阅读理解

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　All over the world, people use gestures: the way they move their hands or hold their heads has a particular meaning, and these movements are used to support what they are saying, or even to make words unnecessary. People nod and shake their heads; they wave their hands in special ways; they hold their thumbs up or down. Do these signs always have the same meanings, wherever they are used? And how have they come to have these meanings?

　　In Roman times, pointing with the thumb in a special way could spell death. When a gladiator was defeated in the games arena, one of two things could happen: he might be spared or he might be killed on the spot by the victor. His fate was decided by the emperor or nobleman who was holding the games, but the crowd of spectators could influence the decision.

　　They expressed their wishes by the position of their thumbs.

　　People often think that the life-or-death thumb signs were thumbs-up for life and thumbs-down for death, but this is not entirely accurate. A re-examination of Roman writings shows that what we call the“thumbs-up”sign was really a“thumbs-cover-up”: the thumb was held inside the closed hand. And the“thumbs-down”sign?

　　The crowd was seated above the arena, so if they pointed towards the gladiator with their thumbs, they would automatically point downwards. Pointing downwards with the thumb, with the fingers closed, was probably an imitation of the killing action of thrusting the sword down into the victim, who was lying on the ground. In this way the spectators encouraged the winner to take the loser's life. To give the opposite signal--spare him, do not use the sword--they held out their hands with the thumbs hidden inside their closed fingers, like the sword in its sheath. So the life-or-death gestures were either thumbs-hide for life, or thumbs-point for death, and our modern thumbs-up sign seems to have originated in a misunderstanding of the Roman records.

　　Nowadays many people used the thumbs-up sign meaning“OK”,“fine”,“good”. But Italians, the modern descendants of the ancient Romans, seem for less likely to use it than other Europeans. When questioned, 95 percent of Englishmen and Frenchmen agreed that they used the sign in this way, but the figure for Italians was only 23 percent. Many Italians even called it the“English OK”signal, and mentioned that they had seen it in films or on television. So it looks as if the popular thumbs-up, which started out as a mistranslation from the literature of ancient Rome, is now“returning”to the city from which it never really came in the first place.

　　Other hand signs are used when we want to tell someone to“come here”, i.e. the beckoning signs. Some people beckon with one finger, or two, but the most common way to beckon is with the whole hand: all four fingers open and close together. Some people do this with the palm facing upwards, and others do it in the opposite way, with the palm facing downwards. Which of these positions you use depends on where you live. If you are an Englishman or a Frenchman you always use the palm-down position. This is because Italians employ a good-bye wave that looks almost exactly like the Anglo-French beckoning sign. If they beckoned in the Anglo-French style you can imagine the confusion it might cause.

1．Who could decide the fate of the gladiator in Roman times?

[　　]

A．The victor.

B．The spectators.

C．The emperor or nobleman who was holding the games.

D．The judge.

2．The death thumb sign was _____.

[　　]

A．thumbs-up for death

B．thumbs-down for death

C．pointing downwards with the thumb, with the fingers closed

D．holding out the hands with the thumbs hidden inside their closed fingers for death

3．What does the word“spared”mean in paragraph 2?

[　　]

A．killed　　　　　　　　B．set free

C．allowed to live　　　　　D．wounded

4．What is Italians' good-bye wave like?

[　　]

A．Almost exactly like the palm-up position.

B．The palm-down position.

C．The popular thumbs-up position.

D．The popular thumbs-down position.

完型填空（共20小题；每小题1分，满分20分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

"Hey, Tahlia! How's the model?"

    I had just taken a bite of my hot dog __21__ I heard a familiar voice yelling at me from across the crowded school yard. I saw a group of popular girls who were all __22__.

"What kind of __23_ are you going to do? An ad for a Frankenstein movie?" More laughter. My stomach twisted into a tight knot. How could they humiliate (羞辱) me like this, __24__ the entire school? As I walked into the cafeteria, I __25__ the dark scars on my right hand.

At 9 months old, I knocked over a tea pot and dumped boiling water allover my hands and stomach. My parents __26__ me to the hospital, but I had to have skin graft (移植) operation. I was in so much pain! But what __27__ me most were the cruel things people said about how I looked, __28__ that day at lunch.

The girls were being supermean to me because they'd heard I was considering doing some modeling. A close friend had suggested that I shouldn't let my scars limit me and that I might __29__ a good model.

But after that __30__ at school, I was sure I'd made a huge mistake. Upon arriving home, I covered the mirror with a blanket, fell on my bed and sobbed.

    The next day, I __31__ myself to go to school. At lunch my best friend Jesse tried to encourage me: "You can't __32_ forever, Tahlia. So what if you have a few scars? Just go outside and show them that you're just as good as they are." Although I knew he was right, I couldn’t __33__ standing up for myself like that.

However, that night as I sat on the bed, my friend's words replayed in my mind. I'm __34__ hiding from myself, I thought. How stupid! Slowly, I stood up, walked over to the __35__, and tossed the blanket aside. There, in the mirror I saw a slim, dark-haired, blue-eyed girl, looking just fine, __36__ with a few scars.

The next day I wore a comfortable T-shirt to school. What's more, I had lunch outside the cafeteria, __37__ beside those mean girls. They were shocked that I should dare to walk into their territory. I felt __38_ too—free and happy.

Sometimes people still look at me strangely. They __39_ and stare, but I don't let it get to me. I have applied to several modeling companies, and at least one company is considering me for jobs. Maybe I'll never __40_ posing on the runway, but I do know one thing: I'm done.

1. A. as            B. when             C. while            D. before

2.A. applauding         B. cheering         C. laughing         D. quarreling

3. A. modeling      B. writing     C. drilling         D. acting

4. A. in spite of       B. in view of       C. in terms of      D. in front of

5.A. looked into        B. searched for     C. wondered about   D. glanced at

6.A. presented      B. sent             C. rushed           D. handed

7. A. hurt          B. beat             C. disappointed     D. puzzled

8. A. for           B. like             C. on           D. after

9.A. impress            B. make             C. consult      D. defeat

10.A. effect            B. phenomenon   C. challenge      D. scene

11. A. forced           B. expected         C. reminded         D. preferred

12. A. apologize        B. beg          C. hide             D. complain

13.A. consider      B. imagine      C. appreciate       D. resist

14. A. hardly           B. ever             C. even             D. gradually

15. A. blanket      B. bed          C. chair            D. mirror

16. A. while            B. though       C. but          D. because

17. A. right            B. still            C. therefore        D. anyhow

18.A. sensitive         B. uncomfortable    C. different        D. tense

19.A. compare       B. associate        C. wave             D. whisper

20.A. give up       B. end up       C. put up       D. set up

He looked quite ________ though he was at the age of seventy.

1. A.
   good health
2. B.
   well
3. C.
   healthy
4. D.
   fine

Nobody likes staying at home in a public holiday, especially when the weather is fine. Last august we decided to spend the day in the country. The only difficulty was that millions of other people had exactly the same idea.  We moved out of the city slowly behind a long line of cars. But at last we came to a quiet country road and after some time, stopped at a lonely farm. We had brought plenty of food with us and we got it out of the car. It was very peaceful in the cool grass until we heard ringing at the top of the hill. What we saw made us pick up our things and run back to the car as quickly as possible. There were about two hundred sheep coming towards us down the path.

1. Nobody likes staying at home on a public holiday because ________.

A．the weather is especially fine that day

B．everyone is afraid of being busy at home

C．he feels too crowded at home that day

D．each wants to have a good time in the country

2. The family stopped at a lonely farm__________.

A．to watch sheep                         B．to have a meal

C．to visit someone                        D．to find something

3. They ran to their car_________.

A．to hide themselves

B．to enjoy their dinner

C．so as not to be in the way

D．to get their guns and shoot at the sheep

4. Which of the following is true?

A．the road to the country is very busy on a public holiday.

B．the cars were too many to move that day.

C．seeing 200 sheep coming, they were very afraid.

D．that day they didn’t have any meal.

Babysitter(保姆) Wanted

I am seeking a babysitter for my 6-month-old son. A few hours on Saturdays and Sundays to help me and then other times as needed. He or she should be over 18, responsible, loving, warm, and have some experience in caring for babies. This position also suits a college student with experience looking for a part-time job. The pay is $10 an hour.    

If this sounds like a good job to you, please reply to rebecharv@aol.com or call 800-4964.

Office Manager Wanted    

Our company is looking for a full-time experienced manager to run the business. Strong skills in organization and business management are required for this position. The office manager will be responsible for keeping financial (财务的) records, so he or she should be familiar with computers.    

Please reply to jim@californiaaquatics.com or call 800-6978 to apply.

Waiter/ Waitress Wanted

A restaurant is looking for an experienced waiter / waitress. Knowledge of wines and experience in dining are necessary. Must work well under pressure and understand the basics (基本要素) of fine dining and customer service.    

If you’re interested, please contact us at job-tkupe-1329358152@craigslist.org to apply.    

This is a part-time job.

Office Cleaner Wanted    

Looking for a Part-time job? A position in the Mississauga area needs an office cleaner! Part-time 4 hours a day from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm.    

Duties include:

●Cleaning the washrooms

●Cleaning the furniture

●Sweeping the floors

●Other general cleaning experience is necessary. Pay: $15 per hour    

Reply to:job-p3b7u-1365632206@craigslist.org or call 800-8197.

1.Which of the following position is a full-time job?    

A．Babysitter.                             B．Office manager.

C．Waiter / waitress.                       D．Office cleaner.

2.If a college girl with some experience caring for children wants to apply for a job, where should she send an email?

A．job-p3b7u-1365632206@craigslist.org

B．job-tkupe-1329358152@craigslist.org

C．jim@californiaaquatics.com

D．rebecharv@aol.com

3.What can we learn from the passage?    

A．The office cleaner has to work three hours each day.

B．One can apply for a waiter or waitress by telephone.

C．A babysitter earns $5 more than an office cleaner per hour.

D．Experience is necessary for all these four jobs.

4.Which of the following is necessary for a waiter / waitress?

A．Being familiar with computers.

B．Having knowledge of wines.

C．Knowing more about menus.

D．Working well with others.