Have you ever been to an Irish wedding? I have just returned from one．It is a quarter to five in the morning：the sun has already climbed about the horizon；the birds are busy celebrating the new day and have eagerly been in search of food．But some of the guests have not yet left．They are still prolonging the night：dancing，singing，gossiping，putting off the unfortunate necessity of undertaking a day’s work in the fields after a sleepless night．

Throughout most of her life，Bridget Mary，the bride，has been living in the small whitewashed thatched（茅草屋顶）cottage I have just left．Twelve children have been brought up there but only two are still living at home．The eldest son，heir（继承人）to the small farm, is helping his father with the farm work（they employ no farm laborers）：the youngest daughter is still at school．Two years ago，Bridget Mary went to England to take up domestic work in a hospital and it was while she was living there that she met her future husband，Terry．He himself is an Irishman who used to live in Dublin and now has a well-paid job in a light engineering works in England．They got engaged and started saving．Now they are thinking of buying a small house near Terry’s factor．

The wedding ceremony was performed in the church in the nearest town at half past eight yesterday morning．Another couple were being married at the same time．Nobody worried about the cost of the celebrations：four luxurious cars brought bride，bridegroom，family and friends home，and forty people were crowded into the tiled kitchen and the tiny living—room，hung with framed school certificates and religious pictures．A big meal was given；the wedding cake was cut and toasts were drunk in whisky or sherry（葡萄酒）。And while the remains of the feast were being cleared away and the rooms swept，the four cars set out again，taking the married couple and relations for a drive round the country—side．

1．What makes it clear that this is a country wedding?

       A．People get up so early．                       B．Birds are busy searching for food．

       C．The bride is one of a large family．       D．The people’s occupations．

2．From the passage, we know that         ．

       A．nobody worried about the cost of the wedding because the two couples who got married at the same time would share the cost

       B．the family is too poor to employ any farm workers

       C．the author thought much of the country wedding

       D．the author left the moment the wedding ceremony was completed

3．The young couple will not live on the farm after their marriage because           ．

       A．Terry gets used to living in Dublin

       B．they are both employed elsewhere

       C．it’s the bride’s brother who will inherit（继承）the farm

       D．they have a house in England

4．Why were the guests taken for a ride round the countryside?

       A．To give them an opportunity of seeing the surroundings．

       B．To enable the neighbors to see the married people．

       C．To get them out of the way．

       D．As a way of passing the time．

Andy rode slowly on his way to school, day-dreaming about the fishing trip that his father had promised him. He was so busy dreaming about all the fish he would catch that he was unaware of everything else around him.

He rode along until a strange sound drew him to the present. He came to a stop and looked curiously up to the heavens. What he saw shocked and terrified him. A huge swarm(群) of bees filled the sky like a black cloud and seemed to be heading angrily towards him.

With no time to waste, Andy sped off in the opposite direction, without knowing how to escape the swarm. With a rapidly beating heart, he sped down the rough road. As the bees came closer, his panic increased. Andy knew that he was allergic to bee stings(蜇). The last sting had landed him in hospital —and that was only one bee sting! He had been forced to stay in bed for two whole days. Suddenly, his father’s words came to him. “When you are in a tight situation, don’t panic. Use your brain and think your way out of it.”

On a nearby hill, he could see smoke waving slowly skywards from the chimney of the Nelson family home. “Bees don’t like smoke,” he thought. “They couldn’t get into the house.” Andy raced towards the Nelson house, but he knew he could not reach the house in time. The bees would catch up with him soon.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eyes, he spotted a small dam used by Mr. Nelson to water his vegetable garden. He got off his bike and into the cool water, disappearing below the surface. After holding his breath for as long as he could, Andy came up for air and noticed the bees had gone. Dragging himself out of the dam, he struggled up the hilly slope(坡) and rang the doorbell. Mrs. Nelson took him inside and rang his mother.

“You’ll really need that fishing break to help you recover,” laughed his mother with relief. “Thank goodness you didn’t panic!” But Andy did not hear her. He was dreaming once again of the fish he would catch tomorrow.

Why did Andy fail to notice the swarm of bees earlier?

A. He was riding to school.                       

B. He was listening to a strange sound.

C. He was going fishing with his father.

D. He was lost in the thought of the fishing trip.

How did Andy avoid the bees in the end?

A. He asked Mr. Nelson for help.                       B. He hid himself under the water.

C. He rushed into the Nelson house.                D. He rode off in the opposite direction.

Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the swarm of bees in the passage?

A. They crowded like a black cloud.            B. They shocked and terrified Andy.

C. They made Andy stay in hospital.            D. They were coming towards Andy.   

Which of the following can best describe Andy’s escape from the bees?

A. No pains, no gains.                               B. Once bitten, twice shy.

C. Where there is a will, there is a way.              D. One’s mind works faster in an emergency.

Andy rode slowly on his way to school, day-dreaming about the fishing trip that his father had promised him. He was so busy dreaming about all the fish he would catch that he was unaware of everything else around him.

He rode along until a strange sound drew him to the present. He came to a stop and looked curiously up to the heavens. What he saw shocked and terrified him. A huge swarm of bees filled the sky like a black cloud and the buzzing mass seemed to be heading angrily towards him.

With no time to waste, Andy sped off in the opposite direction, riding furiously—but without knowing how to escape the swarm. With a rapidly beating heart and his legs pumping furiously, he sped down the rough road. As the bees came closer, his panic (惊慌) increased. Andy knew that he was sensitive to bee stings(蜇). The last sting had landed him in hospital—and that was only one bee sting! He had been forced to stay in bed for two whole days. Suddenly, his father’s words came to him. “When you are in a tight situation, don’t panic. Use your brain and think your way out of it. ”

On a nearby hill, he could see smoke waving slowly skywards from the chimney of the Nelson family home. “Bees don’t like smoke,” he thought. “They couldn’t get into the house.” Andy raced towards the Nelson house, but the bees were gaining ground. Andy knew he could not reach the house in time. He estimated that the bees would catch up with him soon.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eyes, he spotted a small dam used by Mr. Nelson to irrigate his vegetable garden. Off his bike and into the cool water he lived, disappearing below the surface and away from the savage insects. After holding his breath for as long as he could, Andy came up for air and noticed the bees had gone. Dragging himself out of the dam, he struggled up the hilly slope and rang the doorbell. Mrs. Nelson took him inside and rang his mother.

“You’ll really need that fishing break to help you recover,” laughed his mother with relief. “Thank goodness you didn’t panic!” But Andy did not hear her. He was dreaming once again of the fish he would catch tomorrow.

1.

 Why did Andy fail to notice the swarm of bees earlier?

A. He was riding to school.

B. He was listening to a strange sound.

C. He was going fishing with his father.

D. He was lost in the thought of the fishing trip.

2.

 Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the swarm of bees in the passage?

A. They crowded like a black cloud.

B. They shocked and terrified Andy.

C. They tried to attack Andy in a mass.

D. They made Andy stay in hospital for two days.

3.

 How did Andy avoid the bees in the end?

A. He asked Mr. Nelson for help.

B. He did himself under the water.

C. He rushed into the Nelson house.

D. He rode off in the opposite direction.

4.

 Which of the following can best describe Andy’s escape from the bees?

A. No pains, no gains.                

B. Once bitten, twice shy.

C. Where there is a will, there is a way.

D. In time of danger, one’s mind works fast.

 

Andy rode slowly on his way to school, day-dreaming about the fishing trip that his father had promised him．He was so busy dreaming about all the fish he would catch that he was unaware of everything else around him．

       He rode along until a strange around drew him to the present．He came to a stop and looked curiously up to the heavens．What he saw shocked and terrified him． A huge swarm of bees filled the sky like black cloud and the buzzing mass seemed to be heading angrily towards him．

       With no time to waste, Andy sped off in the opposite direction, riding without knowing how to escape the swarm. With a rapidly beating heart and his legs pumping furiously he sped     down the rough road．As the bees came closer, his panic increased．Andy knew that he was sensitive to bee stings（蜇）．The last sting had landed him in hospital-and that was only one bee sting! He had been forced to stay in bed for two whole days．Suddenly, his father’s words came to him．“When you are in a tight situation, don’t panic．Use your brain and think your ways out of it．”

       On a nearby hill, he could see smoke waving slowly skywards form the chimney of the Nelson family home．“Bees don’t like smoke,” he thought．“They couldn’t get into the house．”Andy raced towards the Nelson house, but the bees were gaining ground．Andy knew he could not reach the house in time．He estimated that the bees would catch up with him soon．

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eyes, he spotted a small dam used by Mr. Nelson to irrigate his vegetable garden．Off his bike and into the cool water he dived, disappearing below the surface and away from the savage insects． After holding his breath for as long as he could, Andy came up for air and noticed the bees has gone．Dragging himself out of the dam, he struggled up the hilly slope and rang the doorbell．Mr. Nelson took him inside and rang his mother．

“You’ll really need that fishing break to help you recover, ” laughed his mother with relief．“Thank goodness you didn’t panic.” But Andy did not hear her．He was dreaming once again of the fish he would catch tomorrow．

1．Why did Andy fail to notice the swarm of bees earlier?

A．He was riding to school．

B．He was listening to a strange sound．

C．He was going fishing with his father．

D．He was lost in the thought of the fishing trip．

2．Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the swarm of bees in the passage?

A．They crowded like a black cloud．

B．They shocked and terrified Andy．

C．They tried to attack Andy in a mass．

D．They made Andy stay in hospital for two days．

3．How did Andy avoid the bees in the end?

A．He asked Mr. Nelson for help．

B．He hid himself under the water．

C．He rushed into the Nelson house．

D．He rode off in the opposite direction．

4．Which of the following can best describe Andy’s escape from the bees?

A．No pain no gains．

B．Once bitten, twice shy

C．Where there is a will, there is a way．

D．In time of danger, one’s mind works fast．

A little boy had the job of coming to school early each day to start the fire and warm the room before his teacher and his classmates arrived.

One  1 they arrived to find the schoolhouse was on fire. They dragged(拖) the senseless(无意识的) little boy out of the burning building more dead than alive. The doctor told his mother that her son would surely  2  .

But the brave boy didn’t want to die. He made up his  3 that he would survive somehow, and to the amazement of the doctor, he did survive. When the  4 was past, the mother was told that he would be a lifetime cripple(跛子) with no  5  of the lower part of his body at all.

Once more, the brave boy made up his mind. He would not be a  6  . He would walk. But unfortunately from the waist down, he had no motor(运动神经的) ability. His thin legs were all but lifeless.

Finally he returned from the  7  . Every day his mother would massages(按摩) his little  8 , but there was no feeling. Yet his  9  that he would walk was as strong as ever.

One sunny day his mother wheeled him out into the  10 to get some fresh air. This day, instead of sitting there, he threw himself from the chair. He pulled himself across the grass, dragging his legs behind him. He walked his way to the white   11 .With great  12 , he raised himself up on the fence(篱笆) . Then, he began dragging himself along the fence and  13  that he would walk. He started to do this every day until he wore a smooth path all around the yard beside the fence.  14  through his daily massages and his iron determination, he did  15 the ability to stand up, then to walk by himself and then to run. This determined young man, Dr Glenn Cunningham, ran the world’s fastest mile!

1.                A．afternoon       B．evening         C．noon D．morning

 

2.                A．die            B．survive         C．fail  D．recover

 

3.                A．mind           B．heart           C．idea D．view

 

4.                A．disease         B．disaster         C．danger   D．failure

 

5.                A．effect          B．use            C．good D．work

 

6.                A．cripple         B．patient         C．trouble   D．winner

 

7.                A．school         B．home          C．factory   D．hospital

 

8.                A．hands          B．legs            C．arms D．feet

 

9.                A．decision        B．dream          C．promise  D．determination

 

10.               A．street          B．school         C．yard  D．shop

 

11.               A．fence          B．wall           C．houses    D．door

 

12.               A．job            B．time           C．effort D．success

 

13.               A．promised       B．decided        C．insisted   D．predicted

 

14.               A．Frankly         B．Finally          C．Actually   D．Secondly

 

15.               A．build          B．improve        C．choose    D．develop