158. _____ his knowledge of the mountainous country, John Smith was appointed as our guide.

　A. In spite of B. On account of C. Regardless of D. Instead of

157. Political parties often differ in their views on various _____ concerning their own countries.

　A. ways B. measures C. issues D. patterns

156. Evidence obtained from observation and experiment is often used to _____ a scientific theory.

　A. confirm B. confine C. conform D. conceive

155. Jack is good, kind, hard-working and intelligent. _____, I can't speak too highly of him.

　A. As a result B. By the way C. On the whole D. In a word

154. Because of the strong sun Mrs. William's new dining room curtains _____ from dark blue to gray within a year.

　A. faded B. fainted C. paled D. diminished

153. I asked the tailor to make a small _____ to my trousers because they were too long.

　A. change B. variation C. revision D. alteration

152. It was necessary to _____ the factory building as the company was doing more and more business.

　A. extend B. increase C. lengthen D. magnify

151. We can't _____ one to change the habits of a lifetime in a short time.

　A. hope B. wait C. expect D. imagine

150. On turning the corner, we saw the road _____ steeply.

　A. departing B. decreasing C. descending D. depressing

149. American women were _____ the right to vote until 1920 after many years of hard struggle.

　A. ignored B. refused C. neglected D. denied