When my wife left this world, I chose to travel in Antigua looking for a peaceful place to rest my old body. Not quite old and weak, I felt I wanted something more than the usual hotel room with 24-hour room service.
I decided this year to try something completely new and booked myself a private holiday home in Antigua. This was the best decision I had ever made, as there was plenty to do, plenty to see and lots of lovely restaurants to visit. There was a private swimming pool, and a cool, wide yard where I ate my breakfast most mornings.
Antigua has to be one of the loveliest places on earth to spend a holiday. The bright blue sea and the endless blue around the beach areas proved to be an excellent place for me to spend the long afternoons.
I had to hurry to do what I wanted to do before the holiday came to an end. I managed to visit the Sugar Mill and Shirley Heights on my last two days and yet found myself wondering whether I could extend for a few more days.
I rented a boat and came home after a day’s sailing, refreshed, looking forward to dinner. Everything is so pleasant on these beautiful islands, swept by the trade winds and warmed by the sun for so many summer months. The food just tasted better to me, perhaps because I was having such a great holiday. There was always someone to have a drink with---- that’s what I liked most.
【小題1】Which of the following statements is NOT mentioned about the private holiday home the writer stayed in?

A．It had a private swimming pool.

B．There were lots of restaurants near it.

C．The writer often had breakfast in its yard.

D．It supplied delicious seafood to the writer.

【小題2】The word “extend” in Paragraph 4 probably means “______”.

A．make something last longer

B．make you feel happy

C．prevent from entering

D．sell goods to foreign countries

【小題3】The most important reason for the writer to travel in Antigua was ______.

A．there was bright blue sea

B．there was endless blue sky

C．there were lots of lovely restaurants

D．there were many people to drink with

【小題4】The passage is most likely to be taken from a part of ______.

A．a tour guide	B．a travel diary
C．a student’s report	D．a health report

Two magazines recently listed the best cities to live in. Here are two of the cities listed as “the world’s best.”
SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA  The city has comfortable weather all year round (15℃ to 26℃). Housing is not very expensive in San Jose. Also, many of the city’s older neighborhoods are very beautiful and have small hotels and cafés.Beautiful mountains are around the city. Lots of people go sightseeing there every year. But air pollution is a problem in the city center.
HONG KONG, CHINA    This lively city—once a small fishing village—is today an international business center. It is an interesting mix of East and West, old and new. Modern tall buildings are next to small temples (廟宇). Popular nightclubs are close to traditional teahouses. Busy people fill the streets at all hours of the day. But outside the city, there are parks for walking or relaxing. Hong Kong is famous for its wonderful native dishes. There’s also food from Europe, North America, and other parts of Asia. However, this small city has a large population of nearly seven million! That’s why housing is often very expensive. Traffic and air pollution are also a problem.
【小題1】Which of the following is NOT mentioned about San Jose?

A．The weather.

B．The mountains.

C．The air.

D．The traffic.

【小題2】What makes Hong Kong the world’s best according to this passage?

A．The lively city and the wonderful dishes.

B．The large population and the traffic.

C．The expensive housing.

D．The beautiful temples.

【小題3】 The writer thinks housing in Hong Kong is expensive because ________.

A．it is a small fishing village	B．it is a mix of East and West
C．it is a beautiful city	D．there are too many people in the city

【小題4】What do the two cities have in common?

A．They both have beautiful mountains.	B．They both have a large population.
C．Air pollution is a problem in both.	D．They are both crowded.

【小題5】From the passage, we can know that       .

A．San Jose and Hong Kong are the only two cities of the world’s best

B．San Jose has more natural sights than Hong Kong does

C．the weather in both cities is fine

D．San Jose used to be small fishing village

Colours often have different meanings in different cultures. In the U.S., people have found the following to be true.
Black
Black is the colour of power. It is also popular in fashion because it makes people appear thinner.
White
White is the symbol of purity. White is thought to be a summer colour. However, white shows dirt and is more difficult to keep clean than other colours.
Red
This is the most exciting colour. Red furniture (家具) should look very good since it will attract a lot of attention. Red cars are the thieves’ favourite. Red is often used in restaurants because it is an appetite (食欲) stimulant. This means it can make people eat more.
Blue
Blue is the colour of the sky and the ocean. Peaceful blue is often used in bedrooms. Studies show that weightlifters are able to lift heavier weights in blue gyms.
Green
Green represents nature. It is the easiest colour on the eye. Hospitals often use green because it relaxes patients.
Yellow
Sunny yellow is a cheerful colour, yet people lose their tempers (發(fā)脾氣) more often in yellow rooms, and babies cry more.
【小題1】Which colour is a summer colour?

A．Blue.

B．White.

C．Green.

D．Red.

【小題2】The underlined word “stimulant” means “______”.

A．刺激物

B．防腐劑

C．輻射物

D．裝飾品

【小題3】Where is colour red often used?

A．In bedrooms.	B．In gyms.
C．In hospitals.	D．In restaurants.

【小題4】What does the underlined sentence mean?

A．It is the easiest colour for people to find.

B．It is the most comfortable colour for eyes.

C．People can remember it more easily.

D．It can improve our eyesight.

【小題5】Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to the passage?

A．White can make people eat more.

B．Blue can make patients feel more relaxed.

C．People can get angry easily in yellow rooms.

D．Black cars are popular among thieves.

The earth is our home；we must take Care of it. This means keeping the land，air and water   clean.
Pollution is a dirty word. To pollute means to make things unfit(不合適的)or unclean to use. Pollution comes in many ways. We see it，smell it，taste it and drink it. Pollution is beginning to threaten(威脅)our health，or happiness and our life.
Man. has been polluting the earth from the time he first made fire，washed his clothes in the river and threw his waste on the ground. When land was used up or water became dirty. Men moved to another place. At first the problem was not so serious because there was plenty of clean air，land and water. There weren’t so many people then and their wants(需求)were fewer. All the dirty things could be absorbed(吸收)by nature and soon. covered over(恢復)， But this is no longer true. The increase of population(人口增長)and the development of industry have changed that. Man is slowly polluting. his environment.
Through the use of poison(農藥)，mall has polluted land! killing the animal. By putting dirty water and chemicals into rivers and lakes we have polluted our drinking water，killing the fish.
Our increasing population is part of the problem. More people more waste.
Where is this all to end? Are we turning the world into a big rubbish dump，or is there any hope that we can get rid of(擺脫)the pollution ?Luckily，millions of people have been warned of the danger of pollution. Large numbers of people are now working hard to bring pollution under
【小題1】Which sentence is WRONG?

A．We live on the earth，so we should look after it.

B．To pollute means to make air ，water and land unfit for use.

C．All the waste produced by modem industry can be absorbed.

D．Man is now fighting against different kinds of pollution.

【小題2】In this passage the word "chemicals" means

A．化學

B．化學物質

C．化學的

D．醫(yī)學的

【小題3】 From the sentences "More people more waste"，we know that _______.

A．because of the increase of population and the development of industry，more and more waste is produced

B．we need more people，not more waste

C．there isn’t any hope that we can get rid of the pollution

D．more people have been warned of the danger of more waste.

【小題4】From the passage we can know that now man_______.

A．doesn’t know how to control pollution

B．still doesn’t realize how serious pollution is

C．is doing something to control pollution

D．begins to understand the pollution

All living things on the earth need other living things to live. Nothing lives alone. Most animals must live in a group, and even a plant grows close together with others of the same kind. Sometimes one living thing kills another, one eats and the other is eaten. Each kind of life eats another kind of life in order to live, and together they create a food chain (鏈條). Some food chains are simple, while others are not. But all food chains begin with the sun, and all food chains become broken up if one of the links (鏈接) disappears.
All life needs sunlight to live on. But only plants can use sunlight directly. Plants are ‘factories’. They make food from sunlight, water and things in the soil (土壤) and air. Plants feed all other living things. Animals can only use the sun’s energy after it has been changed into food by plants. Some animals feed directly on plants, others eat smaller animals. Meat-eating animals are only eating plants indirectly.
What about humans? We are members of many food chains. We eat rice, vegetables, and fruits and so on. We also eat meat and drink milk. But we often break up the food chains. We kill wild animals and also make rivers, lakes and seas polluted. When these rivers, lakes and seas are polluted, the fish in them can not be eaten. If we eat the fish, we will get strange illnesses.
Each form of life is linked (關聯的) to all others. Breaking the links puts all life in danger.
【小題1】Which living things can use the sun’s energy directly?

A．Animals.	B．Plants.
C．Animals and plants.	D．All living things.

【小題2】Who often destroy the food chains?

A．Humans.	B．Animals.
C．Plants and animals.	D．Humans and wild animals.

【小題3】Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?

A．The Sun’s Energy	B．Plants
C．Food Chains	D．Living Things