A desert is a very dry land where there is hardly any rain. In the day, it can be so hot that you could fry an egg on the ground. But during the night it is sometimes so could that water would turn into ice.






Many desserts are covered in sand. But some have mountains, rocks, or lakes that have dried up in the heat. The Great American Dessert has cliffs(悬崖) that have been made into amazing and beautiful shapes by the wind. The Sahara Desert in Africa is mostly sand. The Australian Desert has red sand.
Sometimes it does not rain for a whole year in the desert. But there is water deep under the ground and some plants have roots that go very deep to find it. Other plants have roots that spread out(延伸) a long way so they can suck up the rain as soon as it falls.
One desert plant is the cactus, which has long, spreading roots. The cactus stores water inside its hard skin. This skin protects it from heat and cold.
Camels are a bit like cactus plants! They store water too—inside their bodies. They have special fur which protects them from the sun during the day and keeps them warm at night.
Some other animals live in deserts, too. They have to be very good at seeing and hearing because most of them only come out at night. This is why many desert animals have extra big eyes or ears.
A desert fox has bigger ears than a normal for. A gerbil has huge eye, so that it can see at night. It stays cool in the day by staying underground, like most desert animals.
Some people live in the desert but they always make their homes near an oasis. An oasis is where water comes from an underground river. Near an oasis, people can grow lots of plants and keep animals.
Life is hard in the desert, for people, animals and plants. But desert people like to live there.
【小题1】A desert is very dry because__________.

A．it is sandy	B．there is so little rain
C．the wind is strong	D．there is no water deep under the ground

【小题2】What does the underlined phrase"suck up"in paragraph 3 mean_________?

A．围堵

B．讨好

C．释放

D．吸收

【小题3】Some desert animals have extra big eyes or ears because__________.

A．the sunlight is too strong in the day	B．they need to see and hear well at night
C．it is very cold at nigh	D．they store water in them.

【小题4】Most desert animals stay cool in the day by_________.

A．storing water in side their bodies	B．drinking water as much as they can
C．staying underground	D．growing lots of plants

【小题5】Which of the following is true?

A．Desert people like to live in the desert though life is hard.

B．People in the desert usually fry eggs on the ground.

C．Camels have special fur to store water.

D．All the deserts are covered in sand.

A man died and was on his way to another world, either heaven (天堂) or hell (地狱). He saw an extremely grand palace half way and the owner of the palace asked him to stay and live in the palace.
The man said, “I have been working hard during my life and now I just want to eat and sleep without any work.”
The owner of the palace said, “If so, there is nowhere else better than here for you. There is plenty of seafood and delicacies (美味佳肴) in my palace, and you can eat whatever you like without anyone stopping you. And nothing needs to be done by you.” Then, the man settled down (安定) in the palace.
At the beginning, the man felt very happy at the cycle of eating and sleeping. But gradually, he felt a bit lonely and void. So he went to the palace owner and said, “It is very bored to live by just eating and sleeping every day. Now I show no interest in this kind of life any more. Could you help me find a job?”
The owner replied, “Sorry, there is no job here at all.”
After another several months, the man could not go on with the life and went to the palace owner again, “I really can not stand this kind of life any more. If you do not offer me a job, I would prefer to go to hell instead of living here.”
The owner of the palace smiled contemptuously (蔑视地), “Do you think it is heaven here? It is actually hell!”
根据短文内容，选择最佳选项。（10分）
【小题1】The man saw a really grand palace ______.

A．on his way home

B．on his way to hell

C．on his way to heaven

D．on his way to another world after his death

【小题2】The man could stay in the palace ______.

A．where he had to work hard	B．where he couldn’t eat much food
C．where he did nothing but eat or sleep	D．where he had no seafood or delicacies to eat

【小题3】The underlined word “void” means “     ” in Chinese.

A．活泼的

B．空虚的

C．困倦的

D．激动的

【小题4】Why did the man want to find a job in the palace?

A．Because he was too poor to live.

B．Because there were many jobs for him.

C．Because he wanted to make more money.

D．Because he felt lonely and bored with the life.

【小题5】Where did the man think he was?

A．In heaven.

B．In hell.

C．At his home.

D．On the Earth.

A desert is a very dry land where there is hardly any rain. In the day, it can be so hot that you could fry an egg on the ground. But during the night it is sometimes so could that water would turn into ice.






Many desserts are covered in sand. But some have mountains, rocks, or lakes that have dried up in the heat. The Great American Dessert has cliffs(悬崖) that have been made into amazing and beautiful shapes by the wind. The Sahara Desert in Africa is mostly sand. The Australian Desert has red sand.
Sometimes it does not rain for a whole year in the desert. But there is water deep under the ground and some plants have roots that go very deep to find it. Other plants have roots that spread out(延伸) a long way so they can suck up the rain as soon as it falls.
One desert plant is the cactus, which has long, spreading roots. The cactus stores water inside its hard skin. This skin protects it from heat and cold.
Camels are a bit like cactus plants! They store water too—inside their bodies. They have special fur which protects them from the sun during the day and keeps them warm at night.
Some other animals live in deserts, too. They have to be very good at seeing and hearing because most of them only come out at night. This is why many desert animals have extra big eyes or ears.
A desert fox has bigger ears than a normal for. A gerbil has huge eye, so that it can see at night. It stays cool in the day by staying underground, like most desert animals.
Some people live in the desert but they always make their homes near an oasis. An oasis is where water comes from an underground river. Near an oasis, people can grow lots of plants and keep animals.
Life is hard in the desert, for people, animals and plants. But desert people like to live there.
【小题1】A desert is very dry because__________.

A．it is sandy	B．there is so little rain
C．the wind is strong	D．there is no water deep under the ground

【小题2】What does the underlined phrase"suck up"in paragraph 3 mean_________?

A．围堵

B．讨好

C．释放

D．吸收

【小题3】Some desert animals have extra big eyes or ears because__________.

A．the sunlight is too strong in the day	B．they need to see and hear well at night
C．it is very cold at nigh	D．they store water in them.

【小题4】Most desert animals stay cool in the day by_________.

A．storing water in side their bodies	B．drinking water as much as they can
C．staying underground	D．growing lots of plants

【小题5】Which of the following is true?

A．Desert people like to live in the desert though life is hard.

B．People in the desert usually fry eggs on the ground.

C．Camels have special fur to store water.

D．All the deserts are covered in sand.

A man died and was on his way to another world, either heaven (天堂) or hell (地狱). He saw an extremely grand palace half way and the owner of the palace asked him to stay and live in the palace.

The man said, “I have been working hard during my life and now I just want to eat and sleep without any work.”

The owner of the palace said, “If so, there is nowhere else better than here for you. There is plenty of seafood and delicacies (美味佳肴) in my palace, and you can eat whatever you like without anyone stopping you. And nothing needs to be done by you.” Then, the man settled down (安定) in the palace.

At the beginning, the man felt very happy at the cycle of eating and sleeping. But gradually, he felt a bit lonely and void. So he went to the palace owner and said, “It is very bored to live by just eating and sleeping every day. Now I show no interest in this kind of life any more. Could you help me find a job?”

The owner replied, “Sorry, there is no job here at all.”

After another several months, the man could not go on with the life and went to the palace owner again, “I really can not stand this kind of life any more. If you do not offer me a job, I would prefer to go to hell instead of living here.”

The owner of the palace smiled contemptuously (蔑视地), “Do you think it is heaven here? It is actually hell!”

根据短文内容，选择最佳选项。（10分）

1.The man saw a really grand palace ______.

A．on his way home

B．on his way to hell

C．on his way to heaven

D．on his way to another world after his death

2.The man could stay in the palace ______.

A．where he had to work hard                B．where he couldn’t eat much food

C．where he did nothing but eat or sleep        D．where he had no seafood or delicacies to eat

3.The underlined word “void” means “     ” in Chinese.

A．活泼的           B．空虚的           C．困倦的           D．激动的

4.Why did the man want to find a job in the palace?

A．Because he was too poor to live.

B．Because there were many jobs for him.

C．Because he wanted to make more money.

D．Because he felt lonely and bored with the life.

5.Where did the man think he was?

A．In heaven.         B．In hell.            C．At his home.       D．On the Earth.

 

A  Deaf  Person's  Joke
Something was wrong with Jack's ears after he was much better from a serious illness. Several months later he went to a doctor. The doctor told him that he was deaf of both ears. Jack was sad. He was afraid to lose his work. So he did not like people to know this.
One evening he asked some friends to dinner. While they were sitting at the table, one of his friends told an interesting joke. Everyone laughed and Jack laughed louder than anyone else. He said, “That was a very interesting joke, but I know a more interesting one. Would you like to hear it?” All his friends said OK to him, so Jack began to tell his joke. All his friends were listening to him with smiles. When the joke ended, everyone laughed louder than before and Jack laughed happily, too. He was very glad because he thought that his must be more interesting than his friend's. But he didn't know that he had made a fool of himself（出丑；闹笑话） because his joke was the same as the first one.
【小题1】When was Jack deaf of both ears?

A．After he came back from work.	B．After a serious illness.
C．After seeing a doctor.	D．After being a doctor.

【小题2】 Why did Jack not like people to know he was deaf?

A．He was afraid to lose his work.

B．He was afraid of his friends.

C．He didn't want to lose his face.

D．He was afraid that his wife would leave him.

【小题3】 What did Jack do after hearing his friend's joke?

A．He laughed as loudly as others.	B．He didn't laugh.
C．He laughed louder than anyone else.	D．He only smiled.

【小题4】Jack laughed because _____.

A．all the others were laughing

B．he could tell the same joke himself, too

C．he wanted to show that there was nothing wrong with his ears

D．his friend's joke was interesting

【小题5】Jack's friends laughed a lot louder than before because _____.

A．the joke he told was more interesting

B．it was as interesting as the first

C．all his friends liked his joke better

D．it was the same joke as his friend's