Little New Year, or Xiaonian, is usually a week before the lunar New Year. It fell on the 18th day of the first month in 2020. It’s also known as the Festival of the Kitchen God.
The Kitchen God is also famous as Zao Jun. He watches over the moral character (道德品质) of each house. He spends only a few days in heaven (天庭) every year. He’s in control of the farm animals, the servants, and most of all, the cooking oven. He listens to the fights among people and sees how servants hide food for themselves. For those reasons, when it’s time for him to report to heaven on the 24th day of the last lunar month, every family is suddenly worried and offers good food to make him happy. The humans hope that the Kitchen God will say good words for them so he’ll return with the blessings (赐福) from heaven in the new year.
The tradition to serve the Kitchen God lasts for the longest time, as far back as the Xia Dynasty. Xia is the first dynasty in Chinese history, so the Kitchen God may be around even longer than that.
1. When was the Festival of the Kitchen God in 2020?| A．On November 23rd. | B．On December 23rd. |
| C．On January 7th. | D．On January 18th. |
| A．the cooking oven | B．the farm tools |
| C．the farm animals | D．the servants |
| A．they prepare little food for the new year |
| B．they have no blessings during his stay in heaven |
| C．he always says bad words for them in heaven |
| D．he sees the bad things they did in the house |
| A．The job of the Kitchen God. | B．The history of the Kitchen God. |
| C．The activity of the Kitchen God. | D．The importance of the Kitchen God. |
| A．The Kitchen God lives in heaven most of the time. |
| B．The Kitchen God needs to report to heaven every month. |
| C．Little New Year has a long history. |
| D．People began celebrating Little New Year after the Xia Dynasty. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Many people do not like to stay at home on holidays. They want to go out to see something different or do something exciting. So people from the country come to the city and people from the city go to the country for holidays. During the holidays, trains, buses and planes are all very busy. It is a little hard to buy train tickets, bus tickets or air tickets. Many people take cars for traveling.
Last May Day my family went to the country by car for our holiday. There was too much traffic on the road, so we had to move very slowly. It took us about an hour to get out of the town. After some time, we came to a farm. It was clean and beautiful. The animals were very cute. We thought it was a nice place for a picnic, so we stopped and took the food, fruit and drinks out of the car. We sat down under a big green tree. Suddenly a strong wind blew and soon it started to rain. We had to run back to our car and have our picnic in the car. Then we drove back home. What a bad trip!
1. Many people don’t like to stay at home on holidays because __________.
| A．they have much money |
| B．the weather is pretty cool |
| C．they want to see different people |
| D．they want to see something different |
| A．the beach | B．the country |
| C．the city | D．the park |
| A．by train | B．by plane |
| C．by bus | D．by car |
| A．interesting | B．relaxing |
| C．awful | D．exciting |
| A．蓝色 | B．吹；刮 | C．吹气 | D．卷起 |
【推荐2】"I just gave birth to 5 babies last weekend." Isn't that exciting? Oh, you don't believe me? "Okay then, I stole some money from a bank on Saturday night." Now do you believe me? Actually, I hope you don't. April 1st, or April Fool's Day is the day when we play jokes on people. Do you have it in your country?
April Fool's Day started in the sixteenth century in Europe. Before that time, New Year's Day was celebrated on April 1st. If they were teased, they were called fools.
Nowadays we play jokes on people on April 1st. For example, someone might put salt in the sugar bottle, so another person could put it in his coffee "by accident". Or someone might change the time on another person's alarm clock so that the person would unknowingly wake up earlier or later than planned. Or maybe a person would tell a lie to make someone else shocked.
After we play the trick, we say "April Fool". Then the poor person realizes he has been fooled. It is generally done in the spirit of fun and doesn't cause any real harm to anyone. Do you have any great jokes to play on anyone? Try it out.
1. Before the sixteenth century, New Year's Day was on _______.| A．April 1st | B．January 1st | C．October 1st | D．February 1st |
| A．Someone might put salt in the sugar bottle, then I could put it in my coffee "by accident". |
| B．A man might take my bag by mistake, then he could say sorry to me. |
| C．Someone might change the time on my alarm clock, then I would unknowingly wake up earlier or later than planned. |
| D．A person would tell a lie to make me shocked. |
| A．New Year's Day | B．Christmas Day | C．April Fool's Day | D．Thanks giving Day |
| A．hit | B．criticized | C．laughed at | D．shocked |
| A．It is generally done in the spirit of fun and doesn't cause any real harm to anyone. |
| B．It is done for the real fools. |
| C．We needn't say "April Fool" when we play jokes on people on April 1st. |
| D．Don't play jokes on others. |
Although this holiday doesn’t seem very complex(复杂的), it has meaningful purposes. There are many
good reasons why a child should know what his or her parents do at work. For one thing, it is hard for children to understand the life of an adult when all they know is school. Therefore, this holiday helps children learn what it means to have a job. It also helps them learn about the differences and similarities between their world and the grown-up world. When young people know more about their parents’ lives, they can form stronger parent-child relationships. This alone is worth a day of celebration.
1. This year’s Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day falls on _____ .
A． | B． | C． | D． |
| A．every holiday needs a name |
| B．the name says it is known to all |
| C．the name explains the idea clearly |
| D．it is very different from Christmas |
| A．usual | B．simple | C．complex | D．meaningful |
1. What’s the purpose of this book?
| A．To be used as a history textbook. |
| B．To tell about the Yongle Emperor. |
| C．To teach English to Chinese students. |
| D．To help foreigners learn about China. |
| A．Between Pages 1～2. | B．Between Pages 3～7. |
| C．Between Pages 8～14. | D．Between Pages 15～18. |
| A．The Ming Dynasty had 3 emperors in all. |
| B．Yongle became emperor at the age of 22. |
| C．Nanjing was the capital of Ming Dynasty before Yongle. |
| D．Yongle built the Forbidden City for tourists to visit. |
The world for tea in different languages came from the Chinese character, “cha”. The English word, “tea”, sounds similar to the pronunciation of it in Xiamen, Fujian Province. The Russians call it “chai’i”, which sounds like “chaye”(tea leaves) as it is pronounced in northern China. The Japanese character for tea is written exactly the same as it is in Chinese, though it is pronounced a little differently.
Tea leaves are produced mainly in the south of China, because of the mild (温和的) climate (气候) and rich soil (土壤) there. Longjing , Pu’er, Wulong and Tieguanyin are all famous tea. They’re produced in the provinces of Zhejiang, Yunnan and Fujian.
Over the past centuries, Chinese people have developed their unique (独特的) tea culture, which includes tea planting, tea-leaf picking, tea making, tea drinking, and so on. Tea is also a popular theme which is often mentioned in dances, songs, poems and novels.
根据短文内容，从题中所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出正确选项，并将所选答案涂到答题卡的相应位置上。（共5小题；
1. Tea began to be known by the world _____________ ago.
| A．over 1000 years | B．over a few centuries |
| C．less than a few centuries | D．more than 4000 years |
| A．Coffee. | B．Cocoa. | C．Tea. | D．Milk. |
| A．Tea has been an important Chinese export since a thousand years ago. |
| B．The English word “tea” sounds similar to the pronunciation of it in northern China. |
| C．Longjing, Pu’er, Wulong and Tieguanyin are produced in the south of China. |
| D．Tea is also a popular theme which is often mentioned in dances, songs, poems and novels. |
| A．One. | B．Two. | C．Three. | D．Four. |
| A．China’s Long History of Tea | B．China’s Tea Culture |
| C．Tea Drinking in China | D．All kinds of tea in China |
【推荐3】There is a fun fact. Each year, people in all 28 European Union (EU) member countries are asked to change their clocks twice. They move forward by one hour (12 p.m. becomes 1 p.m.) on the last Sunday of March and back by one hour (1 p.m. goes back to 12 p.m.) on the last Sunday in October. This is called “daylight saving time (DST, 夏/冬令时)”.
But in 2019, they will no longer need to do so. On Sept 14, 2018, the EU announced that it will stop practicing DST in October 2019, USA Today reported. The change comes following an online survey conducted in EU countries. Eighty-four percent of the 4.5 million Europeans who took the survey said they oppose (反对) seasonal clock changes.
DST was first introduced in Germany during the World Wars and became law across the continent (大陆) in 1996. It helps people make better use of longer summer days and save energy.
For example, with DST, people get up and go to bed an hour earlier during the summer. By having an extra hour of sunlight, people can save electricity, since they don’t need to turn their lights on.
However, after over 20 years of DST, people believe that the practice is out of date, especially since we now have energy-saving technology like LED light. “We are clearly headed toward smart cities, smart buildings and smart solutions which will bring much more savings than a change of the clock,” European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic told Deutsche Welle.
Others have pointed out that clock changing can lead to imbalance (失衡) in our bodies’ internal (体内的) clocks and cause long-term health problems, Reuters noted.
1. “Daylight saving time” lasts about ________ a year.| A．five months | B．six months | C．seven months | D．eight months |
| A．In France. | B．In Germany. | C．In the US. | D．In the UK. |
| A．Because it helped people save energy. | B．Because it was fashionable and modern. |
| C．Because people wanted to enjoy longer nights. | D．Because people opposed seasonal clock changes. |
| A．What we can use to save energy. | B．Why changing clocks is no longer needed. |
| C．What changes new technology can bring. | D．Why clock changing can harm our health. |
【推荐1】For Miller, an 80-year-old man, it’s a chance of a lifetime. Miller is a part of a group of around 60 Germans who are on a bus journey along the ancient Silk Road(丝绸之路).
About this journey, he says: “I have been deeply interested in the Silk Road since I was a child. But now I finally have a chance to experience it.”
The two-month bus journey will take the group through Germany, Russia and other 4 European countries. They will then enter China from the country’s western part. It will be an unforgettable memory for them.
Nearly half of the 13,000-kilometer trip will be inside China. From Xinjiang in the west to Shanghai in the east, the German visitors will see more than 20 Chinese cities. “We have managed the trip of the Silk Road for around 10 years. An increasing (增加的) number of people, not only from German-speaking countries, have been joining us.” Says Liu Guoqiang from China Tours.
Almost 26 million foreigners traveled to China in 2015, and about 5 million of them were from Europe. Beijing, Xi’ an, Shanghai and the Yangtze River are traditional Chinese travel destinations for European tourists. Speaking of where he wants to go, Miller says: “Compared with modern cities, the culture in western China attracts me more.
As Shi Xiang, head of China Tours says “Being a new brand(品牌) to attract(吸引) foreign visitors, the Silk Road is good for people to know more about China, especially the northwestern part of the country.”
1. How will the group of around 60 Germans have the tour?| A．By plane. | B．By bus. | C．On foot. | D．By train. |
| A．From Beijing. | B．From the western part of China. | C．From the eastern part of China. | D．From Shanghai. |
| A．标志 | B．道路 | C．指南 | D．目的地 |
| A．For 20 years. | B．For 5 years. | C．For 10 years. | D．For 26 months. |
| A．Silk Road: An old brand to attract Chinese. | B．Silk Road: A new way to learn about China. |
| C．Silk Road: A better chance to see modern cities. | D．Silk Road: A fashionable(时尚的) way to buy silk. |
【推荐2】“Looking up, I find the moon bright; Bowing, in homesickness I’m drowned (举头望明月，低头思故乡)” When Gladys, from America, read the line from Chinese poet Li Bai in her class, she understood the poet’s feelings. “I can’t help but feel homesick,” said Gladys, who is studying Chinese Language and Literature at Southwest University.
Gladys slowly fell in love with old Chinese poems. She thinks it’s romantic that old Chinese poems spread (传播) over the mountains and travel from the past to the present with true meaning and feelings. “This is what many popular novels and online articles cannot do,” she said.
But her surprise doesn’t stop here. Gladys has found that the cultural essence (文化精髓) in these poems can find readers all over the world. For example, Li Bai wrote, “Heaven has made us talents; we’re not made in vain. A thousand gold coins spent, said something quite similar (类似的) — the person born with a talent is meant to use it and will find great happiness when they do. “The two poets are over a thousand years and thousands of miles apart. But great poets think in the same way,” Gladys said.
In the future, she wants to be a translator who spreads Chinese culture across a bigger stage.
1. How did Gladys feel when she read Li Bai’s poem in her class?| A．Sad. | B．Homesick. | C．Excited. | D．Happy. |
| A．Gladys understood the poet’s feelings |
| B．old Chinese poems are romantic |
| C．Gladys slowly fell in love with old Chinese poems |
| D．old Chinese poems spread and travel with true meanings and feelings |
| A．相隔 | B．遥远 | C．临近 | D．超过 |
| A．The two poets look the same. |
| B．The two poets were born in the same country. |
| C．The two poets shared the same idea. |
| D．China and Germany have the same culture. |
【推荐3】
In Valletta, capital city of Malta, a group of ladies wearing colorful Chinese costumes, known as hanfu, walked nicely along its old street on Saturday afternoon, attracting (吸引) both the Maltese people and tourists from around the world.
A fascinating hanfu show organized by the China Cultural Center in Malta was performed by 23 ladies from China, Malta and Italy.
They held Chinese-style fans and lanterns in their hands and walked along Republic Street, a main street in Valletta, as part of a series of events to celebrate the Spring Festival.
“I love the colors of their hanfu,” Noemi Calisto, an Italian student at the University of Malta, said. Some of her classmates performed in the hanfu show, so she took many photos of them Momo Muller and his wife Rita, a couple from Luxembourg, were enthralled by the beauty of the hanfu. Muller told Xinhua News Agency that he visited Beijing about 15 years ago and is looking forward to visiting China again.
Alexander Ouaknine, a 53-year-old owner of a traditional Maltese silver jewelry shop, told Xinhua that the handmade jewelry with silver wire and beautiful traditional Chinese costumes are both “wonderful forms of art”.
Martina Vella, a 21-year-old student at the University of Malta, said it was the first time that she and her friends wore hanfu. Vella told Xinhua that she would consider showing traditional Chinese culture in her future works.
1. What does Paragraph 1 mainly talk about?| A．Beautiful ladies in Malta. |
| B．Attractive hanfu show in Malta. |
| C．Exciting tourists on the old street. |
| A．被惊讶到的 | B．被唬住的 | C．被迷住的 |
| A．Momo Muller and Alexander Ouaknine are a couple. |
| B．Noemi Calisto took many photos of her classmates. |
| C．Martina Vella has worn hanfu many times before. |
| A．To show how attractive the hanfu show in Malta is. |
| B．To show the popularity of Chinese traditional culture. |
| C．To call on more people to wear hanfu during the Spring Festival. |
【推荐1】The shock of the earthquake in Pakistan has brought another shock: the rise of a mysterious island, coming out from the water.
In the aftershock of the earthquake, people living in Grabian Sea and saw a mountain-like shape coming out of the water. “It looked like a huge whale,” Bahram Baloch, a local reporter, told the BBC. “Lots of people gathered to watch it. ”
So what happened? The force of the earthquake was so strong that it moved the sea floor, releasing gas(释放气体). This gas pushed the seabed, mostly rock and sand, out of the water. This was how the mud volcano (泥火山) was formed. The island which is about 20 meters high, 30 meters long and 90 meters wide is actually the top 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. “It will catch fire, when a match was lit,” said Mohammad Danish, a scientist, to Universe Today.
The mud volcano is strange because mud volcanoes seldom appeared in an area where people often live, and not far out in the sea. It is a special one. However, it’s not expected to last very long. Most of these mud volcanoes are swept back under the sea within one year.
1. What does the island look like ?| A．A dog | B．A cat | C．A whale | D．A dolphin |
| A．The sea floor was moved. |
| B．Rock and sand were mixed. |
| C．The storm blew up the sea. |
| D．A huge mountain appeared. |
| A．it is safe to visit mud volcanoes |
| B．it is a bad time to do research |
| C．some places on the island were on fire |
| D．gas from the newly formed island was dangerous. |
【推荐2】Once upon a time, a wealthy old man lived alone in a big house. He was growing weaker day by day and was unable to take care of himself, so he decided to hire (雇佣) a nurse to help with housework and take care of him.
One day, the old man interviewed two nurses—Anthony and Peter. Anthony happened to be a handsome young man, while Peter looked quite ordinary (普通的). The old man asked Anthony to make tea for him. After Anthony left, the old man turned to Peter and said,
"Anthony has given me a very bad account (描述) of you. He said you are rude and untrustworthy. Is this correct?"
Peter thought for a minute and said, "If Anthony has a bad opinion of me, there must be something wrong with me. I should take some time to change these things."
The old man was very impressed by Peter's character. Meanwhile, Anthony returned with a cup of tea for the old man. The old man sent Peter to make breakfast for him. He then turned to Anthony and told him, "Peter spoke very poorly of you while you were gone. What do you think about this?" After hearing this, Anthony became angry and started cursing (咒骂).
In the end, the old man hired Peter. Although Peter looked quite ordinary, he had impressive inner (内在的) beauty.
1. What did the old man want a nurse to do?| A．Live with him. |
| B．Help with housework and look after his wife. |
| C．Work as a doctor. |
| D．Help with housework and look after him. |
| A．had had some bad words of him |
| B．had praised him |
| C．did not trust him |
| D．considered him to be not important |
| A．Ordinary people are more trustworthy. |
| B．Handsome men must be good men. |
| C．Inner beauty is more important than appearance. |
| D．Others’ opinions are always correct. |
【推荐3】I have a special place in my heart for libraries. I have for as long as I can remember. I was always a crazy reader, sometimes reading up to three books a day as a child. Stories were like air to me and while other kids played ball or went to parties, I lived out adventures through the books I checked out from the library.
My first job was working at the Ukiah Library when I was 16 years old. It was a dream job and I did everything from shelving books to reading to the children for story time.
As I grew older and became a mother, the library took on a new place and an added meaning in my life. I had several children and books were our main source (来源) of entertainment. It was a big deal for us to go to the local library, where my kids could pick out books to read or books they wanted me to read to them.
I always read, using different voices, as if I were acting out the stories with my voice and they loved it! It was a special time to spend with my children and it filled them with the wonderment of books.
Now, I see my children taking their children to the library and I love that the excitement of going to the library lives on from generation (代) to generation.
As a novelist, I’ve found a new relationship with libraries. ①I encourage readers to go to their local library when they can’t afford to buy a book. ②I see libraries as a safe haven (避风港) for readers and writers, a bridge that helps put together a reader with a book. Libraries, in their own way, help fight book piracy (盗版行为). ③We can encourage readers to use the library. Share library announcements on your social media. ④Go to them and talk about them when you can.
1. Which word best describes the writer’s relationship (关系) with books as a child?| A．Cool. | B．Close. | C．Interesting. | D．Necessary. |
| A．Pleasure from working in the library. | B．Joy of reading passed on in the family. |
| C．Wonderment from acting out the stories. | D．A better step developed with the readers. |
I think all writers should support libraries in an important way when they can.
| A．① | B．② | C．③ | D．④ |
| A．Reading: A Source of Knowledge | B．My Idea about Reading |
| C．Library: A Haven for the Young | D．My Love of the Library |
