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A
The First of May is a Bank Holiday—the first public holiday of the year in England.
Most people consider it a special day ,the beginning of summer ,a day when the light lasts long into the evening ,and when we can look for warm weather .We don't always get it .We feel disappointed ,but not surprised if there are cold winds and frosts at night in May .Winter should be over .Most people know that in the past ,when farming occupied almost everyone ,the changing seasons were of great importance .In that older time there was every reason to celebrate May Day .Customs of those celebrations remain.
Of these customs ,the best known is the choosing of a May Queen and the dancing round Maypole .Even these customs are little more than memories now—but in the last century it was quite common in villages and small towns ,and even in schools and colleges ,for a pretty and popular girl to be chosen Queen of the May .It was a great honour to be chosen .For a day she wore a light and flowery dress, carried garlands（花环）,and was ceremonially crowned with flowers .She presided over a procession ,as a rule with a number of attendants ,and over the Maypole dancing and all kinds of entertainment .The Maypole was slender（苗条的） tree trunk ,cut off its branches, with beautiful ribbons fastened to the top .The dancing was designed in such a way that the dancer's movements move the ribbons into a pattern. This, as you can imagine ,required skill from the dancer ,and was not achieved without practice .
It's the Celtic（凯尔特的）people who celebrated the First of May as a spring festival .Their celebration seems to have had little to do with taking pleasure in early ,beautiful flowers and in warmer weather! They called it Beltane—the fire of the god Bel .They lit fires ,in the expectation that their blaze would help the sun in its struggle to regain its strength. They drove their cattle between banks of flame in the expectation that the terrified beasts would be purified（净化） and protected from disease .A tree ,which must have been blackened with smoke ,stood in the middle of the fires ,and is thought to have been the origin of the Maypole .Their priests（牧师） made sacrifices to the goods in the hope of good harvests and sufficient store of food for the winter. There was dancing certainly ,but it was noisy and cheerful ,since its purpose was not to weave a pattern of colored ribbons ,but to drive out evil spirits from the earth and to arouse those kind spirits.
1.The main purpose of the passage is to show ________.
A.the reason why they celebrate May Day
B.the start and customs of May Day
C.the way they celebrate May Day
D.the choosing of a May Queen during May Day
解析：主旨大意题。通过阅读全文就可得知本文介绍了五月节的兴起和习俗。A、C、D三项的内容只是文章的部分内容。
答案：B
2.According to the passage ,which sentence is NOT true?
A.In the old days they celebrated May Day for the changing of the seasons.
B.In England summer begins at the first of May.
C.The custom of the choosing of a May Queen still exists in the present May Day celebration.
D.The Celtic people celebrated the first of May as a spring festival.
解析：阅读本文第三段即可得知:选拔五月王后只是记忆中的事了，它只盛行于上个世纪。其他选项均可在第一、二段及最后一段找到相符的内容。
答案：C
3.From the surrounding words and sentences we know that the word “presided” means ________.
A.管理 B.越过 C.指挥 D.主持
解析：“presided”一词在第三段第五句话中。被选为五月王后是一种荣耀，她穿着漂亮的裙子，戴着花环，和用花做的王冠，主持着有很多人参加的各种各样的娱乐活动。根据上下文判断它的意思应该是“主持”。
答案：D
4.The best title for this passage is ________.
A.The First of May B.The Beginning of Summer
C.May Queen D.The Holiday of the Year
解析：综观全文，The First of May可以说是文章的关键词，它反复出现了很多次，整个文章都是在介绍这个节日。选项A概括归纳了全文的内容，而其他选项只涉及了全文中的部分内容，比较片面。
答案：A
B
People in the United States honor their parents with two special days：Mother's Day, on the second Sunday in May ,and Father's Day ,on the third Sunday in June .These days are set aside to show love and respect for parents .They raise their children and educate them to be responsible citizens .They give love and care .These two days offer an opportunity to think about the changing roles of mothers and fathers .More mothers now work outside the home .More fathers must help with child-care.
These two special days are celebrated in many different ways .On Mother's Day people wear carnations .A red one symbolizes a living mother .A white one shows that the mother is dead .Many people attend religious services to honor parents .It is also a day when people whose parents are dead visit the cemetery（公墓）.On these days families get together at home ,as well as in restaurants .They often have outdoor barbecues for Father's Day .These are days of fun and good feelings and memories.
Another tradition is to give cards and gifts. Children make them in school .Many people make their own presents .These are valued more than the ones bought in stores .It is not the value of the gift that is important ,but it is “the thought that counts”.Greeting card stores, florists ,candy makers ,bakeries ,telephone companies ,another stores do lot off business during these holidays.
5.Which is NOT a reason for children to show love and respect for parents?
A.Parents bring up children.
B.Parents give love and care to children.
C.Parents educate children to be good persons.
D.Parents pass away before children grow up.
解析：该题是个推断题。A、B和C三项均是对父母敬重的原因，而只有D项是不正确的。可以从第一段中“They raise their children and educate them to be responsible citizens.They give love and care.”得出答案。
答案：D
6.What do you know from the passage?
A.Mother's Day and Father's Day are both in May.
B.Fewer women worked outside the home in the past.
C.Not all the children respect their parents.
D.Fathers are not as important as mothers at home.
解析：从第一段第一句“Mother's Day,on the second Sunday in May,and Father's Day,on the third Sunday in June.”可知这两个节日不在同一个月；从第一段最后一句“More mothers now work outside the home.More fathers must help with child-care.”现在有更多的母亲在外工作，可以推出“以前有较少的妇女在外工作”，所以B为正确答案；C项和D项中的说法文中并没有提到或有所暗示。
答案：B
7.Which do you think is right about “carnation”?
A.It only has two kinds of color.
B.It refers to the special clothes people wear on Mother's Day or Father's Day.
C.It's a kind of flower showing love and best wishes.
D.People can wear carnations only on the second Sunday in May.
解析：该题是词义猜测题。通读文章便知carnation是康乃馨。
答案：C
8.On Mother's Day and Father's Day, ________.
A.people usually have family parties
B.everyone goes to visit the cemetery
C.children always go to parents' home
D.hand-made cards are the most valuable gifts
解析：该题是细节题。认真阅读文章的第二段，尤其是“On these days families get together at home,as well as in restaurants.”这句话，可知答案是A。B 项陈述不正确是因为“It is also a day when people whose parents are dead visit the cemetery（公墓）”。答案：A
9.What do you think “florists” do?
A.They sell flowers.
B.They make bread or pastry.
C.They offer enough room for having family parties.
D.They sell special clothes for Mother's Day and Father's Day.
解析：该题为词义猜测题。根据构词法，名词后缀-ist，表示“……主义者”及专业人员，可知此处的flowers为花商。因此花商要趁此节日销售鲜花。
答案：A
C
New Year and Its Celebrations（新年习俗）
January 1,the beginning of a New Year.
As far back in history as we can tell ,people have celebrated（庆祝）the start of a New Year .The people of ancient Egypt began their New Year in summer .That is when the Nile River flooded its banks bringing water and fertility（肥沃）to the land .The people of ancient Babylon（巴比伦）and Persia（波斯）began their New Year on March 21,the first day of spring .And some native American Indians（美洲土著印第安人）began their New Year when the nuts of the oak（橡木）tree became ripe .That was usually in late summer.
Now almost everyone celebrates New Year's Day on January 1,the day as before people observed the New Year's holiday in many different ways .The ancient Babylonains celebrated it by forcing their king to give up his crown（王冠） and royal（皇家） clothing. They made him get down on his knees and admit all the mistakes he had made during the past year. This idea of admitting wrongs and finishing the business of the old year is found in many societies at new year.
So is the idea of making resolutions（决定）.The resolution is a promise to change your ways ,to stop smoking ,for example ,or to get more physical exercise.
Noise making is another ancient custom at the New Year .The noise is considered necessary to chase away（赶走） the evil（邪恶） spirits of the old year .People around the world do different things to make a lot of noise .They may hit sticks together ,beat on drums（鼓）,blow horns（号）,or explode fire-works（烟火）.
Americans celebrate the New Year in many ways .Most do not have to go to work or school .So they visit family and friends ,attend church services ,share a holiday meal ,or watch New Year's parades（游行） on television. Most years university teams play in special holiday games .For those who have been busy at work or school ,new year may be a day of rest .They spend the time thinking about and preparing for the demands of the New Year.
10.Which of the following statements is right?
A.The people of ancient Egypt began their New Year in spring.
B.The people of ancient Babylon began their New Year on March 21,the first day of spring.
C.Some native American Indians began their New Year in early summer.
D.The people of ancient Persia began their New Year in late summer.
解析：细节理解题，根据文章第一段可知只有B项才是正确的。 “The people of ancient Egypt began their New Year in summer.”告诉我们A项是错误的。从这句“The people of ancient Babylon（巴比伦） and Persia（波斯） began their New Year on March 21,the first day of spring”可知，B 项说法是正确的，而D 项是错误的。而第一段最后一句告诉我们美洲土著印第安人开始他们的新年是在“late summer”,可判断C项错误。
答案：B
11.Why do people make a lot of noise on the New Year according to the passage?
A.The noise is considered necessary to frighten the evil spirits of the old year.
B.The noise is considered necessary to show people's excitement.
C.The noise is considered a symbol of admitting all the mistakes one did in the past year.
D.People have no other better ways to show their happiness.
解析：根据文章倒数第二段中此句“The noise is considered necessary to chase away（赶走） the evil（邪恶） spirits of the old year”可知答案。
答案：A
12.Americans celebrate the New Year by doing things as follows except ________.
A.resting at home
B.visiting family and friends
C.attending church services
D.having sports and games
解析：根据文章最后一段“Most do not have to go to work or school.So they visit family and friends,attend church services,share a holiday meal,or watch New Year's parades（游行） on television”可推出答案。
答案：D