News one: As the pace of life in big cities is getting faster, people are looking for more ways to relax. Let’s take a look at one way people are reducing stress in Beijing. The game is “Room Escape”. “Room Escape” was originally a computer game. In recent years, it has been adapted to a real life game. There are more than 10 places in Beijing where people can play this game.
According to the rules, the players are first taken to a house with several iron doors. They then need to find a way out of the house in one hour. Different houses have different ways of escaping, all of which require players’ bold(大胆的), careful thought, and teamwork.
News two: The Chinese government has published a list of 24 guidelines(指南) on how to take better care of parents. They are a modern update to 24 old stories about respectful children from the Yuan Dynasty.
The guidelines list 24 things to do with parents, including giving them a call every week, teaching them to use the internet, and supporting single parents’ remarriage. The guidelines stem from a Yuan Dynasty book, about 24 filial-hearted children who treated their parents very well. It is a value younger generations should never forget.Why do people play “Room Escape”?
| A．They play it for fun | B．They want to know how clever they are. |
| C．They want to find out different ways of escaping. | D．To relax themselves. |
They must escape from the house__________.
| A．in an hour | B．in two hours | C．in several hours | D．in at least an hour |
To escape from the house, they don’t need___________.
| A．a strong body | B．to act fearfully | C．to think carefully | D．to work together |
What should we not do to our parents?
| A．Teach them to get online | B．Often talk with them |
| C．Ask them to marry again | D．Treat them carefully |
What does News Two tell us?
| A．It asks us to read books from Yuan Dynasty. |
| B．It asks us to give our parents money. |
| C．It asks us to respect our parents. |
| D．It asks us to give them a call. |
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED, 牛津英语词典) is thinking of adding the Chinese word tuhao (土豪) to its 2014 edition (版本).
The word has become popular in China during the past few months to describe newly rich people who spend money in extravagant（铺张的，浪费的）ways. Tuhao has caught on in Western countries, too, to describe similar people in their countries.
The adoption (采用) of the word by foreign countries is an example of China’s spreading influence in the world not just economically, but also socially and culturally. People are paying attention to what is happening in China and are picking up some Chinese words in the process, especially those words that express unique (独特的) Chinese ideas that cannot be easily translated (翻译) into English.
The OED is also thinking of adding hukou (户口) and dama (大妈) to the already 120 Chinese words in its dictionary. Hukou refers to China’s system of residency permits (户籍系统) and dama refers to middle-aged Chinese women whose gold buying habits influence the global gold markets.
The news that the OED was adding these words has met with some criticism (批评). Some people say the words embarrass (使人尴尬) China, but others insist that in a globalized (全球化的) society it’s natural for words to spread and be adopted elsewhere. In fact, a word like tuhao expresses the humor of China. It’s easy to pronounce and very accurate (精准的) at poking fun at (嘲弄) rich people who have more money than taste.___________ can be called “tuhao” according to the passage.
| A．All newly rich people |
| B．People who own their money easily |
| C．People who love money very much |
| D．Newly rich people who spend money in an extravagant way |
The underlined word “caught on” (in Paragraph 2) most probably means________.
| A．流行 | B．继续 | C．接受 | D．蔓延 |
The last paragraph mainly talks about __________________.
| A．humor of Chinese style |
| B．criticism on the adoption of Chinese words into OED |
| C．support on the adoption of Chinese words into OED |
| D．different opinions on the adoption of Chinese words into OED |
Try reading the following sentences as fast as you can. “She sells seashells by the seashore. The shells she sells are surely seashells. So if she sells shells on the seashore, I’m sure she sells seashore shells.”
Not very easy, was it? What you’ve just read is called a tongue twister (绕口令). It is an exercise made up of sounds that are hard to pronounce in order to help people pronounce words faster and more correctly. Try the next example.
“Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled pepper. Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers? If Pete Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?”
Tongue twisters usually do not have much meaning. They are just designed to improve people’s ability (能力) to pronounce words. Although they may be very difficult, these exercises are very important to people who are trying to speak English correctly. This is because tongue twisters help people to tell the differences between similar sounds.
So if you wish to pronounce words more smoothly, you’d better try picking out some tongue twisters and practicing them.Tongue twisters are helpful in improving skills.
| A．listening | B．pronunciation |
| C．writing | D．communication |
The first tongue twister is hard because .
| A．it is very boring to read |
| B．it teaches us a lot of knowledge |
| C．we don’t know who “she” is |
| D．the sounds of “s” and “sh” are similar |
The passage is probably taken from in a school newsaper.
| A．Story Time | B．Latest News |
| C．Study Garden | D．Lost and Found |
All students need to have good habits(好习惯):When you have good study habits, you learn things quickly. You also remember them easily.
Do you like to study in the living room? This is not a good place because it is usually too noisy. The telephone bell rings there; the TV is there, and sometimes it is a good place for your pet dog or cats to play and rest. You need to study in a quiet place, like your bedroom. A quiet place will help you only think about one thing, and you will learn better.
Before you begin to study, do not forget to clean your desk. A good desk light is important, too. You’ll feel tired easily if there is not enough light(光线). So you should have a clean and bright lamp. To tell you the truth, the most important is that you should put your heart into your study.When you have good study habits, you will .
| A．learn things quickly | B．remember things easily |
| C．make some mistakes | D．both A and B |
The living-room is not a good place for study because it is too .
| A．quiet | B．noisy | C．good | D．clean |
You’ll feel tired easily if the light is .
| A．good | B．enough | C．bad | D．wonderful |
You should remember to before you study.
| A．clean the desk | B．tidy the room |
| C．turn off the light | D．go to the bedroom |
The best title(标题)for this passage(文章)is .
| A．Study in the bedroom | B．Good study habits |
| C．How to study | D．Desk light is important |
【改编】
| Country |
Capital |
Languages(语言) |
| India |
New Delhi |
Hindi and English |
| Canada |
Ottawa |
English and French |
| Russia |
Moscow |
Russian |
| Egypt |
Cairo |
Arabic |
| America |
Washington |
English |
From the form(表格), how many countries speak English?
| A．one | B．two | C．three | D．four |
Egyptians speak _________.
| A．French | B．Russian | C．Chinese | D．Arabic |
If you go to ______, you must learn Russian well.
| A．Canada | B．Singapore | C．Russia | D．India |
The capital of America is _______.
| A．Moscow | B．Cairo |
| C．New York | D．Washington |
From the form(表格), we can see that___is the most important language.
| A．English | B．Russian | C．French | D．Tamil |
The shock of the recent earthquake in Pakistan has brought another shock: the rise of a small island coming out from the water.
In the aftershock of the earthquake, people living in Gawadar, near the southwest coast, began to see a strange sight. They looked out into the Arabian Sea and saw a mountain-like shape coming out of the water. “I could see this gray, dome-shaped (穹顶形状的) body in the distance, like a giant whale,” Bahram Baloch, a local journalist, told the BBC. “Hundreds of people had gathered to watch it in disbelief (怀疑).”
So what happened? The earthquake measured 7.7 in magnitude (地震级数). The force was so strong that it moved the sea floor, releasing gas. This gas pushed the seabed, mostly rock and sand, upward and out of the water. This is how mud volcanoes (泥火山) are formed. The island that measures about 20 meters high, 30 meters long and 90 meters wide is actually the tip of the mud volcano.
Is it safe? Although people have visited this new island, scientists have found dangerous gas coming from the newly formed island. “Our team found bubbles rising from the surface of the island, which caught fire when a match was lit,” said Mohammad Danish, a scientist, to Universe Today.
These mud volcanoes are not rare. But it’s striking because this one has popped up(突然出现) in a populated (有人居住的) area, and not far out in the sea. However, it’s not expected to last very long. Most of these mud volcanoes are swept back under the sea within one year.After the earthquake, what did people see in the sea?
| A．A strange light. | B．A blue whale. |
| C．A mysterious island. | D．A mountain. |
Which of the following can be filled in the box to show how mud volcanoes areformed?
| A．Dangerous gas was released. |
| B．Rock and sand were mixed. |
| C．The storm blew up the sea. |
| D．Huge waves appeared. |
What does the underlined（划线的）word “tip” mean in paragraph 3?
| A．建议 | B．顶端 | C．小费 | D．倾斜 |