B
　　Family traditions were important in our house, and none was more appreciated than the perfect Christmas tree. 
　　“Dad, can we   21   when you trim（修剪）the tree?” My eldest son, Dan, nine, and his seven-year-old brother John, asked. 
　　“I won’t be cutting this year,” my husband Bob said. “Dan, you and John are  22   enough to measure things. Do it all by yourselves. Think you boys can   23   it?”
　　Dan and John were very proud. “We can handle it,” Dan   24  . “We won’t let you down.”
　　A few days before Christmas, Dan and John   25   in after school. They gathered the 26___ they’d need and brought them out to the yard,   27   the tree waited. I was cooking when I heard the   28   sounds as the boys carried the tree into the living room. Then I heard the sound that every mother knows is   29  : dead silence. I hurried out to them only to find the tree was cut too   30  . John crossed his arms   31   across his chest and his eyes filled with tears. 
　　I felt worried. The tree was   32   to our holiday. I didn’t want the boys to feel   33_ every time they looked at it. I couldn’t lower the ceiling, and I couldn’t   34   the floor either. Suddenly, a thought came to my mind, which turned the   35   into the solution. 
　　“We can’t make the tree taller,” I said. “But we can put it on a   36   position.”
　　Dan   37   his head. “We could put it on the coffee table. It just might   38  ! Let’s try it!”
　　When Bob got home and looked at the big tree on top of the coffee table, Dan and John held their   39  . 
　　“What a good idea!” he declared. “Why didn’t I ever   40   such a thing?”
　　John broke into a grin (露齿笑). Dan’s chest swelled with pride. 
21. A. see    B. look     C. watch    D. find   
22. A. clever   B. tall    C. old    D. strong  
23. A. handle   B. measure   C. appreciate   D. take  
24. A. thought      B. promised   C. permitted   D. accepted  
25. A. slipped   B. rushed    C. wandered      D. looked  
26. A. trees   B. gifts    C. lights    D. tools  
27. A. which   B. where    C. when    D. how    
28. A. happy   B. loud    C. terrible   D. violent  
29. A. pleasure   B. excitement   C. trouble    D. chance  
30. A. short   B. ugly    C. long    D. pretty  
31. A. fast   B. high    C. hard    D. tight  
32. A. useful   B. close    C. proper    D. important  
33. A. angry   B. puzzled   C. ashamed    D. proud  
34. A. lower   B. sweep    C. raise    D. clean  
35. A. tree   B. problem    C. situation   D. concept  
36. A. safer   B. larger    C. stronger   D. higher  
37. A. nodded   B. dropped   C. shook    D. patted  
38. A. make   B. fail    C. work    D. enjoy  
39. A. breath    B. hand    C. tool    D. clothes  
40. A. think about  B. think over   C. think aloud   D. think of 
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