第三部分：阅读理解(共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分)

阅读下面的短文，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。

A

About eight years ago, I was a new teacher in the local women's prison(监狱), where most of the prisoners were drug users. During one of my classes, a woman was crying. Her 17-year-old daughter had been ill. She wanted to see her, but she had no way to get to the hospital 30miles away. Having a daughter at the same age, I applied(申请) to drive the woman to the hospital .Finally I was allowed to go together with her for three hours on the following Saturday.

We were both in good spirits when we arrived at the hospital. Her daughter was in a worse situation than either of us could imagine. She couldn't recognize her mother. I encouraged the mother to hold her daughter's hands, touch her face and talk to her softly. Also, I sang some of the songs I used to sing to my daughter. The mother was in a deep state of depression and hopelessness. She wept(哭泣), and I held her silently in my arms.

A few weeks later, I learned that her daughter had passed away. That Saturday was the last time her mother had seen her. By helping them, I also learnt something important. That afternoon, I was reminded never to take those I love for granted. Love and value them right now.

56. Why was the woman crying in the class?

A. No one helped her daughter.

B. She couldn’t see her daughter.

C. Her daughter died in the hospital.

D. She couldn’t find a good doctor for her daughter.

57. What does Paragraph 2 mainly talk about?

A. How the doctors tried their best to save the girl.

B. What a terrible situation the daughter was in.

C. What the author did to help the woman at the hospital.

D. How the author felt at the hospital.

58. What does the underlined phrase “passed away” in the last paragraph mean?

A. died   B. wounded     C. recovered   D. crashed

59. The author’s help was so important to the woman because_____.

A. her arrival could help to save her daughter.

B. her daughter woke up to greet her.

C. it was the last time she had seen her daughter.

D. her daughter let her realize her mistake.

60. What did the author learn from this experience?

A. Everyone should help those who need help.

B. Always love and value those we love.

C. Mothers have the duty to protect their children.

D. Taking drugs can do great harm to people.

B

In the past, many people depended on horses for transportation(运输), farming and other kinds of work. Nowadays a lot of people still like to ride horses. So it is not surprising that many expressions about it are still used by Americans today.

Long ago, people who were rich or important rode horses that were very tall. Today, if a girl is too proud and looks down upon others, you might say she should "get off her high horse."

Last night, I got a telephone call while I was watching my favorite television show. I decided not to answer it because "wild horses could not drag me away" from the television -- there was nothing that could stop me from doing what I wanted to do.

Sometimes you get information "straight from the horse's mouth." It comes directly from the person who knows most about the subject and is the best source. Let us say your teacher tells you there is going to be a test tomorrow. You could say you got the information "straight from the horse's mouth." However, you would not want to call your teacher a horse!

You may have heard this expression: "You can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink." That means you can give someone advice but you cannot force him to do something he does not want to do.

In politics, a "dark-horse candidate" is someone who is not well known to the public. Sometimes, a dark horse unexpectedly wins an election(选举).

Another piece of advice is "do not change horses in midstream." You would not want to get off one horse and on to another in the middle of a river. Or make major changes in an activity that has already begun.

61. What does the underlined word “it” mean in the first paragraph?

A. the horse   B. riding horses  C. raising horses  D. horse racing

62. The expression “get off her high horse” is used for a girl____.

A. who has a lot of money     B. who is cleverer than others

C. who thinks she is better than anyone else D. who is respected by others

63. What can we learn about the news “ straight from the horse’s mouth”?

A.  It is very hard to get the news.

B. The news will be true and reliable(可靠的).

C.  The person who gives the news is called a horse.

D. The news is a lie and can’t be trusted.

64. Which of the following can describe a person who wins an election unexpectedly?

A. do not change horses in midstream    B. wild horses could not drag me away

C. dark-horse candidate      D. get off her high horse

65. What’s the best title of the passage?

A.The horse is a kind of useful animal.   B.The expressions used by Americans.

C.Some expressions about the horse    D. It is popular to use the word “horse”