D．He was busy applying for a new job.

　　C　[细节理解题。根据第一段"who hit a traffic jam on his way to work"可知，他迟到的原因是他碰上了交通堵塞。]

　　2．The main idea of this passage is________．

　　A．Sam Maynard saved his job with humor

　　B．humor is important in our lives

　　C．early bird gets the worm

　　D．humor can solve racial discriminations

　　B　[主旨大意题。根据第一段"A lot of us lose life's tough battles by starting a frontal(正面的)attack-when a touch of humor might well enable us to win"(在人生很多场激烈的争斗中，我们如果与人硬碰硬正面交锋的话，可能败得一塌糊涂。而幽默往往使我们反败为胜)和文章第四段，可知整篇短文讲的是幽默的重要性。]

　　3．The phrase "clamped off" in Paragraph 3 means_____________________.

　　A．tried to hold back

　　B．tried to set

　　C．charged

　　D．gave out

　　A　[词义猜测题。前面提到老板连辞退他的话都想好了，而Sam开的这个玩笑使人们哄堂大笑。而老板为了树立他的威严，仍然强忍住笑。故答案为A。]

　　4．Which of the following statements can we infer from the passage?

　　A．Many lose life's battles for they are lacking in a sense of humor.

　　B．It wasn't the first time that Sam came late for his work.

　　C．Sam was supposed to come to his office at 8：30.

　　D．Humor is the most effective way of solving problems.

B　[推理判断题。根据第一段"...shortly after receiving an ultimatum(最后