1. What does the underlined sentence "I was at my wit's end" mean?

A. I didn't know what to do next.                      
B. I decided to give up.
C. I was hurt by my son deeply.                        
D. I was very proud of my son.

2. We learn from the passage that the author ________.

A. has the gift of seeing with the heart
B. likes spring rain because it seldom rains in spring
C. had lost her mother before her marriage
D. seldom praised her child in the past

3. How does the author feel about her family?

A. No one listened to her seemingly unimportant things.
B. She didn't get along well with her husband and son.
C. She seldom spoke to her mother.
D. She felt quite alone in her family.

4. The passage is mainly about ________.

A. how to educate children properly
B. the fact that we should see nature differently
C. the influence of friendship on our life
D. how friendship begins and develops

     Once upon a time there was one storyteller. After getting tired of telling old fabricated stories, he left
his house in search of a real life story.
     He reached a village and took a cottage for rent. After wandering in the village throughout the month,
in search of  true stories, the storyteller couldn't find one. Disappointed, he decided to stop his search.
     The next day, while sitting in the cottage, he suddenly heard a voice-a woman was yelling(吼叫)at
someone. The voice was coming from the big wall behind his cottage.
     He tried to hear the conversation; it sounded like the woman was abusing(辱罵)her daughterinlaw.
The storyteller didn't like it but he was happy to finally get his story.
     Listening to the conversations each day he added them to his story. Though he couldn't see the
characters of his story, he started hating the motherinlaw, as she seemed to be a villain(壞人).
     Now it was time to finalize the end of the story. But before he did, the storyteller wanted to see the
characters once, so he climbed up the wall.
     There he saw the motherinlaw sitting in a wheelchair. It seemed she was disabled and that the
daughterinlaw was resting nearby.
     He saw the old lady trying to get some food lying on the table near her chair. But because of her
condition, she couldn't reach it and it looked like the daughterinlaw was enjoying the old lady's
helplessness. Suddenly the old lady fell from the chair and started abusing her daughterinlaw.
     The storyteller went back and quickly changed the ending of the story. He was surprised how
different it was compared to what he originally thought it would be.Truly he had found both a real life
story and areal life lesson.

1. What's the meaning of the underlined word "fabricated" in Paragraph 1?

A. Funny.  
B. Imaginary.
C. Amazing.  
D. Romantic.

2. Why did the storyteller climb up the wall?

A. He thought he was strong enough to do it.
B. He expected to find out what was happening.
C. He would like to find a good ending for his story.
D. He wanted to have a look at the woman and herdaughterinlaw.

3. Why did the old woman start abusing her daughterinlaw?

A. Her daughterinlaw didn't take care of her.
B. Her daughterinlaw was too busy to help her.
C. Her daughterinlaw pushed her out of her wheelchair.
D. Her daughterinlaw didn't allow her to get food.

4. What lesson can we learn from the text?

A. No one is as deaf as the man who will not listen.
B. A good listener is not someone with nothing to say.
C. Don't just listen to one's words. Watch what one does.
D. Everybody lies, but it doesn't matter because nobody listens.

     During the 19th century, farmers in and around Southeast began to invest in a new and unique
business venture (冒險活動). This area would later become known as the origin of the American circus(馬戲). In 1793, Englishman John Bill Rickets introduced Americans to the circus at his place in
Philadelphia where trick riding was featured along with clown(小丑) acts in the same show.    
     In the 1830s, farmers in Southeast began showing menageries(野生動物), collections of interesting
animals from far away lands. They soon combined the menagerie show with the acrobatic(雜技的)
entertainment of trick riding and these early circus bosses began taking their show on the road. By the
1850s American circuses were a big business and they began to travel abroad, bringing back to
American even more unique items and animals.    
     Hachaliah Bailey, from nearby Somers, Westchester County, brought the first elephant "Old Bet" to
the United States in 1796. Bailey exhibited "Old Bet", until her death in 1816. Somers is home to the
Elephant Hotel, built by Hachaliah Bailey in 1820-1825. The building served as a meeting place for
menagerie owners.    
     Many showmen and circus people came from Southeast. Nathan and Seth B. Howes began their
show business careers at early ages, in Southeast.    
     In 1811, Nathan formed a small circus company made up largely of his friends and family, including
11yearold Seth. Seth B. Howes would later become one of the foremost circus businessmen in the area.
From 1850 to 1853, Seth B. Howes managed a circus project for P. T. Barnum. He later toured Europe, performing before heads of state. Seth B. Howes retired in 1870.

1. When did the American circus come into being?

A. In the 17th century.
B. In the 18th century.
C. In the 19th century.
D. In the 20th century.

2. Which of the following shows the right order of events that happened to the American circus?
a. Farmers in Southeast began showing menageries.
b. The first elephant "Old Bet" was brought to the United States.
c. American circuses were a big business and began to travel abroad.
d. Nathan formed a small circus company.
e. Seth B. Howes retired in 1870.

A. b, d, a, c, e  
B.  c, a, b, d, e
C. d, c, a, b, e  
D. a, c, b, d, e

3. According to the passage, Somers was________.

A. the person who built the Elephant Hotel
B. a place for menagerie owners to meet
C. a farmer who raised animals
D. an American who introduced an elephant

4. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A. The American Circus in Southeast
B. The Origin of Circus
C. Menageries in the United States
D. Ways of Fun in Southeast

     Henry works in a factory. He comes from a poor family and was in school for only four years.
He has to do the hard work, but he is paid less. He likes to watch football matches very much and
spends much time on them.
     One afternoon there was a big football match on the playground. He borrowed some money
from his friend and hurried there. There were a lot of people there. And all the tickets were sold
out. He was sorry for it. He saw a pole outside the playground and climbed it quickly. A policeman
came and said, "It is dangerous to stay on it! Come down!"
      "Wait a minute, please!" Henry said and just at that moment the policeman heard cheers on the
playground and asked in a hurry, "which team has kicked a goal?" "Ours!" "wonderful! You can stay
there. But take care!"  The policeman said happily and left. When the match would be soon over, he
came back again and asked, "who has won?" "Theirs, 3:2 "  " Come down," the policeman said
angrily. " Such a match is not worth watching!"
      Henry had to come down. But soon they heard cheers again. The policeman said in a hurry,
"Climb up quickly and see who has kicked a goal."

1. From the passage we know that _________.

A. Henry doesn't like his work                
B. Henry comes from a rich family.
C. Henry is paid less                        
D. Henry doesn't like the policeman

2. Henry failed to get a ticket for the match that day because ___________.

A. all the tickets were sold out                
B. he didn't want to buy a ticket
C. he had no time to buy a ticket              
D. he had no money to buy a ticket

3. The policeman asked Henry to come down the pole at first because ____________.

A. the other team kicked a goal                
B. Henry had no ticket
C. their team kicked a goal                    
D. it was dangerous

4. From the third paragraph, we can guess that _____________.

A. the policeman wanted to teach Henry a lesson.
B. the policeman was also a football fan.  
C. the policeman didn't like Henry.
D. the policeman tried to please Henry

     On January 15, a little girl from the Chinese mainland was on the subway in Hong Kong. She
was eating something. A local man told her not to do so. The girl's mother told him to mind his
own business. A quarrel started. Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway rules say people cannot eat
on the subway. The rules say the train will be filled with the smell of food. They say the smell will
attract mice to the train. These mice might chew the cables and cause safety problems for passengers.
People caught eating on the subway will be fined up to 2,000 Hong Kong dollars (1,625 yuan),
Xinhua reported. Signs clearly say "no eating" and the rule is often announced on the subway and in
stations. However, the girl and her parents say they did not notice this.
     This seemingly small event has started a debate on the Internet, Xinhua reported.
     A netizen named Zhu Hongying said some Chinese consider bad habits like talking loudly in public
places, spitting or jumping queues as small matters. They simply don't care because they think public
places are not their private homes. "This kind of thinking shows a lack of a sense of social morality,"
she pointed out.
     Many people agree. "The parents (of the girl) should have apologized for their mistake," Zhang
Nan, 15, a Senior 1 student at Diaotai High School, Shaanxi, said to Teens. "Quarreling after making
the mistake only makes the situation more embarrassing for them."
     Reports of Chinese people behaving badly at tourist sites at home and abroad are nothing new.
Such reports are affecting the way other countries see Chinese people. Some foreign airports put
up signs in Chinese telling Chinese people not to talk loudly and not to spit everywhere. Many
Chinese people find this embarrassing.
     All this shows that one of the secrets to a good journey is to learn about local customs and
taboos before you go.

1.The underlined word taboos probably means _________.

A. something you buy or keep to remind yourself of a place or an occasion
B. a group of people who have the power to make and change laws
C. a general agreement that does not allow people to do, use or talk about something
D. guidance offering information of local weather, accommodation and specialties

2.According to the debate on the net reported by Xinhua, Chinese manners___________.

A. are far from being poor
B. leave much to be desired
C. are only too easy to improve
D. are always to blame anywhere anytime

3.The passage wants to tell us that ___________.

A. When in Rome, do as the Romans do
B. Birds of a feather flock together
C. Misfortune may be an actual blessing
D. A real man never goes back on his words

     Joe came to New York from the Middle West, dreaming about painting. Delia came to New
York from the South, dreaming about music. Joe and Delia met in a studio. Before long they were
good friends and got married.
     They had only a small flat to live in , but they were happy. They loved each other, and they were
both interested in art. Everything was fine until one day they found they had spent all their money.
     Delia decided to give music lessons. One afternoon she said to her husband:
     "Joe, I've found a pupil, a general's daughter. She is a sweet girl. I'm to give three lessons a week
and get $5 a lesson."
     But Joe was not glad.
     "But how about me?" he said." Do you think I'm going to watch you work while I play with my
art? No, I want to earn some money too."
     "Joe, you are silly," said Delia. "You must keep at your studies. We can live quite happily on $15
a week."
     "Well, perhaps I can sell some of my pictures," said Joe.
     Every day they parted in the morning and met in the evening. A week passed and Delia brought
home fifteen dollars, but she looked a little tired.
     "Clementina sometimes gets on my nerves. I'm afraid she doesn't practice enough. But the general
is thet old man! I wish you could know him, Joe."
     And then Joe took eighteen dollars out of his pocket.
     "I've sold one of my pictures to a man from Peoria," he said, "and he has ordered another."
     "I'm so glad," said Delia. "Thirty-three dollars! We never had so much to spend before. We'll have
a good supper tonight."
     Next week Joe came home and put another eighteen dollars on the table. In half an hour Delia
came, her right hand in a bandage.
     "What's the matter with your hand?" said Joe. Delia laughed and said:
     "Oh, a funny thing happened! Clemantina gave me a plate of soup and spilled some of it on my
hand. She was very sorry for it. And so was the old general. But why are you looking at me like that,
Joe?"
     "What time this afternoon did you burn your hand, Delia?"
      "Five o'clock, I think. The iron-I mean the soup-was ready about five, Why?"
      "Delia, come and sit here," said Joe. He drew her to the couch and sat beside her.
      "What do you do every day, Delia? Do you really give music lesson? Tell me the truth."
       She began to cry.
       "I couldn't get any pupils," she said, "So I got a place in a laundry ironing shirts. This afternoon
a girl accidentally set down an iron on my hand and I got a bad burn. But tell me, Joe, how did you
guess that I wasn't giving music lessons?" 
       "It's very simple," said Joe. "I knew all about your bandages because I had to send them upstair
s to a girl in the laundry who had and accident with a hot iron. You see, I work in the engine-room of
the same laundry where you work." 
       "And your pictures? Did you sell and to that man from Peoria?"
      "Well, your general with his Clemantina is an invention, and so is my man from Peoria."
     And then they both laughed.

1. To support the family, Delia worked as             .

A. a tutor
B. a music teacher
C. an artist
D. a laundry assistant

2. We can infer from the underlined sentence that             .