阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36---55 各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms(习语), though my teacher emphasized (强调)the importance again and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown 36 an amusing experience.
One day, I 37 to meet an English man on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I 38 about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be 39 , gently shaking his head, shrugging (耸一耸) his shoulders, saying, “You don't say!” “You don't say!” I was puzzled. I thought, perhaps this is not an proper topic. Well, I'd 40 change the topic. So I said to him. “Well. 41 we talk about the Great Wall? 42 the way, have you ever 43 there?” “Certainly , everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing 44 . It was magnificent.” He was 45 in thought when I began to talk 46 a tourist guide, “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are very 47 of it.” Soon I was interrupted again by his order... “You don't say!” I couldn't help asking, “Why do you ask me 48 about it”? “Well, I didn't request you to do 49 ,” he answered, greatly 50 . I said, “Didn't you say 'you don't say'?” 51 this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to 52 , “ 'You don't say' actually means 'really?' It is an 53 of surprise. Perhaps you don't pay attention to English idioms.” 54 then did I know I have made a fool of 55 . Since then I have been more careful with idiomatic expressions.
A．in B．for C．by D．to
A．came B．happened C．seemed D．wanted
A．would talk B．had talked C．was to talk D．was talking
A．understood B．understanding C．surprised D．surprising
A．to B．better C．not D．like
A．Shall B．Will C．Must D．Do
A．On B． In C．All D．By
A．gone B．visited C．seen D．been
A．it B．them C．anything D．something
A．losing B．lose C．lost D．losed
A．as B．to C．with D．like
A．glad B．satisfied C．proud D．familiar
A．not talk B．to not talk C．not to talk D．not talking
A．this B．so C．anything D．me a favour
A．encouraged B．frightened C．please D．surprised
A．Heard B．To hear C．Hearing D．Listening
A．explain B．shout C．prove D．say
A．experience B．expression C．explanation D．example
A．From B．Since C．By D．Only
A．me B．myself C．mine D．somebody
Elizabeth Clay decided to go home and spend the holiday with her parents. The next day she drove her old car home along the road. ___36___ she found she got a flat. The 22-year-old student ___37___to stop her car by the side of the road in the winter night and opened the trunk. no ___38___ tire.
At this time, a car ___39___. Paul and Diane told Clay to ___40___ them to a service station near their ___41___. They arrived to see that it had no suitable tires to ___42___ with her car. “Follow us home,” said Paul.
The couple called around to find a tire. No___43___. They decided to let her use their own car. “Here,” Paul said, handing Clay a ___44___ of keys, “Take our car. We ___45___ be using it over the holiday. ”
Clay was ___46. “But I’m going all the way to South Carolina, and I’ll be gone for two weeks,” she ___47___ them.
“We know,” Paul said. “We’ll be ___48___ when you get back. Here’s our number if you need to ___49___ us. ”
Unable to believe her eyes, Clay watched as the ___50___ put her luggage into their car and then ___51___ her off. Two weeks later she ___52___ to find her old car cleaned inside and out with three new tires and the radio ___53___.
“Thank you so much,” she said. “How much do I ___54___ you?” “Oh, no,” Paul said, we don’t want any money. It’s our ___55___. ” Clay realized that while it might have been their pleasure, it was now her duty to pass on their “do unto others” spirit.
36. A. Suddenly B. Finally C. Immediately D. Fortunately
37. A. afforded B. wanted C. allowed D. managed
38. A. spare B. free C. full D. empty
39. A. passed B. stopped C. paused D. started
40. A. help B. push C. take D. follow
41. A. garage B. house C. shop D. hotel
42. A. agree B. match C. go D. deal
43. A. way B. message C. success D. luck
44. A. set B. number C. pair D. chain
45. A. can’t B. shouldn’t C. mustn’t D. won’t
46. A. satisfied B. worried C. astonished D. disturbed
47. A. persuaded B. advised C. reminded D. promised
48. A. happy B. here C. away D. busy
49. A. get in touch with B. keep in touch with
C. be in touch with D. put in touch with
50. A. repairmen B. cleaners C. friends D. couple
51. A. sent B. shook C. watched D. drove
52. A. shocked B. happened C. returned D. came
53. A. loaded B. fixed C. tied D. rebuilt
54. A. owe B. lend C. give D. offer
55. A. wish B. job C. duty D. pleasure
The birthrate in Europe has been in a steady decrease since the 1960s. European countries, realizing crisis is at hand, are providing great encouragement for parents to create more babies in the 21st century.
Affairs Ministry concluded last year that, ___65___ cash encouragement, some women just don’t want to be ___66___ holding the baby. “What we know is that it’s good for the ___67___ if men and women share the burden of having children, says Soren Kindlund, family policy adviser at the Swedish ministry. ___68___ Swedish parents can take their paid leave as they wish, men use a mere 12% of it; 60% of fathers do not take even a(n)___69___ day off work.
Experts fear that the tendency for women to use most of the parental leave could make employers___70___ to give young women the permanent jobs they need to qualify for paid maternity leave(产假). In January, Sweden decided to allow new fathers two months paid leave, with a warning: use it or___71___ it.
Kindlund admits that men are under ___72___ to stay at work, even though parental pay comes out of the public purse. “It’s not popular among bosses and perhaps with other men in the workplace,. “But it’s good for the father and for the child if they can ___73___ a relationship. ”
In Norway, a(n)___74___ policy has worked wonders. 70% of dads in Norway now take parental leave, and the birthrate of 1. 85 children per woman is one of the highest in Europe.
65. A. in spite of B. at the cost of C. in addition to D. due to
66. A. sent B. left C. caught D. seen
67. A. birthrate B. income C. health D. spirit
68. A. Just as B. Only if C. Even though D. Now that
69. A. one B. mere C. only D. single
70. A. willing B. reluctant C. likely D. unable
71. A. reserve B. misuse C. ignore D. lose
72. A. discussion B. attack C. control D. pressure
73. A. make out B. add up C. build up D. set aside
74. A. impersonal B. similar C. severe D. global
Adults are often surprised by how well they remember something they learned as children but have never practised in the meantime. A man who has not had an opportunity to go swimming for years can ___55___ swim as well as ever when he gets back in the water. He can get on a bicycle after several decades and still ___56___ away. A mother who has not ___57___ the words for years can teach her daughter the poem that begins “Twinkle, twinkle, little star” or recite the story of Cinderella or Snow White.
One explanation is the law of over learning, which can be stated as following: ___58___ we have learned something, additional learning increases the ___59___ of time we will remember it.
In childhood, we usually continue to practise such skills as swimming, bicycle riding long after we have learned them. We continue to listen to and ___60___ ourselves of poems such as “Twinkle, twinkle, little star. We not only learn but ___61___.
The law of over learning explains why cramming(突击学习) for an examination, ___62___ it may result in a passing grade, is not a ___63___way to learn a school course. By cramming, a student may learn the subject well enough to get by on the examination, but he is likely soon to forget almost everything he learned. A little over learning; ___64___, is usually a good investment toward the future.
55. A. only B. hardly C. still D. even
56. A. move B. drive C. travel D. ride
57. A. thought about B. cared for C. showed up D. brought up
58. A. Before B. Once C. Until D. Unless
59. A. accuracy B. unit C. limit D. length
60. A. remind B. inform C. warn D. recall
61. A. recite B. overlearn C. research D. improve
62. A. though B. so C. if D. after
63. A. convenient B. demanding C. satisfactory D. swift
64. A. at most B. by the way C. on the other hand D. in the end
Don’t Take the Fun Out of Youth Sports
When I joined a private football league a few years ago, the sport meant everything to me. My coach(教练) said that I had lots of potential(潜力), and I became captain of my ___36___. That was before all the fun was taken out of ___37___.
At first, everyone on the team got ___38___ playing time. Then the team moved up to the top division after winning all its games, and the ___39___ started. Some parents, who had paid the coach extra so their daughters could have ___40___one-on-one training, got angry when she didn’t give them more playing time in our ___41___. The coach was replaced.
The new coach, however, took all the fun out of the game. All we did during practice was ___42___. I always wished to God that it would rain so we would not have the ___43___. Of course, all teams run drills; they are ___44___. But we ran so much that, afterwards, we had trouble ___45___. Younger people shouldn’t be doing exercises ___46___ for 18-year-olds.
I was very thin ___47___ I started football, but as a member of this team I wouldn’t eat much, because I was afraid of being too ___48___ to run. I feared making mistakes, and the added pressure caused me to make more than my usual ___49___.
Is all this pressure necessary? I ___50___ up leaving the football team. Four other girls did the same, and two of them stopped playing football completely. That’s ___51___, because they had so much potential. They were just burned-out with all the pressure they ___52___ from the coach or their parents.
I continued playing football at school and ___53___ my love for it. I joined a private team coached by my school coach. When I started playing ___54___ him, he told me I needed to relax because I looked nervous. After I ___55___ down, I played better. When you enjoy something, it’s a lot easier to do it well.
36. A. class B. club C. team D. board
37. A. playing B. living C. learning D. working
38. A. great B. equal C. right D. extra
39. A. business B. struggle C. attempt D. pressure
40. A. free B. private C. good D. basic
41. A. matches B. courses C. lessons D. programs
42. A. jump B. play C. run D. shoot
43. A. duty B. meeting C. operation D. training
44. A. necessary B. boring C. scientific D. practical
45. A. speaking B. moving C. sleeping D. breathing
46. A. used B. intended C. made D. described
47. A. till B. since C. before D. because
48. A. full B. tired C. lazy D. big
49. A. size B. share C. space D. state
50. A. gave B. kept C. ended D. picked
51. A. sad B. shameful C. silly D. serious
52. A. received B. suffered C. brought D. felt
53. A. reconsidered B. rediscovered C. reformed D. replaced
54. A. at B. by C. for D. around
55. A. fell B. stepped C. slowed D. calmed
Perhaps the most interesting person I have ever met is an Italian professor of philosophy who teaches at the University of Pisa. ___36___ I last met this man eight years ago, I have not forgotten his ___37___qualities. First of all, I respected his ___38___ to teaching. Because his lectures were always well-prepared and clearly delivered, students crowded into his classroom. His followers liked the fact that he ___39___ what he taught. Further more, he could be counted on to explain his ideas in an ___40___ way, introducing such aids(辅助) to ___41___ as oil paintings, music, and guest lectures. Once he ___42___ sang a song in class in order to make a point clear. ___43___, I admired the fact that he would talk to students outside the classroom or talk with them ___44___ the telephone. Drinking coffee in the cafe, he would easily make friends with students. Sometimes he would ___45___ a student to a game of chess(国际象棋). ___46___, he would join students groups to discuss a variety of ___47___: agriculture, diving and mathematics. Many young people visited him in his office for ___48___ on their studies; others came to his home for social evenings. Finally, I was ___49___ by his lively sense of humor(幽默). He believed that no lesson is a success ___50___, during it the students and the professor ___51___ at least one loud ___52___. Through his sense of humor, he made learning more ___53___ and more lasting. If it is ___54___ that life makes a wise man smile and a foolish man cry, ___55___ my friend is indeed a wise man.
36. A. Although B. When C. Even if D. Now that
37. A. basic B. special C. common D. particular
38. A. attention B. introduction C. relation D. devotion
39. A. insisted on B. talked about C. believed in D. agreed with
40. A. imaginative B. ordinary C. opposite D. open
41. A. listening B. understanding C. information D. discovery
42. A. also B. nearly C. even D. only
43. A. Later B. Secondly C. However D. Therefore
44. A. with B. by C. from D. on
45. A. invite B. lead C. prefer D. show
46. A. As a matter of fact B. Later on
C. Other times D. In general
47. A. questions B. subjects C. matters D. contents
48. A. support B. explanation C. experience D. advice
49. A. disturbed B. moved C. attracted D. defeated
50. A. for B. until C. since D. unless
51. A. hear B. suggest C. share D. demand
52. A. laugh B. cry C. shout D. question
53. A. helpful B. enjoyable C. practical D. useful
54. A. natural B. normal C. hopeful D. true
55. A. so B. for C. then D. yet