Reading comprehension(阅读理解)

Happy New Years

　　Today is March 17th. About two and a half months ago, I said “Happy New Year!” to many of my friends. Just more than a month ago, I said the same thing to some other friends. In about four days, I'll repeat the same wishes to yet another group of friends. I'll do the same thing in July and also in September.

　　“How can that be?” you might be thinking. “Everyone knows that New Year's Day is in January!”

　　You might ask: “When is the New Year's Day exactly?” Different calendars(日历) give different answers to that question.

　　1．January 1st: New Year's Day on the Western/international calendar.

　　2．Between January 10th and February 19th: New Year's Day on the Chinese calendar(China, Korea, and a few other places).

　　3．March 21st: New Year's Day on the traditional Persian(波斯的) calendar(Iran伊朗).

　　4．Mid-July(usually the 16th): New Year's Day on the Islamic(伊斯兰教的) calendar.

　　5．September: New Year's Day on most Eastern Orthodox Church(东正教的) calendars(Central and Eastern Europe．and, usually, on the Jewish(犹太教的) calendar.

　　And these are just the New Year's Days that I know about! Actually, there are probably even more!

Choose the best answer(根据短文内容，选择最恰当的答案，用A、B、C或D表示)

1．The first time the writer said, “Happy New Year!” was around January 1st. The second time was on or before ________.

[　　]

2．The author will say “Happy New Year” around March 21st to some ________ friends.

[　　]

3．The author uses quotation marks(“”) in the second paragraph to show that the words inside the quotation marks are ________.

[　　]

4．The New Year's Day on most Eastern Orthodox Church calendars and the New Year's Day on the Jewish calendar are ________.

[　　]

A．probably on different dates

B．not always in September

C．probably on the same date

D．always September 1st

5．The Chinese calendar is used ________.

[　　]

A．only in China

B．in several different places

C．only in China and Korea

D．in all Asian countries

6．The word “Years” in the title of this short article ________.

[　　]

A．suggests that January 1.st is at different times on different calendars

B．is grammatically incorrect and should actually be New Year's

C．suggests that one has to say “Happy New Year!” many, many times in his whole life

D．was used because New Year's Day is at different times on different calendars

Unique customs

St. Anthony’s Day

January 17 is St. Anthony’s Day in Mexico. It’s a day when people ask for protection for their animals. They bring their animals to church. But before the animals go into the church, the people usually dress them up in flowers.

Chusok

On August 15 of the lunar calendar, Koreans celebrate Chusok to give thanks for the harvest. Also on Chusok, a big meal with moon-shaped rice cake is eaten.

New Year’s Eve

One of the biggest celebrations in Argentina is New Year’s Eve. On the evening of December 31, families get together and have a big meal. At midnight, fireworks set everywhere and continue throughout the night. Friends and families meet at parties, which last until the next morning.

Setsubun

On the evening of February 3, people in Japanese families take one dried bean（豆）for each year of their age and throw the beans around their homes, shouting “Good luck in! Evil sprits out!” This is known as “Setsubun,” a time to celebrate the end of winter and the beginning of spring.

47. When is St. Anthony’s Day?

　　　 A. December 31.　　 B. August 15.　　　 C. February 3.　　 D. January 17.

48. Why do Koreans celebrate Chusok?

　　　 A. To celebrate the end of winter.

B. To give thanks for the harvest.

　　　 C. To wish their families good luck.

　　　 D. To ask for protection for their animals.

49. What do Japanese people do on Setsubun?

　　　 A. Bring their animals to church.

　　　 B. Meet friends and families at parties.

　　 C. Throw the beans around their homes.

D. Eat a big meal with moon-shaped cake.

One day, my wife and I went shopping. We took the car as we had a lot of things to buy because my brother and his family were going to spend the weekend with us. We stopped the car in front of the shop. An hour later we came back to the car with a lot of things. Then the trouble started. We could not open the car door. “Oh, dear,” said my wife. “What are we going to do?” “Let’s ask that policeman,” I said. The policeman was very kind and glad to help us. Soon he got the door open. Just at that moment an angry man came up and shouted. “What are you doing with my car?” We looked at the number of the car, and our faces turned very red.

选择符合短文的正确答案

1. The husband and the wife went shopping　　   .　　　　　　　　　　　　  

A. by bus　　　　 B. in their car    　　C. by bike　　  D. on foot

2. They spent　　   in the shop doing their shopping.　　　　　　　　 

A. half an hour　　 B. four hours　　    C. one hour　　 D. eight hours

3. The　　   opened the car door in the end.　　　　　　　　　　　　

A. husband 　　   B. wife　　　　    C. policeman　　 D. owner of the car

4. The owner of the car was very angry to see　　   .　　　　　　　　　　　　

A. some one had opened his car door　　    B. the policeman standing by the car

C. his car was not there　　　　  　　　　 D. that there was a trouble

5. They didn’t know it was the wrong car until they looked at the　　 of the car.

A. color　　　　 B. owner　　　　   C. door　　　　 D. number

 

Mr. Hutman owns a restaurant.  One day, one of his two cooks ran away with some money.  Mr. Hutman was sad and worried because the next day was Saturday, and the restaurant 　19.　 very busy then.  So that night he called his friends, but could not find anyone to help. On Saturday, many people came to the restaurant for lunch. 　20.　 cook got so busy that he wanted to leave, too. 　21.　, one of the waiters, Henry, told Mr. Hutman that he could help in the kitchen.  People who had lunch in the restaurant that day enjoyed the food Henry cooked. Mr. Hutman was very happy and made Henry a new cook of the restaurant. 【小题1】 A．would be B．is C．has been D．will be 【小题2】 A．One B．Each C．Another D．The only 【小题3】(A) Also   (B) In fact (C) Luckily        (D) For example

 

(In an English class) Teacher     :       Let’s play a game with 3-letter words.  First, a 3-letter word is spoken.  Then the next person has to say a different 3-letter word that starts with the last word in two seconds will have to 　22.　.  Any questions? Brian        :       Yes.  Can we try again if we say a wrong word? Teacher     :       No, you 　23.　.  That’s why the game is exciting and fun.  Now let’s try it! Brian        :       OK!  Let me try first.  MAP. Amy :       Put. Jane  :       TEA. Ken  :      　24.　. Carl  :       EAR. Sam  :       RAIN. Carl  :       Ha!  I got you. Sam  :       Oh, no!  I forgot it has to be a 3-letter word. Teacher     :       Sam, it’s your show time.  Here’s the book.  Pick out any story you’d like.  Now everybody, let’s listen to Sam. 【小题4】 A．sing a song B．read a story C．draw a picture D．make a funny face 【小题5】 A．have just one chance B．have to give a different word C．may look it up in the dictionary D．must ask your classmates for help 【小题6】 A．TEN B．RED C．EAT D．AGE