In 490 B.C. the Greek messenger, Pheidippides , ran about 40 kilometers from the town of “Marathon”to Athens to announce the victory of Athens over Macedon . Since then ,the 42–kilometer “Marathon”race has become a great test for athletes. However, for many years , only men were allowed to run this race , because the distance was said to be unbearable for women. In 1966, an American women named Roberta Gibb proved that idea wrong.
Gibb had always enjoyed running .One day in 1964 , she saw the Boston Marathon happening as she was running in the woods. Since running meant a lot to her, she began training harder , hoping to join the marathon some day.
Gibb finally applied to run in the 1966 Boston Marathon, but she was not given entrance because the Boston Marathon Association considered that women were not strong enough to run 42 kilometers . Yet, this was no obstacle to Gibb, for she knew she had the physical and mental strength to complete the race .On the day the 1966 Boston Marathon was held , Gibb hid in the bushes and jumped into the race when it began. She finished the race in 3 hours and 21 minutes, defeating two thirds of the men in the race and proving that women could run the marathon.
Although what Gibb did was only to realize her dream, in doing so she showed the world that women could accomplish greater things than many people believed they could.why were women forbidden to run the 42–km marathon ?
| A．Training was only provided for men . |
| B．Women could not work as messengers. |
| C．Women were believed too weak to finish it. |
| D．It was a race held only for professional athletes |
What did Roberta Gibb do to prepare herself for the Boston Marathon ?
| A．She dressed herself as a man. |
| B．She trained herself harder than before. |
| C．She found a job in the Boston Marathon Association . |
| D．She hid in the bushes, waiting for the end of the race. |
What happened to Gibb in the 1966 Boston Marathon?
| A．Her application wasn’t accepted. |
| B．She was asked to train harder . |
| C．Her determination amazed people. |
| D．She was welcome to run the race. |
According to the text ,what can we learn from Roberta Gibb’s story?
| A．Most women ran slower than men in marathons. |
| B．Joining marathons is the best way to prove one’s strength. |
| C．It takes at least two years to train to become a marathon runner. |
| D．Women may be able to achieve greater things than they’re expected. |
Once there was an old man in a town. He always forgot a lot of things. So his wife always had to say to him, “Don’t forget this!”
One day he went on a long trip alone. Before he left home, his wife said, “Now you have all these things. They are what you need for your trip. Take care of your things during the trip.” He went to the station, bought a ticket and got on the train with it.
About half an hour later, the conductor began to see the tickets. He came to the old man and said, “Will you please show me your ticket?” The old man looked for his ticket in all his pockets, but he could not find it. He was very worried. “I can’t find my ticket. I really bought a ticket before I got on the train.” said the old man.
“I believe you bought a ticket. All right, you don’t have to buy another one,” said the conductor kindly. “But how can I know where I’m going? – I can’t remember my station!”the old man said sadly.The old man in the story was very ______.
| A．kind | B．poor | C．forgetful | D．sad |
Where is the ticket? _______
| A．The old man forgot to buy it. |
| B．The old man could not remember where it was. |
| C．The old man showed it to the conductor. |
| D．The old man’s wife took the ticket away. |
The old bought the ticket _____ he got on the train.
| A．after | B．before | C．as | D．when |
The conductor ______ the old man.
| A．didn’t believe | B．laughed at | C．believed | D．felt sorry for |
The old man was sad because _______
| A．he had to buy another ticket. |
| B．he lost all the things his wife gave him. |
| C．he did not know where he was. |
| D．he did not know where he should get off. |
Every day when I enter the classroom, I will take a look at the wall beside my seat. You will find nothing special about this old wall if you just look at it. But for the students in my class, it is a special wall. Take a good look at it, and you will get to know the real feelings and thoughts of us, the 9th graders.
In the middle of the wall, there is a big "VICTORY". It was written in pencil. I guess it must have been written by someone who got a good mark in an exam.
A little higher above the formulas, there is a poem. It only has two sentences. It reads: All those sweet memories have disappeared. Like tears dropping in the heavy rain. Oh! It must have been written at the end of the last semester in middle school. Classmates had to leave school and good friends had to part. What a sad poem!
If you "explore" the wall more carefully, you will find many other interesting things, like a crying face, or a happy face, and other patterns(图案). There are still some patterns and letters that I can't understand, but they all show the feeling of the students who drew them.
For years, the wall has witnessed(目睹) all the things that have happened in the classroom. I don't know how it will be next year, two years from now, or even ten years from now. But I hope more smiling faces will be drawn on it.There is ____ special on this wall.
| A．something | B．anything | C．nothing | D．everything |
What was the "VICTORY" written in?
| A．Chalk | B．Pencil | C．Pen | D．Brush |
When has the poem been written?
| A．At the beginning of the last semester. |
| B．At the end of the year. |
| C．At the end of the last semester. |
| D．At the beginning of the last month. |
What's the meaning of the underlined word?
| A．部分 | B．分离 | C．和好 | D．聚集 |
What's the title of the passage?
| A．The Pictures of the Wall |
| B．The Feelings of the Students |
| C．The Patterns of the Classroom |
| D．The Hope of the Writer |
Do you know what the White House is? Perhaps some of you do，while others don't.
The White House is a house in Washington. The president of the U.S.A. lives in it. It's really white. But do you know why the White House is white? The story happened in 1812. That year England was at war with America. The British army got to Washington and set the president's house on fire. In 1814，in order to hide the marks of the fire，the stone walls of the president's house were painted white and it has been the "White House” ever since.White House is a house for ___________.
A. the American people.
B. the soldiers of U.S.A.
C. the presidents of U.S.A.
D. the patients of U.S.A.England fought with America in ____________.
| A．1810 | B．1812 | C．1814 | D．1916 |
The house is called "White House" because ____________.
| A．it's covered with snow |
| B．the house is very clean |
| C．the stone walls of the house were painted white |
| D．they like white colour |
The White House was painted white because ____________.
| A．the house is old |
| B．the house is new |
| C．it was once on fire and was with marks |
| D．they have enough paint |
"ever since" means ___________.
| A．never | B．once | C．from then on | D．Before |
Jack is a twenty-year-old young man. Two years ago, when he finished middle school, he found work in a shop. Usually he works until ten o'clock in the evening. He is very tired when he gets home. After a quick supper he goes to bed and soon falls asleep. His grandma who lives downstairs is satisfied with (满意) him.
One day, on his way home, he met Mary. They were both happy. He asked the girl to his house, she agreed happily. He bought some fruit and drinks for her. And they talked about their school, teachers, classmates and their future (未来). They talked for a long time.
"Have a look at your watch, please," said the girl. "What time is it now?"
"Sorry, something is wrong with my watch," said Jack. "Where's yours?"
"I left it at home."
Jack thought for a moment and found a way. He began to stamp his foot on the floor, "Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The sound woke his grandma up. The old woman shouted downstairs, "It's twelve o'clock in the night, Jack. Why are you still jumping upstairs?"Jack was ________ when he finished middle school.
| A．sixteen | B．eighteen | C．twenty | D．fifteen |
The old woman is satisfied with Jack because ________.
| A．he's her grandson | B．he's clever |
| C．he can keep quiet | D．he gets home on time |
From the story, we can know that Mary is Jack's ________.
| A．classmate | B．colleague (同事) | C．aunt | D．wife |
The word "stamp" in the story means ______ in Chinese.
| A．盖印 | B．跺 | C．贴邮票 | D．承认 |
Jack stamped his foot on the floor in order (为了) ________.
| A．to wake his grandma up |
| B．to make his grandma angry |
| C．that his grandma was going to tell him the time |
| D．that his grandma was going to buy him a watch |
After a serious earthquake happened, a father left his wife safely at home and rushed to his son's school, only to find that the building where his son studied had collapsed and looked like a pancake.
He was shocked. He didn't know what he should do for a while, then he remembered the words he had said to his son, "No matter what happens, I'll always be there for you! "And tears began to fill his eyes. He started digging through the ruins (废墟).
As he was digging, other helpless parents and the firemen arrived and tried to pull him off the ruins, saying, "It's too late! They're all dead! There's nothing you can do! " To them he replied with one line, "Are you going to help me now? " And then he kept on digging.
No one helped, however. He went on alone because he needed to know for himself: "Is my boy alive or is he dead? " He dug for eight hours. . . 12 hours. . . 24 hours. . . 36 hours. . . then, in the 39th hour, he pulled back a rock and heard his son's words. He shouted his son's name, "ARMAND! " He heard back, "Dad!?! It's me, Dad! I told the other kids not to worry. I told them that if you were alive, you'd save me and when you saved me, they'd be saved. You promised, 'No matter what happens, I'll always be there for you!' You did it, Dad! "
"What's going on in there? How is it? " the father asked.
"There are 14 of us left out of 33, Dad. We're frightened, hungry, thirsty and thankful you're here. When t he building fell down, it made a triangle (三角) , and it saved us. "
"Come out, boy! "
"No, Dad! Let the other kids out first, because I know you'll get me! No matter what happens, I know you'll always be there for me! "The underlined word "collapsed" probably means " ".
| A．break down | B．shake away | C．stand by | D．fall into |
Who came to help the father when he was digging?
| A．His wife. | B．Other parents. | C．The firemen. | D．No one. |
Other parents and the firemen wanted to pull him off the ruins because they thought .
| A．he was mad |
| B．all the children had died in the earthquake |
| C．he was too dangerous to others |
| D．it was not his job to dig |
How many students were already dead when the father found them in the ruins?
| A．Fourteen. | B．Thirty-three. | C．Forty-seven. | D．Nineteen. |
We can learn from the passage that .
| A．it took the father one day to find his son and other students |
| B．his wife died in the earthquake |
| C．his son was the last one to come out of the ruins |
| D．the son didn't believe his father would come to save him |