2009年北京卷

【文章字数】  362

【文章难度】  二星

【文章结构】  正－负－正

James shook his money box again.Nothing! He carefully （36）                  the coins that lay on the bed.$24.52 was all that he had.The bicycle he wanted was at least $90! （37）                  on earth was he going to get the （38）                  of the money?

He knew that his friends all had bicycles.It was （39）                  to hang around with people when you were the only one without wheels.He thought about what he could do.There was no （40）                  asking his parents,for he knew they had no money to （41）                 .

There was only one way to get money,and that was to （42）                  it.He would have to find a job.（43）                  who would hire him and what could he do?He decided to ask Mr.Clay for advice,who usually had （44）                  on most things.

“Well,you can start right here,” said Mr.Clay.“My windows need cleaning and my car needs washing.”

That was the （45）                  of James's odd-job （零工） business.For three months he worked every day after finishing his homework.He was amazed by the （46）                  of jobs that people found for him to do.He took dogs and babies for walks,cleared out cupboards,and mended books.He lost count of the （47）                  of cars he washed and windows he cleaned,but the （48）                  increased and he knew that he would soon have （49）                  for the bicycle he longed for.

The day （50）                  came when James counted his money and found $94.32.He （51）                  no time and went down to the shop to pick up the bicycle he wanted.He rode （52）                  home,looking forward to showing his new bicycle to his friends.It had been hard （53）                  for the money,but James knew that he valued his bicycle far more （54）                  he had bought it with his own money.He had （55）                  what he thought was impossible,and that was worth even more than the bicycle.

36  A. cleaned  B. covered  C. counted  D. checked

37  A. How  B. Why  C. Who  D. What

38  A. amount  B. part  C. sum  D. rest

39  A. brave  B. hard  C. smart  D. unfair

40  A. point  B. reason  C. result  D. right

41  A. split  B. spend  C. spare  D. save

42  A. borrow  B. earn  C. raise  D. collect

43  A. Or  B. So  C. For  D. But

44  A. decisions  B. experience  C. opinions  D. knowledge

45  A. beginning  B. introduction  C. requirement  D. opening

46  A. similarity  B. quality  C. suitability  D. variety

47  A. brand  B. number  C. size  D. type

48  A. effort  B. pressure  C. money  D. trouble

49  A. all  B. enough  C. much  D. some

50  A. finally  B. instantly  C. normally  D. regularly

51  A. gave  B. left  C. took  D. wasted

52  A. patiently  B. proudly  C. silently  D. tiredly

53  A. applying  B. asking  C. looking  D. working

54  A. since  B. if  C. than  D. though

55  A. deserved  B. benefited  C. achieved  D. learned