While reading a book in English, every few lines of text, you run across a word or two that you don’t know. You look up every new word in the dictionary. Bad move. All that does slow you down. Even electric or CD –ROM dictionaries can get in the way of your reading progress. A dictionary is like a road map. It can help you if you get lost and point you in the right direction. But if you stop to look at the “map” each time you take a step, you’ll get nowhere fast.
On your English learning “journey”, a dictionary can be a helpful “travel companion ”--if it is not overused. To help you start thinking in English, use an English-to-English dictionary. Otherwise, you will always depend on your native language and end up translating in your head.
A good dictionary can help you do more than just find the meaning of a word. It can help you verify spelling, check word forms and grammar usage, find example sentence and learn pronunciation. Some dictionaries even provide exercises to teach you how to use their resources.
Take time to get to know your dictionary. Learn the pronunciation symbols. Understand what the abbreviations (缩写字) mean. Try to master the important grammar rules. Look for charts, diagrams and lists that might be useful in the future. You will discover how helpful it can be to make friends with your dictionary. And as they say, “A friend in need is a friend indeed.”Why do we need a good English-to-English dictionary?
| A．Because it is a good friend. |
| B．Because it can help us to find the right direction if we get lost. |
| C．Without it we’ll always depend on our native language and end up translating in our head. |
| D．Because it can help us to start thinking in English and in Chinese. |
The underlined word “that” in the last paragraph refers to __________.
| A．pronunciation symbols and grammar rules |
| B．abbreviations and usage for grammar rules |
| C．the meaning of a word, spelling and grammar usage |
| D．charts, diagrams and lists |
According to the passage, which statement can lead you to believe?
| A．The more you use a dictionary, the better you can understand the article. |
| B．The more you use a dictionary, the faster you may read. |
| C．The more you use the resources in a dictionary, the more you can benefit from it. |
| D．The better a dictionary is, the more expensive it is. |
To see the world is one thing; to have someone to share it with is another. Indeed, travel becomes more interesting when you have a travel partner. A travel partner can be a close friend, a family member, a pal you’ve met online, or a business friend.
You can have someone to talk to
Traveling alone is fun, but wouldn’t you feel lonely? Having a travel partner can remove the feeling of loneliness. This is especially true if you can get a travel companion who is very familiar with the place you’re traveling to. You don’t have to ask any information from the locals, and you can increase the time you spend in the country.
One of the major headaches in traveling is the costs involved. You can’t simply ignore the rising price of hotels or plane tickets. You should also think about your daily needs, such as your food. Of course, you can’t simply go back without bringing any souvenirs (纪念品) to your friends and family. All these can ruin your budget. However, when you have a travel friend, you can have someone to share the expenses with.
You can meet a good friend
Having a travel mate is a good way of meeting a new friend or even a lifelong partner. You can never count the number of couples who actually found their way into each other’s heart while traveling together in another country.
You can have someone to watch out for you
When you’re in a foreign land, you’ll never be really safe. You don’t know the rules as well as the culture of the people. A travel will be perfect to remind you of your duties in the country and to watch your back just in case you get lost. So why don’t you find a travel companion now!
Let’s find out how…What’s the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
| A．To introduce a travel company. |
| B．To encourage us to have a travel partner. |
| C．To explain how to be a perfect travel partner. |
| D．To tell an interesting experience with a travel partner. |
What’s the best title for the 3rd paragraph?
| A．You can have someone to share the expenses with |
| B．You can know the local culture well |
| C．You can enjoy food with your partner |
| D．You can save money by bargaining together |
Which of the following statements agrees with the author’s opinion?
| A．Traveling alone is not fun. |
| B．Buying souvenirs isn’t necessary. |
| C．Many people fall in love when traveling. |
| D．It’s better to choose a stranger as a travel partner. |
Which of the following things is NOT mentioned?
| A．A travel partner can help you take care of your child. |
| B．A travel partner can help get rid of loneliness. |
| C．A travel partner can help you save money. |
| D．A travel partner can make you safer. |
If you want to become a fluent English speaker you should take some advice: There are four skills in learning English. They are reading, listening, speaking, and writing. The most important thing you must remember is that if you want to improve your speaking and writing skills you should first master the skills of reading and listening.
Read as much as you can. But your reading must be active. It means that you must think about the meaning of the sentence, the meanings of the unfamiliar words, etc. There is no need for you to pay much attention to grammars or try to understand all the unfamiliar words you come across, but the fact that you see them for the first time and recognize them whenever you see them, for example in other passages or books, is enough. It would be better to prepare yourself a notebook so you can write down the important words or sentences in it.
As for listening, there are two choices: besides reading, you can listen every day for about 30 minutes. You can only pay attention to your reading and become skillful at your reading, then you can catch up on your listening. Since you have lots of inputs in your mind, you can easily guess what the speaker is going to say. This never means that you should not practice listening.
For listening you can listen to cartoons or some movies that are specially made for children. Their languages are easy. Or if you are good at listening you can listen to VOA or BBC programs every day. Again the thing to remember is being active in listening and preferably taking some notes.
If you follow these pieces of advice, your speaking and writing will improve automatically, and you can be sure that with a little effort they will become perfect.According to the author, which should you improve first among the four skills?
| A．Reading and listening. |
| B．Reading and writing. |
| C．Writing and speaking. |
| D．Speaking and listening. |
The underlined phrase “come across” in Paragraph 2 can probably be replaced by“”.
| A．meet by accident |
| B．discover |
| C．find on purpose |
| D．look for |
The author seems to agree with the view that .
| A．everyone should listen to VOA or BBC programs every day |
| B．you needn’t practice listening if you keep on reading every day |
| C．being good at reading is helpful in improving your listening |
| D．you should take notes of whatever you are hearing |
The passage is mainly about how to .
| A．choose suitable listening materials |
| B．deal with new words in reading |
| C．improve your English as quickly as possible |
| D．become fluent in speaking and writing English |
My friend Karen and I were always together. Karen was only a few months older than I. I always thought she was so beautiful, with long hair and blue eyes. I loved Karen so much because she liked me for being the way I was. I could be myself and share my secrets with her and I never felt like I was being judged.
We had so much fun and were really quite silly. One time I asked my mom to make us the same dresses so we could pretend we were twins.
We continued as best friends throughout grade school. One day, Karen was going to another friend’s place and asked me to come along, but I couldn’t go because I had a babysitting job that afternoon. We walked together to the Becker’s home where I was to babysit and then she continued on her way without me. We had agreed that I would meet her at the corner when she returned and I finished my job.
At four o’clock I rushed to the corner so I wouldn’t be late for meeting Karen. Just as I arrived at the corner, I saw Karen crossing the street. In a second it happened. I saw Karen’s body fly up in the sky. A car had hit her！
Karen was on life support for a week before it was decided that they would allow her to go in peace. Karen’s parents wanted to donate her organs(器官)to the hospital, but there was nothing left healthy enough to be used because she was hit so hard.
I have never got so close to another person since Karen died. I do miss her! Do you cherish(珍惜)your friends? If you don’t, please do, as you may lose them one day.What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．A horrible car accident |
| B．An unforgettable experience |
| C．My dearest friend—Karen |
| D．An unforgettable girl |
When Karen was hit by a car, she was .
| A．on her way to a friend’s place |
| B．on her way to the Becker’s home |
| C．shouting to the writer who was so far from her |
| D．heading to the corner where she and the writer would meet |
Why were Karen’s organs unable to be donated?
| A．Because her parents refused to do that. |
| B．Because all of her organs were seriously damaged. |
| C．Because the doctors thought it was too cruel. |
| D．Because no patients needed organs in the hospital then. |
What does the writer suggest we do?
| A．Cherish our friends. |
| B．Accept the fact that people die. |
| C．Be careful when crossing the street. |
| D．Never be too close to someone. |
Children are getting so fat that they may be the first generation to die before their parents, an expert says.
Today's young people will be affected by potential (潜在的) killers such as heart disease because of their weight. Fatty fast－food diets combined with the lifestyles with televisions and computers could mean kids will die young, says Professor Andrew Prentice, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. At the same time, the shape of the human body is going through a great change because adults are getting so fat.
Here in Britain, the latest research shows that the average waist size for a man is 36～38 inches and may be 42～44 inches by 2032.This compares with only 32.6 inches in 1972. Women's waists have grown from an average of 22 inches in the 1920s to 24 inches in the 1950s and 30 inches now. One of the major reasons why children now are at greater risk is that we are getting fatter younger. In the UK alone, more than one million under 16 years old are thought
to be overweight or fat—double the number in the 1980s. One in ten of four－year－olds are also medically said to be obese.
The obesity which started in the US, has now spread to Europe, Australia, Central America and the Middle East. Many nations now record more than 20 percent of their population as obese and well over half of the population as overweight.
Professor Prentice says the change in our shape has been caused by high－energy foods combined with a dramatic (急剧的) drop in the energy we use as a result of technology developments.
He is not alone in his concern. Only last week one medical magazine revealed how obesity was fuelling a rise in cancer cases. Obesity also increases the risk factor for heart disease and so on. An averagely obese person's lifespan (寿命) is shortened by around nine years while a seriously obese person by much more.
Professor Prentice says,
“So_will_parents_live_longer_than_their_children,_as_an_American_obesity_expert_said_recently？”
“The answer is yes—and no.” Yes, when most children become obese. No, because this is now becoming an alarmingly serious problem in the US. “Such children will have a greatly reduced quality of life on both body and mind.”
So say “No” to sandwiches and hamburgers.From the second paragraph, we know that ________.
| A．heart disease is caused by people's weight |
| B．bad living habits make children die young |
| C．increasing weight could kill young people |
| D．adults know how to change their shape of body |
According to Professor Prentice, people become fatter because ________.
| A．the energy people take in is more than they need |
| B．high technology makes people use less energy |
| C．food contains too much energy |
| D．people like to eat fast food |
For the underlined question, the answer “no” suggests ________.
| A．children should refuse fast－food diets |
| B．children's obesity is becoming more and more serious |
| C．Americans have realized the bad consequence of the obesity |
| D．the government should call on fat people to lose weight as soon as possible |
Come October and everybody is busy making Christmas plans. The most important thing other than making decisions on buying gifts is decorating your Christmas tree.
Decorating Christmas trees involves every member in the family to contribute and do whatever they can to help with the decorations. Decorating Christmas trees is a fun activity that everyone in the family enjoys doing. Therefore, for innovative (创新的) ideas, it is best to get the whole family together after dinner and have a brain storming
session for new ideas. Children are really innovative and can come up with great suggestions. Well here are some additional ideas that can be beneficial and help you create that new look for your Christmas tree this year.
For decorative purposes it is better that you get an artificial tree. Select a unique theme and look for ideas to create your own decorations. The Internet is a good source for unique ideas and themes. Go in for light decorations that are truly different. Start your shopping early to look for those special lights especially at your local stores. You can even have a personalized Christmas tree theme where you have all your family members' photos hung
from various branches. Hang out of the world decorative pieces that truly stand out. Search for these at your local store or even your attic where you are sure to find some of those long forgotten decorative pieces that have been handed down to you by your grandmother. You can even use dried flowers or make some of your own artificial flowers as decorations.
If you feel you cannot come up with any great ideas, there is no reason to worry. The Internet is full of them. Make a thorough search and you are sure to find a good idea. You can then try innovating on that idea by making your own unique decorations. Enjoy yourself!
44．What is mainly talked about in the passage?
A．Process to celebrate Christmas.
B．Ways to decorate Christmas trees.
C．Places to buy Christmas gifts.
D．Get－together for family members.
45．Why does the author suggest getting children involved in the decoration?
A．Because they like Christmas very much.
B．Because they wish to get more gifts.
C．Because they can come up with new ideas.
D．Because they are more innovative.
46．In order to make Christmas tree theme personalized, you can ________.
A．hang photos of your family members on the branches
B．get an artificial tree from the local shop
C．hang some colored lights on it from home
D．use long forgotten decorative pieces in the attic
47．From the passage we can infer that ________.
A．nothing is more important than decorating the Christmas tree
B．fresh flowers is the best choice to decorate the Christmas tree
C．most of the people shop their Christmas tree on the Internet
D．people begin making preparations for Christmas long before it begins