Thousands of years ago, birthdays were considered special days. On birthdays, the bad spirits were able to harm you and change your life. It was believed that the only way to solve the problem was to have your friends and family around you, so that good wishes and presents would keep the bad spirits away. Also, noisemakers were thought to be used at parties as a way of scaring away the evil spirits.
The custom of lighting candles was created by people believing that the gods lived in the sky. By lighting candles and torches, they were sending a signal or prayer to the gods, so they could be answered. Blowing out the candles and making a wish were thought to be another way of sending a signal or a message.
This is how the way we celebrate our birthdays came about. But different cultures celebrate in different ways.
The birthday story in the Bible（圣經(jīng)） that we know best is about the birth of the Christ in Bethlehem（地名：伯利恒）. For nearly 2000 years since that day, the Christian world has been honoring this birth. The day many Englishmen celebrate is, of course, Christmas. There are other references to birthday parties. King Pharaoh celebrated his birthday by making a feast for his court followers. That was over 4000 years ago. The story of King Herod tells that on his birthday he made a supper for his lords, high captains and other special friends in Galilee (地名：加利利).
【小題1】According to the passage, good wishes and presents given by one’s friends and family on his birthday can _____________________.

A．cheer him up
B．push bad spirits away
C．bring him a big fortune
D．prove that he’s a popular person
【小題2】Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A．People send messages to the gods by lighting or blowing out the candles.
B．The gods celebrate their birthdays by lighting candles.
C．The custom of lighting candles originated with the gods.
D．The gods will help people realize their dreams on their birthdays.
【小題3】The two ancient kings’ ways of celebrating their birthdays show__________________.
A．how great the two kings were
B．that their court followers were awarded the special honors
C．the two kings’ excellent cooking skills
D．how different cultures celebrate in different ways
【小題4】The passage is mainly about __________________.
A．the functions of the noises made on birthdays.
B．how to scare away the bad spirits on birthdays
C．how birthdays came about
D．the origin of a famous day Christmas


【小題1】B
【小題2】A
【小題3】D
【小題4】C

解析試題分析：文章介紹生日的由來(lái)的，慶祝生日的不同方式和這些慶祝方式的理由，而且根據(jù)文化風(fēng)俗的不同，不同的地方慶祝方式也是不一樣的。
【小題1】細(xì)節(jié)題：從第一段的句子：On birthdays, the bad spirits were able to harm you and change your life. It was believed that the only way to solve the problem was to have your friends and family around you, so that good wishes and presents would keep the bad spirits away. 可知在生日那天，祝愿和好運(yùn)會(huì)趕走不好的東西，選B
【小題2】細(xì)節(jié)題：從第二段的句子：By lighting candles and torches, they were sending a signal or prayer to the gods, so they could be answered.可知通過(guò)點(diǎn)蠟燭和吹蠟燭可以給上帝發(fā)信號(hào)。選A
【小題3】推理題：從最后一段的句子：There are other references to birthday parties. 可知后面舉的兩個(gè)古代國(guó)王慶祝生日的方式是想說(shuō)明不同的地方風(fēng)俗不同，選D
【小題4】主旨題：從文章第三段的句子：This is how the way we celebrate our birthdays came about. 可知這篇文章講的是生日是怎么產(chǎn)生的，選C
考點(diǎn)：考查日常生活類短文

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源： 題型：閱讀理解

This is a true story of how my car got stuck in water and how a stranger helped me during the worst rain storm.
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Although many years have passed, I still remember that stormy day and the warm-hearted stranger clearly.
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【小題2】Which of the following is the correct order about the things that the author did?
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A．②①④③ B．②③①④ C．①②④③ D．①③②④
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