The British usually expect one or two snowfalls each year but the amount of snow rarely affects everyday life. However, this week Britain has had the worst snow it has seen in around 18 years. Some places had more than 30cm in a day.
The bad weather caused a lot of trouble. More than 3000 schools had to close as teachers and pupils were unable to get to school. School children weren’t too unhappy about it, though, as they headed out to play in the snow: building snowmen; having snowball fights; and some even snowboarding and skiing.
In London, bus services were withdrawn for a day and tubes and trains were cancelled. Major motorways in the country had to close. Many people were unable to get to work and it is thought the cost of this lost labor is around￡1 billion to businesses and the economy.
Anyone wanting to leave the country had problems too. Runways were closed at all the UK’s major airports because of the snow. Hundreds of flights were cancelled leaving many passengers stranded at airports.
So why is the UK so ill-prepared for snow? The mayor of London, Boris Johnson, explained that there aren’t enough snow-ploughs and other equipment and it doesn’t make sense to buy such equipment when it snows so infrequently.
The south-east of England was the hardest hit at the beginning of the week but the snow is now moving northwards where the chaos continues. More ice and snow is forecast throughout the week and the advice from travel and weather organizations is to stay indoors unless you really need to venture out!

1. 1.

   The bad weather caused the following troubles except

   1. A.
      school children headed out, playing in the snow
   2. B.
      more than 3000 schools had been closed
   3. C.
      bus services were withdrawn in London
   4. D.
      hundreds of flights were cancelled
2. 2.

   The underlined word “stranded” in paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to______.

   1. A.
      hungry
   2. B.
      sleepy
   3. C.
      trapped
   4. D.
      excited
3. 3.

   We can infer from the passage that______.

   1. A.
      few people will travel around in the future days
   2. B.
      heavy snow will hit Britain more frequently in the future
   3. C.
      only school children benefit from the heavy snow
   4. D.
      employees are glad to be free because of the snow
4. 4.

   From what Boris Johnson said we can learn that______.

   1. A.
      the UK will always be ill-prepared for heavy snow
   2. B.
      the snow now moving northwards will cause no trouble
   3. C.
      London can’t afford to buy snow-ploughs and other equipments
   4. D.
      London doesn’t have enough snow-ploughs and other equipments
5. 5.

   Which of the following statements can be the best title of the passage?

   1. A.
      Hardest snow hit south-east of England
   2. B.
      Heavy snow caused chaos in Britain
   3. C.
      Unexpected snowfall, pleasant time for children
   4. D.
      Great loss to businesses and the economy in Britain

Ever since my childhood, I have dreamed of ______ a heavy snow in my hometown in winter.

   A. there be          B. there being        C. there will be          D. being

December 24 arrived along with a heavy snow. It was my first Christmas Eve without my mother, and the day’s usual  36  had disappeared.
The telephone rang. I  37  it and went to my bedroom to bury the continuous 38 , knowing it must be my friend Rebecca calling. How could I be  39 ? I wanted to be left  40 .
My heart felt as  41  as the falling snow.  42  can I stop missing my mother?
I  43  the window. Seeing Rebecca’s car parked out front, I went back to my bed and drew the covers over my head.
“Lucy!” she shouted. “I know you’re in there. Answer the door!”
“Leave me alone!” I  44  back. I heard paper rustling(沙沙作响) as she slid  45  under the door.
“Merry Christmas, ” she called out.
Not answering the  46  made me even 47. It wasn’t fair to my best friend. Her father and sister  48  in a car accident when she was eight years old.  49 , her mother had to return to  50 , and Rebecca was left to look after herself.
When she left, I carried the small package, sat down and  51  it. Inside was a golden pen and a journal. When I opened the journal’s front cover, out fell a bookmark with a(n)   52  written on it:
Dear Lucy,  
My words won’t heal（治愈）the 53  . But your own words can.
Love,
Rebecca
As I stared at the journal’s blank pages, a single tear fell on the page which quickly absorbed it.
That night, I  54  the phone and dialed her number.
“Looks like the snow is melting(融化), ” I said. “Spring was just ___55____the corner.”

．We have got a heavy snow there in my hometown this winter, which is a sign that this year _____ to be another good one for harvests.

    A. tells                          B. means         C. promises                  D. intends

About one year ago, a couple with three children moved into the apartment next door to me. I never heard any noise from the children. Instead, I often heard the parents yelling   __26__   at the kids, not in a nice tone, but in a   __27__  one.

We often   __28__  in the hallway. I always greeted them, but the only __29__   I ever got was a “hello” from the eight­year­old girl. I usually   __30__   to see my doctor and one day when I returned they were just   __31__   their apartment and the little girl was   __32__   the outside door open for the others. I   __33__   in the car doing   __34__   things because I wasn't eager to be snubbed(冷落) again. Finally, I got out of my car and walked towards the door. The parents were telling their daughter to hurry and get into the car,   __35__   the little girl was still holding the door,  __36__   me! I hurried although I was still in pain from my injury.

I forgot to tell her how  __37__   I was for her kindness. I wrote a note saying how much her act of kindness had   __38__ an old man's heart.

The next day there was a   __39__   on my door and it was the little girl and her father. She was quite   __40__   of her behavior and thanked me. Then I noticed her mother standing there too. Her parents  __41__   me.

From then on when we met in the hallway we always greeted each other，in a friendly   __42__.

Last night there was a heavy snow. I looked out at my car and   __43__   how I was going to keep my doctor's   __44__   because I could only walk for a short time. This morning when I opened the front door, all the snow was removed.

Isn't it  __45__   that the small kind act of an 8­year­old girl can change so many things for the better? It is said that good things come from small acts.