16. the firemen managed to _____ the fire in time.
a. extinguish b. prevent c. suppress d. ruin

[答案] a. extinguish.
[注释] extinguish (=put out) vt. 扑灭 (火焰等) 。stop the fire虽然也可以搭配, 但按本句题意用extinguish为最佳。

17. what is most obvious in this book are all those details of daily living which make mrs. richard _____ common.
a. nothing but b. anything but c. above all d. rather than

[答案] b. anything but.来源：www.gzu521.com
[注释] anything but (=far from being) 根本不; the boys knew they bad broken the rules, and they were anything but happy when they were called to the Office. (=they were unhappy and afraid.) nothing but 只不过; don't have him for a friend; he's nothing but a criminal. (不要把他当朋友, 他只不过是个罪犯。) i have nothing but two dollars. (我只有2美元。) above all最重要的。rather than 而不是.

18. the car was completely _____ and the driver seriously injured.
a. broken off b. taken off c. written off d. picked up

[答案] c. written off.
[注释] write off报废, 参看iii, 200.注释; break off参看iii.13.注释; take off参看iii.170.注释; pick up参看iii.130,129.注释。

19. on this happy occasion, i'd like to say that we are _____ much obliged to you for your kind cooperation.
a. even so b. ever so c. as yet d. so far

[答案] b. ever so.来源：www.gzu521.com
[注释]ever so (=very) 非常; it's ever so cold.与名词搭配时则用ever such, 如：she's ever such a nice girl. (她是一位非常好的姑娘。) even so (=although that is true, nevertheless; still) 即使如此：the fire was out, but even so, the smell of smoke was strong. (=the fire was out, but the smell was still there.)

20. his new appointment takes _____ from the beginning of next month.
a. place b. effect c. post d. office

[答案] b. effect.
[注释]take effect 生效。