2019年高考英语试题汇编（10月 上）B单元 完形填空（含解析）.doc

2019年高考英语试题汇编（10月 上）B单元 完形填空（含解析）目录B单元 完形填空1B1 记叙文1B2 夹叙夹议文4B3 议论文4B4 说明文4B5 应用文4B1 记叙文【英语卷（解析）xx届山东省师大附中高三第一次模拟考试（xx09）】BAs a kid I loved everything about school. I loved books， 41 ，tests and homeworkMost of all I longed to someday march down the aisle(通道)to receive my 42 That seemed more appealing even than getting marriedBut at 15，I had to 43 because my parents 44 afford tuition. My hope of getting a diploma was deadPretty soon，I married. I had three Children，and I thought：“There 45 my diploma”Even so，I wanted my children to be educatedBut Linda，our youngest child，had juvenile arthritis(幼年型关节炎)inher 46 and knees，which made it 47 her to function(活动)in a normal classroomOne day，I saw an ad in the newspaper for evening courses“Thats the answer，” I said to myselfLinda always feels 48 in the evening，so I11just sign her up for night schoo1 Linda was busy 49 out enrollment(入学)forms when the secretary said：“Mrs Schantz，why dont you e back to 50 ?”I 51 ：“Theres no way! Im 55!” 52 he insisted，and before I knew what I had done，I was enrolled for classes in English and crafts“This is only an experiment,”I 53 him，but he just smiledTo my surprise，both Linda and I thrived(茁壮成长)in evening school. I went back again the next semester，and my grades 54 improvedIt was 55 going to school again，but it was no gameSitting in a class full of kids was awkward， 56 most of them were respectful and encouragingDuring the day，I still had loads of housework to do，But when I was down，Linda encouraged me“Morn，you cant 57 now!”And when she was down，I 58 herTogether we saw it throughAt last，I got my diploma 59 ，my classmates voted unanimously(一致地)for me to be class speaker，and I got a 3，000 college scholarshipYes，Mom，I was late for school，but I got there 60 41Aparents Bteachers Ctrees Dflowers42Ajob Bpresent Ccertification Ddiploma43Adrop out Bwatch out Ckeep outDfind out44Awouldnt Bcouldnt Cshouldnt Dneednt45Agoes Bes Cexists Dbreaks46. A .hands Bhead Ceyes Dstomach47A1ikely Bfrequent Ceasy Dimpossible48AWorse Bexcited Cbetter Dannoyed49Agiving Btaking Cfilling Dsending50Awork Bschool Chome Doffice51A1aughed Btold Cargued Dshouted52AAnd BBut CAlthough DSo53Ainformed Basked Cwarned Dconvinced54Aregularly Bhappily Csteadily Dnaturally55Ainteresting Bdisappointing Cconcerned Dexciting56Aas if Beven if Cin case Dif only57Acontinue Brest Cquit Dhesitate58Araised Bdiscouraged Ccheered Ddefeated59ATo my surpriseBTo my satisfaction CTo my relief DTo my credit60Anaturally Bfrequently Cconstantly Deventually【答案】【知识点】B1 记叙文【文章综述】文章讲述了Mrs Schantz 小时候很喜欢上学，因为父母负担不起学费而辍学。她55岁时和女儿一起上夜校并获得了大学奖学金，最终实现自己小时候梦想。【答案解析】41.B 根据第一句I loved everything about school.，作者喜欢的是和学校有关的，选B。42.D Ajob 工作；Bpresent 礼物；Ccertification 证明Ddiploma学历。结合下文中My hope of getting a diploma was dead43.A Adrop out辍学；Bwatch out 当心，小心；Ckeep out阻止进入；Dfind out找到，发现。下文说我获得学历的梦想破灭了。又提到学费，可推断出父母付不起学费，我辍学了。44.B 常用语 cantcouldnt afford 负担不起45.A Agoes走Bes 来Cexists 存在Dbreaks打碎；作者辍学后，结婚生子，文凭没了。46.A 根据juvenile arthritis(幼年型关节炎，可知选A。47.D 根据意思因为琳达有幼年性关节炎，在正常学校的教室里活动是不可能的。48.C 根据下文so I11just sign her up for night schoo1我给她报名上夜校可知，琳达在晚上感觉要好很多。49.C 固定搭配fill out forms 填写表格50.B 根据上下文可知，秘书说“你为什么不来学校呢？”51.A A1aughed 笑Btold 告诉Cargued 争论Dshouted大喊；结合情景，应该是笑着说。52.B 从上文我们知道，作者拒绝了夜校秘书的提议；但是他还是坚持，我也报名了。53.C Ainformed 通知Basked 问Cwarned 提醒Dconvinced说服；我提醒他我只是尝试一下。54.C Aregularly 有规律地Bhappily 开心地Csteadily稳定地，不断地Dnaturally自然地；我的成绩不断地提高。55.D Ainteresting有趣的Bdisappointing失望的Cconcerned 关心的Dexciting激动的；再次去上学还是激动的事情。56.B Aas if 似乎，好像Beven if 尽管Cin case 以防Dif only要是就好了；和一群孩子坐在一起还是挺尴尬的，尽管他们中大多说人都尊重和鼓励我。57.C Acontinue继续Brest 休息Cquit 放弃Dhesitate犹豫；你不能放弃。58.C Araised养育Bdiscouraged 挫败Ccheered 鼓励Ddefeated击败；当她情绪低落时，我鼓励她。59.A ATo my surprise另我惊讶的是BTo my satisfaction令我满意CTo my relief 令我松了一口气DTo my credit使某人增光；令我惊讶的是，全班同学一致同意选我作发言人。60.D Anaturally 自然地Bfrequently经常地Cconstantly 不断地Deventually最终；妈妈，我上学晚了，但我最终还是到达了。第二部分 阅读理解(共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分) 阅读下列短文，从每小题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。【英语卷（解析）xx届山东省师大附中高三第一次模拟考试（xx09）】AXinxin，a 12-year-old student from Beijing，enjoyed his winter vacation with his father in SingaporeDuring their visit，he even had the chance to 31 some of Singapores sights by himself 32 his father was busy with other thingsXinxins first adventure 33 in Singapore was at a water park near their hotelHe enjoyed swimming and 34 into the water by himself and then returned to the hotel before a time in the evening that was 35 by his fatherThe boy also made a trip to Universal Studios Singapore 36 a guardian(监护人)He had already been to the park with his father two times during the tripXinxin volunteered to make his 37 trip by himselfHis father gave him some pocket money to buy lunch，and then Xinxin rode the shuttle from their hotel to the studiosHe spent a whole day there and had a 38 time In an interview with Beijing Evening News，Xinxins father said that 39 he was too busy to spend all his time with his son，he decided to give him the opportunity to develop a sense of 40 Had Xinxins mother been there，she would not have let Xinxin out of her sight，the father mented31Astudy Bexplore Ctest Dmeasure32Awhile Buntil Cbefore Dunless33Aalong Balive Calone D. lonely34. A. floating Bsurfing Cdriving Ddiving35Amade Bset Cdecided Dasked36Aunder Bbehind Cwith Dwithout37Afirst Bsecond Cthird Dfourth38Aterrible B，miserable Cfantastic Dflexible39Athough Bsince Cif Dwhen40. Aindependence Bdaring Cpride D. diligence【答案】【知识点】B1 记叙文【文章综述】文章介绍男孩xinxin和爸爸去新加坡度过寒假，因为爸爸很忙，所以有的时候，他是一个人外出游玩，爸爸认为这可以培养他的独立性。【答案解析】31.B A. study 学习，B. explore探索，C. test考验，D. measure衡量。他甚至有机会自己探索新加坡的风景。选B。32.A A. while然而，而B. until直到，C. before在前面，D. unless除非。而他爸爸忙着其他的事情，这里表示对比，选A。33.C A. along一起，B. alive活着的，C. alone单独的，D. lonely孤单的，从上文的by himself可知他第一个单独冒险是在一个水上公园。选C。34.D A. floating漂浮，B. surfing搜索，C. driving驾驶，开车，D. diving跳水。他喜欢游泳好一个人跳入水中，选D。35.B A. made制作，使得，B. set 确定，设置，C. decided决定，D. asked问。然后在爸爸设定的回旅店的时间之前回来了。选B。36.D A. under在下面，B. behind 在后面，C. with和一起，D. without没有。这个男孩也在没有导游的情况下到新加坡环球影城游玩。选D。37.C从上文的：He had already been to the park with his father two times during the trip.可知这是第三次去那里，选 C。38.C A.terrible可怕的，B.miserable痛苦的，C. Fantastic美妙的，D. Flexible灵活的。他在那里度过一天，玩得非常愉快，选C。39.B A. though虽然，B. since因为；由于C. if如果，D. when当时候。因为他太忙了没有时间陪儿子，所以给他机会培养独立感。选B。40.A A. independence独立，B. daring勇敢；勇气，C. pride骄傲，D. diligence勤勉，勤奋。从上文介绍xinxin一个人去游玩的经历，所以是培养独立性，选A。【英语卷（解析）xx届浙江省温州市十校联合体（温州中学等）高三第一次月考（xx10）】He, in 44 , mentioned that he had tried going there, but there was no such street number and he just couldnt locate his hotelI 45 it again for himHe thanked me with a big smile, shook my hand, and 46 I got into my car and he got into his, and we 47 waysAs I drove to the next grocery store and went in, I sensed 48 wrong about the directionsso I Googled the address again and 49 that he was looking for the right address but in a city half an hour away! 50 it had been several minutes, the chances of finding him miles awaywhere he was surely still looking aroundwere 51 But I thought Id give it a(an) 52 and set off in that direction Id 53 noticed what his car looked like, and was just about to give upI parked my car as I considered what else I could do 54 , like magic, he drove right by and pulled over into a nearby parking spot, still 55 about where the hotel wasWhen I 56 next to him, he couldnt believe it: 57 did you find me?! he askedIm not sure, but I 58 that you are in the wrong city! I showed him the right directions, and after more 59 and a handshake, we 60 .Likely that well never meet again, and that makes it much more sweet.41A museumB parking spotC hotelD grocery store42A onB inC atD with43A constantlyB exactlyC absolutelyD pletely44A reliefB panicC delightD puzzlement45A confirmedB evaluatedC analyzedD adjusted46A took offB took upC took downD took over47A lostB partedC foughtD pushed48A nothingB anythingC somethingD everything49A realizedB consideredC determinedD stated50A HopefullyB UnbelievablyC ConsequentlyD Unfortunately51A bigB vitalC slimD obvious52A beginningB endC changeD try53A hardlyB merelyC regularlyD occasionally54A whileB beforeC whenD since55A at a lossB at a riskC at easeD at peace56A put outB put upC pulled downD pulled in57A WhereB WhyC WhenD How58A tried outB figured outC burst outD carried out59A luckB smilesC greetingsD praise60A left togetherB returned homeC waved goodbyeD rushed away【答案】【知识点】 B1 记叙文 【文章综述】对本文主要讲述了 作者 自己帮忙给人指路的故事，通过给别人帮忙，作者感受到了内心的高兴，我们也更加相信“人性”了，【答案解析】41.选C，下文提示，他是在找自己了旅馆。42.选A，on my phone 固定搭配，在手机上搜索。43.选B，此处说的是他需要去的地方确切的显示了出来，很有把握的样子，为下文埋下伏笔。44.选D，根据本句，他说已经去过这个地方，没有找到这条街和宾馆，而现在我由这样说，那么他只能刚到迷惑了。45.选A，因为他迷惑，所以作者又为他确认了一次。Confirm 确认。46.选A，take off表示“离开”，他们握手告别。47.选B，part ways表示“分道走”固定短语。48.选C，something wrong，作者感受到有什么不对。49.选A，作者又一次搜索了改地址，“意识到”那位高个男士在找一个正确的地方，但是在另一个城市。50.选D，已经过去几分钟了，正常情况下，他们该已经离开很远了，所以找到那位高个男士的几率该很小了，因此该用“不幸的是”。51.选C，参考上一题。Slim表示“微小的”52.选D，承接上文，为了帮助别人，尽管几率很小，作者还是决定尝试一下。53.选A，当时作者几乎没怎么注意那位陌生男士的车是怎么样子，所以又想放弃。54.选C，时间状语从句，when表示“在这时”。55.选A，at a loss 困惑不解，不知所措56.选D，pull in 进站，这里指的是进入“停车场”。57.选D，他是在问，你是如何找到我的。故选How。58.选B，figure out 想出。这里指的是我现在知道你走错城市了。 59.选B。此情此景只能是微笑了。60.选C，挥手再见。 【英语卷（解析）xx届浙江省台州中学高三上学期第二次统练（xx10）】第二节：完形填空（共20小题，每小题1分，满分20分） 阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从各题所给的四个选项A、B、C和D中，选出最佳答案, 并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。 Signs can sometimes be seen at the entrance of a house, expressing that a tramp has passed. This special sign-language is frequently 41 by tramps to inform their 42 whether the host of a certain house is friendly or unfriendly, and to 43 them the trouble of making unnecessary calls.Quite 44 one day, I came across a real tramp. He was such a rare sight these days that I stood some distance away and watched him. He was dressed just as a tramp should be 45 , old worn trousers, and a jacket many sizes too big for him. On his head there was a battered old hat and his boots were so old and worn; they were almost ing into46 . But the man himself looked cheerful as if he had not a 47 in the world. He rubbed his nose with his forefinger, 48 a funny turn, laid a small parcel by the front gate, and began 49 a sign made by a former caller. Although the sign was meaningless to me, it must have been 50 , for the tramps face lit up with 51 . He entered the front gate confidently and rang the bell.When the door opened, I saw him 52 his hat but couldnt hear his words. The 53 was very short indeed, for no sooner had he spoken a few words than the door closed fiercely in his face. I felt 54 for him as he walked 55 out of the house. But just as quickly, his face lit up again and he moved quickly towards the gate. There he stopped, looked at the sign, and 56 his head seriously as if he had made a bad mistake.57 deeply into his pockets, he produced a piece of chalk, rubbed out the 58 sign and made a new one in its place. He stared at it for a moment smiling to himself, then gathered his 59 , pushed back his hat and began walking towards the next house at an unhurried 60 , whistling as he went along.41. A. employed B. madeC. taken D. put up42. A. parentsB. classmatesC. fellowsD. friends43. A. shareB. saveC. giveD. put44. A. in a wayB. by mistakeC. by the wayD. by chance45. A. withB. inC. byD. on46. A. a fashionB. a designC. piecesD. blocks47. A. successB. careC. failureD. family48. A. gaveB. gotC. setD. made49. A. drawingB. kissing C. correcting D. studying50. A. pleasedB. strangeC. funny D. exciting51. A. surpriseB. satisfactionC. worryD.disappointment52. A. riseB. put onC. raiseD. throw53.A. conversationB. introductionC. quarrelD. greeting54. A. happyB. frightenedC. worriedD. sorry55. A. cheerfullyB. sadlyC. bravelyD. eagerly56. A. wavedB. swungC. shookD. nodded57. A. DiggingB. StealingC. PuttingD. Looking58. A. appearingB. movingC. shining D. existing59. A. belongingsB. clothesC. umbrellaD. stick60. A. stepB. positionC. paceD. situation【答案】【知识点】B1 记叙文【文章综述】流浪汉们常将他们所使用的特殊符号画在住户的墙上，告知同行这家主人是否友好，可否去拜访本文讲述一个流浪汉根据符号的指引去一户人家乞讨，结果却吃了闭门羹后来他发现是符号错了。 【答案解析】41.A考查动词辨析A. employed雇佣；B. made使；C. taken带走；D. put up张贴；这种特殊的符号常被流浪汉用来告知同行是否可以进入该户人家乞讨。put up张贴，据下文，符号是画在墙上，故选A项。42.C 考查名词辨析A. parents父母；B. classmates同学；C. fellows家伙；D. friends朋友；据上下文是指告知同行。同行不一定都是朋友，故排除D项，所以选C。43.B 考查动词辨析A. share分享；B. save挽救；C. give给； D. put放；据上文知，有了这种符号，流浪汉们就可省下做一些不必要的拜访的麻烦，故选B。44.D考查介词短语辨析 A. in a way用这种方式；B. by mistake错误地；C. by the way顺路；D. by chance偶然地。从后半句came across得知为巧遇by chance，故选D45.B 考查传记辨析A. with和；B. in在，里面；C. by在。旁边；D. on在。上面；in 后面加表示衣服的词语，表示穿着，当主语表示衣服的46.C 考查名词辨析A. a fashion流行；B. a design设计；C. pieces片段；D. blocks砖块；in pieces 在这里描述流浪汉的衣服破旧的状态，几乎成了碎片，前面的On his head there was a battered old hat and his boots were so old and worn给出了很好的暗示，故选C项。47.C考查名词辨析 A. success成功；B. care关心；C. failure失败；D. family家庭；那个人看起来非常高兴好像不是一个失败的人，故选C。48. D考查动词辨析A. gave给； B. got得到；C. set制定；D. made制做；make a turn转一圈。他滑稽地转了一个圈”。故选D49. D考查动词辨析A. drawing画；B. kissing亲吻；C. correcting改正；D. studying学习；据上下文知这里是“研究”，“仔细看”那个符号，想弄清它代表的意思。故选D50. D考查形容词辨析A. pleased高兴的； B. strange奇怪的；C. funny有趣的；D. exciting令人兴奋的；根据下文for the tramps face lit up with satisfaction.指符号有帮助的，提供了好消息。故选D。51.B 考查名词辨析A. surprise吃惊 ；B. satisfaction满意；C. worry担心；D. disappointment失望；由下方confidently和后来所发生的事及流浪汉原来的表情对比可以看出，当时他非常的满意，故选B项。52. C考查动词辨析A. rise上升；B. put on穿上；C. raise提升；D. throw扔；敲门前，流浪汉把帽子抬高了一点，根据上文提到他戴着帽子，故选C项。53.A考查名词辨析A. conversation对话；B. introduction介绍；C. quarrel争吵；D. greeting问候；流浪汉与主人之间的谈话。故选A。54.D考查形容词辨析 A. happy高兴的；B. frightened害怕的；C. worried担心的；D. sorry抱歉；看到他悲伤地走出来，我为他感到难过，故选D。55.B 考查副词辨析A. cheerfully欢呼地；B. sadly悲伤地；C. bravely勇敢地；D. eagerly迫切地；满怀希望地敲开门，却被无情志拒之门外，自然是伤心地离开了，故选B项。56. C考查动词辨析A. waved挥手；B. swung摇摆；C. shook摇晃；D. nodded点头；根据下方提到as if he had made a bad mistake 可知，这是摇头，故选C项。57. A考查动词辨析A. Digging挖掘；B. Stealing偷；C. Putting放；D. Looking看；把手插到口袋里去找东西，这里形象地描述了流浪汉把托插入口袋深处，摸出一根粉笔的情景，故选A项58. D考查动词辨析A. appearing出现； B. moving移动；C. shining闪光；D. existing存在；exist是不及物动词，所以不能用过去分词做定语，要有existing ,意思是存在的，现有的，故选D项。59. A考查名词辨析A. belongings所有物；B. clothes衣服；C. umbrella雨伞；D. stick棍；由语境和常识可知，这里指的是流浪汉所有的东西，包括前面提到的a small parcel,所以选A项。60.C 考查名词辨析A. step步伐；B. position位置；C. pace脚步；D. situation情况；这里指步伐节奏流浪汉迈着不紧不慢的步伐，吹着口哨继续往下家去乞讨。故选C【英语卷（解析）xx届云南省玉溪一中高三上学期第二次月考（xx10）】第一节：完形填空（共20小题;每题1.5分，满分30分）阅读下面短文，从短文后所给的四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。 When I was 17 years old, I left my fortable home in a wealthy Midwestern suburb to live as a foreign exchange student in a lower-middle-class neighborhood in a foreign country. I 41 in an apartment with no elevators, no dishwashers and one washer for 300 42 . The tile(瓷砖）floors were always 43 and the rainy winter days there seemed endless. I 44 to wash my clothes by hand in the bathtub and 45 water was so costly, I trained myself to 46 my waist-length hair in less than five minutes. At that time there were no cell phones and the Internet didnt exist so far six months I had no 47 at all with my family or friends in the US. I had no relatives there so I 48 to face the fact that my 49 to adapt and create a life for 50 ,was one hundred percent up to me. At age seventeen my need for friends was 51 and not knowing a soul was, needless to say, a bit stressful. To 52 to my stress, I didnt speak the 53 and had no familiarity with the monetary（货币的）system nor the transportation system. One more 54 that created stress was my 55 family. Of all the families in the city I lived, I was 56 with the ones who spoke the least (or worst) English. Living abroad and developing 57 in a foreign language required persistence and determination. I made many mistakes 58 the way. Now Ive transformed my 59 memories into my medals of honor (荣誉勋章). Theyre the treasured stories that offer wisdom, provide me with insights into friends and family and provide me with the 60 that I can surpass future challenges.41. A. moved B. lived C. turned D. took42. A. places B. names C. children D. families43. A. warm B. empty C. tidy D. cold44. A. tried B. asked C. learned D. forced45. A. althoughB. since C. unless D. once46. A. wash B. b C. arrange D. adopt47. A. contact B. quarrel C. letter D. chance48. A. turned B. needed C. pretended D. stopped49. A. imagination B. ability C. question D. career50. A. myself B. other C. another D. none51. A. impossible B. hopelessC. beneficial D. strong 52. A. adapt B. apply C. add D. reduce53. A. truth B. language C. fact D. word54. A. scene B. shortage C. fault D. challenge55. A. own B. former C. host D. guest56. A. occupied B. housedC. pared D. chosen57. A. fluency B. trouble C. habit D. fame58. A. over B. along C. in D. during59. A. harmful B. beautifulC. hopeful D. stressful60. A. advantage B. confidence C. promise D. future【答案】【知识点】B1 记叙文【文章综述】本文讲述作者17岁离家作为交换生生活在国外，所面临的挑战，这种经历让自己变得更明智，自信。 【答案解析】41. B考查动词辨析A. moved移动；B. lived 住；C. turned 转向；D. took带走；句意：我住在一个没有电梯没有洗碗机没有洗衣机的300家的公寓。根据语境可知是住在这里，故选B项。42.D考查名词辨析 A. places地点；B. names名字；C. children孩子；D. families家庭；句意：我住在一个没有电梯没有洗碗机没有洗衣机的300家的公寓。43. D考查形容词辨析A. warm温暖的；B. empty空的；C. tidy整洁的；D. cold冷的；句意：瓷砖的地板是冷的，下雨的冬天，永远不会结束。根据下方提到the rainy winter days there seemed endless可知选D项。44. C考查动词辨析A. tried尝试；B. asked问；C. learned学习；D. forced强迫；句意：我学会用手洗衣服。根据上文提到没有洗衣机故选C项。45. B考查连词辨析A. although虽然；B. since自从，因为；C. unless除非；D. once一旦；句意：因为水比较凉，我训练自己在五分种内洗完头发。根据两个句子是因果关系，故选B项。46. A考查动词辨析A. wash 洗；B. b梳理；C. arrange安排；D. adopt适应；句意：因为水比较凉，我训练自己在五分种内洗完头发。根据语境可知在洗头发，故选A项。47.A 考查名词辨析A. contact联系；B. quarrel吵架；C. letter信；D. chance机会；句意：我没有任何的与家人联系的方式。根据上文提到At that time there were no cell phones and the Internet didnt exist so far six months可知没有任何的联系方式，故选A项。48. B考查动词辨析A. turned转向；B. needed需要；C. pretended假装；D. stopped停止；句意：我没有亲戚因此我需要面对现实，我的适应能力，自己创造生活的能力都得全部靠自己，need to do 需要做某事，故选B项。49. B考查名词辨析A. imagination想象；B. ability能力；C. question 问题；D. career事业；句意：我没有亲戚因此我需要面对现实，我的适应能力，自己创造生活的能力都得全部靠自己，根据语境选B项。50. A考查代词辨析A. myself我自己；B. other其它的；C. another另外一个；D. none没有；句意：我没有亲戚因此我需要面对现实，我的适应能力，自己创造生活的能力都得全部靠自己，根据语境可知自己创造生活，故选A项。51. D考查形容词辨析A. impossible不可能；B. hopeless没有希望的；C. beneficial有益的；D. strong 强壮的；句意：在十七岁的年季，我对朋友的渴望是强烈的，更不用说，不知道一个人的灵魂是有压力的。根据语境可知选D项。52. C考查动词辨析A. adapt 采纳；B. apply提供；C. add加；D. reduce减少 。句意：为了增加压力，我不会说当地语言，没有熟悉的货币和交通系统。根据上文提到not knowing a soul was, needless to say, a bit st