Once in a small village, there lived a poor man. He was very learned, but did nothing all day. He lived on the alms (施舍物) the villagers gave him every day.

One day, as usual, the man got up early and set out to beg for alms. As he went from door to door, people gave him several things. Some gave him beans. Others gave him rice and yet others gave him vegetables. But one kind lady gave the man a lot of flour. “Ah! What good luck. I will not have to beg for alms for a long time,” thought the man.

He went home and cooked his lunch. After he had eaten, the man put the flour into a large pot and hung it near his bed. “Now, it will be safe from rats,” he said to himself as he lay down for an afternoon rest. 

He began to think, “I will save this flour until there is a famine (饥荒). Then I will sell it at a very good price. With that, I will buy a pair of goats. Very soon, I will have a large flock of goats. With their milk, I will make more money. Then I will buy a cow and a bull (公牛). Very soon I will also have a large herd of cows. Their milk will bring me a lot of money. I will become very wealthy. I will build a huge palace and get married to a beautiful woman. Then we will have a little son...”

The man threw out his leg up. His foot hit the pot of flour hanging over his head and it came down, spilling (洒出) the flour all over the dirty floor. The lazy man realized that his foolishness had cost him a lot of flour. The laziness and foolishness taught him a lesson. Thereafter he lived an active life.

1.What did the man mean by the underlined words?

A He lived a poor life.

B He decided to change.

C He got a lot from begging.

D He would beg for more food.

解析：选C。C推理判断题。根据第一段最后一句“He lived on the alms the villagers gave him every day.”以及第二段内容可知，这个男人靠别人的施舍度日，这一天，他乞讨来很多食物，够他吃好长时间了。故选C。

2.Why did the man hang the flour near his bed?

A To live a better life.

B To take a look at any time.

C To have a good sleep.

D To protect it from mice.

解析：选D。D细节理解题。根据第三段男人说的话“Now, it will be safe from rats”可知，他把面粉挂在床附近是为了远离老鼠。故选D。

3.What was the man doing in Para. 4?

A He was sharing stories.

B He was daydreaming.

C He was sleeping.

D He was planning.

解析：选B。B推理判断题。根据上文的“he lay down for an afternoon rest”以及“He began to think”及该段内容可知，他躺下来准备休息，然后就开始幻想一系列的事情。由此可知，他在做白日梦。故选B。

4.Which can best describe the man?

A Learned but lazy.

B Polite and careful.

C Foolish but hardworking.

D Thoughtless and stupid.

解析：选A。A细节理解题。根据第一段的“He was very learned”和最后一段的“The lazy man”可知，这个男人学识渊博，但是他很懒。故选A。

5.What’s the passage?

A A piece of news.

B An advertisement.

C A short story.

D An announcement.

解析：选C。C推理判断题。根据全文内容可知，文章主要介绍了一个有学问但是很懒惰的男人的故事，是一则短小的寓言故事。故选C。