评论
打印
第6部分：完形填空（第52~65题，每题1分，共15分）
下面的短文有15处空白，请根据短文内容为每处空白确定1个最佳选项。
How a Terrible Battle Helped to Change Europe
Ninety years ago on a sunny morning in Northern France, something happened that changed Britain and Europe for ever. At half past seven on the morning of July 1, 1916, whistles blew and thousands of British soldiers ___ (51) their positions to attack their German enemies.
___ (52) the end of the day, 20,000 of them were dead, and another 30,000 wounded or missing. The Battle of the Somme, ___(53) it is called, lasted for six months. When it ended, 125,000 British soldiers were dead. They had gained five kilometers of ground.
This was one of a series of great battles during the WWI. The ___(54) on the Somme was staged to relieve pressure on the French, who were ___(55) in a great battle of their own at a place called Verdun. By the time the battle ended, over a million French and German troops had been killed.
About 17 million people were killed in WWI. There have been wars with greater numbers of dead. But there has never been one ___ (56) most of the dead were concentrated in such a small area. On the Somme battlefield, two men died for every metre of space.
Local farmers working in the land still ____ (57) the bodies of those who died in that battle. The dead of all nations were buried in a series of giant graveyards ___(58) the line of the border between France and Belgium. Relatives and descendants（后代）of those who died still ___(59) these graveyards today.
It took a second great conflict before Europe was to eight years after the Somme battle, a liberating army of British, American and Canadian troops took ___(61) France from another German invasion. More than 500,000 people were killed. New graveyards were built.
Two great conflicts across two generations helped to change the European ____(62) about war. Germany, once the most warlike country in Europe, is now probably more in favor of peace than any other. One major ____(63) of war in Europe was rivalry（竞争）between France and Germany. The European Union was specifically formed to ____(64) that rivalry.
The last British veteran（老兵）of the Somme battle died in 2005, aged 108. And the WWI is passing out of ____ (65) and into history. But for anyone who wants to understand how Europeans think, it is still important to know a little about the terrible events of July 1, 1916.
51．A．handed B．held C．left D．treated
52．A．From B．By C．In D．At
53．A．because B．for C．since D．as
54．A．victory B．hunt C．defense D．attack
55．A．engaged B．tested C．trained D．lost
56．A．why B．which C．where D．what
57．A．punish B．examine C．find D．govern
58．A．with B．along C．into D．against
59．A．cover B．bury C．visit D．pass
60．A．balance B．work C．turn D．lean
61．A．over B．away C．off D．back
62．A．life B．mind C．law D．plan
63．A．cause B．study C．belief D．theory
64．A．develop B．restore C．win D．end
65．A．condition B．action C．range D．memory
