In the 1950s, a family that owned a farm near Beulah, Michigan kept a bull chained to an elm (榆树). The bull paced around the tree, dragging the heavy iron chain, which led to a groove (槽) in the bark . The groove deepened over the years. Though for whatever reason, it did not kill the tree.
After some years, the family took their bull away. They cut the chain, leaving the loop around the tree and one link hanging down.
Then one year, agricultural disaster struck Michigan in the form of Dutch Elm Disease. All of the elms lining the road leading to the farm became infected and died. Everyone thought that the old elm would be the next.
The farm owners considered doing the safe thing: pulling it out and cutting it up into firewood before it died. But they simply could not bring themselves to do it. It was as if the old tree had become a family friend. So they decided to let nature take its course.
Amazingly, the tree did not die. Nobody could understand why it was the only elm still standing in the county!
Plant experts from Michigan State University came out to observe the tree. They observed the scar left by the iron chain, now almost completely covered by bark. The experts decided that it was the chain that saved the elm’s life. They reasoned that the tree must have absorbed so much iron from the chain that it became immune to the virus.
It’s said that what doesn’t kill you will make you stronger. Or, as Earnest Hemingway put it, "Life breaks us all, but afterwards, many of us are strongest at the broken places."
小题1:What did the family do with the elm when the agricultural disaster hit Michigan one year?| A．They invited plant experts to observe it. | | B．They pulled it out and chopped it up into firewood. | | C．They prevented it from being infected by the disease. | | D．They did nothing and just let it be. |
小题2:Which of the following statements is TRUE?| A．A groove formed because of natural forces. | | B．The family decided to keep the tree because they had become attached to it. | | C．All of the elms in Beulah, Michigan died of the disease. | | D．The plant experts advised the family to chop it down. |
小题3:What actually saved the elm?| A．The bull. | B．The groove. | C．The iron chain. | D．The experts. |
小题4:What would be the best title for the passage?| A．Let nature take its course | | B．Strengthened by our wounds | | C．Constant dripping wears away a stone | | D．Bend, but don’t break |
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小题1:D
小题2:B
小题3:C
小题4:B |
试题分析：在一个农场了，一颗榆树上用铁链子拴住一头牛，牛整天围着树转，形成了深深的疤痕，后来牛被牵走了，留下了铁链。一年榆树遭灾，许多树感染死亡，而这颗榆树却活了下来。专家说是铁链子使榆树有了免疫力。通过讲述一棵榆树的命运向读者讲述这样一个道理：伤疤困难会使我们更坚强地战胜困难，取得胜利。
小题1:细节理解题。根据文中的So they decided to let nature take its course.可知，他们决定顺其自然和D项意思一致。
小题2:推理判断题。A。第一段介绍：槽不是自然的力量，而是主人把一头牛用一个链子拴在树上形成的；根据第三段的描述，这家人把树看作是一个朋友；所有通往农场的道路两边的榆树都死了；文中没有提到植物专家的事。所以其他都不对，只有B正确。
小题3:细节理解题。根据文中的The experts decided that it was the chain that saved the elm’s life.可知，是铁链子救了榆树的命。所以选C。
小题4:主题归纳题。根据最后一段的意思可知：伤痛使人更坚强。所以选B。 |
核心考点
试题【In the 1950s, a family that owned a farm near Beulah, Michigan kept a bull chain】；主要考察你对
题材分类等知识点的理解。
[详细]举一反三
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
I was hard at work on a museum project when the client(客户) suddenly canceled it. In January, my __ told me I was no longer needed. I had just $1,000 in savings.
I one interview after searching the Internet for architecture jobs, but came of it. Finally, I took a job as a in a restaurant. I knew I’d have to find a place to live that less than the $500 a month I was paying.
I went to see a bedroom for rent. The landlord(房东) me $500 for it, but he said I could have it for $350 if he maintained control of the closet for storage, I told him later,“I don’t want the bedroom, I’m interested in the closet” I suggested that I pay $150 a month for it. He thought I was .
The closet measured just 5.5 feet 14 feet. With my experience, I was I could make it into a great living space. I it for three days. I measured old pieces of wood that people donated. It was like putting together a .
In March, I moved in. It was a legal rental. The landlord a door so I’d have access to a kitchen and bathroom, which I with three other tenants(租客). I had a mini-fridge, a microwave, and a storage bin for dry goods. I a loft(阁楼) for my bed, TV, and DVD player.
On my website, I’ve posted of my new home, and that’s some freelance(自由职业的) design work. A few more and I’ll be able to afford a new place. That’s definitely a(an) thing: My girlfriend, Susan, and I are engaged, and once we’re married next March, I’m sure I’ll leave my little closet .
But now I know that I don’t need much to live well.
| 小题1: | | A．teacher | B．officer | C．doctor | D．boss |
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| 小题2: | | A．ordered | B．acquired | C．watched | D．prepared |
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| 小题3: | | A．nothing | B．something | C．anything | D．everything |
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| 小题4: | | A．worker | B．player | C．waiter | D．student |
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| 小题5: | | A．cost | B．earned | C．saved | D．spent |
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| 小题6: | | A．proved | B．charged | C．named | D．called |
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| 小题8: | | A．joking | B．quarreling | C．bargaining | D．talking |
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| 小题10: | | A．negative | B．confident | C．afraid | D．curious |
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| 小题11: | | A．mended | B．painted | C．covered | D．designed |
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| 小题12: | | A．secret | B．problem | C．puzzle | D．game |
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| 小题13: | | A．cut out | B．cut off | C．cut up | D．cut in |
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| 小题14: | | A．worked | B．studied | C．played | D．shared |
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| 小题15: | | A．took | B．made | C．drew | D．imagined |
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| 小题16: | | A．pictures | B．desks | C．windows | D．books |
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| 小题17: | | A．brought out | B．brought up | C．brought in | D．brought down |
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| 小题18: | | A．chances | B．jobs | C．items | D．gifts |
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| 小题19: | | A．unique | B．challenging | C．genuine | D．excellent |
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| 小题20: | | A．behind | B．forward | C．ahead | D．upside |
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Angela at the age of 11years old was badly ill and she was attacked by a rare disease influencing her nerve system(神经系统). She was unable to and her movement was limited (限制) in other ways as well．The doctors did not hold much of her recovering from this illness. They said she would the rest of her life in a wheelchair. They also said that few were able to come back to their level after suffering from this disease. However, the little girl was . There, lying in her hospital bed, she that she was going to be walking again someday.
Angela was moved to a(an) hospital in San Francisco, where she could get better after the illness．All the treatments(治疗)that could be used to her disease were . The doctors praised her, she never once thought of giving up. They taught her about seeing herself walking. If it would do else, it would at least give her hope and something optimistic(乐观的)in the long waking hours in her bed. Angela worked as hard as possible in physical treatment，and in exercise periods. Also she worked hard when she lay there, herself moving，moving, moving!
One day， she was trying，with all her determination, to imagine her legs moving again，it seemed as though something happened: the bed moved! it began to move around the room! She out, “Look what I"m doing! Look! Look! I can do it! I moved! I moved!”
Of course，at this very moment everyone else in the hospital was crying aloud and running for .Everything started to .People felt that the floor moved back and forth a bit like being on a boat on gentle waves(浪)．You see，it was the San Francisco earthquake．Angela didn’t know that．Instead，she felt that she did it.
And now only a few years later, she’s back in school, on her own . No wheelchair, no sticks to help her. You see, anyone who can shake the earth can a little disease, can’t they?
| 小题1: | | A．speak | B．watch | C．smell | D．walk |
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| 小题2: | | A．breath | B．hope | C．position | D．power |
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| 小题3: | | A．lose | B．spend | C．share | D．bring |
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| 小题4: | | A．usual | B．exact | C．local | D．low |
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| 小题5: | | A．careless | B．fearless | C．harmless | D．selfless |
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| 小题6: | | A．introduced | B．wondered | C．dreamed | D．requested |
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| 小题7: | | A．language | B．experiment | C．performance | D．recovery |
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| 小题8: | | A．needed | B．conquered | C．guided | D．viewed |
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| 小题10: | | A．admitting | B．imagining | C．suggesting | D．considering |
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| 小题11: | | A．nothing | B．anything | C．something | D．everything |
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| 小题12: | | A．mirroring | B．streaming | C．picturing | D．cornering |
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| 小题13: | | A．until | B．after | C．before | D．while |
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| 小题14: | | A．annoying | B．frightening | C．disappointing | D．surprising |
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| 小题15: | | A．cried | B．pointed | C．spoke | D．read |
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| 小题16: | | A．distance | B．order | C．shelter | D．space |
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| 小题17: | | A．shake | B．escape | C．return | D．avoid |
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| 小题18: | | A．stupid | B．certain | C．sorry | D．comfortable |
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| 小题19: | | A．hands | B．eyes | C．legs | D．arms |
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| 小题20: | | A．develop | B．treat | C．catch | D．beat |
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Richard’s father died when he was five. Later on he his mother again. The poor boy had to live on his own, so he went to work for a rich farmer, who paid him nothing except food and clothes. An old woman felt for him and often helped him. The boy wanted to go to very much, but he had no money. But he never gave up and found some old books near the school and himself to read and write.
There was a narrow path（小路） between two mountains which connected the village and the town. One morning people there was a big stone on the path. It brought them difficulty: they had to cross the mountains to the town, or they had to move it away. the stone weighed at least thirty tons and even the strongest young man couldn’t move it. They for a long time, but nobody knew what to do.
Richard looked at it carefully for a while and said, “I have a to move it away.” But people believed him. Some villagers even laughed at him. The night fell and people went back. Only the boy stayed there. To their surprise, the villagers found the stone was the next morning. They didn’t know who had moved it away. The old woman said Richard had done it all by himself.
“How could he?” the rich farmer called out, “He’s fifteen! He couldn’t move it at all!”
“He dug(挖掘) a big hole beside the stone.” said the old woman, “and then he could push it into the hole!”
Looking at each other, the villagers couldn’t say a word.
| 小题1: | | A．lost | B．loved | C．supported | D．helped |
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| 小题2: | | A．angry | B．proud | C．sorry | D．excited |
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| 小题3: | | A．town | B．mountain | C．school | D．bed |
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| 小题4: | | A．asked | B．taught | C．agreed | D．caused |
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| 小题5: | | A．found | B．believed | C．asked | D．counted |
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| 小题7: | | A．cried | B．stayed | C．played | D．discussed |
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| 小题8: | | A．book | B．question | C．text | D．way |
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| 小题10: | | A．broken | B．heavier | C．gone | D．smaller |
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| 小题11: | | A．mainly | B．only | C．nearly | D．already |
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| 小题12: | | A．excitedly | B．easily | C．luckily | D．happily |
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I will never forget the lesson about my window. Four years ago, I moved to a house in a large town. One of my new neighbors’ house was only a few feet away from mine. There lived a woman. Through one of my windows, I could see her reading by her window every afternoon.
Several months later, I found I couldn’t see the woman clearly. I thought her window was too dirty. I said to myself, “Why doesn’t she clean her window? It looks terrible!”
One afternoon, I decided to clean my house including the window. I felt tired after three hours of hard work. So I sat down by the window for a rest. What a surprise! I could see the woman reading there clearly again! By that time, I realized that my own window was too dirty, not hers! I really felt ashamed for myself. I had been watching her through my dirty window in the past days!
The experience is very important for me. So I try to clean the window of my heart before judging others.
小题1:How long has the writer lived in the house according to the passage?| A．One years | B．Two years. | C．Three years. | D．Four years. |
小题2:What did the woman do every afternoon?| A．Read by her window. | B．played tennis on the grass. | | C．Danced in her house. | D．sang in front of the house. |
小题3:The writer couldn’t see the woman clearly because ______________.| A．the writer’s window was dirty | | B．the woman’s house was too far | | C．the woman didn’t open her window | | D．there was something wrong with his eyes. |
小题4:The underlined word “ashamed” means _________________. 小题5: According to the passage, the writer has learnt how to __________________.| A．clean the house | B．judge others | C．help neighbors | D．learn English |
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When Ben Franklin was only a boy, he always wanted to know about things. He was always asking his father and brothers ‘What?’ and ‘How?’ and ‘Why?’
They couldn’t always tell him what he wanted to know．
When they couldn’t tell him, Ben tried to find out for himself．
Many times Ben did find out things that no one knew before. The other boys would say, ‘That is Ben Franklin! He’s always finding out something new!’
Ben lived close to the water. He liked to go there to see the boats. He saw how the wind blew them across the water．
One day Ben said to himself: ‘Why can’t the wind help me float across the water? And I’m going to try.’ Ben got his big kite．He took hold of the kite string and ran with it. The wind took the kite up into the air．Then Ben jumped into the water．
The wind blew the kite high into the air．Ben began to float across the water．Soon he was on the other side, and he had not worked at all．
One boy shouted, ‘Look at Ben floating across the water! His kite takes him to the other side without any work!’
‘Yes,’ said another. ‘He’s always finding new ways to do things.’
小题1: When he was only a child, Ben____________.| A．liked to fly a kite by himself | | B．always asked easy questions | | C．always liked to play with water | | D．always liked to find out how things worked |
小题2:His father and brothers_____________.| A．couldn’t answer all his questions | | B．could answer all his questions | | C．tried hard to find out something new for him | | D．were too busy to answer his questions |
小题3: How did Ben Franklin float across the water? _______________.| A．The other boy took him across it. | B．The water carried him across it. | | C．The flying kite took him across it. | D．A boat took him across it. |
小题4:He found out many things that______________.| A．children didn’t know | B．his father knew | | C．people didn’t know | D．most people knew |
小题5: From the story we can see that young Ben Franklin liked____________.| A．using his mind | B．using his hands | C．making kites | D．flying kites |
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