A woman repeated a bit of gossip (流言) about a neighbour. Within a few days the whole neighbourhood knew the story. The neighbour was deeply hurt. Later the woman responsible (负责) for spreading the gossip learned that it was completely untrue. She was very sorry and went to a wise old man to find out what she could do to repair the harm.
“Go to the marketplace,” he said. “and buy a chicken, and have it killed, then on your way home, pluck (拔) its feathers and drop them one by one along the road. ” Although surprised by this advice, the woman did what she was told.
The next day the wise man said, “ Now, go and collect all those feathers you dropped yesterday and bring them back to me. ”
The woman followed the same road, but she was so discouraged when she found the wind had blown all the feathers away. After searching for hours, she returned with only three in her hand.
“ You see, ” said the old man, “it’s easy to drop them, but it’s impossible to get them back . So it is with gossip. It doesn’t take much to spread a gossip, but once you do, you can never completely undo the wrong.”
【小题1】The woman was very _________ the harm she had done to her neighbour.
【小题2】Which of the following statements is TURE?
【小题3】What the wise man said has nearly the same meaning as the Chinese phrase “_________”
“Go to the marketplace,” he said. “and buy a chicken, and have it killed, then on your way home, pluck (拔) its feathers and drop them one by one along the road. ” Although surprised by this advice, the woman did what she was told.
The next day the wise man said, “ Now, go and collect all those feathers you dropped yesterday and bring them back to me. ”
The woman followed the same road, but she was so discouraged when she found the wind had blown all the feathers away. After searching for hours, she returned with only three in her hand.
“ You see, ” said the old man, “it’s easy to drop them, but it’s impossible to get them back . So it is with gossip. It doesn’t take much to spread a gossip, but once you do, you can never completely undo the wrong.”
【小题1】The woman was very _________ the harm she had done to her neighbour.
| A．happy about | B．angry about | C．sorry for | D．excited about |
| A．The gossip didn’t hurt anyone at all. |
| B．The wise man was not kind enough. |
| C．The woman found all the feathers at last. |
| D．The woman was given a lesson. |
| A．覆水难收 | B．无中生有 | C．欲速不达 | D．得道多助 |
Mr. Brown lived in a house less than two miles from his office, so he was able to drive home every day for lunch. Every time he drove home at noon, he found many cars were parked outside his house and there was no room for his own car. He had to drive somewhere else to park his car. Then he had to walk back home. This made him very angry.
He had put up a board, which said, “ No parking” in the garden facing the road, but nobody noticed it. People seemed to obey(遵守) only a police notice with letters on a blue board:
POLICE NOTICE
NO PARKING
Mrs. Brown suggested that he could steal a police notice. He was afraid to do so. She then suggested that he could make one just like a police notice. He said he was not the police and couldn’t use the word “police”. Several days later, Mr. Brown made a blue board with white letters:
POLITE NOTICE
NO PARKING
“ Oh!” Mrs. Brown said, “You told me you weren’t going to use the word “police”, but why do you use it now?” “Really?” he asked, “Look again.” She started to laugh. “You are really clever.”
【小题1】How many notice boards did Mr. Brown make altogether?
【小题2】Mr. Brown made a notice board which ________________ in the end.
【小题3】We can infer(推断) that ____________ after he put up the blue board.
He had put up a board, which said, “ No parking” in the garden facing the road, but nobody noticed it. People seemed to obey(遵守) only a police notice with letters on a blue board:
POLICE NOTICE
NO PARKING
Mrs. Brown suggested that he could steal a police notice. He was afraid to do so. She then suggested that he could make one just like a police notice. He said he was not the police and couldn’t use the word “police”. Several days later, Mr. Brown made a blue board with white letters:
POLITE NOTICE
NO PARKING
“ Oh!” Mrs. Brown said, “You told me you weren’t going to use the word “police”, but why do you use it now?” “Really?” he asked, “Look again.” She started to laugh. “You are really clever.”
【小题1】How many notice boards did Mr. Brown make altogether?
| A．Only one | B．Two | C．Three | D．None |
| A．was just the same as a police notice |
| B．was different in colour from a police notice |
| C．looked just like a police notice |
| D．said “ POLICE NOTICE, NO PARKING” |
| A．more people will park their cars outside his house |
| B．more policemen will come to park their cars at noon |
| C．fewer people will visit him at noon later on |
| D．fewer people will park their cars outside his house |
1. HOUSE FOR SALE Comfortable family home with a large garden on north side of town. Three bedrooms, living-room, kitchen, dining-room, bathroom. Offers over $ 35,000.
2. ASSISTANT WANTED FOR BUSH RESTAURANT
Some evening and weekend work. All meals free. Ring 3320178.
3. JOIN OUR FOOTBALL TEAM Boys and girls wanted to play in local football team.
Aged 9-13. Meet in Green Park on Friday at 3 p.m.
4. ROOM to RENT (出租)
Small room to rent in city center flat above restaurant. Newly painted with modern furniture(家具). Near main railway station. Buses pass front door. Phone 3322108.
Mr. Black wants to live near his workplace. Mrs. Black wants a house with four bedrooms. Their children don’t care what the house is like as long as the garden is big enough. Rose, their daughter has always wanted to work in a restaurant. She thinks it is an exciting place. it’s hard work, but she isn’t lazy. You have to work on Sundays and Saturdays, but you get other days off. It’s not very well paid. But who cares about money?
Jack is a middle school student. He is thirteen years old. He finishes school at half past three, so he has plenty of time to finish his homework.
Bob, Mr. Black’s brother, is looking for a room to rent. He doesn’t care what color the walls are or how old the furniture is. He is getting ready for his drawing. So the house must be quiet.
【小题1】Why didn’t the Blacks buy the house in Advertisement 1?
【小题2】Why does Rose want to get the job in the restaurant?
【小题3】Why can’t Jack play for the new football team?
2. ASSISTANT WANTED FOR BUSH RESTAURANT
Some evening and weekend work. All meals free. Ring 3320178.
3. JOIN OUR FOOTBALL TEAM Boys and girls wanted to play in local football team.
Aged 9-13. Meet in Green Park on Friday at 3 p.m.
4. ROOM to RENT (出租)
Small room to rent in city center flat above restaurant. Newly painted with modern furniture(家具). Near main railway station. Buses pass front door. Phone 3322108.
Mr. Black wants to live near his workplace. Mrs. Black wants a house with four bedrooms. Their children don’t care what the house is like as long as the garden is big enough. Rose, their daughter has always wanted to work in a restaurant. She thinks it is an exciting place. it’s hard work, but she isn’t lazy. You have to work on Sundays and Saturdays, but you get other days off. It’s not very well paid. But who cares about money?
Jack is a middle school student. He is thirteen years old. He finishes school at half past three, so he has plenty of time to finish his homework.
Bob, Mr. Black’s brother, is looking for a room to rent. He doesn’t care what color the walls are or how old the furniture is. He is getting ready for his drawing. So the house must be quiet.
【小题1】Why didn’t the Blacks buy the house in Advertisement 1?
| A．It was on the north side of town. |
| B．There weren’t enough bedrooms. |
| C．There was no dining- room. |
| D．The garden was too big. |
| A．It’s an easy job. |
| B．She can get a lot of money. |
| C．She thinks it will be interesting. |
| D．She can get long holidays. |
| A．School finished too late. | B．It’s in different village. |
| C．He’s not old enough | D．He has to do his homework. |
Why are so many people so afraid to fail? Quite simply because no one tells us how to fail so that failure (失败) becomes an experience that means growth. We forget that failure is part of the human condition and that every person has the right to fail.
Most parents work hard at preventing failure or protecting their children from the knowledge that they have failed. One way is to lower standards(标准). When a child finishes making a table, the mother describes it as “perfect” even though it doesn’t stand still. Another way is to blame (责怪) others. If John fails in science, his teacher is unfair or stupid.
There’s a problem with the two ways. It makes a child unprepared for life in the real world. The young need to learn that no one can be best at everything, no one can win all the time, and that it’s possible to enjoy a game even when you don’t win. A child who’s not invited to a birthday party, who doesn’t make the honour list on the baseball team, feels terrible, of course. But parents should not offer a quick consolations (安慰), prize or say, “It doesn’t matter.” Because it does. The young should be allowed to experience failure and be helped to come out of it.
Failure never gives people pleasure. It hurts both grown-ups and children. But it can be really good to your life when you learn to use it. You must learn to ask “Why did I fail?” Don’t blame anyone else. Ask yourself what you did wrong and how you can improve. If someone else can help, don’t be shy about asking them.
【小题1】How do most parents prevent their children from failure?
【小题2】Which of the following can a person learn when he fails?
【小题3】The writer of this article thinks that if a child fails, parents should __________________.
【小题4】4. Which would be the best title (标题) for the passage?
Most parents work hard at preventing failure or protecting their children from the knowledge that they have failed. One way is to lower standards(标准). When a child finishes making a table, the mother describes it as “perfect” even though it doesn’t stand still. Another way is to blame (责怪) others. If John fails in science, his teacher is unfair or stupid.
There’s a problem with the two ways. It makes a child unprepared for life in the real world. The young need to learn that no one can be best at everything, no one can win all the time, and that it’s possible to enjoy a game even when you don’t win. A child who’s not invited to a birthday party, who doesn’t make the honour list on the baseball team, feels terrible, of course. But parents should not offer a quick consolations (安慰), prize or say, “It doesn’t matter.” Because it does. The young should be allowed to experience failure and be helped to come out of it.
Failure never gives people pleasure. It hurts both grown-ups and children. But it can be really good to your life when you learn to use it. You must learn to ask “Why did I fail?” Don’t blame anyone else. Ask yourself what you did wrong and how you can improve. If someone else can help, don’t be shy about asking them.
【小题1】How do most parents prevent their children from failure?
| A．They give them some presents. |
| B．They don’t tell them that they have failed. |
| C．They don’t blame others. |
| D．They help them to come out of failure. |
| A．It’s impossible to enjoy a game if he misses it. |
| B．He is the worst of all. |
| C．It’s natural not to win a game and no one can win all the time. |
| D．His teammates are not good enough. |
| A．give him a small prize |
| B．advise him to repeat failure |
| C．blame others |
| D．encourage him to learn from failure |
| A．Learning from Failure |
| B．Ways of Preventing Failure |
| C．Reasons of Failure |
| D．Getting Pleasure from Failure |
______useful dictionary for beginners of English! Where did you get it?
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| A．How | B．What an | C．What a | D．How a |