第二节完形填空(共20小题；每小题1．5分，满分30分)
阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
A very little boy was spending his Saturday morning playing in his sandbox. He had with him a plastic pail(桶) and a shiny, red plastic shovel(铲). In the31of creating roads and tunnels in the sand, be32a large rock in the middle of the sandbox.
The boy dug around the rock,33to move it off the dirt. At first, he wanted to carry it out of the sandbox with his hands; however, it was too heavy. Later, with much34, he pushed the rock across the sandbox by35his hands. When the boy got the rock to the36of the sandbox, he found that he couldn’t roll it up and37the little wall.38, the little boy pushed, but every time he thought he had made some39, the rock tipped(翻滚) and then fell back into the sandbox. The little boy pushed and pushed, but his only40was to have the rock roll back.
Finally he41tears. All this time the boy’s father watched from his living room window42the drama was unfolded. The moment the tears fell, a large43appeared across the sandbox. It was the boy’s father. Gently but44, he said,“Son, why didn’t you use all the strength that you had?”
Defeated, the boy45back,“I did! I did！ I used all the strength that I had!”
“No, you didn’t. You didn’t ask me for help.” The father46down, picked up the rock and dropped it off the sandbox.
Do you have “rocks” in your life that need to be47? Are you discovering that you don’t have48it takes to lift them? There is someone who is willing to give us the49we need. Maybe, it’s sometimes a good idea to ask others for50when we meet difficulties we can’t overcome.
31.A.method          B.step            C.practice              D.process
32.A.created          B.set              C.discovered          D.brought
33.A.trying            B.managing    C.deciding             D.competing
34.A.thought         B.struggle       C.movement          D.worry
35.A.touching        B.shaking       C.using                 D.controlling
36.A.bottom          B.center         C.edge                  D.front
37.A.over                     B.down          C.through              D.into
38.A.Doubted        B.Surprised    C.Pleased                     D.Determined
39.A.attempt          B.progress      C.effort                 D.decision
40.A.hope             B.reward        C.point                  D.purpose
41.A.made out              B.broke out    C.hurst into           D.rushed into
42.A.so                 B.as               C.until                  D.before
43.A.rock                     B.picture        C.figure                D.shade
44.A.surprisingly   B.doubtfully   C.kindly                D.firmly
45.A.shouted         B.smiled         C.called                 D.asked
46.A.reached         B.looked        C.fell                    D.put
47.A.pushed          B.dropped      C.carried               D.removed
48.A.who                     B.what           C.which                D.where
49.A.minds            B.spirits         C.force                  D.strength
50.A.help                     B.tips             C.advice                D.ideas

完形填空（20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

   阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项A，B，C，D中选出能填入相应空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A very little boy was spending his Saturday morning playing in his sandbox. He had with him a plastic pail (桶) and a shiny, red plastic shovel (铲). In the   36   of creating roads and tunnels in the sand, he   37   a large rock in the middle of the sandbox.

The boy dug around the rock,   38   to move it off the dirt. At first, he wanted to carry it out of the sandbox with his hands; however, it was too heavy. Later, with much   39  , he pushed the rock across the sandbox by   40   his hands. When the boy got the rock to the   41   of the sandbox, he found that he couldn’t roll it up and   42   the little wall.   43  , the little boy pushed, but every time he thought he had made some   44  , the rock tipped (翻滚) and then fell back into the sandbox. The little boy pushed and pushed, but his only   45   was to have the rock roll back.

Finally he   46   tears. All this time the boy’s father watched from his living room window   47   the drama was unfolded. The moment the tears fell, a large   48   appeared across the sandbox. It was the boy’s father. Gently but   49  , he said, “Son, why didn’t you use all the strength that you had?”

Defeated, the boy   50   back, “I did! I did! I used all the strength that I had!”

“No, you didn’t. You didn’t ask me for help.” The father   51   down, picked up the rock and dropped it off the sandbox.

Do you have “rocks” in your life that need to be   52  ? Are you discovering that you don’t have   53   it takes to lift them? There is someone who is willing to give us the   54   we need. Maybe, it’s sometimes a good idea to ask others for   55   when we meet difficulties we can’t overcome.

A. method             B. step         C. practice         D. process

A. created                B. set          C. discovered           D. brought

A. trying             B. managing     C. deciding         D. competing

A. thought             B. struggle     C. movement         D. worry

A. touching            B. shaking      C. using                D. controlling

A. bottom             B. center           C. edge             D. front

A. over                B. down         C. through          D. into

A. Doubted            B. Surprised        C. Pleased          D. Determined

A. attempt                B. progress     C. effort               D. decision

A. hope               B. reward           C. point                D. purpose

A. made out           B. broke out        C. burst into           D. rushed into

A. so                 B. as           C. until                D. before

A. rock               B. picture          C. figure               D. shade

A. surprisingly            B. doubtfully       C. kindly               D. firmly

A. shouted                B. smiled           C. called               D. asked

A. reached                B. looked           C. fell             D. put

A. pushed             B. dropped      C. carried              D. removed

A. who                B. what         C. which                D. where

A. minds              B. spirits          C. force                D. strength

A. help               B. tips         C. advice               D. ideas

I’ve loved my mother’s desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it as mother sat doing letters. Standing by her chair, looking at the ink bottle, pens,   and white paper, I decided that the act of writing must be the more wonderful thing in the world.

Years later, during her final illness, mother kept different things for my sister  and brother. “But the desk,” she’d said again, “it’s for Elizabeth. ”

I never saw her angry, never saw her cry. I knew she loved me; she showed it in action. But as a young girl, I wanted heart-to-heart talks between mother and    daughter.

They never happened. And a gulf opened between us. I was “too emotional(易动感情的)”. But she lived “on the surface(表面)”.

As years passed I had my own family. I loved my mother and thanked her for our happy family. I wrote to her in careful words and asked her to let me know in any way she chose that she did forgive(原谅) me.

I posted the letter and waited for her answer. None came.

My hope turned to disappointment(失望), then little interest and, finally, peace— it seemed that nothing happened. I couldn’t be sure that the letter had even got to mother. I only knew that I had written it, and I could stop trying to make her into someone she was not.

Now the present of her desk told, as she’d never been able to, that she was    pleased that writing was my chosen work. I cleaned the desk carefully and found    some papers inside —a photo of my father and a one-page letter, folded(折叠) and refolded many times.

Give me an answer, my letter asks, in any way you choose. Mother, you always chose the act that speaks louder than words.

1.The writer began to love her mother’s desk ______.

2.The passage shows that ______.

3.The word “gulf” in the passage means ______.

4.What did mother do with her daughter’s letter asking forgiveness?

5.What’s the best title of the passage?

6.选A。由But she lived “on the surface ”. 和全文内容可知，作者的母亲表面上很冷漠，但心里充满了对作者的爱，正确

Why does most of the world travel on the right side today? Theories differ, but there’s no doubt Napoleon was a major influence. The French have used the right since at least the late 18^th century. Some say that before the French Revolution, noblemen drove their carriages on the left, forcing the peasants to the right. Regardless of the origin, Napoleon brought right-hand traffic to the nations he conquered, including Russia, Switzerland and Germany. Hitler, in turn, ordered right-hand traffic in Czechoslovakia and Austria in the 1930s. Nations that escaped right-hand control, like Great Britain, followed their left-hand tradition.

The U.S. has not always been a nation of right-hand drivers; earlier in its history, carriage and horse traffic travelled on the left, as it did in England. But by the late 1700s, people driving large wagons pulled by several pairs of horses began promoting a shift（改变）to the right. A driver would sit on the rear（后面的）left horse in order to wave his whip（鞭子）with his right hand; to see opposite traffic clearly, they travelled on the right.

One of the final moves to firmly standardize traffic directions in the U.S. occurred in the 20^th century, when Henry Ford decided to mass-produce his cars with controls on the left (one reason, stated in 1908: the convenience for passengers exiting directly onto the edge, especially… if there is a lady to be considered). Once these rules were set, many countries eventually adjusted to the right-hand standard, including Canada in the 1920s, Sweden in 1967 and Burma in 1970. The U.K. and former colonies such as Australia and India are among the Western world’s few remaining holdouts(坚持不变者). Several Asian nations, including Japan, use the left as well--- though many places use both right-hand-drive and left-hand-drive cars.

1.Why did people in Switzerland travel on the right?

A.They had used the right-hand traffic since the 18^th century.

B.Rich people enjoyed driving their carriages on the right.

C.Napoleon introduced the right-hand traffic to this country.

D.Hitler ordered them to go against their left-hand tradition.

2.Of all the countries below, the one that travels on the right is_________.

A.Austria

B.England

C.Japan

D.Australia

3.Henry Ford produced cars with controls on the left __________.

A.in order to change traffic directions in the U.S.

B.so that passengers could get off conveniently

C.because rules at that time weren’t perfect

D.though many countries were strongly against that

4.According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A.Before the French Revolution, all the French people used the right.

B.People in Britain and the U.S. travel on the same side nowadays.

C.The Burmese began to travel on the right in 1970.

D.All the Asian nations use the left at present.

5.What would be the best title for this passage?

A.Who made the great contribution to the shift of traffic directions?

B.How cars have become a popular means of transportation?

C.How Henry Ford produced his cars with controls on the left?

D.Why don’t people all drive on the same side of road?

Beautiful cars surrounded by even more beautiful models—it’s no secret why the 2012 Beijing Auto Show was popular．

The exhibition was held between April 23 and May 2．Although renowned companies showed off their top models，it wasn’t just their expensive sports cars that grabbed people’s attention．

Concept cars are a way for designers to test out their ideas on the public with complete freedom．They can try out cars with special features that could not be massively（批量）produced easily．

Designers don’t have to follow industry rules；they don’t even need to worry about whether their cars would be followed on the roads．

At the Beijing Auto Show，the@Ant by Chery was one concept car to draw a lot of attention．China Daily called it‘‘the very definition of a concept car”．

The vehicle is powered by electricity and is capable of driving itself．But the magic doesn’t end there．

The@Ant was inspired by actual ants．According to Car News China，with the help of automated telemetric systems，@Ants are able to“see” other@Ants and compare  destination information. If two are heading the same way for a while, the vehicles connect, with one car’s rear (后面的)wheels matching up with the front wheels of another car．Up to 10@Ants can be put together and will automatically connect to form a“train"．This  will help save energy while traveling, as well reducing traffic jams.

The car sounds like a great idea．Further research will be needed to turn this concept  car into something for the market，but concepts like Cherry’s  show how carmakers are  working for cleaner and greener vehicles．It’s like what the@Ant motto says，“Exploring future human beings’lifestyles”．

1.The concept car is getting popular because          .

A．it looks like an ant

B．it is beautifully designed

C．it is exhibited as a top model

D．it conveys a new idea for the future

2.How can the@Ants help save energy while travelling according to the passage?

A．By connecting each other and running together

B．By driving themselves without man’s control

C．By comparing their destination information

D．By reducing traffic jams on the roads

3.What the designers of the concept car need to do at the Auto Show is          .

A．to test the safety of the concept car

B．to follow the rules in the car industry

C．to show their unique idea of complete freedom

D．to see if concept cars can be massively produced

4.The best title of the passage is          .

A．Concept Cars Are Driving to the Future

B．The@Ant Draws a Lot of Attention

C．The@Ant Is a Top Model of Concept Cars

D．Concept Cars Are Cleaner and Greener