Norah had a cottage on a cliff (悬崖) above a big bay. In winter it could be very unpleasant because
of strong winds and sea waves. In fact, when a gale was blowing, Norah and her husband got used to
sleeping in a small room downstairs, because their bedroom upstairs, which faced the gales, had a very
big window, and they were afraid that an extra violent wind might break it and blow pieces of broken
glass over them.
Also, the salt wave from the sea put an end to many of the colorful plants Norah planted in her garden. She tried putting up a fence to protect them, but the wind just hit it, went up over the top and then down
the other side, so in the end she filled the garden with trees and bushes that liked salt.
But most of the summer Norah enjoyed her cottage and garden very much. At weekends she could sit
out-of-doors in the sun, looking at the beautiful view, with interesting ships and boats passing by, and she
could very easily cycle down to the sea for a swim.
Now, Norah and her husband had plenty of friends and relations. In the summer lots of them used to
come to enjoy the beautiful place, and in the end it really became quite annoying for the couple. When
they were at home, they found friends and relations arriving, expecting to be given unlimited drinks and
meals, and to sit in the sun for hours, talking as if Norah and her husband had nothing else to do but
entertain and listen to them.
This went on for several years. Norah didn"t wish to appear rude by refusing to let her friends and
relations in, but on the other hand, she was getting tired every summer.
Then one day Norah was complaining about this to her hairdresser while she was doing her hair. "You"re
disturbed by too many uninvited guests, are you?" said the hairdresser. "Why don"t you try my way of
escaping?"
"What"s that?" asked Norah.
"Well," the hairdresser answered, "when the bell rings, I put on my coat and take my shopping bag. If
it"s someone I don"t want to see, I say innocently, "I"m sorry, but I"ve got to go out." But…
B. ship
C. sea
D. animal
B. few friends came to visit them in winter
C. friends came to visit them only for drinks and meals
D. Norah was a good cook
B. She walked there.
C. She swam there.
D. She went there by bicycle.
B. if it"s someone I like to see, I say "How lucky! I"ve just come in!"
C. if it is fine that day, I say, "I"m tired of this, but I"ll show you around the place."
D. if it"s someone I like to see, I say, "How happy to see you! But I was going shopping now ."
B. A Visit to Norah
C. A clever Way of Escaping
D. A Warm-hearted Couple
immediately and would have done anything to have 2 the words back.What she said hurt the friend so
much that this good woman was herself hurt for the 3 she caused.In an effort to 4 the bad effect of
what she had done, she went to an older, wiser woman in the village, explained her situation, and asked
for advice.
The older woman listened patiently in an effort to determine just how 5 the younger woman was,
how far she was willing to go to correct the situation.She 6 the younger woman"s unhappiness and knew
she must help her.She also knew she could never 7 the pain, but she could teach.She knew the 8
would depend only on the character of the younger woman.She said, "Tonight, take your best feather
pillows and put a(n) 9 feather on the doorstep of each house in the town before the sun rises."
The young woman hurried home to prepare for her work, even though the feather pillows were very
10 to her.All night long, she 11 alone in the cold.Finally the sky was getting 12 , she placed the last
feather on the steps of the last house.Just as the sun rose, she 13 to the older woman."Now", said the
wise woman, "go back and 14 your pillows with the feathers you have put on the 15 , then everything
will be as it was before."
"You know that"s impossible! The wind 16 away each feather as fast as I placed them on the
doorsteps!" the young woman was 17 .
"That"s true," said the older woman."Never forget.Each of your words is like a feather in the wind. 18
spoken, no amount of effort, regardless how heartfelt or sincere, can never return them to your mouth. 19
your words well and guard them most of all in the 20 of those of you love".
( )1. A. admitted ( )2. A. brought ( )3. A. depression ( )4. A. have ( )5. A. sincere ( )6. A. understood ( )7. A. ease ( )8. A. relationship ( )9. A. simple ( )10. A. dear ( )11. A. waited ( )12. A. sunny ( )13. A. referred ( )14. A. refill ( )15. A. stairs ( )16. A. put ( )17. A. puzzled ( )18. A. Although ( )19. A. Speak ( )20. A. presence | B. denied B. taken B. misunderstanding B. forget B. sad B. sensed B. forget B. friendship B. average B. usual B. laboured B. light B. attended B. repair B. feathers B. gave B. dissatisfied B. While B. Choose B. eye | C. responded C. turned C. pain C. ignore C. innocent C. discovered C. solve C. outcome C. common C. ordinary C. struggled C. warmer C. appealed C. refresh C. steps C. blew C. disappointed C. Once C. Say C. case | D. regretted D. given D. conflict D. remove D. guilty D. shared D. handle D. situation D. single D. significant D. stayed D. dark D. returned D. reunite D. windows D. faded D. surprised D. Unless D. Guide D. charge | ||||||||||||||
完形填空。 | |||||||||||||||||
I saw the old man, with his untidy clothes and messy hair, as he dashed between the rows of the department store. He was trying to be ordinary but he was hard not to 1 . He 2 the saleswoman and with a slight 3_, possibly German, asked where the women"s shoes were sold. "Fourth floor." She responded in a voice I could hear 10 miles away. "Pardon? Where did you say they were?" he asked again, apparently 4_. Clearly the old man was somewhat 5 "Fourth floor, sir," the friendly saleswoman replied patiently, this time so _6_ that customers turned to see what was causing the _7 . I continued watching as the man thanked the saleswoman and 8 for what I assumed was the fourth floor. But rather than walk to the 9 or the lift, he dashed behind a shelf, took out a notebook and started writing hurriedly, with an almost mad 10 on his face. Then he went straight up to another saleswoman and asked where the women"s shoes were sold. Again he asked her to 11 the answer and once more he walked away and took down some notes. He did this three more times before a department store 12 , thinking him mad, removed him from the store. But rather than be 13 , the old man departed with a huge smile on his face. Although the incident was 14 , it was not until a year later, during my first year of university, that I gave it any further 15_. I walked into my language classroom and met my professor. It was that very same man. | |||||||||||||||||
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