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，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A Happy Discovery

Antique shops have a special fascination to a great many people. The more expensive kind of antique shop, where rare objects are beautifully   36     in glass cases to keep them free from dust, is usually a forbidding place.    37   no one has to muster up courage to enter a less pretentious(装腔作势的) antique shop. There is always   38   that a real rarity(珍品) will be found among the piles of assorted junk in its labyrinth(迷宫) of dirty, dark,   39   rooms.

My old friend, Frank Halliday, is just such a person. He has often   40   to me how he picked up a masterpiece for a mere ￡ 50. One Saturday morning, Frank visited a common    41   shop in my neighborhood. As he had never been there before, he found a great deal to    42    him. The morning passed   43   and Frank was about to leave   44   he noticed a large packing-case   45   on the floor. The dealer told him that it had just come in, but that he could not be   46   to open it. Frank    47   him to do so and the dealer reluctantly prised it open. The contents were   48  . The box was full of crockery(陶器), much of it broken. Frank gently lifted the crockery out of the box and suddenly noticed a miniature painting at the bottom of the packing-case. As its composition and line   49   him of an Italian painting he knew well, he decided to buy it. Glancing at it briefly, the dealer told him that it was    50   ￡ 50. Frank could hardly hide his excitement, for he knew that he had made a real    51  . The tiny painting    52   to be an unknown masterpiece by Correggio and was worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.

No one discovers a rarity by chance. A truly dedicated bargain hunter must have   53   , and   54  , the ability to recognize the worth of something when he sees it. To do this, he must be at least as   55   as the dealer. Like a scientist bent on making a discovery, he must cherish the hope that one day he will be greatly rewarded.

36. A. displayed        B. got                    C. played              D. dismissed

37. A. So             B. But                   C. Unless              D. If

38. A. name           B. fame                 C. hope             D. campaign

39. A. clean           B. tidy                   C. beautiful            D. disordered

40. A. smiled           B. described              C. talked            D. laugh

41. A. paint            B. book                 C. antique           D. butcher

42. A. value           B. interest               C. fear                D. enjoy

43. A. rapidly        B. slowly                C. frankly           D. happily

44. A. until          B. after                  C. before            D. when

45. A. laying           B. walking               C. lying               D. floating

46. A. reminded        B. bothered              C. encouraged          D. interested

47. A. begged        B. demanded             C. recommended       D. forced

48. A. exciting         B. disappointing          C. satisfying           D. amazing

49. A. reflected       B. told                  C. stopped           D. reminded

50. A. worth         B. worthy                C. worthwhile        D. cost

51. A. difference      B. invention              C. discovery           D. expectation

52. A. proved          B. provided              C. purchased           D. preferred

53. A. benefit          B. reward                C. passion             D. patience

54. A. fairly           B. rarely                 C. however           D. above all

55. A. adorable       B. accessible             C. knowledgeable     D. acceptable