1 . Why did ancient Chinese emperors call themselves zhen (朕) or guaren (寡人)? Research shows that the word zhen used to be a first-person pronoun (代词) . Before the Qin Dynasty, it meant “I” or “me” and everyone from farmers to state rulers could use it. The word can be found in books like Li Sao (The Lament) and Shi Jing (The Book of Songs).
However, when the state of Qin defeated (打败) all the other six states and unified (统一) China, Qinshihuang, the first emperor in Chinese history, changed how this word could be used. He made it a rule that zhen could only be used by the emperor himself. Since then, the word has been used only for rulers.
Chinese emperors also called themselves guaren. In ancient China, emperors took themselves as the “Sons of Heaven”, and believed they had a “Mandate of Heaven (天命)” to rule. However, if the “Son of Heaven” was found to have poor morals (德行), they would lose the mandate. So, the rulers used the term guaren or guade zhiren (寡德之人), meaning “a person who doesn’t have morality”. In this way, they could show their modesty (谦虚) . In Chinese culture, people should not talk proudly about their own abilities. Modesty is seen as a virtue (美德). Ancient rulers hoped to win people’s hearts by calling themselves guaren.
However, historical records show that guaren lost its popularity after the Tang Dynasty. The emperors of the following dynasties used zhen more often.
1. Since when could zhen only be used by the emperor?| A．Before the birth of Qinshihuang. | B．After Qinshihuang unified China. |
| C．After Li Sao and Shi Jing came out. | D．From the start of Chinese history. |
| A．To show how special they were. | B．To show they were born with a mandate. |
| C．To win people’s hearts. | D．To show they were lonely. |
| A．both zhen and guaren are second-person pronouns. |
| B．Li Sao and Shi Jing came out after Qinshihuang unified China. |
| C．guaren took the place of “zhen” after the Tang Dynasty. |
| D．emperors in ancient China cared a lot about how they called themselves. |
| A．A weather report. | B．A history book. | C．A sports magazine. | D．A science magazine. |
| A．How Qinshihuang unified China. |
| B．Li Sao and Shi Jing played important roles in ancient China. |
| C．When and why ancient emperors used “zhen” and “guaren”. |
| D．Modesty is seen as a virtue for the rulers in ancient China. |
Some special forms of Chinese traditional art usually turn the most common things, from paper to clay to bamboo, into objects of beauty.
Sky Lantern Sky lanterns are used at festivals and other celebrations (庆祝活动). They are made of bamboo and covered with paper. When the lanterns are lit, they slowly rise into the air like small hot-air balloons for all to see. They are seen as bright symbols of happiness and good wishes.
Paper cutting Paper cutting sounds very easy but it can be difficult to do. The paper, usually red, is folded before it is cut with scissors (剪刀). The most common pictures are flowers, fish, animals, and things about Chinese history. During the Spring Festival, they are put on windows, doors and walls as symbols of wishes for good luck and a happy new year.
Chinese clay art The pieces of clay art are carefully shaped by hand from a very special kind of clay (黏土) and then allowed to air-dry. After drying they are fired at a very high heat. They are then polished and painted. It takes several weeks to complete everything. They show the love that all Chinese people have for life and beauty. |
1. In which section of the newspaper can we read the news?
| A．ART | B．ON SCREEN | C．BUSINESS | D．BOOK CLUB |
| A．中国艺术 | B．孔明灯 | C．泥塑 | D．剪纸 |
| A．is cut with scissors before being folded |
| B．is only put on windows on Spring Festival |
| C．is difficult because the pictures are flowers, fish and so on |
| D．is a symbol of best wishes |
①Air-dry the clay ②Fire the clay ③Polish and paint the clay
④Shape clay by hand
| A．④①③② | B．④①②③ | C．①③④② | D．①②④③ |
| A．the most powerful art in China |
| B．some forms of Chinese traditional art |
| C．the development of Chinese traditional art |
| D．how to turn the most common things into the best objects of beauty |
3 . China is nation of etiquette (礼仪). Chinese people are among the most friendly people in the world. If foreigners visit a Chinese family, they would be surprised (吃惊的) at the warmth that they would get as guests (宾客).
When you visit a Chinese family, the host usually makes tea for you.Then he will serve you snacks like biscuits or candy. ▲, never letting you feel lonely.
At the same time, other family members will prepare (准备) a meal for you. Chinese people treat the guests with a big meal.They always present more food than the guest can eat. On the table, the guest must be the first to eat. A Western (西方的) guest is surprised that the Chinese host likes to pick food for visitors. This won’t happen (发生) at Western tables.The Chinese family try their best to make you feel at home. As you are eating, the host usually says, “It seems that you didn’t eat much. Please have more.” Although you tell them you are full, they still put more food in your bowl.
Being warm and friendly is an important part of Chinese culture. As Confucius (孔子) said thousands of years ago “How happy we are to meet friends from a far!”
1. If foreigners visit a Chinese family, they will ________.| A．prepare a meal |
| B．serve the host snacks |
| C．get a warm welcome |
| D．get an expensive gift |
| A．Someone in the family will also talk with you |
| B．You can have parties with them |
| C．No one will talk to you |
| D．The host will cook for you |
| A．Because he thinks it’s not polite. |
| B．Because he thinks it’s not necessary. |
| C．Because he thinks it’s important. |
| D．Because it won’t happen in Western countries. |
| A．give them a surprise |
| B．make them feel at home |
| C．show their wealth (财富) |
| D．make friends with them |
| A．Chinese Delicious Food |
| B．Cultural Differences |
| C．Chinese Eating Habits |
| D．Chinese Ways of Treating Guests |
4 . 
The glass pyramid of the Louvre Museum in Paris, France might be Pei’s most famous work. Back in the 1980s, the Louvre Museum was having trouble with traffic. To solve the problem, Pei planned to dig an underground hall and place a glass pyramid on top. Many people didn’t like the idea. They said it was too modern for the classical museum. However, the idea turned out to be a success. It is not only the museum’s main entrance, but also a huge skylight (天窗).
In 2006, Pei was invited to build a museum in his hometown Suzhou. He tried to include local and historical ideas in his design. He built small halls with traditional white walls and dark roofs, just like the classical Chinese gardens. Moreover, the lines and windows in the roof bring something modern to the museum.
★ The famous Lion Grove Garden (狮子林) in Suzhou used to be owned by Pei’s family. Pei spent some summers there as a child. Maybe that was when Pei developed his interest in architecture. Pei spent most of his adult years in the US, first studying at universities and then working in different places. Even though he was trained in the US, the beauty of Chinese Classics was well displayed in many of his designs. “I’ve never left China because home is a place your heart always belongs to,” Pei once said.
Over the last century, many building trends (潮流) have come and gone. But the works of Pei have not. “A lasting architecture has to have roots.” Pei once told The New York Times. That may explain why he and his works have stood the test of time.
1. The underlined word “these” refers to _________.
| A．architects | B．designs | C．museums | D．gifts |
| A．too modern for the classical museum. | B．more than the entrance to the museum. |
| C．welcomed by French people at first. | D．designed to solve the traffic problem in France. |
| A．It is in Pei’s hometown. | B．It has modern white walls. |
| C．It’s both classical and modern. | D．It is built in a beautiful Chinese garden. |
| A．His style may come from his life experiences | B．Designs in the US are important to him |
| C．Interest in architecture makes him successful. | D．Educational backgrounds bring him fame |
| A．compare different cultures. | B．show a special building trend. |
| C．suggest two famous museums. | D．introduce a great architect. |
5 . Everyone has different ways of getting their kids to do housework. Here are some ideas which I think would work.
Start young. Of course, when your kids are babies, you can just talk to them, but at the same time, letting them see you at work might help especially if your kids are toddlers (学步的儿童).
You can give them some easy housework to do like washing vegetables, handing you things, and taking out the rubbish. And when they do a good job, you can reward them with some candies or ice-cream.
You can get them to clean or tidy their things. For example, you can let them clean their own room and put away their own toys.
Do the housework together. Let them help you while you are folding clothes. They can pass you the clothes. When you get back home from shopping, they can help you to put away your items (物品). They can pass the items to you while you put them in order.
Remember: When you get your children to help you, you should make them feel as if they’re doing a great thing by praising them .You can say something like “What a strong boy you are!” or “You’re so helpful.” It will make them feel happy and be ready to help you next time.
1. How many ways does the writer mention to make children do housework?| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Six. | D．Seven. |
| A．考查 | B．关爱 | C．对待 | D．奖励 |
| A．Let children do housework with you. |
| B．Folding all the clothes is difficult for children. |
| C．Children can do some housework by themselves. |
| D．Children can help you with some shopping items. |
| A．Children can only help to pass you clothes. |
| B．For toddlers, you can let them see you at work. |
| C．Washing vegetables is a kind of easy housework for children. |
| D．Words like “You’re so helpful.”can make children feel happy. |
| A．In a science book. | B．In a family letter. |
| C．In a life newspaper. | D．On a school noticeboard (布告板). |
6 . More and more car makers are introducing smart cars that can drive themselves. But as these cars take to the streets, we have to ask: are auto-pilot (自动领航) cars a step into a better future, or are they a step we’re not ready to take?
Not long ago, cars that drive themselves were just a dream. But now, with smart car makers like XPeng, Tesla and Xiaomi, that dream is closer to reality. Supporters of auto-pilotcars say that they can make our roads much safer and make it easier to travel. Most car accidents happen because people make mistakes or get sleepy, but the computers on cars don’t get tired. Many believe that self-driving cars can also help traffic move better and give people more time to do fun things while traveling.
However, even car makers admit that self-driving technology is not perfect—especially with the busy streets, traffic lights, and all other different drivers it has to deal with. People worry about the decisions smart cars would make in uncommon situations. Some think it is easier for human drivers to forget the possible danger in driving. ★ Many drivers still remember the accident in 2021, where a human driver fell asleep behind the wheel and the auto pilot made a wrong decision. What’s more, they are nervous about the personal information these cars might collect.
The discussion about self-driving cars is about technology, safety, and how we’ll live in the future. We’ll keep discussing if they’re good for us. Will self-driving cars become common, or will they remind us to be careful with new technology? We’ll see what the future holds.
1. What’s the main idea of Paragraph 2?| A．The history of auto-pilot cars. | B．Supporters’ opinions about auto-pilot cars. |
| C．Auto-pilot cars are a dream come true. | D．The possible danger of self-driving cars. |
| A．make bad decisions in difficult situations |
| B．stop all kinds of car accidents from happening |
| C．make driving fun and relaxing for most drivers |
| D．keep our personal information safe |
| A．The technology is too expensive for most people. |
| B．People believe in these cars too much sometimes. |
| C．Auto-pilot technology makes drivers tired. |
| D．Self-driving cars do not make many mistakes. |
| A．human mistakes | B．the discussions |
| C．computers on cars | D．self-driving cars |
| A．To show different opinions. | B．To give useful advice. |
| C．To stop people from mistakes. | D．To tell us about new things. |
7 . 
Shen Yun’s kitchen in Shanghai is a place of magic, where food doesn’t fill the stomach but feeds the eyes. She is a food stylist working for TV and movies. Her job is to make food look their best in photos and videos.
“We are what we eat,” she laughs, “But in my line of work, we love to eat what we feel. That’s what makes my job interesting.” For Shen, food is more than things we need to stay alive. It is a collection of feelings or memories. Growing up in a typical Chinese family, her most valuable memories always come from food. A slice of pizza calls up a joyful day at the zoo, while wontons (云吞) are grandma’s comforting hugs in a bowl of warm soup.
When styling food, Shen is meticulous, taking care of the smallest things. For a close-up photo of Chinese tea eggs, she had to use a brush in order to perfect the brown patterns on the eggs. Steam (蒸汽) helps to make the eggs look fresh and hot, so she put a cup of hot water under the eggs. All the careful work doesn’t make real food, but makes her photos inviting for the eyes. When looking at her work, the viewers will feel like they are in a comfortable morning in a Chinese home.
Shen says the real challenge is to keep the balance. “Making food look beautiful is easy, but the real skill lies in making it both inviting and real. It takes patience and love to create and catch that moment of food.”
1. Shen Yun’s job is to ________.| A．to prepare meals for big families |
| B．to make food look delicious |
| C．to direct films and TV ads |
| D．to write stories about her grandma |
| A．People can eat whatever they feel like eating. |
| B．She can show her talent to her family. |
| C．Her work calls up wonderful memories. |
| D．It teaches people to eat and live healthily. |
| A．careful | B．quick | C．easy | D．relaxed |
①brush ②food ③viewers ④Chinese family ⑤camera
| A．①②④ | B．②③⑤ | C．③④⑤ | D．①②⑤ |
| A．How to Make Delicious Food. | B．Memories on a Plate. |
| C．Life and Art of a Food Stylist. | D．Catch Patience and Love. |
8 . America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon. They don’t feel hurt. If the same two people meet again, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand. Friendships between us develop more slowly but may become lifelong feelings, extending (延伸) deeply into both families.
★ . Although Americans treat friends warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to them if it requires a great deal of time. But in China, we are usually generous with our time. We, as hosts, will appear at an airport even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take a day off from our work to act as guides to our friends. It is opposite in America. Americans cannot manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily plans. They will probably expect the visitors to get themselves from the airport to the hotels. And they expect the visitors will phone them from there. Once the visitors arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real.
For Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to restaurants, except for business matters. Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. So accept their hospitality (好客) at home and enjoy your visit in America!
1. The underlined phrase “pick up” in Paragraph 1 may mean ________.| A．put down | B．give up | C．continue | D．overlook |
| A．Americans are always generous with their time |
| B．Americans don’t feel hurt if their friendships disappear soon |
| C．Chinese friendships develop more slowly but will never disappear |
| D．Chinese friendships develop faster than American friendships |
| A．Generous and polite. | B．Warm and friendly. |
| C．Mobile and selfish. | D．Mean and busy. |
| A．There is another difficult point for us to understand | B．We are the same as Americans |
| C．Americans are usually impolite to their friends | D．Americans never spend time with their friends |
| A．Americans don’t need lifelong friendship |
| B．Americans are not polite at all |
| C．homes are better than restaurants to welcome a friend from afar in Americans’ eyes |
| D．Americans may take a day off from work to act as guides to their friends |
Children get together around a big old tree. They bring pigs’ feet and buckwheat cakes. An old host stands at the front. He cuts the food into pieces and gives it out to everyone, people dance together. This is a big part of the New Year of the Yi ethnic group (彝族) . The New Year begins on November 20 and lasts for three days.Yi children share the lucky pigs’ feet with the tree during the New Year. They hope they can grow as tall and strong as the tree. |
People play a traditional game as part of Aceh Cultural Week in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on November 7. They stand on stilts (高跷) and walk to see who is faster. From November 4 to 12, there are many activities in the city. For example, people dress up in traditional clothes and wear beautiful accessories (配饰) , such as hats.They do this to pass on their culture. |
Speed slalom and freestyle slalom (绕桩) are two parts in freestyle roller skating. It might be one of the most famous activities in America. It’s fun and quick traditional game. Li Jiarui, 18, wins the first in the speed slalom. He says that freestyle slalom is harder on the body and needs more years of training. But it asks for more power. People still have some wrong ideas about roller skating. Li says it’s not just a fun game but a very competitive (竞技的) sport. “There’s still a lot of room for me to do better.” Li says. |
1. In which SECTION of the newspaper can we read the news?
| A．SPORTS. | B．HEALTH. | C．FOOD. | D．CUSTOM. |
| A．get together around a big old tree | B．bring pigs’ feet and buckwheat cakes |
| C．cut the food into pieces | D．share the “lucky” pigs’ feet with the tree |
| A．Sports in Banda Aceh, Indonesia | B．Who Walks Faster? |
| C．Aceh Cultural Week | D．Traditional Clothes |
| A．The most famous activity. | B．A fun and quick traditional game. |
| C．Li Jiarui wins the first in the freestyle slalom. | D．Li Jiarui says it’s hard for him to do better. |
| A．all run for winners | B．might have lived for years |
| C．can stand for English culture | D．should be stopped changing |
10 . Many people want to buy the newest gadget (小玩意), the fastest car and the most expensive watch—but are these things really worth?
For some people, these things give them status (地位). They’re cool because they have a cool car, or they’re better at the newest Xbox game. Lots of people say that buying new things makes them happy. They like having new, pretty and impressive things. The problem is that people don’t stay happy, and the feeling you get when you buy something new disappears. For example, there’s a new iPhone. You stop liking your old car. Your friends have Beats in a different color and they’re so much nicer! Things get old and outdated, and someone else always has something better.
So, what can you buy and stay happy with? A research suggests that the best thing to spend your extra (额外的) money on is doing things like traveling, learning to cook, speaking a language, skiing or surfing. What about going to the theater, eating at a Michelin star restaurant or climbing a mountain?
In the long term (从长远来看), people are happier with money they spend on activities than on things. You don’t remember what shoes you wore, but you remember running the marathon! When you do new things or things you enjoy, you get life experience and memories. You can share them with people. Even if you don’t enjoy the experience, you can learn something and often a little while later you see the good sides of it. At least, it’s a story to tell—maybe even a funny one.
So forget about designer clothes and fancy gadgets—a new skill or experience lasts longer!
1. The first paragraph is mainly written to ________.| A．explain the reason | B．introduce the background |
| C．give the result | D．come up with the question |
| A．out of date | B．still popular | C．always useful | D．in order |
| A．Having happiness. | B．Keeping away from pressure. |
| C．Getting status. | D．Having impressive things. |
| A．learn to cook and speak a language | B．climb a mountain and buy the fastest car |
| C．go to a theater and have the designer clothes | D．buy the most expensive watch and go traveling |
| A．Follow Fashionable Ways of Life | B．What Makes People Happy |
| C．Spend Money on Valuable Things | D．How to Get Favourite Gadgets |
