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.
小題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
小題2:What can you say to your friend Jane, who is troubled by a mistake she has made?
A．Keep your head above water.
B．Throw cold water.
C．It is water over the dam.
D．It can hold water.
小題3:If your argument doesn’t hold water, then it is _________.
A．weakB．convincingC．logicalD．disappointing
小題4:The passage explains the origins of the following expressions EXCEPT_________.
A．to be in hot water
B．to keep your head above water
C．water over the dam
D．to hold water

小題1:D
小題2:C
小題3:A
小題4:B
文章講述了與water有關的一些諺語及其來源。
小題1:細節(jié)題。根據(jù)第4段When you are in deep water, you are in a difficult position.可知D正確。
小題2:推理題。根據(jù)第6段It is something that is finished. It cannot be changed.可知這是一句安慰別人的話。故C正確。
小題3:細節(jié)題。根據(jù)文章倒數(shù)第2段第1行Another common expression to hold water, is about the strength or weakness of an idea or opinion that you may be arguing about。
小題4:細節(jié)題。文章第二段解釋了A的起源；倒數(shù)第三段解釋了C；倒數(shù)第二段解釋了D。
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

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Water costs money．In some places water is hard  1  ．What  2  when a town
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小題2:A．happens    B．happening  C is happened     D．happened
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A．fetchB．takeC．brought inD．guided
小題5:
A．come toB．came toC．coming toD．came for
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A．manyB．plenty ofC．more D．many more
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A．forB．byC．a(chǎn)tD．in
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

In the professional world, oral communication skills in the workplace, which is the art of using speech to convey information, thoughts and feeling to others, is important for the success of any organizations.
The 21st century has been considered to be an era of communication. The way we convey our thoughts is of great importance in building relationships. In the workplace, there are employees of diverse cultural and educational backgrounds. This makes team working on a difficult task, but with a clear understanding of the task to be achieved, all members work towards the same goal. Misunderstandings, conflicts and differences in opinions are easily managed when there is a clear flow of communication between team members.
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Communication is an art and it can be improved by working on it constantly. Since it is not an overnight work, one needs to learn it by observing people who are good at it.
Title
Oral communication skills in the workplace
小題1: _______
The art of using speech to convey information, thoughts and feelings to others.
 
Importance
●The way we convey our thoughts plays a major 小題2:____in building relationships.
●Understanding the task 小題3: __makes employees work towards the same goal.
●A clear flow of communication can easily 小題4: ______ the misunderstandings, conflicts and differences in opinions.
●Good relationships and trust among the employees built with proper communication can 小題5: _______ excellent working conditions.
●Conveying expectations can promote support and cooperation.
小題6: ______ to improving oral communication
●Use words like “in my opinion” to show your 小題7:____ about your beliefs and ideas.
●Learn to be a good 小題8:_______ in the workplace.
●Avoid using a小題9:_______ body language during conversations
●Smile and be positive to delight the people around you.
●Give the other person a chance to talk in a conversation.
Conclusion
Communication can be improved with小題10:______effort and we should learn from those who are good at it.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

When my brother and I were young, my mom would take us on Transportation Days.
It goes like this: You can’t take any means of transportation more than once. We would start from home, walking two blocks to the rail station. We’d take the train into the city center, then a bus, switching to the tram, then maybe a taxi. We always considered taking a horse carriage in the historic district, but we didn’t like the way the horses were treated, so we never did. At the end of the day, we took the subway to our closest station, where Mom’s friend was waiting to give us a ride home—our first car ride of the day.
The good thing about Transportation Days is not only that Mom taught us how to get around. She was born to be multimodal (多方式的). She understood that depending on cars only was a failure of imagination and, above all, a failure of confidence—the product of a childhood not spent exploring subway tunnels.
Once you learn the route map and step with certainty over the gap between the train and the platform, nothing is frightening anymore. New cities are just light-rail lines to be explored. And your personal car, if you have one, becomes just one more tool in the toolbox—and often an inadequate one, limiting both your mobility and your wallet.
On Transportation Days, we might stop for lunch on Chestnut Street or buy a new book or toy, but the transportation was the point. First, it was exciting enough to watch the world speed by from the train window. As I got older, my mom helped me unlock the mysteries that would otherwise have paralyzed my first attempts to do it myself: How do I know where to get off? How do I know how much it costs? How do I know when I need tickets, and where to get them? What track, what line, which direction, where’s the stop, and will I get wet when we go under the river?
I’m writing this right now on an airplane, a means we didn’t try on our Transportation Days and, we now know, the dirtiest and most polluting of them all. My flight routed me through Philadelphia. My multimodal mom met me for dinner in the airport. She took a train to meet me.
小題1:Which was forbidden by Mom on Transportation Days?
A．Having a car ride.
B．Taking the train twice.
C．Buying more than one toy.
D．Touring the historic district.
小題2:According to the writer, what was the greatest benefit of her Transportation Days?
A．Building confidence in herself.
B．Reducing her use of private cars.
C．Developing her sense of direction.
D．Giving her knowledge about vehicles.
小題3:The underlined word “paralyzed” (in Para. 5) is closest in meaning to “_______”.
A．displayed
B．justified
C．ignored
D．ruined
小題4:Which means of transportation does the writer probably disapprove of?
A．Airplane.
B．Subway.
C．Tram.
D．Car.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


For the last couple of weeks, I had been stuck in front of my computer working on a project that was very important to me. My every waking hour was consumed（消耗） by the project and although I imagined that I would feel happy after completing parts of the project, I was confused to find that instead, I was feeling rather depressed. I tried a range of methods to help cheer myself up. I had a relaxing bath, cooked a delicious meal to enjoy with my family and even watched a lighthearted（輕松地） movie, but to no avail. It was only when I turned to meditation(沉思)for a solution that the answer came to me: turn to nature!
The very next day, I grabbed my camera and a bottle of water and set off to spend a few hours walking in a nature reserve, even though it was pouring with rain. Within a couple of minutes I felt alive again. To be honest, I felt like a young school girl again and had to stop myself from hopping（單腳跳） along the path singing, "I'm singing in the rain", a song I used to sing when I was a child. I think as adults we often try too hard to control our inner children and as a result we restrain(限制) our own spirits, which only leads to depression and stress.
Interestingly, it has been shown that people who spend 40 minutes walking in a nature reserve have a drop in their blood pressure levels, but this does not happen when they spend a similar amount of time walking in a busy city centre.
If you feel a little low in spirit and know that you have spent too much time indoors, relax completely, remove your shoes and let your inner child come out and play.
小題1:The author felt depressed because she __________.
A．couldn't consume her waking hour.
B．had not seen a film for a long time.
C．had not finished her work on time.
D．had worked on a hard job for too long.
小題2:The author walked in a nature reserve in the rain in order to__________.
A．take photos.B．find a solution to the project.
C．hop along the path.D．cheer herself up.
小題3:The underlined part "to no avail" in Paragraph 1 probably means
" __________.".
A．unsuccessfulB．unrelated（不相關的）C．uninterestingD．unexpected
小題4:In the author's opinion, __________.
A．a(chǎn) bath can make people relaxed.
B．depression is usually caused by hard work.
C．walking in a busy city centre harms people's health.
D．a(chǎn)dults should express their inner feelings freely.
小題5:The last paragraph mainly serves as a(n) __________.
A．explanationB．suggestionC．introduction D．reminder

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