1 . Not long ago, Linda was sitting by a hospital bed, feeling anxious. Beside her lay her 88-year-old father. His heart was ________ and he needed an operation.

What ________ her almost as much as his health was the fact that all day the two of them had engaged in nothing but ________ small talks. She and her father had always had good ________, but now all he talked about was the awful hospital food and the ________ outcomes of his illness. His once wide-ranging interests seemed to have ________ to the size of the room.

That day in the hospital, Linda’s eye fell on the ________ that people had brought as gifts and left on the table. Her father had always been a passionate reader, but lately he didn’t have the ________ or focus. She ________ a book, and started to read it out loud.

It ________ changed the mood and atmosphere. It was a ________ and a pleasure for both of them. Reading gave the daughter a way to connect with her father and help him in a situation that was ________ out of her hands. ________ allowed the father to travel on the sound of his daughter’s voice, up and out of the bed and back into the world of mature, intelligent engagement, where he ________ himself again.

In fact, almost any kind of reading to another person can be ________ to both parties, providing a joyful shared experience.

1.

A．broken

B．weak

C．special

D．lost

2.

A．worried

B．confused

C．bored

D．embarrassed

3.

A．funny

B．angry

C．depressing

D．amazing

4.

A．cooperation

B．imagination

C．expectations

D．conversations

5.

A．possible

B．desired

C．helpful

D．incredible

6.

A．returned

B．adapted

C．grown

D．narrowed

7.

A．books

B．flowers

C．soup

D．fruit

8.

A．time

B．chance

C．energy

D．courage

9.

A．looked for

B．thought of

C．took out

D．picked up

10.

A．constantly

B．probably

C．immediately

D．barely

11.

A．secret

B．relief

C．burden

D．game

12.

A．luckily

B．usually

C．otherwise

D．never

13.

A．Listening

B．Reading

C．Sleeping

D．Dreaming

14.

A．taught

B．felt

C．recognized

D．introduced

15.

A．practical

B．available

C．difficult

D．beneficial

2 . It was the middle of winter some 30 years ago. I was a young father and _______ three little children. My education, however, didn’t _______ me to find a good job and now I was working for just above the _______ wage. One day, after I got up, I had to put band-aids (绷带) around my fingers and put more in my pockets. Cutting wood all day had caused my fingers to _______ in the cold, dry, winter air. Despite hesitating to work, I _______ started my car.

That day work was tougher than usual. The machines kept _______ . When the work day finally ended I _______ my injured fingers. The situation was worse than ever. I didn’t think I had ever felt _______ tired and sad before. I stepped into my car and drove back home. On my way, I had been thinking about why my life was so _______ .

I tried to put ________ on my face as I arrived home but one appeared ________ . My daughter ran up to me, shouted “Daddy!”, and ________ her little arms around my neck. My aches and pains disappeared into her hug. At that moment I knew I could ________ and that things would get better. I kissed my little girl’s cheek, holding her ________ . I think we all have bleeding fingers in our lives here. But with ________ we can make it through them all.

1.

A．helped

B．raised

C．taught

D．accompanied

2.

A．allow

B．train

C．remind

D．motivate

3.

A．normal

B．low

C．average

D．minimum

4.

A．ache

B．shake

C．bleed

D．recover

5.

A．ultimately

B．successfully

C．anxiously

D．instantly

6.

A．making noises

B．breaking down

C．moving ahead

D．freezing over

7.

A．cured

B．covered

C．inspected

D．cleaned

8.

A．regularly

B．mentally

C．little

D．that

9.

A．challenging

B．busy

C．different

D．lonely

10.

A．tears

B．sweat

C．blood

D．smiles

11.

A．naturally

B．suddenly

C．clearly

D．immediately

12.

A．released

B．folded

C．wrapped

D．stretched

13.

A．escape

B．continue

C．rest

D．survive

14.

A．slowly

B．carefully

C．purposely

D．tightly

15.

A．dream

B．love

C．confidence

D．ambition

4 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What does Mr Miller invite people to do?

A．Taste organic food.

B．Go sightseeing.

C．Experience farming.

2. How many people have been attracted to the farm this year?

A．75.

B．214.

C．289.

3. What is Mr Miller’s idea like?

A．Impractical.

B．Profitable.

C．Annoying.

5 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

Jonathan’s mother died when he was very young and his father brought him up. Both of them shared a very special relationship. Football was not just a game for Jonathan; it was a bond between him and his father. Every match, regardless of whether he played or not, his father would be there, a constant source of firm support.

Though his size prevented him from joining the main team, Jonathan’s determination burned brighter than ever. With each practice, he improved his skills, fueled by the belief that someday his perseverance would pay off. Despite the doubts cast upon him, he pushed forward, never allowing anything to make his passion disappear.

One day, as the sun cast long shadows on the field, the coach approached Jonathan with a telegram (电报) in hand. The weight of the message pressed heavily on the young man’s heart as he read the words that forever changed his world. He swallowed hard and his voice shook as he turned to the coach.

“My father... he died this morning,” Jonathan uttered, his voice filled with sorrow. His body trembled with the weight of his sadness, threatening to consume him. Tears flooded his eyes, rolling down his cheeks.

The coach, understanding Jonathan’s loss, enveloped him in a comforting embrace. The warmth of his arm around Jonathan’s shoulder provided a temporary comfort. Softly, the coach spoke words of relief and understanding, giving Jonathan the time and space he needed to process his overwhelming sorrow.

“Take the rest of the week off, son,” the coach said gently, his voice filled with sympathy. “And don’t even plan to come to the game on Saturday. Your well-being matters more than anything.”

On the day of the game, Jonathan’s college team was losing badly to the opponent team. The coach and the players had all lost hope when they saw Jonathan coming towards them. Jonathan ran up to the coach and begged him to allow him to play this match.

注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按照如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

At first, the coach wouldn’t allow him to play.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After the match, the coach found Jonathan in the corner of the locker room.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

Willie’s 11th birthday was coming. His aunt sent him a birthday present—a small nice notebook. There was a place in it for a pencil. Willie valued it a lot and always kept it in his pocket. When he found something interesting, he would write it down in the book.

One afternoon, after Willie came back from school, he called his best friend, Caper, a well-trained shepherd dog and said, “Come, Caper! Let’s go out and have fun.” They went to the pasture field (牧场) to catch the butterflies and there they found a shaft (通风井), which seemed to be deserted for a long time. Willie sat down on the edge of the shaft, bending over to see how deep it was. Suddenly, he lost his balance and fell in. “Help! Help!” Willie called desperately. But no response at all. He was so far away from the house. He made several attempts to climb up the shaft but again he failed! Now Willie was exhausted and frustrated. When Caper saw his master falling into the shaft, the little good companion ran round and round, reaching down and trying to pull him out. Unfortunately, a piece of rock gave way under his feet, and he fell in the shaft too!

It was getting dark. When Willie’s mother, Mrs. Lee came back from work and found there was no one at home, she was anxious and worried. Without any clue at home, she decided to look for Willie outside. She went to all the trees under which Willie was in the habit of playing, but he was nowhere to be found. By this time, the sun had gone down. A feeling of panic took hold of Mrs. Lee. She comforted herself that Willie might have come back. She rushed back, hoping to find her son at home.

注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

She found Caper sitting in front of the door, with a notebook in his mouth.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Willie told Mum how he came up with the idea after he was successfully rescued.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . I’m not a barber but I cut my 5-year-old son’s hair. Normally, it would be _________ to get him to sit down for a mere 5 minutes, let alone 20.

Anyway, I began a haircut _________ the other day with a firm speech, “Ethan, I need you to sit _________ and behave yourself.” Strangely enough, he _________ to do it for the first 7 minutes. Then he started to swing his legs and arms and _________. My speech now sounded more like _________, “Please Ethan, don’t move. When it’s done, it’ll make a _________ and you shall get some candy.”

I tried my best to calm him down and it was somewhat _________. This was only because I took some time to explain the _________ and how he’d look different after that. When he understood the purpose, he was __________ to sit through the discomfort to obtain the __________ at the end. I had just taught my son how to be __________.

All things come to those who __________, as life experiences are just like getting a haircut. If we learn to not __________ and give the barber a chance to finish our haircut, we can __________ looking better than we ever had our entire life.

1.

A．urgent

B．challenging

C．meaningless

D．reachable

2.

A．outline

B．account

C．timetable

D．adventure

3.

A．indoors

B．close

C．still

D．alone

4.

A．continued

B．managed

C．failed

D．attempted

5.

A．renew

B．stop

C．complain

D．laugh

6.

A．appealing

B．attractive

C．demanding

D．decisive

7.

A．wish

B．career

C．fortune

D．difference

8.

A．disturbing

B．risky

C．successful

D．flexible

9.

A．phenomenon

B．reason

C．concept

D．association

10.

A．willing

B．afraid

C．free

D．unable

11.

A．degree

B．brand

C．prize

D．knowledge

12.

A．ambitious

B．hardworking

C．independent

D．patient

13.

A．share

B．wait

C．pursue

D．care

14.

A．interrupt

B．offend

C．worry

D．rush

15.

A．come out

B．pull over

C．put off

D．stand by

8 . When my father died, one of the tasks that fell to me was to sort through and decide which objects to save and which to throw away. Now I look at the objects of my life as if I were dead, wondering, what will my children do with the human skull that sits on the bookcase? They’ve been wanting to throw it out for some years, but will they know how much can be learned from living with a skull? And I know they will throw the white plastic head of a horse on my desk into a rubbish bag without a thought, never knowing that it is the only piece remaining from the first chess set I owned. It is me at age twelve.

But the final decisions are left to those who know us least — our children. I was the closest to my father and knew him well; however, only when I was going through his study did I learn he had collected picture postcards of hotels. What was I to do with all the objects that had been him? The sad part of me wanted to put everything in my car and take it home. The rational won, however, and I filled rubbish bags with old newspapers, magazines, apologizing to his spirit as I did. I could not throw out the thousands of pictures he had taken on his travels. I brought the pictures home, though I will never look at them. I brought twelve boxes of my father home.

I look at the objects that are my life and the only way my children can satisfy me is by not touching a thing. But they must if I am to go on with my death. And I wonder how many boxes of me will my children keep? I look at these objects that are me and know, too, that they are symbols of how alone I and each of us is, for no one knows what any object means except he or she who owns it. Every object of our lives is a memory, and emotion surrounds around it, hiding and protecting a tiny truth of the heart. Only I have the memories of when and how each one was obtained; I look at the objects that are me, and the memories are warm and permeated (弥漫) with love.

1. Why does the writer keep the plastic head of a horse?

A．Because his father gave it to him as a gift.

B．Because it makes him a very good chess player.

C．Because it brings back memories of his childhood.

D．Because he accepted it as a prize for a competition.

2. How did the writer deal with the remaining objects of his father after he died?

A．He threw everything away.

B．He saved some of the worthless objects.

C．He took some of them to his own house.

D．He sorted them and put them into good order.

3. What do we know about the writer?

A．He is very strict with his children.

B．He prefers to collect different skulls.

C．He relies on his children to deal with his possessions.

D．He knows more about his father after his father died.

4. According to the last paragraph, the objects we save ________.

A．serve as the symbols of our social class	B．are reminders of past experiences
C．are quite expensive and valuable	D．make us proud of ourselves

9 . 阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空，在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

The passengers on the bus watched with sympathy as Susan made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the driver and then, using her hands to feel the seats,     1    (settle) in one of them. It had been years since Susan became blind. As the result of an accident, she     2    (throw) into a world of darkness. Susan’s husband Mark watched her sink into despair and he was determined to use every possible means to help her wife. Mark volunteered     3    (ride) the bus with Susan each morning and evening until she could manage it by herself.