1 . A British friend told me he couldn't understand why Chinese people love eating sunflower seeds (葵花子) as a snack so much. “I’ve met a lot of older Chinese and many have a crack in their front teeth; I believe that's from cracking the seeds,” he said.
I had never noticed the habit, but once he mentioned it, I suddenly became more aware. I realized that whenever I’m watching TV or typing a report, I always start mindlessly cracking sunflower seeds. My friend doesn't like sunflower seeds, and, to him, it seems unnecessary to work so hard just to get one small seed.
When we were young, the whole family would usually get together for Chinese New Year. Then, we all lived close to one another, usually in a small city, and sometimes even neighbors would go doortodoor on Chinese New Year’s Eve to check out what every household was making.
I remember my parents would be in the kitchen cooking. In the living room, a large table would already be laid out, complete with a fancy tablecloth, readymade dumpling fillings, and dishes full of candy, fruits and sunflower seeds.
Some of the dishes were to be offered to our ancestors later, while others were for neighbors and children to eat before the evening feast. I must have learned how to crack sunflower seeds back then.
I don’t think it’s right to criticize one’s choice in food or eating habits, no matter how strange they may seem.
It’s not only in China. When I went abroad, I found people had all sorts of strange habits when it came to food. In Denmark, they put salted red fish on bread and eat it for dinner, no matter how much it ruins their breath. They think it’s a delicacy, and it’s connected with their culture. I think it’s a wonderful tradition.
1. What lesson can we learn from the passage?A.One kind of food doesn’t necessarily suit everyone. |
B.Eating habits come from a certain culture. |
C.It is good to form healthy eating habits. |
D.Changing your eating habits will change your life. |
A.She had ever typed a report about seeds. |
B.She ate various snacks while watching TV. |
C.She has a habit of cracking sunflower seeds. |
D.She damaged her teeth by eating sunflower seeds. |
A.The traditions of celebrating it disappear. |
B.Children can eat delicious food on that day. |
C.The families would get together for it. |
D.Eating sunflower seeds is related to it. |
A.acceptable | B.critical |
C.neutral | D.doubtful |
2 . Over the last few weeks, I have been back and forth to the hospital and working with my doctors and medical technicians. I feel very
With everything I
Some inventions were accidental
A.regretful | B.grateful | C.severe | D.pure |
A.ignoring | B.concerning | C.curing | D.swapping |
A.painfully | B.specially | C.frequently | D.particularly |
A.devices | B.antiques | C.curtains | D.manuals |
A.gathered | B.threatened | C.relieved | D.detected |
A.suffered from | B.set down | C.packed up | D.went through |
A.inventions | B.shadows | C.editions | D.proofs |
A.pure | B.complex | C.adorable | D.contradictory |
A.wheel | B.train | C.airplane | D.car |
A.structures | B.labels | C.vehicles | D.assumptions |
A.Drafting | B.Reviewing | C.Adapting | D.Seizing |
A.switched | B.pirated | C.leaked | D.found |
A.hard | B.steady | C.funny | D.safe |
A.mean | B.expand | C.include | D.indicate |
A.discoveries | B.statistics | C.patents | D.observations |
A.principles | B.policies | C.minds | D.effects |
A.distinct | B.strange | C.legal | D.common |
A.current | B.product | C.powder | D.criterion |
A.challenges | B.directions | C.privacies | D.conclusions |
A.puzzle | B.frighten | C.annoy | D.surprise |
3 . As is known to all, positive people are lucky people. They can see the roses
I met a man who couldn’t move from the neck down in Cape Town. He said since his accident, he
There is an old
If you believe you are lucky, you will be lucky with that positive mindset. Things in the world just
A.when | B.although | C.since | D.while |
A.gradually | B.suddenly | C.magically | D.deliberately |
A.sadness | B.light | C.darkness | D.pleasure |
A.imagined | B.felt | C.struggled | D.promised |
A.hands | B.feet | C.teeth | D.arms |
A.lost | B.gained | C.dreamed | D.considered |
A.educated | B.skilled | C.cheerful | D.powerful |
A.put up with | B.came up with | C.made use of | D.paid attention to |
A.saying | B.story | C.evidence | D.rule |
A.feet | B.friends | C.food | D.home |
A.ready | B.grateful | C.suitable | D.good |
A.develop | B.work | C.happen | D.gather |
A.great | B.different | C.simple | D.same |
A.as for | B.except for | C.because of | D.instead of |
A.arguments | B.warnings | C.disappointment | D.experience |
4 . I’m an American-born Chinese. I wouldn’t say I’m more American than Chinese or vice versa. My character was equally molded by both cultures. For a long time, I was comfortable with being from two cultures. I was fluent in “Chinglish”.
However, as I grew up, something unexpected rose, causing a parallel tension between the two corresponding cultures. During Chinese events when I was in China, the host would sometimes make fun of America. My relatives would look at me and laugh, asking me how I felt. But how could I respond to a question like that? If I said I was uncomfortable, it would just make me seem even more American in their eyes. But I couldn’t pretend to laugh either. So, I often just stayed quiet and smiled.
Sometimes, I’d leave China feeling less Chinese than when I went in.
This past summer, on my way back to Rochester, a man at the airport kept asking my father and I where we were from. When I told him I was from the United States, he didn’t seem to believe me.
He then went on to ask the terrible question, “But like where are you really from, like, where were you born?” And no matter how specific our answers were, the man still seemed a little doubtful. He then went on to ask us if we knew where Tampa, Florida was and if we knew anything about it. It’s moments like these when I realize that sometimes my appearance makes it hard for me to seem fully American.
These experiences made me question if I was more Chinese or American.
I felt like I was neither. So, if I wasn’t completely one culture or the other, what was I? In China, I would feel more American, while in America, I would feel more Chinese. There was no balance between my two cultures.
But this doesn’t mean that I don’t embrace (拥抱) both my identities. I love both my Chinese cultural identity and my American one. I just need to learn to love them together.
1. How did the author feel about his identity at the very beginning?A.Special. | B.Confident. | C.Confused. | D.Ridiculous. |
A.Because he found it hard to remain quiet and have a big smile. |
B.Because he was unable to speak fluent Chinese at his hometown. |
C.Because he had lost face in front of his relatives and friends. |
D.Because he was treated as an American by his Chinese relatives. |
A.His cultures. | B.His experience. | C.His look. | D.His air tickets. |
A.Being Culturally Homeless | B.A Boy with Two Identities |
C.A Chinese Boy Born in American | D.Better Chinese than American |
5 . “Your playful days are over,” my brother said to me when he knew I was going to be a Senior One student. Then he continued telling me that senior school life was boring because I had to do a large amount of homework every day. The subjects were much more difficult than those of junior school.
I stepped into the school gate with a nervous heart. However, I was surprised to find what I experienced there was completely different from what my brother had told me.
The teachers gave excellent lessons in their own special way. They talked with me in a natural and fair way, as if I was an adult. All of them are so knowledgeable (学识渊博) and they not only explained the contents of textbooks but also provided extra information from other sources. Every word they said in classes made me so excited and interested that I had a strong desire to take in as much as I could.
In fact, my playful days were not over at all in senior school. There were many kinds of activities I could take part in. For example, sports meetings, the art festival, English corner, outing and so on. Best of all, generally, students organized the activities rather than teachers. Through this process, I improved my leadership abilities and communication skills. I've become mature (成熟的). I am not a kid any more.
Now if anyone asks me: “Through your process of growing up, which part is most impressive up till now?” Well, the answer will absolutely be my “senior high school life”.
1. How did the writer feel when he started his senior high school?A.Very excited. | B.A little worried. |
C.Quite relaxed. | D.Embarrassed. |
A.Strict and organized. | B.Modest and hardworking. |
C.Learned and easy going. | D.Helpful and kind-hearted. |
A.Reading and writing skills. | B.The understanding of textbooks |
C.Leadership and social skills. | D.Doing housework. |
A.His senior school life is the most memorable. |
B.Senior school life was boring and tiring. |
C.He will no longer believe in his brother. |
D.The writer did well in all his subjects. |
6 . Years ago, I lived in a building in a large city. The building next door was only a few feet away from mine. There was a woman who lived there, whom I had never met, yet I could see her seat by her window each afternoon, sewing or reading.
After several months had gone by, I began to notice that her window was dirty. Everything was unclear through the dirty window. I would say to myself, “I wonder why that woman doesn’t wash her window. It really looks terrible.”
One bright morning I decided to clean my flat, including washing the window on the inside.
Late in the afternoon when I finished the cleaning, I sat down by the window with a cup of coffee for a rest. What a surprise! Across the way, the woman sitting by her window was clearly visible. Her window was clean!
Then it dawned on me. I had been criticizing her dirty window, but all the time I was watching her through my own dirty window.
That was quite an important lesson for me. How often had I looked at and criticized others through the dirty window of my heart, through my own shortcomings?
Since then, whenever I wanted to judge someone, I asked myself first, “Am I looking at him through my own dirty window?” Then I try to clean the window of my own world so that I may see the world more clearly.
1. The writer couldn’t see everything clearly through the window because ________.A.the woman’s window was dirty | B.the writer’s window was dirty |
C.the woman lived nearby | D.the writer was near-sighted |
A.I began to understand it | B.It cheered me up |
C.I knew it grew light | D.It began to get dark |
A.the writer often washed the window | B.they lived in a small town |
C.they both worked as cleaners | D.the writer had never met the woman before |
A.one shouldn’t criticize others very often |
B.one should often make his window clean |
C.one must judge himself before he judges others |
D.one must look at others through his dirty window |
7 . When I woke up last week, I looked out of the window and saw nothing but white snow. It wasn't a
But when I looked out of the
What could I do to repay his
But the street was still
Now I am constantly looking for ways of
A.problem | B.surprise | C.threat | D.dream |
A.preventing | B.remembering | C.recording | D.forecasting |
A.effort | B.interest | C.skill | D.effect |
A.kitchen | B.window | C.yard | D.garden |
A.make | B.believe | C.get | D.take |
A.chose | B.continued | C.stopped | D.finished |
A.challenging | B.easy | C.boring | D.important |
A.solid | B.safe | C.rough | D.difficult |
A.pretended | B.agreed | C.tried | D.hoped |
A.respect | B.friendship | C.kindness | D.duty |
A.shopping | B.work | C.school | D.exercise |
A.wide | B.noisy | C.clean | D.icy |
A.called | B.visited | C.left | D.appeared |
A.seek for | B.throw away | C.look at | D.pick up |
A.helping | B.hugging | C.praising | D.accepting |
8 . Sitting in my school cafeteria, I looked around, slowly taking in everything. Student after student passed my
Catching the eye of a girl in my grade sitting at a nearby table, I waved
I have an incurable lung disease. No one at our school knows—I don’t show any noticeable
Before that day when I decided to
A.order | B.room | C.table | D.cafeteria |
A.imagine | B.compare | C.observe | D.exchange |
A.uniform | B.rules | C.circumstances | D.surface |
A.politely | B.wildly | C.coldly | D.impatiently |
A.found | B.noticed | C.heard | D.decided |
A.remembered | B.suspected | C.predicted | D.regretted |
A.willing | B.outstanding | C.understanding | D.demanding |
A.escaped | B.satisfied | C.hit | D.attracted |
A.diseases | B.symptoms | C.complaints | D.weaknesses |
A.but | B.and | C.or | D.so |
A.bright | B.real | C.serious | D.dark |
A.tolerate | B.create | C.change | D.view |
A.forgave | B.pitied | C.challenged | D.encouraged |
A.debt | B.reward | C.burden | D.schedule |
A.changeable | B.perfect | C.unique | D.different |
9 . The best example of universally understood body language may be the smile. A smile can open doors and tear down walls among
I have organized and reorganized an
Then I arrived. It wasn't
Only when everything was finally
I apologized for the way I had spoken to her and told her it was wrong of me. She accepted. Again with a hope. God help me be that woman who smiles and forgives so
A.friends | B.strangers | C.patients | D.relatives |
A.interview | B.operation | C.experiment | D.appointment |
A.confirmed | B.arranged | C.discussed | D.admitted |
A.crowded | B.ready | C.open | D.busy |
A.mildly | B.roughly | C.privately | D.immediately |
A.mad | B.sad | C.humorous | D.curious |
A.habit | B.way | C.accent | D.tune |
A.rude | B.attached | C.friendly | D.devoted |
A.figured | B.added | C.made | D.sorted |
A.refiected on | B.worked at | C.called at | D.went through |
A.unnecessary | B.impolite | C.impossible | D.unfair |
A.comment | B.promise | C.apology | D.suggestion |
A.slowly | B.easily | C.frequently | D.tightly |
A.teach | B.forgive | C.hate | D.see |
A.expand | B.react | C.overcome | D.learn |
10 . Star Athlete
My name is Edward, and at one time I was the star athlete at my school for four consecutive (连续的) years. Soccer was my life for as
Most athletes asked me how I did it. How I
But that was past.When I was working up to the state championship,I got injured and the trainer told me I could never play again. I cried and my
A.many | B.long | C.well | D.early |
A.latest | B.first | C.most | D.least |
A.reached | B.scored | C.achieved | D.set |
A.tried | B.wanted | C.selected | D.managed |
A.burnt | B.worked | C.tried | D.died |
A.reminded | B.persuaded | C.influenced | D.forced |
A.playing | B.helping | C.rising | D.exercising |
A.personally | B.partly | C.willingly | D.completely |
A.mind | B.heart | C.head | D.leg |
A.woke | B.dressed | C.picked | D.called |
A.refused | B.decided | C.managed | D.dared |
A.stars | B.adults | C.children | D.athletes |
A.eventually | B.frequently | C.suddenly | D.gradually |
A.accept | B.find | C.receive | D.understand |
A.winner | B.doctor | C.trainer | D.superstar |