I. Each of the following sentences is given two choices of words or expressions. Choose the right one to complete the sentence and mark the corresponding letter on your answer sheet.

1. When she saw how frightened he was at his mistake, her anger began to _________. (A. die away; B. fade away)

2. Diogenes spend much of his life in the rich, lazy, corrupt Greek city of Corinth, mocking and satirizing its people, occasionally ____________(A. converting; B. changing ) one of them. 3. Lying on the __________(A. bare; B. empty) earth, shoeless, bearded, half-naked, he looked like a beggar or a lunatic.

4. Her husband told her that he had decided to _____________(A. restrain; B. restrict ) himself to only three cigarettes a day from that day on.

5. The police burst into the door and found the room was ___________(A. bare; B. empty). The thieves had already run away.

6. He was mortally wounded in the stomach. That night he died with a __________(A. content; B. contented) look on his face.

7. Can you __________(A. break off; B. break up) this long sentence into simpler ones? 8. While he was away, the company was ___________( A. entrusted; B. trusted) to his son. 9. Competition is not bad. But it has to be conducted in a ___________(A. human; B. humane) way.

10. By that time, the building was ____________(A. shaking; B. trembling) violently. We could not even stand up.

11. Peace talks work_________ the warring forces are prepared to compromise. (A. only if; B. if only)

12. His father is a highly ____________(A. respectful; B. respected) professor who has won admiration for his impressive academic achievement.

13. Skydiving must be an (A. exhilarated; B. exhilarating) experience.

14. He had ___________(A. converted; B. changed) so much that I could hardly recognize him. 15. This music is too ___________( A. melancholy; B. lonely) . let’s have something more cheerful.

16. You must look at the situation in a(an) ___________(A. subjective; B. objective) way. 17. Don’t ____________(A. trust; B. believe) a man who keeps flattering you. A true friend will never do that.

II Structure and vocabulary Directions: There are 20 incomplete sentences in this part. For each sentence there are four choices marked A),B),C) and D). Choose the ONE that best completes the sentence. Then write down the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet.

1. What happened that day had a great __________ on people’s lives. Now they all know that no country can be completely _________ terrorist attack.

A. effect, immune to B. impact, immune from C. influence, free to D. result, free from

2. It was inconsiderate of you to leave without saying goodbye; you really ________ so. A. shouldn’t have done B. needn’t do C. mustn’t have done D. mustn’t 3. Don’t let us put it __________ until tomorrow. Let’s get it ____________ the way. A. aside, out of B. off, out of C. away, off D. off, outside

4. None of their new products have sold well, ____________?

A. haven’t they B. have they C. hasn’t it D. has it

5. _________ invited to the opening ceremony of the fair, the couple were angry. A. Not to be B. Not having been C. Not being D. Not having

6. Where did you come __________ these oranges? They are not easy to come ______ at this time of the year.

A. across, by B. by, across C. into, up D. upon, about 7. When he heard the news, he was infuriated ___________.

A. without words B. beyond words C. speechless D. at a loss for words 8. ________ all our efforts, students are still not happy with the progress of our teaching reform. . A. With B. For C. Instead of D. In spite

9. Bad office planning will __________ both the employer and the employee and affect the performance of their duties.

A. defeat B. disappoint C. frustrate D. hinder

10. Educators agree that sport provides an __________ for an adolescent’s feelings of aggression or frustration.

A. overflow B. outlet C. exhaust D. exit 11. I don’t know what I can do to ________ your kindness?

A. repay B. pay C. paid D. replace

12. Most technology, _________ for good purposes, can also be used for evil.

A. if to be designed B. though designed C. when to be designed D. until designed 13. She promised to take _______ my job immediately. That really took a big load ________ my shoulders.

A. away, down B. up, from C. over, off D. on, away 14. This problem is too complicated. Let’s leave it _________ for the moment.. A. on B. behind C. aside D. off

15. Don’t’ take me _______ a fool. I’m not that easily taken _____________. A. for, in B. as, aback C. as if, into D. like, in

16. _________ is reported in the newspapers, negotiations between the two countries are making headway.

A. That B. What C. As D. It

17. It suddenly dawned _________ me that there was another thing that contributed ________ their economic success.

A. to, to B. on, to C. on, for D. to, for 18. Our modernization effort __________ a peaceful environment.

A. requires B. acquires C. inquires D. acquaints

19. In spite of the women’s liberation movement, people are still not yet completely free ___ prejudice ___________ women.

A. for, against B. from, for C. from, against D. in, towards

20. There _________ nothing more to do in the office, Mr. Hopkins decided to call it a day. A. being B. been C. having been D. to be

21. We were __________ a great dilemma. But the Wei Ming came _________ a brilliant idea. A. facing to, up B. faced with, up with C. thrown into, across D. confronted with, to

22. More than a hundred policemen were sent ______ _______ search of the bank robbers. . A. out, for B. off, to C. out, in D. away, on

23. Don’t let us put it __________ until tomorrow. Let’s get it ____________ the way. A. aside, out of B. off, out of C. away, off D. off, outside 24. We haven’t got much time. Let’s get ________ business.

A. back on B. on for C. down to D. over with 25. _________ invited to the opening ceremony of the fair, the couple were angry. A. Not to be B. Not having been C. Not being D. Not having

26. Where did you come __________ these oranges? They are not easy to come ______ at this time of the year.

A. across, by B. by, across C. into, up D. upon, about 27. When he heard the news, he was infuriated ___________.

A. without words B. beyond words C. speechless D. at a loss for words 28. ________ all their efforts, they cannot be certain that a nuclear device will never fall _____ the hands of terrorists.

A. For, into B. With, down C. For, off D. On, into

29. I walked toward the only__________ seat in the restaurant, only to be told that it was already taken.

A. hollow B. empty C. vacant D. bare

30. His friends all pleaded ________ him to attend the evening banquet, but he never showed _______ that night.

A. with, off B. to, up C. for, up D. with, up 31. I don’t know what I can do to ________ your kindness?

A. repay B. pay C. paid D. replace

32. Most technology, _________ for good purposes, can also be used for evil.

A. if to be designed B. though designed C. when to be designed D. until designed 33. She promised to take _______ my job immediately. That really took a big load ________ my shoulders.

A. away, down B. up, from C. over, off D. on, away 34. This problem is too complicated. Let’s leave it _________ for the moment.. A. on B. behind C. aside D. off

35. Don’t’ take me _______ a fool. I’m not that easily taken _____________. A. for, in B. as, aback C. as if, into D. like, in

36. _________ is reported in the newspapers, negotiations between the two countries are making headway.

A. That B. What C. As D. It

37. It suddenly dawned _________ me that there was another thing that contributed ________ their economic success.

A. to, to B. on, to C. on, for D. to, for 38. Our modernization effort __________ a peaceful environment.

A. requires B. acquires C. inquires D. acquaints

39. In spite of the women’s liberation movement, people are still not yet completely free ___ prejudice ___________ women.

A. for, against B. from, for C. from, against D. in, towards

40. There _________ nothing more to do in the office, Mr. Hopkins decided to call it a day. A. being B. been C. having been D. to be

III Fill in the blanks with an appropriate preposition or adverb.

1. His guess has been borne _________ by facts. The bridge was blown up by terrorists. 2. Most important of all, students should be trained to search _____ new truths. 3. We’ll set out an hour earlier to allow ________ possible traffic jams. 4. You are not alone. We’ll back you ________.

5. He is showing ______ again. He is afraid that there might be someone in the world who still does not know his talent.

6. Many young white-collar workers are now childless by choice. It’s not that they can’t afford to provide _________ their families.

7. The situation calls for a relentless effort to stamp ______ corruption.

8. An ugly race riot broke out and the government was forced to call _____the police and the National Guards.

9. It is not enough for the government to pump more funds ________ the economy. Our economy now calls for more private investment.

10. One important thing we parents must understand is that our sons and daughters all aspire _______ independence at some point, and we must avoid too much interferences in their life. 11. The school has thrown in 10 million so that there will be enough student computers to go ________.

12. Some of his relatives would occasionally come to seek employment ________ him, but he would always turn them down.

13. He was opposed ________ the construction projects because they were not launched out of necessity.

14. We’ll set ________ an hour earlier to allow for possible traffic jams.

15. If we decide to build a dam, what will become ______ the people who live in this area? 16. This country is now dependent ________ imports for more than 90% of their oil needs.

IV Reading comprehension

I’m usually fairly skeptical about any research that concludes that people are either happier or unhappier or more or les certain of themselves than they were 50 years ago. While any of these statements might be true, they are practically impossible to prove scientifically. Still, I was struck by a report which concluded that today’s children are significantly more anxious than children in the 1950s. in fact, the analysis showed, normal children ages 9 to 17 exhibit a higher level of anxiety today than children who were treated for mental illness 50 years ago.

Why are America’s kids so stressed? The report cites two main causes: increasing physical isolation---brought on by high divorce rates and less involvement in community, among other things--- and a growing perception that the world is a more dangerous place.

Given that we can’t turn the clock hack, adults can still do plenty to help the next generation cope.

At the top of the list is nurturing a better appreciation of the limits of individualism. No child is an island. Strengthening social ties helps build communities and protect individuals against