Hilary Smith belonged to a good family. But by the age of twenty, he had spent all the money the good old family had. He then had some trouble with the bank and was put in prison. He escaped from the prison and ran to Australia without delay.

Hilary did not like Australia and Australia did not like Hilary. What he could do seemed to be one of two things: die or work. The thought of neither of these gave him any pleasure. Then he remembered that he was not alone in the world. He possessed an aunt.

She was his father’s only sister, but his father used to say she brought no glory to the family. Hilary, of course, tried to discover what she had done. It seemed that she had failed to marry a nobleman. Instead, she had chosen a husband who was connected with trade. Of course as soon as she became “Mrs Parks”, her brother considered her dead. Later on, Mr. Parks died and left her a lot of money; but that did not bring her back to life in her brother’s opinion.

Hilary discovered his aunt’s address. Fortunately she remained faithful and honest to him even after she fell ill. So Hilary’s star shone again. When he was feeling honest, he could talk attractively. He frequently visited his aunt’s house; and soon he was living comfortably in the building which the profits of trade had provided.

One thing was soon clear: his aunt was seriously ill, and nothing could cure her illness. Hilary was very worried. Fate had found a home for him, and was now going to throw him out of it. There was only one thing that could save him: her will.

“Will?” she said, “yes, I have made one. That was when I was a girl and had not much money. I left all my money to some religious people.”

“Didn’t you make another will when you were married?” Hilary asked.

His aunt shook her head. “No,” she said in a low voice, “There was no need. When I finally had a lot of money I found I had no relations.”

On the next day he went to the public library and examined a book of law. It told him what he already believed. When a woman is married, an earlier will loses its value. A new will must be made. If no new will is made, the money goes to the nearest relation. Hilary knew that he was his aunt’s only relation. His future was safe.

After a few months had passed, Hilary’s problems became serious. He badly needed money. He had expensive tastes, and owed a lot of money to shopkeepers. They trusted him because his aunt was rich; but the debt was terrible.

Unfortunately his aunt did not want to discuss money matters at all. In the end they had a quarrel about the small amount of ten pounds. Hilary was now very angry. He began to wonder about a new problem. Was it kind to want his aunt to live any longer? Was it not better for her to die now? While he was considering what to do, his aunt told him that she was going to send for her lawyer. So she was going to make a new will. Hilary thought she might leave all her money to someone else. Soon he reached a clear decision．He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman.

One night when the old servant who had been nursing his aunt went off, he doubled the amount of some medicine. The total amount was too great and it could just put her to sleep forever.

“Thank you,” his aunt took the glass from his hand with a grateful look. “I want, more than anything, to sleep, and never to wake up again. Is that what you wish, Hilary? I have given you your chance. Don’t blame me if I have some doubts about what you intended to do. Sick people get these ideas, you know. One thing I ought to explain to you. Mr. Parks never married me. He already had a wife and couldn’t marry again. That made your foolish father very angry with me… Well, if I am alive tomorrow I shall make another will in your favor. If I die tonight, you’ll get nothing… No, Hilary, don’t try to take the glass away. If you do that, I shall know; and I don’t want to know. Good night, Hilary.”

Then, very carefully, she raised the glass to her mouth and drank.

1.From the story, we learn that Hilary’s aunt was ______.

A. bad-tempered and lonely                    B. kind-hearted and wise

C. careless about money                       D. cruel to her nephew

2.Why did Hilary’s father consider his aunt dead?

A. Because they lost contact with each other after her marriage.

B. Because she married a businessman.

C. Because she broke away from the family for a better life.

D. Because he thought she was a shame to the family.

3.The underlined sentence “He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman” in Paragraph 11 suggests that Hilary Smith ______.

A. was determined to put his aunt’s life to an end

B. decided to do his aunt a favor to call in a lawyer

C. made up his mind to take good care of his aunt

D. would help his aunt to donate all her money to religious people

4.Which of the following is the focus of the story?

A. Hilary’s aunt’s money.                    B. Hilary Smith’s debts.

C. The intended murder.                     D. Hilary’s aunt’s marriage.

5.Which part of what Hilary’s aunt said finally might make Hilary frustrated?

A. She wanted to sleep and never to wake up again.

B. She never got married to Mr. Parks.

C. Mr. Parks had a wife.

D. She would make a new will tomorrow.

6.Which detail from the story is the climax（高潮）of the story?

A. Hilary escaped from the prison.

B. Hilary quarreled with his aunt about ten pounds.

C. Hilary’s aunt drank the medicine her nephew prepared for her.

D. Hilary’s aunt made a will to leave all her money to someone else.

I arrived at the bus station much too early for the London bus, which was not to leave until five to twelve. I pushed through the crowds, looking for somewhere to sit down. Scores of people were standing about, or struggling along with their bags and the cases to find the right lines. There was a party of school girls. I could see teachers trying to keep them in order. But there was nowhere for me to sit.

  I stepped into the station buffet. I looked up at the clock there. It was only twenty to twelve. I found a seat opposite a large mirror on the wall. Just then a friend of mine called Jim came in and sat with me. "What time is your bus?" asked Jim. "Oh, there's a plenty of time yet," I answered. "Oh, I'll get some drinks then," said Jim. We talked while drinking. Then I looked at the clock again. "Good heavens! It's going backward!" I cried. "A moment ago it was twenty to twelve and now it's half past eleven." "You are looking at the clock in the mirror," said Jim. I could kick myself for being so stupid. I had not realized that the marks for one and eleven on the face of the clock were the same. The next bus was not to leave for another hour. I have never liked mirror since then.

The London bus left ________. 

A. at five to twelve                        B. before five to twelve

C. after five to twelve                     D. until five to twelve

The writer went to the station buffet because ________.

A. he was thirsty                

B. he saw the station buffet was not so crowded

C. it was still early for his bus and he couldn't find a place to sit at the bus station

D. he had changed his mind; he wouldn't go to London

The writer sat ________.

A. behind a mirror                     B. facing a mirror

C. under a mirror                      D. near a mirror

Jim came to the station buffet at about ________.

A. twenty to twelve                    B. twenty past twelve

C. half past one                       D. twenty past eleven

What time was it when the writer looked at the clock again?

It was ________.                                       

A. half past eleven                     B. twelve thirty

C. twelve twenty                    D. eleven thirty                                

Every American family has its own traditions on Thanksgiving Day, and mine is no different. Once the national holiday arrives, my mom rises early to make the meal. She puts a turkey in the oven, chops carrots and bakes pies. I’m sorry to say that the men in the family – my dad, my younger brother and myself – rarely pitch in to help. Our job is to wash the mountain of dirty dishes after the meal is over.

Around 2 pm every Thanksgiving Day, family members seat themselves around the kitchen table. Plates of turkey, vegetables, salad, rolls and pies cover it. At this point, we can hardly keep ourselves from drooling (流口水) all over our fancy clothes, but it’s not yet time to eat.

First, we must bow our heads, close our eyes and say a prayer of thanks aloud to God for giving us everything we have. Under normal circumstances (情况), I would have no problem making a list of things I am thankful for. I grew up in a loving family. My parents, who aren’t wealthy, took out loans to help me pay for university.

But, the funny thing is, every time I sit down for Thanksgiving dinner and try to say a prayer of thanks, my mind usually goes blank. I think it has something to do with my growling (咕咕叫) stomach and all of that food sitting right there under my nose.

Eventually, though, we all finish our short prayers and dig in. To be sure, the day includes other highlights – visiting with family and watching football. But usually around 6 pm we are all ourselves stuffed like turkeys and thankful to have a nice warm bed to sleep in.

1.The purpose of the text is to ________.

A．tell what the family do for Thanksgiving Day

B．tell how the family spends Thanksgiving Day

C．introduce foods served on Thanksgiving Day

D．introduce the American Thanksgiving Day

2.On Thanksgiving Day the author’s family do the following except ________.

A．watching a movie                       B．making visits

C．having a big meal                        D．watching football

3.Why does the author’s mind usually “go blank” when saying a prayer of thanks?

A．He is too thankful to say a word.            B．His mind is on the food before him.

C．He feels too excited to speak.              D．He is shy to speak in public.

4.The underlined phrase “dig in” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to “________”.

A．chat with others    B．make a hole        C．mix things up       D．start eating

5.What can we conclude from the text?

A．On Thanksgiving Day, men do nothing but eat.

B．The author is a middle school student.

C．The author’s family is not rich, but it’s a loving one.

D．Thanksgiving Day falls on Thursday of December.

请阅读下列应用文及其相关信息，并按照要求匹配信息。请在答题卡上将对应题号的相应选项字母涂黑。下面是一篇应用文及其应用场合的信息， 请阅读下列应用文和相关信息，并按照要求匹配信息。

 首先， 请阅读下列六则卡通人物的性格介绍：

Why do you remember Hello Kitty, Snoopy and all the other cartoon characters? What makes you love them? Well, maybe because they're like the people around you. Think about it! You may find a friend or classmate who is like them.

A. As sweet as Hello Kitty: She likes to eat cake. She loves to make new friends. She likes to ask friends to her parties. Her smile is so lovely.

B. As clever as Snoopy: He went to school when he was nine. He learned to use a typewriter in two years! He thinks a lot. He is so clever that you like to be with him.

C. As sarcastic (讽刺的) as Garfield: He sits happily in the seat and says sharp words to you. Sometimes he is not nice. He doesn't really like you? He thinks you're a fool? No, in his heart, he loves you. He is a friend with hard words but a warm heart.

D. As naughty as MashiMaro: He doesn't look like a good boy. He has sleepy eyes and looks naughty. He always plays tricks. So you may get angry with him and don't like him very much. His mind is active and full of ideas. He tries to be big and catch your eyes. But, he' s still a child.

E. As confident as Prince of Tennis: He has faith in himself and always wants to win.

F. As friendly as Mickey: He is clever and kind. He has a good heart and is glad to help others. Everyone likes to turn to him for help whenever they are in trouble.

请阅读Susan, Tom, John, Bob, George的个性描述，然后匹配与他们个性相当的卡通人物。

1.Tom is a warm-hearted boy, and he cares for others very much. If you meet with any difficulty, you can tell him, and he will surely help you.

2.Susan has many friends and she likes to stay with them in many kinds of parties. On her face there is always a smile.

3.John likes thinking and can always find ways to solve any difficult problems.

4.Bob seems to be very rude and impolite and his words are unpleasant to hear, but his inner heart is full of concerns for others.

5.George believes in himself, and he always wants to win the first place in almost everything.

For most of the day construction worker Sidney Smith and his brother – in – law Joseph Chambers had been   21   along the banks of Lake Waco with little   22  . Chambers suggested they go home, but Smith 　33　　that there were still several hours of daylight 　24　　and there was one other place they might try a bit longer before 　25　.

Smith drove his pickup（小货车）a couple of miles along the　26　road to get to the other side of the lake. This road, in the truest sense, was a path wagging in the heavy 　27　area. Even with the sun still high in the cloudless sky, the 　28　of trees formed a leafy　29　over the road and it suddenly seemed 　30　in the evening.

“A guy could get lost and nobody would ever find him,” said Chambers.

Smith smiled, “We’re 　31　there.” He said. A few seconds later, the smile was 　32　　from his face.

“What the hell is that?”

　　He braked to a stop. Less than twenty feet away was what appeared to be a  33  .

　　For several minutes the two men sat in the pickup 　34　to decide whether they had happened to 　35　someone’s bad practical joke or something far more serious. Smith with his brother-in-law got out of the pickup and 　36　walked towards that thing some distance before them.

It was a young man who was already dead. They had got to tell 　37　. Back into the pickup, Smith backed the pickup down the road 　38　he could turn around, then 　39　back. With the dead young man still on his mind, Smith felt as if he was going to be sick. God, how he　40　　they had given up fishing and gone home early.

A．playing　   B．boating　　     C．fishing　　　　      D．walking

A．failure　       B．success　  C．disappointment D．interest

A．quarreled　 B．argued　      C．reasoned　      D．shouted

A．remaining　 B．staying　　     C．keeping　　    D．leaving

A．starting off　B．running out　   C．sending away　       D．giving up

A．winding 　 B．widening　       C．leading　　　  D．blocking

A．grassed 　　B．wooded　　　 C．iced　　　　   D．snowed

A．trunks　　　B．shadow　　     C．shade　　　　 D．shape

A．hat　　　　B．umbrella　 C．sheet　　　     D．overcoat

A．foggy　　 B．late　 　  C．early　　 D．rainy

A．almost 　　B．already　　     C．only　　　      D．fairly

A．escaped　　B．lost　 　　　C．gone　　　       D．missed

A．body　　　B．trap　 　　　 C．pile　　　　   D．stream

A．talking 　　B．hoping 　　 C．wanting　　    D．trying

A．come across B．turn out　　  C．bring about　   D．make up

A．loudly　　　B．quietly　　  C．quickly　　　  D．slowly

A．everybody　 B．somebody　　C．anybody　　　 D．nobody

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

A．turned 　　 B．ran　　　　　C．headed　　　 D．walked

A．expected　　B．hoped 　　 　C．wished　　　  D．prayed