70篇短文突破中考英语词汇1

l. A Young Officer and an Old Soldier (1)
A very new, young officer was at a railway station He was going to visit his mother, and he wanted to telephone her to tell her the time of his train. He looked in all his pockets, but found that he did not have the coins for the telephone, so he went outside and looked around for someone to help him.
1．年轻军官与老兵(1)
一位新上任的(new)年轻军官(young officer)在火车站(railway station)候车。他要去看望(visit)他的母亲(mother)。他想打电话(want to telephone sb.)告诉(tell)母亲他的列车(train)到站的时间。但寻遍了所有的口袋(pocket)，却发现(find)他没有打电话用的硬币(coin)，于是他走到车站外面(outside)，环顾四周(look around)想找人帮忙(help)。                 
1. A Young Officer and an Old Soldier (2)
At last an old soldier came by, and the young officer stopped him and said,“Have you got change for ten pence?”
“Wait a moment,”the old soldier answered, beginning to put his hand in his pocket.“I'll see whether I can help you.”
“Don't you know how to speak to an officer?”the young man said angrily.“Now let's start again Have you got change for ten pence?”
“No, sir,”the old soldier answered quickly.
1．年轻军官与老兵(2)
最后(at last)有名老兵(old soldier)路过，年轻的军官拦住他道：“你有十便士(pence)的零钱(change)吗？”
“等会儿(wait a moment)。”老兵回答(answer)，开始(begin)把手放(put)进口袋，“让我看看是否(whether)能帮助你。难道你不知道(know)该怎样跟一位长官说话(speak)吗？”年轻人生气地(angrily)说，“现在我们重新开始(start again)，你有十美分的硬币吗？”
“没有，长官(sir)。”老兵迅速(quickly)答道。
                 
2. Are You Going to Thank Her? (1)
Mrs. Green has lived near the park of the city for forty years. She's very rich and has got a lot of money. Bur she never buys something expensive for her family and always does all the housework herself. She sweeps all the rooms every day.
Last morning, when she got up, she felt terrible After breakfast she felt even worse She found some medicine and took it. But it was useless to her and she had to go to a hospital.
2．您是要感谢她吗？(1)
格林夫人(Mrs.)在这座城市(city)的公园(park)附近住(live)了四十(forty)年了。她特别富裕(rich)，相当有钱(money)。但她从不(never)给自己的家人(family)买昂贵的(expensive)物品，而且总是(always)自己做所有的家务(housework)，她每天打扫(sweep)所有的房间。
昨天早上(Last morning)。她起床(get up)时感觉(feel)很糟糕(terrible)。早餐(breakfast)后她觉得更严重(even worse)，就找了一些药(medicine)吃了。但还是没用(useless)。她不得不去了医院(hospital)。            
2.Are You Going to Thank Her? (2)
The doctor looked her over and asked her to be in hospital, but she refused and went home on foot. As soon as she got home, the telephone rang. She hurried to answer it. It was the doctor. He told her she had left her purse in the hospital and a nurse had found it.
“Could you tell me her name, please?”asked Mrs. Green.
“Of course, Mrs. Green. Are you going to thank her? ”asked the doctor.
“No, no.”She said,“My handbag was lost three years ago. I want to know if she found it. ”
2．您是要感谢她吗？(2)
医生(doctor)给她作了检查并要求(ask)她住院，但她拒绝(refuse)了，然后步行(on foot)回家。她一(as soon as)到家，电话就响(ring)了，她赶紧(hurry)去接听电话，是医生打来的，他告诉这位女士她的钱包(purse)丢在了医院，一位护士(nurse)捡到了。
“您能告诉我这位护士的名字(name)吗？”格林夫人问道。
“当然可以(of course)，格林夫人，您是要感谢(thank)她吗？”医生问道。
“不，不是，”她说：“我的手提包(handbag)三年前(three years ago)丢了，我想问问是不是她检到了。”                           
3. Sam and Tod (1)
Sam had a dog. Its name was Tod. It was very helpful, but it ate too much. So Sam didn't like it, and he wanted to kill Tod, He tied Tod in a bag and put it in a small boat. He rowed the boat to the middle of a big river. Just as he threw the poor animal into the river, the boat began to go down. Both Sam and Tod fell into the river.
3．萨姆与托德(1)
萨姆有一只狗(dog)。他的名字叫托德。它很有用(helpful)，但它吃的太多(eat too much)。所以萨姆不喜欢他。萨姆想杀死(kill)托德。萨姆把托德绑(tie)在一个袋子里，把它放进一只小船(small boat)。他把船划(row)到一条大河(river)的中央(middle)。他正要(just)把这只可怜的动物(poor animal)扔(throw)下河的时候，船开始下沉，萨姆和托德两个都(both)跌入(fall into)河里。
3. Sam and Tod (2)
Tod was able to swim, but Sam couldn't The dog bit (咬) the rope and got out of the bag. It tried its best to swim to save Sam The man was saved, so he was very thankful to the dog. He did not want to kill the dog any more. From then on, he gave the dog as much food as it wanted.
3．萨姆与托德(2)
托德能(be able to)游泳(swim)，但萨姆不会。狗把绳子(rope)咬断，从袋子里出来(get out of the bag)。它竭尽全力(try one's best)游过去救(save)萨姆。萨姆获救了，所以他对托德是非常感激的(thankful)．他不再(not… any more)打算杀它了。从那以后(from then on)，小狗想要吃多少食物(food)萨姆就给多。                 
4.In the Bar (1)
In England, if you are under the age of eighteen, you're not allowed to drink in a public bar.
Mr. Thompson used to go to a bar near his house, but he never took his son, Tom, because he was too young. Then when Tom had his eighteenth birthday, Mr. Thompson took him to his usual bar for the first time.
4．在酒吧(1)
在英格兰(England)，年龄在18岁以下(under the age of eighteen)的人不允许(be not allowed to do)到公众(public)酒吧里喝酒(drink)。
汤普森先生过去经常(used to)到他家附近(near)的一个酒吧喝酒，但他从不带(take)他的儿子(son)汤姆，因为(because)他还太小(too young)。当汤姆过18岁生日(birthday)时，他第一次(for the first time)带儿子去了他经常去的酒吧(his usual bar)。                  
4.In the Bar (2)
They drank for half an hour, and then Mr. Thompson said to his son,“Now, Tom, I want to teach you a lesson, You must always be careful not to drink too much. And how do you know when you've had enough? Well, I'll tell you. Do you see those two lights at the end of the bar? When they seem to have become four, you've had enough and should go home.”“But, Dad,”said Tom,“I can only see one light at the end of the bar.”
4．在酒吧(2)
喝了半个小时(half an hour)后，汤普森对儿子说道，“汤姆，现在我给你上一课(teach you a lesson)。你必须(must)要小心(be careful)决不要喝太多。那怎样才能知道你是否已经喝够了(enough)呢？听着，我告诉你。你看见(see)酒吧尽头的(at the end of)那两盏灯(light)了吗？当它们看起来(seem)已经变成(become)四盏的时候，你就喝足了，应该(should)回家(go home)了。”“可是，爸爸，”汤姆说，“我只(only)看见那儿有一盏灯呀！”            
5.Three Black Umbrellas (1)
Sally was a student. It was going to be her mother's birthday. She wanted to buy her a present that would be nice and useful but not expensive
A week before her mother's birthday, she went shopping after a quick and simple lunch. When she had been looking for half an hour, she found a shop that was selling cheap umbrellas, and decided to take a black one. Her mother had lost hers the month before.
5．三把黑伞(1)
萨莉是个学生(student)，再过几天就是她母亲的生日了，她想给母亲买(buy) 一个价格不高，但漂亮、实用的(nice and useful)礼物(present)。
在她母亲生日之前(before)的一个星期(week)，萨莉匆忙地吃了顿简单的(simple)午餐(lunch)后就出去购物(go shopping)了。看(look)了半个小时后，发现了一个卖(sell)便宜(cheap)雨伞(umbrella)的商店，她决定(decide)买把黑色的(black)伞。一个月(month)之前她母亲把她的伞(hers)丢(lose)了。              
5.Three Black Umbrellas (2)
She thought,“You could carry that when you are wearing clothes of any color.”So she decided to buy a lovely black umbrella and took it back to the school with her until her classes had finished.
On her way home in the train that evening she felt hungry because she had such a small lunch that she went along to the buffet car(餐车) for a sandwich and a cup of coffee.
5．三把黑伞(2)
她想，“穿(wear)任何颜色(color)的衣服(clothes)，都可以携带(carry)黑伞。”于是她决定买把可爱的(lovely)黑伞带回学校(school)，直到(until)课(class)结束(finish)时才带回家。
那天晚上(evening)．在她乘火车回家的路上(on her way home)，因为午餐吃的很少(have such a small lunch)．她觉得饿(hungry)．于是走进餐车，要了一份三明治(sandwich)和一杯咖啡(a cup of coffee)。告诉他们自己为妈妈买的伞不见了，而且下一站(next station)她就得下车了。其他的(other)三位乘客听到(hear)后，都询问她母亲的地址(address)，以便(so that)有人知道拿错了(take it by mistake)伞再拿回来(bring back)时，他们可以把伞寄(send)给她母亲。
在接下来的一周，萨莉收到她母亲的来信(hear from her mother)，上面写道，“非常感谢你送我的漂亮礼物，但你为什么寄给我三把相似的(similar)黑伞呢？”  
                        
6. Friends (1)
Friends are different things to different people. To my little sister, a friend is someone who likes to swim and ride bikes. My mom's idea of a friend is someone like Mrs. Smith who walks and talks with her every morning. My dad's friends are neighbors who help him with the work like building shelves and planting trees.
6．朋友(1)
对于不同的人(people)，朋友(friend)意味着不同的(different)内容。对于我的小妹妹(little sister)来说，朋友是喜欢(like)游泳和骑自行车(ride bikes)的某个人(someone)。我妈妈的想法(idea)是朋友像(like)史密斯夫人一样可以每天早上陪她散步(walk)并交谈(talk)。我爸爸的朋友是帮他搭建架子(build shelves)、种树(plant trees)或做其他活的邻居们(neighbors)。                        
6. Friends (2)
Steve, our monitor, is my best friend We go skating, play football, talk about sports, and go to a concert. When I broke my leg, he always came over to play games; in school, he carried my schoolbag for me and got my lunch for me. I know I can always count on him, and he also knows that he can count on me.
Some friends may be in your life for a while. Others will be there for a long time, maybe even forever(永远). I would hate to move, unless I could take my friends with me They are too important to leave behind.
6．朋友(2)
我们的班长(monitor)史蒂夫是我最好的(best)朋友。我们去滑冰(go skating)、踢足球(play football)、谈论体育(talk about sports)、去听音乐会(go to a concert)。我摔断腿(leg)时，他就来我家玩游戏(game)；在学校，他替我拿书包(schoolbag)，并帮我打午饭。我知道我总能依靠(count on)他，他也知道他能依靠我。
有些(some)朋友可能(may)只在你的一生中停留一会儿(for a while)。另一些(others)则很长一段时间(for a long time)和你做朋友，甚至有可能(maybe)是终生的朋友。我憎恨(hate)搬家(move)，除非(unless)我可以把朋友也带走。他们对我来说太重要了(too important)，我无法把他们留下(leave behind)。                           

7. The“Deaf”Wife
A man is talking to the family doctor.“Doctor, I doubt whether my wife's going deaf.”The doctor answers,“Here’s something you can try on her to test her hearing. Stand some meters away from her and ask her a question. If she doesn't answer, move a little closer and ask again Keep repeating this until she answers. Then you'll be able to tell if she is deaf or not.”
The man goes home and begins to test his wife's hearing. He stands by the wall and says,“My dear, what's for dinner?”He doesn't hear an answer, so he moves closer to her.“My dear, what's for dinner?”Still no answer. He repeats this several times, until he's standing just a few feet away from her.
Finally, she answers,“For the eleventh time, I said we're having meat and rice!”
7．“耳聋的”妻子
某人对他的家庭医生说，“医生，我怀疑(doubt)我妻子(wife)要聋(deaf)了。”医生回答说，“有个办法可以测试(test)她的听力。你站(stand)在离她几米远(some meters away)的地方，然后问她一个问题(question)。如果她不回答，你再走近点(a little closer)，然后再问。如此重复(repeat)直到她听到为止。那时你就可以判断她是否聋了。”
这人回家后便开始测试他妻子的听力。他站在墙的旁边(by the wall)说，“亲爱的(dear)，晚饭(dinner)吃什么？”他没听到回答，于是又朝妻子走近了些。“亲爱的，晚饭吃什么？”仍然(still)没有回答。他如此反复了几次(several times)．直到他离妻子只有几英尺(a few feet)的地方。
最后(finally)，她回答道，“我都说了十一次了，我说咱们要吃肉(meat)和米饭(rice)。”                     
8. We Really Don't Know (1)
Jack had gone to the university to study his history, but at the end of his second term, he failed his history exam, and he was told that he would be dismissed from university. However, his father decided that he would go to see the history professor(教授)to ask him to let Jack continue his studies the next year.
“He's a good boy,”said Jack's father,“Please pardon him. If you let him pass this time, I'm sure he'll improve a lot next year and pass the examinations at the end of it really well.”
8．我们真的不知道(1)
杰克去大学(university)里学习(study)历史(history)，但在第二学期(term)末，他的历史考试不及格(he failed his history exam)．同时他还被告知将被开除(dismiss)。然而(however)．杰克的父亲(father)决定去拜访那位历史学教授，请求教授让(let)杰克继续(continue)下一年的学业。
“他是个不错的男孩(boy)。”杰克的父亲(father)说，“请原谅(pardon)他吧！如果这次您能让他通过(pass)，我确信(I'm sure)他明年一定会大有长进(improve a lot)；而且会在年终时真正地(really)很出色地通过考试。”                     
8. We Really Don't Know (2)
“No, no, that's quite impossible!”replied the professor immediately.“Do you know, last month I asked him when Napoleon died, and he didn't know!”“Please, sir, give him another chance”said Jack's father.“You see, I'm afraid we don't take any newspapers in our house so we even don't know that Napoleon was ill recently.”
8．我们真的不知道(2)
“不，不行，那是完全不可能的(quite impossible)。”教授立即(immediately)回答(reply)，“您知道吗，上个月我问他拿破仑是什么时候去世(die)的，可他居然不知道！”
“先生，请再给他一次机会(give him another chance)吧。”杰克的父亲说道，“您要知道，恐怕(I'm afraid)是因为我们家里没有报纸(newspaper)。因此我们甚至连拿破仑近来(recently)病了(ill)都不知道。”                           

9. Raymond (1)
Everybody dreams of doing something important. As a boy Raymond dreamed of being a scientist, in fact, he is a postman now.
Raymond is an active young man. He lives by the saying(格言)“If you can't live the life you love, Love the life you live”He greets everyone with a big smile and a friendly“Hi, how are you?”And he really wants to know! It's hard to fee! unhappy when we hear him whistling(吹口哨)happily up and down the street.  
9．雷蒙德(1)
每个人(everybody)都梦想(dream of)做些重要的事。雷蒙德小时候梦想成为一名科学家(scientist)，实际上(in fact)他现在是一名邮递员(postman)。
雷蒙德是个积极主动的(active)年轻人。他信奉的格言是“如果你不能过你热爱的生活，那就热爱你所过的生活。”带着灿烂的微笑(smile)，他向每一个人打招呼(greet)，还来一句友好的(friendly)问候，“嗨，你好吗？”而且他确实想知道！当我们听到他欢快地吹着口哨在街道(street)上来来往往(up and down)时，想不高兴都难(hard)。
9. Raymond (2)
Raymond looks good. His shirt and trousers always look very clean. After work, he likes going to the gym to take exercise
Raymond is strict in his work He cares about the people on this street everyday, he knocks on Mrs. Jordan's door to ask for a drink of cool water. He's not really thirsty. Mrs. Jordan is old, and he just wants to make sure she's okay.
9．雷蒙德(2)
雷蒙德看起来(look)很不错。他的衬衫(shirt)和裤子(trousers)总是非常干净(very clean)。下班后，他喜欢去体育馆(gym)锻炼(take exercise)。
雷蒙德对自己的工作要求严格(strict)。他关心(care about)街道上的居民。每天他都会敲(knock on／at)乔丹夫人的门(door)去要一杯凉(cool)水。他不是真的口渴(thirsty)。乔丹夫人年纪大了，他只是想确认(make sure)乔丹夫人一切正常。                        
10. That's Why!
Jimmy started painting when he was three years old, and when he was five, he was already very good at it. He also got many prizes for his painting. He painted many beautiful and interesting pictures, and people paid a lot of money for them They said,“This boy's going to be famous when he's a little older, and then we’re going to sell these pictures for a lot more money.”
Jimmy's pictures were different from other people's because he never painted it on all of the paper. He painted on half of it, and the other half was always empty.
“That's very clever,”everybody said.“Nobody else does that!”They all believed that the boy was a pioneer in painting.
One day, somebody bought one of Jimmy's pictures and then said to him,“Please tell me this, Jimmy. Why do you paint on the bottom half of your pictures, but not on the top half ?”
“Because I'm small,”Jimmy said,“and my brushes don't reach very high.”
10.原来如此！
吉米三岁开始画画(start painting)，五岁时已经(already)画得相当好了。他还因此获得很多奖(many prizes)。他画了很多美丽(beautiful)有趣的(interesting)图画(picture)。人们付(pay)很多钱(a lot of money)买这些画。他们说：“这个孩子大一点后肯定会出名(be famous)．到时我们可以靠这些画赚更多的钱。”
吉米的画不同于(be different from) 他人的画，因为他从来不在整张纸上作画。他只在一半纸上画，另一半总是空的(empty)。
“这真是个聪明的(clever)做法！”大家都说，“没有其他人(nobody else)这么画过。”他们都认为这男孩堪称绘画艺术的先锋(pioneer)。
有一天，有人买了吉米的画，然后问：“请告诉我，吉米，你为什么总是在纸的下半部分(bottom half)画而不在上半部分(top half)画呢？”
吉米说：“因为我个头小，我的画笔(brush)无法够到(reach)那么高(high)。”                       
11. Living like a Pig (1)
One day, a guru(印度教大师)knew what he would be in his next life. So he called his favorite disciple(徒弟) and asked him what he would do to show thanks. The disciple said he would do whatever his guru asked him to do.
After the guru received the promise, he said,“Then this is what I'd like you to do for me. I've just learned that when I die very soon, I'm going to be born as a pig. Do you see that pig eating rubbish over there in the yard ?
I'm going to be born as one of its baby pigs. You’ll recognize(认出)me by a mark on my face When the baby pigs have been born, find the baby pig with a mark on its face and kill it with your knife Then I’ll not live a pig's life Will you do this for me?”
11.像猪一样生活(1)
有一天，一位印度教大师知道了他的来生是个什么样子，因此，他召来(call)自己最喜爱的(favorite)徒弟，并问他要做什么来表示感谢。徒弟说无论什么(whatever)，只要大师要求，他都会去做。
收到(receive)这项承诺(promise)之后，大师说：“我现在就告诉你我希望你为我做的。我刚刚得知(learn)我就要死了，我会出生(be born)成为一只猪(pig)。你看到正在院子(yard)里吃垃圾(rubbish)的那头猪了吧？我将会是它下一窝猪仔中的一只小猪(baby pig)。你会从我脸(face)上的记号(mark)认出我来．当那些小猪出生以后，你去找脸上有记号的小猪，用你的刀(knife)把它杀死，这样我就不会过猪的生活(live a pig’s life)。你会为我做吗？”                  
11. Living like a Pig (2)
The disciple was sad to hear all this, but he agreed to do as he had promised.
Soon after this conversation, things happened just as the guru had mentioned. The guru died. Four baby pigs were born. One day, the disciple held his knife with him and picked out the baby pig with a mark on its face. Just as he was about to kill it, the little pig suddenly spoke,“Stop! Don't kill me!”it cried.
The disciple was very surprised, and he heard the little pig speak in a human voice, it said,“Don't kill me I want to live on as a pig. When I asked you to kill me, I didn't know what a pig's life would be like. It's great! Just let me go.”
11.像猪一样生活(2)
听到这些徒弟很伤心(sad)，但他同意(agree)照大师所说的去做。
事情正和大师提到(mention)的一样。在他们的对话(conversation)之后不久，大师死了，四只猪仔出生了。有一天，徒弟握着(hold)他的刀，挑选(pick out)出脸上有记号的那只小猪。当他正要(be about to)杀掉它时，小猪突然(suddenly)开口说话：“住手！不要杀我！”小猪大喊道。
徒弟非常吃惊(surprised)，他听到小猪用人的声音(in a human voice)说：“别杀我！我想要当猪继续活下去。当我要求你杀我时，我并不知道猪的生活将是什么样。猪的生活很棒(great)!就让我活下去吧。”
12. Greenland and Iceland
Greenland is the largest island on earth. It is in the north of Europe. Near Greenland is another island. It is small. Its name is Iceland. Do you think that Greenland is green and warm? Do you think that Iceland is white with ice? If you do, you are wrong. Not many people live on the big island of Greenland. There are more people in your hornet own than in all of Greenland That is because Greenland is not green Greenland is white. Most of Greenland is covered with lots of ice. The ice covering Greenland is higher than some of the world's buildings. What about Iceland? Is it colder than Greenland? No, it is not. Iceland has ice, but not so much ice as Greenland. Iceland has a Lot of hot springs(温泉). They give out hot water and steam (蒸汽). So it is not as cold as Greenland. And there are a lot more people who live in Iceland.
12.格林兰岛与冰岛
格林兰岛是世界上(on earth)最大的岛屿(largest island)。它位于欧洲(Europe)的北部(north)。在格林兰岛的附近有另外一个岛。这个岛很小。它的名字叫冰岛。你认为格林兰岛是绿色(green)、温暖的(warm)吗？你认为冰岛是冰(ice)覆盖的白色(white)岛屿吗？如果你这样想，你就错了。格林兰岛上没有很多人居住。你家乡(hometown)的人会比(than)整个格林兰岛的居民都多。那是因为格林兰岛不是绿色的，它是白色的。格林兰岛的大部分(most)覆盖着(be covered with)很多冰。覆盖格林兰岛的冰比这个世界上的一些建筑物(building)还要高。冰岛怎样呢(what about Iceland)?它比格林兰岛还要冷(cold)吗？不，不是的。冰岛有冰，但不像格林兰岛那么多的冰(not so much ice as Greenland)。冰岛有很多温泉。这些温泉放出(give out)热水和蒸汽，因此冰岛不像格林兰岛那样冷(not as cold as Greenland)。而且冰岛的居民远远多于格林兰岛。                        

13. A Competition of Lying
A certain old gentleman was very unhappy about modern education, and thought that young people didn’t know the difference between right and wrong.
One day he was taking a walk near the church when he saw some young boys standing around a small cat The old gentlemen went up to the boys and asked them what was happening. One of the boys said to him“We're having a competition. We're telling lies, and the one who tells the biggest lie will keep the cat.”
The old gentleman thought this was a good chance to teach the boys a useful lesson, so he said to them,“I've never told a lie in my life”. At once there was a great shout from all the boys, and they said,“You've won! The cat belongs to you!”
13．说谎比赛
某个(a certain)老年绅士(gentleman)对现代教育(modern education)颇为不满(unhappy)，他认为年轻人不知道是非(right and wrong)之间的差异(difference)。
有一天，他在教堂(church)附近散步(take a walk)时，看到一些小男孩围着一只小猫(cat)。这位老绅士凑上前去问孩子们发生(happen)什么事了。有个男孩告诉他：“我们正在进行一场竞赛(competition)。我们在比赛说谎(tell ties)，谁说的谎最大，这只猫就是谁的。”
老绅士觉得这是教育孩子们的一个好机会。于是他就对孩子们说：“我这辈子从未说过谎话。”立刻(at once)所有孩子异口同声地大喊(shout)：“你赢(win)了！这只猫属于你了(The cat belongs to you)!”                           



14. Sports in America
In many parts of the world, there are four seasons: spring, summer, fall and winter. There are only three in America: football, basketball and baseball. If you want to know what season it is, just have a look at what people are playing.
Sports are an important part of American culture. Students learn to play many sports at school. They take PE classes. Some join the school teams, and others join school sports leagues(联盟).
For many people in the USA, sports are not just for fun They're almost a religion (宗教). Thousands of sports fans buy expensive tickets to watch their favorite teams and sports stars play. Other fans watch games on TV at home. The most devoted(投入的) sports fans never miss a game
14．美国的体育
世界上许多地方(many parts)有四个季节(season)：春(spring)、夏(summer)、秋(fall)、冬(winter)。美国却只有三个：足球、篮球(basketball)和棒球(baseball)。如果你想知道是什么赛季(season)，只需看一下人们在玩哪种球即可。
体育是美国文化(American culture)的一个重要部分(part)。学生在校时学习很多体育项目。他们上体育课(PE)。有些学生加入校队(join the school team)．还有些学生加入学校体育联盟。
对于许多美国人来说，体育不只是为了玩(for fun)。体育几乎(almost)是一种宗教。成千上万的(thousands of)体育迷(sports fan)购买昂贵的门票(ticket)去观看(watch)他们最喜欢的球队以及体育明星(star)比赛。其他体育迷在家通过电视(on TV)看比赛。最铁杆的体育迷从不会错过(miss) 一场比赛。               

15.The Apple Tree (1)
A long time ago, there was a huge apple tree. A little boy loved to come and play around it every day. He climbed to the treetop, ate the apples, played under the tree... He loved the tree and the tree loved to play with him.
Time went by...The little boy had grown up and he no longer played around the tree.
One day, the boy came back to the tree and looked sad.“Come and play with me,”the tree asked the boy.
“I am no longer a kid I do not play around trees any more”The boy replied,“I want toys. I need money to buy them.”“Sorry, but I don't have money. But you can pick all my apples and sell them So, you will have money.”The boy was so excited. He picked all the apples on the tree and left happily. The boy didn't come back after he picked the apples. The tree was sad.
One day, the boy returned and the tree was so excited“Come and play with me”The tree said“I don't have time to play. I have to work for my family. We need a house Can you help me?”“Sorry, but I don't have a house But you can cut off my branches(枝干)to build your house.”, so the boy cut all the branches of the tree and left happily.  
The tree was glad to see him full of joy, but the boy didn't appear since then The tree was again lonely and sad.
15.苹果树(1)
很久以前有一棵巨大的(huge)苹果树(apple tree)。一个小男孩每天都喜欢来到树旁玩耍。他爬(climb)到树顶、吃苹果、在树下玩……他爱这棵树，树也爱和他一起玩。
随着时间的流逝，小男孩长大了(grow up)。他不再到树旁玩耍了。
一天，男孩回到树旁，他看起来很悲伤。“来和我玩吧！”树说。
“我不再是个小孩(kid)，我不会再到树下玩耍了．”男孩答道，“我想要玩具(toy)，我需要(need)钱来买。”
“很遗憾，我没有钱。但是你可以摘(pick)我所有的苹果拿去卖。这样你就有钱了。”男孩很兴奋(excited)。他摘掉树上所有的苹果，然后高兴地离开了。摘过苹果以后，男孩没再回来(come back)。树很伤心。
一天，男孩回来(return)了，树非常兴奋，“来和我玩吧”，树说。“我没有时间玩．我不得不(have to)为我的家庭工作。我们需要一个房子，你能帮我吗？”“很遗憾，我没有房子。但是，你可以砍下(cut off)我的树枝来建房。”因此，男孩砍下所有的树枝，高高兴兴地离开了。
看到他充满欢乐(full of joy)，树也很高兴(glad)。但是，自从(since)那时起，男孩没再出现(appear)，树很孤独(lonely)很悲伤。                  
15.The Apple Tree (2)
One hot summer day, the boy returned and the tree was very happy.“Come and play with me!”the tree said.
“I am sad and getting old I want to go sailing to relax myself. Can you give me a boat?”“Use my trunk(树干) to build the boat You can sail and be happy.”So the boy cut the tree trunk to make a boat He went sailing and did not show up for a long time
Finally, the boy returned after he left for so many years.“Sorry, my boy. But I don’t have anything for you any more No more apples for you.”the tree said.“I don’t have teeth to eat.”The boy replied“No more trunk for you to climb on”“I am too old for that now.”the boy said.“I really want to give you something——the only thing left is my dying roots(根).”The tree said.“I don't need much now, just a place to rest. I am tired after all these years.”The boy replied.“Good! Come here, please sit down with me and have a rest,”The boy sat down and the tree smiled .
This is a story of everyone The tree is our parent. When we were young, we loved to play with Mom and Dad. When we grow up, we leave them, and only come to them when we need something or when we are in trouble. Whatever, parents will always be there and give everything they could to make you happy. You may think that the boy is cruel to the tree but that's how all of us are treating(对待)our parents.
15．苹果树(2)
在一个炎热的(hot)夏日，男孩回到树旁，树很高兴．“来和我玩吧！”树说．
“我很伤心，我开始变老了。我想去航海(go sailing)放松(relax)自己．你能不能给我一条船？”“用我的树干去造一条船，你就能航海了，你会高兴的。”于是，男孩砍下树干去造(make)船。他航海去了，很长一段时间未露面(show up)。
许多年后男孩终于回来了．“很遗憾，我的孩子，我再也没有任何东西(anything)可以给你了。没有苹果给你”树说。“我没有牙齿(teeth)吃了。”男孩答道。“没有树干供你爬。”“现在我老了，爬不上去了。”男孩说．“我真的想把一切都给你……我唯一剩下的东西是快要死去的(dying)树墩。”树说。男孩答道。“现在，我不需要什么东西，只需要一个地方(place)来休息(rest)．经过了这些年我累了(tired)。”“太好了！过来，和我一起坐下休息(have a rest)吧。”男孩坐下了，树笑了…．
这是发生在每一个人身上的故事(story)。那棵树就像我们的父母(parent)．我们小的时候，喜欢和爸爸妈妈玩。长大后，便离开他们，只有在我们需要父母，或是遇到了困难(in trouble)的时候，才回去找他们．无论什么，父母却总是有求必应，为了让你幸福(make you happy)，付出他们所有的一切(everything)。你也许觉得那个男孩对树残忍(cruel)，但我们何尝不是这样对待自己的父母昵？                  
16. Pupils in China
On Tuesday, October 4, Mr. Goff visited our class. He is Karen's dad, and he just got back from a business trip to China. He has many pictures of busy cities and beautiful mountains. His pictures are worth seeing Mr. Goff came to our class to tell us what life is like in China
We learned that pupils in China went to school six days a week in the past but now they have a rest at weekends. They write with 2,000 characters(字) instead of 26 letters. Each character is a complete word They also review their lessons. After school, pupils play basketball and volleyball and ride bikes They do the same things as we do.
Mr. Goff said a businessman from China would visit him soon We will invite the man to our class. In that way, he can tell us more about pupils in China
16.中国的小学生
10月(October)4日星期二(Tuesday)．高夫先生来到我们班。他是克伦的爸爸．他去中国(China)商务旅行(business trip)刚回来。他有很多图片——繁忙的(busy)城市和美丽的山川(mountains)。他的图片值得一看(be worth seeing)。高夫先生来我们班为我们讲述中国人的生活。
我们得知中国的小学生(pupil)在过去(in the past)是每周上六天课，但现在他们是在周末(at weekends)休息了。他们书写(write)2000个汉字而不是(instead of) 26个字母(letter)。每个(each)汉字是一个完整的字(complete word)．他们也复习(review)功课。放学后，小学生们打篮球和排球还骑自行车。他们和我们做一样的(the same)事情。
高夫先生说一位来自中国的生意人不久要来拜访他。我们将邀请(invite)这个人来我们班。那样(in that way)，他就可以给我们讲述更多关于中国小学生的事情了。   
Young men often give flowers to young women when they are in love. The tradition may have come from Turkey(土耳其).
In the 1700s in Turkey, it was quite popular for people in love to send each other baskets full of strange things. The baskets were sent secretly to the person who was receiving it. Usually, an old woman who sold flowers or fruit on the street left the basket beside the door of that person  
17.Say it with Flowers(1)
Young men often give flowers to young women when they are in love. The tradition may have come from Turkey(土耳其).
In the 1700s in Turkey, it was quite popular for people in love to send each other baskets full of strange things. The baskets were sent secretly to the person who was receiving it. Usually, an old woman who sold flowers or fruit on the street left the basket beside the door of that person
17.花语寄情(1)
恋爱中(be in love)的年轻男士经常(often)送花(flower)给女友，这个传统(tradition)可能来自(come from)土耳其。
18世纪的土耳其，热恋中的人相互赠送装满奇怪(strange)物品的篮子，这种做法在当时很流行(popular)。篮子(basket)被秘密地(secretly)送给接收篮子的人(person)。通常(usually)，由街上卖花或水果(fruit)的老婆婆把篮子送到那人的门旁边(beside the door)。                     
17. Say It with Flowers (2)
These baskets included many kinds of gifts: flowers, stones, candles, etc. Each thing in the basket had a special meaning. By working out the secret message hidden in each gift, the person who received the basket began to understand little by little the true feelings of the person who sent it.
这些篮子里包括(include)许多种礼物(many kinds of gifts)：花、石头(stone)、蜡烛(candle)等。每样东西都有特殊的含义(special meaning)。篮子接收者想出(work out)每件物品所暗藏(hide)的信息(message)，然后就开始渐渐地(little by little)理解(understand)赠送者的真实感情(true feelings)。                     
17. Say It with Flowers (3)
The idea of sending gifts of love with secret meanings quickly spread to other countries. However, as time passed, only sending flowers remained popular.
Flowers told young ladies about the feelings in the heart of young men. Each different flower had a different meaning. For example, the flowers from an orange tree meant,“you are beautiful and pure(纯洁).”Pink carnations (康乃馨) meant,“My love far you is great.”Yellow roses, on the other hand, meant,“I saw you with someone else.”
Many flower dictionaries were made to help young people in love understand the meaning of the flowers they received However, not all of the dictionaries agreed on the meaning of each flower, so a person had to be careful about the flowers they chose to send
By the 1880s, using flowers to send messages had become unpopular, and the more direct way of sending love letters began. Today, flowers are still considered a lovely gift, but the meaning for each kind of flower has been lost.
17.花语寄情(3)
这种赠送礼物传递秘密信息的示爱方式迅速传(spread)到其他国家(country)，但是，随着时间的流逝，只有送花的传统保持(remain)了下来。
花把男士心(heart)中的感情传递给女士。每种花都有不同的含义。例如(for example)，桔(orange)树上开的花表示，“你美丽又纯洁”。粉红色(pink)的康乃馨表示，“我对你的爱是热烈的”。另一方面(on the other hand)，黄玫瑰(yellow rose)则意味着“我看见你和别人在一起”。
为了帮助恋爱中的年轻人理解他们收到的花所代表的含义，人们编制出很多关于花的词典(dictionary)。但是，对于每一种花的含义，不是所有的词典都能达成一致(agree on)。因此，人们在送花时必须谨慎选择(choose)。
到了19世纪80年代，花语寄情已经不流行，写信成为更直接的(direct)示爱方式。如今(today)，花仍被认为(consider)是一种可爱的礼物，但以前每一种花的特定含义已经没有了。                  
18. Learning by Doing and Going
Many of my classmates think they are  forced to go to school. They say they are only interested in playing. But I love going to school, and my favorite subject is science I like science because the experiments and field trips are exciting.
In science we do many exciting experiments in the lab. One time we made crystal form(晶形)in a bottle by using salt in water. Another time we watched how baby chicks are hatched(孵出).
We also take exciting field trips for science, We went to a museum and saw huge dinosaurs(恐龙)and tiny butterflies. On Tree-planting Day, we went to a forest and collected leaves.
It's good to play, but I would rather do experiments and go on field trips. That’s why science is my favorite subject.
18．通过做与行学习
我的许多同学认为他们是被强迫(force)去上学的，他们说只对玩感兴趣。但我喜欢上学，我最喜欢的学科(subject)是科学(science)。我喜欢科学是因为做实验(experiment)和野外(field)旅行令人兴奋(exciting)。
上科学课时，我们在实验室(lab)做许多令人兴奋的实验。有～次，我们利用水中的盐(salt)在一个瓶子(bottle)里做晶形。还有一次，我们观察小鸡(chick)是怎样被孵化出来的。
为了学习科学，我们还进行令人兴奋的野外旅行。我们去了一个博物馆(museum)，看到了巨大的恐龙还有微小的(tiny)蝴蝶(butterfly)。在植树节，我们去了一个森林(forest)并收集树叶(collect leaves)。
玩耍很好，但我宁愿做实验(would rather do experiments)以及去野外旅行。那就是我最喜欢科学课的原因。                          


19. Jane Came Home Too Late
Jane got home late at night. She was going to knock at the door. Just then it opened. Her father was standing by the door. He was a tall man with white hair.“Come in,”he said“I am getting cold.”Jane went in Her mother was waiting in the room Her mother was a short woman She was sitting on the sofa, and looked pale Her father closed the door.
“Well,”he said,“Where have you been? You promised not to stay out beyond 11 o'clock. It's one o'clock now.”
“It's only a quarter to one.”
“That doesn't make any difference. You should have come home earlier”her father replied angrily.
“We've been very worried about you,”said her mother.
“I'm sorry,”Jane said.“I was at a party. I didn't notice the time.”
“You've got a watch, ”said her father.“Your mother and I have waited for a long time. We didn't know where you were”
“I can look after myself,”replied Jane“I'm not a baby any more”...
That is a situation that we often see in our life Please do not let your parents worry about you again!
19. 简回家太晚
简在深夜(late at night)才回家。她正要敲门，门开(open)了。她的父亲正站在门旁。他是高(tall)个子，头发(hair)都白了。“进来吧，”他说，“我都觉得冷了。”简进了家。她的母亲正在房间(room)里等她。她母亲个子很小，正坐在沙发(sofa)上，看上去脸色苍白(pale)。简的父亲把门关上了。
“那么，你上哪去了？”父亲闷道，“你答应(promise)在外面不超过(beyond)11点的．现在都1点了。”
“差一刻钟(quarter)到1点”。
“那没什么差别(it doesn't make any difference)．你应该早(early)点回家的”，父亲生气的说。
“我们都非常担心(worried)，”母亲说。
“我很抱歉，”简回答，“我参加了一个聚会(party)。我没有注意到(notice)时间，”
“可你戴着手表(watch)”，父亲说，“你妈妈和我等了那么长时间。我们不知道你在哪里。”
“我可以照顾(look after)自己”，简回答道，“我又不是小孩了。”……
这是在我们生活中经常看到的一个情形(situation)。请不要再让你们的父母为你们担心(worry about you)了！                        

20. My Son's Questions
Since my son was three years old, he's kept asking me“why?”about everything. Why is the sky blue? Why are there clouds? Why can't I go outside? Why do I have to be nice? Anyway, I always try my best to answer his questions.
Now my son is ten years old. At this age, the boy is interested in all kinds of things, and he’s got more questions to trouble me Do people in prison celebrate festivals? Why are dogs' noses always wet? Why are women and men's shoe sizes different? ...
These days, the boy shows interest in the facts of life, so I borrowed books from the library and prepared myself for any questions he might ask At the end of our long talk, he still looked confused(迷惑的).“If you have any questions,”I said,“please ask them There are no stupid questions.”
“Well. suppose I was married,”he said with shame,“my wife was going to give birth to a baby, and I had to rush her to the hospital, okay?”
“Yes,”I smiled and encouraged him to continue his question.
Then he asked,“Can go through red lights?”
20．我儿子的问题
自从我儿子三岁起，他就一直在问我“为什么”，他要对一切事情刨根问底。为什么天空(sky)是蓝色的(blue)?为什么会有云朵(cloud)?为什么我不能去外面？为什么我必须要对人友好？无论如何(anyway)，我总会尽一切努力回答他的问题。
如今我儿子十岁了。在这个年龄，他对各种事情都感兴趣(be interested in)，他有更多的问题要麻烦我了。在监狱(prison)里的人庆祝(celebrate)节日(festival)吗？狗的鼻子(nose)为什么总是湿韵(wet)? 女人和男人的鞋码(shoe size)为什么不一样呢？……
这几天，这个孩子对生命是怎么回事感兴趣了，因此我从图书馆(library)借(borrow)书并准备(prepare)了他可能(might)会问到的所有的问题。在我们的长谈结束时，他看上去仍然很迷惑。“如果你有什么问题，尽管问好了，”我说，“没有愚蠢的(stupid)问题（问什么都行）。”
“好吧，假设(suppose)我结婚了(married)，”他带着羞愧(with shame)说，“我的妻子要生小孩了，我必须赶紧(rush)将她送到医院，对吗？”
“是的，”我微笑着说，并鼓励(encourage)他继续问他的问题。
然后他问道，“那我能闯红灯(go through)吗？”