Two teachers were sitting in the teachers' room. For a moment there was silence. Then one of them, Miss Smith, said, "I'm afraid I'd have to fail him! I just can’t let him   16   . "

"Now Alice," said her friend, Mrs Jackson, "is he so terrible a student?"

"That's just the trouble!" the other woman answered, "Tom was ever my   17   student. The problem is that he is so lazy that he never gets his work done. He hasn't handed me a piece of homework for three     18    !"

Mrs Jackson had never seen Miss Smith so   19   before. "Have you had a word with him about it?" she asked.

"Why should I? Every student must hand in homework. I made    20   very clear on the first day for class.  I don't know what has happened. When the lessons started, he did so well that I   21   thought about asking the school to give him a scholarship(獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金). But now he often sleeps in class! I've never seen such a   22   in a student."

"You should have a talk with him. Give him a chance. "

Miss Smith spoke to Tom and learned all about it. He was studying all day and working most of the night in a factory to   23    for his schooling. Of course he was   24   in class and sometimes could hardly   25   awake. Miss Smith soon asked the school to give him a scholarship and he was able to devote himself to his lessons again.

1.A. leave          B. pass         C. work         D. sleep

2.A. laziest            B. busiest        C. worst         D. best 

3.A. minutes        B. hours       C. weeks        D. years 

4.A. worried            B. pleased          C. useless          D. kind

5.A. them           B. him              C. that             D. one

6.A. even          B. only         C. mostly           D. still 

7.A. trouble            B. hope         C. change           D. danger 

8.A. pay           B. call             C. save             D. share 

9.A. forgetful          B. careless         C. asleep      D. tired

10.A. seem         B. keep             C. look             D. get