选择题部分

一、单项填空（本题有10小题，每小题1分，共10分）

从A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

1. There was _______ time _______ the sky was blue and the air was clean.

A. / ; that B. a; when C. the; that D. the; when

2. I’m afraid I’m _______ your opinion of quitting all physical exercise for the coming exam.

A. against B. on C. for D. in

3. The fund-raising party was quite a success last year; why don’t we have _______ one?

A. the other B. some C. another D. other

4. —Do you like the movie?

—To be honest, I’ve never seen _______ one before.

A. a more boring B. the most bored C. a more bored D. the most boring

5. It’s time we _______ for the hotel, and believe it or not, it is the first time that I _______ to this city.

A. leave; came B. should leave; came

C. have left; have come D. left; have come

6. It is necessary that every child _______ the same educational opportunities.

A. have B. would have C. has D. had

7. After the horrible gun shooting, a survey found that 52% of the American people supported “major bans on guns or _______ owning guns illegal”.

A. to make B. made C. making D. make

8. Nelson Mandela devoted himself _______ for freedom of all people and a better South Africa, which explains why so many people felt sad for his death.

A. strongly B. entirely C. extremely D. freely

9. Alice’s father always brings her a nice gift _______ he returns home from his business trip.

A. by the time B. the first time C. at the time D. every time

10. Great to get your email! I had given up hope of hearing from you. Still, _______.

A. no news is good news B. time will tell

C. better late than never D. all is well that ends well

二、完形填空（本题有15小题，每小题2分，共30分）

阅读下面的材料，掌握其大意，然后在11—25各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

An old man lived in the suburb of London, and he would wake up every morning and go to the subway. He would get the train right to Central London, and then sit at the street corner and beg. He would do this every 11 day of his life. He sat at the 12 street corner and begged for almost 20 years.

His house was 13 , and a stench (恶臭) came out of the house and it smelled horribly. The neighbors could not stand the smell anymore, 14 they asked the police officers to clean the place. The officers 15 down the door and cleaned the house. There were small bags of money all over the house that he had 16 over the years.

The police counted the money, and they soon 17 that the old man was a millionaire. They waited outside his house in anticipation to 18 the good news with him. When he arrived home that evening, he was met by one of the officers who told him that there was no 19 for him to beg any more as he was a rich man now, a millionaire.

He said nothing at all: he went into his house and locked the door. The next morning he woke up as usual, went to the subway, got into the train, and sat at the street corner and 20 to beg.

__21 , this old man had no great plans, 22 or anything significant for his life. We learn nothing from this story except staying 23 on the things we enjoy doing, commitment (专心，敬业). We should remain true to our 24 , although it may mean committing ourselves to things that people around us would normally 25 . Just keep it in mind that commitment attracts wealth.

11. A. single B. simple C. hard D. terrible

12. A. wide B. dark C. same D. lonely

13. A. small B. dirty C. splendid D. neat

14. A. but B. so C. yet D. as

15. A. knocked B. climbed C. jumped D. rolled

16. A. stolen B. delivered C. collected D. hidden

17. A. admitted B. denied C. agreed D. realized

18. A. enjoy B. share C. hear D. announce

19. A. doubt B. evidence C. need D. time

20. A. refused B. continued C. learned D. requested

21. A. Sadly B. Surprisingly C. Obviously D. Luckily

22. A. cars B. friends C. jobs D. dreams

23. A. focused B. calm C. open-minded D. selfish

24. A. course B. god C. money D. country

25. A. agree B. enjoy C. disapprove D. advise

三、阅读理解（本题有两节，共16小题，每小题2分，共32分）

第一节：阅读下列材料并做26—37题。从所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

A

Much of the American anxiety about old age is a purposeful distance from the reality of death. One of the striking qualities of the American character is the unwillingness to face either the fact or meaning of death. On the contrary, in the novels of many famous American writers—from Hawthorne to Faulkner and Hemingway—one finds a tragic depth that is under the surface thinness of the ordinary American death attitudes. By an effort of the artistic imagination, the great writers faced death topic which the general public are unwilling to face—the fact of death, its mystery, and its place in life. Scenes about death, such as the conflicts death brings in Greek times and the religious celebration of death in the rich farming cultures of some parts of Europe, are vividly described and discussed in their novels, although these scenes are difficult to find in the real American life.

Out of fear of the emotional sufferings, the American ordinary people avoid topics about death. They surround death with word avoidance. Americans never “die”. They “pass away.” A “funeral hall” is decorated to look like a bank. Everything in a funeral ceremony is done in low tones, as if it were something secret, to be hidden from the world. There is so much emphasis on being dignified (使有尊严) that the ceremony often loses its quality of dignity.

In some parts of the world, there’s difficulty in understanding the causes of death. It’s difficult to explain death in these cultures. Living in a modern society, Americans have a ready enough explanation of how death comes, yet they show little ability to accept the fact of death itself and the emotional pain it brings. “To my disappointment, we, American people, sing over birth and dance at weddings,” says Margaret Mead, a famous American anthropologist (人类学家), “but more and more push the death off the scene without ceremony, without an opportunity for young and old to know that death is as much a fact of life as is birth.”

26. The passage is mainly about ________.

A. methods to avoid death B. Americans’ attitudes toward death

C. the emotional sufferings from death D. different cultures’ attitudes toward death

27. In the novels of many famous writers, one will find ________.

A. the relationship between lovers

B. ordinary American death attitudes

C. a willingness to accept death as a fact of life

D. the reason for ordinary Americans’ beliefs about death

28. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. Most Americans prefer funerals in low tones, which has added to their dignity.

B. Ordinary Americans avoid saying the word “die” directly, unlike many American writers.

C. Unwillingness to face death is a quality commonly found of the aged Americans.

D. Americans are afraid of the death topics because of the possible physical pains it causes.

29. Margaret Mead will probably agree that ________.

A. we should not be joyful at a birth

B. a wedding should be quiet and peaceful

C. we should avoid anything connected with death

D. death should be accepted as a fact of life

B

On a sunny day last August, Tim heard some shouting. Looking out to the sea carefully, he saw a couple of kids in a rowboat were being pulled out to sea.

Two 12-year-old boys, Christian and Jack, rowed out a boat to search for a football. Once they’d rowed beyond the calm waters, a beach umbrella tied to the boat caught the wind and pulled the boat into open water. The pair panicked and tried to row back to shore. But they were no match for it and the boat was out of control.

Tim knew it would soon be swallowed by the waves.

“Everything went quiet in my head,” Tim recalls (回忆). “I was trying to figure out how to swim to the boys in a straight line.”

Tim took off his clothes and jumped into the water. Every 500 yards or so, he raised his head to judge his progress. “At one point, I considered turning back,” he says. “I wondered if I was putting my life at risk.” After 30 minutes of struggling, he was close enough to yell to the boys, “Take down the umbrella!”

Christian made much effort to take down the umbrella. Then Tim was able to catch up and climb aboard the boat. He took over rowing, but the waves were almost too strong for him.

“Let’s aim for the pier (码头),” Jack said. Tim turned the boat toward it. Soon afterward, waves crashed over the boat, and it began to sink. “Can you guys swim?” he cried. “A little bit,” the boys said.

Once they were in the water, Tim decided it would he safer and faster for him to pull the boys toward the pier. Christian and Jack were wearing life jackets and floated on their backs. Tim swam toward land as water washed over the boys’ faces.

“Are we almost there?” they asked again and again. “Yes,” Tim told them each time.

After 30minutes, they reached the pier.

30. Why did the two boys row the boat out?

A. To go boat rowing. B. To get back their football.

C. To swim in the open water. D. To test the umbrella as a sail.

31. What does “it” in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A. The beach. B. The water. C. The boat. D. The wind.

32. Why did Tim raise his head regularly?

A. To take in enough fresh air.

B. To consider turning back or not.

C. To check his distance from the boys.

D. To ask the boys to take down the umbrella.

33. How did the two boys finally reach the pier?

A. They were pulled to the pier by Tim.

B. They swam to the pier all by themselves.

C. They were washed to the pier by the waves.

D. They were carried to the pier by Tim on his back.

C

Long bus rides are like television shows. They have a beginning, a middle, and an end with commercials (商业广告) thrown in every three or four minutes. The commercials are unavoidable. They happen whether you want them or not. Every couple of minutes a billboard (广告牌) passes by outs