Expressions about water are almost as common as water itself.
The expression to be in hot water is a very old expression. Hot water was used five hundred years ago to mean being in trouble. One story says it got that meaning from the custom of throwing extremely hot water down on enemies attacking a castle.
That no longer happens. But we still get in hot water. When we are in hot water, we are in trouble. It can be any kind of trouble—serious or not so serious. A person who breaks a law can be in hot water with the police. A young boy can be in hot water with his mother, if he walks in the house with dirty shoes.
Beingin deep water is almost the same as being in hot water. When you are in deep water, you are in a difficult position.
To keep your head above water is a colorful expression that means staying out of debt. A company seeks to keep its head above water during economic hard times. A man who loses his job tries to keep his head above water until he finds a new job.
Water over the dam is another expression about a past event. It is something that is finished. It cannot be changed. The expression comes from the idea that water that has flowed over a dam cannot be brought back again.
Another common expression to hold water, is about the strength or weakness of an idea or opinion that you may be arguing about. It probably comes from a way of testing the condition of a container.; If it can hold water, it is strong and has no holes in it. If your argument can hold water, it is strong and does not have any holes.
Throwing cold water also is an expression that deals with ideas or suggestions. It means to not like an idea. For example, you want to buy a new car because the old one has some problems. But your wife throws cold water on the idea, because she says a new car costs too much.
【小题1】If Robert says he is in deep water, we may guess_________.
| A．he is swimming under the water |
| B．he is tired of changing shoes |
| C．he nearly breaks a law |
| D．he faces a difficult choice |
| A．Keep your head above water. |
| B．Throw cold water. |
| C．It is water over the dam. |
| D．It can hold water. |
| A．weak | B．convincing | C．logical | D．disappointing |
| A．to be in hot water |
| B．to keep your head above water |
| C．water over the dam |
| D．to hold water |
科目：高中英语 来源：2012-2013学年甘肃省甘谷县甘谷一中高二下学期期中考试英语试卷（带解析） 题型：阅读理解
You can find language pollution whenever you open a newspaper or turn on your TV set, listen to a popular song at various advertisements. Language pollution exists almost everywhere and can be seen in the following places:
1. Chinese characters are written in the complex (复杂的 ) form. Although simplified Chinese characters were accepted for use many years ago, it seems that more and more people like Chinese characters written in the complex form.
2. Many goods are produced in China but carry foreign names, which sound strange and have no meaning at all.
3. Words and expressions being used have a bad meaning. "Ba"(霸), which means bully in Chinese, is one example. Now there are a lot of goods, restaurants, even factories or firms, with "Ba" in their names.
4. There are too many incorrect grammatical expressions. Some films have strange names and incorrect grammatical structures. "Ai ni mei shang liang', which means "I love you without consulting", is grammatically incorrect and this kind of expression is now becoming popular.
Some language experts point out that language pollution must be done away with, which is an idea shared by myself and many others.
FanYongqin
【小题1】The writer of the letter suggests that ______.
| A．something be done to make our language pure (纯正) |
| B．the Chinese language not have the word "ba" |
| C．everything have a good name and a good meaning |
| D．everybody try their best to stop pollution |
| A．great difference exists between the Chinese characters written in the complex form and simplified form |
| B．many people agree with the experts on language pollution in China |
| C．our newspapers, TV programs, pop songs and advertisements are getting polluted |
| D．some film writers haven't studied Chinese grammar |
| A．a reader | B．a singer of pop songs |
| C．a language expert | D．an expert of grammar |
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科目：高中英语 来源：2013-2014学年江西省六校高三下学期联考英语试卷（解析版） 题型：阅读理解
A few days ago I asked my sons’ governess（女家庭教师）Julia to come into my study. “Be seated, Julia, ” I said, “Let’s settle our accounts. I guess you most likely need some money, but maybe you’re too polite to mention it. Now then, we agreed on thirty dollars a month...”
? “Forty.”
? “No, thirty. I made a note of it. I always pay our governess thirty. Well, um, you’ve been here two months, so...”
? “Two months and five days.”
? “Exactly two months. I made a special note of it. That means you have sixty dollars coming to you. Take off nine Sundays... you know you didn’t work with Tom on Sundays, you only took walks. And three holidays... ”Julia was biting her finger nail nervously, her face red, but - not a word.
? “Three holidays, therefore take off twelve dollars. Four days Tom was sick and there were no lessons, as you were occupied only with Dick. Three days you had a toothache and my wife gave you permission not to work after lunch. Twelve and seven - nineteen. Take nineteen off ... that leaves. hmm.... forty one dollars. Correct?”
? Julia’s left eye reddened with tears welling up. Her chin trembled; she coughed nervously and blew her nose, but-still not a word.
? “Around New Year’s Day you broke a teacup and a saucer; take off two dollars. The cup cost more, it was a treasure of the family, but- forget it. When didn’t I take a loss! Then, due to your neglect（疏忽）, Tom climbed a tree and tore his jacket; take away ten. Also due to your carelessness the maid stole Dick’s shoes. You ought to watch everything! You get paid for it. So, that means five more dollars off. The tenth of January I gave ten dollars.”
? “You didn’t. ”sobbed Julia.
? “But I made a note of it.”
? “Well... if you say so.”
? “Take twenty seven from forty one -that leaves fourteen.”
? Both her eyes were filled with tears. Beads of sweat stood on the thin pretty little nose. Poor girl!
? “Only once was I given any money,” she whispered, her voice trembling, “and that was by your wife. Three dollars, nothing more.”
? “Really? You see now, and I didn’t know that! Take three from fourteen.. leaves eleven. Here’s your money, my dear. Three, three, three, one and one. Here it is!”
? I handed her eleven dollars. She took them and pocketed them.
? “Merci（法语: 谢谢）,” she whispered.
? I jumped to my feet and started pacing the room. I was overcome with anger. “For what, this - ‘merci’?” I asked.
? “For the money.”
? “But you know I’ve cheated you - robbed you! I have actually stolen from you! Why this‘merci’?”
? “In my other places they didn’t give me anything at all.”
? “They didn’t give you anything? No wonder! I played a little joke on you, a cruel lesson, just to teach you... I m going to give you all the eighty dollars! Here they are in the envelope all ready for you... Is it really possible to be so spineless（懦弱）? Why didn’t you protest? Why were you silent? Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws（爪）-to be such a fool?”
? Embarrassed, she smiled. And I could read her expression,“It is possible.”
? I asked her pardon for the cruel lesson and, to her great surprise, gave her the eighty dollars. She murmured her little“merci”several times and went out. I looked after her and thought,“How easy it is to crush the weak in this world!”
1.While talking to Julia, the writer expected from her________.
A. a protest B. gratitude ? C. obedience D. an explanation
2.What shocked the writer was Julia’s ________.
A. nervousness in front of her boss???????
B. acceptance of injustice
C. shyness when talking about money?????
D. unwillingness to express herself
3.The writer said, “Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws?” He was actually telling the governess ________.
A. to be more aggressive??????? B. to be more careful in her work
C. to protect her right?????????? D. to live independently
4.At the end of the story, the writer said,“ How easy it is to crush the weak in this world!” to show ________.
A. his understanding of Julia’s anxiety
B. his worry about Julia’s future
C. his concern on the living condition of working-class people
D. his sympathy for the mental state of those exploited
5.From the story, we can tell that Julia’s employer was________.
A. greedy but honest????? B. ill-tempered but warm-hearted
C. strict but forgiving??????? D. none of the above
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科目：高中英语 来源：2013-2014学年江西省高三下学期3月联合考试英语试卷（解析版） 题型：阅读理解
During the 1800s, African Americans worked long days in the fields of the American South．To ease their labor, they sang "field hollers" that they had brought from Africa．One person sang a line．Then a group of workers repeated it．The songs' words told of the hardships that people suffered．African Americans sang "shout spirituals", or joyous religious songs．They clapped their hands and stomped their feet to the music．
After the Civil War, the music changed dramatically．African American music, from ballads to church music, took new forms．It also adapted dance music, called "jump-ups"．which had great rhythm． Banjos became popular．A blues singer usually played a call and response with the banjo．By the early 1900s, the guitar had replaced the banjo as the main blues instrument．
Northern Mississippi - called the Delta - was the center of the blues tradition．By the 1920s, the Delta had many clubs, so-called juke joints．African Americans listened and danced to music in these clubs．Some of the greatest blues men and women performed there．
Blues have a soulful sound that is easy to recognize．The musical notes are often "bent"．That is, they are changed slightly to give a song more strength．Whatever their origin, these bent notes most often define the blues．
Lyrics are the words of a song．Blues lyrics describe everyday life．The lyrics, often about relationships between men and women, are often very intense and personal．They tell about sorrow and overwork．They tell about finding or losing love, having money or being broke, being happy or sad and lonely．The lyrics may use humor to describe life's trials and joys．They almost always use the rhythms of everyday speech．A typical blues stanza, or group of lyrics, has three lines．The second line repeats the first line．The third line has different words．
By the 1940s, large numbers of African Americans had left the Delta and moved north to work． Many settled in Chicago．There, a new kind of "electric", or "Chicago" blues began．Many of its themes were the same, but these blues had "wailing" electric guitars and harmonicas．The music had a steady, strong drumbeat．The loud, driving Chicago blues was excellent dance music．Chicago blues led to the birth of a new music style-rock and roll．
1.The "field holler" is a kind of music that came from ___．
A．the American South．????????????? ????????????? B．Africa．?????????????
C．Chicago．??????? ????????????? D．Asia．
2."Shout spirituals" and "field hollers" are similar in that both_____．
A．used banjos．??????????? ????????????? B．were sung in church．
C．included call and response singing．? ????????????? D．expressed sadness．
3.A typical blues Stanza is made up of____．
A．three lines．???????????? ????????????? B．a harmonica．???????????
C．a driving beat．???????? ????????????? D．four lines．
4.One can conclude from the passage that the blues ___．
A．would have widespread without the juke joints of the Mississippi．
B．served as a form of communication and self-expression．
C．was successful only in the American South．
D．there were only greatest blues man performed in these clubs．
5.African Americans probably moved to Chicago because ____．
A．the South was too hot in summer．???????????????
B．they liked the Chicago blues．
C．there were more jobs there．?????????????????????
D．they wanted to create a new music style．
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科目：高中英语 来源：2012-2013学年陕西学大信息技术有限公司经开校区高三上学期三模英语卷（解析版） 题型：单项填空
exactly A. expression B. example C. exhibition D. exchange
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