"Cool" is a word with many meanings. Its old meaning is used to express a temperature that is a little bit cold. As the world has changed,the word has had many different meanings.

"Cool" can be used to express feelings of interest in almost anything. When you see a famous car in the street,maybe you will say, "It's cool. " You may think "He's so cool"

when you see your favorite footballer.

We all maximize (扩大) the meaning of "cool". You can use it instead of many words such as "new" or "surprising". Here's an interesting story we can use to show the way the word is used.

A teacher asked her students to write about the waterfall they had visited. On one student's paper was only the one sentence, ^uIt's so cool.”Maybe he thought it was the best way to show what he saw and felt. But the story also shows a scarcity (缺乏) of words.

Without ^u cool"，some people have no words to show the same meaning. So it is quite important to keep some credibility (准确含义) .Can you think of many other words that make your life as colorful as the word "cool"? I can. And I think they are also very cool.

(   ) 11. We know that the word "cool" has had         .

   A. only one meaning   B. no meanings

   C. many different meanings   D. the same meaning

(   ) 12. In the passage, the word "express" means “        ”.

   A. see   B. show

   C. know   D. feel

(   ) 13. If you are        something,you may say, "It's cool."

   A. interested in   B. angry about

   C. afraid of   D. unhappy with

(   ) 14. The writer takes an example to show he is        the way the word is used.

   A. pleased with   B. strange to

   C. worried about   D. careful with

(   ) 15. In the passage,the writer suggests that the word "cool"         .

   A. can be used instead of many words

   B. usually means something interesting

   C. can make your life colorful

   D. may not be as cool as it seems

(       )6. How many days does Liu Qiang have to go to school a week?

A. Four.                                                                B. Five.

C. Six.                                                                   D. Seven.

(       )7. When is Lu Ting's birthday party?

A. On Tuesday.                                                   B. On Sunday.

C. On Friday.                                                       D. On Saturday.

(       )8. What's Liu Qiang doing on Thursday afternoon?

A. He is babysitting his sister.                           B. He's doing soccer training.

C. He's doing housework.                                 D. He's going to a guitar lesson.

(       )9. If you invite Liu Qiang to the mall, when will he have time to go?

A. On Tuesday afternoon.                                B. On Wednesday evening.

C. On Friday afternoon.                                    D. On Sunday morning.

(       )10. What's Liu Qiang probably (可^₍地）not doing at the weekend?

A. Going bike riding.                                        B. Going camping.

C. Swimming.                                                   D. Watching videos.

Once there was a piano player in a bar (酒吧) .People came just to hear him play. But one night,a lady asked him to sing a song. "I don't sing," said the man.

But the lady told the waiter, " Fm tired of listening to the piano. I want the player to sing！”

The waiter shouted across the room , " Hey,friend!If you want to get paid,sing a song！”

So the pianist did. He had never sung in public before. Now he was singing for the very first time!Nobody had ever heard the song Mona Lisa sung so beautifully！

He had talent (天赋) he was sitting on!He may have lived the rest of his life as a noname piano player in a noname bar. But once he found,by accident,that he could sing well,he went on working hard and became one of the bestknown singers in the US. His name was Nat King Cole.

You,too,have skills and abilities (能力) .You may not feel that your talent is great,but it may be better than you think. With hard work,most skills can be improved (提高) . Besides,you may have no success at all if you just sit on your talent.

(   ) 1. The lady asked the player to sing a song because         .

   A. she had paid him for this   B. she knew him very well

   C. she wanted to have a change   D. she enjoyed his singing

(   ) 2. Nat King Cole succeeded because       .

   A. the lady helped him a lot   B. he caught the chance

   C. he continued to play in the bar   D. he stopped playing the piano

(   ) 3. The words "sit on" in the passage probably mean         .

   A. fail to realize   B. forget to use

   C. try to develop   D. manage to show

(   ) 4. From the story we know if you have some talent,you should         .

   A. hide it and wait   B. ask others for help

   C. pay no attention to it   D. work hard to improve yourself

(   ) 5. Which could be the best title (标题) for the passage?

   A. Sing in the Bar   B. Achieve Success in Life

   C. Never Lose Heart   D. Find Your Hidden Talent

Some things can carry messages,for example,a sign at the bus stop helps you to know which bus to t 1       Signs on the door tell you where to go in or o 2       Have you ever n 3       that there are a lot of signs around you and that you r 4       messages from them all the time?

People can communicate in many other w 5       . An artist can use his drawing to tell about beautiful m 6       ,about the blue sea and many other things. Books are written to tell you about all the w 7       things in the world and also about people and their i 8       . Books,magazines,TVs,radios and films ail help us to communicate with o 9       . They all help us to know what is going on in the world and what other people are t 10       about.

1. t       2. o          3. n          4. r          5. w      

6. m          7. w          8. l          9. o         10. t       

When I was growing up in America,I was ashamed of my mother's Chinese English. Because of her English,she was often treated unfairly. People in department stores,at banks,and at restaurants did not take her seriously,did not give her good service,pretended not to understand her,or even acted as if they did not hear her.

My mother has realized the limitations (局限) of her English as well. When I was fifteen,she used to have me call people on phone to pretend I was she. I was forced to ask for information or even to yell (叫喊) at people who had been rude to her. One time I had to call her stockbroker (股票经纪人) .I said in an adolescent voice that was not very convincing, "This is Mrs. Tan."

And my mother was standing beside me,whispering loudly, ^u Why he don't send me cheek already two weeks long.”

And then,in perfect English I said, "I'm getting rather concerned. You agreed to send the check two weeks ago,but it hasn't arrived."

Then she talked more loudly. "What he want? I come to New York to tell him front of his boss. " And so I turned to the stockbroker again, "I can't stand any more excuses. If I don't receive the check immediately,I am going to speak to your manager when I am in New York next week."

The next week we ended up in New York. While I was sitting there redfaced,my mother,the real Mrs. Tan,was shouting to his boss in her broken English.

When I was a teenager,my mother's broken English embarrassed me. But now,I see it differently. To me,my mother's English is perfectly clear,perfectly natural. It is my mother tongue. Her language,as I hear it,is vivid (生动的) ，direct,and full of observation (观察) and wisdom. It was the language that helped shape the way I saw things,expressed ideas,and made sense of the world.

(   ) 11. What does the word "adolescent" probably mean?

   A. 幼稚的   B. 标准的

   C. 优美的    D. 滑稽的

(   ) 12. From Paragraph 2,we know that the author was         .

   A. good at pretending

   B. rude to the stockbroker

   C. ready to help her mother

   D. unwilling to phone for her mother

(   ) 13. After the author made the phone call, .

   A. they forgave the stockbroker

   B. they failed to get the check

   C. they went to New York immediately

   D. they spoke to their boss at once

(   ) 14. What does the author think of her mother's English now?

   A. It confuses her and other people.

   B. It embarrasses her.

   C. It helps her understand the world.

   D. It helps her stand rude people.

(   ) 15. What you think is the best title for this passage?

   A. Good English Is Helpful

   B. Helping Mom with Language

   C. Life and Language in America

   D. Mother's Language

(       )6. Who is Swimming Fish's best friend?

A. Tina.                                                          B. Grace.

C. Ben.                                                           D. Victor.

(       )7. What does Mountain like doing?

A. Playing tennis.                                         B. Playing computer games.

C. Speaking in English.                               D. Writing to pen pals.

(       )8. Who thinks friends can be different?

A. Chicken Leg.                                           B. Blue Moon.

C. Mountain.                                                D. Swimming Fish.

(       )9. What does Tina, Blue Moon's friend, look like?

A.     She has shorter hair.

B.     She is younger than Blue Moon.

C.     She is shorter and thinner than Blue Moon.

D.     She is thinner and taller than Blue Moon.

(       )10. Which of the following is NOT true?

A.     Swimming Fish and his friends learn from each other in study.

B.     Mountain moved to Jinan with his parents.

C.     Blue Moon had a quarrel with her best friend.

D.     Chicken Leg often sends e-mails to pen pals in English-speaking countries.

David did well in all his subjects except (除... 之外) physics. Mr. Brown,his physics teacher,gave him his physics paper and said to him , " Show it to your dad and ask him to sign his name (签名) on the paper."

David played football until it was 7 o'clock. When he got home,his parents had finished supper. His dad was watching TV and his mom was doing the dishes in the kitchen as usual

"Dad,may I ask you some questions?" David asked happily. "Yes,of course," said his dad.

"If you can't answer them,you'll have to do something for me.""OK,I'll do as you tell me”， said his dad.

"Which is cooler, walking or sitting in the sun?" ^u Walking is cooler. It can make wind.”

"Which clothes can keep out (阻挡) the sunlight,shirts or coats?" "Coats can keep out the sunlight because they are much thicker (厚得多) than shirts."

"Is a man smart if he wears a coat and walks in the sun in summer?" David looked at his Dad and waited for his answer. His dad thought for a minute and shook his head (摇头) .

David took out his paper, "Now sign your name on the paper,please."

(   ) 1. What does Mr. Brown teach at school?

   A. Geography. B. How to sing.

   C. Physics. D. How to play football.

(   ) 2. Who usually washes the dishes at David's home?

   A. The mother. B. The father.

   C. David. D. Both the parents.

(   ) 3. What do you think his father has to do finally?

   A. Do the dishes. B. Sign his name.

   C. Watch TV. D. Walk in the sun.

(   ) 4. What do you think of David?

   A. He isn't active.

   B. He is tall and strong.

   C. He is smart and athletic.

   D. He doesn't work hard at school.

(   ) 5. Which is NOT true according to the passage?

   A. David isn't good at physics.

   B. David didn't go home until 7 p. m. that day.

   C. David's father answered all his questions.

   D. It isn't smart for a man to wear a coat in the sun.

Ann has his own room at home,so she can do what she w 1       to do in it. Her f 2       pop group is F4,and she has lots of their posters on the wall. Her mum doesn't like them. She doesn't like t 3       hair style (发型) .She often plays their music as she like,but s 4       her mum comes and c 5       the door. She has a TV in her room. Before she w 6       TV,she must finish her homework. "Work comes first," Mum always says. From Monday to Friday,she can watch TV in the evening for o 7       half an hour. At the weekend she can watch TV till 11 o'clock at night. She has to clean her room o 8       a week. It only t 9       her about half an hour,so it is not so bad. When her mum cleans the other r 10       she has to help her. If there is a lot to do,she has to do the shopping,too.

1.         2. f          3. t         4. s         5. c         

Sixteen years ago a boy gave me an important gift. It was a smile.

It was the early autumn of my first year at a middle school,and my old school was far away. As a result,no one knew who I was. I was very lonely,and afraid to speak to anyone.

Every time I heard the other students talking and laughing,I felt my heart break. I couldn't talk with anyone about my problems.

Then one day,when my classmates were talking happily with their friends,I was sitting at my desk unhappily as usual. At that moment,a boy entered the classroom. I didn't know who he was. He passed by me and then turned back. He looked at me,with a smile.

Suddenly,I felt the touch of something bright and friendly. It made me feel happy and warm. That smile changed my life. I started to talk with other students and made friends. Day by day,I became closer to everyone in my class. The boy with the lucky smile has become my best friend now.

One day I asked him why he had smiled,but he couldn't remember doing so!

It doesn't matter because all the dark days have gone. I believe that the world is what you think it is. If you think it is lonely,you might always be alone. So smile at the world and it will smile back.

(   ) 11. When did the writer get the gift?

   A. At the age of 16.

   B. After making friends with the boy.

   C. In the first year at a middle school.

   D. After becoming closer to everyone in the class.

(   ) 12. Why was the smile an important gift?

   A. Because the writer's old school was far away.

   B. Because the writer didn't know who the boy was.

   C. Because the smile didn't mean anything to the boy.

   D. Because the writer felt lonely and had no friends,and it made her feel happy and warm.

(   ) 13. Why didn't the writer talk to anyone in her new school about her problems?

   A. Because she was always unhappy.

   B. Because she didn't know anyone at the time.

   C. Because she was in the first year at the junior high school.

   D. Because she didn't want her parents to worry about her.

(   ) 14. How did the smile change her life?

   A. She started to make friends.

   B. She became the best friend of the boy.

   C. Her parents didn't worry about her any more.

   D. She realized that she was lonely.

(   ) 15. Where does she now think her feeling of unhappiness came from?

   A. From her old school.

   B. From her parents.

   C. From herself.

   D. From her classmates at the new school.

(       )6. Who can be Holly's friend?

A.     Someone who is very quiet.

B.     Someone who likes to talk about interesting things.

C.     Someone who is good at schoolwork.

D.     Someone who is very cool and popular.

(       )7. Which is Maria's opinion about a good friend?

A.     A good friend should like telling jokes.

B.     A good friend should study with her.

C.     A good friends should help her.

D.     A good friend should keep secrets for her.

(       )8. Who wants his or her friends to do well in their schoolwork?

A. Molly.                                                        B. Toby.

C. Jim.                                                            D. Sally.

(      )9. What does Jack like?

A. Playing the guitar.                                   B. Sports.

C. Making others laugh.                             D. Schoolwork.

(       )10. Whose friend is Kelly?

A. Jim's.                                                        B. Toby's.

C. Sally's.                                                     D. Molly's.