He met her at a party. She was so outstanding that many guys were chasing after her, while he was so ordinary. At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him. She was surprised but due to being being polite, she promised.

  They sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, and she felt uncomfortable, too. Suddenly he asked the waiter, “Would you please give me some salt? I’d like to put it in my coffee.” Everybody stared at him. It was so strange! His face turned red but still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it. She asked him curiously, “Why do you have this hobby?” He replied, “When I was a little boy, I lived near the sea, I liked playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of the sea, just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood, my hometown, and my parents who are still living there.” While saying that tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched. Then she also started to speak, speaking about her faraway hometown, her childhood, and her family.

  That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning of their love. They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who met all her demands. He had tolerance, kind-hearted, warm and careful. Thanks to his salty coffee! They married. And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in the coffee, as she knew that was the way he liked it. After 40 years, he passed away and left her a letter which said, “My dearest, please forgive my whole life’s lie. Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous at that time, actually I wanted some sugar, but said salt. It was hard for me to change so I just went ahead. I didn’t like the salty coffee then, what a strange bad taste! But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life, for it was prepared by you.”

1. The man was nervous at the coffee shop, because _______.

 A. everybody stared at him at that time

 B. many guys chased after the woman

 C. he didn’t feel himself a match for the woman

 D. he had the strange habit of drinking salty coffee

2. From this passage, we can infer that ________.

 A. the man’s lie won the woman’s love

 B. the man’s parents onced lived near the sea

 C. the woman talked with the man, for they had the same experience

 D. the woman realised what salty coffee had to do with a good man

3. What can be concluded about the man?

 A. He had intended to give his wife a surprise at his death

 B. He unwillingly developed a taste for salty coffee after marriage

 C. He was so stubborn as to drink for a life what he didn’t like

 D. He enjoyed his lifelong bitter salty coffee out of love

4. Which of the following could be the best title for this passage?

 A. A Foolish Lie               B. Salty Coffee

C. A Sad Love Story        D. Love in a Coffee Shop

C
Have you noticed that the majority of human beings seem to focus on the negative? Bad news is often seen in the newspapers, television shows and magazines, but good news are often overlooked.
I saw a woman I was not very familiar with. She is a beautiful woman; every time I see her, I am struck by the smile on her face that can light up a whole room. So at one time I walked up to her and said, “You know, you are like liquid sunshine! Every time I see you, you give me so much joy.” I was not quite prepared for her reaction. She was blown away. Her eyes seemed about to shed tears, and she said, “That is so sweet! That is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me!” It was as if nobody had ever told her how beautiful her appearance was. I was extremely moved by the moment I had shared with this woman.
Why not take notice of the positive and spread a little sunshine? When you are looking for beauty, you will begin to see it more and more. When you discover it, don’t be afraid to appreciate it. Not only will it make them feel good, it will make you feel good as well. I truly believe the saying, “What goes around, comes around.” When you show kindness and sincerity, you will receive it back. You may even discover — much to your surprise — that you become the friend of someone you would never have expected to get along with.
65. The woman had tears in her eyes because __________.
A. the man’s behavior was so rude
B. she was nervous about the man’s words
C. the man told her the fact she didn’t know
D. she was so excited at the man’s praise
66. Which of the following can take the place of the underlined sentence in the third paragraph?
A. The wise appreciate one another. 
B. Respect yourself, or no one else will respect you.
C. There is kindness to be found everywhere.
D. Everybody should learn to praise others.
67. The best title for the passage probably is _____.
A. Pay attention to the positive   B. Everyone likes to be praised
C. Spread a little sunshine       D. Each of us has good points

  The trend in everyday conversation is to use grandiose(夸大的)words．“Outstanding” is the

new “good,”  “amazing” is the new “OK, ” and “huge” is the new “big.”

    I was in a restaurant in Washington D．C．last weekend and every question I asked was answered with exaggeration．

    Me：How is the salmon?

    Sever：Fantastic!

    Me：Does it come with rice?

    Sever：Absolutely!

    Would a “good” and a “yes” have been enough? Of course!

    My father is an average-sized man．He hasn’t gained weight or height for the past 30 years. Therefore, his size remains the same．However，in the same amount of time，his T-shirt size has gone from small to medium to large to extra large．

  The reason for the exaggerated word is clear：we are bored with our lives. We want the next

—next thing now．Immediately!

    And we also want others to think that we still care，that we can still be delighted，that we know that everything is just great．Even when deep inside we know it can’t be．Everything can’t be great．

  I’m not a scientist，so many methods of proof leave little to be desired，or a lot to be desired，or an immensity(无限)．   

  Listen to the voices around you．Listen to your own voices．There is nothing on the radio that is good or bad，weather is either beautiful or horrible．

  Listen，the next time when someone asks you something and you agree，because when you

could simply say “yes”, instead you will say “absolutely’’ or “without doubt ” or “Oh，yeah，unquestionably ---- absolutely without doubt."

  Have people forgotten what it is like to be OK? Simply OK with what they have and who they are? If everything is outstanding，if everything is the most amazing thing ever，is anything ever amazing at all?

1.By telling his experience in the restaurant，the author intends to ________．

    A. show his interest in exaggerated words

    B. prove that exaggerated words are widely used

    C. blame the restaurant for using exaggerated words

    D. tell us the food in the restaurant is extremely good

2.What do we know about the author’s father?

    A. He has gained height and is now a tall man．

B. He likes following the fashion in clothing．

C. His weight is getting greater and greater．

D.The size of his T-shirt is described in exaggerated words．

3.．So many people like using exaggerated words because_________．

    A. they are not satisfied with being normal

    B. they don’t want to be looked down upon by others

    C. they want to be different from others

    D. they are brave in telling their true feelings

4.According to the passage，if you approve of something，you’d better say “________”．

    A. fantastic    B. perfect    C. OK          D. absolutely

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，掌握其大意，然后从36—55题所给的四个选项A、B、C、D中，选出最佳选项。

At the end of a party，he invited her to have coffee with him．In a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, and she felt uncomfortable，thinking, “Please let me go home.’’

Suddenly he asked the  36 ,“Would you please give me some 37 ? I'd like to put it in my coffee．’’

Everybody stared at him—so 38! His face turned red，but when the waiter brought some salt for him, he still put it in his coffee and drank it．

She asked him 39，“Why do you have this hobby(嗜好)?”

He 40，“When I was a little boy，I was living 41 the sea．I liked playing in the sea，and I could 42 the taste of the sea，just like the taste of the salty coffee．Now every time I have the salty coffee，I always think of my 43．I miss my hometown and my parents so much．’’  

 She was 44 touched(感动)! A man who can tell out his homesickness must be a man who loves home，45 about home，and has responsibility for home．

 They continued to date（约会）… Then they got married. And，every time she 46 coffee for him，she put some salt in the coffee．

 After 40 years，he died，leaving her a 47 which said，“My dearest，please forgive(宽恕) my whole life lie．This was the 48 lie I told to you— the salty coffee．

 “Remember the 49 we dated? I was so nervous at that time．Actually I wanted some sugar，but I said “salt” instead．It was hard for me to correct the mistake，so I just went 50．

 “I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life，51 I was too afraid to do that，as I have promised not to lie to you for 52．

 “Now I'm 53，I'm afraid of nothing ,so I tell you the truth：I 54 the salty coffee．What a strange bad taste! But I have had the salty coffee in my whole life!…”

 Her tears made the letter totally wet．

 Someday，someone asked her，“What’s the taste of salty coffee?” “It’s 55!” she replied．

 36．A．friend          B．manager      C．waiter         D．customer

 37．A．sugar         B．salt         C．water          D．tea

 38．A．smart         B．strange            C．serious         D．important

 39．A．curiously      B．patiently    C．bravely       D．happily

 40．A．wrote         B．added             C．agreed         D．replied

41．A．in             B．over         C．near         D．above

42．A．consider       B．feel          C．observe      D．compare

43．A．childhood      B．teachers      C．friends        D．future

 44．A．hardly          B．nearly           C．possibly      D．deeply

 45．A．thinks       B．talks         C．cares        D．comes

 46．A．made               B．drank              C．finished      D．bought

 47．A．telephone      B．word        C．notice          D．letter

 48．A．only          B．first          C．last           D．best

 49．A．last time       B．first time     C．second time  D．many times

 50．A．away               B．off          C．ahead         D．around

 51．A．and           B．so             C．or                 D．but

 52．A．anything        B．nothing       C．somebody     D．anybody

 53．A．dead                B．married      C．dying          D．boring

 54．A．like           B．hate         C．remember    D．forget

 55．A．terrible        B．strange         C．delicious      D．sweet

It’s certain that the following tale is a nice example that can teach us a good lesson. One day, a young man  16 begged from door to door along the street.  17 an old wallet in hand, he was asking for a few coins to buy something to eat. He kept complaining about his bad  18  and kept wondering why those who had so much money were never   19  and were always desiring more.
“As for me, if I had only enough to eat and to wear, I would not want anything more."
Just at that moment Goddess Fortune  20 the beggar among the crowd and approached him, greeting, “Hi, young man, I have wished to   21  you for a long time. If you open your wallet, I will pour my gold into it. But keep in mind that I will do that only on this   22 : All that falls into the wallet will be pure gold belonging to you; but every piece falling upon the ground  23 become dust, worth nothing. Are you clear?”
“I see. Now I’m ready. ” said the beggar with confidence.
“Then you should   24 ! It’s obvious that your wallet is a/an   25 one, so don’t load it too heavily,” said the Goddess Fortune. 
The excited beggar could hardly   26 to have gold. He quickly opened his wallet, and a   27  of yellow coins was poured into it. The wallet became heavier and heavier.
“Is that enough? Isn’t it cracking? Will your wallet strong enough for more?” warned the Goddess.
“Never  28 .It’s still strong enough now” replied the beggar firmly.
The wallet was filled with so many coins that the beggar’s hands began to   29 . “Ah, if only the golden stream would   30  forever! Just a little more,” said the beggar, “  31  just a handful or two.”
“There! It’s full. The wallet will   32 .” warned the Goddess again, but the beggar insisted, “ I know it will  33  a little more, just a little more.”
One more piece was added and the wallet split. The   34  fell upon the ground and became dust. The greedy beggar had now   35  but his broken wallet.