When someone says, “I guess I′ll have to face the music”, it doesn′t mean he is going to a concert. It is something unhappy. For example, a student is called in by his teacher to explain why he didn′t finish his homework.
Every American, young or old, knows the phrase “to face the music” well. It′s at least 100 years old. Where did the expression come from?
One explanation (解释) is about the American writer James Fennimore Cooper. He said the expression was first used by actors. When they were asked to perform, they would say, “It′s time to face the music.” And that is exactly what they did-face the band which is just below the stage (舞台).
An actor might be nervous when he moved onto the stage in front of the audience (观众). But he had to go out. So, “to face the music” came to mean having to go through something no matter how unhappy it might be, because you had no choice.
The other explanation comes from the army. The soldiers had to face their leader′s check. They were worried about how well they looked. Were their guns clean enough to pass the check? Still, the men had to go out to face the check. What else could they do?
1.What does the expression “to face the music” exactly mean?
A. To go to a concert.
B. To become interested in music.
C. To join the army.
D. To go through something unhappy.
2.In which of the following places won′t the expression “to face the music” be
used?
A. The stage. B. The school. C. The city library. D. The army.
3.What′s the main idea of the fourth paragraph?
A. Worries of an actor on the stage.
B. Different kinds of audience.
C. Why an actor is nervous on the stage.
D. The true meaning of “to face the music”.
4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Here are two explanations about the expression “to face the music”.
B. The music in “to face the music” is a kind of terrible music.
C. When you face the music, it means that you must go through it.
D. When someone says he has to face the music, he will have no choice.
An old Japanese man kept a sparrow (麻雀) and he really liked it. But one day the bird flew away. He became sad and went out to look for it. At last, he met the bird on a mountain.
He asked excitedly, “Will you please go home with me, my bird?” Though the bird was also happy to see the old man, it shook its head.
“Take me to your home and let me see how you live,” the old man said. The bird led the old man to its new home. And he found it lived well with many other birds. So he decided to go back. Before he was leaving, the bird gave him a basket.
When he returned home, he told his wife what had happened. She opened the basket and saw a lot of gold. The old woman was very greedy and she wanted to get more baskets. So she set out for the sparrow′s home.
“Hello, sparrow. I miss you very much,” cried the woman falsely (虚伪地). The bird said nothing. It gave her two baskets, a light one and a heavy one. The bird asked her to choose one and she could only open it after she reached home.
Of course, she chose the heavy one and took it home with great difficult. However, when she opened the basket, she found it was full of stones!
1.What did the old man do on the mountain? ，
A. He kept looking for gold.
B. He looked for his lost sparrow.
C. He wanted to visit a place with many birds.
D. He found a basket full of gold.
2.Why did the old man go back home alone when he found the sparrow?
A. Because the bird didn′t like him.
B. Because he found the bird lived well.
C. Because the bird gave him much gold.
D. Because his wife stopped him taking it home.
3.Which of the following is TRUE about the old man′s wife?
A. She helped her husband find the sparrow.
B. She went to the bird′s new home with her husband.
C. In the end, she got a lot of gold from the bird.
D. She didn′t treat the bird as kindly as her husband.
4.What does the story mainly want to tell us?
A. When you are kind to others, they do the same for you.
B. Any kind person is able to get what they want.
C. We should try our best to be kind and friendly to birds.
D. We can get lots of gold if we are friendly to birds.
Fu Yuan has been left at home since he was one month old. His parents left to work in Fujian. For the past eight years, Fu has only seen his parents three times although they sent home 500 yuan every two or three months.
Fu Xiaoyu, 16, has to live alone since her grandmother died three years ago. Her parents didn′t want to give up their jobs in Guangdong. Also they couldn′t afford the cost of sending her to a school in the city where they work.
These are just two of the 29 kids interviewed last summer in a village in Sichuan Province.
In the poor village, 582 adults have left to look for work, leaving 156 children without parents. Among these kids, 88 percent of them live with their grandparents, five percent live with their uncles or aunts and seven percent have to live on their own.
To our surprise, 80 percent of the children say they love going to school, even though some children have to walk along the mountain roads for two hours to get to school However, for these children, studying is not their main thing. Doing housework and taking care of younger sisters or brothers take up most of their time. Though they have to work hard at home, over 65 percent of the kids interviewed prefer that their parents can work outside. They understand how important money is for their families.
1.Fu Xiaoyu′s parents can′t send her to a school near them because .
A. she doesn′t like the school life in big cities
B. she has to do housework at home
C. they don′t love their daughter at all
D. they don′t have enough money
2.Of the 156 children, about of them have to live on their own.
A. 7 B. 20 C. 30 D. 40
3.For the children like Fu Yuan, studying isn′t the main thing because .
A. they have to go out and make money
B. they like playing games better than studying
C. they needn′t go to a good college
D. they have lots of things to do at home
4.Which of the following is NOT true?
A. Fu Xiaoyu began to live with her grandmother three years ago.
B. 29 kids are interviewed in a village in Sichuan Province.
C. It takes some children two hours to get to school.
D. Most of the kids interviewed live with their grandparents.
Town Park | |
Opening hours | 8:00 am－8:00 pm in winter 10:00 am－10:00 pm in summer |
Rules | ―Put litter into rubbish cans. ―Keep your dog on a lead(牵狗链). ―No golf. ―Don′t sleep overnight on the benches. ―Don′t stay inside after closing time. |
Swimming Pool | |
Opening hours | 10:00 am－7:30 pm on weekdays 9:00 am－9:30 pm on weekends |
Rules | ―You must wear proper swimsuits. ―An adult must stay with children under six at all times. ―No smoking in the pool area. ―Food and drinks are not allowed near. |
1.When can you go swimming?
A. At 5:00 pm on Tuesday. B. At 9:00 am on Monday.
C. At 8:00 pm on Thursday. D. At 10:00 pm on Saturday.
2.What can you do in the park?
A. Play golf with friends.
B. Throw litter everywhere.
C. Stay inside after the park is closed.
D. Keep the dog on a lead.
3.Where may you probably see the information?
A. In a storybook. B. On a notice board.
C. In a film magazine. D. In a math book.
请先阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后用方框中所给的词的适当形式填空，每个词限用一次。
later, they, decide, sell, idea, daily, right, anything, happy,stomach |
Once a man had a hen and the hen laid two golden eggs every day. The man was very happy. Every day he took two golden eggs to the market and 1. them there. With the money, he and his family lived 2. .
One day, one of his friends said to him, “My friend, you take two eggs to the market every day and sell 3. there. There is too much trouble. Why not take out all the eggs once from her 4. ?”
The man liked the idea, but he couldn′t make a 5. to kill the hen. A few days 6. he decided to kill the hen because he thought his friend′s 7. was very good, and it was really tiring to take the eggs to the market 8. .
The next day he killed the hen and then opened the hen′s stomach. But he couldn′t find 9. in the stomach. He looked for the eggs here and there, left and 10. , up and down, but there was nothing inside.
请先阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从各小题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入相应空白处的最佳选项。（每小题1分）
He met her at a party. She was outstanding and many boys were her. But nobody paid any attention to him. After the party, he her for coffee. She was surprised but went with him.
As they sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too to say anything and she felt uncomfortable too. Suddenly, he asked the , “Could you please give me some salt? I′d like to put it in my coffee.” And when the salt came, he put it in his coffee and drank. Curiously (好奇地), she asked, “Why coffee with salt?” He , “When I was a little boy, I lived near the sea, I could feel its salty taste, like salty coffee. Now every time I it, I think of my childhood and my hometown. I them and my parents.”
She was deeply . A man who could admit that he was homesick must love his home and care about his family. He must be . She talked too, about her faraway hometown, her childhood and her family. That was the of their love story. They continued to go out for a date. She found that he all her requirements. So they married and lived together. And every time she made coffee for him, she put in some － the way he liked it.
After 40 years, he passed away and left her a letter which said, “My dearest, please forgive (原谅) my life-long lie. Remember our first date? I was so nervous that I asked the waiter for salt instead of sugar. Many times, I tried to tell you the , but I was afraid that it would ruin (毁坏) everything. Sweetheart, I don′t exactly like salty coffee. But I′ve learnt to it. Having you with me was my greatest happiness. If I could live a second time, I hope we can be together again, even if it means that I have to drink salty coffee for the rest of my life.”
1.A. beyond B. over C. behind D. after
2.A. suggested B. invited C. required D. warned
3.A. surprised B. happy C. nervous D. scared
4.A. cleaner B. waiter C. friend D. salesgirl
5.A. reported B. announced C. explained D. expressed
6.A. drink B. eat C. make D. buy
7.A. miss B. discover C. keep D. remember
8.A. amazed B. touched C. shocked D. wounded
9.A. strong B. responsible C. active D. friendly
10.A. end B. stop C. start D. result
11.A. had B. got C. caught D. met
12.A. happily B. completely C. seriously D. easily
13.A. salt B. sugar C. milk D. chocolate
14.A. lie B. joke C. story D. truth
15.A. understand B. enjoy C. support D. value
