Question

    Silk. The word itself is beautiful. The story of silk starts in China over 4,000 years ago. It is said that a cocoon（茧）fell into a woman’s tea cup. It then opened into a single thread（线）. This was an important discovery. The Chinese learned they could use the cocoons of silkworms（蚕）to make clothes, both beautiful to look at and soft to touch.

Making silk was a secret in China for many years. In other countries, silk was hardly seen and valuable. Often it was worth more than gold. By the year 1 A.D., silk was sold as far west as Rome, and all along the Silk Road. It connected China with places in the Middle East and Europe. Thanks to the Silk Road, the communication between China and West was greatly improved. Centuries later, in 1522, the Spanish brought silkworms to Mexico.

Now people around the world still make many beautiful things from silk. But silk isn’t only beautiful. It looks delicate, but it’s very strong. For example, it has been used to make bicycle tires（轮胎）. Silk is also light and warm. This makes it great for clothes like winter jackets.

All of this comes from a little silkworm. That is the wonder of silk.

1.What was the important discovery about a silkworm’s cocoon?

A.It could become a thread. B.It could be made into tea cups.

C.It was beautiful to look at. D.It was very soft to touch.

2.What can we learn about silk from Paragraph 2?

A.It was carried to Mexico by Chinese businessman.

B.It was commonly seen in many other countries.

C.It was sold to Rome through the Silk Road.

D.It was used as money along the Silk Road.

3.The underlined word “delicate” in Paragraph 3 probably means “______”.

A.漂亮的 B.脆弱的 C.牢固的 D.平静的

4.The passage is mainly about ______.

A.a single thread B.the secret of the Silk Road

C.a beautiful tea cup D.the wonder of silk

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.B

4.D

【解析】

本篇讲述了蚕茧变成丝绸的传说，介绍了古代中国的丝绸之路，在公元一世纪就远达罗马；现在人们根据丝绸轻、柔、暖、坚固的特性制作很多东西。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段“It then opened into a single thread. This was an important discovery.”可知茧变成了一条线是一个重要的发现。故选A。

2.细节理解题。根据第二段“By the year 1 A.D., silk was sold as far west as Rome, and all along the Silk Road.”可知丝绸是通过丝绸之路卖到罗马的，故选C。

3.词义猜测题。根据第三段“It looks delicate, but it’s very strong”根据but的句意转折推断画线词与strong的词义相反，strong意为强壮的，推断delicate意为脆弱的；故选B。

4.主旨大意题。本篇讲述了蚕茧变成丝绸的传说，介绍了古代中国的丝绸之路，在公元前抵达罗马；现在人们根据丝绸轻、柔、暖、坚固的特性制作很多东西，文章围绕丝绸的奇迹展开，故选D。