Have you ever heard anyone say “It’s raining cats and dogs”? It means “It’s rain

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Have you ever heard anyone say “It’s raining cats and dogs”? It means “It’s raining hard!”
But sometimes cats and dogs do drop from the sky! Here’s how it happens.
Not so long ago, a country far away had many large rats. The people there said, “ We need cats!” So cats were sent to them by airplane. But the country had many mountains. It was hard for an airplane to land. So the cats came down by parachute(降落伞). Did the cats like the ride? They didn’t say they didn’t! And today they are still catching rats!
In another country far away, there is snow the year around. People sometimes got lost in it.
“We need big dogs!” the people said, “The dogs could find people lost in the snow. The dogs could help bring them home. Where can we get big dogs?”
A man across the sea had big dogs to sell. “I will send dogs to you,” he said. “ I have some very big ones. They can find people lost in the snow.”
He sent the dogs by airplane.
But the airplane did not land in the snow. The dogs came down by parachute ---- you guessed it !
Did the dogs like the ride? They didn’t say they didn’t! And today they are well and happy.
They find anyone who gets lost in the snow. Then they help him get home. Goo

d dogs!
Remember it, so you can say, “ Yes, it does rain cats and dogs sometimes. They came down by parachute!”
1.The underlined word “ it” In Paragraph 2 refers to __________.
A．the weather
B．the saying “It’s raining cats and dogs.”
C．the saying “It’s raining hard.”
D．the fact that real cats and dogs drop from the sky.
2. Cats and dogs drop from the sky because ______.
A．there are many mountains in the country.
B. it snows the year around in the country.
C. was hard for a plane to land in the two countries.
D. coming down by parachute could save money.
3．The main purpose of the passage is to _________________.
A．tell the readers cats and dogs do drop from the sky
B．tell the reader

s of a new meaning about an old saying.
C．show cats and dogs are our good friends.
D．show parachute is an important

答案

小题1:D
小题2:C
小题3:B

解析

略

举一反三

There are many stereotypes( 定型 ) about the character of people in various parts of the United States. In the Northeast and Midwest, people are said to be closed and private. In the South and West, however, they are often thought of as being more open and hospitable . Ask someone from St. Louis where the nearest sandwich shop is, and he or she will politely give you directions. A New Yorker might eye you at first and after deciding it is safe to talk to you, might give you a rather unexpected explanation. A person from Georgia might be very kind about directing you and even suggest some different places to eat. A Texan just might take you to the place and treat you to lunch.
American stereotypes are abundant. New Englanders are often thought of as being friendly and helpful. Southerners are known for their hospitality and warmth. People from the western part of the United States are often considered very outgoing. These differences in character can be traced to different factors such as climate, living conditions, and historical development.
When travelling from place to place, Americans themselves are often surprised at the differing degrees of friendliness in the United States.
1 . The main idea of the passage is _____________.
A. even Americans are surprised at the differences among themselves
B. there are many differences in character in different parts of the USA.
C. there are many reasons for the differences
D. stereotypes about people are not necessarily true
2. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. New Yorkers are usually open with strangers.
B. People from the South are usually considered good
C. The friendliest Americans travel from place to place.
D. Different parts have different customs and habits.
3. The differences lie in the following except ______ of the parts.
A. the weather B. the history C. geography D. the names
4 . The word "abundant" in the second paragraph may probably mean _________.
A. plentiful B. normal C. curious D. strange

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If you see someone drowning, speed is very important. Once you get him out of the water, if he isn"t breathing. you have four minutes before his brain is completely destroyed. Support his neck, tilt(倾斜) his head back and press his chin upwards. This stops the tongue blocking the airway in the throat and is sometimes enough to get him breathing again. If that doesn"t work, start mouth-to-mouth breathing. Press his nostrils鼻孔) together with your fingers. Open your mouth and take a deep breath. Blow into his lungs until his chest rises. then remove your mouth and watch his chest fall. Repeat twelve times a minute. Keep doing until help arrives.
To bring a child to life. keep your lips around his mouth and nose and gently blow into his mouth. Give the first four breaths as quickly as possible to fill the blood with oxygen, If, in spite of your efforts, he stars turning a blue-grey colour, you can feel no pulse, then pressing is the last chance of saving his life.
With arms straight, rock forwards, pressing down on the lower half of the breastbone. Don"t be too hard or you may break a rib. Check how effective you are seeing if his colour improves or his pulse becomes independent to your chest pressing. If this happens, stop the pressing. Otherwise continue until rescue arrives.
1. This passage is mainly about_______ .
A. how to save people out of the water
B. how to give first aid to people who are drowning
C. how to do mouth-to-mouth breathing
D. how to save a child from a river
2. Once you get a drowning man out of the water, if he isn"t breathing, you must first____
A. get him breathing again
B. take him to the nearest hospital as soon as possible
C. find someone to help you
D. call the First Aid Centre
3. In t

he last paragraph, the word "rescue" means_____.
A. breath B. help C. doctor D. pulse
4. If the drowning boy has no pulse, _______.
A. pressing his chin upwards is enough to get him breathing
B. blowing air into his mouth is sure to save his life
C. pressing his nostrils together with your fingers can work
D. pressing is the last chance of saving his life
5. Which of the following statements is true. ____.
A. If a man does not breathe for four minutes, his brain will be completely destroyed.
B. If you see someone drowning, you must give him mouth-to-mouth breathing.
C. Don"t stop pressing his chest, if the drowning man starts breathing again.
D. When pressing, you can do it as hard as you can.

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Most Americans believe that someone isn’t grown-up until the age of 26 and they should complete their education, have a full-time job, have a family to support and be financially independent. They also believe that becoming a real grown-u

p is a process which begins at about the age of 20 and takes about five years, according to the report from the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center.
The findings are based on a representative sample of 1,398 people over the age of 18 who were surveyed in person. The survey found that people expect the transitions （过度,转变）to grown-up status to be completed at the following ages: age 20.9 self-supporting; age 21.1 no longer living with parents; age 21.2 having a full-time job; age 22.3 education completed; age 24.5 being able to support a family financially; age 25.7 getting married; and age 26.2 having a child.
“There is a l

arge degree of agreement across social groups on the relative importance of the seven transitions,” said Tom Smith, director of the survey. The only obvious pattern of differences is on views about supporting a family, having children and getting married. Older adults consider these more important than younger adults do. This probably shows in large part a change in values across generations away from traditional family values. The most valued step toward reaching adulthood, the survey found, is completing education, followed by full-time employment, supporting a family, financial independence, living independently, and marriage.
1 . According to the first paragraph, someone is a grown-up when he _______.
A. has found a full-time job
B. has finished his study in university
C. can make money and support himself after completing his education
D. can support a family and be financially independent after graduation
2 . A young man of 24 may be busy ________.
A. finding a job               B. finding a girl friend
C. making money             D. preparing for his wedding
3. From the passage, we learn that _________.
A. being grown-up is just a matter of age
B. being grown-up is a process which takes some time
C. all people think completing education means being grown-up
D. the survey found everyone had a different view about being grown-up
4. The best title for the passage should be “________”
A. It takes a long time to grown up.
B. Are we grown-up yet?
C. Getting married means being grown-up.
D. Completing education means being grown-up.

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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，然后从36至55各个题所给的四个选项A、B、C、D中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
The moment I knew my mother had incurable lung cancer, I realized for the first time that time will one day run out for us all.
I have determined to be with my mother as much as I possibly can. This is not out of a sense of
36 , but because I really want to be near her. But making the time to   37   with my mother has been my greatest   38   . I have a husband, a four-year-old son and a home to nm. I also hold down a(n)    39    job as a radio announcer at the BBC.
I arrived at work one day to be told we would be doing a radio series exploring “time poverty”. I’ve    40    been taken with the idea that we are time-poor. How can I - who have so many labor-saving machines and an only child – have   41   time than my mother who had six children and no 42 ?
I put this   43   a professor. He pointed out that it is because I try to keep my home much cleaner than my mother did. I admit I like to   44   to my friends. My husband says 45   that I remove all traces (痕迹) of human life    46    anyone arrives.
The professor said    47   has become the new religion. We expect work to provide us with a sense of identity and a means to secure our future. And because we   48   so much time in our working lives, we like to reward ourselves with material things. Frequently, we spend our money before it’s earned.   49 is an annoying worry, keeping us 50 to the work treadmill (跑步机).
The same professor suggested we    51   a Buddhist concept -- to enjoy each moment and activity for its own sake,   52 try to do lots of things at once. Since then I have been   53   the art of “living in the moment” whenever I get the chance. I have cleared my schedule of nonessential tasks,   54   house and garden plans, and turned down some extra work.
It is my mother’s illness, a once-in-a-lifetime event, that sets me   55   on the fact that we forget that time is a limited resource.
36. A. duty           B. guilt              C. sorrow             D. sympathy
37. A. live            B. be                 C. chat                D. go
38. A. concern         B. challenge           C. chance              D. trouble
39. A. demanding         B. critical             C. boring              D. amazing
40. A. almost          B. seldom            C. never               D. often
41. A. better          B. worse             C. less                D. more
42. A. tape-recorder    B. washing machine    C. air-conditioner       D. television
43. A. with           B. for               C. in                         D. to
44. A. show off       B. draw attention       C. look forward        D. get close
45. A. angrily          B. surprisingly         C. jokingly            D. seriously
46. A. after           B. when              C. as                 D. before
47. A. time           B. entertainment        C. work              D. family
48. A. invest        B. contribute          C. give               D. devote
49. A. Pressure        B. Expense           C. Life                D. Debt
50. A. led             B. chained            C. relied              D. focused
51. A. adopt          B. advocate            C. adapt               D. acquire
52. A. more than       B. instead of           C. rather than          D. other than
53. A. exercising      B. practicing           C. believing            D. holding
54. A. fixed          B. conducted          C. postponed           D. made
55. A. reflecting     B. thinking            C. considering          D. wondering

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第三部分阅读理解 (共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
请认真阅读下列短文，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Picking a Christmas tree takes most people a few minutes, a couple of hours if they head to the woods. Dave Murbach needs 11 months.
Almost every day of every year, Murbach’s thoughts turn to vision of a perfectly shaped evergreen tree that will take everyone’s breath away.
“The tree,” he says wearily. “Always the tree.”
Murbach is the man responsible for finding the towering tree that graces Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center each Christmas season.
“I’m always looking for a tree,” the center’s chief gardener says. “I look for it even when I go to the beach in the summer. It’s like a homework assignment hanging over your head.”
And if he gets it wrong, there’s nothing hiding it.
“Every day it’s up, 400,000 people go by, and 2.5 million people watch the lighting celebration on television,” he says.
This year’s tree, a 74-foot Norway spruce (云杉) from Richfield, Ohio, flown to New York on the world’s largest cargo plane, was lighted on December 2.
The arrival of the tree leads in the Christmas season in New York - a tradition dating to 1931, when the workers building Rockefeller Centre put up a small tree with decorations.
The search for the next year’s tree starts soon after the old tree is chopped up for wood chips and horse-jumping logs.
That’s not as simple as it sounds. Though forests are full of evergreens, few get enough sunlight or space to fill out. And branches in snowy regions often break under the weight, making flees uneven.
Back at the office, he sorts through hundreds of letters from people offering their trees, many addressed simply to “Mr. Christmas Tree Man.”
Despite the occasional anxiety attack and sleepless night, Murbach knows the together people you love. That’s what I hope it sets off.”
But Murbach says he’s always too worn out to celebrate Christmas.
“No card, no lights, nothing,” he says.
“No tree?”
“No tree.”
1. Murbach takes his job seriously because he most likely wants _____________.
A. everyone to be happy with his work
B. to make everyone surprised at his choice
C. everyone to know his care for their happiness
D. to attract people’s attention to his special ability
2. Which is the correct order of the events in the passage?
a. Murbach’s thoughts turn to a perfectly shaped tree.
b. 2.5 million people watch the Christmas tree.
c. The tree is flown to New York.
d. it was lighted on December 2.
e. The tree is chopped up.
f. Murbach searches for the tree.
A. a, b, c, d, e, f    B. a, f, c, d, b, e            C. c, d, e, b, a, f    D. c, d, b, f, e, a
3. According to Murbach’s standard of trees, the best tree must _________.
A. be evergreen                             B. have no space between branches
C. be thick enough                          D. be equally balanced in shape
4. Which is tree about Murbach?
A. He is most devoted to his work.                     B. He is now quite tired of his work.
C. He has no loved family members.           D. He never wants to celebrate Christmas.

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