学位英语考试练习题（四）
Part I Reading Comprehension
A teddy bear is delivered to No. 10 Downing Street after the birth of Prime Minister Tony Blair and wife Cherie’s fourth child.
Britain’s baby alert is over-Cherie Blair gave birth to a boy.
Mrs. Blair, 45, wife of Prime Minister Tony Blair, had the baby this morning.
The baby will be named Leo after the prime minister’s father, his office announced, the baby weighed in at 6 pounds, 12 ounces. Mother, father and the baby boy returned to 10 Downing Street-the prime minister’s official residence-after the birth, a spokesman said. The baby is the couples’ fourth child.
“Cherie and the baby are absolutely fine,” Blair said today outside his Downing Street residence. “He is a gorgeous little boy. They are resting right now.”
Blair, dressed casually in an open shirt, appeared emotional about the birth, the first of his four children whose birth he has been at from beginning to end.
“this is the first time I’ve seen the whole thing though,” he said. “it was quite a struggl e, really, for Cherie.”
The switchboard was reportedly lit up with calls from world leaders wishing them well, including a call from Hillary Colliery Clinton. Former prime minister John Major was the first public figure to get through on the phone at 7 a.m. on Saturday.
The baby came after a 12-year gap from the Blairs other three children-Euan, 16, Nicky, 14, and Kathryn. He is the first to be born to a serving Buitish prime minister in over 150 years.
News of the pregnancy took Cherie and the rest of the nation by surprise when it was announced last year.
After decades of much older occupants at No.10 Downing Street, the Blairs’ arrival at the prime minister’s residence with their children and assorted toys in tow was hailed as a breath of fresh air.
Cherie Blair, a Queens Counsel barrister, worked right up until the baby’s birth. And the often thorny issue of combining career and family was at the center of her work.
On Tuesday, Mrs. Blair was at work in the High Court, challenging her husband’s governmen t over parental leave.
1. Why does the writer mean by “baby alert” IN PARAGRAPH 2?
A. Because people in Britain didn’t expect Mrs. Blair to give birth to a boy.
B. Because Mrs. Blair is at too high an age to give birth to a baby.
C. Because there is a baby disease spreading about Britain.
D. Because people in Britain were frightened by the new born baby.
2. Which of the following is not true abort the baby?
A. This baby is not the third child of Tony Blair.
B. He weighed in at 6 pounds, 12 ounces.
C. He was born in No.10 Downing Street.
D. He is 16 years younger than his eldest brother.
3. Judging from the passage, Mrs Blair ____.
A. was a bit uncomfortable after the labor.
B. is a weak-bodied woman.
C. is a strong-minded woman.
D. is a family woman.
4. What does the word “thorny”(in the sentence “ And the often thorny issue of combining career and family”) mean?
A. harp
B. difficult
C. many
D. interesting.
5. Which of the following can be used as the best title for the passage?
A. An Anecdote of Mrs. Blair.
B. Prime Minister’s New Baby.
C. Baby Alert in Britain.
D. Mrs. Blair Has a Boy.
难点：
1. No.10 Downing Street: 唐宁街10号；英国首相居住的地方。
2. Gorgeous: 很棒的。
3. The switchboard : 接线总机；在这里是指世界各国的元首们都打电话祝贺布莱尔首相喜得贵子，使他的总机一直占线。
