三、短文填空。
阅读短文，在空白处填入一个适当的单词或用括号内单词的正确形式填空。
Shashiyu, once a poor mountain village in Hebei Province, has become a model of national development through hard work and excellent planning. 26. (it) story inspires (激励) many places in China.
In the early 1960s, villagers lived a very difficult life. They 27. (wear) old clothes and often went hungry. The land was poor and rocky. A leader of the village decided to improve their lives. He encouraged the villagers, “In the ancient Chinese story, Yu Gong could move mountains. His strong will and hard work make his 28. (succeed). We can change our village too! Nobody was born to be poor!” His words 29. (excite) the villagers, so they decided to make a change.
For years, the villagers worked together 30. (improve) their home. They transported soil from a distance to create farmland. Led by the Communist Party of China (中国共产党), in several years, their hard work finally paid 31. . They had reclaimed (开垦) enough land to grow crops. Life there became 32. (good) gradually.
By the 1990s, new challenges appeared 33. some chemical factories were built nearby. These factories brought jobs but also caused serious pollution. The air and water became dangerously dirty. Fortunately, the local government 34. (take) action and shut down these polluting factories in the early 2000s. This decision marked a turning point for Shashiyu’s 35. (develop).
Recently, the village has focused 36. cleaner industries. Today, grape growing is the main business. Their grapes are now famous 37. the excellent quality. The sweet grapes attract many buyers and tourists every year. In 2010, Shashiyu then earned the title “Grape Village”.
Nowadays, Shashiyu has developed into a model of countryside tourism. The Shashiyu Memorial Hall, built to honor the hard-working spirit of villagers, receives 38. (thousand) of visitors every year. Many old, narrow houses have been replaced by modern 39. (apartment) with basic amenities (便利设施). The Grape Festival has become a major event, which offers visitors enjoyable experiences like fruit picking and countryside tours.
According to recent reports, the villagers’ average income 40. (increase) greatly. “Now our grapes sell better, and the tourism brings extra income (额外收入). Life keeps being better!” said an elderly villager.

26. Its 27. wore 28. success
29. excited 30. to improve 31. off
32. better 33. when/as 34. took
35. development 36. on 37. for
38. thousands 39. apartments
40. has increased

【分析】做短文填空时，需先通读全文把握主旨，再逐句分析：1. 明确空格在句中的成分，确定所需词性；2. 结合上下文时间状语、语境判断动词时态；3. 运用固定搭配、词性转换规则（如代词变物主代词、动词变名词等）确定答案；4. 注意数词复数、可数名词复数等细节。
【解析】26. 空格后是名词story，需用形容词性物主代词修饰，故填Its；27. 时间状语In the early 1960s表过去，谓语动词用过去式，wear的过去式是wore，故填wore；28. his后需接名词，succeed的名词形式是success，故填success；29. 此处描述过去动作，谓语动词用过去式，excite的过去式是excited，故填excited；30. 空格表目的，用不定式作目的状语，故填to improve；31. 固定搭配pay off意为“有回报”，符合语境，故填off；32. 此处指生活逐渐变得更好，用形容词比较级，good的比较级是better，故填better；33. 空格后是时间状语从句，表“当……时”，用when/as引导，故填when/as；34. 时间状语in the early 2000s表过去，谓语动词用过去式，take的过去式是took，故填took；35. Shashiyu’s是名词所有格，后接名词，develop的名词形式是development，故填development；36. 固定搭配focus on意为“集中于”，故填on；37. 固定搭配be famous for意为“因……而著名”，故填for；38. 固定搭配thousands of意为“成千上万的”，故填thousands；39. apartment是可数名词，此处表泛指，用复数形式apartments，故填apartments；40. 根据recent reports，动作对现在有影响，用现在完成时，主语income为不可数名词，助动词用has，故填has increased。
【答案】26. Its 27. wore 28. success 29. excited 30. to improve 31. off 32. better 33. when/as 34. took 35. development 36. on 37. for 38. thousands 39. apartments 40. has increased
【知识点】代词的用法；动词时态与词性转换；固定短语搭配
【点评】本题为英语短文填空题，考查基础语法和固定搭配，需结合上下文语境分析，注重英语基础知识的综合运用，是初中英语常见题型。
【难度系数】0.6