A long time ago, in 1893, in the United States, some people were talking about fruits and vegetables. They asked, “What are fruits and what are vegetables? How are fruits different from vegetables and vegetables different from fruits?” They talked for a long time and then they decided, “We eat vegetables as part of a meal, but we eat fruits before or after a meal.”
In real life, people do not think the dictionaries give the right meaning of a word. For example, the dictionaries say that tomatoes are fruits. But few people know that. Most people think they are vegetables. They call them vegetables and eat them as vegetables. To most people, fruits mean sweet things like apples, pears, oranges and watermelons.
What are vegetables then? We call many plants and grasses vegetables. Some people think some fruits are vegetables, such as apples, pears and bananas. But to most people, vegetables mean things like potatoes, onions and carrots.
【小題1】A long time ago, some people in the United States _______.

A．wanted to know what were fruits and vegetables

B．didn’t know when to eat fruits

C．didn’t think fruits were as good as vegetables

D．didn’t talk about fruits and vegetables

【小題2】People usually eat vegetables _______.

A．before a meal

B．a(chǎn)fter a meal

C．a(chǎn)lone

D．during a meal

【小題3】What do most people think of fruits?

A．They are the same as vegetables.

B．They are sweet things.

C．They are like potatoes, onions and carrots.

D．They are only apples, pears, oranges and watermelons.

When the world was very young, people lived in hot places .They didn’t live in cold places because they could not keep warm there.
At first men didn’t know how to make a fire. Sometimes trees were hit by lightning .Then a fire was started .People took some of the fire near their homes. A fire was very important for three reasons. It kept them warm. Wild animals were frightened when they saw it. And when food was cooked, it tasted much better.
But men didn’t know how to make a fire. When they had a fire, they didn’t let it stop burning. If it went out, they couldn't start it again. They had to wait for lightning to start another fire. Sometimes they had to wait for years.
Later, they learned how to make a fire. But it was not easy to make something burn . Now we have matches. We can carry them in our pockets and make a fire when we want to.
【小題1】Millions of years ago people didn’t live in cold places because________.

A．they were afraid of cold

B．they didn’t know how to keep warm

C．they couldn’t make a fire

D．they couldn’t find cold places

【小題2】People found that _______.

A．wild animals enjoyed fire very much

B．the cooked food tasted better than uncooked food

C．the uncooked food tasted much better

D．wild animals needed fire to keep them warm

【小題3】Now we can make a fire___________.

A．in cold places	B．in our pockets
C．if it is necessary	D．in the forest

【小題4】Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage.

A．People are much cleverer now than they were long before.

B．A fire could be made by lightning.

C．We can make a fire with matches

D．After man knew how to make a fire, it became very easy to burn something .

boomerang

The Aborigines (澳洲土著) have lived in Australia for about 60,000 years. They painted pictures inside caves, and these are the rock paintings that have given us so much information about Aboriginal life. For example, some of the paintings that are about 10,000 years old show men with boomerangs. From this we know that the Aborigines started using boomerangs for hunting at that time. Other pictures show kangaroos, so we know that there were kangaroos at that time.
The Aborigines believed that spirits made people, animals and plants, and that these spirits still live in the earth. For Aborigines, no one can own the earth—the earth belongs to the spirits.
In 1700, there were many Aboriginal groups with a population of 750,000 all over Australia, and there were probably more than 240 different Aboriginal languages. The groups did not have a leader. Instead, things were decided by the older men in a group. People from different groups often travelled hundreds of miles to meet each other.
Aboriginal life changed when an English boat arrived in Australia in 1770. Many Aborigines were killed in the wars that they had with the English. More Europeans came, and they started taking land from the Aborigines. The Europeans also brought new illnesses that killed the Aborigines. The result is that today there are only about 300,000 Aborigines in Australia.
【小題1】The Aborigines painted pictures       .

A．on animals’ fur	B．on the land
C．on the tree	D．on the rock

【小題2】What do you think the Aborigines used boomerangs to do?

A．To paint.

B．To hunt.

C．To fight.

D．To play.

【小題3】The Aborigines thought        were the most important on the earth.

A．people

B．a(chǎn)nimals

C．spirits

D．plants

【小題4】In an Aboriginal group        decided things.

A．the older men	B．the leader
C．the English	D．the Europeans

【小題5】The number of the Aborigines is small today       .

A．because their living condition was very bad

B．because the English killed a lot of them in the wars

C．because of the new illnesses the Europeans brought them

D．because of the wars and the new illnesses

“How many common English words were invented by Shakespeare?”
How long did it take people to find the answer to this question 15 years ago? And now! You can google it and find the answer immediately!
Google is the most popular Internet search engine（搜索引擎）in the world. It was invented by two students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin. They met in 1993, when they were studying computer science at Stanford University, USA. They dreamed of producing something that could also answer any question in seconds.
Internet search engines at that time were slow and gave many websites that weren’t useful. In January 1996, Page and Brin decided to make a better and faster search engine. They thought the results should be based on the most popular websites.
Nobody would give them money for their project, so they used their own money. They also borrowed money from family and friends. Then, in 1998, they were given a cheque for $100,000, and they started their own company(公司). Their first office was in a friend’s garage(車庫).The company name is Google, a word which comes from mathematics. A “google” is a very high number — 1 followed by a hundred zeros.
The Google search engine was soon used by thousands of people worldwide because it was fast, easy and correct. By 2002 it was the biggest search engine on the Internet. Now, more questions have been answered by Google than any other Internet service, from sport to science, and from music to medicine. Google hopes that in the future all the world’s information will be put on the Internet, so that everybody can find everything.
【小題1】Why did the writer begin this passage by asking you a question?

A．Because he or she liked to begin this passage by asking readers a question.

B．Because he or she was afraid that the readers didn’t know this question.

C．Because he or she wanted to make the readers interested in this passage.

D．Because Shakespeare is one of the most famous people in the world.

【小題2】The underlined word “cheque” in the fifth paragraph means _______.

A．樓房

B．賬單

C．訂單

D．支票

【小題3】From the passage we know that at the beginning of their project, _______.

A．there was not any search engine on the Internet

B．nobody supported them except their family and friends

C．Larry Page and Sergey Brin dreamed to answer any question

D．one of the most popular websites gave them a cheque for $100,000

【小題4】Which statement is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Now the Google search engine is widely used in the world.

B．The Google search engine was not the biggest one before 2002.

C．Larry Page and Sergey Brin named google after a hundred zeros.

D．The service of the Google search engine is very popular.

【小題5】The passage mainly tells us _______.

A．the development of the Google search engine

B．a(chǎn)bout Larry Page and Sergey Brin

C．how to find information on the Internet

D．how to use the Google search engine

In 1826, a Frenchman named Niepce needed pictures for his business .But he was not a good artist .So he invented a very simple camera. He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his garden .That was the first photo.
The next important date in the history of photography was in 1837. That year, Daguerre, another Frenchman, took a picture of his reading room .He used a new kind of camera in a different way. In his picture you could see everything very clearly, even the smallest thing. This kind of photo was called a Daguerreotype.
Soon, other people began to use Daguerre’s way. Travelers brought back wonderful photos from all around the world .people took picture of famous buildings, cities and mountains.
In about 1840, photography was improved .Then photographers could take pictures of people and moving things .That was not simple .The photographers had to carry a lot of films and other machines. But this did not stop them, for example, some in the United States worked so hard.
Mathew Brady was a famous American photographer. He took many pictures of great people .The pictures were unusual because they were very lifelike.
Photographers also became one kind of art by the end of the 19th century. Some photos were not just copies of the real world .They showed feelings like other kinds of art.
【小題1】 The first photo taken by Niepce was a picture of ________

A．his business

B．his house

C．his garden

D．his window

【小題2】The Daguerreotype was_______.

A．a(chǎn) Frenchman	B．a(chǎn) kind of picture
C．a(chǎn) kind of camera	D．a(chǎn) photographer

【小題3】If a photographer wanted to take pictures of moving things in the year of 1840, he had to_____.

A．watch lots of films

B．buy an expensive camera

C．stop in most cities

D．take many films and something else.

【小題4】This passage tells us_____________.

A．how photography was developed

B．how to show feelings in pictures

C．how to take pictures in the world

D．how to use different cameras

Long, long ago there were only a few thousand people in the world. These people move form place to place over the land, hunting animals for food.
No one knows how or when these people learned about growing food. But when they did, their lives changed. They did not have to look for food any more. They could stay in one place and grow it.
People began to live near one another. And so the first village grew. Many people came to work in the villages. These villages grew very big. When machines appeared(出現(xiàn)), life in the villages changed again. Factories were built. More and more people lived near the factories. The cities grew very big.
Today some people are moving back to small towns. Can you tell why?
【小題1】The best title(題目)of the text should be ___.

A．Cities or Villages	B．Back to Towns
C．How Cities Grew	D．People and Animals

【小題2】The underlined word "they" in the second paragraph refers to(指的是) ___.

A．villages

B．a(chǎn)nimals

C．cities

D．people

【小題3】When factories were built, ___.

A．more people live near the factories

B．people began to live in the factories

C．many people began to work in villages

D．many machines appeared in big factories

【小題4】We can learn from the text that ___.

A．people like to work only in big cities

B．some people don't like to live in big cities

C．there will be no small towns in the future(將來)

D．it is better to live in cities than in villages

【小題5】In what order did people do the following things?
A. Worked in villages       B. Lived near the factories.
C. Learned to grow food.    D. Built factories.
E. Began to live near each other.
A. d, b, a, e, c         B. e, a, c, d, b
C. c, e, a, d, b         D. a. c. d. e. b

In England recently three foreign gentlemen came to a bus stop and waited . About five minutes later, the bus they wanted came along. They were just going to get on when suddenly there was a loud noise behind them. People rushed onto the bus and tried to push them out of the way . Someone shouted at them. The bus conductor came rushing down the stairs to see what all the trouble was about. The three foreigners seem all at sea and looked embarrassed (窘迫的 . No one had told them about the British custom (習(xí)慣)of lining up for a bus that the first person who arrives at the bus stop is the first person to get on the bus .
　　Learning the language of a country isn't enough. If you want to have a pleasant visit, find out as much as possible about the manners and customs of your host country. You will probably be surprised just how different they can be from your own. A visitor to India would do well to remember that people there consider it impolite to use the left hand for passing food at table. The left hand is supposed to be used for washing yourself. Also in India, you might see a man shaking his head at another to show that he doesn't agree. But in many parts of India a shake of the head means agreement. Nodding (點頭) your head when you are given a drink in Bulgaria will most probably leave you thirsty .
　　In that country, you shake your head to mean 'yes'— a nod means 'no' . At a meal in countries on the Arabic Peninsula, you will find that your glass is repeated refilled as soon as you drink up . If you think that you have had enough , you should take the cup or glasses in your hand and give it a little shake from side to side or place your hand over the top.
　　In Europe it quite usual to cross your legs when you are sitting talking to someone even at an important meeting. Doing this in Thailand, however, could bring about trouble . Also, you should try to avoid (避免)touching the head of an adult (成人) ——it's just not done in Thailand .
【小題1】The British people tried to push the three gentlemen out of the way, because the gentlemen______

A．were foreigners	B．didn't have tickets
C．made a loud noise	D．didn't line up for the bus

【小題2】 According to the article, if you want to have a pleasant journey in a foreign country, you should ____ 

A．learn the language of the country

B．understand the manners and customs of the country

C．have enough time and money

D．make friends with the people there

【小題3】In India it is considered impolite ___________.

A．to use the right hand for passing food at table.

B．to pass food with the left hand.

C．to eat food with your hands.

D．to help yourself at table.

【小題4】To cross one's legs at an important meeting in Europe is _______.

A．a(chǎn) common (平常的) habit	B．a(chǎn)n important manner
C．a(chǎn) serious (嚴重的) trouble	D．a(chǎn) bad manner

D
Everyone would like to be remembered. A few people even try to do something that no one else in history has ever tried to do. These people sometimes have their names recorded（記錄）in the Guinness Book of Records.
Often it takes a group of people to do something unusual. One such team paddled（用槳劃）a bathtub（浴缸）145 kilometers for 24 hours. This group had 13 members. They paddled their bathtub on a river near Ashford, Great Britain on May 28 and 29. 1983. A month later, a racing team of hospital bed pushers in Avon, Great Britain, pushed a hospital bed 16 kilometers in just 50 minutes! However, the distance（距離）record for hospital bed pushing is still held by the men of Bruntsfield Bedding Center. This team from Edinburgh pushed a hospital bed 5,203 kilometers in 1979. It took the team 35 days to cover the distance.
Another group of record makers held the highest dinner party in the world. Nine people from Sydney,Australia, climbed Mountain Huascaran on June 28, 1989. The climbers carried a dinner table. chairs, and a meal up the mountain. When they reached the top, they all put on warm suits for dinner.
People all over the world are trying hard to do something unusual to make a record. It should be understood, however, that now not all the records will be kept in the Guinness Book of Records.
【小題1】 According to the passage, what record was made near Ashford in May, 1983?

A．A record for paddling a bathtub.

B．A record for climbing a mountain.

C．A record for pushing a hospital bed

D．A record for swimming across a river.

【小題2】The word cover in the passage means _______.

A．start

B．go through

C．keep

D．know

【小題3】What was unusual about the highest dinner party held by the nine people in the passage?

A．The people who held the dinner party all came from Sydney.

B．Only nine people held the highest dinner party.

C．They had a meal on the mountain.

D．They carried a dinner table and chairs up the mountain to hold the dinner party.

【小題4】Which of the following shows the right order（順序）of what happened in the passage?
a. A group of 13 members paddled a bathtub on a river near Ashford.
b. A team from Edinburgh made a distance record for hospital bed pushing.
c. A group of nine people from Sydney had a dinner party on the top of Mountain Huascaran.
d. A racing team pushed a hospital bed 16 kilometers in just 50 minutes in Avon.

A．a(chǎn)-b-c-d

B．d-b-c-a

C．a(chǎn)-d-b-c

D．b-a-d-c

【小題5】 Which of the following is mentioned（提及）in the passage?

A．Hospital bed pushing was a popular sport in Edinburgh.

B．People living in Ashford usually used a bathtub to carry things.

C．Two different records for hospital bed pushing were given.

D．Hospital bed pushing was held twice a year in Avon, Great Britain.

History, as we know, is filled with facts, with places, names, dates, and events.
History is also filled with feelings, with pain, joy, excitement, and fear.
Facts are set down in books, but what happens to feelings? How can you take the pain, for example, and write it into a history book? You can’t. But you can put it to music. Take the blues for example.
The blues started when black musicians in the South began to sing about their hard times, those times which made them feel blue. The early blues was the beginning of other musical styles, from jazz to rock and roll.
Music, you might say, is a record of feelings.
Of course, facts are important: the civil rights movement, the race for space, the Vietnam War. But the feelings behind these events – the pride of being black, the excitement of a rocket blast (點火起飛), the pain of a war – are also an important part of history.
【小題1】In the passage, the word “blue” and the word “blues” are related to __________.

A．a(chǎn) feeling and a kind of music	B．a(chǎn) color
C．a(chǎn) kind of music and a person	D．people and their feelings

【小題2】According to the writer’s idea, what can make people feel blue?

A．A history book	B．Music.
C．History.	D．Hard times.

【小題3】Besides the above, the writer also explains ___________.

A．what caused the Vietnam War

B．the feelings behind some important events

C．the relation between history and music

D．why he wrote the article

閱讀短文，根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，從短文后的五個選項中選出能填入空白處的最佳選項。選項中有一項為多余選項。（共8分，每小題2分）

What is a spelling bee?   1  , but it is so popular in the Unite States. It is a game for children to spell English words.
The National Spelling Bee is the largest education contest(比賽) . It first began in 1925 in Washington.D. C.   2 . It is open to students in eighth grade or lower and not reaching their 15th birthday.
The contest is quite simple. When it's your turn, the teacher says a word and you have to spell it.   3 , you stay in the game. If you spell it wrong, you're out. What's not so easy are the words the teachers ask you to spell.
Usually, children need to spend a lot of time learning vocabulary. They must remember thousands of English words and spell every word correctly in the contest. Only winners in regional (地區(qū)的) contest can enter the national contest. It’s many children’s dream to win the regional contest and go to Washington, D. C. The final winners will be called the Spelling Bee.   4 . Do you also think they are great?

A. If you spell it right B. Not too many Chinese students know it C. It is held in late May or early June of each year D. The children like the sports a lot E. It means they have worked hard