The octopus’s（章鱼）reputation as a human-killer isn’t simply an exaggeration（夸张）—it is a total myth. The octopus can indeed be a deadly hunter, but only of its natural victims. Some shellfish（壳类动物）and an occasional sick or incautious fish have reason to be frightened of this multi-armed hunter, but a person is much too large to interest even the biggest octopus. Even the largest among octopi is much smaller than most people imagine. Far from being large enough to swallow a ship, as monster octopi in movies have been known to do, the largest octopus, found on the Pacific coast, weighs around 110 pounds and grows to no more than ten feet in width.
The hard, parrot-like beak（喙）of an octopus is not used for attacking deep-sea divers, but for cutting open shellfish. Indeed, the octopus possesses such a tiny throat that it cannot swallow large pieces of meat. Instead, it feeds by pouring digestive juices into its victims, and then sucking up the soupy remains. A shellfish that finds itself in the grasp of an octopus has only a short time to live. But human beings are perfectly safe. Still, people rarely care to go close enough to these careful creatures to get a good look at them.
1.This passage is mainly about .
A．the horrors of the octopus
B．the largest octopus in the world
C．octopi and their behavior
D．the octopus’s deadly hunting method
2.It is implied but not stated in the passage that .
A．people have unreasonable fears about the octopus
B．the octopus is not interested in human beings
C．the octopus is afraid of human beings
D．the octopus is a very cruel sea animal
3.What does the underlined part “careful creatures” refer to in the last paragraph?
A．Octopi. B．Shellfish. C．Fish. D．The victims.
4.The hard beak of the octopus is used for .
A．attacking deep-sea divers B．cutting up large pieces of meat
C．cutting open its victims D．defending itself
5.From the passage, we can conclude that .
A．the octopus is not dangerous to man
B．people often fear creatures that are not dangerous to them
C．the octopus only hunts its natural victims
D．things described in movies are not to be believed
The other day I was talking to a stranger on the bus; he told me that he had a good 36 in Chicago and he wondered if, by any chance, I 37 to know him . For a moment, I thought he might be 38 ,but I could tell from the expression on his face that he was not. He was 39 . I felt like saying that it was ridiculous (可笑的) to 40 that out of all the millions of people in Chicago I could possibly have ever bumped into his friend. But, 41 , I just smiled and reminded him that Chicago was a very 42 city. He nodded, and I thought he was going to be content to drop the subject and talk about something else. But I was wrong. He was silent for a few minutes, and then he 43 to tell me all about his friend.
His friend’s main 44 in life seemed to be tennis. He was an excellent tennis player , and he 45 had his own tennis court. There were a lot of people with swimming 46 , yet there were only two people with private tennis court; his friend in Chicago was one of them. I told him that I knew several 47 like that, including my brother, who was a doctor in California. He 48 that maybe there were more private courts in the country than he 49 but he did not know of any others. Then he asked me 50 my brother lived in California. When I said Sacramento, he said that was a coincidence 51 his Chicago friend spent the summer in Sacramento last year and he lived next door to a 52 who had a tennis court in his backyard. I said I felt that really was a coincidence (巧合) because my next-door neighbour had gone to Sacramento last summer and had 53 the house next to my brother’s house. For a moment, we stared at each other, but we did not say anything.
“Would your friend’s name happen to be Roland Kirkwood?” I asked finally. He 54 and said, “Yes. Would your brother’s name happen to be Dr Rey Hunter?” It was my 55 to laugh. “Yes,” I replied.
1.A. brother B. teacher C. friend D. neighbour
2.A. happened B. managed C. tried D. wanted
3.A. expecting B. lying C. talking D. joking
4.A. funny B. serious C. careful D. disappointed
5.A. find B. think C. realize D. see
6.A. indeed B. actually C. exactly D. instead
7.A. famous B. interesting C. big D. noisy
8.A. began B. stopped C. refused D. failed
9.A. problem B. choice C. interest D. work
10.A. just B. ever C. even D. surely
11.A. suit B. habit C. river D. pools
12.A. people B. players C strangers D. friends
13.A. advised B. admitted C. argued D. announced
14.A. recognized B. realized C. visited D. found
15.A. how B. whether C. where D. when
16.A. if B. because C. then D. though
17.A. doctor B. friend C. neighbour D. player
18.A.visited B. hired C. designed D. sold
19.A. smiled B. laughed C. cried D.nodded
20.A. chance B. pleasure C. turn D. time
—Does Bill do his new job well?
—____ his old job. I’m afraid there’s no hope for him.
A. No better than B. Not better than
C. Not so well as D. Not as well as
____ our teacher will allow ____ early after examination?
A. Who do you think; leaving B. Do you think who; to leave
C. Do you think who; leaving D. Who do you think; to leave
Not until the heavy snow blocked the express ____ how serious the weather was.
A. the villagers did realize
B. the villagers realized
C. did the villagers realize
D. didn’t the villagers realize
—Where did you see your friend?
—It was in the super market ____ I was doing shopping.
A. where B. which C. that D. when
