A
Mark Twain, the famous American writer, liked to play jokes on others. But once a joke was played on him.
One day Mark Twain was asked to give a talk in a small town. At lunch he met a young man he knew who told him that he had an uncle who never laughed or smiled. The young man told Mark Twain that nobody and nothing could possibly make his uncle smile or laugh.
“You bring your uncle to my talk tonight，” said Mark Twain. “I'm sure I can make him laugh.”
That evening the young man and his uncle sat in the first row. Mark Twain spoke directly at the old man. He told some rather interesting stories, which made everyone in the hall laugh. But the old man never even smiled. Mark Twain told the most interesting stories he knew. But the old man's face was still a blank. At last Mark Twain stopped. He felt tired and discouraged.
Some days later, Mark Twain told a friend of his about what had happened. “Oh，” said his friend, “I know that old man. He has been deaf for years.”
【语篇解读】 本文是一篇记叙文，讲述了幽默大师马克·吐温的故事。
1．Which of the following sentences is NOT true?
A．Mark Twain could make everyone in the hall laugh except the old man.
B．Mark Twain liked to play jokes on others.
C．Nobody ever played a joke on Mark Twain.
D．Once a young man played a joke on Mark Twain.
解析：选C 细节理解题。根据第一段第二句“But once a joke was played on him.”可知C项说法有误。
2．The young man who Mark Twain met at lunch told him that .
A．his uncle liked to listen to Mark Twain's talk
B．his uncle could not possibly be made to laugh or smile
C．his uncle never laughed at people
D．nobody and nothing could make his uncle stop laughing or smiling
解析：选B 细节理解题。根据第二段最后一句 “... nobody and nothing could possibly make his uncle smile or laugh.”可知答案为B。
3．Mark Twain told the young man .
A．to bring his uncle to lunch
B．to ask his uncle to talk there that night
C．he could make his uncle laugh
D．to sit in the first row with his uncle
解析：选C 细节理解题。由第三段可知马克·吐温让年轻人带他的叔叔来听他的演讲，到时他会让他叔叔大笑。
4．Mark Twain's stories made everyone in the hall laugh except .
A．the old man
B．the young man
C．Mark Twain himself
D．a friend of Mark Twain's
解析：选A 细节理解题。由第四段中的“But the old man never even smiled ... But the old man's face was still a blank.”可知马克·吐温没能逗笑这位老人。
