Dorothy Hoffner, a 104-year-old Chicago woman whose recent skydive could see her certified by Guinness World Records as the oldest person to ever jump from a plane, has died. Hoffner’s close friend Joe Conant said Hoffner was found dead Monday morning by staff at the Brookdale Lake View senior living community.

On 1 October, 2023, Hoffner made a skydive that could land her in the record books as the world’s oldest skydiver. She jumped out of a plane from 13,500ft (4,100 metres) at Skydive Chicago in Ottawa, Illinois, 85 miles (140km) south-west of Chicago. “Age is just a number,” Hoffner told a cheering crowd moments after landing. “The whole thing was exhilarating, couldn’t have been better.”

Conant said Hoffner had amazing energy and remained mentally sharp. “She never seemed to tire. She just kept going,” he said Tuesday. “She was not someone who would take naps (小睡) in the afternoon, or not show up for any function, dinner or anything else. She was always there, fully present. She kept going, always.” Conant said Hoffner worked for more than four decades as a telephone operator with Illinois Bell, which later became AT&T, and retired 43 years ago. The lifelong Chicago resident never married, and Conant said she had no immediate family members.

Conant was working through paperwork to ensure that Guinness World Records certifies Hoffner posthumously (死后地) as the world’s oldest skydiver, but he expects that will take some time. The current record was set in May 2022 by 103-year-old Linnéa Ingegärd Larsson of Sweden. Conant said Hoffner didn’t skydive to break a record. And she had no interest in any publicity or anything. She wasn’t doing it for any other reason than she wanted to go skydiving.

“She was a dear friend who was an inspiration,” Conant said.

1.What does the underlined word “exhilarating” mean?

A Worrying.

B Disappointing.

C Confusing.

D Exciting.

解析：选D。D词义猜测题。根据划线部分后面的“couldn’t have been better.”可知，霍夫纳在1日跳伞着陆后说，整个体验都很棒，好得不能再好了，因此这次体验很令人愉快。故选D。

2.Which word can best describe Hoffner according to Conant?

A Selfless.

B Generous.

C Energetic.

D Humorous.

解析：选C。C推理判断题。根据第三段的“Conant said Hoffner had amazing energy and remained mentally sharp. ‘She never seemed to tire. She just kept going,’ he said Tuesday.”可知，乔·科南特是霍夫纳的好朋友。他对霍夫纳旺盛的精力、敏锐的头脑等印象深刻，她不知疲倦，总是奋力前行、全情投入。即她是一个精力充沛的人。故选C。

3.Why did Hoffner skydive?

A Because she wanted to break a record.

B Because she just wanted to do it.

C Because she wanted to make a video.

D Because Conant wanted her to try it.

解析：选B。B细节理解题。根据第四段最后一句“She wasn’t doing it for any other reason than she wanted to go skydiving.”可知，霍夫纳跳伞不是为了打破世界纪录，单纯因为她想去跳伞。故选B。

4.What can we learn from the passage?

A There’s as good fish in the sea as ever came out of it.

B It’s never too late to take the thrill of a lifetime.

C A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

D Believe not all that you see nor half what you hear.

解析：选B。B推理判断题。根据全文内容可知，尽管多萝西·霍夫纳已经104岁了，但是她勇于挑战自己，成为史上年龄最大的高空跳伞者，因此“挑战人生永远不会太迟”符合文意。故选B。