I consider myself something of an expert on apologies. A quick temper(脾氣) has 1 me with plenty of opportunities(機會) to make them. In one of my earliest 2 , my mother is telling me, “Don’t watch the 3 when you say ‘I’m sorry’. Hold your head up and look the person in the 4 , so he’ll know you 5 it.”

My mother thus made the key point of a(n) 6 apology: it must be direct. You must never 7 to be doing something else. You do not 8 a pile of letters while apologizing to a person 9 in position after blaming him or her for a mistake that turned out to be your 10 . You do not apologize to a hostess(女主人), whose guest of honor you treat 11 , by sending flowers the next day without mentioning your bad 12 .

One of the important things you should do for an 13 apology is readiness to 14 the responsibility(責任) for our careless mistakes. We are used to making excuses, which leaves no 15 for the other person to 16 us. Since most people are open-hearted, the no-excuse apology leaves both parties feeling 17 about themselves. That, after all, is the 18 of every apology. It 19 little whether the apologizer is wholly or only partly at fault: answering for one’s 20 encourages others to take their share of the blame.

1. A.provided B.mixed C.compared D.treated

2. A.dreams B.courses C.memories D.ideas

3. A.side B.ground C.wall D.bottom

4. A.mind B.soul C.face D.eye

5. A.imagine B.enjoy C.mean D.regret

6. A.useful B.successful C.equal D.basic

7. A.pretend B.forget C.refuse D.expect

8. A.hold on B.put away C.look through D.pick up

9. A.poorer B.weaker C.worse D.lower

10.A.fault B.reason C.result D.duty

11.A.cruelly B.freely C.roughly D.foolishly

12.A.manners B.excuses C.efforts D.roles

13.A.active B.effective C.extra D.easy

14.A.raise B.perform C.admit D.bear

15.A.situation B.need C.sign D.room

16.A.advise B.forgive C.warn D.blame

17.A.wiser B.warmer C.better D.cleverer

18.A.purpose B.method C.end D.advantage

19.A.cares B.matters C.depends D.remains

20.A.facts B.states C.rights D.actions

參考答案及解析

1―5 ACBDC 6―10 BACDA 11―15 CABDD 16―20 BCABD