单选题
St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on March 17, his religious feast day and the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. Legend has it that this patron saint had given a sermon from a hilltop that drove all the snakes from Ireland. He also used the three-leafed shamrock to represent the Trinity-how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit could all exist as separate elements of the same entity-and converted the pagans to Christianity. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for hundreds of years. People wear green in memory of the Emerald Isle and wear shamrocks. The first St. Patrick's Day parade, however, took place not in Ireland, but in the United States. Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched through New York City on March 17, 1762. Along with their music, the parade helped the soldiers, as well as fellow Irishmen serving in the English army, to reconnect with their Irish roots. Over the next thirty-five years, Irish patriotism among American immigrants flourished, prompting the rise of so-called "Irish Aid" societies, like the Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick and the Hibernian Society. Each group would hold annual parades featuring bagpipes (which actually first became popular in the Scottish and English armies) and drums. Up until the mid-nineteenth century, most Irish immigrants in America were members of the Protestant middle class. When the Great Potato Famine hit Ireland in 1545, close to a million poor, uneducated, Catholic Irish began to pour into America to escape starvation. Despised for their religious beliefs and funny accents by the American Protestant majority, the immigrants had trouble finding even menial jobs. When Irish Americans in the country's cities took to the streets on St. Patrick's Day to celebrate their heritage, newspapers portrayed them in cartoons as drunk, violent monkeys. However, the Irish soon began to realize that their great numbers endowed them with a political power that had yet to be exploited. They started to organize, and their voting block, known as the "green machine," became an important swing vote for political hopefuls. Suddenly, annual St. Patrick's Day parades became a show of strength for Irish Americans, as well as a must-attend event for a slew of political candidates. In 1948, President Truman attended New York City's St. Patrick's Day parade, a proud moment for the many Irish whose ancestors had to fight stereotypes and racial prejudice to find acceptance in America.
单选题
The word "converted" underlined in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ______. A. change B. refuge C. transform D. invert
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 根据文中第一段的内容“as separate elements of the same entity—and converted the pagans to Christianity”可知，异教徒皈依基督教。选项中的A项为“改变”符合文意。B项”避难所，C项“转变”，D项“使倒置，使翻转”，这三项均不符合题意。
单选题
St. Patrick's legendary feats in Ireland does NOT include ______. A. representing the Trinity with a plant B. changing the belief of pagans C. getting snakes out of Ireland D. making people wear costume
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第一段的内容“Legend has it that this patron saint had given a sermon from a hilltop that drove all the snakes from Ireland．He also used the three-leafed shamrock to represent the Trinity—how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit could all exist as separate elements of the same entity—and converted the pagans to Christianity．”可知，D项“让人们穿衣服”在文中没有出现。A项“用一种植物代表圣父、圣子和圣灵三位一体”，B项“改变异教徒的信仰”，C项“驱赶所有的蛇出爱尔兰”，这三项在文中第一段都有相关内容与之对应。
单选题
The word "flourished" underlined in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ______. A. pervade B. thrive C. boom D. prosper
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 根据文中第三段的内容“Irish patriotism among American immigrants flourished”可知，爱尔兰的爱国主义在美国移民中蔓延。选项中的A项为“蔓延，遍及”符合文意。B项“兴盛，兴隆”，C项“激增，猛涨”，D项“成功，兴旺”，这三项均不符合题意。
单选题
"The Emerald Isle" probably refers to ______. A. Ireland B. England C. Scotland D. New York City
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第一段的内容“The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for hundreds of years．People wear green in memory of the Emerald Isle and wear shamrocks．”可知，事件发生在爱尔兰，此处的绿宝石岛就是指爱尔兰。所以A项符合题意。B项“英格兰”，C项“苏格兰”，D项“纽约”，“人们身着绿色以纪念绿宝石岛和并佩戴三叶草”这个事件发生在爱尔兰，所以这三个选项都不符合题意。
单选题
The word "despised" underlined in Paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to ______. A. look down on B. ignore C. seek D. belittle
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 根据文中第四段的内容“Despised for their religious beliefs and funny accents by the American Protestant majority”可知，蔑视美国大部分新教徒的宗教信仰和方言。选项中的A项为“瞧不起，蔑视”符合文意。B项“忽略，忽视”，C项“寻找”，D项“贬低，轻视”，这三项均不符合题意。
单选题
The St. Patrick's Day parade first appeared in the U. S. probably because Irish soldiers ______. A. needed to remember their Irish roots and fellowship B. needed a ceremony to go with their military music C. wanted to find a new form of celebrating an old holiday D. wanted to celebrate their military victory in the US
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第二段的内容“Along with their music, the parade helped the soldiers, as well as fellow Irishmen serving in the English army, to reconnect with their Irish roots．”可知，游行帮助了士兵再次与自己的根——爱尔兰联系在一起。所以A项“需要记住他们的爱尔兰根和友谊”符合题意。B项“需要一个仪式和他们的军队音乐相配”，C项“想为一个老的节日寻找一种新的庆祝方式”，D项“想在美国庆祝他们军队的胜利”，这三项和文中第二段内容不符合。
单选题
The rise of Irish patriotism in the U.S. is shown in the following events except ______. A. the emergence of various Irish societies B. the quick popularity of bagpipes and drums C. the annual celebration of St. Patrick parade D. the flourishing national spirit among Irish immigrants
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第三段的内容“Over the next thirty—five years, Irish patriotism among American immigrants flourished, prompting the rise of so-called "Irish Aid" societies, like the Friendly sons of Saint Patrick and the Hibernian Society．Each group would hold annual parades featuring bagpipes (which actually first became popular in the Scottish and English armies) and drums”可知，D项“在爱尔兰移民中日益增长的民族精神”在文中第三段没有体现。A项“各种爱尔兰社团的涌现”，B项“风笛和鼓快速流行”，C项“圣帕特里克纪念日的周年庆典”，这三项在文中第三段中都有相关对应内容。
单选题
The word "ancestors" underlined in Paragraph 5 refers to ______. A. forefather B. predecessor C. elder D. grandfather
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 根据文中第五段的内容“a proud moment for the many Irish whose ancestors had to fight stereotypes”可知，爱尔兰的祖先反对陈规陋俗。选项中的A项为“祖先，祖宗”符合文意。B项“前辈”，C项“老者”，D项“爷爷”，这三项均不符合题意。
单选题
The Irish community began to gain more attention later mainly because ______. A. newspapers portrayed them in cartoons as drunk, violent monkeys B. they were reported to have difficulties in finding even menial jobs C. politicians grew increasingly aware of their power of voting D. President Truman once attended the St. Patrick's Day parade
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第五段的内容“However, the Irish soon began to realize that their great numbers endowed them with a political power that had yet to be exploited．They started to organize, and their voting block, known as the”green machine, “became an important swing vote for political hopefuls”可知，他们组织的一个叫“绿营”的组织对政治选举有很大的影响。所以C项“政治家越来越关注他们选举的力量符合题意。”A项“报纸上把他们描绘成喝醉酒的并且暴力的猴子卡通形象”，B项“据报道，他们找矿工的工作也很困难”，D项“杜鲁门总统曾经参加了纽约市的圣帕特里克日游行”，这三项虽然在文中都有提到，却不是爱尔兰社团开始获得关注的主要原因。
单选题
Which of the following events did NOT happen on March 17? A. St. Patrick's death B. St. Patrick's conversion of the Irish pagans C. Irish people wearing shamrocks D. The first parade in memory of St. Patrick