Tulips(郁金香) are the national flower of Iran and Turkey. The European name for the flower is a misuse of the Persian word for turban(头巾), a mistake probably arising in the common Turkish custom of wearing flowers in the folds of the turban. Alternatively, the misuse may have arisen because this eastern flower, when not yet in full bloom, looks like a turban. In Persia, to give a red tulip was to declare your love for someone. The black center of the red tulip was said to represent the lover’s heart, burned to a coal by love’s passion.

Originally growing in the Ottoman Empire (present-day Turkey), tulips were imported into Holland in the sixteenth century. When Carolus Clusius wrote the first major book on tulips in 1592, they became so popular that the tulips in his garden were stolen from time to time. As the Dutch Golden Age grew, so did this colorful flower. They were commonly seen in paintings and at festivals. In the mid-seventeenth century, tulips even created the first economics bubble（泡沫经济）, known as “Tulip Mania”. At that time, tulips were so expensive that they were used as money until the market for them crashed.

Today, Holland is still known for its tulips and other flowers, often sincerely called “the flower shop of the world.” Tulips are planted in great fields of beautiful color, and transform the landscape into a sea of different colors. Tulip festivals are held throughout the country in spring. However, the most well-known tulip festival is organized in the Noordoostpolder, a province in the central Netherlands, each year. Held in the middle of the tulip fields, this flower festival runs from late April to early May. The Dutch people took their love of tulips abroad when they settled, and tulips and tulip festivals are now found in New York and Michigan, where the connection to their Dutch roots is still very strong.

1. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the first paragraph?

A. The origin of tulips. B. The meaning of tulips.

C. What tulips look like. D. How tulips were named.

2.What can we learn from the text?

A. Carolus Clusius’ book made people import tulips into Holland.

B. Holland is called “the flower shop of the world” because of the tulip.

C. The tulip festival in the Noordoostpolder is sometimes held indoors.

D. Holland is not the birthplace of tulips.

3.What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A. The Dutch people’s love of tulips.

B. Tulip festivals in Holland and abroad.

C. Noordoostpolder, the tulip shop of the world.

D. Tulips and the landscape of Holland.

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Learning English is challenging because of the various rules and exceptions to the rules. The best way to learn English is to hear it spoken and repeat the words as you hear them. 1. You will learn how to make English a daily part of your life in order to learn to speak it quickly.

2. Ask a friend to help you write letters of English alphabet on index cards. You should write a letter on each card. Practise the letters by mixing up the cards and saying the letters. You can ask your friend to help you pronounce the letters and quiz you on your knowledge.

Make your own videos in English. If you have a video camera, you can tape yourself speaking English and practice along with your own video. 3. Watch your videos daily, and repeat what is being said.

Get a private tutor. A professional English instructor can give you one-on-one instruction that will help you understand the rules of English. Your instructor can teach you how to write and speak English. 4. You can also inquire at your local community college.

Watch movies with English subtitles. When watching a movie in your native language, use the English subtitles so you will understand the connection between your language and English.

5. You will make mistakes, and that is OK. You need to practice English as much as possible in order to quickly learn to speak the language fluently.

A. Learn the English alphabet.

B. Use every opportunity to speak English.

C. You can subscribe some English magazines to learn English.

D. Constant repetition is the key to remembering words in English.

E. If you have any difficult points, you can consult your dictionary at any time..

F. You can find an English tutor by placing an advertisement in your local newspaper.

G. You can make a play in which you and a friend are having a simple conversation in English.

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

No doubt we all have experienced frustration（受挫）. It may be something as as growing flowers or as serious as developing better relationships with others. Whatever the is, there comes a point when you just feel you can’t go on any further.

And yet, the secret to can be found in a tube of toothpaste. Every time I come to the of a tube of a toothpaste, I am completely that just when I think it is absolutely empty, I can more toothpaste out of it. I am sure you all have gone through

the thing.

So, next time you find yourself in such a situation, the tube. We can all times that success came when we were on our chance or when we were doing something for the final time. It is when you dig deep down for that one last burst of that

you achieve your goal.

, too many people give up too early. All they to do is squeeze one more drop of toothpaste from the tube. There are hundreds of of successful people who kept on going in the face of adversity(逆境) and . Even the writers of Chicken Soup for the Soul were by 33 publishers before they found one who would their book.

If you have the passion to go for your , then keep squeezing that “inner tube of toothpaste”. It is only when you the “passion” that you will know whether success is yours or not. Just make sure that you don’t too soon. Success may be just around the

corner.

1.A. uselessB. simpleC. boringD. funny

2.A. case B. directionC. taskD. competition

3.A. truthB. happinessC. successD. wealth

4.A. sideB. topC. surfaceD. end

5.A. satisfiedB. amazedC. depressedD. confused

6.A. pump B. driveC. squeezeD. pull

7.A. naturalB. luckyC. rareD. same

8.A. rememberB. emptyC. saveD. use

9.A. enjoyB. recallC. valueD. arrange

10.A. lastB. bigC. equalD. full

11.A. lightB. speedC. laughterD. energy

12.A. UnbelievablyB. StrangelyC. TypicallyD. Unfortunately

13.A. decideB. wishC. needD. expect

14.A. examplesB. typesC. charactersD. signs

15.A. sorrowB. disappointmentC. guiltD. misunderstanding

16.A. teasedB. assistedC. injuredD. rejected

17.A. translateB. printC. editD. order

18.A. dreamB. reputationC. journeyD. home

19.A. make up forB. catch up withC. run out of D. look forward to

20.A. tryB. returnC. stopD. judge

根据句意及语法写出正确的单词

1.The little pupil took his grandma ________ the arm and walked her across the street.

2.Li Ning’s designs were attractive, and they had a major advantage _____ their better-known rivals—they were cheaper.

3.Opposite is St. Paul’s Church, ______ you can hear some lovely music.

4.Was it because Jack came late for school _____ Mr. Smith got angry?

5.If you miss this chance, it may be years ______ you get another one.

请根据句意或汉语提示,用所缺单词或短语的适当形式填空。每空一次

1.My mother is a ___________(退休) teacher, and she enjoys her life now.

2.A reptile has cold blood and ________(产卵) eggs.

3.It is _________(polite) to stare at others in public places.

4.The crocodile is very dangerous but we can’t harm it, because it belongs to the ___________(danger) species and is facing up to dying out and needs protection.

5.The technology has been ________(simple) so that anyone can use it.

6.Now the population of the birds is _____ ______ _______.（增长）

7.One of her acquaintances was going through a very messy divorce and was very depressed. She tried to ________ her ______(使……振作起来).

8. The initials, WWF, _____ _____(代表) World Wide Fund for Nature.

9.If you show you _____ _____ _____ (意识到) cultural differences, most Americans will

not worry about answering your questions.

10.____ _____ ____ (……的数量) the pandas living in the wild has increased to about 1,590.

阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(一个单词)，或括号内单词的正确形式。

We often hear people say “You’ve a greater chance 1. (hit) by lightning.” It is used to describe something 2. (likely) to happen. However, 3. truth is that lightning strikes are the second most common cause of deaths among natural disasters in the US. The first is floods. Around 400 Americans are struck by lightning each year, of 4. about 70 people die. In fact, there are more deaths 5. (cause) by lightning than by tornadoes and hurricanes. And in India, at least 2,000 people 6. (kill) in lightning strikes since2005.

Because lightning kills only one or two people at a time, its danger does not receive as much attention 7. other disasters. The US has made June 22-28 National Lightning Safety Week, aiming to deepen the public’s 8. (understand) of the dangers of lightning and provide safety tips during thunderstorms.

“If you hear thunder, you are in danger of lightning,” said Rocky Lopes, a disaster educator at the American Red Cross. “The most important thing is to seek a 9. (hide) place. If you are near wide, open places, move indoors as 10. (quick) as possible and stay there until after the storm has ended.”

假定英语课上老师要求同学们交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。

增加：在缺词处加一个漏词符号（/\），并在其下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写上修改后的词。

注意： 1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；

2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

There are a lot public holidays for Chinese people, such as National Day, May Day, and Children’s Day. But I think we should have other holiday——Farmers’ Day. Firstly, China is a agricultural country. Farmers really play a very importantly role in China. They provide food for us, without which we cannot to live. Secondly, farmers offered a lot to the development of industry. Lastly of all, most farmers work hard, with little time to enjoy themselves. Some people look down upon farmers so they think farmers do not have many knowledge. I suggest that there should be a Farmers’ Day to show respect for these 900 millions farmers in China.

假设你是李华，昨天看到央视关于世界濒危珍稀动物的报道后深有感触，决定给世界动物保护基金会（WWF）负责人写一封邮件，邮件的内容包括：

1. 你看完报道的感受；

2. 动物濒危的原因；

3. 你对WWF的建议。

注意：1. 词数100左右。

2. 可适当增加细节，使得行文连贯。

3. 参考词汇：deforestation 砍伐森林

Dear Sir or Madam,

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Hua

Digital technology — email and smart phones especially—have vastly improved workers' ability to be productive outside of a traditional office. Even so, most white-collar work still happens in an office. One reason is that, according to findings of a new survey (调查) of office workers conducted by Wakefield Research for the IT company Citrix, most bosses are doubtful about remote working. Half of the workers say their boss doesn't accept it, and only 35 percent say it's tolerated.

Skeptical bosses will likely have their doubts reinforced (加深) by the same survey, which shows that 43 percent of workers say they've watched TV or a movie while “working” remotely, while 35 percent have done housework，and 28 percent have cooked dinner.

It is true, however, that working at home makes people much more efficient (高效的), because it allows workers to take care of annoying housework while still getting their jobs done. It’s much faster, for example, to shop for groceries at a quarter to three than to stand in line during the after-work rush.

The fact that such practices remain officially unaccepted reflects how far we haven't come as a society from the days when we expected every full-time worker to be supported by a full-time homemaker.

More broadly the Wakefield survey suggests that employers may be missing a low-cost way to give workers something of value. Sixty-four percent of those survey participants who haven't worked remotely would rather give up some bonus in order to get even one day a week working from home. Under such circumstances, smart firms need to find ways to let their employees have enough ability to change or be changed easily to suit a different situation to manage their time efficiently.

1.Why do some employers hesitate to allow remote working?

A. They are used to face-to-face communication.

B. They want to stick to their routine practice.

C. They have little trust in modem technology.

D. They fear losing control of their workers.

2.What seems to be most workers' attitude toward remote working?

A. Favorable.B. Doubtful.C. Reserved.D. Disapproving.

3.What does the author suggest smart firms do?

A. Shorten their office hours.

B. Give employees a pay raise.

C. Adopt flexible work patterns.

D. Reduce their staff’s workload.

What’s On?

Trouble in Mind

Alice Childress won an Off-Broadway award in 1956 for this story of a black actress rehearsing（排练） a play with a white director who increasingly finds it impossible for the show to go on. Tanya Moodie and Joseph Marcell star in the play directed by Laurence Boswell.

8.30p.m.—10.30p.m., Theatre Royal. Box office: 01225 448844.

Lazarus

Inspired by the sci-fi (science fiction) novel and movie, The Man Who Fell to Earth, this musical deals with a hero, Thomas Newton. Likely to be the autumn’s hottest ticket, the score includes new songs composed by Bowie.

7.00p.m.—9.00p.m., King’s Cross theatre. Box office: 0844 871 7604.

The Gaul

On the night of 8 February 1974, a fisherman FV Gaul disappeared off the coast of Norway. For people on board, waiting for news was great suffering. Theories began to come up, including the possibility that the boat had fallen victim to cold war. Even when he was discovered, many still felt there were questions that remained unanswered. Mark Babych directs Janet Plater’s play.

8.00p.m.—11.00 p.m., Royal Shakespeare theatre. Box office: 01482 323638.

The Suppliant Women

It is a new version of Aeschylus’s 2,500-year-old play about a group of women seeking shelter who make the long journey to escape forced marriage. It was written by David Greigand directed by Ramin Gray. An ancient piece asks a contemporary question: when we are introuble, who will open their doors and give us a harbor?

8.30p.m.—10.00p.m., Hampstead theatre. Box office: 0131 248 4848.

1.In which theatre can the audience enjoy Joseph Marcell’ performance?

A. Hampstead theatre.

B. Royal Shakespeare theatre.

C. King’s Cross theatre.

D. Theatre Royal.

2.Which one will probably sell best?

A. Lazarus.B. Trouble in Mind

C. The Gaul.D. The Suppliant Women.

3.Who directed the play about the story in Norway?

A. Bowie.B. Ramin Gray.

C. Mark Babych.D. Laurence Boswell.

4.Which number should you call if you want to watch a play between 8.00 p.m. and 10.00p.m.?

A. 0131 248 4848.B. 01482 323638.

C. 01225 448844.D. 0844 871 7604.