their theories, these language experts do agree that life is a very successful language school. A．In spite of B．In terms of C．Regardless of D．Instead of 题目和参考答案——青夏教育精英家教网—

The Man of Many Secrets — Harry Houdini — was one of the greatest American entertainers in the theater this century. He was a man famous for his escapes — from prison cells, from wooden boxes floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water. He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America. Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his “magic” tricks.
Of course, his secret was not magic, or supernatural powers. It was simply strength. He had the ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers. He could move his body into almost any position he wanted.
Houdini started working in the entertainment world when he was 17, in 1891. He and his brother Theo performed card tricks in club in New York. They called themselves the Houdini Brothers. When Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant. But for a long time they were not very successful. Then Harry performed his first prison escape, in Chicago in 1898. Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local newspapermen to watch.
It was the publicity(宣传) that came from this that started Harry Houdini’s success. Harry had fingers trained to escape from handcuffs and toes trained to escape ankle chins. But his biggest secret was how he unlocked the prison doors. Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good luck — and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks, pass quickly from her mouth to his.
Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame. He arranged to escape from the local prison of every town he visited. In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full. What was the result? World-wide fame and a name remembered today.
【小题1】 According to the passage, Houdini’s success in prison escapes depends on _______.

A．his first prison escape	B．the year 1898
C．the publicity	D．Harry Houdini’s success

【小题3】 It can be inferred from the passage that Houdini became famous _______.

A．in 1894	B．before he married
C．at the age of 17	D．when he was about 24

【小题4】Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A．A Skeleton Key	B．A Man of Many Secrets
C．World-wild Fame	D．Great Escape

Harry Houdini was one of the greatest American entertainers in the theater this century. He was a man famous for his escapes from prison cells, from wooden boxes floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water. He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America. Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his “magic” tricks.

Of course, his secret was not magic or supernatural power. It was simply strength. He had the ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers. He could move his body into almost any position he wanted.

Houdini started working in the entertainment world when he was 17, in 1891. He and his brother Theo performed card tricks in clubs in New York. They called themselves the Houdini Brothers. When Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant. But for a long time they were not very successful. Then Harry performed his first prison escape in Chicago in 1898. Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local newspapermen to watch.

It was the publicity (宣传) that came from this that started Harry Houdini’s success. Harry had fingers trained to escape from handcuffs and toes trained to escape from ankle chains. But his biggest secret was how he unlocked the prison doors. Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good luck and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks. She passed it quickly from her mouth to his.

Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame. He arranged to escape from the local prison of every town he visited. In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full. What was the result? Worldwide fame and a name remembered today.

1.According to the passage, Houdini’s success in prison escapes depends on ______.

A. his special tricks and supernatural powers

B. his unusual ability and skeleton key

C. his magic tricks and supernatural powers

D. his wisdom and magic tricks

2. It can be inferred from the passage that Houdini became famous ______ .

A. in 1894 B. before he married

C. at the age of 17 D. when he was 24

3.According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. Houdini was a famous American magician.

B. Houdini was first recognized in Chicago.

C. Houdini first entered the entertainment world together with his wife.

D. Houdini was popular with people from Europe and America.

4. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A. A Skeleton Key B. A Secret Prisoner

C. Worldwide Fame D. Great Escapes

Vincent Willem van Gogh (30 March, 1853---29 July, 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist artist. He is considered one of the greatest artists with great influence on the greatest artists with great influence on the 20th-century art.

Van Gogh spent his early adult life working for a firm of art dealers. After a brief period as a teacher, he became a missionary (传教士) in a very poor mining region. He did not begin his career as an artist until 1880; however, during the last ten years of his life, he produced more than 2,000 pieces, including around 900 paintings and 1,100 drawing and sketches (素描). He worked only with somber colours until he met Impressionism and Neo-Impressionism in Paris. Van Gogh used their bright colours and style of painting in a uniquely recognizable style. Most of his best-known works were produced during his final two years, when he was suffering from serious mental illness.

In 1890, at the age of 37, van Gogh shot himself in the chest. He died two days later, with Theo, his brother and his best friend, at his side, who reported his last words as “The sadness will last forever”. It would not take long before his fame grew higher and higher.

Van Gogh’s mother threw away quite a number of his paintings. The only painting he sold during his lifetime, The Red Vineyard, was created in 1888. It is now on display in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, Russia. Several paintings by van Gogh rank among the most expensive paintings in the world. On March 30, 1987 van Gogh’s painting Irises was sold for a record of $53.9 million at Southby’s, New York. On May 15, 1990 his Portrait of Doctor Gachet was sold for $83.5 million at Christie’s, thus setting a new price record.

1.When did van Gogh begin his career as an artist?

A．At the age of 17.

B．At the age of 27.

C．In his early adult adult life.

D．In his early childhood.

2.The underlined word “somber” in Para. 2 means .

A．colourful

B．different

C．dark

D．bright

3.What’s the right order of van Gogh’s life experience?

a. worked as a teacher

b. took up drawing

c. worked in an art firm

d. worked as a missionary

A．c, a, b, d

B．c, a, d, b

C．b, c, a, d

D．b, a, c, d

4.Which of the following can best describe van Gogh’s final two years?

A．Sand and boring.	B．Normal and peaceful.
C．Happy but fruitless.	D．Painful but productive.

5.What can we learn from the passage?

A．Van Gogh didn’t become famous until he dies.

B．Van Gogh sold many paintings in his life.

C．Van Gogh had become famous as an artist when he was alive.

D．Irises was the most expensive among van Gogh’s paintings.

第四部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）

　阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

The Man of Many Secrets — Harry Houdini — was one of the greatest American entertainers in the theater this century. He was a man famous for his escapes — from prison cells, from wooden boxes floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water. He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America. Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his “magic” tricks.

Of course, his secret was not magic, or supernatural powers. It was simply strength. He had the ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers. He could move his body into almost any position he wanted.

Houdini started working in the entertainment world when he was 17, in 1891. He and his brother Theo performed card tricks in club in New York. They called themselves the Houdini Brothers. When Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant. But for a long time they were not very successful. Then Harry performed his first prison escape, in Chicago in 1898. Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local newspapermen to watch.

It was the publicity(宣传) that came from this that started Harry Houdini’s success. Harry had fingers trained to escape from handcuffs(手铐) and toes trained to escape ankle chains. But his biggest secret was how he unlocked the prison doors. Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good luck — and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks, passed quickly from her mouth to his.

Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame. He arranged to escape from the local prison of every town he visited. In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full. What was the result? World-wild fame, and a name remembered today.

1. According to the passage, Houdini’s success in prison escapes depends on _______.

A. his special tricks and supernatural powers

B. his wisdom and magic tricks

C. his magic tricks and unhuman powers

D. his unusual ability and a skeleton key

2. In the fourth paragraph, the underlined word “this” refers to _______.

A. the year 1898 B. his first prison escape

C. the publicity D. Harry Houdini’s success

3. It can be inferred from the passage that Houdini became famous _______.

A. in 1894 B. before he married

C. when he was about 24 D. at the age of 17

4. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A. A Man of Many Secrets B. A Skeleton Key

C. World-wild Fame D. Great Escape

The Man of Many Secrets — Harry Houdini — was one of the greatest American entertainers in the theater this century. He was a man famous for his escapes — from prison cells, from wooden boxes floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water. He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America. Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his “magic” tricks.

　　Of course, his secret was not magic, or supernatural powers. It was simply strength. He had the ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers. He could move his body into almost any position he wanted.

　　Houdini started working in the entertainment world when he was 17, in 1891. He and his brother Theo performed card tricks in club in New York. They called themselves the Houdini Brothers. When Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant. But for a long time they were not very successful. Then Harry performed his first prison escape, in Chicago in 1898. Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local newspapermen to watch.

　　It was the publicity(宣传) that came from this that started Harry Houdini’s success. Harry had fingers trained to escape from handcuffs and toes trained to escape ankle chins. But his biggest secret was how he unlocked the prison doors. Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good luck — and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks, pass quickly from her mouth to his.

　　Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame. He arranged to escape from the local prison of every town he visited. In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full. What was the result? World-wild fame, and a name remembered today.

1.According to the passage, Houdini’s success in prison escapes depends on _______.

A．his special tricks and supernatural power	B．his unusual ability and a skeleton key
C．his magic tricks and supernatural powers	D．his wisdom and magic tricks

2.In the fourth paragraph, the underlined word “this” refers to _______.

A．his first prison escape	B．the year 1898
C．the publicity	D．Harry Houdini’s success

3.It can be inferred from the passage that Houdini became famous _______.

A．in 1894	B．before he married
C．at the age of 17	D．when he was about 24

4.Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A．A Skeleton Key	B．A Man of Many Secrets
C．World-wild Fame	D．Great Escape

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