because it can not only____the pain and misfortune, but also bring a kind of____mood to you. As long as the____is in the heart, the paths full of the sweet smell of flowers are____.

1.A．spring　　　　        B．summer　　　   C．autumn 　　      D．winter

2.A．take up    B．make up      C．bring up      D．clean up

3.A．sign B．sigh     C．admire         D．cheer

4.A．interview B．invitation     C．arrangementD．description

5.A．expression       B．impression  C．attitude       D．behavior

6.A．excitement       B．anger  C．concern      D．courage

7.A．doubt       B．pride  C．respect        D．enthusiasm

8.A．change     B．develop       C．show   D．discover

9.A．danger     B．death  C．growth         D．accident

10.A．announced    B．suggested   C．explained    D．declared

11.A．wonder B．choice         C．use      D．need

12.A．quickly   B．silently         C．badly  D．worriedly

13.A．result     B．answer        C．reason         D．course

14.A．imagining        B．realizing      C．demanding D．designing

15.A．relieve   B．occupy        C．strike  D．abandon

16.A．beginning       B．arrival C．harm   D．dream

17.A．agree     B．dissolve       C．compare     D．choose

18.A．disappointed B．puzzled        C．satisfied       D．left

19.A．environment B．view    C．point   D．sight

20.A．somewhere   B．everywhere         C．somehow    D．anyhow

 

One August afternoon, Richard Allen dropped off his last passenger, Mrs. Carey. Lifting two grocery bags, he followed her across the yard and stood on the step of her house. Glancing up, he saw a large wasp（黄蜂）nest under the roof. Allen had heard that wasps can become more likely to sting（sting, stung, stung蜇）in summer. He mentioned this to Mrs. Carey, who had opened the door.
“Oh, they don’t bother me,” she said lightly. “I go in and out all the time.”
Anxiously, Allen looked at the nest again-to see the wasps flying straight at him. “Hurry!” he shouted to Mrs. Carey. “Get in!”
She stepped quickly inside. Allen ran for his mini-bus. Too late; they were upon him. Just as he jumped aboard, half a dozen red spots showed on his arm, and he felt more on his back and shoulders.
As he was driving down the road, Allen felt as if something was burning at the back of his neck, and the “fire” was spreading forward toward his face. An immediate anxiety took hold of him. Allen knew that stings could cause some persons to die. But he had been stung the previous summer and the after-effects soon passed. However, what he didn’t know was that the first sting had turned his body into a time bomb waiting for the next to set off an explosion.
Miles from the nearest medical assistance, Allen began to feel his tongue thick and heavy and his heartbeat louder. Most frightening, he felt his breathing more and more difficult. He reached for the radio mike（话筒）,trying to call the mini-bus center, but his words were hardly understandable. Signals were also poor that far out. He knew a rescue team was on 24-hour duty at the Amherst Fire Department’s north station. So his best chance was to make a run for it.
Rushing down the mountain, Allen tried not to panic, focusing his mind on each sharp turn. He was almost through the last of them when he felt sure he was going into shock（休克）.Just then he reached for the radio mike again.
“Call fire station,” he shouted, concentrating to form the words. “Emergency. Bee sting. Emergency. There in ten minutes.”
“Five-ten,” the center replied.
Hold on, Allen thought. Keep your eyes open. Breathe. Keep awake.
At last he reached the station. Two firemen ran out. Allen felt their hands grasp him before he hit the ground. You made it, he thought.
【小题1】It is mentioned in the passage that wasps are more likely to attack when_____.
A. there are huge noises
　　B. strangers are approaching
　　C. the hottest season comes around
D the air is filled with food smell
【小题2】Allen didn’t know that if stung by wasps again, he would______.

A．have no after-effects

B．suffer from sharper pain

C．become more sensitive

D．surely lose his life

【小题3】Allen failed at his first attempt to send his message to the mini-bus center because _______.

A．he was in a state of shock

B．his radio equipment was poor

C．he was unable to speak clearly

D．no one was on duty

【小题4】Which would be the best title for the passage？

A．A Race Against Death

B．Wasps, Bloody Killers

C．Allen, A Helpless Driver

D．War Against Wasps

短文改错

I am always interested in the traveling. My	1．________
reasons are quite simple and clearly. If anybody	2．________
is not satisfied with my opinion, I shall greatly	3．________
surprised at his ways of think.	4．________
First of all, travelling increased our	5．________
knowledge. Only by traveling can we see thing	6．________
outside our hometown.
In the second place, travelling is good with	7．________
our health. While we are travelling, we can	8．________
breathe in fresh air or exercise our bodies as well.	9．________
In a word, I sincerely hope that anybody must	10．________
grasp the opportunity of traveling.

阅读下面短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳答案.

With his standard Mandarin pronunciation, practiced skills on Chinese expressions and special humour with a Beijing accent, Dashan has become a household name across China.

People have always wondered how the 36-year-old Canadian can be so skillful in the Chinese language even though it is considered by many as one of the most difficult languages in the world．But to Dashan, the great challenge was a piece of cake due to his deep interest, proper method and the excellent environment he created for himself.

“Interest is the best teacher.” That is a universal principle. Even if the 20-year-old Mark Rowswell--Dashan's real name--hadn't fully realized what attracted him to the Chinese department at the University of Toronto in Canada, he was already deeply interested in Chinese culture when he decided to have further study in Beijing.

   Entering the Chinese department of Peking University in 1988, Dashan felt like a duck in water. Study is always a hard job, no matter how much interest you have. Therefore, effective ways are necessary to improvement. “Learn for life and learn in life” is Dashan's belief.

    As a freshman at the University of Toronto, the student did study the textbooks, which especially aimed on foreign Chinese learners. They did help him build a solid foundation.

   However, that's far from enough to grasp the Chinese language. Starting in his junior year, Dashan began to read original Chinese novels, Chinese newspapers and even the selected works of Deng Xiaoping. “Only the material for Chinese native readers could give me a proper sense of the language,” he said.

The language that is the daily means of communication is the principle that Dashan always keeps in his mind．What you have really learned depends on what you can use, not necessarily your mastery of textbooks.

    To learn in daily life requires a favorable language environment, which is also necessary for improvement. Dashan admits it is hard for Chinese English learners to be brought into a good English speaking environment, but insists, “to listen and speak as much as possible does help.”

    To help Chinese English learners develop a favourable environment, Dashan took part in a VCD programme--“Travel with Dashan”-- to teach daily and up-to-date English in real-life situations.

(1)Dashan could learn Chinese very well because of ________.

[　　]

A．his interest

B．practiced skills on Chinese expression

C．his special method

D．special humour with a Beijing accent

(2)The sentence “learn for life and learn in life” here means ________.

[　　]

A．learn things in our daily life, otherwise it will not last long

B．we should study in practice all our lives

C．life is difficult, so we'd better learn more to lead a better life

D．langnage is the necessary part of our daily life, so we must practice it frequently

(3)The main idea of the passage is ________.

[　　]

A．Dashan has become a household name across China

B．how can we master a foreign language in a short time

C．Dashan took part in a VCD programme “Travel with Dashan” to teach

English in real-life situation

D．try to learn English under the direction of Dashan, and you'll succeed one day

(4)The underlined phrase “a piece of cake” here refers to ________.

[　　]

(5)Dashan read the selected works of Deng Xiaoping because ________.

[　　]

A．he admired the former leader of the government

B．he hoped to learn more of the spirits of it

C．he wanted to give him a proper sense of the Chinese language

D．they are very popular in modem times