英語是按照分佈面積而言最流行的語言,但母語者數量是世界第三,僅次於漢語、西班牙語。它是學習最廣泛的第二語言,是近60個主權國家的官方語言或官方語言之一。下面是小編收集整理的英語閱讀小短文作文，歡迎閱讀，希望大家能夠喜歡。
英語閱讀小短文 篇1
Once upon a time, a man punished his 5-year-old daughter for using up the family's only roll of expensive gold wrapping paper. Money was tight, and he became even more upset when on Christmas Eve, he saw that the child had pasted the gold paper so as to decorate a shoebox to put under the Christmas tree.
Nevertheless, the next morning the little girl, filled with excitement, brought the gift box to her father and said, "This is for you, Daddy!"
As he opened the box, the father was embarrassed by his earlier overreaction.
But when he opened it, he found it was empty and again his anger flared. "Don't you know, young lady, " he said harshly, "when you give someone a present there's supposed to be something inside the package!"
The little girl looked up at him with tears rolling from her eyes and said: "Daddy, it's not empty. I blew kisses into it until it was all full."
The father was crushed. He fell on his knees and put his arms around his precious little girl. He begged her to forgive him for his unnecessary anger.
An accident took the life of the child only a short time later. It is told that the father kept that little gold box by his bed for all the years of his life. Whenever he was discouraged or faced difficult problems he would open the box, take out an imaginary kiss, and remember the love of this beautiful child who had put it there.
In a very real sense, each of us as human beings have been given an invisible golden box filled with unconditional love and kisses from our children, family, friends and God.
There is no more precious possession anyone could hold.
英語閱讀小短文 篇2
I live in Hollywood. You may think people in such a glamorous, fun-filled place are happier than others. If so, you have some mistaken ideas about the nature of happiness.
Many intelligent people still equate happiness with fun. The truth is that fun and happiness have little or nothing in common. Fun is what we experience during an act. Happiness is what we experience after an act. It is a deeper, more abiding emotion.
Going to an amusement park or ball game, watching a movie or television, are fun activities that help us relax, temporarily forget our problems and maybe even laugh. But they do not bring happiness, because their positive effects end when the fun ends.
I have often thought that if Hollywood stars have a role to play, it is to teach us that happiness has nothing to do with fun. These rich, beautiful inpiduals have constant access to glamorous parties, fancy cars, expensive homes, everything that spells "happiness".
But in memoir after memoir, celebrities reveal the unhappiness hidden beneath all their fun: depression, alcoholism, drug addiction, broken marriages, troubled children, profound loneliness.
The way people cling to the belief that a fun-filled, pain-free life equates happiness actually diminishes their chances of ever attaining real happiness. If fun and pleasure are equated with happiness, then pain must be equated with unhappiness. But, in fact, the opposite is true: More times than not, things that lead to happiness involve some pain.
As a result, many people avoid the very endeavors that are the source of true happiness. They fear the pain inevitably brought by such things as marriage, raising children, professional achievement, religious commitment, civic or charitable work, and self-improvement.
英語閱讀小短文 篇3
Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room‘s only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on end.
They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation. And every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window. The man in the other bed began to live for those one-hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.
The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color of the rainbow. Grand old trees graced the landscape, and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance. As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene.
One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the other man couldn‘t hear the band - he could see it in his mind‘s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.
Days and weeks passed. One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.
As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone. Slowly and painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the world outside. Finally, he would have the joy of seeing it for himself. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed. It faced a blank wall.
The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window. The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall. She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you."
英語閱讀小短文 篇4
A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted.
As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful wrapped gift box. Curious, but somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man's name embossed in gold.
Angrily, he raised his voice to his father and said, "With all your money you give me a Bible?" He then stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible.
Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and a wonderful family, but realizing his father was very old, he thought perhaps he should go to see him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make the arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things.
When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago.
With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. As he was reading, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words… "PAID IN FULL".
How many times do we miss blessings because they are not packaged as we expected? I trust you enjoyed this. Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for. Sometimes we don't realize the good fortune we have or we could have because we expect "the packaging" to be different. What may appear as bad fortune may in fact be the door that is just waiting to be opened.
英語閱讀小短文 篇5
Once upon a time there was a baby eagle living in a nest perched on a cliff overlooking a beautiful valley with waterfalls and streams, trees and lots of little animals, scurrying about enjoying their lives.
The baby eagle liked the nest. It was the only world he had ever known. It was warm and comfortable, had a great view, and even better, he had all the food and love and attention that a great mother eagle could provide. Many times each day the mother would swoop down from the sky and land in the nest and feed the baby eagle delicious morsels of food. She was like a god to him, he had no idea where she came from or how she worked her magic.
The baby eagle was hungry all the time, but the mother eagle would always come just in time with the food and love and attention he craved. The baby eagle grew strong. His vision grew very sharp. He felt good all the time.
Until one day, the mother stopped coming to the nest.
The baby eagle was hungry. "I'm sure to die," said the baby eagle, all the time.
"Very soon, death is coming," he cried, with tears streaming down his face. Over and over. But there was no one there to hear him.
Then one day the mother eagle appeared at the top of the mountain cliff, with a big bowl of delicious food and she looked down at her baby. The baby looked up at the mother and cried "Why did you abandon me? I'm going to die any minute. How could you do this to me?"
The mother said, "Here is some very tasty and nourishing food, all you have to do is come get it."
"Come get it!" said the baby, with much anger. "How?"
The mother flew away.
The baby cried and cried and cried.
A few days later, "I'm going to end it all," he said. "I give up. It is time for me to die."
He didn't know his mother was nearby. She swooped down to the nest with his last meal.
"Eat this, it's your last meal," she said.
The baby cried, but he ate and whined and whined about what a bad mother she was.
"You're a terrible mother," he said. Then she pushed him out of the nest.
He fell.
Head first.
Picked up speed.
Faster and faster.
He screamed. "I'm dying I'm dying," he cried. He picked up more speed.
He looked up at his mother. "How could you do this to me?"
He looked down.
The ground rushed closer, faster and faster. He could visualize his own death so clearly, coming so soon, and cried and whined and complained. "This isn't fair!" he screamed.
Something strange happens.
The air caught behind his arms and they snapped away from his body, with a feeling unlike anything he had ever experienced. He looked down and saw the sky. He wasn't moving towards the ground anymore, his eyes were pointed up at the sun.
"Huh?" he said. "What is going on here!"
"You're flying," his mother said.
"This is fun!" laughed the baby eagle, as he soared and ped and swooped.
"Yes it is!" said the mother.
英語閱讀小短文 篇6
One of the most interesting paradoxes in America today is that Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States, is now engaged in a serious debate about what a university should be, and whether it is measuring up.
Like the Roman Catholic Church and other ancient institutions, it is asking - still in private rather than in public - whether its past assumptions about faculty, authority, admissions, courses of study, are really relevant to the problems of the 1990s.
『Should Harvard or any other university be an intellectual sanctuary, apart from the political and social revolution of the age, or should it be a laboratory for experimentation with these political and social revolutions; or even an engine of the revolution? 』This is what is being discussed privately in the big clapboard houses of faculty members around the Harvard Yard.
The issue was defined by Waiter Lippmann, a distinguished Harvard graduate, several years ago. If the universities are to do their work, he said, they must be independent and they must be disinterested They are places to which men can turn for judgements which are unbiased by partisanship and special interest. 『Obviously, the moment the universities fall under political control, or under the control of private interests, or the moment they themselves take a hand in politics and the leadership of government, their value as independent and disinterested sources of judgement is impaired.』
英語閱讀小短文 篇7
自制Self-Control
Self-control is essential to happiness and success.
自制對幸福與成功來說是不可缺少的。
It is the master of all the virtues1, and has its root in self-respect. Let a man yield to his impulses and passions, and from that moment he gives up his moral freedom.
它主宰着一切美德,並植根於自尊之中。假若一個人屈服於衝動或是感情用事,那麼,從那一刻起他便放棄了道德自由。
It is the self-discipline of a man that enables him to go after success. Many of the great characters in history have shown this valuable quality. In ordinary life the application is the same. He who would lead must first command himself. The time of test is when everybody is excited or angry, and then the well-balanced mind comes to the front.
自律促使人們去追求成功。歷史上的許多偉人都表現出了這種可貴品質。自律同樣適用於日常生活。一個人要想成爲領導,他首先必須能掌控自我。當一個人激動或是生氣的時候,考驗的時刻便到了,這時首先應想到保持心氣平和。
There is a very special demand for the cultivation of this quality at the present time. Young men who rush into business without education or training will do poor work. Endurance is a much better test of character than the act of heroism.
當前,這種特質的培養顯得尤爲必要。沒有受過良好教育或訓練的年輕人匆匆步入商界將會一事無成。忍耐比逞英雄更能考驗一個人的品質。
A fair amount of self-examination is good. Self-knowledge is the key to self-control. Too much self-examination leads to morbidness; too little can lead to careless action. There are two things that will surely strengthen our self-control. One is attention to conscience5; the other is a spirit of good will. The man who would succeed in any great undertaking must hold all his capabilities under perfect control; he must be disciplined to achieve greatness.
適度的自我檢討是可取的。自知之明對自制而言極爲關鍵。過度的自我檢討會導致病態;而檢討不足則會導致行事草率。不過,有兩樣東西肯定能增強我們的自制力。其一是注重良知,其二是心懷善意。一個人如果要想取得重大成功,他就必須妥善掌控自己的種植拍,他必須靠不斷約束自我來走向成功。
英語閱讀小短文 篇8
面朝南方Facing South
An old friend used to say to me, "When you are thinking of buying a new house, go and see it on a cloudy day. If you like it then, you need not doubt about liking it in better weather."
一個老朋友曾經告訴我:"當你考慮買一套新房時,就趁陰天的時候過去看房吧。因爲如果那時你喜歡它的話,那麼在天氣晴朗的日子裏你一定也會喜歡它。
We all enjoy the sun. The sun is the source of heat and life to the earth. Yet people are still to be found who deliberately shut out the sun from their rooms, and are unmindful of the Italian saying that where the sun does not go the doctor does. In this country, especially, we know the value of "facing south".
"我們都喜歡陽光。太陽是地球上熱量與生命的來源。然而,我們仍然發現有些人總是故意關上門,將陽光擋在門外,他們忽略了一句意大利諺語"日光不上門,醫生便上門"。在這個國家裏,我們都知道"面朝南方"的重要性。
Are we not like houses? We have eyes instead of windows, but we face south, north, east, or west. Who does not know the men and the women facing north? Hard and cold, never letting a ray of sun-shine into their souls. They stand away from all the cheers and warmth of our poor humanity. They are the people who pour cold water on all our enthusiasms, have no faith in human nature, no sympathy with human sufferings.
我們不就像是房子嗎?只不過我們沒有窗戶,但是我們擁有眼睛,我們可以選擇面朝各個方向。我們都知道那些面朝北方的人們是怎樣的。他們頑固而冷酷,從不讓一絲陽光照進他們的心靈。他們總是躲在角落裏,拒絕人性的歡樂與溫暖。他們總是澆滅旁人熱情的火焰,不相信人性,冷眼看待他人的痛苦。
You must know such people. They are not rich people, perfectly healthy, or people without sorrows. On the contrary, they have had a full measure of misfortune. But they have never changed their outlooks4 on life, in their faith in all things working together for good, in their belief that they are in this world to help where help is needed. What a consolation5 such people are! We go to them in entire confidence. We leave them the better and the brighter, with a firmer step, and the determination to win through the difficulties. They are "facing south".
你必定也認識這樣一種人:他們不是有錢人,不是身體特別健全的人,也不是無憂無慮的人。相反,他們的生活中充滿了不幸。但他們從不改變對生活的態度,在他們看來,所有的事情都在朝着好的方向發展,他們堅持幫助那些需要幫助的人。他們能給人帶來極大的安慰!我們滿懷信心地靠近他們,離開他們的時候變得更加樂觀和開朗,我們的`腳步會變得更爲堅定,戰勝困難的決心也會更大。他們就是"面朝南方"的人。
英語閱讀小短文 篇9
如果我休息,我就會生鏽If I Rest, I Will Rust
The significant1 words found on an old key —"If I rest, I will rust"—would be an excellent motto for those who are lazy.
在一把舊鑰匙上發現了一則意義深遠的銘文——如果休息,我就會生鏽。對於那些懶散的人來說,這是一句至理名言。
Even the most diligent person might adopt it as a reminder. If one allows his abilities to rest, like the iron in the unused key, they will soon show signs of rust, and, finally, cannot do the work required of them.
甚至最爲勤勉的人也以此爲座右銘:如果一個人有才能卻不去運用它們,這些才能很快就會像廢棄的鑰匙一樣鏽跡斑斑,最終無法完成自己肩負的工作。
Those who wish to climb to great heights must constantly keep their abilities in use, so that they may unlock the doors to knowledge.
要想取得卓越的成就,就必須不斷運用自身的才智,這樣知識的大門纔會向你敞開。
Diligence keeps the key that opens the treasury of achievement bright. If Hugh Miller, after working hard all day in a mine, had devoted his evenings to rest and relaxation, he would never have become a famous geologist4. The famous mathematician, Edmund Stone, would never have found the key to the science of mathematics if he had given his spare moments to idleness. If the young Scottish man, Ferguson, had allowed his busy brain to go to sleep while he tended sheep on the hillside instead of measuring the positions of the stars, he would never have become a distinguished astronomer ..
勤奮令開啓成功寶庫的鑰匙恆久閃亮。如果休·米勒在採石場一整天的辛苦勞作後,將晚上的時光用於休息和消遣,他將不會成爲名垂青史的地質學家。如果著名數學家愛德蒙·斯通在閒暇之時無所事事,又怎會發現開啓數學之門的鑰匙?如果蘇格蘭青年弗格森在山坡上放羊時讓他活躍的大腦休息放鬆,而不是計算星星的位置,就不會成爲一名傑出的天文學家……
r conquers all: not inconsistent or ill-directed labor, but faithful and unstopping daily effort, toward a well-directed purpose. Eternal diligence is the price of noble and enduring success.
勞動可以征服一切——當然,這裏指的不是那些半途而廢、方向錯誤的勞動,而是堅定執著、方向正確、日復一日的辛苦耕耘。只有堅持不懈的勤奮,才能確保卓越而持久的成功。
英語閱讀小短文 篇10
Whether sixty or sixteen, there is in every human being's heart the lure of wonders, the unfailing childlike appetite of what's next and the joy of the game of living. In the center of your heart and my heart there is a wireless station: so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage and power from men and from the infinite, so long are you young.
無論是60歲還是16歲，你需要保持永不衰竭的好奇心、永不熄滅的孩提般求知的渴望和追求事業成功的歡樂與熱情。在你我的心底，有一座無線電臺，它能在多長時間裏接收到人間萬物傳遞來的美好、希望、歡樂、鼓舞和力量的信息，你就會年輕多長時間。
An individual human existence should be like a river—small at first, narrowly contained within its banks, and rushing passionately past boulders and over waterfalls. Gradually the river grows wider, the banks recede, the waters flow more quietly, and in the end, without any visible break, they become merged in the sea, and painlessly lose their individual being.
人的生命應當像河流，開始是涓涓細流，受兩岸的限制而十分狹窄，爾後奔騰咆哮，翻過危巖，飛越瀑布，河面漸漸開闊，河岸也隨之向兩邊隱去，最後水流平緩，森森無際，匯入大海之中，個人就這樣毫無痛苦地消失了。
Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity,of the appetite for adventure over the love of often exists in a man of sixty more than a boy of dy grows old merely by a number of grow old by deserting our ideals.
青春意味着戰勝懦弱的那股大丈夫氣概和擯棄安逸的那種冒險精神。往往一個60歲的老者比一個20歲的青年更多一點這種勁頭。人老不僅僅是歲月流逝所致，更主要的是不思進取的結果。
Years may wrinkle the skin,but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. Worry, fear, self-distrust bows the heart and turns the spirit back to dust.
光陰可以在顏面上留下印記，而熱情之火的熄滅則在心靈上刻下皺紋。煩惱、恐懼、缺乏自信會扭曲人的靈魂，並將青春化爲灰燼。
英語閱讀小短文 篇11
There are moments in life when you miss someone so much that you just want to pick them from your dreams and hug them for real! Dream what you want to dream;go where you want to go;be what you want to be,because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.
May you have enough happiness to make you sweet,enough trials to make you strong,enough sorrow to keep you human,enough hope to make you happy? Always put yourself in others’ you feel that it hurts you,it probably hurts the other person, too.
The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything;they just make the most of everything that comes along their iness lies for those who cry,those who hurt, those who have searched,and those who have tried,for only they can appreciate the importance of people
who have touched their begins with a smile,grows with a kiss and ends with a brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past, you can’t go on well in lifeuntil you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
When you were born,you were crying and everyone around you was your life so that when you die,you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.
Please send this message to those people who mean something to you,to those who have touched your life in one way or another,to those who make you smile when you really need it,to those that make you see the brighter side of things when you are really down,to those who you want to let them know that you appreciate their if you don’t, don’t worry,nothing bad will happen to you,you will just miss out on the opportunity to brighten someone’s day with this message.
