小学四年级英语作文范文（最新20篇）

珠海长隆海洋王国是一个美丽又好玩的游乐园，深受全国各地人们的喜爱，下面我们一起看看这篇《珠海长隆一日游》。

“妈妈，我要玩冰山过山车。”，“好，那我们去排队吧!”你听，去年暑假，妈妈带我来到了珠海长隆。

珠海长隆被人们称之为海洋王国。为什么叫这个名字呢?你一进门，就会知道了。

一进门，我和妈妈就来到了海洋大道，海洋大道的四周都是海洋商店，我们往上一看，就发现各种各样的电子海洋鱼类都在你的上空，让你仿佛在海洋王国中遨游。

走出海洋大道，我和妈妈又去看了海狮、海象、白鲸、海豚的表演。当然，如果你很幸运，就能成为这几千人中，五个幸运儿之一，这样你就能和海狮、海象进行共舞比拼，甚至还可以骑海豚和白鲸亲嘴呢!怎么样?想想都很美吧?

看完演出后，我和妈妈又一起去参观了鲨鱼馆、企鹅馆、北极熊馆、棕熊馆、海洋馆。听完这些后，你一定认为这和普通的海洋馆差不多，那你就大错特错了!好玩的还在后面呢!

当我看见“冰山过山车”那几个大字后，便让妈妈带我去排队了，我们排了差不多二十多分钟后就上船。在上坡时，我们看见了对岸的棕熊，很高兴地对它们招招手，可它们却流着口水，把我们都当成它们美餐似的。妈妈就说：“因为这里离它们很远，中间又隔着一条河，所以它们不敢过来，不然我们就会被它们给吃了。”天啊!听了妈妈的话，可真让人胆战心惊啊!到下坡时，看着那么又大又长的坡，我还真有点害怕，不过冲下去那一刻真是太刺激了!

怎么样?听了我的介绍，你想不想去玩一玩呀?

春姑娘沉睡了一个冬天，终于醒来了。她跳着优美的舞蹈，来到小树边，帮小树脱下了白棉袄，穿上了绿衬衣;她迈着轻快地步伐，来到小河边，和流水谈笑风生;她奔跑着来到草地上，轻轻地抚摸着草地，小草从泥土里探出了小脑袋，向四周张望;慢庄的景色又是怎么样的?如果你想知道，就跟我一起来吧!

从慢庄景区大门处，沿着一条石子铺的小路向上爬，四周树木繁茂。这时你会听到一阵阵哗啦啦的流水声，再走一段路来到一处名叫“五荫潭”的景点。因为是由五个大大小小的水潭一个接一个连接起来的，所以叫“五荫潭。”潭水清澈见底，水声时而清柔，时而咆啸，仿佛是天籁之音。

来到山上，映入眼帘的是大片大片鲜红的杜鹃花。杜鹃花有的像害羞的小姑娘，露出半边脸;有的好似被父母关在家里不让出来，显得不太高兴;还有的像个大大咧咧的疯丫头，不知道遇上了什么事，高兴的手舞足蹈。春风姑娘被吸引来了，她轻轻一吹，杜鹃花扭动着身子，跳起舞来。远远望去，宛如一群花仙子在翩翩起舞，又像是喝醉酒的大汉，摇摇晃晃地站不稳。

慢庄的茶园也是一片生机勃勃。碧绿的茶树上，茶叶宝宝探出了可爱的小脑袋，伸出长长的手臂。微风一吹，仿佛在向茶农们招手，说：“快来采我呀，快来采我呀!”清晨，茶农们背着竹篓，来到茶园里采茶，开始了一天的忙碌。傍晚，茶园里传来一阵阵爽朗的笑声。哦!一定是茶农们满载而归，茶叶卖到了好价钱。

慢庄的春景真的很美，如果你们想来玩，我可以给你们当向导哦!

阵阵轰鸣的爆竹声中，旧的一年已经过去;和暖的春风吹来了新年。在广东，每逢过年，必去的就是花市了。

除夕，我们吃过团圆饭后，来到附近的社区花市。买花的眼里看着花，里说着花，手里举着花，肩扛着花;不买花的则把手拿七彩球的小孩高高举起，那“行花街”的流仿佛一道奇特的花流，在花市舞动、游走，何其美妙，又何其壮观!说是花市，不如说是花展。因为花市中摆满了各种各样的鲜花。宛如一群美丽的少女换上了华丽的服装。这里有桃花、水仙、小柑橘树……走了一会，妈妈便看到了心仪的勿忘我。勿忘我株形柔美，茎枝纤细，叶片的形状很像柳树的叶子，无数朵小蓝花开满茎顶部的每个小枝，花瓣的蓝色仿佛是由天空的颜色染成的让人充满无限遐想。花朵中央有一圈黄色心蕊色彩搭配非常和谐。不久后，妈妈就挑好了一大把。又徘徊了一阵，爸爸也看中了一盆兰花，这是一种风格独异的花卉，花色淡雅，香气清而不浊，花姿端庄隽秀，刚柔兼备，姿态优美，也像是一件活的艺术品。爸爸说，人们把兰花比作君子，象征高洁清雅。

社区花市依然热闹不减，通响整晌，令人心生余味。买完花后，和父母离开花市，心里满是不舍。不愧是“花市朝朝一方，目五灿行。筠篮卖入重城去，分作千家绣阁香。”但愿来年也能让我再行一次花市，足矣。

20__年的六一儿童节，是我久久不能忘记的一个儿童节。

记得在六一儿童节前一个月的时候，老师就告诉我们，六一儿童节时要表演的节目是集体舞。从那一天起我们就开始排练了。我们班每天都要排练三个多小时，老师们都非常耐心，非常认真。尤其是董老师，她像妈妈一样爱护我们，一个动作、一个动作反复地给我们示范，一个同学一个同学逐个地指导。最难忘的是有一次排练时，我有一个动作怎么也做不好，董老师发现了，她走过来拉着我的小手，温和地对我说：“刘浩洋，别紧张，要相信自己，你会做好的。”然后她很耐心地给我讲解动作要领，一遍又一遍地给我示范，手把手地教我做，直到我会做了她才离开。

六月一日终于来到了，我们大家穿上了幼儿园统一发的服装，男孩子穿黄绿色短袖，海蓝色的短裤，戴白色太阳帽、女孩子穿的是白色的短袖，粉红色的短裙，扎着红色的蝴蝶结。大家高高兴兴地来到教室。董老师、张老师拿出她们早已准备好的化妆盒，仔仔细细地为大家化好妆，然后让我们排好队，领我们下楼来到大操场。

操场周围已经围了许多人，有家长，也有住在附近来看热闹的爷爷奶奶，叔叔阿姨。由于我们班是唯一的毕业班，幼儿园特意安排我们班第一个表演。同学们既紧张又兴奋，大家随着欢快的音乐翩翩起舞，整个操场不时响起阵阵热烈的鼓掌声和赞叹声。表演十分成功，我们大家都很高兴。我看见董老师和张老师的脸上露出了满意的笑容，她俩的眼角还流出了泪水。

直到现在，那个六一节的许多场景还历历在目，仿佛是昨天发生的一样。

中国有很多传统节日，比如春节、清明节、端午节……，但我印象最深的就是中秋节啦!

中秋节论吃，当然少不了吃月饼了。我这个人吃月饼很挑，从来就只吃豆沙，蛋黄馅的。小时候我吃月饼就只挑一个月饼，如果是豆沙、蛋黄的，那我就美美的吃下去，但如果是五仁的，我就会毫不犹豫的给妈妈吃。

中秋节说到吃月饼，怎么少得了赏月呢?中秋节的月亮是一个玉盘，十分圆润，同时也表示出中秋节的含义：“团团圆圆”。“嫦娥奔月”这个故事大家都耳熟能详，我呢，一边吃着月饼，一边看着月亮，一边听着妈妈讲着嫦娥奔月的故事心想：后羿在中秋节这一天想必会思念月亮上的嫦娥吧，而住在月宫中的嫦娥也会怀抱玉兔怀念曾经呆过的人间吧!

小时候的我就是那么幼稚，月亮也是那么纯净，慢慢的，我长大了，再次等到中秋节，再次去赏月，坐在阳台上看着一阵风把月亮推出云层，心里不再是嫦娥奔月，而是不自觉的浮现出奶奶和蔼可亲的面容，我遗憾没有好好珍惜与她的时光，没有好好孝顺她，就这样永别了。一阵冷风把我带到了现实，我又抬头望望月亮，今年的月亮看上去似乎又带了一丝丝伤感。

中国古代人总是喜欢借月亮抒发感情，我不但喜欢月亮，也喜欢中秋节的含义：团团圆圆。

When I was in grade four in primary school, my father taught me how to use

computer. After that, I was very interested in playing computer. I watched

movies, played computer games, searched the Internet and listened to the music

on computer. Because my father must work in his computer, so he bought another

for me. I was very happy that I had my own computer. It was put in the study. I

am always very careful to use my computer, because I am worried I would break. I

often chat with my net friends. Because of my computer, I make many friends who

have many in common. Of course, I use my computer in study. There are resources

on the Internet. I can learn more after class. It does great help to me.

Dear Tom，

How is it going these days? I keep wondering how you feel about your school life in Beijing. Have you got used to the life in China? Are you enjoying your life? I hope you are.

Let me tell you a piece of good news: I’m going to take part in an English speech contest of middle school students in July in the coming summer vacation. So I’m busy preparing for it. But now I have some difficulty in collecting useful information and using proper English word to express my thoughts. Besides, I really want to improve my spoken English, especially the pronunciation and intonation(语调). Of course, as a native English speaker, you can give me some suggestions.

In addition, I’m going to visit you after the contest. I’m sure we will have a wonderful time together in Beijing! I can hardly wait to see you! I am looking forward to your early reply.

Yours,

Li Hua

八岁那年的暑假，我和爸爸去姥姥家的西瓜地里摘西瓜。爸爸选了一个很大的西瓜，抱到小山坡跟前，准备回家。突然，电话铃声响起来，我们的邻居大声说：“你们家的水管裂了，赶快回来!”爸爸一听，急了!他慌忙对我说：“你把西瓜弄回姥姥家，我先回家去修水管。”我瞪着眼睛，还没弄明白怎么回事，爸爸已经一路小跑地回家去了。

西瓜地离姥姥家不远，可是，这么大个的西瓜，我可抱不动。坐在小山坡边，我托着腮帮子想办法：记得有一次，我和舅舅去田里摘南瓜，我们选了一个最大个的，比篮球还大。我惊奇地问舅舅：“这么大个的南瓜，怎么抱回家呢?”舅舅说：“我自有办法。”只见他把南瓜侧立起来，扶着边缘，让它滚动着回家。我边走边问：“舅舅，南瓜这样滚回家不会破吗?”舅舅说：“没事，南瓜皮厚着呢。”就那样，我们把南瓜滚回了家。

想到这里，我灵机一动：西瓜的皮也厚着呢，而且比南瓜更圆，更容易滚回家。对!就这么办，把西瓜滚回家!

我让西瓜在地上滚啊滚，我的双手控制着不让它滚偏，没多久，我就把西瓜滚回了姥姥家。

傍晚的时候，爸爸妈妈来吃饭，饭后大家边聊天边说：“吃个西瓜消消暑吧。”妈妈把我滚回家的那个大西瓜抱到案板上，一切，天哪!鲜红的西瓜肉全成了西瓜汁。妈妈奇怪地问我：“你是怎么把西瓜弄回家的?”爸爸也蹲下来，温和地问我：“你怎么抱的?”

我把事情的经过说给他们听，他们听完后，个个笑得前俯后仰，我那时候不知道他们笑什么，也跟着他们笑起来。那天傍晚，我们每人喝了一碗西瓜汁。

Dear Mr. Williams,

Thank you for your letter of congratulation on my exam results. I was very pleased to hear from you. The results were a great relief. I did much better than I thought I would.

We are having a celebration party on Saturday 22 May and we shall be pleased if you can come. It is a party for me, but my parents and some of their old friends are joining in, so you will find "real people" as well as teenagers to talk to.

The party starts at half past six- drinks, and a buffet supper later. You said in your letter that youve given up driving, so my father will meet you with the car at San Mateo station. Please let me know what time your train arrives.

There is a good train back to San Palo at 10:30 and well arrange transport for you to catch that. I hope that wont be too late for you. It would be a pity if you had to leave while the party was still in full swing.

I do hope that you will be able to come.

Yours sincerely,

Lily Chen

Be Grateful to Our Parents

Since we were born， many people help us a lot. We should be grateful to their kindness. But the ones we should show our greatest appreciation are our parents. From the first day we appear in their lives， they give us all their love and care， but never expect anything in return. As long as they are there， we do not feel any difficulties， because they are always in front of our shelter， preventing us from difficulties and danger. In order to make our lives better， learn better， they do everything they can to create the best conditions for us， but ignore their own needs. Therefore， we need to cherish parents’ love and repay their upbringing. We should treat them as they treat us.

春，明媚的春，温和的春，又回来了，又来到了我的身边。你总是温柔地飘舞在山间，是那么亲近、亲切，总让人不能忘怀那令人陶醉的梦。我，行走于林荫树林间，寻找那妩媚的春景。

我涉足于深山巨谷之中，顺着山势，逆流而上。一丝丝带着诗情暖意的风，轻轻吹拂过我的脸颊，总让人怀念，不难让人想象的绿总环绕在你身旁。绿，让人耳目一新，百看不厌，它代表了生命的颜色，大自然的颜色。久违的绿，经过一冬，又回复了它的清新与明亮。知了停伏在树林问，跟我捉起迷藏。嘴里唱着《春天的故事》，心里想着夏季的欢愉。不乏的是鸟儿的和音，让人百听不厌。

我，时而穿梭在林中，时而又攀爬，站立于岩石上。心中唯一的信念是——不断向上!脚下踏着的是春土，这些土都蕴酿着春的意味，变得滋润，有活力。山谷中流淌下一丝清泉，一直往下流，流入我的心田，滋润我心窝，如喝了窖藏多年的老酒，让我略带醉意。我展望远景，仿佛天地都在我胸前。我仿佛是那座山，是掌管着山林青郁的山神，想起总略感自豪。水往下流，山往上长，而我如山，不断朝上进发。近乎九十度的山坡未能使我滑下深谷;狡猾的老树未能把我绊倒。尽管膝盖被撞伤，手被划破，山越高，就越难呼吸，汗如水一般往下淌，可那都是为了抗争的牺牲，抗争自我、抗争自然!眼睛总盯着山顶，目标就在那儿，山最高的那端!人家说:“仁者乐山,智者乐水。”今日我穿行于间，吸收的是天地的灵气与日月的精华!

泉水叮咚流入生活，大山广阔记在心中，此是春行之乐也!

星期六，我准备去打球。刚到楼下，突然一个似曾相识的身影在我眼前闪过。我定睛一看，原来是孙悟空啊。

没想到，昨晚的梦竟然变成现实了!我赶忙追上去，一把抓住他的手，跳上了筋斗云，我和大圣一起飞到了天上，吓得我不禁闭上了眼睛，问：“大圣，你这是要带我去哪啊?”“去花果山。”大圣说。我心想：这可是我梦寐以求的地方啊。于是，我紧紧地拉住大圣的衣服，只感觉风在我耳边呼啸而过。

“到了。”大圣话音刚落，只看见几只小猴跑来，兴奋地说：“兄弟们，姐妹们，大王回来了!”我急忙睁开眼睛，眼前如仙境一般。只见几只小猴在窃窃私语，它们有的指着我说：“他是谁啊?是不是大王抓的妖怪呢?”

“安静。”小猴们吓得一声不吭。“他是刘毅，带他来是让他看看我们的水帘洞，孩儿们，好好招待他。”几只小猴在前面引路，不一会儿，我便来到水帘洞洞口，洞前瀑布飞流而下，洞下的碧潭波光潋滟，瀑布两边的青松古朴苍劲，眼前的一切仿佛一幅美妙绝伦的画。接着，小猴又带我游览了洞内……

虽然水帘洞很美，但是没有我的亲人，我只好叫大圣送我回家了。和孙悟空在一起的一天，我感觉非常快乐。

As we all realized that every one of us will fail during our life. Take me

for an example, I fail in my exam. In fact, failure always does appear, which

also means that failure is a daily occurrence, however, when facing the failure,

different people have different attitudes.

Some people hold the view that failure is the meaning whenever they could

not be successful. Thus, if meeting with failure, they will feel so nervous that

they have no idea what they are supposed to do. As time goes by, they become

more and more dispirited while eventually, they could do nothing well.

On the contrary, there are some people tending to believe another idea.

From their point of view, failure is outstanding due to the fact that it can

give them plenty of encouragement. Therefore, if facing failure, they will be

quite courageous and then try their best to beat it, finally, they make their

dream come true.

From my perspective, failure is neither an excellent thing nor an

appreciating thing. Sometimes, it is capable to offer us with encouragement,

however, it can also make us unconfident now and then. Thus, if encountering the

failure, never could we be scared. What we should do is to face it bravely and

never give up.

In summary, I wish when failure appears, each one of us could confront with

it bravely and beat it, if possible.

My name is Yang Yang, I am thirteen years old. I am a student from Class 3,

Grade 2. I am very friendly and easy-going. I like to help others. All my

friends and classmates like me very much. I like playing basketball and volley

ball. I often play with my classmates after school. I am good at singing, I won

the first prize in the singing match last year. Id like to be a friend of you,

how about you?

小学英语自我介绍的作文4

Hello,everyone. Now please allow me to do an introduction. My name is Li

Lei. I’m 14 year old. My birthday is on October 11th. My favourite book is

twilight. I really love to read the books about vampires. My hobby is singing.

Some people say I’m a good singer.My favourite singer is Justin Biber.I think he

is a great singer. I love to sing his songs. Besides singing, I love shopping

very much. If I have time, I will go shopping with my friends.I’m really good at

English, if you have any questions, you can ask me, I will do my best to help

you. We can be the best friends forever. Thank you.

Most children don’t like to go to school, and they just want to enjoy

freedom and hang out for fun all the time. But when I see some kids studying so

hard and their special skills help them to win applause, I realize that I need

to learn some skills so as to win more freedom in the future.

A dog has a large piece of meat in his mouth. Near the water he looks down and sees himself in the water. He thinks it is another dog. That dog has also a large piece of meat in his mouth. He says to himself, "I want to get his meat. Then I can have two pieces." He opens his mouth to bark and his meat goes down into the water.

[小学四年级英语作文A Piece of meat

秋风飒爽，带着丝丝凉意来到了人间。它越过小溪，穿过丛林，翻过高山，最后，停留在了那如画的田野上。 The autumn wind is cool, and it comes to the world with a bit of coolness.It crossed the stream, passed through the jungle, turned over the mountains, and finally stayed on the painting field.

远远望去，一块块稻田井然有序地排列着，到处一片金黄，令人心中充满了醉意。习习的秋风拂过，一株株轻轻地摇曳着身姿，犹如在金色的大海中，泛起了浪花。那一朵朵浪花拥挤着、嬉闹着，发出“沙沙”的响声，时而缓，时而急，时而轻，时而响，仿佛在演奏一曲成熟的赞歌。

走近稻田，一阵阵谷香便扑鼻而来。循着谷香，我不由地仔细看稻穗那硕大的穗头。颗颗穗粒，错落排列，多像小姑娘扎的麻花辫啊!它们有的已成熟，鼓得圆圆的;有的破了个小口子，探着脑袋，惊奇地瞧着这花花世界;有的似乎还未睡醒，把“被子”裹得紧紧的……还有那半绿半黄的稻叶举着宝剑，尽心地守护着它的孩子们。

田埂上到处开满了野花，它们穿着各色的迷你短裙，仰着脸，冲着秋姑娘直笑哩!绿油油的叶子，像两只嫩嫩的小手随风挥舞着。

稻田旁边是一片玉米地。高高的玉米杆昂着头，挺着胸，一副高高在上的样子。上面挂满了又大又长的玉米棒，拉开包裹它们的绿叶，一个个身穿嫩黄小背心的“胖娃娃”露了出来。它们紧紧靠在一起，透过叶缝向外张望。

不远处的菜地里，也很热闹。鲜嫩欲滴的大白菜，身披紫袍的茄子，火艳艳的朝天椒……它们焦急而有耐心地等待着农民伯伯把它们带回家。

看着这芳香四溢硕果满园的田野，我相信，明天的生活一定会更加美好。

在我成长的道路上，充满了坎坎坷坷、曲曲折折，还蕴藏着喜怒哀乐……

有一次，我数学得了一百分，原来是我刻苦学习、仔细检查争取的。因为我看到全班只有我一百分，所以便骄傲自大。我回去后，马马虎虎地写完了作业;去做作业时，不屑一顾;也不去复习课文。这时，有个同学请教我一道题，我高傲地说：“这都不会，自己动脑筋想。”又一次数学考试到了，我趾高气扬地走进教师，自以为是地开始答题。我考完了后也不检查，趴在桌子上睡觉。心想：“我一定稳操胜券，一百分非我莫属。”出乎意料的是：我的分值一落千丈只拿了九十分。妈妈知道后，苦口婆心地对我说：“虚心使人进步，骄傲使人落后。”看着妈妈语重心长的样子，我坚定地点了点头。从这以后，我一直用妈妈这句话鞭策自己的学习。

还有一回，下课后，我去了一趟厕所。回来上课时，我一如既往地坐下去。意想不到，椅子“搬家了”。“噗通”我坐到了地上。全班乐翻了天，一个个哈哈大笑。我火冒三丈开始环顾四周，发现一个同学笑得前仰后合。好啊，难道是他干的。哼，下课再去找你，现在放你一马，下课后，我找到了他，准备捉住他和他讲理，让他道歉。不料，他脚踩西瓜皮——溜之大吉了。我们追来追去，最后，我在走廊的死角那儿“捕获”了他，我不由分说，问到：“你为何要不知羞耻的去做恶作剧?”他回答：“那又咋了?”便跑开了。于是，我以其人之道还治其人之身—拿开他的椅子。他中计后，哀叫着，我甩下一句：“既所不欲，误矢于人。”

多么丰富多彩的人生之路啊!

I am studying in a middleSchoolnow, my school is near my home. I love my

school, I can learn a lot in my school. The teachers teach me knowledge about

math, Chinese and others things about life, these are important to me, I become

mature. I make many friends here, the first day I come to this school, I get to

know my deskmate, in a few days, I get to know my classmate, now I have a lot of

friends, I feel so happy. In my school, the equipment is modern and we can use

the newly invented resource. The environment of my school is also beautiful, the

trees are tall, the grass is green. I love my school so much.

我的个子不高，有点偏瘦，总是扎着两个羊身辫，眼睛小小的戴着一副粉色镜眶的眼镜，笑起来两个眼睛像一弯新月。

我最大的特点就是爱哭。爸爸妈妈批评了我，我会哭;作业不会做，我会哭;不能和我伙伴一起玩，我会哭。这不，我最擅长的英语只考了80多分，我很伤心，我怎么只考了这么点儿分呢?我希望自己能考95分以上，越想越伤心，我鼻子一酸，眼泪就掉下来了，其实，我也不想哭啊!可是，眼睛不听我的话，它像坏了的水龙头，怎么关也关不住，哎!我怎么这么爱哭啊?

我最大的缺点就是马虎。我不是忘带文具盒，就是忘带作业本。这周五，我又把数学卷子弄丢了，我急得像热锅上的蚂蚁——团团转。后面，找了同学的卷子复印了一份。哎!我当时怎么不写名字呢?我真是太马虎了!

除了爱哭和马虎大意，我也很爱乐于助人。有一次，我和妈妈坐公交车，上来了一位阿姨，带着一个小弟弟。我赶紧站起来对那位阿姨说：“阿姨您坐我这吧!”阿姨感激地说：“谢谢你，你真是一个好孩子!”虽然，我没有了座位，但是我心里乐滋滋的。

我最大的爱好就是写作，当自己辛辛苦苦写的作文登载在《青苗》上时，幸福感和成就感会不由自主的涌上心头。截止目前，我已经有七篇习作登上《青苗》了，我要认真对待每一次习作，争取上更多的《青苗》。

这就是我，一个爱哭，爱写作的可爱小女孩!

As everyone knows, stress is a natural part of everyday life and there is

no way to avoid it. As the pace of modern life continues to increase, we are

always feeling on the go from morning till night. And it is hard to slow down.

Therefore, stress goes hand in hand with the life in a competitive society.

Different people, however, think of stress quite differently. Some believe

that stress is not the bad thing it is often supposed to be. They are of the

opinion that a certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give

purpose to life. Others argue that stress contributes to one’s mental decline

and hence endangers his health. According to them, relaxation, the opposite of

stress, is essential for a healthy mind and body.

Personally, I’m in favor of the former view. I think it is impossible to

avoid stress when one is entirely devoted to the career he pursues. In my

opinion, it is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor

performance and ill health.