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Unit 3 A taste of English humour 阅读理解AMy doorbell rings at 11 am. On the step, I find an elderly Chinese lady. She is small and slight. She holds a paper carrier bag in her hands.I know this lady. It is by no means her first visit. Her daughter, Nicole, bought the house next door last October.Nicole, who is currently in Shanghai, has apparently told her mother that I am having heart surgery shortly, and the result is that her mother has decided I need to be supplied with meals.I know what is inside the paper carrier baga stainless steel container with a meal of rice, vegetables and either chicken, meat or shrimp. This has bee an almostdaily occurrence.munication between my benefactor(恩人) and me is somewhat handicapped by the fact that she doesnt speak English and all I can say in Mandarin is “hello”. Once, she brought an iPad and pointed to the screen, which displayed a message from Nicole telling me that her mother wanted to know if the food was all right.“Your mother just cant be bringing me meals like this all the time，” I protested. “I can hardly reciprocate by cooking something from my native land, like roast beef or Yorkshire pudding for her，”I said.“Oh, no，” Nicole said. “Dont worry about that. She has to cook for the family anyway, and she wants to do it for you. You can call her Wing, which is her surname.” The tenant in my basement suite is a university student who speaks Mandarin quite well, so with her help, I have found out that Wing is 6813 years younger than I am. For my part, I was raised in wartime Britain.So here we are, two grandmothers a world away from where we were raised, neither of us able to speak the others language. But the doorbell keeps ringing and there is the familiar paper carrier bag, handed smilingly to me by Wing. Right now I am working on some more Mandarin wordsits the least I can do after such a display of kindness.“Thank you” is, of course, the first one, which somehow seems inadequate.【解题导语】本文是一篇记叙文。文章讲述了作者与邻居之间的故事，邻居是一位来自中国的老太太，对作者非常关照。1. The author and Wing got to know each other_Aas next door neighborsBwhen exchanging mealsCby sharing similar experiencesDafter using an iPad to municateA解析：细节理解题。根据第二段的前三句“I know this lady.Her daughter，Nicole，bought the house next door last October.”可知，作者与这位老太太是邻居。所以A项正确。2The underlined word “reciprocate” in Paragraph 5 probably means “_”Ado as wellBoffer generouslyCgive in return Daccept with pleasureC解析：词义猜测题。根据第五段第一句中的“Your mother just cant be bringing me meals like this all the time”可知作者认为老太太一直对自己那么好，而自己只是做一些本国的食物，是几乎不能回报她的。C项意为“回报”，故选C。3The authors effort to learn Mandarin shows her_Agreat satisfaction Breal kindnessCheartfelt thanks Dsincere friendshipC解析：细节理解题。根据倒数第二段中的“its the least I can do after such a display of kindness”可知作者认为学习中文是为了感谢老太太对自己的好。A项意为“极大的满意”；B项意为“真正的友善”；C项意为“衷心的感谢”；D项意为“真诚的友谊”。BIn ancient Egypt, the pharaoh(法老) treated the message runner like a prince when he arrived at the palace, if he brought good news. However, if the exhausted runner had the misfortune to bring the pharaoh unhappy news, his head was cut off.Shades of that spirit spread over todays conversations. Once a friend and I packed up some peanut butter and sandwiches for an outing. As we walked lightheartedly out of the door, picnic basket in hand, a smiling neighbor looked up at the sky and said, “Oh boy, a bad day for a picnic. The weatherman says its going to rain.” I wanted to strike him on the face with the peanut butter and sandwiches. Not for his stupid weather report, but for his smile.Several months ago I was racing to catch a bus. As I breathlessly put my handful of cash across the Greyhound counter, the sales agent said with a broad smile, “Oh, that bus left five minutes ago.” Dreams of headcutting!Its not the news that makes someone angry. Its the unsympathetic attitude with which its delivered(传递). Everyone must give bad news from time to time, and big winners do it with the proper attitude. A doctor advising his patient that she needs an operation does it in a caring way. A boss informing an employee he fails to get the job takes on a sympathetic tone. Big winners know, when delivering any bad news, they should share the feeling of the receiver.Unfortunately, many people are not aware of this. When youre tired from a long flight, has a hotel clerk cheerfully said that your room isnt ready yet? When you had your heart set on the toasted beef, has your waiter merrily told you that he just served the last piece? It makes you as a traveler or diner want to land your fist right on their unsympathetic faces.Had my neighbor told me of the uping rainstorm with sympathy, I would have appreciated his warning. Had the Greyhound salesclerk sympathetically informed me that my bus had already left, I probably would have said, “Oh，thats all right. Ill catch the next one.” Big winners, when they bear bad news, deliver bombs with the emotion the bombarded(被轰炸的) person is sure to have.【解题导语】本文主要讲述当我们要告诉别人不好的消息的时候，要注意说话的方式和语气，还要带有同情心。4From “Dreams of headcutting！”(Paragraph 3), we learn that the writer_Awas reminded of the cruel pharaohBwas mad at the sales agentCwished that the sales agent would have bad dreamsDdreamed of cutting the sales agents head that nightB解析：推理判断题。根据第三段的描述可知，“我”对售票员的态度很恼火。5Which of the following is true?AThe author really appreciated the neighbors warning.BFrom the passage we know that it is the bad news that makes someone angry.CIf the runner brought to the pharaoh unhappy news, he would be treated like a prince.DWhen we want to deliver any bad news, we should share the feeling of the receiver.D解析：推理判断题。根据第四段中的“Big winners know, when delivering any bad news, they should share the feeling of the receiver.”可知，当告诉别人不好的消息的时候，应该带有同情心，应该分担消息接收者不好的感觉。6What is the main idea of the text?AReceiving bad news requires great courage.BHelping others sincerely is the key to business success.CDelivering bad news with sympathy is important in munication.DLearning ancient traditions can be useful.C解析：主旨大意题。本文主要告诉我们当我们告诉别人不好的消息的时候，要注意讲话的方式和态度，应该带有同情心，分担别人的忧愁。7In the writers opinion, his neighbor was_Anot helpfulBnot considerateCfriendly DwarmheartedB解析：推理判断题。根据最后一段中的“Had my neighbor told me of the uping rainstorm with sympathy, I would have appreciated his warning.”可知，“我”认为邻居没有同情心，不能为别人考虑。故选B项。 完形填空From childhood，Moira loved to write. Throughout school she _1_ writing, but pursuing(追求) it _2_ was never a possibility. Her father was a doctor, her mother a nurse.“Medicine was a fairly _3_ option，” Moira says. “And writing was a career where it wasnt a _4_ that youd have high ine.”She became a doctor but still wanted to do some writing. However, being a doctor was so _5_ that she didnt take up writing until her thirties. She _6_ a novela fictionalized version of her travels in China after university. She got excellent _7_. Moira sent it off to as many agents as she could find, and found one who wanted to _8_ her. Suddenly, it seemed she was on her _9_ as an author. “I had one lengthy phone call with the agent where we _10_ all possible areas she thought needed _11_I worked on those and sent it back to her but didnt hear anything.” It was not long _12_ Moira found another agent who was _13_ if she was willing to rewrite it from the first person to the third person. She did the hard work and sent it off again. “I got back a really brief letter：Thank you, Im no longer interested. It was really _14_”A decade went by, and Moira found herself eager to write again, this time _15_ for her own enjoyment. She _16_ herself the challenge of creating a thriller and chose Western Australia as her setting.As she was writing just for herself, something surprising began to happen. “The characters _17_ a life of their own; they started doing things I hadnt thought about. It just _18_ out.” One day, an agent called from Australia. Three weeks later, Moira had a publication deal. Her novel, Cicada, was published in March.“_19_ it hadnt been published I still gained so much from the _20_，” says Moira.【解题导语】本文通过Moira爱好写作并坚持写作的故事告诉我们：每个人都要为实现自己的梦想而去努力尝试，只有经历过才能够有所得，在追求的过程中不要过于担心结果，只有这样才能成功。1A.learntBavoidedCconsidered DenjoyedD解析：根据首句“From childhood，Moira loved to write.”可知，从童年开始，Moira就爱好写作；由此推断，在上学期间，她仍然喜欢(enjoyed)写作。2A.actively BprofessionallyCenergetically DpermanentlyB解析：根据生活常识及该句中的关键词“never a possibility”可知，把写作当作职业来追求几乎是不可能的。actively“积极地”；professionally“作为职业地”；energetically“精力充沛地”；permanently“永久地”。3A.influential BexplicitCterrible DsafeD解析：根据空处前一句“Her father was a doctor，her mother a nurse.”可知，她的父母会给予她医学方面很多的帮助，所以Moira认为医学是一个十分安全的(safe)选择。4A.dream BpurposeCchoice DcertaintyD解析：根据空后的“youd have high ine”可知，Moira也认为写作是一个不一定能带来高收入的职业。certainty“确定的事”，符合语境，所以选项D正确。5A.promising BdiscouragingCdemanding DinterestingC解析：根据空后的“she didnt take up writing until her thirties”可知，医生是一个要求很高的职业，因此她直到三十多岁才开始写作。promising“有希望的，有前途的”；discouraging“使人泄气的”；demanding“苛刻的，要求高的”；interesting“有趣的”。所以选项C正确。6A.produced BintroducedCbought DreceivedA解析：根据语境可知，她以大学毕业后在中国的旅游经历为背景创作了一本小说。produce“创作，生产，产生”；introduce“介绍”；buy“买”；receive“收到”。所以选项A正确。7A.rewards BreadersCreviews DpraisesC解析：根据该段最后一句“Suddenly，it seemed she was on her_as an author.”可以判断，这部小说写出来后，她得到了极好的评论。reward“报酬”；reader“读者”；review“评论”；praise“赞扬”。所以选项C正确。8A.employ BrepresentCtrust DguideB解析：根据语境可知，在众多的代理人中有一个人愿意代理出版这本小说。employ“雇用，使用”；represent“代表，代理”；trust“信任”；guide“指导”。所以选项B正确。9A.own BfeetCway DbusinessC解析：根据语境可知，她似乎突然就要成为作家了。on ones way“即将到达或发生”，所以选项C正确。10A.took off Bwent throughCpulled down Dcame overB解析：根据语境可知，Moira在电话中与代理人就小说中所有代理人认为需要润色(polishing)的地方进行了仔细琢磨(went through)。take off“脱下，起飞”；go through“仔细察看，仔细琢磨”；pull down“拆毁，推翻”；e over“过来，来访”。所以选项B正确。11A.deleting BadaptingCpolishing DcoveringC解析：参见上题解析。delete“删除”；adapt“适应，改编”；polish“修改，润色”；cover“覆盖，报道”。所以选项C正确。12A.before BafterCsince DwhenA解析：根据上文中的“sent it back to her but didnt hear anything”可知，Moira重新把小说发给代理人但是没有收到任何回复，不久之后Moira找到了另外一个代理人。句型It wasnt long before.意思是“不久之后”。所以选项A正确。13A.fascinated BinterestedCanxious DamusedB解析：根据下文中的“Im no longer interested”可知，此处指这位代理人对她的书感兴趣。fascinated“入迷的”；interested“感兴趣的”；anxious“焦急的，忧虑的”；amused“逗笑的”。所以选项B正确。14A.mon BabsurdCterrifying DdisappointingD解析：从两位代理人的态度可知，Moira这两次都以失败告终，所以这件事情肯定令她感到失望。mon“共同的”；absurd“荒谬的”；terrifying“令人恐惧的”；disappointing“令人失望的”。所以选项D正确。15A.purely BwonderfullyCinstantly DsadlyA解析：根据该句中的“found herself eager to write again.own enjoyment”可知，她发现自己渴望再次写作，而这次写作仅仅(purely)是为了个人乐趣。purely“仅仅，纯粹地”；wonderfully“非常好，非常”；instantly“立即”；sadly“悲伤地”。所以选项A正确。16A.set BfoundCmade DpermittedA解析：根据语境可知，Moira向自己提出(set)了一个挑战，写一部惊险小说。find“发现”；make“进行，布置”；permit“允许，许可”。所以选项A正确。17A.put up Btook onCwent over Dgot downB解析：根据该句“The characters_a life of their own；they started doing things I hadnt thought about.”可知，小说中的人物开始具有(took on)他们自己的生活。put up“建造，张贴”；take on“开始具有(某种特征、面貌等)”；go over“仔细检查”；get down“下来，取下”。所以选项B正确。18A.flew Bbrought Cbroke DcarriedA解析：根据下文可知，Moira的书得到了一位澳大利亚代理人的关注并顺利出版；据此可以推断，这部小说成功了。所以选项A正确。19A.Ever since BAs ifCIf only DEven ifD解析：根据语境可推断出，即使(Even if)这部小说没有出版，Moira仍然在这个过程(process)中得到许多。ever since“自从”；as if“好像，似乎”；if only“要是就好了”；even if“即使，尽管”。所以选项D正确。20A.adventure BpracticeCprocess DresultC解析：参见上题解析。adventure“冒险”；practice“实践”；process“过程”；result“结果”。所以选项C正确。
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