阅读理解

　　People living in different countries made different kinds of words. Today there are about fifteen hundred languages in the world. Each contains (包括) many thousands of words. But we do not need all these. To read short stories, you need to know only about two thousand words. Before you leave school, you will learn only one thousand more.

　　The words you know are called your vocabulary (词汇). You should try to make your vocabulary bigger. Read as many books as you can. There are plenty of books written in easy English for you to read. You will enjoy them. When you meet a new word, find it in your dictionary. Your dictionary is your most useful book. Choose the correct answer.

1．The number of different languages spoken is about ________.

[　　]

2．Before you leave your school, you'll learn ________.

[　　]

A．only about two thousand words

B．five hundred thousand words

C．three or four thousand words

D．only one thousand more words

3．Each language usually contains ________.

[　　]

4．To make your vocabulary bigger, you must ________.

[　　]

A．read as many books as possible

B．get as many dictionaries as you can

C．buy plenty of books

D．have a very large English dictionary

5．You will enjoy ________.

[　　]

A．your vocabulary

B．the books written in easy English

C．your dictionary

D．finding new words in a dictionary

阅读理解

　　A student is learning to speak British English. He wonders: Can I communicate with Americans? Can they understand me? Learners of English often ask: What are the differences between British and American English? How important are these differences?

　　Certainly, there are some differences between British and American English. There are a few differences in grammar. For example, speakers of British English say“in hospital”and“Have you a pen?”. Americans say“in the hospital”and‘Do you have a pen?’. Pronunciation is sometimes different. Americans usually sound theirs in words like “bird”and“hurt”. Speakers of British English do not sound theirs in these words. There are differences between British and American English in spelling and vocabulary. For example, “colour” and “honour” are British,“color” and “honor” are American.

　　These differences in grammar, pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary are not important, however. For the most part, British and American English are the same language.

1．According to this passage, a student who is learning to speak American English might be afraid that ________.

[　　]

A．British people cannot understand him

B．American people cannot understand him

C．the grammar is too hard for him

D．the spelling is too hard for him

2．American English and British English are different in ________.

[　　]

3．What is NOT mentioned (提及) in the passage?

[　　]

A．Whether there are differences between British English and American English.

B．Whether British English and American English are one language or two.

C．How the differences between British English and American English came about.

D．How important the differences are.

4．Most ________ say “Do you have a watch?”

[　　]

5．According to this passage, British people and Americans have ________ difficulty in understanding each other.

[　　]

阅读理解

A long time ago men hunted for their food. Often they killed wild animals, birds, or fish. How did they kill the beasts? They used rocks and wooden sticks. Sometimes they fought with their own hands and bodies. Later on, people began fighting each other. Everyone wanted more food and more land. They made arrows from sticks. They also made spears from stones. Then somebody invented the gun. Soldiers were taught how to shoot and kill enemy soldiers. Great wars were fought and many people died. A famous general cried as he looked at one battlefield. His soldiers were fighting well, but he felt very sad. He turned to his men and said,“My soldiers, I am going to ask you a question. The one who gives the best answer will receive a medal. The question is this: What is the strongest power in the world?”Four soldiers raised their hands. They wanted to answer the general's question. The general asked the first soldier to speak.“Sir,”said the young man,“I think my gun is the strongest power. It can kill a person or an animal from a great distance.”“hank you,”said the general,“Next.”He pointed to the man who was his best soldier.“A soldier is stronger,”said the second man.“He must shoot the gun and aim well. A gun's power comes from the way it is used.”The third soldier thought he had the best answer of all.“No, sir,” he said,“our general is the strongest power. He gives the orders for his soldiers to shoot with their guns.”The general said nothing. He waited for the last man to answer his question. The fourth soldier answered the general's question this way:“I believe, sir, that the greatest power on the earth is love. It makes the general decide if he wants his soldiers to use their guns. Also, if men had more love for each other, they would not use their guns.”The general gave the medal to the last man. Now if you were this general, which of your soldiers would receive the medal?

1．A long time ago, man led ________ life.

[　　]

2．What caused more people to die in the battle fields?

[　　]

A．The invention of the gun.

B．The invention of the arrow.

C．The invention of the spear.

D．The invention of the wooden stick.

3．From the third soldier's answer, we can see that ________.

[　　]

A．the soldier wanted to fight against the general

B．the general was the greatest power

C．the soldier wanted to please the general

D．the general was good at shooting

4．What does the fourth soldier's love mean?

[　　]

A．Love can make guns fire.

B．Love among people can stop war from breaking out.

C．Love can make people fight for peace.

D．B and C

5．This passage seems to show us that the general ________.

[　　]

A．liked to make jokes on his soldiers

B．liked testing his soldiers

C．liked crying in the battle fields

D．liked the world to be peaceful

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　Dr Wiseman started“the laugh lab” project in September 2001．It is the largest study of humour．Participants（参加者）are invited to log on to the laugh lab website，give a few personal details，tell their favourite jokes and judge the jokes told by other people．

　　The project will last for a year，and the organizers hope to finally discover the world's funniest joke．But there is also a serious purpose．The researchers want to know what people from different nations and cultures find funny．And they want to find out the differences between the male and female sense of humour．The idea is that if we want to understand each other，we have to find out what makes us laugh．

　　This is a subject that has long interested psychologists（心理学家）and philosophers（哲学家）．Most of the time，people are not completely honest． We do things that society expects of us and say things that help us get what we want．But laughing cannot be controlled．When we laugh，we tell the truth about ourselves．

　　By December 2001，over 10 000 jokes had been submitted（提交）．This gave the scientists enough evidence（证据）to make early conclusions（结论）．It seems that men and do have different of humour，for example．

　　“Our findings show the major differences in the ways in which males and females use humour，”said Dr Wiseman，“Males use humour to appear superior （优越）to others．While women are more skilled in languages and prefer word play．”

　　Researchers also found that there really is such a thing as a national sense of humour．The British enjoy what is usually called“toilet humour”．But the French like their jokes short and sharp：“You're a high priced lawyer．Will you answer two questions for ＄500？”“Yes．What's the second question？”

　　The Germans are famous for not having a sense of humour．But the survey found that German participants were more likely to find submitted jokes funny than any other nationality．Perhaps that proves the point．Is this joke funny？I don't know，but let's say yes，just to be safe．

　　Dr Wiseman and his workmates also submitted jokes created by computer．But none of those who took part in the survey found any of them amusing．Perhaps this is relief．Computers already seem like they can do everything．At least they should leave the funny stuff（材料）to us．

1．Scientist started“the laugh lab”project ________．

[　　]

A．to find the funniest joke in European countries

B．to know what funny people are from different nations and cultures

C．to find out the differences between the male and female sense of humour

D．to get more personal details about participants

2．The writer gave the examples of the British，the French and the Ger－mans ________．

[　　]

A．to prove that the Germans have no sense of humour

B．to prove the British people have a sense of“toilet humour”

C．to show people from different nations have different senses of humour

D．to show that the French people have a better sense of humour

3．Which statement is true according to the passage？

[　　]

A．Females like to use to show that they are superior

B．The Germans cannot find the submitted jokes amusing

C．Males are better at word play compared with women

D．The jokes by computer are less funny than those by humans

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　VENICE，a small，waterside city in northeast Italy，boils with happiness and excitement once every year．Between February 21 and March 4，carnival （狂欢节）hits the streets．

　　For most people，carnival means large parties and feasting（盛宴）．But in Venice，it also means traditional masks and clothes．

　　These costumes were first meant to hide personal identities．Then，different social classes could mix in a sea of happiness．

　　Along the waterways，people greeted each other with：“Good morning Mrs Mask！”

　　Today，people in Venice still dress up in the strangest of ways－as armed soldiers，butchers and fishermen，for example．

　　Bars and cafes are filled with partygoers who come to show off their beautiful clothes．Their designs and creations are made by special studios．Ready-made costumes are not acceptable．

　　“In the months before the carnival we work overtime to the demand，”said a mask-maker．“Many kilometres of silk and lace（花边）are made into costurnes．For shopkeepers，carnival is the best time of year．”

　　The Venice carnival dates back to the Middle Ages．At that time，the city was one of the wealthiest in Europe．

　　The tradition of celebrating with masks and costumes is thought to have been started by the“Stocking Companies”．these were groups of young men who organized parties and festivals and wore colourful stockings to distinguish （区分）themselves．

　　By the 18th century，the carnival had reached its top．It all came to an end when Napoleon controlled Venice in l797．But in 1979，local people brought the old traditions back to life．

　　Now the Venice carnival attracts huge crowds from all over the world．This year，about 700 000 people are taking part．Hotels were fully booked months in advance，and bars and restaurants overflow every day．

　　The city certainly benefits－a whole industry has been built up around the carnival's masks and clothes．

　　“The Venice carnival is a magical time！It's such a great experience，”said one French tourist．

1．what might you infer from the article？

[　　]

A．People in Venice like to party．

B．Venice was a happy city

C．There used to be strong feelings of social class in Venice．

D．Venice was a city of silk and lace．2．Who started the tradition of wearing masks and costumes？

[　　]

A．Napoleon

B．Young men

C．The hotel industry

D．The silk and lace makers

3．Why do the shopkeepers like the carnival time？

[　　]

A．Because they can make many different kinds of masks

B．Because the city is a “sea of happiness”．

C．Because many people from all over the world come to Venice．

D．Because they can make a lot of money during this time

4．What would be the best title for this selection？

[　　]

A．How the carnival is celebrated in Venice．

B．The story of how the carnival began in Venice

C．The history of the carnival in Venice

D．What to see and do during the carnival time in Venice

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　“As I stood in front of the grave（墓）of President Richard Nixon，I was thinking about the time 25 years ago when this President helped bring the United States and China closer together．Young people of our two countries should help this relationship grow．”

　　This remark was made by a Shanghai student when speaking to his fellow students at the Nixon library in California，USA．He was one of 80 middle school students，from China attending a month-long“Youth Summit”．The summit was to mark the 25th anniversary（周年）of President Nixon's journey to China，which was the turning point in Chin-US relations．

　　The Youth Summit was aimed at increasing the friendship between young students of the two countries through visits and discussions．Seventy-five American students were selected to visit China．They also visited the Nixon Library on July 21 before leaving for Beijing the next day．The head of the Library said he was pleased to the American and Chinese students talking and laughing together．

　　One Chinese said，“I didn't find it particularly difficult to talk with Americans． We have our differences，but we have a lot in common．Dialogue is good for us．”

1．The words“Youth Summit” refer to ________．

[　　]

A．visits to the Nixon Library

B．the Chinese students visit to the USA

C．a meeting discussing relations between China and US

D．activities to strengthen the ties between the Chinese and American students

2．The student from Shanghai thought about the time 25 year ago because it was when Nixon ________．

[　　]

A．died

B．visited China

C．because US President

D．started building the library in his name

3．The text is mainly about ________．

[　　]

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　The Fourth“21st Century Cup”National English Speaking Competition is to be held in Shanghai．

　　Organizers：China Daily and Shanghai Broadcasting Network

　　Coordinator：China University English Speaking Association（CUESA）

　　Ch-sponsors（联办单位）：English Speaking Union（ESU），Lotus Software

　　（China）Co．Ltd，Times Publishing Group of Singapore，Hilton Shanghai，

　　Pearson Education，Foreign Language Teaching ＆ Research Press．

　　Date：March 26（Friday），1999．

　　Place：Hilton Shanghai．

　　Competition Format（形式）：Each student will present a prepared speech on the given topic，followed by a three-minute off-hand speech and a three-minute question and answer period with the judges．

　　Prepared speech period：six minutes Q ＆ A period：three minutes Speech topic：People and Nature: In search of harmony（和谐）in a new age ＋your personal opinion．（Topics for the off-hand speech will be given on the day of competition．）

　　Prizes：Besides books and certificates（证书），the top two winners will be offered scholarships（奖学金）to travel to the annual international English-speaking competition which will be held by the English Speaking Union in London in May，1999．The third and fourth place winners sill be offered a study trip to Singapore，sponsored by the Times Publishing Group．The fifth through 10th place winners will be offered cash prizes．All the competitors will receive certificates from the English Speaking Union and book prizes provided by Pearson Education and Foreign Language Teaching ＆ Research Press．The teachers of the top winners will also receive a one-year membership to the International Association of

Teachers of English as a Foreign Language（IATEFL）．

1．The main purpose of this passage is ________．

[　　]

A．to invite you to take part in the competition

B．to tell you some information of the competition

C．to help to improve your spoken English

D．to show you how to win the competition

2．Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the Shanghai English Speaking Competition？

[　　]

A．Where and when it will take place

B．Its program

C．What each winner will be offered

D．The number of its competitors

3．Suppose you get the sixth place，you'll ________．

[　　]

A．travel to London for free

B．become a one-year member of IATEEL

C．get some money，some books and a certificate

D．get a chance to study in Singapore

4．An“off-hand speech” is ________．

[　　]

A．a speech not longer than three minutes

B．a speech without preparation

C．a speech with a piece of paper in hand

D．a speech which is well prepared

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　In 1620，about half the USA was covered by forests，and in 1850，only about a third．Today a lot of good land has gone with them，leaving only wilder－ness or areas with poor soil．What's worse，too many trees ate still being cut down in the USA．

　　Not copying the USA's example，China has built a new“Great Wall” across the northern part of the country．This time，it is a“Great Green Wall” of trees，millions of trees．It will stop the wind from blowing the earth and the sand away．It will stop the sand from moving southward．It has already saved a lot of land．But more“Great Green Walls” need to be built－not only in China but also all over the world．

　　Wang Feng is a worker at Yulin in Shaanxi．With many other people he works on the Great Green Wall．We visited him at his work place among the young trees and asked him bout his work．“Thousands of trees must be planted every year，” he said．“The more，the better．This year alone，we've already planted ten thousand trees．Just look at all these small trees over there on that hill．They were planted five years ago．But now there is a young forest！In a few years'time，we hope to afforest（绿化）those mountains，too！”He pointed to the high bare mountains far away．

　　“Was it difficult to work on the Great Green Wall？”We asked him thought-fully．

　　“Yes．It's hard work，but it's very important．The only problem is that you can't feed on trees！So we grow our own food，too．We can do it easily now，thanks to the Great Green Wall．”

1．Forests are becoming more and more scarce（稀少）in the USA because

[　　]

A．land is getting poorer and poorer

B．modern agriculture and industry develop too quickly

C．no ways have been found to stop pollution

D．people there have destroyed them during these 350 years

2．China has built a“Great Green Wall” ________．

[　　]

A．in order to keep wind and sand off land and environmental protection in general

[　　]

B．so as to save the desert

C．so that the forests cannot go any longer

D．only to stop the wind from blowing the soil away

3．This text mainly tells us ________．

[　　]

A．about the information of forests in the USA and the PRC

B．that more and more“Great Green Walls”are needed in the world

C．how the Great Green Wall came about

D．what has happened to the forests of the USA and China

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　Tristan was a character in old English and European stories．He was a brave soldier under King Arthur，and the story of his love for Isolde，daughter of the King of Ireland，is one of the great love stories of all times．The story is the topic of a grand opera（歌剧），Tristan and Isolde，by Richard Wagner．It is often played throughout the world．

　　Tristan had told his uncle，King Mark of Cornwall，of the beauty of Isolde，and was sent to bring her by ship to Cornwall to marry the king．Isolde hated Tristan，because her brother had died by his hand in battle，and on the journey she asked her servant Brangane to poison him．Instead Brangane prepared a special drink，and after Tristan and Isolde drank it，they fell in love．They arrived at Cornwall but king Mark was away hunting．They met secretly every day．When the King returned，a man named Melot told him what was going on between Tristan and Isoled．Tristan fought Melot and was badly wounded．He was taken to his own home in Brittany．His friend Kurwena was sent for Isolede，but when she arrived，Tristan was dying from his wounds．He said goodbye to Isolde and died．She died of a broken heart．

　　The beautiful music of opera is often played and sung in concerts．The most famous song is the“Love's Death，”which Tristan and Isolde sing before they die．

1．Tristan sailed to Ireland ________．

[　　]

A．to find himself a wife

B．to carry out his uncle's order

C．after falling in love with Isolde

D．after hearing of the beauty of Isolde

2．At first，Isolde wanted to poison Tristan because he ________．

[　　]

A．had killed her brother

B．was from King Mark's family

C．had asked her to marry him

D．wanted her to marry king Mark

3．Tristan fought Melot because ________．

[　　]

A．the king ordered him to do so

B．Melot told the king about his secret

C．Melot was the enemy of Isolde's family

D．he thought Melot in love with Isolde

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　Looking back on my childhood，I get to believe that naturalists are born and not made．Although we were all brought up in the same way，my brothers and sisters soon threw away their pressed flowers and insects．Unlike them，I had no ear for music and languages．I was not an early reader and I could not do mental arithmetic．

　　Before War I we spent summer holidays in Hungary．I have only the unclear memory of the house we lived in，of my room and my toys．Nor do l recall clearly the large family of grandparents，aunts，uncles and cousins who gathered next door．But I do have a clear memory of the dogs，the farm animals，the local birds and，above all，the insects．

　　I am a naturalist，not a scientist．I have a strong love of the natural World，and my enthusiasm（热情）has led me into varied investigations（调查）．I love discussing my favorite topics and enjoy burning the midnight oil while reading about other people's observations and discoveries．Then something happens that brings these observations together in my conscious mind．Suddenly you wonder you see the answer to the riddle（谜），because it all seems to fit together．This has resulted in my publishing 300 papers and books， which some might honour with the title of scientific research．

　　But curiosity（好奇心），a keen eye，a good memory and enjoyment of the animal and plant world do not make a scientist；one of the outstanding（杰出的）qualities required is self-discipline，a quality I lack（缺乏）．A scientist requires not only self-discipline but hard training， determination and a goal．A scientist，up to a point，can be made．A naturalist is born．If you can combine（联合）the two，you get the best of both worlds．

1．The first paragraph tells us that the author ________．

[　　]

A．was born to a naturalist's family

B．lost his hearing when he was a child

C．didn't like his brothers and sisters

D．was interested in flowers and insects

2．The author can't remember his relatives clearly because ________．

[　　]

A．he didn't live very long with them

B．he was fully busy observing nature

C．he was too young when he lived with them

D．the family was extremely large

3．It can be inferred from the passage that the author was ________．

[　　]

A．no more than a born naturalist

B．a naturalist but not a scientist

C．a scientist as well as a naturalist

D．first of all a scientist

4．The author says that he is a naturalist rather than a scientist probably because he thinks he ________．

[　　]

A．lacks some of the qualities required of a scientist

B．has a great deal of trouble doing mental arithmetic

C．just reads about other people's observations and discoveries

D．comes up with solutions in a most natural way