英语阅读理解专项训练.doc

一、认真阅读下面两篇短文，每篇短文后有五个问题。根据短文的内容从四个选项中选择一个最佳答案，并将其代码填写在答题纸上。(本大题共10小题，每小题2分，共20分)Passage 1 At Denver there was a flow of passengers into the coaches on the eastbound express. In one coach there sat a very pretty young woman dressed in elegant taste and surrounded by all the comforts of an experienced traveler. Among the newcomers were two young men, one of handsome look with a bold, frank expression; the other heavily built and roughly dressed. The two were handcuffed together. As they passed down the aisle of the coach the only vacant seat offered was the one facing the attractive young woman. Here the linked couple seated themselves. When the young womans glance fell upon them, her face brightened with a lovely smile. “Well, Mr. Easton, if you will make me speak first, I suppose I must. Dont you ever recognize old friends when you meet them in the west?” The young man roused himself sharply at the sound of her voice, seemed to struggle with a slight embarrassment which he threw off instantly, and then clasped her fingers with his left hand. “Its Miss Fairchild,” he said, with a smile. “Ill ask you to excuse the other hand; its otherwise engaged just at present.” He slightly raised his right hand, bound at the wrist by the shining “bracelet” to the left one of his companion. The glad look in the girls eyes slowly changed to a puzzled horror. The glow faded from her cheeks. Easton, with a little laugh, as if amused, was about to speak again when the other stopped him. The heavily-built man said, “Youll excuse me for speaking, miss, but, I see youre acquainted with the marshal here. If youll ask him to speak a word for me when we get to prison hell do it, and itll make things easier for me there. Hes taking me to Leavenworth prison. Its seven years for making fake money.” “Oh!” said the girl, with a deep breath and returning color. “So that is what you are doing out here? A marshal!” The conversation between the girl and Easton carried on happily until the heavily-built man growled, “Say, Mr. Marshal, this isnt quite fair. Im needing a drink, and havent had a smoke all day. Havent you talked long enough? Take me in the smoker now, wont you? Im half dead for a pipe.” When the two men left for the smoker, said one of the passengers near by: “That marshals a good sort of guy. Some of these Western fellows are all right.” “Pretty young to hold an office like that, isnt he?” asked the other. “Young!” exclaimed the first speaker, “WhyOh! didnt you catch on? Saydid you ever know an officer to handcuff a prisoner to his right hand?”21. The train set off from _.A. the east of the United StatesB. the west of the United StatesC. the south of the United StatesD. the middle west of the Untied States22. When the young woman saw the two men, she smiled at them because _.A. she wanted to be polite to the other passengersB. she recognized Easton, who was a friend of hersC. she was glad to have someone to talk to in the coachD. she thought it was funny for two men to be linked together23. When the heavily-built man asked the pretty woman to speak a word for him, he wanted to _.A. save Easton from embarrassmentB. reduce his own suffering in prisonC. strike up a conversation with the attractive womanD. help Easton to carry on the conversation with the woman24. What does the phrase “catch on” in the last paragraph mean?A. Notice his face. B. Understand.C. Listen to the conversation. D. Carry on.25. The conversation between two other passengers at the end of the passage suggests that the heavy-built man is a _.A. prisoner B. bad guyC. friend of Easton D. marshalPassage 2 America has long been considered the land of opportunity by those from other countries. Americans, too, believe that the United States provides almost limitless opportunity for those who want to open businesses on their own. Today, Americans are still fond of trying their hand at becoming small business people, even though only one out of two survives the first two years. Many of these people start their businesses for the wrong reasons: to get away from the paper work of their present jobs or to exchange the responsibility of their present jobs for freer life styles. But more, not less, paper work and responsibility come with ownership of a small business. John Shuttleworth, owner of the recently successful news magazine Mother Earth, reports having had to work sixty hours straight in order to bring out the first issue. John Shuttleworth waited years after thinking about the idea for Mother Earth before he attempted to put out the first issue. During that time, he collected as much information as he could about his plan. He borrowed books about business from the library; he talked to people already established in the field; and he began planning in detail the amount of money and the kinds and numbers of supplies he would need. When he finally opened with a capital of $1,500, he set up his office in the kitchen of his home and his printing press in the garage. Due to his devotion to business, his skill and talent, Mother Earth now has a circulation of 300,000. Not all small businesses succeed as well as Mother Earth does. Fifty percent of the 450,000 that start in the United States every year fail. Still, ninety-five percent businesses in the States can be described as small. Combined, these businesses account for forty percent of Americas gross (总的) national product.26. Many people start their businesses for the wrong reasons as they do not realize that their businesses will _.A. have a great chance of failureB. provide large income but less responsibilityC. require longer working hours but less paper workD. not relieve them from much paper work and responsibility27. In the second paragraph “straight” means _.A. continuously B. honestlyC. alone D. not curved28. Before John Shuttleworth started his business, he _.A. borrowed money B. developed a rough planC. made all kinds of preparations D. visited some established businesses29. Which of the following is NOT true of the small businesses in the United States?A. One can start a small business at home.B. Americas development depends a lot on small businesses.C. Many people in America start small businesses to escape paper work.D. 50% of the small businesses fail because the owners are not well prepared.30. This passage is mainly about _.A. John Shuttleworths successB. the failure of businesses in the United StatesC. starting a small business in the United StatesD. American peoples attitude towards businesses二阅读理解。认真阅读下面两篇短文，每篇短文后有五个问题，根据短文的内容从A、B、C、D四个选项中选择一个最佳答案，并将所选答案的字母写在答题纸相应的位置上。 (本大题共10小题，每小题2分，共20分)Passage 1Insurance is the sharing of risks. Nearly everyone is exposed to risk of some sort. The house owner, for example, knows that his property can be damaged by fire; the ship-owner knows that his ships may be lost at sea; the breadwinner knows that he may die at an early age and leave his family poorer. On the other hand, not every house is damaged by fire nor every ship is lost at sea. If these persons each put a small sum into a pool, there will be enough to meet the needs of the few who do suffer losses. In other words, the losses of the few are met from the contributions of the many. This is the basis of insurance. Those who pay the contribution are known as insured and those who administer the pool of contributions as insurers.The legal basis of all insurance is the policy. This is a printed form of contract on a piece of paper in best quality. It states that every year the insured shall pay a named sum of money, which is called the premium; in return, the insurer will pay a sum of money or compensation for loss if the risk or event insured against actually happens.The premium for an insurance naturally depends upon how likely the risk is to happen, as suggested by past experience. If companies fix their premiums too high, there will be more competition in their area of insurance and they may lose business. On the other hand, if they make the premium too low, they will lose money and may even have to drop out of business. So the ordinary forces of supply and demand keep premiums at a level satisfactory to both the insurer and the insured.21. By “the pool of contributions” (Para. 1) the writer means_.A. money paid by the insurersB. the amount of each premiumC. money paid by all those insuredD. the cost of administering insurance22. A policy is _.A. a named sum of moneyB. a kind of legal agreementC. a printed form of paymentD. a particular kind of insurance23. Insurance premiums do not become too high because _.A. not many people insure themselvesB. premiums depend on the risk of lossC. insurers have to be more competitiveD. insurance companies can never lose money24. According to the passage, insurance business is profitable because _.A. nearly everyone suffers lossesB. only insured people suffer lossesC. everyone at some time suffers lossesD. only a few of those insured suffer losses25. The purpose of the passage is _.A. to define an insurance policyB. to introduce insurance businessC. to persuade people to be insuredD. to warn people of possible lossesPassage 2One evening I went out and left my 17-year-old son in charge of his 8-year-old brother and 4-year-old sister. On this occasion, the chore was made less troublesome by the presence of his girlfriend. I left with complete confidence that the older children would do a wonderful job of babysitting the younger children and the younger children would do a wonderful job of accompanying the older ones. Later, I discovered that complete confidence was the last thing I should have left home with.I had decided to return home earlier than planned so that my son and his girlfriend could go out. I called home with this happy news. But instead of hearing his cheerful, grateful voice on the other end of the line, all I heard was the sound of a telephone ringing.It was, I should point out, after 10 p.m., when the two younger children should have been in bed, and when the two older children should have been answering the phone. “Ill give him a lesson,” I said. I decided they must be outside. Why they might be outside at 10:30 on a wintry night I had no idea, but it was the only explanation I could come up with.Finally, in desperation, I called his girlfriends house. After what seemed like countless rings, his girlfriend answered. “Yes,” she said brightly, “Hes right here.”He came on the phone. I was not my usual calm, rational self. After all, one of the rules of survival for modern parents is that you cant trust modern teenagers. “Where are the children?” I said. He said they were with him. They had done nothing wrong. My son had taken the younger children over to his girlfriends house just for ice cream and cake. This was too wholesome to be believed. Well, it turns out that I shouldnt have believed it. It was only part of the truth.The following Saturday evening we were at my parents home, celebrating my birthday. My oldest son gave me the childrens gifts. Mounted and framed were a series of lovely color photographs of my children, dressed in their best clothes, and wearing their most wonderful expressions. They are pictures to treasure a lifetime, all taken by the father of my sons girlfriend.That was the most precious gift of all.26. The author went out and left her eldest son in charge of the younger children because _C_.A. she knew that his girlfriend was a good baby-sitterB. she could not find a baby-sitter on that winter nightC. the older children and the younger ones would get along wellD. she believed he was old enough to take care of the younger ones27. Shortly after the author left home one evening, she discovered that _A_.A. her son had brought his girlfriend homeB. her son had left home with his girlfriendC. she shouldnt have completely trusted her sonD. she should have taken the children along with her28. When the author called home _A_.A. no one answered the phoneB. she expected to hear some good newsC. her sons girlfriend answered the phoneD. she heard a cheerful voice on the other end29. The sentence “It was only part of the truth.” (Para. 5) implies that the children not only enjoyed ice-cream but also _C_.A. had a birthday party B. framed some photographsC. had their pictures taken D. showed off their best clothes30. Which of the following possible titles best expresses the main idea of this passage?A. An Evening Out B. Modern TeenagersC. Mother and Children D. A Precious Birthday Gift三II阅读理解。认真阅读下面两篇短文，每篇短文后有五个问题，根据短文的内容从A、B、C、D四个选项中选择一个最佳答案，并将所选答案的字母写在答题纸相应的位置上。(本大题共1 0小题，每小题2分，共20分)Passage One Every Thursday afternoon, my art history class meets not in our lecture hall but in the YaleUniversity Art Gallery. We spend our one-hour class discussing two or three of the paintings, many of which are by artists that we have already studied in class. The professor begins by selecting one work of art. After giving us a quick background on the artist, hell open up for class discussion. Everyone is strongly encouraged to give opinions to the work. Not every piece we study is necessarily famous or striking in appearance and subject matter, yet we always manage to make some interesting observations. In America, professors always take every opportunity to push textbooks aside and expose students to real world experiences. With some creativity, almost any can be applied to such beyond the classroom learning. My art history class trips to the gallery are but one example. Many other disciplines also offer opportunities to learn outside the classroom, for instance, business, psychology, art, journalism and biology. A friend of mine from Yale taking an advanced psychology(心理学) course spends every Saturday working with mentally disabled children. Her mornings are spent playing with the kids and studying their sometimes uncontrolled behavior. Then in the afternoon she writes a report on her observations. Students generally appreciate these unique learning opportunities. Theyre almost always fun and interesting, and professors like them because students learn so much in just a few short months. No one denies the value of classroom learning. But it can only take students so far. Slides and textbooks may do a good job of carrying facts and dates, but creativity and originality of thought cannot be taught. They can only be got through first-hand experience.21. The writer studies art history _.A. in a lecture hallB. in an art galleryC. in a simple wayD. in a practical way22. In American universities it is popular for professors to _.A. create textbooks by themselvesB. teach their lectures through real world experiencesC. ask their students to memorize the textsD. share their experiences with the students23. The writer introduces one of his friends experiences to us in order to _.A. give us an exampleB. praise the professorC. praise his friendD. advise us to study psychology24. The writer holds the opinion that _.A. learning outside the classroom is the best wayB. teachers should develop students creativityC. professors had better shorten their lecturesD. students should put their textbooks away25. “Slides and textbooks” in the last paragraph refer to _.A. the books students may use in classB. the practical experienceC. the theoretical experienceD. the advice from the professorsPassage Two The publication of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince gladdens booksellers across China. The British and American editions were No. 1 and No. 3 respectively on the sales chart of the Beijing Xidan Book Building. The books poster is highlighted and news about the book can often be heard on the radio. Why is the book so attractive to children? With curious mood, the author got a copy of Harry Potter. Originally, I wanted to glance over it and made some criticisms. But, out of expectation, the author has been deeply attracted by the magic world. On the other hand, one cannot help asking: where is our own Harry Potter? The Chinese nation has a history of 5,000 years, which cannot be regarded as short and its culture as not profound. With a vast market of youngsters, China did publish many books popular among children. However, why are the present works not as good as those imported? There come two major reasons: Firstly, quite a number of childrens books are of strong sense of teaching, and lack interest and entertainment. Children often have a feeling of being educated. No wonder they dont like them. Secondly, childrens reading materials involving idiom stories and Chinese talents stories, though always in different covers, are usually much the same or plagiarized. One knows the ending as early as in the beginning. In final analysis, the authors of the books seldom take childrens requirements into consideration. As a matter of fact, each child has his own wonderful imagination. They long to understand the world and nature. Similarly they have their own choices. They dislike similar stories, even if the stories are excellent. First-class reading for children should be very interesting, which contains knowledge and the essence of national culture, which are presented in childrens language. Market is a touchstone for products. The theory also holds true for cultural products. It is hoped that the authors of childrens books can learn something from the good market of Harry Potter and write out more and better books loved by children.26. The disadvantages of our books ar