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限时阅读训练 (3)

词数: about 290     难度: ★   建议用时: 3.5 minutes
    Everybody loves a bargain. One person’s useless, ugly, or broken object can be another person’s bargain. That is why so many Americans do not throw things away. They put them outside their house. They put up a “For Sale” sign. And, as simple as that, they have a yard sale.
    In some parts of the country, such a sale might be called a garage sale (旧物销售) or a moving sale. Whatever the name, the activity is the same. People sell things they no longer want.
    The sellers put a paid announcement in a local newspaper. It tells when and where the yard sale will take place. It also lists some of the things to be sold.
    Early in the morning, all the things to be sold are carried out of the house. Then they sit all day in the sunlight — like tired guests at a party — waiting for someone to take them home.
    Just about anything can be sold at a yard sale. Sometimes, there are more clothes than anything else. Cooking equipment is also popular. So are old toys, tools, books, tables, and chairs. Then there are objects called white elephants. A white elephant is something you think is extremely ugly or useless, to someone else, however, it might be a thing of beauty and joy.
    Usually, the seller puts a price on each object at a yard sale. However, that price can almost always be negotiated (商谈).
    Some people go to yard sales to find a particular thing that they collect.
    Most people who go to yard sales, however, are not looking for anything special. They might buy an object simply because it costs so little. They enjoy negotiating over prices, even if they really do not need the object.
1.“Bargain” in the passage may really mean ______.
   A. a useless or ugly thing  
   B. a thing of great value
   C. a thing bought at a lower price than its real value
   D. a thing that is thrown away
2. Which of the following isn’t necessary to have a yard sale?
   A. To put a paid announcement in the newspaper.
   B. To put up a “For Sale” sign.
   C. To have certain things old or no longer needed.
   D. To have a yard out of the house.
3. Which of the following is NOT true?
   A. The price of the objects for sale isn’t fixed.
   B. Some people go to yard sales just for fun.
   C. Yard sales attract many people only because things there are cheap.
   D. A garage sale is the same as a yard sale.

词数: about 280    难度: ★★  建议用时: 3.5 minutes
    With the wipers （刮雨刷） going full blast (最大马力地), Rhonda Richards could hardly see through her windshield（挡风玻璃）. A cold rain was pouring on November 16, 2006, and now Leibs Creek had burst its banks and was rushing across Hollow Road in front of her. She slowed and stopped, engine running. Rhonda and her son Matt, 15, had come to pick up his five-year-old cousin, Jake, at a bus stop.
    Matt was fond of his cousin, a sensitive little kid. He liked to play with him and teach him stuff like wrestling moves. They played soccer together. Recently Matt and his father had taken Jake on a hunting trip. Out in the woods before dawn, the boys stood together and watched the sky lighten. It was awesome.
    As a yellow shape, headlights shining in the rain, appeared in the distance, Matt got out of the car to warn the driver that the road was flooded. Rhonda called to her son to watch himself. But the big, strong kid just pulled the hood (风帽) of his jacket over his head and got out of the car. He stepped into water that almost topped the new Timberland boots he’d saved up to buy. Matt struggled forward, waving his hands above his head. With every step, the stream grew deeper. Its power was surprising. He had a hard time keeping his balance.
    Rhonda watched Matt struggle up the road and glanced at the yellow bus moving slowly toward them. A hundred feet away, its bright caution lights (警示灯) blinked on as it slowed to a stop. Rhonda had Matt in the corner of her eye — then he disappeared.

1. Rhonda Richards was at a bus stop to pick up ______.
   A. her cousin    B. her son   C. her nephew     D. the bus driver
2. What does the underlined word “awesome” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
   A. Frightening.    B. Terrible.     C. Impressive.    D. Annoying.
3. Matt got out of the car in order to ______.
   A. play tricks on the yellow bus    
   B. warn the bus driver of the danger ahead
   C. see how heavy the rain was
   D. stop the bus from falling into the river

Key: A 1-3 CDC  B 1-3 CCB