Old George selected his food in the supermarket more carefully than NASA chose its astronauts. When he left the cashier, he was pleased to think that he had saved 80 cents today.

At the exit, the cold wind made him think of his gloves. He looked for them in his coat and pants but could not find them anywhere. He had bought the black gloves at a good price, for just $35, years ago. They were soft and very comfortable. He had taken great care looking after them, so they were in good condition.

George, calm on the outside but mad on the inside, re-entered the store. He followed the same route he had walked before. Several minutes of searching turned out to be in vain (徒劳). His black gloves were gone. “People have changed,” he said to himself. “Years ago, if somebody picked up something lost, they would give it back. Not any more!”

He stared at anybody wearing black gloves to see if they looked like his. On his way to the dairy section, he noticed a lady wearing a pair of black gloves. He sped up and in three seconds was in front of her. But when the surprised woman looked over, his eyes dropped, for her gloves were just far too small to be his. He went over to the cashier to ask if she had received any lost gloves, but she said no. He finally walked out into the street.

A few days later, poor George decided to buy another leather pair. Before getting on the subway, he stepped into the supermarket again to see if by any chance his gloves had been returned to the lost and found office. “What color are they?” the woman in the office asked. “Black,” he gave the same answer. She looked into her drawer and drew out a pair of men’s leather gloves. “Are they?”

“Yes! Those are mine,” George exclaimed, his eyes full of joy.

1.The author tells us that ________ in the first paragraph.

A. George was very poor ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ?????????????

B. George was very strange

C. every cent was important to George????????????? ?????????????

D. George was careless in shopping

2.The underlined phrase “in good condition” in Paragraph 2 probably means “________”.

A. excellent without damage????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B. healthy????????????? ?????????????

C. attractive????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. good-looking

3.George searched for his gloves in a mad way because ________.

A. they were a precious gift given by his friends

B. they were bought at a high price in a big store

C. he could not find other gloves as good as this pair

D. he would rather not spend money on another pair

4.When George realized he had probably lost his gloves, he ________.

A. thought someone had found his gloves and kept them

B. was calm and confident that he could get his gloves back

C. thought that there were more thieves nowadays than before

D. looked for his gloves everywhere including in the lost and found office

5.How do you think George felt when he finally left the supermarket without finding his gloves?

A. silly????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B. disappointed????????????? ????????????? ?????????????

C. horrible????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. tired

6.When George entered the supermarket again a few days later, he ________.

A. decided to buy a better pair????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B. wanted to try his luck

C. held no hope at all????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. felt very hopeful

American and British people both speak English of course. But sometimes it does not seem like the same language. In fact, there are some important differences between British English and American English.

     First of all, they sound very different. Often, Americans don’t say each word separately. They say several words together. Americans may say “I dunno” instead of “I don’t know”. Or they may say “Whaddya say?” instead of “What did you say?” however, the British are more careful in their speech. They usually say all the words and keep them separate.

    Words sometimes have different meanings too. Some American words are never used in England. The same thing is true of some British words in America. For example, the vocabulary（词汇）for cars and driving is very different. Americans drive trucks, but in England people drive lorries.

     Many expressions are also different in the two countries. In England, if you are going to telephone your friends, you “phone them up”. In America, you “give them a call”.

     There’re also some differences in grammar. For example, when Americans ask a question., they say “Do you have a storybook?” But the British often say “Have you a storybook?”

     All these differences can be confusing （易混淆的）if you are learning English. But most languages are like this. Languages change over time. When people live in separate places, the languages change in different ways. This is what has happened to English. It can also happen to other languages, such as French. Many people in Canada speak French but their French is very different from the French of France.

1.What does the word “separate” mean in the passage? It means “____”

A. 含糊的     B. 快速的    C. 分开的      D. 简略的

2.The vocabulary for cars and driving is _____.

A. an example of British English

B. an example of American English

C. the same in America and England

D. not the same in America and England

3.Language _________.

A. are always changing as time passes

B. keep unchanged even if time changes

C. are the same in all places

D. are easy to learn

4. This passage is mainly about ______.

A. English vocabulary

B. how American sounds are different from British sounds

C. the way the British say words

D. some differences between American and British English

Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any “secrets” to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama’s “back to school” speech. Here is an excerpt(摘录) from his speech.

I know that sometimes, you get the sense that you can be rich and successful without any hard work—that your ticket to success is through pop music or basketball or being a TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.

But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. Not all the homework will seem rather important to your life right this minute. And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try.

That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures (the opposite of success). JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was turned down 12 times before it finally came out. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots (投篮) during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures beat you—you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time.

No one’s born being good at things. You become good at things through hard work.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to tell when you don’t know something, and to learn something new.

And even when you’re struggling(奋斗), even when you’re discouraged (泄气), and you feel other people have given up on you—don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

1.Why does Barack Obama mention (提到) JK Rowling and Michael Jordan in the third paragraph?

A. To compare these two famous persons.

B. To explain that the more failures he has, the more successful he is.

C. If you want to be successful, you should fail first.

D. To show that failure is the mother of success.

2. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. No one can be successful without working hard.

B. Failure can be good if you treat it in a right way.

C. Those who believe in themselves shouldn’t ask others for help.

D. One should try his best to make his dream come true.

3.Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined sentence?

A. One shouldn’t ask questions because it is a sign of strength.

B. One should believe in himself though he will face much difficulty.

C. One doesn’t have to work hard when he has failed several times.

D. One doesn’t have to ask for help because it is a sign of weakness.