D. It was not so strange for men to use umbrellas in the 1800s.

23. What does the underlined word “evolved” in the last paragraph mean? A. Supported. B. Invented. C. Survived. D. Developed. 24. What is the best title for this passage? A. How umbrellas were invented? B. The use of umbrellas in ancient times. C. Women’s umbrellas in the 1600s.

D. A brief introduction to the history of umbrellas.

Ｂ

One day, I took a taxi and the traffic flew smoothly along a narrow street until our taxi was brought to a sudden stop. I curiously looked forward to seeing the obstruction (堵塞). I noticed that in front of the cars, a rather vast crowd gathered in the middle of the street. In fact, people kept emerging from every direction.

I asked my taxi driver if he had seen what had occurred. He said, “A stupid driver has hit a man on a bicycle. The policeman is here to end the argument.”

Interesting! My taxi driver had obviously sided with the bicyclist, despite the fact that he too was a driver. He continued to explain, “All the people are coming to give their opinions on what happened.” With these words, he put out his head from the window to shout his thoughts on the accident.

A vast crowd of people was gathering at the scene. Some appeared to be passing bicyclists, and some were coming from the shops along the streets. I felt very surprised! It was nearly impossible that these people had all seen the accident, yet they all seemed to take a personal interest in the “justice” of the result. It was shocking that the police officer who was attending the accident seemed interested in the opinions of all those who were watching! What began as a short pause was beginning to look like a long afternoon drama.

Accidents like this occur every day. Each time something like this happens to me during my travel in this country, I immediately became impatient, so patience is really necessary if you’re planning to visit this country.

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25.The author was most probably in the country when this event happened A. visiting his parents B. on business C. traveling D. living

26. Who should take the responsibility for the accident in the opinion of the author’s taxi driver?

A. The bicyclist. B. The driver. C. The police officer. D. The heavy traffic. 27. The writer felt shocked because _____.

A. his taxi driver shouted his thoughts on the accident

B. the police officer showed interest in the opinions of the watchers C. no one called the hospital or sent the bicyclist to a hospital D. the accident later turned into an interesting drama

28.What does the author advise people to do if they want to visit this country? A. Never take a taxi. B. Don’t drive on a narrow street. C. Have a lot of patience. D. Avoid crowds.

C

It was late Wednesday night when the frightening phone call reached our home. I remember lying in my bed trying to fall asleep when I heard the phone ring. Interested in finding out who the late caller was, I sat up so that I could hear the phone call better. To my surprise, I heard my mom shout to my dad, “Get the car, Dean! Andrea has been in a car accident.”

We ran every red light on the way to the hospital and our tires screeched (发出刺耳声) around every corner. We got to the hospital but were not allowed to see her. The next morning, we were allowed to see Andrea. Until today, nobody knows exactly what happened. We only know that the car rolled on its way back from a party. The two boys in the car were killed, and Andrea was thrown out. She was badly injured.

Over the next two months, I lived more at the hospital than I did at my house. I watched as Andrea worked so hard to gain back everyday motor skills. She never once complained or pitied herself. After two weeks in the ICU and two months of the regular hospital treatment, Andrea came home. She missed several months of school, so it was hard for her to catch up. Andrea had many tasks to finish, and however hard it was, she

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stuck until the job was done. Though busy dealing with pain and therapy (治疗), she always found time to love and play with me, her little sister.

I’ll never forget the influence that this incident had on my life. I admire my sister. She is perfectly normal now, despite the pins holding her leg in place. I couldn’t ask for a better sister or a hero in my life.

29. Why did the author listen to her mother answering the phone? A. Because she knew that something terrible had happened. B. Because she wanted to know who called at such a late time.

C. Because she was interested in listening to others talking on the phone. D. Because she wondered if she was wanted on the phone. 30. The first sentence in Paragraph Two shows that ______. A. the author’s family were very eager to see Andrea B. the author’s father wasn’t good at driving C. the family liked breaking traffic rules D. their house was far from the hospital 31. During the treatment, Andrea ______. A. read a lot of books B. stopped playing with the author C. didn’t accept anyone’s help D. showed her determined spirit 32. What is the best title of the passage? A. A miracle that happened to my sister. B. A sudden disaster for my family. C. My sister — the hero in my life. D. An accident which changed my life. D

Australia is the world’s smallest continent and largest island. It is the sixth largest nation in the world, after Russia, Canada, China, the United States and Brazil. Australia has a land area of 7,682,320 km2 and its coastline is 36,735 km long. As the world’s driest continent, most parts are semi-desert and have no people living there. There are

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rainforests and vast plains in the north, desert in the center and fertile (肥沃的) croplands in the east, south and southwest. Australia is surrounded by the waters of the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Arafura Sea to the north, the Indian Ocean to the west, and the Southern Ocean to the south. Its highest point on the mainland is Mount Kosciusko, at 2,228 m, in the Australian Alps. The longest river, starting in Queensland, is the Murray Darling measuring 2,736 km. The Australian federation (联邦政府) has six states and two territories. The largest state, Western Australia, is about the same size as Western Europe.

Australia is a multicultural society with about a quarter of the population foreign-born. The population has more than doubled since 1945. Now it is about 17 million or about 2 people per square kilometer, and more than 80 % of Australians live in the southeast, within 100 kilometers of the coast. Sydney, the nation’s largest city, is the capital of New South Wales. Sydney’s Harbor Bridge and Opera House attract visitors from all over the world. Canberra is the nation’s capital.

Australians are very kind and very polite. They also have their own customs. For example, they mind very much if you speak with your mouth full of food, and they also mind if you talk to somebody when this person is talking to another person! 33. Which of the following is NOT one of the six largest countries in the world? A. Brazil. B. Canada. C. Australia. D. Cuba.

34.Concerning Australia, the author mentioned all of the following EXCEPT _____. A. the coastline B. the climate C. the population D. the customs 35.We can infer from the passage that _____. A. Australians don’t like people from other countries B. Sydney’s Harbor Bridge is famous all over the world C. the capital of Australia is the nation’s largest city D. most of the southeast of Australia is desert

第二节（共5小题；每小题2分，共10分）

根据短文内容，从短文后的七个选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项，选项

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