【篇一】2021年12月大学英语六级阅读精练
life in ancient romethe ancient romans are probably best remembered as fighters. fighting was certainly one of their favourite activities. according to the legend, the city of rome was founded by the twin sons of mars — the god of war. 1 the romans were such successful fighters that no one could resist them. at its height2, the roman empire stretched from britain in the west to persia in the east, and from germany in the north down to africa. the most famous roman leaders were soldiers —agrippa , hadrian, mark antony and julius caesar3 and the greatest works of roman literature described many battles these leaders fought.
even in peacetime the most popular form of sport in rome was a battle between two professional fighters called gladiators. these men fought each other with swords and spears. usually one gladiator killed the other. gladiators also fought wild animals for the amusement of the roman crowds. such entertainments were called circuses, and it was often said that“bread and circuses”4 were the only two things the romans needed to be happy.
but the romans did not spend all their time fighting. they were great builders. they built wonderful temples and public squares, heated baths and leisure centers, huge arches5 to celebrate the victories of their generals, and fine private houses, decorated with statues, fountains and mosaics. their ideas of town planning were very advanced. the roads they built were stright and strong. in many parts of europe, roman roads are still in use. 6
阅读自测
Ⅰ. according to the p as sage , fill in the blanks with proper words:
1. one of the favourite activities in ancient rome was_____________ .
2. the entertainments that gladiators fought wild animals for amusement were called circuses, so there was a saying that_____________ and_____________ were the only two things the romans needed to be happy.
3. romans were great builders. they built wonderful_____________ and public squares, heated houses and_____________ and huge arches.
4. the roman empire was a wide state and it stretched from_____________ in the west to persia in the_____________ , and from germany in the north down to _______
Ⅱ. question :
list two proverbs which are in relation to rome.
参考答案
Ⅰ. 1. fighting 2. bread / circuses 3 . temples / leisure centers 4. britain / east / africa Ⅱ. the die is cast. all roads lead to rome.
【篇二】2021年12月大学英语六级阅读精练
the women piratesmany people know of such names as henry morgan, edward“blackbeard ”teach, barbarossa, jean lafitte , and william kidd2, the pirates of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. but few have heard of the women pirates catalina de eranzo, mary read, and anne bonney. each of these women was a rough and rugged pirate captain.
catalina de eranzo was a spanish noble woman. the only daughter of a rich ship owner, she was a spoiled child. she learned a great deal from her brothers. navigation was easy for her. she learned to sail any kind of vessel. besides being a fine rider3, she was also a good shot with a pistol4 , and could handle a blunderbuss5, a sword6, or a dagger. 7
when her father’s second wife made her go into a convent, catalina revolted . she clipped8 her hair, put on men’s clothes, and hopped over9 the convent10 wall.
catalina made her way11 to the coast where she found a ship going to brazil. she signed on as a navigator. when a mutiny12 broke out, she was able to take over the vessel.
after a trip of several months’piracy, the ship was wrecked on the coast of peru. dressed as a pirate , catalina went to see her brother michael, who was a captain in the army. she couldn’t tell him who she was. she was afraid of what the inquisition might do to him for hiding her. instead, she joined her brother’s company and served under him for three years.
later, she signed on a pirate ship as navigator. when the captain was killed, she took over and led the crew.
catalina de eranzo was finally captured. she and her crew were sentenced to hang. she was saved at the last minute when it was proved she never attacked spanish ships, but helped when they were in trouble .
. .. the days of pirates and buried treasure are gone. we remember those days as a colorful time in history, but no one is sorry that piracy is a thing of the past.
阅读自测
Ⅰ. the following a re the explanations of the words in the passage , and try to fin d the correct words:
1 . person on a ship who attacks and robs other ships at sea ———
2 . rebellion against lawful authority, especially by soldiers or sailors———
3 . people work on a ship, an aircraft, etc ———
4 . ( of a person) move by jumping on one foot———
5 . ship or boat, especially a large one———
Ⅱ. question :
do you think the days of pirates are exciting? try to say something about it.
参考答案
Ⅰ. 1. pirate 2. mutiny 3. crew 4. hop 5. vessel Ⅱ. ( 略)
【篇三】2021年12月大学英语六级阅读精练
prometheuszeus2 told prometheus to teach the mortals3 anything they needed to know in order to live . he was also to teach them the arts, so that they could build beautiful temples to honor the gods. there was, in fact, only one thing he could not teach them.
“you may give the mortals any gift except the gift of fire . ”said zeus.“ fire belongs to the gods only, and must be kept on mount olympus4 . ”
prometheus was happy to be of service5 to man. he taught people how to make their own tools and how to build homes for themselves. he taught them how to plant and grow their own food, and how to use animals to make their work easier. he even taught them how to make music and how to paint. but without fire, life on earth was very difficult. food had to be eaten raw; houses could not be kept warm. tools had to be of stone , because there was no fire for working metal.
athena , daughter of zeus, had been watching over6 prometheus and had helped him in his work. now, because prometheus was kind and wanted man to be comfortable on earth, he called upon athena to help him get fire from mount olympus. she knew that zeus was away and promised to lead prometheus to mount olympus by a secret path . . .
just as he arrived apollo came back from his day’s journey in his chariot7 of the sun. prometheus lit a torch from the chariot and put the fire in a hollow stalk that he concealed under his cloak. then he stole away without being seen by any of the gods, and brought his fire to earth.
when prometheus lit the first campfire on earth, the people were afraid of it. but they trusted him, and so they came closer and closer and enjoyed the fire’s pleasant warmth and beautiful glow.
prometheus knew that he would not have much time before zeus discovered that he had been disobedient. but he also knew that, powerful as zeus was, once a god had given a gift it could not be taken away. so he quickly taught the mortals how to use the gift of fire.
阅读自测
Ⅰ. fill in each blank with word or phrase in the p as sage :
1. zeus told prometheus to teach the _______( 人类) anything they needed to know in order to live .
2. prometheus was so happy to _______( 帮助) to man that he taught people how to make their own tools and how to build homes for themselves.
3. athena , daughter of zeus, had been _______( 监督) prometheus and had helped him in his work.
4. prometheus knew that he would not have much time before zeus discovered that he had been _____( 违命) .
Ⅱ. question : when the first campfire was lit on earth, how did human react to it?
参考答案
Ⅰ. 1. mortals 2. be of service 3 . watching over 4. disobedient
Ⅱ. when the first campfire was lit on earth, the people were afraid of it. as they trusted prometheus, they came closer and closer and enjoyed the fire’s pleasant warmth and beautiful glow.
