An “apple polisher” is one who gives gifts to win friendship or special treatment. It is not exactly a bribe(贿赂), but is close to it.
All sorts of people are apple polishers, including politicians and people in high offices—just about everybody. Oliver Cromwell, the great English leader, offered many gifts to win the support of George Fox and his party, but failed.
There are other phrases meaning the same thing as “apple-polishing”—“soft-soaping” or “buttering-up”. A gift is just one way to “soft-soap” somebody, or to “butter him up”. Another that is just as effective is flattery, giving someone high praise—telling him how good he looks, or how well he speaks, or how talented and wise he is.
Endless are the ways of flattery. Who does not love to hear it? Only an unusual man can resist the thrill of being told how wonderful he is. In truth, flattery is good medicine for most of us, who get so little of it.
We need it to be more sure of ourselves. It cannot hurt unless we get carried away by it. But if we just lap it up for its food value and nourishment, as a cat laps up milk, then we can still remain true to ourselves.
Sometimes, however, flattery will get you nothing from one who has had too much of it. A good example is the famous 12th century legend of King Canute of Denmark and England. The king got tired of listening to endless sickening flattery of his courtiers(朝臣). They overpraised him to the skies, as a man of limitless might.
He decided to teach them a lesson. He took them to the seashore and sat down. Then he ordered the waves to stop coming in. The tide was too busy to listen to him. The king was satisfied. This might show his followers how weak his power was and how empty their flattery.Which of the following activities has nothing to do with “apple-polishing”?
| A．A boy tells his girlfriend how pretty she looks. |
| B．An employee tells her boss how good he is at management. |
| C．A knight is said to be of limitless power by his followers. |
| D．A teacher praises her students for their talent and wisdom. |
What does the writer want to prove with Cromwell’s example?
| A．Everybody can be an apple-polisher. |
| B．Cromwell was not a good apple-polisher. |
| C．George Fox and his party were not apple-polishers. |
| D．There are people who don’t like being apple-polished. |
Which of the following statements about flattery is true according to the author?
| A．Too much flattery can carry us away. |
| B．Flattery is too empty to do people any good. |
| C．Flattery can get you nothing but excessive(过度的) pride. |
| D．Flattery is one of the ways to apple-polish people. |
Why did King Canute of Denmark and England take his followers to the seashore?
| A．Because he was sick of his normal life. |
| B．Because he disliked being overpraised any more. |
| C．Because he wanted them to realize how wise he was. |
| D．Because he wanted them to see how weak he was as a king. |
Who does the author think that flattery can do good to ?
| A．Those who are politicians or in high offices. |
| B．Those who lack confidence. |
| C．Those who are really excellent. |
| D．Those who think highly of themselves. |
“TODAY is a dream comes true. I have always wanted to be a Grand Slam (大满贯) champion.”
These are the words of Chinese tennis player Li Na after she became the first Asian woman to win a Grand Slam final in the French Open on June 4.
“People were saying I’m getting old. So this is a great success for such an old woman,” the 29-year-old joked.
This is the way that Li usually fights doubts– by being humorous and sharp. “China’s number one sister” is never a pushover (软弱的人).
She has a tattoo (纹身). She has dyed (染色) her hair many different colors. And, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she told her fans to “shut up” when they got too noisy in their support.
Li started to play tennis at the age of 6. She once recalled: “As a child, I felt sad because every day I had to wake up early to practice. After school I had to practice more. I didn’t have time to play.”
Luckily, the tough girl didn’t give up, thus making history for Chinese tennis time after time.
Now the new champion is already thinking about winning another Grand Slam title. Her next stop is Wimbledon – the European grass court championship that starts later this month.
“When you have one title, naturally you will think about another,” she says, not hiding her ambition.
“Chinese people are so lacking in confidence on the tennis court. If there is a person like me who can prove we can do it, the other young players in China will feel the same,” she said.Li Na is _________.
| A．a basketball player | B．a table tennis player |
| C．a tennis player | D．a soccer player |
Li Na is the first Asian woman to win a Grand Slam final in______.
| A．the Australian Open Tennis Championships |
| B．the Wimbledon Championships |
| C．the French Open |
| D．the American Open |
From the passage, we know Li Na is ______.
| A．outgoing | B．fashionable | C．tough | D．All above |
Li Na thinks that Chinese people need _______ in most.
| A．independence | B．ability | C．confidence | D．ambition |
Henry works in a factory. He comes from a poor family and was in school for only four years. He has to do the hard work, but he is paid less. He likes to watch football matches very much and spends much time on them.
One afternoon there was a big football match on the playground. He borrowed some money from his friend and hurried there. There were a lot of people there. And all the tickets were sold out. He was sorry for it. He saw a pole outside the playground and climbed it quickly. A policeman came and said, “It is dangerous to stay on it! Come down!”
“Wait a minute, please!” Henry said and just at that moment the policeman heard cheers on the playground and asked in a hurry, “which team has kicked a goal?” “Ours!” “Wonderful! You can stay there. But take care!” The policeman said happily and left. When the match would be soon over, he came back again and asked, “who has won?” “Theirs, 3:2.” “Come down,” the policeman said angrily. “ Such a match is not worth watching!”
Henry had to come down. But soon they heard cheers again. The policeman said in a hurry, “Climb up quickly and see who has kicked a goal.”From the passage we know that _________.
| A．Henry doesn’t like his work |
| B．Henry comes from a rich family. |
| C．Henry is paid less |
| D．Henry doesn’t like the policeman |
Henry failed to get a ticket for the match that day because ___________.
| A．all the tickets were sold out |
| B．he didn’t want to buy a ticket |
| C．he had no time to buy a ticket |
| D．he had no money to buy a ticket |
The policeman asked Henry to come down the pole at first because ____________.
| A．the other team kicked a goal | B．Henry had no ticket |
| C．their team kicked a goal | D．it was dangerous |
From the third paragraph, we can guess that _____________.
| A．the policeman wanted to teach Henry a lesson. |
| B．the policeman was also a football fan. |
| C．the policeman didn’t like Henry. |
| D．the policeman tried to please Henry |
Language-learners who say they never or hardly ever use dictionaries often speak English well but usually write poorly, because they make many mistakes.
The students who use dictionaries most do not learn especially well either. The ones who look up every new word do not read fast. So they do not have time to read much. Those who use small two-language dictionaries have the worst problems. Their dictionaries often give only one or two words as translations (翻译) of English. But one English word often has many translations in a foreign language and one foreign word has many translations in English.
The most successful students are those who use large college edition dictionaries with about 100,000 words but do not use them too often. When they are reading, these students first try to get the general idea and understand new words from the context. Then they reread and use the dictionary to look up only key words that they still do not understand. They use dictionaries more for writing. If they are not sure how to spell a word, or divide it into syllables (音节), they always use a dictionary. Also, if they think a noun might have an unusual plural form, they check these in a dictionary.Students who never use dictionary speak well but write poor, because_______
| A．They can’t remember words. |
| B．They may make mistakes. |
| C．They are not interested in writing. |
| D．They are afraid of writing. |
According to the passage, which of the following is right?
| A．Students who never use dictionary can speak well and write well. |
| B．Whatever new words you meet while reading, just look them up in the dictionary. |
| C．Small two-language dictionaries are bad for learning English. |
| D．An English word only has one translation. |
When does the writer advise students to use a good dictionary in reading?
| A．At the beginning of the reading |
| B．At the end of the reading |
| C．During the first reading |
| D．After the first reading |
This passage mainly tells us .
| A．that students shouldn’t use small two-language dictionaries |
| B．what were the defects (缺点) of small two-language dictionaries |
| C．why students should use large college edition dictionaries |
| D．what dictionary students should choose and how to use it |
Which is not mentioned in this passage?
| A．How to make good use of a dictionary. |
| B．When to use a dictionary. |
| C．How to improve spoken English. |
| D．How to practice reading fast. |
“This is the BBC News at Eight O’ Clock.”
…
“Chinese people spent about 120 billion yuan during the first three days of the May Golden Week last year. This year it has increased to 140 billion yuan.”
“The children of Beijing No.2 Middle School sang with students from Toronto in Canada to celebrate the 20thanniversary. They had been sister schools since 1986. They spent about two weeks together in Beijing. They visited the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. They took a lot of photos in Beihai Park.”
“Have you ever got tired of heavy shopping bags? A new shopping assistant robot which was invented by Japanese company could be the answer. The helpful robot can follow you around and carry several bags. The robot was tested at a shopping center in February 2006. ”
“About 500 people from different countries were in the 2006 “Rock Paper Scissors(剪刀)” World Match in Canada. This event was founded in 1842. It is said playing this game is fun, and also a good way to solve problems among people.”
…
“And now it’s time for Morning Music.”The students from Canada and Beijing No. 2 Middle School didn’t ________.
| A．take photos |
| B．visit the Great Wall |
| C．visit the Summer Palace |
| D．have a football match |
This year during the first three days of the May Golden Week, it cost Chinese people ___________ yuan more than that of last year.
| A．260 billion | B．120 billion | C．140 billion | D．20 billion |
Which of the following is not talked about in the news?
| A．The robot can help with shopping bags. |
| B．A Japanese company invented the robot. |
| C．The robot was tested at a shopping centre. |
| D．There are such robots in people’s homes now. |
The underlined word “anniversary” means .
| A．founding |
| B．yearly return of the date of an event |
| C．university |
| D．the new beginning of something important |
Which of the following is a game?
| A．Rock Paper Scissors | B．May Golden Week |
| C．Shopping assistant robot | D．A visit to the school |
At present time, roller skating (滑旱冰) is easy and fun. But many years ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, people never tried skating on wheels. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making instruments (工具). In his free time he liked to play the violin. Merlin was a man with many ideas and many dreams. People called him a dreamer.
One day Merlin received an invitation to go to an important party. He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think. He wanted to find a way to make a wonderful entrance at the party. Merlin had an idea. He thought that he would attract a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.
Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll (滚动). Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skate shoes. Merlin was very proud of them. He dreamed of arriving at the party and skating into the room while playing the violin. He was sure that everyone would be very surprised.
On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room, playing his violin. Everyone was really surprised to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skating. He rolled on, playing the violin. Then, with all eyes on him, Merlin hit into a huge mirror on the wall. The mirror broke into many pieces with a very loud noise.
Nobody forgot Merlin’s wonderful entrance after that.The first paragraph tells us that people began to skate on wheels from 1750 because _______.
| A．it is very easy |
| B．it is very exciting |
| C．Joseph Merlin’s instruments |
| D．it is very popular |
People called Merlin a dreamer because ___________. .
| A．he slept and dreamed a lot |
| B．he was full of different ideas and dreams |
| C．he invented the first roller skates |
| D．he always made people’s dreams come true |
___________ made Merlin think of skating on wheels.
| A．Merlin’s work | B．Merlin’s violin |
| C．A huge mirror | D．An important party |
What was Merlin’s problem after he rolled into the room?
| A．He couldn’t stop his roller-skating. |
| B．He couldn’t attract a lot of attention. |
| C．Everyone was surprised at him. |
| D．He couldn’t play the violin while rolling. |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．Joseph Merlin’s Story |
| B．How Roller Skating Was Invented |
| C．A Surprising Entrance to the Party |
| D．Violin and roller skating |