42. What does the underlined phrase “put off” mean in the first paragraph?

　　 A. 推迟　　 　　　B. 反感　　　　　 C. 把…放走　　　　 D. 让…下车

41. The passage mainly talks about _____.

　　 A. the history of the tomato　　　　　　　　　　　　 　

　　 B. the tomato generally

　　 C. why tomatoes are native to South America

　　 D. the conditions that a tomato plant needs

(3)

　　 Seth bought a house right next door to the house of a tanner(制革工人). From morning till evening, the tanner turned hide(兽皮) into leather by treating it with tannin. Seth was put off by the unpleasant smell of the tannery. So, he visited the tanner’s house and offered to buy his house.

　　 “I would love to sell the house if you’d like to buy it, Seth”, said the tanner. “Give me a week or so to deal with some things, will you?” Seth agreed and went away.

　　 A week later, the unbearable smell coming from the tannery brought Seth to the tanner’s doorstep again. “I understand, Sir,” said the tanner. “But my mother is visiting me this week. I can’t sell the house as long as she is around. Please wait for a month until she goes away.”

　　 Seth agreed. He began to wait. In the beginning he counted each day, impatiently waiting for one to finish and the other to begin. After a few days, he found he was no longer so interested in the month coming to an end. And when the month did come to an end, Seth did not go to the tanner’s house to ask him to leave. He had simply forgotten about it.　　　　　　　　　　　　

　　 He didn’t ask the tanner to leave when they met next, either. You see, by then Seth had become used to the tan-yard’s smell. “What have you done to drive that smell away?” he asked the tanner.

　　 The tanner smiled and nodded. He had been waiting for the day when Seth would get used to the smell from the tannery and stopped complaining him. That was why he had asked Seth to wait.

40. Which of the following is not harmful to tomato plants?

　　 A. Lack of calcium　　　　　　　　　　　 B. Dry conditions

　　 C. Placing dried grass around the plant　 D. Lack of water

39. According to the text, which of the following statements is FALSE?

　　 A. A tomato plant may produce about six kilograms of fruit.

　　 B. Fruited plants take about more than 11 weeks to grow from the seed.

　　 C. Young tomato plants like cold weather.

　　 D. The tomato is a member of the potato family.

38. Which of the following will be the best title for the text?

　　 A. Scars of Love　　　　　　　　　 B. Women Hold up Half the Sky

　　 C. A Terrible Experience　　　　　 D. Don’t Judge by Appearances

(2)

　　 Plant scientists consider them as fruit. Most other people think of them as vegetables. Whatever you call tomatoes, there are many different kinds of this popular and healthy food. Tomatoes are native to South America. The tomato is a member of the potato family.

　　 Each plant can produce about four to seven kilograms of fruit. Fruited plants take about eighty days to grow from seed(种子). Cold weather can damage young plants, so they are often grown inside for four to six weeks.

　　 A tomato plant can grow several thick stems(茎) from its base. Only two or three stems should be kept. From the stems come smaller growths called suckers(吸枝). And the new suckers that grow between the stems are harmful to the plant.

　　 There are two general groups of plants. Small tomato plants grow to about one meter. They can be planted rather close together.

　　 Large tomato plants can grow to two metres in height. They also provide larger fruit. These plants need support. Wires(金属线) are put along both sides of a row of plants. The wires help hold the suckers and fruit. The wiring is tied to strong posts on either side of the row. The wires are raised as the plants and fruit grows.

　　 Tomatoes often need extra calcium(钙) or the fruit may be bad. Dry conditions may also spoil fruit. Tomatoes need water regularly. The soil should never dry out. Dried grass or leaves placed around the plant can help hold water in the soil and control the growth of unwanted plants.

37. By saying “But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too” in Paragraph

　　 4, the boy really wants to show _____.

　　 A. how deep the scars made by the crocodile were

　　 B. what a brave and courageous boy he was

　　 C. how many scars and scratches he had

　　 D. how great and beloved his mother was

36. Hearing Mother’s shouts, the boy _____.

　　 A. stayed in the middle and didn’t know what to do

　　 B. didn’t stop swimming forward

　　 C. swam back towards the shore

　　 D. was ready to fight the crocodile

34. _____ is the central part of a computer.

　　 A. GPS　　　　　　 B. CPU　　　　　　 C. NBA　　　　　　 D. SOS

33. Usually a man is the tallest _____.

　　 A. in the morning　　　　　　　　　 B. in the afternoon

　　 C. in the evening　　　　　　　　　 D. at night