Christmas is long gone. and Valentine’s Day is a distant memory. That means it's a slow time for jewelers, and a good time for you to make a purchase. Whether you’re out shopping for gold, or silver, here fife a few things you need to know:

What determines price?

The purity of the metal is one of the elements that determines the price. Gold purity is indicated with a stamp of 10K, 14K, 18K, or 24K. And different countries have their own standards. For example, for a piece to be considered gold in the US, it must be at least 10K. In Britain and Canada: 9K. In Italy and France: l 8K. Anything over l 8K is really too soft for everyday wear. That’s why jewelry stores in the US sell mostly 14K.

How much can you expect to pay?

That depends on the weight of the metal and the gemstone(宝石). So keep that in mind, especially when buying online. To keep yourself from getting ripped off, ask yourself the following:

●How long has the company been around?

●What is its return policy?

● Is the jewelry featured on the website visible from all directions?

● Is the company transparent with the gram weights and the size of the gemstones?

Yellow gold? White? Rose?

Yes, it's confusing, and while this is largely a personal decision, there fife a few things to keep in mind. For starters. white or rose gold costs about l 0% more than yellow gold. If you want the “look for less”, consider gold. plated jewelry. “Gold plated” and “gold overlay” mean the same thing and guarantee a thicker layer of finish than “vermeil” which is a flash finish that is thinner and less consistent, but more affordable. Buy vermeil finished pieces you want for a season or two just to follow the fashion. For pieces you want to wear for a lifetime, solid gold is best.

What about sterling silver(标准纯银)?

Sterling silver has been。an alternative for white gold during the difficult economy, and while it used to be more popular with just the younger these days it has much more mass appeal. So much so that retailers are now offering fine gemstones with silver--something you used to see only with gold.

Keep in mind that in the US. the sterling silver standard is 92.5% real silver. Don’t buy it if there isn’t a “925” stamp on it. And keep in mind that the lower price you’re paying for silver means more maintenance. To keep silver jewelry from becoming less shiny, consider keeping a piece of chalk in your jewelry box.

1.According to the passage, the underlined phrase “getting ripped off” in Paragraph 3 probably means “_______”.

A．being charged      B．being cheated      C．being affected      D．being attracted

2.Which of the following is relatively good for only wearing a short time?

A．A 14K necklace.                        B．A gold-plated ring.

C．A vermeil ear ring.                       D．A gemstone necklace.

3.We call infer from the last paragraph that silver jewelry should be kept ________

A．in a dry place      B．in a cold place      C．in a wet place      D．in a hot place

4.The author writes the passage mainly to ________.

A．encourage young people to buy fashionable jewelry

B．tell people the best time to purchase gold and silver

C．introduce the real value and popularity of gold and silver

D．inform people of the factors to consider in buying jewelry

 

Mr. Cronin has a clock shop in the center of the town. He tries his best to 36  it well. He often receives the customers(顾客)  37  and people like to buy  38  in his shop.

It was a cold day and 39  people would go out to do some _40_. Mr. Black, one of Mr. Cronin’s_41_, came to the shop. He knew the man was_42_ his miserliness (吝啬). But he tried to persuade (说服) him to buy a watch in his shop.

“You’d better buy a watch for 43 _, Mr. Black,” said Mr. Cronin. “It’ll be _44_ to you whenever.”

“No, no,” said Mr. Black. “I’ll _45_need any watches.”

“But how do you know when it’s time to _46_?”

“The people who live around me always _47_ their televisions at seven for the news. So I can hear the announcer(播音员) say,  “ The time is seven o’clock.. Here is the news.”

“But you don’t know when to go to work.”

“That’s _48_,” Mr. Black said with a smile. “It takes me ten minutes to _49_ and shave（刮脸）. I have breakfast at twenty past seven. I get to the bus stop at twenty to eight and fifteen minutes later arrive at my office and _50_ working.”

“When do you _51_ your office, then?”

“There’s a _52_ near it, its siren(汽笛) can tell me the right time.”

“How do you know the time if you _53_ in the middle of the night?”

“I always put a stick by my bed”

“But a stick can’t tell you the time”

“You’re _54_. But I can use it to knock on your wall. You always _55_, “What are you knocking on my wall for at two in the night?”

1.A. watch        B. manage        C. build       D repair

2.                A．coldly          B．luckily          C．simply    D．warmly

 

3.A. something      B. everything      C nothing       D. anything

4.                A．many          B．most           C．plenty of  D．few

 

5.                A．work           B．reading         C．shopping  D．fishing

 

6.                A．neighbors       B．friends         C．classmates D．workmates

 

7.                A．good at         B．famous for       C．proud of  D．fond of

 

8.                A．you            B．me            C．yourself D．myself

 

9.                A．helpful         B．helpless         C．necessary D．important

 

10.               A．always         B．sometimes      C．never     D．often

 

11.               A．get up         B．go to bed       C．go to work D．have breakfast

 

12.               A．show          B．turn on         C．turn off    D．sell out

 

13.               A．easy           B．possible        C．different  D．probable

 

14.               A．cook           B．wash           C．tidy  D．rest

 

15.               A．finish          B．enjoy          C．keep D．start

 

16.               A．clean          B．leave          C．go to D．find

 

17.               A．railway station   B．post office      C．university  D．factory

 

18.               A．sit up          B．wake up        C．stand up   D．get up

 

19.               A．clever         B．right           C．wrong D．foolish

 

20.               A．shout          B．wonder        C．laugh D．request

 

 

完型填空（共20小题，每题1分，满分20分）

 

Good Work Ethics （规范）

When I was younger, about 14, I was already ready to work．My father was a dairy man and he had been working his entire life．For him, getting up at 5 a．m．and working a couple of hours before I went to school, and then   36   more after school until there was not enough37   to see, were normal．

My father considered putting good work ethics in me to be very   38  ．He began to show me these, not through   39  , but through his actions．He would not  40   a job until it was done．He   41   put his all into everything he did．   42   , he showed me this not just in working, but in everything．Like when I was in soccer, I wanted to  43  a game once．and he explained to me-that I had made a  44   and that even if I just skipped one game, then I did not 45   to play the rest of the games．

So the day I started my first job at the age of 14, I was  46   to show my father that I could do it well, and that I was not going to  47 . My entire  48   was to make my father proud of me. I knew that     ___49   I did, he would not say it in words, but he would show it．My first job was doing   50    for a company．As most of you know, construction is not an easy job, especially being so   51 _. When someone as young as I was started working, they would either __52   or get stronger．I got stronger．I worked the   53   I had been taught and I gave that day everything I had．In the end, my boss was impressed．He even called to tell my parents what a good worker I was, and my parents' eyes   __54   ．From that day on I have worked every job to my full   55   , because that day defined （explain the truth of）my life．It defined how I was going to work, and I will always stick to it．

1.A．going        B．learning       C．working       D．playing

2.A．light B．time    C．chance        D．strength

3.A．ridiculous         B．easy    C．hopeless     D．important

4.A．words       B．truth   C．facts    D．practice

5.A．finish        B．find     C．do       D．quit

6.A．might        B．could  C．would D．should

7.A．Finally      B．However     C．Therefore   D．Thus

8.A．enjoy        B．skip     C．defeat          D．dip

9.A．commitment    B．improvement     C．devotion     D．conclusion

10.A．decide   B．stop    C．resist  D．deserve

11.A．interested      B．shocked      C．surprised    D．prepared

12.A．stick       B．fail       C．leave          D．play

13.A．problem         B．world  C．trick    D．goal

14.A．in case   B．now that      C．even if         D．as though

15.A．construction          B．negotiation         C．communication D．reception

16.A．weak      B．young C．old      D．poor

17.A．break     B．struggle       C．pause D．work

18.A．manner B．moment      C．method       D．way

19.A．stared    B．lifted   C．shone D．closed

20.A．ambition         B．skill     C．spirit   D．potential

 

The professor gave orders that the test _______ before 10:30.

　 A. will finish 　 B. will be finished   C. be finished 　 D. shall finish