16. The secretary was so upset that it took quite a long time to her.

A. criticize

B. praise

C. comfort

D. annoy

17. Mary is a nice girl _____ sometimes she is a bit careless.

A. except

B. except that

C. in that

D. but that

18. The famous scholar is a ____ person，those who know him all speak highly of him.

A. respective

B. respectful

C. respectable

D. respecting

19. Mrs. Smith said that she did not want to _____ any further responsibilities.

A. take on

B. get on

C. look up

D. catch up

20. Women were ____ the right to vote until the 20th century.

A. ignored

B. declined

C. deprived

D. denied

Part II Reading Comprehension(50%)

Section A(40%)

Directions：There are 4 passages in this part. Each Passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A，B，C，and D. You should decide on the best choice and blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a pencil.

Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage：

There is a lot of argument between people who believe in the truth of old weather rhymes(韵文)and people who are reluctant to believe in them. The first group thinks the rhymes are helpful，but many others say that they are just silly devices that are more confusing than useful. For example，one rhyme says，“Red sky at morning，sailors take warning. Red sky at night，sailors` delight. ` What would it mean?The disbelievers ask，if a red sky at night was followed by a moon with a ring around it?

Are you supposed to discard one of the signs?Or perhaps you should dismiss both signs as an oddity of nature. Probably the best idea is to admit that it is an illusion that rhymes can predict the weather and go to bed.

In spite of these problems，people who believe in weather sayings continue to take them seriously. Sometimes they are actually unhappy when the signs do not tell them what they want to hear. On February 2，if the groundhog(美国土拨鼠)comes out of its den，sees its shadow，and returns to the den，believers are saddened because there will be six more weeks of winter. However，if the groundhog happens to come out of its den on February 2 and stay out，the same people rejoice，for it is a sign of the arrival of spring. This is enough to make some believers bribe the groundhog to stay outdoors until February 3.

However，there are some folk beliefs about the weather that really seem to work.

Grandma` s aching joints have long served as a painful but fascinating way to foresee a change in the weather.

Nevertheless，some scientists say there is nothing foolish about this belief. The pain that penetrates each joint is brought about by a change in air pressure，such as the change that proceeds a storm.

Maybe some of these old superstitions have a Basis in fact. In any case，it would nt be ruinous to your health and you would not offend anyone if the next time you see a sign of storm danger，like birds roosting on a telephone line，you run for shelter. Even eminent scientists sometimes act superstitiously.

21. According to an old weather rhyme，a red sky at night means that

A. cold weather will be set in soon

B. it is dangerous to go sailing the next day

C. there is no storm coming

D. rain will soon be coming

22. The author holds that weather rhymes

A. should not be taken seriously

B. are extremely helpful in predicting the weather

C. have a scientific basis

D. are more confusing than useful

23. According to some weather signs，if the groundhog sees its shadow and returns to its den，it means that

A. spring is round the corner

B. spring is still far away

C. the groundhog has been bribed

D. the groundhog has not been bribed

24. We learn from the passage that a storm follows a change in

A. humidity

B. temperature

C. air pressure

D. moisture

25. The following statements are true EXCEPT

A. prominent scientists are sometimes superstitious

B. flocks of birds roosting on a telephone line signify stormy weather

C. Groundhog Day is February 2

D. the pain in a person` s joints is probably caused by a change in blood pressure