第一部分：英语知识运用（共两节，满分30分）

第一节：单项填空（共20小题；每小题0.5分，满分10分）

从A、B、C和D四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题纸上将该选项标号涂黑。

1. Despite years of research, we still don’t understand ______ significance of ______ dreams.

A. the; the B. the; 不填 C. 不填; the D. 不填; 不填

2. ---Mr. Green, may I borrow you?

---________

---My research has been finished. Thank you for your help.

A. Yes? B. What? C. All right? D. Pardon?

3. You could catch the 8:05 or the 8: 35. ______ shuttle bus gets you there in good time.

A. Each B. Any C. Neither D. Either

4. A train may not be the fastest way to travel, _________ its pace is perfect for sightseeing.

A. or B. and C. so D. but

5. It is the third time that she’s been skating this week. She ______ really enjoy it.

A. must B. should C. can D. might

6. As your instructor advised, you ought to spend your time on something?_____researching into.

A. precious B. practical C. worth D. valuable

7. Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your _______ you must keep moving.

A. appointment B. record C. balance D. direction

8. ---When did you last see Catherine?

---On a cold morning when I ________ my way to the laboratory.

A. made B. was making C. had made D. had been making

9. ---I finally came up with a way to start my article.

---Put it on paper ________ you forget.

A. when B. after C. before D. while

10. Universities are_______ the wisdom we cannot afford to lose is preserved from generation to generation.

A. what B. why C. where D. how

11. Each year, a set of new words is added to the dictionary, ________ the changing tastes and habits of a nation.

A. to reflect B. reflecting C. having reflected D. to have reflected

12. I am a great believer in luck, and I find that the harder I work, the more I have _______ it.

A. of B. for C. to D. with

13. Sometimes the hardest choice we make _______ being the best thing we could have ever done for ourselves.

A. take up B. end up C. use up D. break up

14. If you ________ the opportunity to clone yourself, what would you do?

A. have B. had C. have had D. had had

15. There is a lot of research ____ how difficult it is to change happiness based on external factors.

A. showed B. showing C. to show D. to be showing

16. The important thing in life is to have a great aim, and the determination to _______ it.

A. acquire B. finish C. conclude D. achieve

17. There are no conditions ______ a man cannot become accustomed, especially if he sees that all those around him live in the same way.

A. on which B. under which C. to which D. in which

第二节 完形填空（共20小题；每小题1分，满分20分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然从21～40各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题纸上将该选项标号涂黑。

A thousand thoughts crossed my mind before the woman rang the bell. I could pretend I wasn’t home or tell her, “I’m sorry, you have the wrong ___21___.” But it was too late; the bell rang and Molly was barking. I opened the door, ___22___ myself to face my fear.

One look at Molly and the woman’s face ___23___ like a Christmas tree. “Here, Lucy,” she called. “Come to Mamma, girl.” Molly (Lucy) instantly ___24___, wagging her tail in delight at the sound of the woman’s voice. ___25___ she belonged to the woman.

Tears were at the back of my eyelids and ___26___ to come out at any moment. I wanted to grab Molly and run. ___27___ I smiled faintly and asked her to please come in.

The woman had already ___28___ over and lifted Molly up into her arms. She awkwardly opened her purse and stretched out a twenty-dollar bill.

“For your ___29___,’ she offered.

“Oh, I couldn’t.” I shook my head. “She’s been such a joy to have ___30___, I should be paying you.” With that she laughed and hugged Molly tighter ___31___ she were a lost child.

Molly licked her face wildly. I knew it was time for them to go home. Opening the door to let them out, I ___32___ a little girl sitting in the front seat of the van, When the child saw the puppy, a smile as bright as a firecracker exploded ___33___ her face.

My glance turned to a small ___34___ fastened to the back of the van. The woman saw me look at the chair and offered a(n) ___35___ without my asking. Molly(Lucy) was given to the child to ___36___ emotional healing after a car accident had left her crippled for life.

“She formed a special bond with the puppy and Lucy gave her a(n) ___37___ to live,” her mother explained.

Suddenly I felt very ___38___ and selfish. God has blessed me with so much, I thought. As they pulled out of the drive, the smile on my face was ___39___. I knew I had done the right thing --- that puppy was exactly where she ___40___.

21. A. decision B. direction C. address D. delivery

22. A. excusing B. advocating C. introducing D. forcing

23. A. turned up B. warmed up C. lit up D. cheered up

24. A. applauded B. declined C. withdrew D. obeyed

25. A. Obviously B. Fortunately C. Normally D. Typically

26. A. threatened B. rejected C. managed D. hesitated

27. A. Meanwhile B. Instead C. Similarly D. Besides

28. A. wandered B. bent C. dragged D. struggled

29. A. convenience B. benefit C. trouble D. possession

30. A. around B. anywhere C. back D. alone

31. A. as if B. what if C. even if D. only if

32. A. mentioned B. noticed C. sensed D. fancied

33. A. against B. beyond C. within D. across

34. A. child B. puppy C. wheelchair D. woman

35. A. solution B. analysis C. explanation D. suggestion

36. A. protect B. promote C. confirm D. measure

37. A. means B. shelter C. reason D. standard

38. A. sympathetic B. guilty C. worthless D. stubborn

39. A. faithful B. reliable C. artificial D. sincere

40. A. stayed B. belonged C. survived D. appeared

第二部分：阅读理解（第一节20小题，第二节5小题；每小题2分，满分50分）

第一节：阅读下列材料，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题纸上将该选项标号涂黑。

A

When I heard the US Postal Service would no longer be delivering mails on Saturdays starting this August, a little ping of apprehension and sadness hit me. One of the best parts of my day is getting the mail. I know this is not the case for everyone. Bills come in the mails. Useless flyers from new dentists and Chinese restaurants in town also come in the mails. But every evening when I head out to my mailbox…I hope there will be a letter.

There is little else that brings as much joy to my day as receiving a letter from my mom or a friend. In all the BBC period dramas that I watch, receiving a letter is a big deal. Women breathlessly flutter out of rooms so they can sit alone to read their letters. In love letters, a person’s character is determined by the quality of their penmanship(书法). Answering the letters is even more of an experience, taking sometimes up to half the day depending on the amount of gossip (闲话) held there!

When I was growing up, letters were pretty much reduced to something in special occasions, like birthdays and Christmas, but it wasn’t until I went to college that the true impact of personal letters hit me. Getting mails inspired the envy of everyone in the campus post office who happened to see you, and if you were lucky enough to get a package, you’d also hope you were lucky enough not to get attacked on the way back to your dorm. Physical mail was the connection to the people in the outside world who existed beyond college life.

When I moved into my first house last year friends and family from around the country filled my mailbox with notes welcoming me to my new home. I don’t know why it had never occurred to me to send a card when someone buys a house, but I sure will in the future! I was blown away by the kindness and love that shined through those notes of celebration for this big step in my life.

I saved all those cards because I want to remember that time, to remember that my friends and family walked beside me encouragingly and sent their love even though they couldn’t be there. A congratulatory text is nice, but I won’t be pulling that out of the drawer in five years smiling from the memory of the joy it brought me when I received it.

Call me an emotional fool, but I worry that the art of letter writing will be entirely lost, disappearing into the binary (二进制) code of the future. Many schools no longer teach handwriting, and children grow up learning how to use iPads and computers from when there are babies. Heck, my cats even enjoy the occasional iPad game. But something beautiful is disappearing. I can recognize who a letter is from by the handwriting on the envelope. Handwriting is part of our identity, and yet we have little need for it in the digital age, making a letter all the more special and personal.

I hope the US Postal Service can hang in there and people will be able to send letters for many years to come. I also hope that more people are encouraged to employ this lost art of communicating with the handwritten word. There are so many reasons to write a letter to someone you care about, if only to know that it might bring a much-needed smile to their face.

41. The writer mentions the US Postal Service’s decision at the beginning of the passage in order to .

A. introduce the topic

B. show the importance of the decision

C. compare the difference between letters and mails

D. discuss the relationship between letters and mails

B

Unusual things happen at weddings all the time. You can expect to see anything from grandmas getting down to hip-hop to silly toasts and speeches. But some wedding traditions are more unusual than most.

Stuffing An Apron with Cash

Polish weddings tend to be lively affairs with food and dancing. The last dance, however, is the most notable. Known as the Bridal Dance, this Polish tradition involves all the wedding guests, the bride, dancing, money and an apron.

Before the newlyweds leave the reception, a female friend or family member of the bride puts on an apron while the new Mrs. briefly dances with each of the guests. However