Question

A few years ago，my friend Al won the lottery. It changed his life. He did not have a rich family. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Instead，my friend was always hard up for cash. He did not have much money. And the money he did earn was chicken feed — very little.

Sometimes Al even had to accept handouts，gifts from his family and friends. But do not get me wrong. My friend was not a deadbeat. He was not the kind of person who never paid the money he owed. He simply pinched pennies. He was always very careful with the money he spent. In fact，he was often a cheapskate. He did not like to spend money. The worst times were when he was flat broke and had no money at all.

One day，Al scraped together a few dollars for a lottery ticket. He thought he would never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly. But his combination of numbers was chosen and he won the lottery. He hit the jackpot. He won a great deal of money.

Al was so excited. The first thing he did was buy a costly new ear. He splurged on the one thing that he normally would not buy. Then he started spending money on unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn. He had more money than he needed and it was burning a hole in his pocket so he spent it quickly.

When we got together for a meal at a restaurant，Al paid every time. He would always foot the bill，and pick up the tab. He told me the money made him feel like a million dollars. He was very happy.

But，Al spent too much money. Soon my friend was down and out again. He had no money left. He was back to being strapped for cash. He had spent his bottom dollar, his very last amount. He did not even build up a nest egg. He had not saved any of the money.

I admit I do feel sorry for my friend. He had enough money to live like a king. Instead，he is back to living on a shoestring—a very low budget. Some might say he is penny wise and pound foolish. He is wise about small things，but not about important things.

1.The underlined word “pinched” in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to “___________”.

A. took     B. carried

C. squeezed D. spent

2.How did Al feel at first after he bought a lottery ticket?

A. He expected to win the lottery.

B. He was excited to wait for the money.

C. He didn’t think he could win the lottery.

D. He regretted spending money for a lottery ticket.

3.Why did A1 live a poor life again after he won the lottery?

A. Because he lost a lot of money he had won.

B. Because he spent much money freely on unnecessary things.

C. Because his friend borrowed much money from him.

D. Because he gave away a lot of money to others.

4.What can we learn from the story of Al?

A. Keep on and you will succeed one day.

B. Do not pick up the sesame seeds but overlook the watermelons.

C. It is no use crying over spilt milk.

D. No pains, no gains.

Answer

1.C

2.C

3.B

4.B

【解析】

试题分析：我的朋友Al在中彩票之后经历了短暂的富裕生活，然后继续过着跟之前一样的穷困潦倒，生活处处节俭的日子，以他对于小事情精打细算，对于重要的事却忽略不管来告诫：不要注重了小事就忽略大事。

1.词义猜测题。He simply pinched pennies，指的是他简单地捏着便士。近似意义的只有squeeze紧握，选C。

2.细节理解题。从第三段中“He thought he would never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly.” "他以为他将永远不会发财或意外地获得很多钱。选C。

3.细节理解题。从第四段“Then he started spending money on unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn.”他开始将钱花在很多不必要的事情上。他开始浪费钱。那就像他在烧钱一样。选B。

4.主旨概括题。主要结合文章最后一段，可知不能在意小事就不管大事了，选B。

考点：考察人物类短文阅读