A(2024·江苏泰州海陵区一模)
Back in New York, I am fighting fires as the assistant captain(副队长) of a volunteer fire company.
I still remember my first fire. Before this, I had never joined in any rescues(救援行动). As a volunteer, I needed to follow the captain's instructions 1, no matter what I thought. On that night, I was the second volunteer to 2 the scene. When I found the captain for my task, he was talking with the 3. She was standing in the pouring rain, barefoot(赤脚的), while her house was on fire. What was 4, her dog was still in the fire.
The other volunteer, who had arrived just a little earlier before me, was asked to go inside and save the dog. The captain waved me over. He said, "Bezos, I need you to go upstairs past the fire, and get this woman a pair of shoes. " It was not exactly what I was hoping for, and I was 5 over the lucky guy, just because he beat me by five seconds. I managed to be a volunteer to save others' lives, not to get others' shoes. 6 I obeyed and went off, up the stairs and down the hall, passing the "real" firefighters. They nearly 7 the fire at this point, and I rushed into the bedroom to get a pair of shoes.
Now I know what you're thinking, but I'm not a 8. After all, I didn't save anyone. I just got the shoes for the lady. On the way, I met the other volunteer with the 9 dog. We took the treasures we saved to the homeowner. Not surprisingly, the 10 received much more attention than mine.
A few weeks later, the company heard from the homeowner. She said she never thought that we were willing to rush into the fire 11 for a pair of shoes. I didn't expect she 12 remember the small action.
Here, I would offer this reminder: Don't wait. Don't wait until you make your first million to make a great 13 in somebody's life. If you have something to give, give it 14. Never think it's too small.
Not every day is going to offer us a chance to save somebody's life, but every day offers us an opportunity to 15 one. So get in the game. Save the shoes.
()1. A. politely
B. rapidly
C. strictly
D. smoothly
()2. A. get outside
B. arrive at
C. climb up
D. fall off
()3. A. volunteer
B. neighbour
C. homeowner
D. interviewer
()4. A. better
B. worse
C. luckier
D. darker
()5. A. green with envy
B. red with anger
C. white with fear
D. pale with sickness
()6. A. And
B. So
C. Since
D. But
()7. A. put down
B. put out
C. put away
D. put off
()8. A. hero
B. captain
C. volunteer
D. stranger
()9. A. lovely
B. frightened
C. sick
D. valuable
()10. A. homeowner's
B. dog saver's
C. volunteer's
D. captain's
()11. A. just
B. still
C. also
D. even
()12. A. must
B. should
C. could
D. might
()13. A. promise
B. difference
C. hope
D. success
()14. A. now or never
B. soon after
C. sooner or later
D. right now
()15. A. admire
B. save
C. influence
D. follow

A
1. C 【点拨】politely 有礼貌地；rapidly 快速地；strictly 严格地；smoothly 顺利地。根据“I needed to follow the captain's instructions”可知，此处指要严格遵守队长的指示。故选 C。
2. B 【点拨】get outside 走出去；arrive at 到达；climb up 爬上去；fall off 脱落。根据“the scene”可知，此处指到达现场。故选 B。
3. C 【点拨】volunteer 志愿者；neighbour 邻居；homeowner 房主；interviewer 面试官。根据“She was standing in the pouring rain，barefoot(赤脚的)，while her house was on fire.”可知，队长在和房主谈话。故选 C。
4. B 【点拨】better 更好的；worse 更糟的；luckier 更幸运的；darker 更黑的。根据“She was standing in the pouring rain，barefoot(赤脚的)，while her house was on fire.”和“her dog was still in the fire”可知，更糟糕的是，狗还在火中。故选 B。
5. A 【点拨】green with envy 非常嫉妒；red with anger 非常生气；white with fear 惊恐万分；pale with sickness 病得脸色苍白。根据语境可知，作者嫉妒那个比他早到的人。故选 A。
6. D 【点拨】and 和；so 所以；since 自从；but 但是。根据“I managed to be a volunteer to save others' lives，not to get others' shoes.”和“I obeyed and went off”可知，前后句为转折关系，应用转折连词 but。故选 D。
7. B 【点拨】put down 放下；put out 扑灭；put away 收好；put off 推迟。根据“I rushed into the bedroom to get a pair of shoes”可知，作者冲进卧室去拿鞋，由此推知火快扑灭了。故选 B。
8. A 【点拨】hero 英雄；captain 队长；volunteer 志愿者；stranger 陌生人。根据“After all，I didn't save anyone. I just got the shoes for the lady.”可知，作者不是英雄，因为他没救人。故选 A。
9. D 【点拨】lovely 可爱的；frightened 受惊的；sick 生病的；valuable 珍贵的。根据“We took the treasures we saved to the homeowner.”可知，在火灾中，生命是很珍贵的，所以此处是说珍贵的狗。故选 D。
10. B 【点拨】homeowner's 房主的；dog saver's 救狗人的；volunteer's 志愿者的；captain's 队长的。根据“received much more attention than mine”可知，此处说的是另外一个志愿者救的狗得到更多的关注。故选 B。
11. A 【点拨】just 仅仅；still 仍然；also 也；even 甚至。根据语境可知，房主没想到作者会为了一双鞋冲进去。故选 A。
12. C 【点拨】must 必须；should 应该；could 能够；might 可能。根据语境可知，此处说的是作者没想到房主能记住这么小的一个举动。故选 C。
13. B 【点拨】promise 承诺；difference 不同；hope 希望；success 成功。make a difference 有影响，使不同。故选 B。
14. D 【点拨】now or never 机不可失；soon after 稍后；sooner or later 迟早；right now 立刻。根据“Don't wait.”可知，此处指立刻行动。故选 D。
15. C 【点拨】admire 欣赏；save 拯救；influence 影响；follow 遵循。根据“Not every day is going to offer us a chance to save somebody's life”可知，此处指我们每天都有机会对他人产生影响。故选 C。