After sunset on our last day at the farm I walked out into the desert. In this, the first pleasant moment for a walk after long hot hours, I thought I was the only thing out of doors. Suddenly I stopped. Before me a rattlesnake lay fixed, its head not yet drawn back to strike but only turned a little to watch what I would do. Many snakes will run away at the sight of a man but this rattlesnake felt no necessity to get out of any-body's way. He held his ground in calm watch-fullness waiting for me to show my intentions. My first aim was to take no notice of him; I had never killed an animal if I was not forced to kill. But I remembered that there were children, dogs and horses at the farm as well as men and women with thin clothes on; my duty was to kill the snake. I went back to the farm and returned with a stick. The rattlesnake had not moved; he lay like a wire but more quickly than I could stride he shot into a bush and set up his rattling, warning me by this that I had made an unreasonable attack and attempted to take his life and that if I insisted he would have no choice but to take mine if he could. For a moment I listened to this terrifying sound and then I struck into the bush with my stick and, chop-ping about, dragged him out of the bush with his back broken.

He struck once more at the stick but a moment later his neck was broken and he was soon dead althoughwww..com when I picked him up by the tail his mouth opened, proving that a dead snake may still bite. There was blood in his mouth and poison was dropping; it was not only a dis-gusting(令人作呕的) sight but a pitiful one too. I dropped the body into a green bush and, as I did so, I saw him in my imagination, crawling over the sands as he might have done if I had let him go.

At the sight of the author, the rattlesnake        .

A. shot into a bush

B. lay motionless but got ready to meet danger

C. drew itself up to strike

D. took no notice of his presence

The author had to kill the rattlesnake because       .

A. it stood in his way

B. it attempted to take his life

C. it presented a disgusting sight

D. its presence was a danger to the people and animals at the farm

Which of the following best describes the rattlesnake?

A. It attacked man without any reason.

B. It would not attack unless it was attacked.

C. It ran away at the sight of man.

D. It exposed itself to danger.

It is implied at the end of the passage that the author____.

A. regretted having killed the snake

B. was glad that he had killed the snake

C. felt a little sorry for the snake

D. could not help thinking about the dead snake

Idioms are phrases and sentences that do not mean exactly what they say. Even if you know the meaning of each word you see or hear, you may not understand the idiom because you don't understand the culture behind it.
For example, if an American boy asks his mother what's for dinner tomorrow, she may say "I'll play it by ear", that means she doesn't have plans for dinner and she will decide later. "Play by ear" used to mean playing music using the sheet music, but now people often use it when they're not talking about music.
There're many idioms in English. If you learn to use them, your English will be more vivid and colorful. English idioms are more common in spoken English. They can be difficult to remember sometimes. Next time when you hear somebody saying to you, "Give me a hand", you don't necessarily stretch out your hand to him/her, but you do need to be helpful. And when the situation is out of hand, you usually can do very little to manage all that. What about a green hand? It's not about the color of your hand! You're a green hand when you are very new at your work and don't have much experience. If you and your partner always work together hand in glove, you two definitely work together very well.
Can you guess the meanings of some common English idioms to do with parts of your body?

1. 1.

   An idiom is _______.

   1. A.
      a phrase or a sentence that means exactly what the words say
   2. B.
      a phrase or a sentence that doesn't mean exactly what every word says
   3. C.
      so difficult that nobody can understand
   4. D.
      something to do with parts of your body
2. 2.

   If a mother says "I'll play it by ear" to talk about the dinner, she means _______.

   1. A.
      she will cook dinner while listening to music at the same time
   2. B.
      she doesn't hear what others are talking about.
   3. C.
      she will play music using the sheet music instead of cooking dinner
   4. D.
      She doesn't have plans for dinner and will decide later
3. 3.

   When one says "Can you give me a hand?", he means _______.

   1. A.
      he needs to hold your hand.
   2. B.
      he works well with you
   3. C.
      he needs your help
   4. D.
      he is a new comer and can't help with the situation
4. 4.

   Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

   1. A.
      People use English idioms more in spoken English than in written English.
   2. B.
      To understand the culture behind an idiom is important in understanding the idiom.
   3. C.
      Idioms make your English more vivid and colorful so they are easy to remember.
   4. D.
      You may not understand an idiom even though you know the meaning of each word.
5. 5.

   Here are 4 common English idioms to do with parts of your body and their meanings. Can you match them?
   1) to learn something by heart a. to depend on oneself
   2) to have sticky fingers b. to know something very well
   3) to stand on one's own feet c. to do something secretly
   4) to go behind someone's back d. to have the habit of stealing

   1. A.
      badc
   2. B.
      bdac
   3. C.
      cbad
   4. D.
      cdba

Idioms are phrases and sentences that do not mean exactly what they say. Even if you know the meaning of each word you see or hear, you may not understand the idiom because you don't understand the culture behind it.
　　 For example, if an American boy asks his mother what's for dinner tomorrow, she may say "I'll play it by ear", that means she doesn't have plans for dinner and she will decide later. "Play by ear" used to mean playing music using the sheet music, but now people often use it when they're not talking about music.
　　 There're many idioms in English. If you learn to use them, your English will be more vivid and colorful. English idioms are more common in spoken English. They can be difficult to remember sometimes. Next time when you hear somebody saying to you, "Give me a hand", you don't necessarily stretch out your hand to him/her, but you do need to be helpful. And when the situation is out of hand, you usually can do very little to manage all that. What about a green hand? It's not about the color of your hand! You're a green hand when you are very new at your work and don't have much experience. If you and your partner always work together hand in glove, you two definitely work together very well.
　　 Can you guess the meanings of some common English idioms to do with parts of your body?
【小题1】An idiom is _______.

After sunset on our last day at the farm I walked out into the desert. In this, the first pleasant moment for a walk after long hot hours, I thought I was the only thing out of doors. Suddenly I stopped. Before me a rattlesnake lay fixed, its head not yet drawn back to strike but only turned a little to watch what I would do. Many snakes will run away at the sight of a man but this rattlesnake felt no necessity to get out of any-body's way. He held his ground in calm watch-fullness waiting for me to show my intentions. My first aim was to take no notice of him; I had never killed an animal if I was not forced to kill. But I remembered that there were children, dogs and horses at the farm as well as men and women with thin clothes on; my duty was to kill the snake. I went back to the farm and returned with a stick. The rattlesnake had not moved; he lay like a wire but more quickly than I could stride he shot into a bush and set up his rattling, warning me by this that I had made an unreasonable attack and attempted to take his life and that if I insisted he would have no choice but to take mine if he could. For a moment I listened to this terrifying sound and then I struck into the bush with my stick and, chop-ping about, dragged him out of the bush with his back broken. w.wHe struck once more at the stick but a moment later his neck was broken and he was soon dead althoughwww..com when I picked him up by the tail his mouth opened, proving that a dead snake may still bite. There was blood in his mouth and poison was dropping; it was not only a dis-gusting(令人作呕的) sight but a pitiful one too. I dropped the body into a green bush and, as I did so, I saw him in my imagination, crawling over the sands as he might have done if I had let him go.

49. At the sight of the author, the rattlesnake        .

A. shot into a bush

B. lay motionless but got ready to meet danger

C. drew itself up to strike

D. took no notice of his presence

50. The author had to kill the rattlesnake because       .

A. it stood in his way

B. it attempted to take his life

C. it presented a disgusting sight

D. its presence was a danger to the people and animals at the farm

51. Which of the following best describes the rattlesnake?

A. It attacked man without any reason.

B. It would not attack unless it was attacked.

C. It ran away at the sight of man.

D. It exposed itself to danger.

52. It is implied at the end of the passage that the author____.

A. regretted having killed the snake

B. was glad that he had killed the snake

C. felt a little sorry for the snake

D. could not help thinking about the dead snake

After sunset on our last day at the farm I walked out into the desert. In this, the first pleasant moment for a walk after long hot hours, I thought I was the only thing out of doors. Suddenly I stopped. Before me a rattlesnake lay fixed, its head not yet drawn back to strike but only turned a little to watch what I would do. Many snakes will run away at the sight of a man but this rattlesnake felt no necessity to get out of any-body's way. He held his ground in calm watch-fullness waiting for me to show my intentions. My first aim was to take no notice of him; I had never killed an animal if I was not forced to kill. But I remembered that there were children, dogs and horses at the farm as well as men and women with thin clothes on; my duty was to kill the snake. I went back to the farm and returned with a stick. The rattlesnake had not moved; he lay like a wire but more quickly than I could stride he shot into a bush and set up his rattling, warning me by this that I had made an unreasonable attack and attempted to take his life and that if I insisted he would have no choice but to take mine if he could. For a moment I listened to this terrifying sound and then I struck into the bush with my stick and, chop-ping about, dragged him out of the bush with his back broken.
He struck once more at the stick but a moment later his neck was broken and he was soon dead althoughwww.ks5u.com when I picked him up by the tail his mouth opened, proving that a dead snake may still bite. There was blood in his mouth and poison was dropping; it was not only a dis-gusting(令人作呕的) sight but a pitiful one too. I dropped the body into a green bush and, as I did so, I saw him in my imagination, crawling over the sands as he might have done if I had let him go.

1. 1.

   At the sight of the author, the rattlesnake        .

   1. A.
      shot into a bush
   2. B.
      lay motionless but got ready to meet danger
   3. C.
      drew itself up to strike
   4. D.
      took no notice of his presence
2. 2.

   The author had to kill the rattlesnake because       .

   1. A.
      it stood in his way
   2. B.
      it attempted to take his life
   3. C.
      it presented a disgusting sight
   4. D.
      its presence was a danger to the people and animals at the farm
3. 3.

   Which of the following best describes the rattlesnake?

   1. A.
      It attacked man without any reason.
   2. B.
      It would not attack unless it was attacked.
   3. C.
      It ran away at the sight of man.
   4. D.
      It exposed itself to danger.
4. 4.

   It is implied at the end of the passage that the author____.

   1. A.
      regretted having killed the snake
   2. B.
      was glad that he had killed the snake
   3. C.
      felt a little sorry for the snake
   4. D.
      could not help thinking about the dead snake