Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman. A man goes shopping because he needs something. All men simply walk into a shop and ask the assistant for what they want. If the shop has it in stock, the salesman immediately finds it, and the business of trying it on follows at once. All being well, the deal can be and often is completed in less than five minutes.

   For a man, small problems may begin when the shop doesn't have what he wants. In that case, the saleswoman tries to sell the customer something else. "I know this jacket is not the style you want, sir, but would you like to try it for size? It happens to be the colour you mentioned." Few men have patience with this treatment, and the usual response is: "This is the right colour and may be the right size, but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on."

   However, a woman in almost every respect does so in the opposite way. Her shopping is not often based on need and she is only "having a look around". She is always open to persuasion; indeed she sets great store by what the saleswoman tells her. She will try on any number of things. Most women have an excellent sense of value when they buy clothes. They are always on the lookout for the unexpected bargain. Faced with a roomful of dresses, a woman may easily spend an hour going from one room to another, often retracing her steps, before selecting the dresses she wants to try on. It is a laborious process, but apparently an enjoyable one. Most dress shops provide chairs for the waiting husbands.

1. The underlined part “sets great store ” in paragraph 3 means_____.

A. has much information about                 B. knows nothing about

C. believes in                               D. has her doubts about

2. What does the passage tell us about women shoppers for clothes?

A. They welcome suggestions from others.       B. They rarely consider buying cheap clothes.

C. They predict what they want to buy.          D. They listen to advice but never take it.

3. What can we learn from the passage?

A. Men never buy what they need.

B. A man’s shopping is often based on need.

C. A woman goes shopping in order to look for cheap things.

D. A woman’s shopping is never based on need.                               

It’s hard to find Alice Munro in the media. Even after she won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature, the Canadian writer just appeared for a quick interview and then dropped out of sight. On Dec 29, she still didn't seek the spotlight（聚光灯）when she was named one of the five Women of the Year by the Financial Times.

In Munro's eyes, ordinary lives always hide larger dramas. So she records what we casually think of as the everyday actions of normal people. She often focuses on life in her hometown, a small village in Ontario which she is most familiar with. She writes about the ordinary things in the village－fox forming, trees filled in the Ontario wilderness, poor country alcohol and long last illnesses. Above all, she talks about girls and women who have seemingly ordinary lives but struggle against daily misfortune.

 She has a special talent for uncovering the extraordinary in the ordinary. These are ordinary people, ordinary stories, but she has the magic. Her precise language, depth of detail and the logic of her storytelling have made her stories inviting.

 Runaway, one of Munro’s representative works, is a good example of her writing style. One of the stories centers on the life of an ordinary woman Carla, who lives in a small Canadian town with her husband Clark. The story slowly forms a picture of Carla, trapped in a bad marriage, her unhappiness building into desperation until she decided to flee. The story of Carla is a story of the power and betrayals of love. It is about lost children and lots of chances that we can all find in life.  There is pain beneath the surface, like a needle in the heart.

 Since she published her first collection of short stories in 1968, Munro has won many awards, with the Nobel Prize being her biggest honor. On Oct 10, 2013, the Nobel Prize committee named Munro the “master of the contemporary short story”.

4. We learn from Paragraph 1 that Alice Munro_____ 

A．didn't get on well with the media               B．remained modest though very successful

C．didn’t value the title of Women of the Year      D．was surprised at winning the Nobel Prize

5. What makes Alice Munro’s stories fascinating according to the text?

A．Her writing techniques                       B．The complicated plots    

C．The humorous language                        D．Her rich imagination

6. In her representative work Runaway, Carla_____

A．leads a happy life with Clark                     B．is a faithful wife to her husband

C．loses all hopes for a better life                 D．tries to run away from her husband

7. What is the text mainly about?

A．Alice Munro and her hometown                B．The awards Alice Munro won

C．Alice Munro and her writing style              D．Alice Munro’s literary life

There is a very instructive incident involving the life of Alexander, the great Greek king. Alexander, after conquering many kingdoms, was returning home. On the way, he fell ill and it took him to his death bed. With death staring him in his face, Alexander realized how his conquests, his great army, his sharp sword and all his wealth were of no consequence. So, he lay helplessly waiting to breathe his last. He called his generals and said, “I will depart from this world soon. I have three wishes. Please carry them out without fail.”

“My first desire is that,” said Alexander, “My physicians alone must carry my coffin(棺材).” After a pause, he continued, “Secondly, I desire that when my coffin is being carried to the grave, the path leading to the graveyard be strewn（撒满）with gold, silver and precious stones which I have collected.” The king continued，“My third and last wish is that both my hands be kept hanging out of my coffin.” Alexander’s favorite general kissed his hand and pressed them to his heart. “Oh King, we assure you that your wishes will all be fulfilled. But tell us why do you make such strange wishes?”

At this Alexander took a deep breath and said, “I would like the world to know of the three lessons I have just learnt. I want my physicians to carry my coffin because people should realize that no doctor can really cure anybody. They are powerless and cannot save a person from the clutches of death. So let people not take life for granted.

The second wish of strewing gold, silver and other riches on the way to the graveyard is to tell people that not even a bit of gold will come with me. I spent all my life earning riches but cannot take anything with me. Let people realize that it is just a waste of time to chase wealth.

And about my third wish of having my hands hanging out of the coffin, I wish people to know that I came empty-handed into this world and empty-handed I go out of this world.” With these words, the king closed his eyes. Soon he let death conquer him and breathed his last.

8. The first paragraph suggests that Alexander _________.

A. was conquering many kingdoms.

B. realized that what he got in his life was nothing to him at all.

C. wanted to leave as he came empty-handed.

D. regarded his conquests, his great army, his sharp sword and all his wealth as the most important things.

9. The underlined word “clutches” in paragraph 3 means “_______”.

A. sentence    B. attention    C. control   D. shadow

10. The author intends to ________.

A. tell us the story of Alexander

B. introduce readers to the instructive lessons of Alexander

C. stress the powers of Alexander the Great

D. persuade people to realize what Alexander said

11. What would be the best title for the passage?

A. The Death of Alexander.            B. The Greed of Alexander

C. Three Wishes of Alexander          D. The Life of Alexander

Brownie and Spotty were neighbor dogs who met every day to play together. These two loved each other and played together so often that they had worn a path through the grass of the field between their respective houses.

One evening, Brownie’s family noticed that Brownie hadn’t returned home. They went looking for him with no success and by the next week he was still missing.

Curiously, Spotty showed up at Brownie’s house alone. Barking, whining (哀叫) and generally pestering (纠缠) Brownie’s human family. Busy with their own lives, they just ignored the nervous little neighbor dog.

Continuously, Ted, Brownie’s owner, was disturbed by the angry, determined little dog. Spotty followed Ted about, barking insistently, then rushing toward a nearby empty lot and back, as if to say, “Follow me! It’s urgent!”

Eventually, Ted followed Spotty to a deserted spot half a mile from the house. There Ted found his beloved Brownie alive, one of his hind legs crushed in a steel leg-hold trap. Horrified, Ted now wished he’d taken Spotty’s earlier appeals seriously. Then Ted noticed something quite remarkable.

Spotty had done more than simply led Brownie’s human owner to his trapped friend. In a circle around the injured dog, Ted found an array of dog food and table scraps which were later identified as the remains of every meal Spotty had been fed that week!

Spotty had been visiting Brownie regularly, in the hope of keeping his friend alive by sacrificing his own comfort. Spotty had evidently stayed with Brownie to protect him from hunger and other dangers, and keep his spirits up.

Brownie’s leg was treated by a veterinarian (兽医) and he recovered. For many years thereafter, the two families watched the faithful friends chasing each other down that well worn path between their houses.

12. Why did Ted pay little attention to Spotty at the very beginning?

A. Because Ted was tired of listening to Spotty barking.

B. Because Ted only cared about Brownie’s safety.

C. Because Ted was not free at that moment.

D. Because Ted knew where Brownie was.

13. When Ted was led by Spotty to Brownie, he_________.

A. was curious to find out what had happened              B. highly appreciated Spotty’s help 

C. was worried about Brownie’s health             D. regretted not following Spotty earlier

14. Not only did Spotty help Ted find Brownie but also_________.

A. he went to see his friend and played with him secretly

B. he sent messages to some other persons in his community to save his friend

C. he managed to lead a veterinarian to treat his friend

D. he sent food to his friend, accompanied him and inspired him to cheer up

15. What can we learn from the story?

A. Barking dogs seldom bite.                       B. A friend in need is a friend indeed.

C. Love me, love my dog.                        D. Every dog has its day.

There are a lot of things you can do to help protect yourself and others from water pollution!

1. Don’t drink water directly from a stream, river, or lake.

Imagine a nice summer day when you are walking in the woods with some friends. Maybe you are even going camping.   16   It’s a hot day. Should you take a drink of the river water? No! Never! Even though the water looks clean, it’s very likely that bacteria live in it.

2.   17 

If your home uses a well for drinking water, ask an adult to have it tested every year by a laboratory. The lab can check to make sure there is no pollution in your well. You can also buy kits(装备) at a local hardware store to test your water.

3. Find out what your community is doing to protect your water source and get involved.

Perhaps your community cleans up a local stream a few times a year.   18   Check with local leaders to see what you can do to make a difference to our earth.

4. Filter(过滤) and / or boil your water if needed.

If you know that there are dangerous things in your water like bacteria or lead, you should filter and／or boil your water. An adult can help you with this. You should boil your drinking water if you know that it has bacteria in it. Boiling water will kill the bacteria.    19   And you may need a filter to take out some chemicals.

5. Take used motor oil to a recycling center.

      20   Or do you ever help your mom or dad change the oil on their car? If you do, remember that you can’t just throw the dirty oil away. Used motor oil must be recycled.

A. You could help!

B. Get your water tested.

C. Are you old enough to drive?

D. Boiling water is very safe for us to drink.

E. You come upon a river and you are very, very thirsty.

F. Boiling water will not remove things like lead, though.

G. Test the water you drink in a laboratory by yourself every day.