My grandparents were married for over half a century, and played their own special game from the time they had met each other. The goal of their game was to write the word "shmily" in a 31 place for the other to find. They took turns leaving "shmily" around the house, and as soon as one of them 32 it, it was their turn to hide it once more.
There was no 33 to the places where "shmily" would appear. Sometimes, "Shmily" was written in the 34 left on the mirror after a hot shower, where it would reappear bath after bath. 35 , my grandmother even unrolled an entire roll of toilet paper to 36 "shmily" on the very last sheet.
It took me a long time before I was able to fully 37 my grandparents' game. It was 38 their funny little game; it was a way of life. Grandma and Grandpa held hands every chance they could. They 39 kisses as they ran into each other in their tiny kitchen. Before every meal they bowed their heads and gave their 40 : a wonderful family, good fortune, and 41 .
But there was a 42 cloud in my grandparents' life: my grandmother had breast cancer, which had first appeared ten years earlier. As always, Grandpa was with her every
43 of the way. He comforted her in their yellow room, painted that way 44____ she could always be surrounded by sunshine, even when she was too 45 to go outside. Then one day, what we all 46 finally happened. Grandma was gone.
"Shmily." It was written in yellow on the pink ribbons of my grandmother's funeral bouquet. As the crowd 47 and the last mourners (哀悼者) turned to leave, my aunts, uncles, cousins and other family members 48 and gathered around Grandma 49 . Grandpa stepped up to my grand-mother's casket and, 50 with sorrow, he began to sing to her. Through his tears and grief, the song came, a deep and throaty lullaby (摇篮曲).
SHMILY: See how much I love you.
A．exact B．surprising C．usual D．regular
A．discovered B．defeated C．folded D．announced
A．start B．point C．doubt D．end
A．steam B．water C．air D．dust
A．In an instant B．As a result C．At one point D．Once for all
A．link B．leave C．find D．attract
A．enjoy B．attend C．handle D．appreciate
A．similar to B．due to C．rather than D．more than
A．rejected B．lacked C．stole D．assessed
A．blessings B．orders C．guides D．treats
A．a peaceful world B．each other C．delicious food D．happy time
A．colorful B．dark C．strange D．splendid
A．step B．minute C．time D．moment
A．in case B．even if C．as well as D．so that
A．comfortable B．sick C．cautious D．thrilled
A．hoped B．dreamed C．feared D．loved
A．thinned B．increased C．swelled D．approached
A．came forward B．set off C．broke away D．sat down
A．over and over again B．for one thing C．one last time D．here and there
A．shaking B．smiling C．leaving D．praying
Sometimes I really doubt whether there is love between my parents. Every day they are very busy trying to in order to pay the high tuition for my brother and me. They don’t act in the ways that I read in books or I see on TV. In their opinion, “I love you” is too for them to say. Sending flowers to each other on Valentine’s Day is even more out of .
One day, my mother was sewing a quilt. I sat down beside her. “Mom, I have a question to ask you. Is there between you and Dad?” I asked her in a very low voice. She didn’t answer immediately. She her head and continued to sew the quilt.
I was worried because I thought I had her. I was and I didn’t know what I should do. But at last I heard my mother say the following words:
“Susan,” she said thoughtfully, “Look at this thread. Sometimes it , but most of it disappears in the quilt. The thread really makes the quilt . If life is a quilt, then love should be a thread. It can hardly be seen , but it’s really there. Love is .”
I listened carefully but I her until the next spring. At that time, my father suddenly seriously. My mother had to stay with him in the hospital for a month. When they returned from the hospital, they both looked _ . It seemed both of them had had a serious illness. After they were back, every day in the morning and dusk, my mother helped my father on the country road.
“Dad, how are you feeling now?” I asked him one day.
“Susan, don’t me.” He said gently. “To tell you the truth, I just like walking with your mom.” his eyes, I know he loves my mother deeply.
Once I thought love meant flowers, gifts and . But from this experience, I understand that love is just in the quilt of our life. Love is inside, making life strong and warm.
A．keep fit B．rise early C．earn money D．collect money
A．magic B．romantic C．fantastic D．attractive
A．simple B．easy C．relaxing D．luxurious
A．control B．question C．reach D．the question
A．feeling B．love C．quarrel D．smile
A．raised B．Shook C．nodded D．bowed
A．hurt B．Injured C．wounded D．harmed
A．in great surprise B．in a great embarrassment C．with deep depression D．at extreme sorrow
A．happens B．comes about C．appears D．occurs
A．warm and soft B．hot and hard C．thin and cool D．strong and durable
A．somewhere and sometime B．anywhere or anytime C．more or less D．here and there
A．inside B．outside C．faraway D．nearby
A．could believe B．couldn’t understand C．wouldn’t recognize D．might know
A．got sick B．got stuck C．threw up D．became disabled
A．quite healthy B．very pale C．fairly red D．much surprised
A．jump high B．go hurriedly C．run fast D．walk slowly
A．think about B．talk with C．worry about D．laugh at
A．Reading B．Seeing C．Saying D．Writing
A．fresh roses B．gold ring C．sweet kisses D．beautiful jewelry
A．a thread B．a needle C．the cloth D．the cotton
James sat outside the office waiting for the interview. He felt so that he didn’t know what to do with .The person who had gone in him had been there for nearly an hour. And she looked so confident when she went in. James. He felt that she had already got the . The problem was that he wanted this job 47 .It meant to him. He had it such a lot before the day of the interview. He had imagined himself brilliantly at the interview and the job immediately. But now here he was feeling .He couldn’t all those things he had to say. At that moment, he almost decided to get up and .But no—he had to do this. He had spent so much time considering it that he couldn’t like that. His hands were hot and sticky and his mouth felt dry. At last the door of the office opened. The woman who had gone in an hour earlier came out looking very with herself. She smiled sympathetically at James. At that moment James her. The managing director then appeared at the office door. “Would you like to come in now, Mr Davis? I’m sorry to have kept you waiting.” James suddenly that he had gone home after all. He got up, legs and forehead sweating and wondered whether he looked as terrified as he felt.
A．healthy B．nervous C．careless D．confident
A．the managing director B．the woman C．himself D．the situation
A．by B．with C．before D．after
A．Not like B．So did C．Do as D．Do like
A．doubtful B．sure C．angry D．astonishing
A．reward B．first C．prize D．job
A．hopelessly B．naturally C．easily D．so much
A．everything B．happiness C．difficulty D．nothing
A．dreamed of B．learned of C．thought about D．talked about
A．explaining B．performing C．answering D．performed
A．offered B．asked for C．being offered D．being asked for
A．crazy B．excited C．probable D．terrible
A．depend on B．afford C．believe in D．remember
A．kept B．been taught C．planned D．been supplied
A．leave B．go in C．prepare D．practise
A．take back B．put off C．give up D．put down
A．ugly B．pleased C．sad D．pretty
A．noticed B．loved C．missed D．hated
A．thought B．hoped C．wished D．regretted
A．shaking B．bending C．walking D．stopping
Though giant pandas may appear perfectly happy chewing bamboos, scientists recently discovered that they would rather have something sweeter. Scientists chose because the animals are herbivores (食草动物), which would mean that they would love sweets. However, the plant they choose, the bamboos, has a very sugar content and is therefore not considered sweet. Could this mean that pandas have their hobby for sweet things?
The pandas were given six kinds of sweet liquids that are found in fruits and vegetables. They were also given at the same time. In each of the taste tests, the animals the natural sweeter liquids and ignored the water . They ate up all the sweet liquids and the water was left untouched.
What was even more interesting is that when the scientists the water with five different man-made sweeteners, ones that humans find delicious, the pandas were not as . In these tests, they picked the water instead. The scientists believe that it could be either because pandas found them to be too or not sweet enough and that the mixture could not the pandas.
The scientists were not too by the results, since pandas in zoos have always shown a preference for treats like apples, sweet potatoes and even mooncakes. Scientists believe that the pandas may have once sweeter foods that were available in the lowland areas that they used to live in. But when human settlement in the lowland areas them to the bamboo forests in the mountains, they had no but to settle for the almost sugarless plants.
A．horses B．bears C．monkeys D．pandas
A．high B．simple C．low D．different
A．lost B．followed C．started D．kept
A．specially B．hardly C．naturally D．rarely
A．fruits B．water C．bamboos D．oxygen
A．picked B．hid C．rejected D．shared
A．largely B．gradually C．occasionally D．completely
A．mixed B．covered C．exchanged D．replaced
A．funny B．picky C．perfect D．interested
A．salty B．sweet C．sour D．hot
A．harm B．save C．attract D．change
A．Delighted B．surprised C．disappointed D．concerned
A．Enjoyed B．disliked C．controlled D．ignored
A．Encouraged B．forced C．introduced D．guided
A．desire B．chance C．wonder D．choice
Inspiration
“Mama, when I grow up, I’m going to be one of those!” I said this after seeing the Capital Dancing Company perform when I was three. It was the first time that my ___ took on a vivid form and acted as something important to start my training. As I grew older and was ____ to more, my interests in the world of dance ____ varied but that little girl’s dream of someday becoming a ___ in the company never left me. In the summer of 2005 when I was 18, I received the phone call which made that dream a ____; I became a member of the company ____ back to 1925.
As I look back on that day now, it surely ____ any sense of reality. I believe I stayed in a state of pleasant disbelief ____ I was halfway through rehearsals (排练) on my first day. I never actually ___ to get the job. After being offered the position, I was completely ___. I remember shaking with excitement.
Though I was absolutely thrilled with the change, it did not come without its fair share of _ _. Through the strict rehearsal period of dancing six days a week, I found it vital to _ up the material fast with every last bit of concentration. It is that extreme ____ to detail and stress on practice that set us ____. To then follow those high-energy rehearsals __ a busy show schedule of up to five performances a day, I discovered a new ___ of the words “hard work.” What I thought were my physical ____ were pushed much further than I thought _ _. I learned to make each performance better than the last.
Today, when I look at the unbelievable company that I have the great ____ of being a part of, not only as a member, but as a dance captain, I see a ___ that has inspired not only generations of little girls but a splendid company that continues to develop and grow-and inspires people every day to follow their dreams.
A．hobby B．plan C．dream D．word
A．connected B．expanded C．exposed D．extended
A．rarely B．certainly C．probably D．consistently
A．director B．trainer C．leader D．dancer
A．symbol B．memory C．truth D．reality
A．bouncing B．dating C．turning D．tracking
A．lacks B．adds C．makes D．brings
A．while B．since C．until D．when
A．Cared B．Expected C．Asked D．Decided
A．motivated B．relaxed C．convinced D．astonished
A．challenges B．profits C．advantages D．adventures
A．put B．mix C．build D．pick
A．Attention B．association C．attraction D．adaptation
A．apart B．aside C．off D．back
A．over B．by C．with D．beyond
A．function B．meaning C．expression D．usage
A．boundaries B．problems C．barriers D．efforts
A．necessary B．perfect C．proper D．possible
A．talent B．honor C．potential D．responsibility
A．victory B．trend C．tradition D．desire
My daughter has been crazy about raising a pet for a long time. Last spring I bought two newly-hatched(孵化) chickens for her. She got and took good care of them. , a few days later, both chickens died. She burst into tears because of .I helped her the two birds under a tree behind our house. I thought it would be the of her ideas.
, I was wrong . Children are children . The failure hasn’t my daughter in any way. She still tried to keep a small animal or even a snail.
One day last winter, I noticed under the eaves(屋檐) of the house a family of sparrows(麻雀). My daughter and I could the sparrows as our “pets”, but we didn’t.
So I told her to the grains on the windowsill（窗台）. A few minutes later, the sparrows came to land on the windowsill and pecked(啄) at the rice. Suddenly my daughter asked me, Mum, can we catch and the sparrows, and let them live with us in the room？ How it is for them to live outside？
“Oh, my dear. I do not think it’s a good idea. You know,” I explained to her, “the sparrow is a bird who loves .No one can keep them in a cage. If they are caught, they will quickly. They are to living outside. Moreover, they have warm nest under the eaves.
From then on, we have set up a kind of with the sparrow family. We feed them frequently and them as pet birds. However, we do not need to them. We seeing these little birds flying and jumping among branches, leaves and flowers in the spring morning.
A．exciting B．excited C．disappointed D．encouraged
A．Naturally B．Suddenly C．Unfortunately D．Finally
A．leaving B．their death C．the chickens D．them
A．Bury B．put C．dig D．set
A．end B．beginning C．wish D．reality
A．Thus B．Then C．However D．Therefore
A．at all B．in all C．after all D．for all
A．encourage B．upset C．help D．impress
A．look B．act C．feed D．catch
A．throw B．pour C．pile D．scatter
A．one after another B．one another C．every other D．each other
A．stay B．love C．cage D．watch
A．free B．happy C．cold D．warm
A．freedom B．spring C．flying D．trees
A．please B．starve C．suffer D．die
A．safe B．used C．proud D．happy
A．neighbor B．understanding C．friendship D．relationship
A．think B．treat C．dream D．appreciate
A．hurt B．possess C．belong to D．hatch
A．enjoy B．would like C．want D．consider