Once in a village, the villagers built a new church building and people came from far and wide to see it.
They admired its beauty! They said it was the most beautiful building in the world. Up on the roof, a little nail
heard the people praising everything about the lovely structure - except the nail! No one even knew he was
there, and he became very angry and sad.
     "If I am not important, nobody will miss me if I quit!" So the nail then released (松開(kāi)) its hold, got down
from the roof, and fell into the mud.
      That night it rained and rained. Soon, the board that had no nail was blown away, and the roof began to
leak  (漏水). The water flowed down along the walls and over the beautiful pictures on the walls. The plaster (石膏) began to fall, the floor was ruined, and the Bible was also ruined by water. All this was because a little
 nail decided to quit!
     But what of the nail? While holding the board, it was not known by others but it was useful. Buried in the
mud now, it was useless and would soon be eaten up by rust!
     What the story wants to say is that every member is important to a whole group!
     You may, like the nail, feel not important at times, but just like the nail, your absence is felt. A big building
might fall to pieces. You are important to a group even if you are small.

1. Why did the nail decide to quit?

A. Because he was not able to hold on any longer.
B. Because he was angry and sad without people's praising him.
C. Because he knew a big nail would replace him.
D. Because he had finished his task successfully.

2. What's the result of the nail's giving up?

 A. People began to realize the importance of the nail.
B. The nail was put in a more important position.
C. Many things in the building were ruined and the nail was eaten up by rust.
D. The nail regretted his original decision at last.

3. We can conclude that the nail was ______ in the passage.

A. clever
B. diligent
C. stupid
D. thoughtful

4. The passage wants to tell us that ______.

A. no matter how small you seem, you are important to a group
B. it is a pity that small people are never looked up to
C. quit when it is necessary, and don't care about what others say
D. being valued is important to a man

     I was concentrating on my work when my friend called me saying he was coming to visit me. After
explaining where my new house was, I told him that I had left the key under the doormat, which helps
preventing the floor from being dirty. Since I knew it would be quite late before I could get back, I suggested
that he make himself at home and help himself to anything that was kept in the refrigerator（冰箱）. 
     Two hours later my friend phoned me from the house. At the moment, he said he was listening to some
of my records after having had a nice meal. He had found the pan and meat in the refrigerator. Now, he was
drinking a cup of tea and hoped that I would join him soon. When I asked him if he had any difficulty finding
the house, he answered that the only problem was that he had not been able to find the key under the doormat,
but luckily, the living room window by the apple tree had been left open and he had climbed in through the
window. I listened to all this in great surprise. There is no apple tree outside my window, but there is one by
the living room window of my next-door neighbor's house！

1. When my friend arrived, I could not go to meet him because________.

A. we were not good friends
B. I was busy at work
C. he had not told me that he would come
D. I did not want to see him

2. A doormat is a mat (墊子)______.

A. used as a door
B. for cleaning the bottom of shoes
C. put up on a door as an ornament（裝飾物）
D. near a door under which people put their keys

3. I listened to my friend's phone call in great surprise because____.

A. he had not waited for me to eat together　　
B. he had eaten too much of the food
C. he mistook my neighbor's house for mine 　
D. he had left the house with the window open

4. At last my friend______.

A. did not enter my house　　
B. entered my house after he opened the door 　
C. entered my house by climbing through the window
D. entered my house with the help of my neighbor

     I am a good mother to three children. I have tried never to let my profession stand in the way of being a
good parent.
     I no longer consider myself the center of the universe. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh. I am a good friend
to my husband. I have tried to make marriage vows (誓約) mean what they say. I am a good friend to my
friends, and they to me. Without them, there would be nothing to say to you today. So here's what I wanted to
tell you today: Get a life. A real life, not a desire of the next promotion (提升), the bigger paycheck, the larger
house. Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, and who love you. And remember that love
is not leisure (空閑), it is work. Pick up the phone. Send ane-mail. Write a letter. And realize that life is the best
thing and that you have no business taking it for granted.
      It is so easy to waste our lives, our days, our hours, our minutes. It is so easy to exist instead of to live. I
learned to live many years ago. Something really,really bad happened to me, something that changed my life in
ways that, if I had my choice,it would never have been changed at all. And what I learned from it is what,
today,seems to be the hardest lesson of all. I learned to love the journey, not the destination. I learned to look at
all the good in the world and try to give some of it back because I believed in it, completely and totally. And I
tried to do that, in part, by telling others what I had learned. By telling them this: Read in the backyard with the
sun on your face. Learn to be happy. And think of life as a deadly illness, because if you do, you will live it with
joy and passion as it ought to believed.

1. How did the author form her view of life?

A. By working and social experience.
B. Learning from her friends.
C. Through an unfortunate experience.
D. Because of her children and husband.

2. The underlined sentence "It is so easy to exist instead of to live" in the fifth paragraph probably has
    the same meaning as____.

A. it is so easy to keep alive but not to live a real life
B. it is very hard to live a real life
C. it is so easy to make a living
D. it is more difficult to exist than to live a happy life

3. What's the author's attitude toward work?

A. Do it well to serve others.
B. To earn enough money to make life better.
C. Try your best to get higher position and pay.
D. Don't let it affect your real life.

4. It can be inferred from the passage that _____.

A. the author is a success in personal life
B. the author didn't try her best to work well
C. the author spent all her time caring for her children
D. the author likes traveling very much

     A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful
sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he
wanted.
     As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally,
on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he
was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautifully wrapped
gift box. Curious, and somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather
bound Bible, with the young man's name marked in gold. Angrily, he shouted at his father and said"with all
your money, you give me a Bible?" and stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible.
     Many years passed and the young man had become very successful in business. He had a beautiful home
and wonderful family, but realized his father now was getting old, and thought perhaps he should go see him.
He had not seen him since that graduation day. However, before he could make arrangements, he received a
mail telling him his father had passed away.
     When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search
through his father's important papers and saw the still gift-wrapped Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With
tears, he opened the Bible and was about to turn pages whena ear key dropped from the back of the Bible. It
had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had wanted. On the tag was the
date of his graduation, and the words PAID IN FULL.
     How many times do we miss God's blessings because we can't see past our own desires?

1. Why did the young man warn the sports ear eagerly?

A. His classmates all had such cars.
B. His father once promised him a car.
C. He had a high regard for the car.
D. His father encouraged him to buy a car.

2. Which of the following is NOT TRUE to the passage?

A. The young man misunderstood his father on his graduation Day.
B. The gift he received in his father's study was wrapped very well.
C. The father put the car key in between the pages of a Bible.
D. The gift for graduation was a Bible instead of a sports ear.

3. What's the main idea about this passage?

A. Bible is the most educable thing.
B. Packing is very important for a gift.
C. There is no father but loves her son.
D. One may miss blessing only by judging the appearance of a gift.

4. In the end of the story, which of the following can describe the young man?

A. Disappointed
B. Regretful
C. Satisfied
D. Frightened

     I made a pledge (誓言) to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would
try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.
     The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a Biblical (圣經(jīng)
的) passage about husbands being thoughtful of their wives. Then he went on to say, "Love is an act of will.
A person can choose to love." To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks
that would change.
     And it did. Right from the moment I kissed Evelyn at the door and said, "That new yellow sweater looks
great on you."
     "Oh, Tom, you noticed," she said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled.
     After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse,
but then I thought, "Evelyn's been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me."
We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.
     So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum
though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that's how the whole vacation passed. I made a new pledge
to keep on remembering to choose love.
     There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.
     "What's the matter?" I asked her. 
     "Tom," she said in a voice filled with distress (悲痛), "do you know something I don't?"
     "What do you mean?"
     "Well…that checkup (體檢) I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me?
Tom, you've been so good to me…am I dying?"
     It took a moment for it all to sink in. Then I burst out laughing.
     "No, honey," I said, wrapping her in my arms. "You're not dying; I'm just starting to live."

1. From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage __________.

A. with his family
B. with Evelyn
C. alone
D. with his children

2. During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because __________.

A. she looked lovely in her new clothes
B. he had made a lot of money in his Wall Street firm
C. he was determined to be a good husband
D. she was seriously ill

3. The author says, "There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment." What was the one thing
    that went wrong?

A. He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.
B. She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.
C. He knew something about her illness but didn't tell her.
D. He was so good to her that she thought she must be dying.

4. By saying "I'm just starting to live," Tom means that _____.

A. he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life
B. he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband
C. he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change
D. he is beginning to feel regret for what he did to his wife before

     A 36-year-old man stormed into the Ramona Post Gffice, yelling at everyone to get out of his way.
Carrying a shotgun, he climbed up onto the counter and told everyone to lie on the floor. Then he pulled
the trigger (扳機(jī)) and fired a round into the ceiling. Piaster splattered (飛濺) onto the floor and the
customers.
     The man ordered all the customers and employees to sit tip and look at him. He said,"Repeat after me:
I hate the post office!" Everyone repeated the words. He fired a second round, but this time he aimed at
the front plate glass window. Shattered (粉碎的) glass went everywhere.
     Three minutes later, five police cars pulled up in front of the post office, lights flashing and sirens (警
報(bào)器) roaring. Using a bullhorn (喇叭), a police officer told the man to' walk out backwards with his
hands up. The man fired another blast out of the shattered window. The police officer and his bullhorn
were uninjured. However. one police car had t~ee little pit marks in it.
     The man yelled,"I' m not coming out until the post office pays me for pain and suffering. A postal truck
ran into my car two years ago. My back is killing me. I can' t work any more. My wife left me. I can' t
take it any more.""
     After a while, the man calmed down. He released all the people inside. At 7:00 p. m.", the man walked
out backwards with his hands up. The police handcuffed (給… …帶上手銬) him, put him in the back
seat of the car, and drove him to the police station.

1. What was the exact situation in the post office?

A. A man rushed in and shot at the customers.
B. An angry man with a gun was robbing the customers of money.
C. A man rushed in and shot at the ceiling and the window on a workday.
D. A man aged 36 shot at the window first and then the police car.

2. What can be inferred from the passage? 

A. The customers were threatened by the man and did what he asked.
B. Although the man was so careful, the police heard the news.
C. The police officer was injured during his persuasion.
D. After a fierce battle, the police caught him.

3. Why did the man storm into the post office?

A. He wanted to kill the workers in the post office.
B. He wanted to rob the post office of money.
C. He wanted the post office to pay for what he had suffered.
D. He had something wrong with his head.

4. How did the man probably feel during the event?

A. Angry→excited→helpless
B. Excited→angry→calm
C. Angry→frightened→regretful
D. Bold→puzzled→calm

     "Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton (骨骼) in the closet (衣櫥)?"
Jessica asked. "A skeleton in the closet?" her mother paused thoughtfully. "Well, it's something that you would
rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad's family had been arrested
for stealing a horse, it would be a skeleton in his family's closet. He really wouldn't want any neighbor to know
about it."
     "Why pick on my family?" Jessica's father said with anger. "Your family history isn't so good, you know.
Wasn't your great-great-grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?" "Yes, but
people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners." "Gosh, sorry
I asked. I think I understand now," Jessica cut iin before things grew worse.
     After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica's parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother
was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper pretending
to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica's closet.
Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a
bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica's mother sank in a faint (暈倒), waking only when Jessica put a
cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.
     "What happened? Where am I?" she asked. "You just destroyed the school's skeleton, Mum," explained
Jessica. "I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as
I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad." Jessica looked in amazement as
her parents began to laugh madly. "They're both crazy," she thought.

1. According to Jessica's mother, "a skeleton in the close" means _____.

A. a family honor
B. a family secret
C. a family story
D. a family treasure

2. What can we learn about some Australians' ancestors form Paragraph 2?

A. They were brought to Australia as prisoners.
B. They were the earliest people living in Australia.
C. They were involved in some crimes in Australia.
D. They were not regarded as criminals in their days.

3. Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?

A. She was curious about it.
B. She planned to keep it for fun.
C. She needed it for her school task.
D. She intended to scare her parents.

4. Jessica's parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because _____.

A. they were crazy
B. they were over excited
C. they realized their misunderstanding
D. they both thought they had won the quarrel