1 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.

In the fall of 1903, O. Henry was living in a room at the small Hotel Marty in New YorkCity. He had published a few stories in local magazines, but was still relatively unknown when editors at the New York World newspaper sent a young reporter     1     (track) down this mysterious writer. By the next day, O. Henry had an agreement with the newspaper to write one story a week for the magazine section of their Sunday edition. The World had     2     (large) daily circulation in the world, and O. Henry’s stories about New York life became immensely popular. By the time he left the newspaper after less than three years, O. Henry     3     (establish) his reputation as a gifted storyteller and master of surprise endings.

O. Henry was the pen name used by William Sydney Porter, who was born in North P. Carolina. At the age of twenty, he moved to Texas,     4     he held a variety of jobs, eventually becoming a bank teller. He married and became a reporter and columnist for the Houston Post. After a few years, his wife     5     (diagnose) with a serious infectious disease, and he was accused of illegally taking the money of the bank where he worked. Some people have claimed     6     he was stealing money to help pay his wife’s medical bills. O. Henry fled to Central America, but his wife was too ill to accompany him. Months later,     7     her worsening condition, he returned and turned himself in to the police. His wife soon died, and O. Henry spent three years in prison in Ohio. It was during his time in prison that he began writing the stories that would make him famous. W. S. Porter emerged from prison     8     O. Henry.

In 1902, O. Henry moved to New York City and started trying to sell his stories. In a few years his luck changed for the better, and his position with the New York World helped make him a     9     (celebrate) author. He published more than three hundred stories and gained worldwide acclaim. O. Henry’s stories are known for their plot twists and surprise endings. In fact, O. Henry’s own life ended with a “twist”—his funeral was somehow scheduled in the same church at the same time as someone else’s wedding! The O. Henry Award     10     (honor) the authors of the best stories printed each year in American magazines.

4 . Over 30 years ago a book titled “The Alchemist” was published and it was ______ noticed. The author of this book was a man named Paulo Coelho, and he was told by the first bookseller that only one person bought a copy after it was ______. As bad as it was to hear about the unpleasant results, Coelho remained ______. 

Paulo Coelho waited for ______ results to appear. Unfortunately, six months passed ______ he sold his next copy. After that first year the publisher decided the book was a ______ and ended Coelho’s contract. Fortunately, Coelho made up his mind to not ______, and so he made efforts to pursue his vision with even more passion by finding another ______. 

Now, Coelho found a new publisher, but it was no ______ task, as he encountered rejection after rejection. But, after many repeated rejections, he finally ______ that new publisher, and with it, another opportunity to ______ his dream.

______, he only sold three thousand books. But as time went by, he would sell ten thousand, and then 100 thousand, and so on and so forth. 

Coelho’s ______ has yet to run out, as his books sales continue to grow year over year, with now over 150 million and counting copies of “The Alchemist” having been sold. Even more ______ is the fact that he sold over 320 million books when including all of his other following works. But, it all started with that ______ book!

1.

A．greatly

B．barely

C．briefly

D．partly

2.

A．adapted

B．read

C．written

D．edited

3.

A．confident

B．confused

C．frustrated

D．cautious

4.

A．favorable

B．final

C．direct

D．fair

5.

A．after

B．until

C．before

D．unless

6.

A．shame

B．hit

C．surprise

D．failure

7.

A．break away

B．give in

C．set out

D．slow down

8.

A．consumer

B．partner

C．bookseller

D．colleague

9.

A．easy

B．vital

C．urgent

D．complex

10.

A．recognized

B．touched

C．announced

D．landed

11.

A．create

B．fulfil

C．cherish

D．abandon

12.

A．Initially

B．Unluckily

C．Actually

D．Awkwardly

13.

A．money

B．wisdom

C．time

D．luck

14.

A．doubtful

B．amazing

C．engaging

D．pleasant

15.

A．last

B．former

C．first

D．latest

5 . 假定你是李华，你校英文报开设了“人物介绍”栏目，请介绍一位你最敬佩的人物，可以是科学家、伟人、历史人物、父母等，写一篇文章，内容包括：
1. 人物简介；
2. 尊敬和爱戴的原因。
注意：
1. 写作词数应为80左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
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6 . 假如你是学生会主席李华。4月 24日是中国航天日，来自英国姐妹学校的学生来访你校，他们想了解更多关于中国宇航员的事迹。请你写一篇英语演讲稿，向他们介绍刘洋，表达你对她的评价和感想。具体内容如下：

简介	1978年10月6日出生于河南
主要事迹	大学时立志遨游太空，参加一系列训练项目； 2012年成为中国首位上太空的女航天员； 2014年被清华大学录取，2018年获法学博士学位； 2022年搭乘神舟十四号飞船再次进入太空； 生活里，她淡泊名利，重视个人成长；
你对她的评价和感想	自拟

参考词汇：清华大学 Tsinghua University；神州十四号 Shenzhou-14 spacecraft
注意：
1.按照报道的一般格式和内容分段；
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.词数120左右，开头已给出，不算入总词数内。

Good morning, everyone. I’m Li Hua, chairman of the Student Union. It is an honor to welcome you to our school as we celebrate the Space Day of China.

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7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

One important feature of classic literature is that it often reflects an author’s own experiences,     1     makes it more vivid and moving. This is one reason why the best works of literature still appeal to readers long after they     2     (write). Cao Xueqin’s A Dream of Red Mansions, also     3     (know) as The Story of the Stone, is a good example of this. The novel is     4     (wide) acknowledged to be one of the pinnacle (巅峰) of Chinese fiction.     5     (it) storyline follows the fall of a large wealthy family much like the author’s own.     6    (draw) on his own experiences, Cao Xueqin gives a detailed     7     (describe) of what life was like at that time. The novel contains a great number of     8     (detail) such as what the upper class wore and ate. It also describes the social relations in 18th-century China. As a result, readers are capable of understanding     9     gap between rich and poor, men and women, the learned and the uneducated in the historical context. Cultural and historical elements like these make A Dream of Red Mansions a timeless classic.     10     summary, we can learn much about a specific period in history from classic literature.

10 . Adding to the achievements of a remarkable year, Taylor Swift has been named Time magazine’s Person of the Year for 2023.

Already a superstar before 2023, Swift’s career has reached new heights thanks to the beginning of her Eras Tour that brought her 3.5-hour performance to 66 shows in 23 cities across North America, Argentina and Brazil. Promoted by her tour, Swift has been named the most-streamed female artist in the history of Spotify and Apple Music. According to Billboard, the tour made about $900 million (about 6.4 billion yuan) in 2023. In addition, the tour’s movie Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour became the biggest concert movie of all time, taking more than $250

million globally.

As she was declare a billionaire by Bloomberg in November, a hidden “Taylor Swift economy” also promoted sales for business owners across the US. From soaps to a cruise inspired by her different “eras”, interest in Swift-related products went way up.

Apart from her financial contributions, Swift made a significant cultural impact by taking back control of her music. In 2019, her old record label, Big Machine, sold the master tapes of her first six albums (专辑) to Scoot er Braun. The sale meant that she didn’t have the rights to the albums. In response to this, Swift began re-recording her first six albums, tagging (加标签于) them “Taylor’s Version”. This move stressed her belief that artists deserve to own their work. “It’s all in how you deal with loss,” she told Time. “I respond to extreme pain by resisting.”

Heading into 2024, Swift will start the Eras Tour again in Japan and Australia. As USA Today noted, “Her current top has been a long time coming, but it may also be just beginning.”

1. What do we know about Taylor Swift?

A．She broke a new record on her tour.	B．She toured South America before 2023.
C．Her achievements received great recognition.	D．Her performance began with the Apple Music.

2. What other contribution did Taylor make except economy?

A．She proved herself to be an artist.	B．She learned to make some products.
C．She had influence on music culture.	D．She sold her master tapes to a company.

3. What can we learn about Taylor Swift from the last paragraph?

A．She will end her music career.	B．She will continue her Eras Tour.
C．She will reach her top in Japan.	D．She will make a record in Australia.

4. What is the author’s attitude towards Taylor Swift?

A．Admirable.

B．Uncaring.

C．Doubtful.

D．Critical.