第一节主旨大意题
主题句法,就是通过确定并分析文章的主题句来做主旨题的方法。一般而言,英语阅读理解文章绝大部分是说明文和议论文。这些文章大多采用主题句统辖全文,通过主题句直截了当地提出作者的论点或文章的中心思想,其他句子则对主题句进行追述、扩充和证明。因此,做主旨题时,应首先确定文章的主题句。通过理解和分析主题句,即可理解文章的主题、标题和意图。通常主题句出现在文章的开头和结尾,有的则位于文章的中间。就主题句的性质而言,主题句所表达的是文章或某段文章的主题及作者的观点,而且这些主题和观点对于读者而言是未知信息或新信息。
主旨题的出题方向是文章或段落的主旨(main idea,central idea,principal idea)、主题(subject,topic,main theme)、目的(purpose),有时还会以要求考生拟定标题的方式间接考查。
一、这类题型的常见表述方式:
What is the main topic of the passage?
The central idea conveyed in the above passage is that.
Which of the following best sums up the passage?
The main idea of this passage is.
What is the main idea of the passage?
This passage deals mainly with.
The purpose of the author in writing the article is to.
What does the author intend to convey through the passage?
二、解题方式
1.抓住中心思想句
任何一篇阅读理解文章都有一个中心思想。尽管绝大多数阅读理解文章是从一篇较长的文章中摘选下来的,但不管摘选一段还是几段,不管摘选哪几段,不管摘选长短,摘选下来的句子必须本身是自成一体的,是有中心思想的。一般说来,绝大多数文章的中心思想是用一个句子表达出来,其特点是概括性的。观点中心思想句到哪儿找?它在文章中的位置比较有规律,一般出现在文章的开头。
例文1
Describing learning language as meaning centered reminds us that the most fundamental concern of any learner is “ing sense”. In the relationship between reader and text, then, the making of meaning is primary. To describe the activities of reading and writing,we prefer the word “nsacting” which “ignates an ongoing process in which the elements or parts are seen as aspects or phases of a total situation. ”A transactional view of reading and writing argues that writers construct texts “ough transactions with the developing text and the meaning being expressed”. Transformed in the process are the text itself and the writer s ways of organizing knowledge. During reading, readers construct texts by transacting with the page and indirectly with the author. Although reading is generally considered a “eptive” language process, this does not mean that the process is essentially passive. Readers use directions from the page to construct meaning from their own prior knowledge; the reader must read between and beyond the lines.
Like reading, the process of writing is generative of meaning: we do not simply write down ideas that are fully formed before we put them to paper. The act of composing itself bring us ideas and insights. As meaningmaking processes, reading, writing and talking are dynamic; meanings are developed and changed, discovered and clarified, during the activities themselves. I ser has de scribed this aspect of reading as “ting the work in motion” and setting oneself in motion too.
Clearly in reading and writing the learner s prior knowledge plays an important role. There are many types of knowledge important to the acts of reading and writing. Since all meanings are made in the context of prior meanings, with each person bringing a unique fund of prior knowledge and experience, we should not expect everyone to respond to texts in the same way.
The passage is mainly about.
A.reading and writing
B.learning as meaningcentered
C.reading through transactions
D.the importance of prior knowledge
读了第一句Describing learning as meaning centered reminds us that the most fundamental concern of any learner is “ing sense”(把学习语言描写成以意思为中心提醒我们学习者最关心的就是自己说的、写的能否让人懂。),并根据我们粗读和做其他题时得到的信息,这一句应是全文的中心思想。再读选项,B.learning as meaningcentered正好和这句意思对上,因此是答案无疑了。
当然中心思想句出现在文章中的后几段也有:
例文2
A wise man once said that the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. So, as a police officer, I have some urgent things to say to good people.
Day after day my men and I struggle to hold back a tidal wave of crime. Something has gone terribly wrong with our onceproud American way of life. It has happened in the area of values. A key ingredient is disappearing, and I think I know what it is: accountability.
Accountability isn t hard to define. It means that every person is responsible for his or her actions and liable for their consequences.
Of the many values that hold civilization together—honesty, kindness, and so on—accountability may be the most important of all. Without it, there can be no respect, no trust, no law—and, ultimately, no society.
My job as a police officer is to impose accountability on people who refuse,or have never learned, to impose it on themselves. But as every policeman knows, external controls on people s behavior are far less effective than internal restraints such as guilt, shame and embarrassment.
Fortunately there are still communities—smaller towns, usually—where schools maintain discipline and where parents hold up standards that proclaim: “this family certain things are not tolerated—they simply are not done!”
Yet more and more, especially in our larger cities and suburbs, these inner restraints are loosening.Your typical robber has none.He considers your property his property;he takes what he wants,including your life if you enrage him.
The main cause of this breakdown is a radical shift in attitudes.Thirty years ago,if a crime was committed,society was considered the victim.Now,in a shocking reversal,it s the criminal who is considered victimized:by his underpriviledged upbringing,by the school that didn t teach him to read,by the church that failed to reach him with moral guidance,by the parents who didn t provide a stable home.
I don t believe it.Many others in equally disadvantaged circumstances choose not to engage in criminal activities.If we free the criminal,even partly,from accountability,we become a society of endless excuses where no one accepts responsibility for anything.
We in America desperately need more people who believe that the person who commits a crime is the one responsible for it.
The key point of the passage is that.
A.stricter discipline should be main trained in schools and families
B.more good examples should be set for people to follow
C.more restrictions should be imposed on people s behavior
D.more people should accept the value of accountability
这篇文章的中心思想句就出现在文章的第四段:Of the many values that hold civilization together—honesty,kindness,and so on—accountability may be the most important of all.Without it,there can be no respect,no trust,no law—and,ultimately,no society(在许多人类文明的价值观念中,负起责任是最重要的)。文章最后一句的总结也是这一意思:We in America desperately need more people who believe that the person who commits a crime is the one responsible for it.使更多的人认识到犯罪的人要对自己的罪行负起责任。对照选项,D.more people should accept the value of accountability就是这个意思。
也有中心思想句在文章结尾出现的:
例文3
The death of reading has been frequently,if not prematurely,reported.We are told that we live in an audiovisual age with radio,television,film,or other forms for ear and eye replacing the printed page.The picture is said to be faster to present,more adaptable to the message,and easier to comprehend.
How can anyone be expected to resist the tide,the torrent of competing images? Can we preserve the printed page and the art and skills of reading? Untold teachers,writers,and others have struggled to show the rewards of reading,to demonstrate the practical values,and to encourage reading for personal discovery and growth.The question is whether the dedicated have had more influence than the imageflashers.Fortunately there are some hopeful signs.
We can note the publication of more books,magazines,and papers than in any previous time in our history.Libraries report far greater use than ever before.Schools continue to show large numbers at all ages(except the young,due to a changing birthrate)seeking to attend.Even the visual media acknowledge their great dependence on the production of the printed word.Reading is not dead,dying,or seriously ill.It remains as the major avenue to individual learning and satisfaction.
If you agree with the point of view in this article you would probably.
A.read less than ever
B.rely more on visual media
C.watch television selectively
D.attach due importance to reading
这道题绕个圈子,问的还是文章中心思想。根据中心思想句的出现的位置和特征,我们读到文章第一句:The death of reading has been frequently,if not prematurely,reported。文章最后一句:Reading is not dead,dying,or seriously ill.It remains as the major avenue to individual learning and satisfaction.文章第一句是说人们一直认为阅读已消亡。经过一番论述,文章最后一句总结说阅读没有消亡,相反仍然是个人学习和满足的主要途径。可见这句是文章的中心思想句。用这句意思去看四个选择项,不难发现D.attach due importance to reading是正确答案。
2.分析段落主题句
英文中大部分行文很明确,总能找到某一个句子表达了文章的主要内容,这个句子被称为主题句;抓住主题句是归纳中心的一个捷径。
主题句的特征有:概括了文章的主要内容;句子简洁明了;其他句子是围绕主题句展开阐述的。
主题句的位置,以段落而言,通常都在段首,次之在段尾,偶尔也会在中间。以文章而言,情况相似,中心多在首尾,极个别情况在中间某段。
短文的主题思想在首段有所概括,文章一开始就明确主题,全文的每个段落都紧紧围绕这个主题展开讨论或说明。
例文1
The American economic system is organized around a basically privateenterprise, marketoriented economy in which consumers largely determine what shall be produced by spending their money in the marketplace for those goods and services that they want most. Private businessmen, striving to make profits, produce these goods and services in competition with other businessmen; and the profit motive, operating under competitive pressures, largely determines how these goods and services are produced. Thus, in the American economic system it is the demand of individual consumer, coupled with the desire of businessmen to maximize profits and the desire of individuals to maximize their incomes, that together determine what shall be produced and how resources are used to produce it.
An important factor in a marketoriented economy is the mechanism by which consumer demands can be expressed and responded to by producers. In the American economy, this mechanism is provided by a price system, a process in which prices rise and fall in response to relative demands of consumers and supplies offered by sellerproducers. If the product is in short supply relative to the demand, the price will be bid up and some consumers will be eliminated from the market. If, on the other hand, producing more of a commodity results in reducing its cost, this will tend to increase the supply offered by sellerproducers, which in turn will lower the price and permit more consumers to buy the product. Thus, price is the regulating mechanism in the American economic system.
The important factor in a privateenterprise economy is that individuals are allowed to own productive resources (private property), and they are permitted to hire labor, gain control over natural resources, and produce goods and services for sale at a profit. In the American economy, the concept of private property embraces not only the ownership of productive resources but also certain rights, including the right to determine the price of a product or to make a free contract with another private individual.
The passage is mainly about .
A.how American goods are produced
B.how American consumers buy their goods
C.how American economic system works
D.how American businessmen make their profits
文章的首段首句点明主题:美国经济体制的构成基础是私营企业与市场经济,在市场中消费者花钱购买自己最需要的商品或服务,他们的需求在很大程度上决定了产品的生产。文章第二、三段都是围绕“济的这一特征及其如何运行”展开的。其中第二段的首句“important factor in a marketoriented economy is the mechanism by which consumer demands can be expressed and responded to by producers”既是该段落的核心,又是围绕首段主题展开的议论,指出“为导向的经济一个重要因素是消费者能够表达其需求,而生产者能够对这些需求做出反应”。同样,第三段围绕本文的主题,阐述私营企业经济的一个重要因素——允许私人拥有生产资料、雇佣劳动力等。纵观全文,我们不难看出选项C“济体制是如何运行的”概括了全文主题,尽管选项A、B和D所陈述的内容都是短文所谈到的,但却未具体讨论与分析。
有的短文首段只是个引子,中段才是主题;尾段也可能有概括性很强的句子,也就是说短文有两个主题句。
例文2
One hundred and thirteen million Americans have at least one bankissued credit card. They give their owners automatic credit in stores, restaurants, and hotels, at home, across the country, and even abroad, and they make many banking services available as well. More and more of these credit cards can be read automatically, making it possible to withdraw or deposit money in scattered locations, whether or not the local branch bank is open. For many of us the “hless society” is not on the horizonit s already here.
While computers offer these conveniences to consumers, they have many advantages for sellers, too. Electronic cash registers can do much more than simply ring up sales. They can keep a wide range of records, including who sold what, when, and to whom. This information allows businessmen to keep track of their list of goods to suppliers. At the same time these computers record which hours are busiest and which employees are the most efficient, allowing personnel and staffing assignments to be made accordingly. And they also identify preferred customers for promotional campaigns. Computers are relied on by manufacturers for similar reasons. Computeranalyzed marketing reports can help to decide which products to emphasize now, which to develop for the future, and which to drop. Computers keep track of goods in stock, of raw materials on hand, and even of the production process itself.
Numerous other commercial enterprises, from theaters to magazine publishers, from gas and electric utilities to milk processors, bring better and more efficient services to consumers through the use of computers.
What is this passage mainly about?
A.Approaches to the commercial use of computers.
B.Conveniences brought about by computers in business.
C.Significance of automation in commercial enterprises.
D.Advantages of credit cards in business.
全文讨论计算机的应用给消费者带来诸多方便,主题句是短文中段的首句“le computers offer these conveniences to consumers, they have many advantages for sellers,too”(计算机在给消费者提供这些方便的同时,也给销售者带来许多方便)。接下来的内容均围绕这一主题,如:电子现金出纳机能做……,利用计算机分析市场报告等。尾段又强化了主题,总结说“erous other commercial enterprises, ...,bring better and more efficient services to consumers through the use of computers.”,指出计算机使用在其他方面所带来的益处。可见,在所给的四个选项中,B项概括全文主题。本文不在于说明计算机如何在商业上使用;也不在于说明“动化的意义”,故排除A、C项。尽管首段列举了信用卡的使用给消费者带来好处,但作者只是通过这个例子来说明计算机的应用给消费者带来许多方便这一主题,因此,也排除D项。
主题句位于段落的开端,一开始就明确主题,然后展开讨论或说明,即采用演绎法,由一般到个别,由概述到详解。这种主题句给读者一种清新明了的感觉,使人一看就明白段落所要阐述的内容,一语道破,具有极强的感染力。
例文3
The actual amount of water in the plant at one time, however, is only a very small part of what passes through it during its development. The processes of photosynthesis, by which carbon dioxide and water are combinedin the presence of chlorophyll(叶绿素)and with energy derived from lightto form sugars, require that carbon dioxide from the air enter the plant. This occurs mainly in the leaves. The leaf surface is not solid but contains great numbers of minute openings, through which the carbon dioxide enters. The same structure that permits the one gas to enter the leaf, however, permits another gaswater vaporto be lost from it. Since carbon dioxide is present in the air only in trace quantities(3 to 4 parts in 10 000 parts of air) and water vapor is near saturation in the air spaces within the leaf (at 80°F, saturated air would contain about 186 parts of water vapor in 10 000 parts of air), the total amount of water vapor lost is many times the carbon dioxide intake. Actually, because of wind and other factors, the loss of water in proportion to carbon dioxide intake may be even greater than the relative concentrations of the two gases. Also, not all of the carbon dioxide that enters the leafs synthesized into carbonhydrate(碳水化合物).
This paragraph uses facts to develop the essential idea that .
A.a plant efficiently utilizes most of the water it absorbs
B.carbon dioxide is the essential substance needed for plant development
C.a plant needs more water than is found in its composition
D.the stronger the wind, the more the water vapor loss
本题提问的是:本段用事实来展现的基本思想是哪一个?略读全文我们发现本段一开始就摆出了主题“ actual amount of water in the plant at one time, however, is only a very small part of what passes through it during its development”,接下来的句子都是为了进行论证或发展这一主题句。选项A的内容是植物有效地利用它所吸取水分中的大部分,这与主题句所陈述的内容不符。主题句指出:“植物中水的含量实际上只是生长过程中所吸收水分中的一小部分”,这说明植物并没有很好地利用它吸取的水分中的大部分,而只利用了小部分。因此,选项A与主题相矛盾。选项B的内容是二氧化碳是植物生长过程中所需的最重要的物质,作者在本段里提到过“氧化碳和水通过光合作用过程合成糖类,这种光合作用过程需要来自空气中的二氧化碳进入植物”,但我们并不能以此说二氧化碳是植物生长所需的最重要的物质,文章里也提到了水的作用,并没有围绕这两个主题阐述,故也排除B项。选项C是植物需要的水分比其组织中的更多一些。我们在上述分析中已经知道植物的生长离不开水,有大部分的水蒸气从植物中散发出来,而植物的生长又离不开这些从植物中散发出来的很大一部分水蒸气。所以,正确答案为C。选项D的内容是风越大,水蒸气散发的就越多。从文中的几个发展句中我们可以看出,空气中水蒸气的含量比二氧化碳的高,水蒸气散发损失的总量是二氧化碳吸收量的很多倍,水蒸气损失量的大小受风和其他因素的影响,但我们并不能因此得出结论说“,水蒸气的消耗也就越大”。所以说D项也是不正确的。
有的段落开段一、两句或几句都是铺叙,作者的目的是用这个引子引出主题。主题句之后仍有一定数量的句子陈述、论述或引申这一主题句。段中主题句的段落结构是:或者先提出问题,然后给予回答,再给予解释,即“回答—再解释”;或者先用一、两个引子,然后点明主题,再给予解释,即“主题句—解释”。
例文4
Teaching is supposed to be a professional activity requiring long and complicated training, as well as official certification. The act of teaching is looked upon as a flow of knowledge from a higher source to an empty container. The student s role is one of receiving information; the teacher s role is one of sending it. There is a clear distinction assumed between the one who is supposed to know (and therefore, not capable of being wrong) and another, usually younger person, who is supposed not to know. However, teaching need not be the province of a special group of people, nor need it be looked upon as a technical skill. Teaching can be more like guiding and assisting, than forcing information into a supposedly empty head. If you have a certain skill,you should be able to share it with someone. You do not have to get certified to convey what you know to someone else or to help them in their attempt to teach themselves. All of us, from the very youngest children to the oldest members of our cultures, should come to realize our own potential as teachers. We can share what we know, however little it might be, with someone who has need of that knowledge or skill.
What is the main point the author makes in the paragraph?
A.It is not difficult to be a good teacher.
B.Every person has the potential to be a teacher.
C.Teaching is a professional activity requiring special training.
D.Teaching is the flow of knowledge from a higher source to an empty container.
作者一开始在论述“ching”时,并没有直截了当地说明自己的观点,而是用“supposed to be...”,又进一步论述“re is a clear distinction assumed between the one who is supposed to know and another...who is supposed not to know”。从以上这几个句子中所使用的“pose”、“ume”等词汇中,我们也该清醒地认识到这并不是作者的想法。果然,文章急转直下,用一个转折词“ever”来表明作者的看法,“ching need not be the province of a special group of people, nor need it be looked upon as a technical skill”,教学不应是强制性的灌输,而应该是一种引导、帮助的过程。“ of us,..., should come to realize our own potential as teachers”这一主题思想是在总结、陈述其原因之后才摆出来的,在分析完文章主题之后就不难做出选择了。A项说做一名好教师不难,实际上是扭曲了文章的宗旨。文章论述的是教学的本质应该怎样,并不是单纯指教学过程的简单性;C项恰好表述了与文章主题相反的思想,也正是我们常人所认为的那样,而在作者看来,这种观点站不住脚,这点从“ching need not be...,nor need it be looked upon as a technical skill”中就能看清;D项与C项相同,也与作者的看法相反,“ching can be more like guiding and assisting, than forcing information into a supposedly empty head”,至于“ act of teaching is looked upon as a flow of knowledge from a higher source to an empty container”只是一种“position”或“umption”,是作者为引出主题而用的引子。只有B项能够表达作者在这篇文章中所持的观点和态度。因此,正确答案只能是B项。
主题句位于段落末尾,以加强段落的说服力,作者采用的是归纳法,先叙述、后概括,以强调根据阐述句提供的具体事实做出的结论。是对整段文章的概括和总结,前面的句子都是最后一句结论的铺垫。
例文5
Imagine a world in which children would be the rulers and could decide not only the outcome of each and every occurrence, but also dictate the very structure and form of the environment. In this world, a child s wildest thoughts would become reality limited only by the extent of his or her imagination. While such a world might sound both fantastic and frightening, at least from a logical, adult perspective, it does exist. What s more, it has been in existence for some time and is populated by hundreds of thousands of children who spend hours within its boundaries experimenting and learning. This world is not real, at least not in the traditional sense, but exists within a computer and is generated by an educational programming language called LOGO. Unlike other computer languages and programs that are designed to test children and provide applications that formally dispense information, LOGO allows children, even preschool children to be in total control. Children teach the computer to think and as a result develop and sharpen their own reasoning ability.
The best title for this passage would be.
A.“ldren Rule the World”
B.“ldren Learn Reasoning Using LOGO”
C.“puter Languages”
D.“ Unreal World of the Child and the Computer”
本文首先“设想一个完全由儿童统治的世界”,在这个世界里,“hild s wildest thoughts would become reality limited only by the extent of his or her imagination”。接着作者又交代原来这种世界“st within a computer”,是“LOGO的教育程序语言产生的”。在介绍完LOGO语言之后,作者道出主题,对整篇文章进行了概括和总结,根据阐述句的具体事物做出结论:“ldren teach the computer to think and as a result develop and sharpen their own reasoning ability”。理顺文章的脉络就不难找出正确答案。
文章的目的不在于说明“治整个世界”,而是用它打下伏笔,进而介绍LOGO程序能够帮助儿童发展并提高自己的推理能力。因此,选项A是错误的;选项C的内容是关于“语言”,做这篇文章的题目太笼统,也不恰当,文中只提到LOGO这么一种教育程序语言,说到它“那些用来测试儿童以及提供正式信息处理应用的其他计算机语言和程序”,可是并没有进一步阐述其他计算机语言;选项D对本文是一种误解,它完全脱离LOGO这种语言程序确实存在的现实,现实中确实不存在一个完全由儿童统治的世界,但不能下结论说儿童与计算机是不真实的世界。只有选项B从儿童掌握使用LOGO语言可以发展自己的推理能力的角度来确立主题,恰好与文章的结论“develop and sharpen their own reasoning ability”相吻合。因此,正确答案为B。
3.概括段落主题大意
有时候阅读理解文章既没有全文中心思想句,文章各段也没有或不都有主题句,这时需要对各段的主题大意进行分析概括,把各段概括出来的大意相组合,就是文章的中心思想。
对于从一般到具体的结构或分类说明的文章,作者从几个方法论述同一个问题,这样,论述的几个方面加起来就构成全文的主题。各个方面的论述通常自成一段,且以段落主题句阐述该段大意。于是,综合各段主题句的意思就得到本文主题。
例文1
“gratulations, Mr. Jones, it s a girl.”
Fatherhood is going to have a different meaning and bring forth a different response from every man who hears these words. Some feel pride when they receive the news, while others worry, wondering whether they will be good fathers. Although there are some men who like children and may have had considerable experience with them, others do not particularly care for children and spend little time with them. Many fathers and mothers have been planning and looking forward to children for some time. For other couples, pregnancy (怀孕) was an accident that both husband and wife have accepted willingly or unwillingly.
Whatever the reaction to the birth of a child, it is obvious that the shift from the role of husband to that of father is a difficult task. Yet, unfortunately, few attempts have been made to educate fathers in this resocialization process. Although numerous books have been written about American mothers, only recently has literature focused on the role of a father.
It is argued by some writers that the transition to the father s role, although difficult, is not nearly as great as the transition the wife must make to the mother s role. The mother s role seems to require a complete transformation in daily routine (生活规律) and highly innovative (创新的) adaptation, on the other hand, the father s role is less demanding and immediate. However, even though we mentioned the fact that growing numbers of women are working outside the home, the father is still thought by many as the breadwinner in the household.
本文讨论的是做父亲的问题。除第一段以外,其余各段的第一句均为主题句:第二段是“herhood is going to have a different meaning and bring forth a different response from every man who hears these words.”(做父亲将喻示不同的意义,而且听到这句话的人反应各不相同);第三段是“tever the reaction to the birth of a child,it is obvious that the shift from the role of husband to that of father is a difficult task.”(不管对于小孩出生的反应如何,从丈夫向父亲的角色转变非常困难,这一点很明显);第四段是“is argued by some writers that the transition to the father s role,although difficult,is not nearly as great as the transition the wife must make to the mother s role.”(有些作家认为向父亲角色的转变尽管困难,但根本不如妻子向母亲角色的转变那么大);把这些主题句的内容综合起来,就是本文的主题——丈夫向父亲角色转变的三个方面:因人而异,非常困难,不如妻子向母亲角色的转变那么大。
练习
When there is no distance between people, the only way that anyone can keep his distance is by a code of etiquette that has acceptance in a community. Manners are the antidote to adjustment to the group. They make social intercourse possible without any forfeit of one s personal dignity. They are armor against invasion of privacy; they are the advance patrols that report whether one should withdraw or advance into intimacy. They are the friendly but non committal gestures of civilized people. The manners of crowded countries are, I believe, always more formal than those of open countries, (as they are, for example, in Europe and Japan) and it may be that we are seeing a rising concern about American manners precisely because we encounter more people in closer quarters than we ever have before. We feel the need to find ways in which to be part of the group without selling out our privacy or our individuality for a mess of adjustment.
1.What is the main idea of the passage?
A.The manners of crowded countries should be more formal than those of the open countries.
B.Etiquette shortens the distance between people.
C.It is impossible to maintain personal dignity in social intercourse.
D.The observance of polite behavior helps to retain one s privacy and individuality.
As protector of her family s health, the pioneer women confronted situations she never imagined before crossing the Mississippi. Few women came to the West prepared to deal with desert sunburn, rattlesnake bites, or arrow wounds. Even when doctors were available, they were often no more knowledgeable than their patients. And most patent medicines were no more reliable than the itinerant merchants who sold them.
In certain cases, a woman could draw upon the folk wisdom and remedies she had learned back home. Western mosquitoes, for example, proved to be as repelled by a paste of vinegar and salt as were their Eastern cousins. More often, however, a woman was guided only by her own ingenuity in concocting tonics, powders, poisons, and polishes from whatever she had at hand; salt made a passable toothpaste, gunpowder was applied to warts, and turpentine to open cuts, goose grease, skunk oil, and the everpresent lard were basic liniments; medicinal teas and tonics were brewed from sunflower seeds and roots.
2.Which of the following statements best expresses the main idea of the passage?
A.Many people who went to the West were doctors.
B.Medicine and the people who sold it were not reliable.
C.Many pioneer women died from bites inflicted by snakes and mosquitoes.
D.Pioneer women had to invent their own remedies when they moved to the West.
Dancer Martha Graham trained her body to move in different ways and in different contexts from any before attempted. “e today is nervous, sharp, and zigzag,” she said. “often stops in midair. That is what I aim for in my dances.”She insists she never started out to be a rebel. It was only that the emotions she had to express could not be projected through any of the traditional forms.
This was in 1925. All forms of art were undergoing a revolution. The theories of psychology were being used to extend the boundaries of poetry, music, and painting.
Martha Graham s debut dance concert in her new idiom occurred on April 18,1926. Connoisseurs of dance, gathered at the Fortheighth Street Theater in New York, witnessed Martha Graham s first foray into this new realm of dance. They saw, through such dance sequences as “ee Gobi Maidens”, and “tudy in Lacquer”, desires and conflicts expressed through bodily movements. These critics agreed that something entirely new, a departure from all previous forms, had been witnessed.
In the early thirties, she founded the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. Her classes were used as a laboratory for her stage works, and her stage works in turn were a means for attracting new pupils to her school—a sort of selfwinding process, with herself as the key to the development.
Martha Graham and the school she has founded are virtually synonymous with the modern dance. She had not only produced a technique of the dance, choreographed and taught it, but her disciples have gone out to fill the modern dance world.
3.What does the passage mainly discuss?
A.Martha Graham s development of modern dance.
B.The revolution of art forms in the 1920 s.
C.A dancer s view of life.
D.The Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance.
To keep clear of concealment, to keep clear of the need of concealment, to do nothing which he might not do out in the middle of Boston Common at noonday—I cannot say how more and more it seems to me to be the glory of a young man s life. It is an awful hour when the first necessity of hiding anything comes. The whole life is different thenceforth. When there are questions to be feared and eyes to be avoided and subjects which must not be touched, then the bloom of life is gone. Put off that day as long as possible. Put it off forever if you can.
4.The title below that best expresses the idea of this passage is“.”
A.A Time for Concealment
B.Noonday on Boston Common
C.A Code for Living
D.No Need to Hide
Our generation has made such immense discoveries and achieved such undreamed enrichments of the outside of life, that it has lost touch with the inside of life. It has forgotten the true riches and beauties of its spiritual inheritance: riches and beauties that go far beyond our modern chatter about values and ideals. The mind s search for more breadth has obscured the heart s craving for more depth. Once again man has become the dupe of his own cleverness. And because it is difficult to attend to more than a few things at a time, we leave out a great range of experiences which come in by another route and tell us of another kind of life. Our interest rushes out to the farthest limits of the universe, but we seldom take a sounding of the ocean beneath our restless keels. We get, therefore, a queer feeling that we are leaving something out. Knowledge has grown; but wisdom, savoring the deep wonder and mystery of life, lingers far behind. Thus the life of the human spirit, which ought to maintain a balance between the world visible and the world invisible, is thrown out of gear.
5.The title that best expresses the idea of this passage is“”.
A.Man s Need for Wisdom
B.The Invisible World
C.The Heart and Mind of Man
D.The Growth of Knowledge
Twenty thousand years ago, the earth was held in thrall by relentless probing fingers of ice that drew power from frigid strongholds in the north and crept southwestward to bury forests, fields, and mountains. Landscapes that were violated by the slowly moving glaciers would carry the scars of this advance far into the future. Temperatures plummeted, and land surfaces in many parts of the world were depressed by the unrelenting weight of the thrusting ice. At the same time, so much was drawn from the oceans to form these gargantuan glaciers that sea levels around the world fell by three hundred and fifty feet, and large areas of the continental shelf became dry land.
This period of the earth s history has come to be called the Ice Age. In all, about eleven million square miles of land were covered with ice. The Ice Age terminated about fourteen thousand years ago when the ice sheets began to retreat. It took about seven thousand years for the ice to retreat to its present level.
6.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A.The Frigid Strongholds of the North
B.The Effects of the Ice Age
C.How Glaciers Move
D.Is Ice Age Coming Around Anew
参考答案
1.D2.D3.A4.C5.A6.B
第二节事实细节题
阅读理解题的事实细节题主要考查考生对文章具体内容的理解。一般都与when,who,what,which,why和how等有关。具体地说,阅读理解细节题一般与做某事的人、时间、地点及原因等有关。做细节题时,考生应依据“解”的原则,凡是与细节题无关的文字材料一律不花时间研读、分析,只注意分析与细节题有关的文字材料,尽可能提高做题速度。此外,考生应首先浏览文章后面的问题,并迅速确定细节题考查的内容,且用以上六个疑问词作为细节题的标记,然后,根据这些标记及相关细节题的关键词,采用对号入座法或跳读法,迅速搜寻与细节题相关的文字材料,并以这些相关的文字材料为依据确定细节题答案。对于剩下的把握不大的较难问题,考生可采用跳读法再看一遍,查找和核实相关的文字依据。这时采用跳读法不仅有基础(因为已经看过),而且可以突出重点,节约时间。
一、这类题型的常见表述方式
1.According to the passage, who (what, where, which, when, why, how, etc. )...?
2.Which of the following is true (correct)?
3.Which of the following is false (incorrect,unusual, not included)?
4.All of the following are (not) true(are (not) mentioned) except .
5.The author mentions all of the items listed below except.
6.The author (the writer) states that .
还可以举出很多这类试题用语,但不管是哪种形式,它们拥有一个共同点:都属于正误选择,无论是三错一对,还是三对一错。解题时可采用“座”的办法,带着问题去阅读文章,找到解题范围后应立即排除明显的干扰项。然后采用“笋”的方式对余下的三、两个选择项筛选,使选择的范围越缩越小,判断问题的准确率越来越高。
二、解题方式
1.事实细节类问题涉及的面很广,时间、地点、人物、事件、距离、数量、因果、目的、条件、方式等都能成为测试点。此类试题的共同特点是答案一般都能在原文中直接找到,所以返回原文就成了解题的关键。需要注意的是,事实细节类试题的题干常常不采用文章中的原话,而是使用与原文同义或近义的表达。因此,做题时首先要看准题干,明确了考点之后再返回原文,运用查读法,借助速读时做的标记寻找答案。
2.事实细节题的正确答案一般都比较直观、明确,所包含信息与原文一致,而干扰项中的信息有的是原文中未涉及的,有的虽与原文内容相关,所涵盖的范围却有出入,有的与原文内容相反,如颠倒因果等,还有的则混淆原文中的事物或特征,张冠李戴。因此,在分析事实细节类试题的选项时,一定要紧扣原文内容,切忌通过自己对某类知识的了解做出主观的判断。
3.注意文章中表示列举、并列、举例、归纳的信号词。如:First...Second...Finally...或者Three factors contributed to the existence of...因为这些并列、 列举的地方极容易出现前面所提到的“”型考题,即那个不符合文章内容的选项即为正确答案。
带着题干中的which、when、why到文中去寻找那些与之相对应的名词,及表示时间的、原因的词。如during、for the sake of、because of、result from,etc。
例文1
People in the United States in the nineteenth century were haunted by the prospect that unprecedented change in the nation s economy would bring social chaos. In the years following 1820, after several decades of relative stability, the economy entered a period of sustained and extremely rapid growth that continued to the end of the nineteenth century. Accompanying that growth that was a structural change that featured increasing economic diversification and a gradual shift in the nation s labor force from agriculture to manufacturing and other nonagricultural pursuits.
Although the birth rate continued to decline from its high level of the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, the population roughly doubled every generation during the rest of the nineteenth centuries. As the population grew, its makeup also changed. Massive waves of immigration brought new ethnic groups into the country. Geographic and social mobility—downward as well as upward—touched almost everyone. Local studies indicate that nearly three quarters of the population—in the North and South,in the emerging cities of the Northeast, and in the restless rural counties of the West—changed their residence each decade. As a consequence, historian David Donald has written, “social atomization affected every segment of society,” and it seemed to many people that “ the recognized values of orderly civilization were gradually being eroded.”
Rapid industrialization and increased geographic mobility in the nineteenth century had special implications for women because these changes tended to magnify social distinctions.As the roles men and women played in society became more rigidly defined,so did the roles they played in the home.In the context of extreme competitiveness and dizzying social change,the household lost many of its earlier functions and the home came to serve as a haven of tranquility and order.As the size of families decreased,the roles of husband and wife became more clearly differentiated than ever before.In the middle class especially, men participated in the productive economy while women ruled the home and served as the custodians of civility and culture. The intimacy of marriage that was common in earlier periods was rented, and a gulf that at times seemed unbridgeable was created between husbands and wives.
1.According to the passage, the economy of the U.S.between 1820 and 1900 was.
A. expanding B. in sharp decline
C. stagnate D. disorganized
2.According to the passage, as the 19th century progressed, the people of the U.S..
A.emigrated to other countries
B.often settled in the West
C.tended to change the place in which they lived
D.had a higher rate of birth than ever before
3.Which of the following best describes the society about which David Donald wrote?
A.A highly conservative society that was resistant to new ideas.
B.A society that was undergoing fundamental change.
C.A society that had been gradually changing since the early 1700 s.
D.A nomadic society that was starting permanent settlements.
4.Which of the following is not mentioned as an example of the social changes occuring in the U. S. after 1820?
A.Increased social mobility
B.Increased immigration
C.Significant movement of population
D.Strong emphasis on traditional social values
以上各题均为细节题。做题时,考生应首先浏览并确定以上各细节题的内容,并记住与这些内容相关的关键词。就以上四题而言,与内容相关的关键词依次为“0—1920年间美国经济”,“纪美国人”,“id Donald所写的社会”,以及“0以后在美国发生的社会变化”等。不难知道这篇文章是按时间顺序展开的,考生应以具体时间状语为线索搜寻相关的文字依据。第1题涉及1820和1900这两个时间状语,不难发现原文第4—6行所论述的正是这两个年份之间发生的情况,答案显然为A。考生应注意该句中after several decades of relative stability的干扰,这一短语很明显强调1820年之前发生的情况。由第2题四个选择项可知该题的主要内容是关于19世纪美国人口流动情况,根据这一内容不难在第2段找到相关文字材料。第2段第4句告诉我们各种不同肤色的人移居到美国,这与A正好相反,故排除A。B与第5句相冲突,而D与第二段第1句冲突,故将这两项排除。C项与第6句完全一致,故答案为C。第3题关键词是David Donald,考生应迅速查找含有两个大写D的语句。由原文第21—25行的文字可知答为B。这些语句的大意为:其结果,正如历史学家大卫·唐纳德(David Donald)所描述的那样,“本结构的变动将影响到社会的方方面面”,对许多人来说,似乎“有秩序的文明认可的标准都在渐渐被销蚀”。第4题难度较大,考生可根据全文内容运用排除法来做题。值得注意,考生做第4题这类细节题时,可根据前面细节题答案对该题的选择项做出正确的取舍。由第1、第2题和第3题答案。可知这篇文章介绍了十九世纪美国发生的一些社会变化,如:经济快增长,人口流动速度加快,传统观念逐渐消失,大量外国人迁居美国。由此不难断定答案为D,D项与原文大意正好相反。
例文2
Faces, the fingerprints, are unique. Did you ever wonder how it is possible for us to recognize people? Even a skilled writer probably could not describe all the features that make one face different from another. Yet a very young child —or even an animal, such as a pigeon—can learn to recognize faces. We all take this ability for granted.
We also tell people apart by how they behave. When we talk about someone s personality, we mean the way in which he or she acts, speak, thinks and feels that make that individual different from others.
Like the human face, human personality is very complex. But describing someone s personality in words is somewhat easier than describing his face, if you were asked to describe what a “e face” looked like, you probably would have a difficult time doing so. But if you were asked to describe a “e person”, you might begin to think about someone who was kind, considerate, friendly, warm, and so forth.
There are many words to describe how a person thinks, feels and acts, Gordon Allport, an American psychologist, found nearly 18 000 English words characterizing difference in people s behavior. And many of us use this information as a basis for describing, or typing, his personality. Bookworms, conservatives, military types—people are described with such terms.
People have always tried to “e” each other. Actors in early Greek drama wore masks to show the audience whether they played the villain s (坏人) or the hero s role. In fact, the words “son”and “sonality” come from the Latin word “sona”, meaning “k”.Today, most television and movie actors do not wear masks.But we can easily tell the “d guy” from the “ guys” because the two types differ in appearance as well as in actions.
1.By using the example of fingerprints, the author tells us that.
A.people can learn to recognize faces
B.people have different personalities
C.people have difficulty in describing the features of fingerprints
D.people differ from each other in facial features
2.According to this passage, some animals have the gift of.
A.telling people apart by how they behave
B.typing each other
C.telling good people from bad people
D.recognizing human faces
3.Who most probably knows best how to describe people s personality?
A.The ancient Greek audience.
B.The movie actors.
C.Psychologists.
D.The modern TV audience.
4.According to this passage, it is possible for us to tell one type of person from another because.
A.people differ in their behavioral and physical characteristics
B.human fingerprints provide unique information
C.people s behavior can be easily described in words
D.human faces have complex features
这篇议论文讲的是人的面孔、行为千差万别。人的面孔就像指纹一样是独特的,即使技艺高超的作家也很可能无法描述出一张面孔区别于另一张面孔的全部特征。同样,人的性格、行为也各不相同,这就是评判一个人的品行有别于他人的依据。描述人的品格比描述人的面孔要容易,有很多词汇来描述好人、坏人,一个人的思维、情感和行为,以及对人加以分类。
1.D。细节判断题。第一段第1句“es,like fingerprints,are unique.”(人的面孔就像人的指纹一样,每个人都是独一无二的。)也就是说人的面部特征各不相同。
2.D。细节判断题。答案在第一段最后一句。
3.C。推断判断题。文章第四段说美国心理学家发现有将近18 000个英语单词可以描述不同人的行为;我们许多人把这一信息作为描述人的性格的依据。由此可见,最了解怎样描绘人的性格的是心理学家。
4.A。综合判断题。选项B、C、D的表述都不全面,根据本文第一句和最后一句可知:可以把不同类型的人区别开来是因为人的外表和行为特征不同。人们的行为特征和身体特征各不同。
例文3
As we know, it is very important that a firm should pay attention to the training of its staff as there exist many weak parts in its various departments. Staff training must have a purpose, which is defined when a firm considers its training needs, which are in turn based on job deions and job specifications (规范).
A job deion should give details of the performance than is required for a particular job, and a job specification should give information about the behaviour, knowledge and skills that are expected of an employee who works in it. When all of this has been collected, it is possible to make a training specification. This specifies what the Training Department must teach for the successful performance of the job, and also the best methods to use in the training period.
There are many different training methods, and there are advantages and disadvantages of all of them. Successful training programmes depend on an understanding of the difference between learning about skills and training in using them. It is frequently said that learning about skills takes place “ the job” in the classroom, but training in using these skills takes place “the job”, by means of such activities as practice in the workshop.
It is always different to evaluate the costs and savings of a training programme. The success of such a programme depends not only on the methods used but also on the quality of the staff who do the training. A company can often check on saving in time and cost by examining the work performed by the workers and technicians who have completed a training programme. The evaluation of management training is much more complex than that.
1.To be successful in our training programmes, we must understand the difference between.
A.a job deion and a job specification
B.what is taught and how it is taught
C.learning about skills and training in using them
D.the savings in time and the savings in cost
2.A training specification specifies.
A.the performance required for a certain job
B.the behaviour, knowledge, and skills expected of an employee
C.the training contents and methods
D.the costs and savings of the programme
这篇文章主要讲述员工的培训对公司来说非常重要,涉及培训的内容、方法及对培训是否成功的评估。段落的结构、层次都很分明,基本上每一段都有一个主题句。要么在段首,要么在段尾。这两个问题只涉及某一方面的问题,因此,看作是细节问题。只要带着问题、题干中的关键词,在相应的地方都可以找到答案。
1.C。在第三段第二句话有“cessful training...”,该句的结尾即答案。
2.C。第二段有两个核心。前半部分讲“ deion”,后半部分讲“ specification”。只不过正确答案中的contents对应文中的“t...must each for the successful...”部分。学会相互解释和概括。
例文4
Life insurance isn t fun to buy. It forces you to think about your death: a subject many prefer not to confront. But there s single, overriding reason to buy life insurance: to provide an income for your dependents should you die. Don t depend solely on an agent to figure your life insurance needs. Ruleofthumb estimates such as five or eight times your income are guesses; they may produce too little or too much insurance. Carry too little insurance and you may not provide a reasonable standard of living for your family after your death; carry too much and you may not enjoy a reasonable standard of living while you re alive.
Most people who have life insurance don t have enough. The median amount of coverage for all adults with life insurance was only 15 000 pounds in 1984. That s obviously not enough to sustain a family with young children for very long. Nationwide Insurance found that the married men in its 1984 survey carried an average of about 101 880 pounds in life insurance; they needed about 100 705 pounds more. Married women carried about 43 516 pounds worth insurance but needed some 98 507 pounds more.
How do you determine the amount of life insurance you would need to maintain your family s current life style if the breadwinner died? First, figure what your family s expenses would be if you died tomorrow. Then, analyze your assets and the sources of income that you can use to cover the expenses. Finally, subtract the assets from the needs. The result is the amount of additional insurance that you ll need to buy.
1.The passage intends to tell you that.
A.life insurance isn t fun to buy
B.life insurance is most important in maintaining your family s current lifestyle
C.life insurance is the result of amount of additional insurance you ll need to buy
D.how to determine the amount of life insurance you would need
2.Life insurance is not fun to buy because.
A.many people prefer not to confront the subject
B.there is a single overriding reason
C.it reminds you that you may die one day
D.it forces you to think about your additional expenses
3.Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A.Estimates such as five or eight times your income are not reliable.
B.These agents may produce too little or too much insurance.
C.You must not rely on agents only to tell you how much life insurance you need.
D.You should believe in either your agent or those empirical (经验的) estimate.
4.If you carry too little or too much insurance.
A.either you or your family might suffer
B.you may not provide a reasonable standard of living for your family after your death
C.you may not enjoy a reasonable standard of living while you re alive
D.you will know in the end that they are just wild guesses
5.All of the following should be taken into account in determining the amount of your life insurance except.
A.analyze your assets and sources of income
B.add up the ages of your dependents
C.estimate your family s expenses
D.take away the assets from the expenses
这篇文章分为三段,每段的作用非常突出、明显。
第一段引出话题,即:买life insurance,并指出了买多少是困扰人的一个问题。
第二段先设问,即:How much?然后提供建议,如何确定要购买的life insurance的金额。
综观全篇文章,实际上是在分析一个普遍存在的困扰人的问题之后再提出解决方法。
1.D。主旨题。参见上面的分析。
2.C。细节题。带着问题在第一段第二句话可以找到答案。
3.D。这是典型的“”型考题。A、B、C三项在第一段中都有提及,只有D项未提及。从文中可以知道作者并未建议人们只相信保险代理人,与凭经验自己推算(rule of thumb),这些都是不可靠的。
4.A。细节题。带着问题中的关键词,在第一段的末尾就会找到答案,“险太少,你死后无法给后人提供合适的生活水准;买得太多,你活着的时候又无法去享受一种适合自己的生活水平。”总之太多或太少你都要遭殃。故选A。
5.B。同第3题,多加留意最后一段中的列举:First,Then...Finally...。找出未提到的选项,即可找到正确答案。
练习
A series of orbiting satellites and a group of sending and receiving stations located around the earth form a communications satellite system.Since the sending and receiving stations must point their antennae directly at a satellite in order to complete a transmission,a single satellite can serve less than a third of the earth s surface at a time.If the satellite is below the horizon,a ground station cannot use it.Therefore,a series of satellites is necessary.
Most systems use synchronous satellites that stay in one position over the earth.Synchronous satellites are launched to an altitude of 22 300 miles.At this altitude,the satellite s revolution is synchronized with the earth s rotation.This means that the satellite completes one orbit during the same length of time that the earth makes one rotation on its axis.Three of these satellites,properly placed,can link stations in any two parts of the world.
1.According to the passage,all of of the following are necessary for a worldwide communications satellite system EXCEPT.
A.ground mirrors to reflect the horizon
B.properly placed satellites
C.sending and receiving stations around the earth
D.antennae pointed toward the satellites
In 776 B.C.the first Olympic Games were held at the foot of Mount Olympus to honor the Greeks chief god, Zeus. The Greeks emphasized physical fitness and strength in their education of youth. Therefore, contests in running, jumping, discus and javelin throwing, boxing, and horse and chariot racing were held in individual cities, and the winners competed every four years at Mount Olympus. Winners were greatly honored by having olive wreaths placed on their heads and having poems sung about their deeds. Originally these were held as games of friendship, and any wars in progress were halted to allow the games to take place.
The Greeks attached so much importance to these games that they calculated time in fouryear cycles called “mpiads” dating from 776 B.C.
2.Which of the following is NOT true?
A.Winners placed olive wreaths on their own heads.
B.The games were held in Greece every four years.
C.Battles were interrupted for people to participate in the games.
D.Poems glorified the winners in song.
The computer age is producing an army of robots—machines that are directed by electronic brains and which replace human labor in industrial operations. Many are artificial arms which reach into areas man enters only at his peril, such as the inside of a nuclear reactor.
Already in 1980 there were over 8 000 robots working in industrial plants throughout the world.The big changeover to the robot,however,is likely to come only when their costs go down while workers wages continue to rise.
3.Which of the following statements is certainly true?
A.Robots are becoming cheaper all the time.
B.Robots are becoming more expensive all the time.
C.The cost of a human worker is higher than that of an average robot.
D.The cost of the average robot is higher than that of a human worker.
Why would anyone want to set aside a day to honor a lowly little groundhog? The answer to that question is not certain, but a group of people get together every February 2 in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, to watch Punxsutawney “er” leave his burrow. What “er” does next, many believe,will indicate whether sprint is just around the corner or a long way off. You see, in Pennsylvania on this date there is usually a great deal of snow on the ground, and the little animal has been hibernating during the long, cold winter. He gorged himself during the autumn months and then went into his burrow for a long sleep, his body fat helping keep him alive. But as he emerges on February 2, he looks very thin. If the sun is shining brightly and he sees his shadow, according to the legend, it scares him back into his home where he will stay another six weeks. Should it be cloudy and gray, the little animal will supposedly wander around for food—a sure sign that spring is near. While many believe in the groundhog s predictions, it is unwise to accept them as factual.
4.Which of the following is NOT true?
A.Animals have a certain instinct which helps them predict the seasons.
B.According to the legend, the groundhog leaves his burrow on February 2.
C.Groups of people in Pennsylvania wait for the groundhog s predictions.
D.After his long period of hibernation, the groundhog looks very thin.
The food we eat seems to have profound effects on our health. Although science has made enormous steps in making food more fit to eat, it has, at the same time, made many foods unfit to eat. Some research has shown that perhaps eighty percent of all human illnesses are related to diet and forty percent of cancer is related to the diet as well, especially cancer of the colon. Different cultures are more prone to contract certain illnesses because of the food that is characteristic in these cultures. In 1945, government researchers realized that nitrate, commonly used to preserve color in meats, and other food additives, caused cancer. Yet, these carcinogenic additives remain in our food, and it becomes more difficult all the time to know which things on the packaging labels of processed food are helpful or harmful. The additives which we eat are not all so direct. Farmers often give penicillin to beef and poultry, and because of this, penicillin has been found in the milk of treated cows. Sometimes similar drugs are administered to animals not for medicinal purposes, but for financial reasons. The farmers are simply trying to fatten the animals in order to obtain a higher price on the market. Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tried repeatedly to control these procedures, the practices continue.
5.Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A.Drugs are always given to animals for medical reasons.
B.Some of the additives in our food are added to the food itself and some are given to the living animals.
C.Researchers have known about the potential hazards of food additives for over thirtyfive years.
D.Food may cause forty percent of cancer in the world.
参考答案
1.A2.A3.D4.A5.A
第三节判断推论题
一个词往往有字面意义(denotation)和隐含意义(connotation);同样,一篇文章也往往包含两个方面的内容,即字面内容(literal content)和隐含内容(implied meaning)。这往往是因为作者不愿意或没有把一切内容都明确地告诉读者,而是在字里行间流露出自己的态度和想法。推断是一种从已知向未知推测的过程,阅读中的推断要求读者透过文字的表面信息去发掘出文章的深层隐含意义。
①从已知推求未知。在文章中,尽管推断题的正确答案找不到直接对应的陈述文字,但有关陈述文字仍可作为推理的前提和依据。应按题意(包括题干和各个选择项)的提示迅速地在原文中找到有关的陈述文字。
②在找到据以推理的有关陈述文字之后,对于诸如时间、计量等数字方面的考题,可进行简单的推算;关于知识性的考题,则取决于读者对有关学科背景知识或常识的了解;对于需要逻辑推断的考题,则必须忠于作者的原意,不能把自己的观点当作作者的观点。
③根据修饰关系进行判断。有时作者使用一些形容词或副词,比如often、frequently、sometimes、many和most等,对某些概念加以限定,而在选择项中却往往加always、none、all等文字和某些修饰语意义相近但不完全相同的词;有时原文中定语或定语从句限定了范围,而在选择项中却故意不提。这样往往导致考生作出错误的推断。
一、这类题型的常见表达方式
One would assume from the passage that.
From the passage it can be inferred that.
An inference which may not be made from this passage is.
What does the passage imply about.
Apparently the author suggests that.
From this passage,we would say that the author.
Which of the following generalizations/conclusions is supported by the passage?
The paragraph following this one would most likely deal with.
二、解题方式
1.以原文为依据
推理判断题的答案一般都不能在原文中直接找到,而是需要读者在综合理解原文相关信息的基础上做出一定的推理和判断。
2.一步推理
大纲对考生推理能力的要求是:既理解字面意思,也能根据所读材料进行初步的判断和推理。因此,四级阅读中的推理判断题的答案肯定是依据原文信息直接推导出来的,即一步推理。
3.选项特征
因为推理判断类试题既可以对文章主旨提问,也可以对某个细节提问,所以其选项设置与前面两类试题具有相同的特征。其实此类试题的很大一部分,其答案都是原文的同义表述,不需要做任何推理。对于需要推理的题目,选项中如果有三错一对,通常只要抓住必须“为依据”就可以做出正确选择。如果选项中有两个或更多是合乎逻辑的推论那就必须牢记“理”的原则。有的选项虽然也是根据原文推理出来的结论,但却需要经过多步逻辑推理,这样的选项肯定不是答案。也就是说,假如原文信息为A,而由A能推导出B,由B能推导出C,则B为正确答案,C为干扰项。这种干扰项因其本身合乎逻辑,甚至有时还与读者自身原有的知识吻合而较难排除,处理时要多加注意。
例文1
The development of Jamestown in Virginia during the second half of the seventeenth century was closely related to the making and using of bricks. There are several practical reasons why bricks became important to the colony. Although the forests could initially supply sufficient timber, the process of lumbering was extremely difficult, particularly because of the lack of roads. Later, when the timber on the peninsula had depleted, wood had to be brought from some distance. Building stone was also in short supply. However, as clay was plentiful, it was inevitable the colonists would turn to brickmaking.
In addition to practical reasons for using bricks as the principal construction material, there was also an ideological reason. Brick represented durability and permanence. The Virginia Company of London instructed the colonists to build hospitals and new residence out of brick. In 1662, the Town Act of the Virginia Assembly provided for the construction of thirtytwo brick buildings and prohibited the use of wood as a construction material. Had this law ever been successfully enforced, Jamestown would have been a model city. Instead, the residents failed to comply fully with the law; and by 1699 Jamestown had collapsed into a pile of rubble with only three or four habitable houses.
1.What is the subject of this passage?
A.The reasons for brickmaking in Jamestown.
B.The cause of the failure of Jamestown.
C.The law of the Virginia colonists.
D.The problems of the early American colonies.
2.In the first half of the 1600 s, most buildings in Jamestown were probably made of.
A. earth B. stone C. wood D. brick
3.It can be inferred from the passage that Jamestown was established on.
A.a rocky peninsula with a small forested area
B.a barren peninsula near other towns
C.an uninhabitable peninsula with few natural resources
D.a wooded peninsula with a clay soil
4.It can be inferred from the passage that settlers who built with bricks in the 1660 s were.
A.planning to return to England
B.obeying the laws
C.not concerned about durability
D.interested in larger residences
5.According to the passage,what eventually happened to Jamestown?
A.It was practically destroyed.
B.It became a model city.
C.It remained the seat of government.
D.It was almost completed.
本文是一篇议论文,讨论砖在17世纪下半叶对弗吉尼亚州的詹姆斯敦这一殖民地的形成和发展所起的重要的作用。第1段说明砖的使用是出于各种实际需要,主题句是第2句。第2段提到了使用砖在思想意识方面的理由。题1:针对主题,A对。题2:针对细节题推理,C对,根据是第1段第3句:“开始,森林能够提供足够的木材……”。题3:针对细节题推理,D对,根据是第1段最后几句的论述。题4:针对细节题推理,B对,根据是第2段第4句:《弗吉尼亚城市法案》禁止使用木头作为建筑材料,而必须使用砖。题5:针对细节,A对,根据短文最后的论述:到了1699年,詹姆斯敦几乎成了一堆瓦砾。
例文2
The American Revolution was not a revolution in the sense of a radical or total change. It was not sudden and violent overturning of the political and social framework, such as later occurred in France and Russia, when both were already independent nations. Significant changes were ushered in, but they were no breathtaking. What happened was accelerated evolution rather than outright revolution. During the conflict itself people went on working and praying, marrying and playing. Most of them were not seriously disturbed by the actual fighting, and many of the more isolated communities scarcely knew that a war was on.
America s War of Independence heralded the birth of three modern nations. One was Canada, which received its first large influx of English-speaking population from thousands of loyalists who fled there frog the United States. Another was Australia, which became a penal colony now that America was no longer available for prisoners and debtors. The third newcomer—the United States—based itself squarely on republican principles.
Yet even the political overturn was not so revolutionary as one might suppose. In some states, notably Connecticut and Rhode Island, the war largely ratified a colonial selfrule already existing. British officials, everywhere ousted, were replaced by a homegrown governing class, which promptly sought a local substitute for King and Parliament.
1.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A.The United States: An Isolated Community
B.Breathtaking Events During the American Revolution
C.Canada and the American War of Independence
D.The American Revolution: Evolution, Not Revolution
2.In the first paragraph, what does the author suggest about the French and Russian revolutions?
A.They were explosive and abrupt.
B.They were ineffective.
C.They involved only those people living in urban areas.
D.They led to the release of all political prisoners.
3.In the fifth sentence of the first paragraph, what does the author mean by “ple went on working and praying, marrying and playing”?
A.More people got married than divorced.
B.The war created new jobs.
C.Life went on as usual.
D.People had more than enough leisure time.
4.In the second paragraph, the author states that the colonies struggle for selfgovernment preceded the creation of all of the following countries EXCEPT.
A.Canada B.the United States
C.Australia D.the United Kingdom
5.It can be inferred from the passage that the loyalists who escaped to Canada were.
A.Russian B.French
C.British D.Australian
6.What will the paragraph following the passage most probably discuss?
A.The transport of prisoners to Australia.
B.The creation of new state governments.
C.Events leading up to the American Revolution.
D.How Canada and the United States became friends.
这是一篇关于美国革命的说明文。题1:针对主题,D对,对应部分是第1段的第4句,即主题句。题2:针对细节,A对,对应部分是第1段第2句中的a sudden and violent overturning of political...,sudden与abrupt同义,explosive相当于文中的violent 。题3:C对。美国革命不同于暴力革命,它把重大的变革逐渐引进到社会生活中,没有异常的反应(Significant changes were ushered in,but they were not breathtaking),人们像往常那样生活:去公司、上教堂、恋爱结婚、嬉戏娱乐。至于A、B、D项,文中均未提及。题4:D对,对应部分是第2段第1句,preceded(在……之前)与文中heralded(预示……的来临)意义相近。题5:推论题,C对,对应部分是第2段第1句。从Englishspeaking推论,他们既不是俄罗斯人,也不是法兰西人;另一方面,从美国的人口状况看,其中大部分是英国移民,而其中效忠英国殖民统治的loyalists深受不列颠传统的君主教育的影响,自然就是不列颠人(British)。题6:B对。解这类题可从两方面着手:一是看全文主题,二是看最后一段的内容。全文的主题是“是一场剧烈的政治变革”。围绕这个主题,第1段讨论美国革命缓进的特征;第2段讨论美国革命对加拿大和澳大利亚的影响;第3段讨论独立战争结束后政权的更迭。这一段的最后一句指出,当各地的英国官员被驱逐以后,取而代之的便是当地的统治阶级,它迅速在当地寻求一种替代国王和议会的政府。在意义结构上,这一个句子可以看作承接下一段的过渡句,读者不禁要问:这将是一种什么样的政府呢?
例文3
“re more than halfway now;it s only two miles farther to the tavern,”said the driver.
“ glad of that!” answered the stranger, in a more sympathetic mood. He meant to say more but the east wind blew clear down a man s throat if he tried to speak. The girl s voice was something quite charming, however, and presently he spoke again.
“ don t feel the cold so much at twenty below zero out in the Western Country. There s none of this damp chill,” he said, and then it seemed as if he had blamed the uncomplaining young driver. She had not even said that it was a disagreeable day, and he began to be conscious of a warm hopefulness of spirit, and a sense of pleasant adventure under all the woolen shawls.
“ ll have a cold drive going back,” he said anxiously, and put up his hand for the twentieth time to see if his coatcollar were as close to the back of his neck as possible. He had wished a dozen times for the warm old hunting rig in which he had many a day confronted the worst of weather in the Northwest.
“hall not have to go back!” exclaimed the girl, with eager pleasantness. “ on my way home now.I drove over early just to meet you at the train. We had word that someone was coming to the tavern.”
1.How far was the drive from the train to the tavern?
A.One mile. B.Two miles.
C.A little over four miles. D.Less than four miles.
2.The driver was.
A.an old man B.a girl
C.a stranger D.another one
3.From the passage we gather that the two speakers are in.
A.the West B.the East
C.the Northwest D.the South
4.According to the stranger, in the West the winters are.
A.dry and cold B.humid and cold
C.warmer than in the East D.temperate
5.The driver.
A.had to return to the train station after leaving the stranger at the tavern
B.was going home after leaving the stranger at the tavern
C.lived at the tavern
D.was going away on the train
这是一篇记叙文,描述人物旅途中的情况。全文无主题句。请注意人物的变换和指代,并根据谈话的内容进行推论答题。题1:针对细节,C对,对应部分是第1句:“在已经走了一半多的路程,还有两英里就可以到客栈了。”题2:针对细节,B对。根据人物的转换及谈话的内容,我们知道谈话者是一男一女;根据第2句中的the uncomplaining young driver和第3句中的She had not...,可以判断司机是一位年轻的女性。题3:B对。根据第3段第1句,可以推知谈话者不在西部,所以A错;根据第4段最后一句,可以推知那位男士曾在西北部呆过,现在已离开了那儿,所以C不对;另外,根据常识,知道美国南方不会冷到零下20度,所以D也错。题4:A对。根据第3段第2句中的There s none of this damp chill,反过来说西部的冬天是又干又冷。humid通常跟hot联系在一起,出现在夏天,所以B不正确;文中没有将东、西两部地区的寒冷作比较,第3段第1句只说在零下20度时在东部使人感到更冷,所以C不对;文中没有提到西部冬季气候温和,所以D也不对。题5:C对,根据是最后一段女驾车人的话。
例文4
In 1905 Albert Einstein,a young European theorist and mathematician,swept many previus assumptions away with his “cial Theory of Relativity” (followed in 1916 by his “eral Theory”). An international sensation occurred among scientists that by the 1920 s spread to the general educated population, producing an outpouring of startled and fascinated editorials, popular articles, and scholarly books. Einstein began first by making famous a hitherto little noted experiment, conducted in Ohio in 1887 by Albert A. Michelson and Edward W. Morely, that proved that ether did not exist. Physicists were shocked, for they had built all their theories about light, energy, and other radiation on the assumption that they were transmitted through the universe by ether much as water transmits waves. Michelson and Morely proved something else as well: that the speed of light is a constant 186 000 miles per second whether the person measuring its speed is moving toward the light source or away from it. How could this be?
1.One of the assumptions swept away by Einstein was that.
A.ether did not exist
B.light was transmitted through the universe by ether
C.water transmits waves through the ocean
D.the speed of light is not constant
2.Michelson and Morely s work.
A.contradicted Einstein s work
B.followed Einstein s work
C.stimulated Einstein to invalidate their results
D.was consistent with Einstein s work
3.The reason that the author asks “ could this be?” is that.
A.it is difficult to measure the speed of light
B.the speed of light is incredibly fast
C.it isn t easy to understand how the speed of light can be constant
D.it is very difficult to understand how anyone could move fast enough to measure the speed of light
4.Michelson and Morely s experiment was.
A.well known before 1905
B.not accepted until 1906
C.not generally appreciated until 1905
D.none of the above
5.In the paragraph following this one, the author would probably.
A.explain how Einstein resolved the apparent contradiction regarding the measurement of the speed of light
B.go on to cite more of the work of Michelson and Morely which Einstein made famous
C.enumerate the editorials, articles, and books influenced by Einstein s work
D.begin a lengthy exposition of the differences between Einstein s special and general theories of relativity
这是一篇记叙文,描述了爱因斯坦“”的传播过程及造成的影响。注意文中“和“的关系。题1:1887年,在爱因斯坦倡导下由两位科学家具体进行的实验,证实了“存在”,这使科学家们大为震惊,因为这跟他们学说的依据大相径庭。由此可推知,B正确。题2:既然两位科学家进行的实验是由爱因斯坦making famous的,因此可推知,D正确。题3:这个问题表示作者对实验结果持怀疑态度,所以C正确。题4:从文中可以推断,尽管实验早在1887年就进行了,直到1905年爱因斯坦发表了“对论”后,才扫除了许多从前错误的假设,实验结果才基本上被人们认可,所以C正确。题5:根据短文末尾的叙述,关于测量光速的实验结果令人费解。从逻辑上讲,应给予解释或进一步证明;从结构上讲,How could this be?是承接下一段的过渡句,下面一段必然是如何解决这一矛盾,所以A正确。
例文5
It was 1975, in Broach, a dusty, sleepy town in Gujarat, where my husband was the district collector. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi s visit was the talk of the town.
My husband was busy with the logistics and security arrangements. A friend, who, as an aide to the governor, was familiar with Mrs. Gandhi s schedules, dropped in for lunch.
Inevitably, the conversation turned to Mrs. Gandhi s visit, her personality, her likes and dislikes. We wondered if she was fond of reading. “yes,” he said, “ always read before turning in.” “ s keep a couple of books on her bedside table,” my husband said. We chose Dag Hammarskjld s Markings, Will Durant s Pleasures of Philosophy and a book of poems from our bookshelf.
The visit was over before we realized it. I saw Mrs. Gandhi from afar, boarding the helicopter and flying away to other places and promises. My husband heaved a sigh of relief,the anticipation and the excitement were over. Our books were returned to us by the guest house staff.
Later, as I was putting the books away, a piece of paper fluttered down. It was a sheet from a note pad. On it were penned in Mrs. Gandhi s own hand these lines:
“ant to thank whoever has selected these books. I had read Markings but not the others and enjoyed them. A Chapterin Will Durant s book was specially useful as I have to speak on women in connection with the International Women s Year.”
That was all. The note was unsigned. It is still with me. Unsigned, it may be of no particular value, but to me it is a precious symbol of graciousness.
1.Which of the following deions may fit in with the town mentioned in the article?
A.It was clean and busy.
B.It was sparsely populated.
C.It was full of people with gracious thoughts.
D.It was not busy and, in fact, lacked vigor.
2.Prime Minister Gandhi had a habit of reading for a while before she.
A.went to bed at night
B.left her office
C.became the Prime Minister
D.boarded her plane
3.The person who is telling this story seems to.
A.have great respect for Indira Gandhi
B.be familiar with Gandhi s life
C.be complaining about the unsigned note
D.share the same likes and dislikes with Indira Gandhi
4.It can be inferred from the short article that Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
A.was very strict with the officials of the town
B.was not only polite but also very nice
C.expressed her deep sympathy for the people of Broach
D.felt surprised at finding those books she had been looking for some time
这是一篇记叙文,作者是印度一位地方行政官员的夫人,文章追述了印度已故总理英迪拉·甘地夫人1975年视察古吉拉特一个城镇时发生的一件小事。题1:D对,对应部分是第1段第1句中的sleepy town,安静但缺乏生气的小城镇。题2:A对,对应部分是第3段第3句:she always read before turning in.turn in意为“寝”。题3:根据第3段第2句,作者不知道甘地夫人是否喜欢读书,可见作者不熟悉她的生活起居,B不对;根据最后一段作者仍珍藏这张未署名的便条,可见C不正确;D的陈述文中未提及;从文章的最后一段可知,作者至今仍保留着甘地夫人这张便条,并把它看成是a precious symbol of graciousness,足见作者对她的崇敬心情,因此,A是正确答案。题4:从甘地夫人看过书后留便条对不知名的供书者致谢一事可以看出,她虽然身居总理要职,但对待他人依然是和蔼可亲,礼仪周到,因此B正确。练习
At the battle of Gettysburg, General George G. Meade, who succeeded General Hooker as commander of the Army of the Potomac, threw back Lee s attacks and hurt the Confederate Army badly. Meade had fought a skillful defensive battle, but he was satisfied with his victory as it was. He was content to see Lee leave his front, and his principal concern was to “d” Lee back over the Potomac. Like other Federal generals, he lacked the killer instinct, which all the great battle captains have had, to finish off the enemy. After the engagement was issued a congratulatory order to his troops in which he praised them for having driven the enemy from our soil. After all, this was a civil war! When Lincoln read the order, he exclaimed in anguish, “God! Is that all?”
1.The implication of the paragraph is that Meade.
A.was totally incompetent
B.was ruthless
C.should have “ished off”the enemy
D.was wellloved by his men
It is true that as a social organization moves from the simple to the complex, so does the organization through which it educates its children. Growth and change are vital if education is to meet new needs and demands. In a very simple social order, it may suffice to have the parents carry on the education of their children. However, as will be shown later in more detail, such a method may become entirely untenable, and special individuals are entrusted with the task. These may be hired privately first, but soon the social group—the church, village, and the like—will be responsible for education.Eventually, special training is required for those who do the teaching, and an agency to control this training is needed. Thus the influence of the local government unit, such as the town and township ...
2.The writer would probably argue for.
A.more parental influence in education
B.an educational system which takes social complexity into account
C.strict state control of education
D.more special training for teachers
By adopting a few simple techniques, parents who read to their children can substantially increase their children s language development. It s surprising, but true. How parents talk to their children makes a big difference in the children s language development. If a parent encourages the child to actively respond what the parent is reading, the child s language skills increase.
A study was done with two to threeyearold children and their parents.Half of the thirty children participated in the experimental study; the other half acted as the control group. In the experimental group the parents were given a twohour training session in which they were taught to ask openended questions rather than yes/no questions. For example, the parent should ask, “t is the doggie doing?” rather than “the doggie running away?” Experimental parents were also instructed in how to expand on their children s answers, how to suggest alternative possibilities and how to praise correct answers.
At the beginning of the study, the children did not differ on measures of language development, but at the end of one month, the children in the experimental group tested 5.5 months ahead of the control group on a test of verbal expression and vocabulary. Nine months later, the children in the experimental group still showed an advance of 6 months over the children in the control group.
3.Which of the following can be inferred from this passage?
A.Children who talk a lot are more intelligent.
B.Parents who listen to their children can teach them more.
C.Active children should read more.
D.Verbal ability can easily be improved.
4.What conclusion is best supported by this passage?
A.Parents should be trained to read to their children.
B.The more children read, the more intelligent they become.
C.Children s language skills increase when they are required to respond actively.
D.Children who read actively act six months older.
To these indirect presumptions that our sensations, following the mutations of our capacity for feeling, are always undergoing an essential change, must be added another presumption, based on what must happen in the brain. Every sensation corresponds to some cerebral action. For an identical sensation to recur it would have to occur the second time in an unmodified brain. But as this, strictly speaking, is a physiological impossibility, so is an unmodified feeling an impossibility, for to every brainmodification, however small, we suppose that there must correspond a change of equal amount in the consciousness which the brain subserves.
But if the assumption of “ple sensations” recurring in immutable shape is so easily shown to be baseless, how much more baseless is the assumption of immutability in the larger masses of our thought!
For it is obvious that our state of mind is never precisely the same. Every thought we have of a given fact is, strictly speaking, unique, and only bears some kind of resemblance to our other thoughts of the same fact. When the identical fact recurs, we must think of it in a fresh manner, see it under a somewhat different angle, apprehend it in different relations from those in which it last appeared. And the thought by which we recognize it is the thought of it in those relations, a thought suffused with the consciousness of all that dim context. Often we are ourselves struck at the strange differences in our successive views of the same thing. We wonder how we ever could have opined as we did last month about a certain matter. We have outgrown the possibility of that state of mind, we know not how. From one year to another we see things in new lights. What was unreal has grown real, and what was exciting is insipid. The friends we used to care the world for are shrunken to shadows; the women once so divine, the stars, the woods, and the waters, how now so dull and common!The young girls that brought an aura of infinity, at present hardly distinguishable existences; the pictures so empty; and as for the books, what was there to become so mysteriously significant in Goethe, or in John Milton so full of weight? Instead of all this, more zestful than ever is the work—the work and the fuller and deeper import of common duties and of common goods.
5.We can infer that the writer is.
A.friendless
B.not a young man
C.dismayed by the changeability of feelings and thoughts
D.depressed by his findings
The Department s responsibilities include fostering the wisest use of the Nation s land and water resources,protecting our fish and wildlife,preserving the environmental and cultural values of our national parks and historic sites,and providing for the enjoyment of life through outdoor recreation.
6.In this passage,the writer s opinion of the functions of the Department is.
A.approving B.ambiguous
C.responsibleD.valuable
The good friends, Lionel and Ulysses, walked toward the public library. A block before them a funeral procession emerged from the First Presbyterian Church. Pallbearers carried a plain casket to an old Packard hearse. Following the casket the two boys saw a handful of mourners.
“e on, Ulysses,” Lionel said. “s a funeral! Somebody s dead.”They ran,Lionel holding Ulysses by the hand, and very soon they were at the center of everything.
“t s the casket,” Lionel whispered. “ebody s dead in there. I wish I knew who it was. See the flowers. They give them flowers when they die. See them crying. Those are the people who knew him.”
Lionel turned to a man who wasn t very busy crying. The man had just blown his nose and touched his handkerchief to the comers of his eyes.
“ s dead?” Lionel asked the man.
“s poor little Johnny Merryweather, the hunchback,” the man said.
Lionel turned to Ulysses. “s poor little Johnny Merryweather, the hunchback,”Lionel said.
“enty years old,” the man said.
“enty years old,” Lionel said to Ulysses.
“d popcorn on the corner of...”Lionel stopped suddenly and looked at the man. He almost shouted.
“ mean the popcorn man?” Lionel said.
” the man said. “nny Merryweather—gone to his rest.”
“new him!” Lionel shouted. “ought popcorn from him many times! Did he die?”
” the man said, “died peacefully. Died in his sleep. Gone to his Maker.”
“new Johnny Merryweamer!” Lionel said, almost crying. “idn t know his name was Johnny Merryweather, but I knew him.”
Lionel turned to Ulysses and put his arm around his friend. “s Johnny.” he almost wept. “nny Merryweather, gone to his Maker. One of my best friends gone to his rest.”
7.How would you describe the mood or tone of this selection?
A.Seriocomic.
B.Bitter and depressing.
C.Nobly tragic.
D.Romantic.
I am always amazed when I hear people saying that sport creates goodwill between the nations, and that if only the common people of the world could meet one another at football or cricket, they would have no inclination to meet on the battlefield. Even if one didn t know from concrete examples (the 1936 Olympic Games, for instance) that international sporting contests lead to origins of hatred, one could deduce it from general principles.
Nearly all the sports practiced nowadays are competitive. You play to win, and the game has little meaning unless you do your utmost to win. On the village green, where you pick up sides and no feeling of local patriotism is involved, it is possible to play simply for the fun and exercise; but as soon as the question of prestige arises, as soon as you feel that you and some larger unit will be disgraced if you lose, the most savage combative instincts are aroused. Anyone who has played even in a school football match knows this. At the international level sport is frankly mimic warfare. But the significant thing is not the behavior of the players but the attitude of the spectators, and, behind the spectators, of the nations who work themselves into furies over these absurd contests, and seriously believe—at any rate for short periods—that running, jumping and kicking a ball are tests of national virtue.
8.Which of the following best represents the writer s view?
A.He considers it is definitely impossible that sport can create goodwill between nations and avoid wars.
B.He thinks it is funny to have such a opinion that sport can build up a peaceful world.
C.He laughs at this absurd opinion.
D.He treats it seriously.
Some people argue that the pressures on international sportsmen and sportswomen kill the essential sport: the pursuit of personal excellence. Children kick a football around for fun. When they get older and play for local school teams, they become competitive but they still enjoy playing. The individual representing his country cannot afford to think about enjoying himself; he has to think only about winning. He is responsible for an entire nation s hopes, dreams and reputation.
A good example is the football World Cup. Football is the world s most important sport. It is even more important now that the United States is seriously taking it up. Winning the World Cup is perhaps the summit of international sporting success. Mention—Argentina—to someone and the chances are that he ll think of football. In a sense, winning the World Cup “s Argentina on the map”.
Sports fans and supporters get quite irrational about the World Cup. People in England felt that their country was somehow important after they won in 1966. Last year thousands of Scots sold their cars, and even their houses, and spent all their money traveling to Argentina, where the finals were played.
So, am I arguing that international competition kills the idea of sport? Certainly not! Do the Argentineans really believe that because eleven of their men proved the most skilful at football, their nation is in every way better than all others? Not really. But it s nice to know that you won, and that in one way at least your country is best.
9.What is the author s attitude towards international games?
A.Nations that meet on a football field are unlikely to meet on a battlefield.
B.Nations that win the football World Cup are regarded as best in all aspects.
C.Nations that win in international games prove best on the sports field at least.
D.Nations that give much attention to international competitions are worldfamous in many ways.
Rhythm in literature is a more or less regular occurrence of certain elements of writing: a word, a phrase, an idea, a pause, a sound, or a grammatical construction. We are also accustomed to this recurrence in the alternate heavy and light beats in music. Children love to beat on toy drums or empty boxes. They stamp their feet and chant nursery rhymes or nonsense syllables, not unlike primitive dancers. As children grow older, they are taught to restrain their responses to rhythm, but our love of rhythm remains. We live in rhythms; in fact we are governed by rhythms.
Physiologically, we are rhythmical. We must eat, sleep, breathe, and play regularly to maintain good health. Emotionally we are rhythmical, too, for psychologists say that all of us feel alternate periods of relative depression and exhilaration. Intellectually we are also rhythmical, for we must have periods of relaxation following periods of concentration. It naturally follows then that rhythm, a fundamental aspect of our lives, must be a part of any good literary work—whether poetry or prose.
10.What would the next paragraph probably discuss?
A.How to write poetry.
B.How to understand rhythm in music.
C.The kinds of rhythm found in good literature.
D.The importance of rhythm in planning our lives.
Discovered a mere one hundred fifty years ago and manufactured commercially just half that long, aluminum today ranks behind only iron and steel among metals serving mankind. The key to its popularity is its incredible versatility. The same metal that makes kitchen foil serves as armor for battlefield tanks. The material of lawn chairs and baseball bats also forms the vital parts of air and space vehicles—most their skeletons, their skins, even the rivets that bind them together.
Behind aluminum s versatility lie properties so diverse that they almost seem to belong to several different metals. For example, in its pure form, aluminum is soft enough to whittle. Yet its alloys can possess the strength of steel, with only a third of its weight. Thus, when Alexander Colder designed one of his last mobiles—a soaring creation eighty feet long—his choice of aluminum over steel cut two tons from its weight. Aluminum also assures the masterpiece virtual immortality. The instant the metal is exposed to air, its surface acquires a transparent film that seals the interior against further corrosion.
11.It can be inferred from the passage that aluminum has been marketed foryears.
A.40B.75C.80D.150
12.It can be inferred that a steel object weighing three tons would weighton (s) if it were made of aluminum.
A.one B.three C.six D.nine
参考答案
1.C2.B3.D4.C5.B
6.A7.A8.B9.C10.C11.B12.A第四节词汇题
词汇题是各级英语考试阅读理解试题的常见题型,所占比重比较大。这类题目主要是考查考生的词汇量,以及根据上下文给予的各种线索猜测、确定所给词语含义的能力。词汇题的主要内容表现为:①测试常见词或短语在具体语境中的含义。做这种词汇题时,考生应熟记常见词语的各种含义,仔细分析上下文的具体含义。一般而言,这种词汇题常常考查词语的第二、三含义,考生应注意识别。②考查较不常见或比较生僻的词语的含义。遇到这类题目时,考生不必惊慌,不妨通过分析语法、逻辑以及词汇构成等线索,并结合上下文的含义来确定这些词语的含义。一般而言,要提高词汇题的解题速度和准确率,首先考生应扩大阅读量,结合课文记单词和短语,不要一味孤立地记忆。实践证明,孤立地记单词这种方法并不能有效地扩大词汇量。现在许多考生总是强调每天背诵并记住多少单词,但由于没有具体的语境很快就将所记的单词忘记。因而,条件允许的情况下考生不妨仔细阅读一套阅读教材,尽量做到熟读其中相当一部分文章,并结合文章记单词,同时将单词放在短语或语法结构中去记忆。如:记名词时,可结合介词搭配来记,记动词时可结合动词短语或动词的语法作用来记。其次,针对英语词汇不易记住这一特点,考生可采用归纳比较的方法来记忆,以有效地提高短语记忆的效率。研究表明,当无机的、彼此毫不相关的学习内容转化为有机的、彼此相关的学习内容时,学习过程变得生动活泼,学习效率倍增。在迎考复习过程中,考生可根据语义,语法搭配以及词形对英语词语进行归纳比较,把原来大脑中关于词语的比较分散的内容系统地网罗起来,以便于记忆。
一、这类题型的常见表达方式
Which of the following is closest in meaning to...?
The term“”in paragraph...can be best replaced by...
What s the meaning of “”in line...of paragraph...?
As used in line...,the word“”refers to.
The word/phrase stands for.
The word/phrase probably refers to.
By saying“”the author means.
二、解题方式
阅读材料是由一个一个的词语构成的。每个词都是不可或缺的有机整体的一部分,都和前后的词句之间存在着相互制约的关系。由此,考生可以利用上下文的特定语境推断生词的意思。这种方法不仅可以用来确定生词词义,还可以检验通过词素构词法等方法猜测的词义。
在运用这一方法的时候,主要注意三个方面:一要把上下文整句或整段的全体作为背景来推测;二要结合构词法及词性来推测;三要把握语法结构及标点符号与词汇之间带有标志性的关系。
按照上下文提供的线索,推测词义的方法主要有:
1.利用文中的定义或解释
如果生词的上下文中有直接作为定义或者间接的解释性语句,只要理解了定义句本身或者对解释性的词句进行简单推断即可找出词的意义,具体有以下三种情况。
(1)直接的定义句
定义句的主要标志是其谓语动词,多用be,mean,refer to,be considered to be,be called,deal with,be known as,represent等。如:
Anthropology is the scientific study of man.
从后面定义解释的“类的专门研究”即可知道Anthropology的意思是“”。
(2)同位语解释
其主要标志是前面经常有逗号或namely,i.e.,in other words,say,that is (or that is to say),or rather等。如:
My uncle was a drifter,an incorrigible wander who never could stay in one place.
要推测drifter的意思,只要看到“never could stay in one place”即可知道是“;浪子”。
(3)解释性的词语(包括定语从句)
其主要标志是用破折号、冒号等强调出来,有时候是加括号。如:
Origami—Japanese paper folding—is family fun in the whole country.
origami是日语音译,意即破折号中的英语解释——“纸”。
People who eat too much spicy food are liable to suffer from dyspepsia—a condition commonly called indigestion.
由后面的解释可以知道dyspepsia意即“良”。
2.根据上下文意思,结合常识推断
主要是联系日常生活中的有关情景,根据常识分析出合理的场景因素。如:
The snake slithered through the grass.
这里提到了snake,而slither又是一个动词,只要回忆一下蛇行动的样子就能猜到slither可以译为“等意思。所以考生在日常生活中要养成细心观察的习惯。
3.利用对比关系
又称利用反义关系。在同一个句子或段落中,如果对两个事物进行意思相反的描述,就可以根据一方的意思来推断另一方中与其相反的词义,主要标志性词语有not,but,however等。例如:
In spite of his aged appearance,his movements are spirited as a youngman s.
与衰老的相貌恰恰相反,那么““必须不是步履蹒跚,而是spirited,即“沛”的。
4.利用比较关系
和对比关系相反,比较关系是根据上下文对两个类似事物或方面的比较来推测词义,常见的标志词语有as,the same,just as,like等等。例如:
The Asian monkey like other apes,is specially adapted for life in trees.
如果不认识ape,但认识monkey,这里用like把ape和monkey进行比较,还用了一个other说明monkey可能是ape的一种,那么ape也就是“的意思了。
5.利用同位替代关系
英语为了避免重复,常常在上下文中两个意思重复的词语中找另外一个相似的词来替代,这就给考生提供了同位替代猜测词义的条件。实际上也就是利用熟悉的词语,根据语言环境在判定了同位替代关系后来置换那个与它意思相同或相近的生词。如:
Many famous scientists are trying to understand the problems modern people suffer from,but never these eminent scholars are confused about what causes them.
这个句子里,为了避免重复,作者干脆用“se eminent scholars”这个词组替换了同义的“y famous scientists”,那么既然scholars和scientists同义,eminent也就和famous同义,即为“”。
6.利用上下文的逻辑关系
这是词义推测中最常见的一种情况,因为英语行文有严密的逻辑性,可以根据上下文中启承转合的关系推断文义,并体会猜测词义。此外,文章都要符合事理,按照通常事物的发展规律来推测词义,也是非常重要的方法。
(1)根据文义逻辑推测
行文逻辑关系主要有转折、层进、解释、总结等,由此推测生词所在句中大义,进而找出生词的意思。例如:
The criminal was to be killed at dawn;but he petitioned the king to save him and his request was granted.
这是一个前后意思转折的并列句,前面讲犯人就要被处死了,后面意思一转,那么他肯定死不了了,国王同意了他的要求,肯定是赦免,于是petition应是“。
(2)根据常规逻辑推测
常规逻辑就是日常生活中会重复发生的事情,要求考生敏锐地观察体验生活。例如:
The ruler had been so crude and dishonest that after revolution he was banished.A few members of the Senate opposed the decision,but the majority voted that the ruler should leave the country forever.
从上下文中知道第二句中的the decision指代的是he was banished,而有些人反对这个决定——国王必须永远离开这个国家,于是推测banish与之同义,即“驱逐”之义。
例文1
Road politeness is not only good manners, but good sense too. It takes the most coolheaded and goodtempered of drivers to resist the temptation to revenge when subjected to uncivilized behavior. On the other hand, a little politeness goes a long way towards relieving the tensions of motoring. A friendly nod or a wave of acknowledgment in response to an act of politeness helps to create an atmosphere of goodwill and tolerance so necessary in modern traffic conditions. But such acknowledgments of politeness are all too rare today. Many drivers nowadays don t even seem able to recognize politeness when they see it.
By “d sense”, the writer means.
A.the driver s ability to understand and react reasonably
B.the driver s prompt response to difficult and severe conditions
C.the driver s tolerance of rude or even savage regulations
D.the driver s acknowledgment of politeness and regulations
在这一段里,我们不能根据平时对good sense的理解来对待本文,整句话的意思是指行路礼貌不仅是好的举止,也是good sense。它需要司机头脑清醒、脾气好,并在受到别人不文明对待时能保持冷静,不会采取抵制报复行为。文中第二句实际上是对good sense的进一步解释,从中我们可以看出good sense在这篇文章中指的就是司机保持清醒头脑,遇事要冷静,不能轻易发火。coolheaded和goodtempered以及resist...revenge(不报复人)都紧扣选择项A中的understand and react reasonably,故A为正确答案。
例文2
Martha Graham founded the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. Her classes were used as a laboratory for her stage works, and her stage works in turn were a means for attracting new pupils to her schoola sort of selfwinding process, with herself as the key to the development.
In line 4 the author uses the phrase “ort of selfwinding process” to illustrate .
A.the new steps Graham developed for dance
B.the relationship between Graham s performances and her school
C.the discipline demanded in Graham s school
D.the physical endurance of Graham s dancers
恐怕许多考生见到此题会无所适从,最后胡乱猜个答案。可大多数却忘记了标点符号的特殊作用,本句话中的破折号所带来的信息超过句中任何一个单词。它告诉我们,破折号后面的成分是对前面的解释说明。这样,只要弄清前面成分的含义,后面的问题就会迎刃而解。原文大意是“办了……舞蹈学校,她的课堂成了自己舞台作品的实验室,反过来(in turn),她的舞台作品又成了吸引新生入校的手段。”这充分说明了舞台作品(正式演出)和学校间相得益彰的关系,正如破折号所解释的那样,是一种“进”的过程,而她自己是整个发展过程的关键(key)。四个选项中,A、C、D都和破折号前的成分风马牛不相及,故只有B为正确答案。
例文3
The debate was launched by the Government, which invited anyone with an opinion of the BBCincluding ordinary listeners and viewersto say what was good or bad about the Corporation, and even whether they thought it was worth deeping. The reason for its inquiry is that the BBC s royal charter runs out in 1996 and it must decide whether to keep the organization as it is, or to make changes.
The BBC s “al charter” (Line 5) stands for .
A.the financial support from the royal family
B.the privileges granted by the Queen
C.a contract with the Queen
D.a unique relationship with the royal family
该题中的charter一词在大纲中只有一个词义“,显然在该句中这种释义不妥。句中的run out表示“,royal是“”。众所周知,英国是君主立宪国家,国王代表国家,royal就代表the Queen,charter在此为“”、“,因此royal charter就指“ontract with the Queen”(与女王签订的合同)。
例文4
Because a patent remains permanently public after it has terminated, the shelves of the library attached to the patent office contain details of literally millions of ideas that are free for anyone to use and, if older than half a century, sometimes even repatent. Indeed, patent experts often advise anyone wishing to avoid the high cost of conduction a search through live patents that the one sure way of avoiding violation of any other inventor s right is to plagiarize a dead patent. Likewise, because publication of an idea in any other form permanently invalidates further patents on that idea, it is traditionally safe to take ideas from other areas of print. Much modern technological advance is based on these presumptions of legal security.
The word “giarize” (line 7) most probably means .
A.steal and use B.give reward to
C.make public D.take and change
要判断plagiarize的正确含义,首先要了解该句在本段中的意义。在本段中,第二句在意义上与第一句和第三句相同,都是谈论利用不受专利权保护的发明设想或理论来重新获得新的发明专利。因此,通过上下文相关信息可以推断出plagiarize的同义词应是与之相并列的上句的“ of ideas that are free for anyone to use...”和下句的“ it is traditionally safe to take ideas from...”。故从相关信息中能猜出plagiarize是“盗用”,选择项A中所提供的steal and use是该题的正确答案。
例文5
If cities are to remain pleasant places to live in at all, however, it seems imperative, not only that communications in transport should be improved, but also that communication between human beings should be kept smooth and polite. All over cities, it seems that people are too tired and too rushed to be polite. Shop assistants won t bother to assist, taxi drivers growl at each other as they dash dangerously round corners, bus conductors pull the bell before their desperate passengers have had time to get on or off the bus, and so on. It seems to us that it is up to the young and strong to do their small part to stop such deterioration.
What is the possible meaning of the word “erioration” in the paragraph?
A.worsening of general situation
B.lowering of moral standards
C.declining of physical constitution
D.spreading of evil conduct
本段一开始,作者谈到:不仅交通状况,而且人际关系都亟待改善,其中出现了improve, smooth, polite等词。随后,作者又列举售货员、出租汽车司机及汽车售票员对顾客或乘客的不礼貌行为,并在最后一句话中用such deterioration来指代及概括上述不良表现,意在批评那些人道德水准下降,故B为正确答案。
例文6
The hot air balloon took off. It was as buoyant in the air as a cork(软木塞) in water.
The word “yant”in this sentence most probably means
A.able to be used
B.able to move from one place to another
C.able to float or rise to the surface
D.able to carry anything
我们知道,cork是软木塞或塑料塞,在水中肯定要浮上水面,因为水的浮力大。气球在空中就跟水中的软木塞一样能够飘起来,因为空气的浮力也很大。利用这种比较关系我们就不难猜出buoyant的词义,它是指“的、易浮的”,正确答案是C。 对照关系强调的是事物之间的区别和对立,用来表示的词语往往是反义词,需要考生运用语言知识和分析能力去领会相关信息之间存在的逻辑关系,利用语句中所使用的对比表达法得到某个单词或短语意义的线索。表示这类关系常见的词语有:unlike,but,however,while。
例文7
The male and female mosquito make an odd couple. The female is a vampire and lives on blood. The male is a vegetarian that sips nectar and plant juices. Females of different species choose different hosts on which to dine. Some feed exclusively on cattle, horses, birds, and other warmblooded creatures. Some favor coldblooded animals. Still others prefer man. While the female s menu varies, her bite remains the same. She drives her sharp, tubular snout through the skin, injects a fluid to deep the blood from clotting, and drinks her fill, which takes a minute or less. It is the fluid she injects that carries disease. After her blood meal, she rests while her eggs develop. She then looks for a moist or flooded place to lay them.
1. The word “pire” in this passage most nearly means .
A.a vegetarian
B.a coldblooded animal
C.an evil spirit that suck the blood
D.a kind of warm blooded creature
2. In this passage, the word “st” in the last line most probably means .
A.damp B.dryC.shiny D.dark
第一题中vampire的词义既可以根据重述部分lives on blood来猜测,又可以利用对比关系来推断。首先,段落一开始就阐明公蚊与母蚊形成鲜明对比,母蚊子是个vampire,以血度日;公蚊是个素食主义者,它只吸花蜜及植物汁。由此可见vampire是vegetarian的反义词,它们之间存在着对比的逻辑关系。故正确答案是C——吸血鬼。
第二题可以利用重述关系来解决。母蚊子吸完血休息后,要找地方产卵,moist是什么地方我们不知道;但它后面的重述部分flooded place为我们提供了线索。因而正确答案选择A项。
7.利用常识性知识
有些情况下,考生可以根据自己的切身经验和某方面的常识,判断出某个生词或词组在特定上、下文中的含义。
例文8
Tourists were surprised to see a woman driving a huge orange tractor down one of Rome s main avenues. Italy s political leaders and some of its male union chiefs are said to have been more puzzled to see that the tractor was followed by about 200 000 women in a parading procession that took more than three hours to snake through central Rome.
The expression “ke through central Rome” probably means “move ” .
A.quietly through central Rome
B.violently through central Rome
C.in a long winding line through central Rome
D.at a leisurely pace through central Rome
文中说:由20万名妇名组成的游行队伍跟在拖拉机后边,花了3个多小时才通过罗马市中心。关键是要抓住more than three hours,花这么长时间,那么行进方式一定有什么奇特的地方,否则作者不会强调时间的长短。另外,snake的原意是“两条线索结合起来不难判断出C(像蛇那样蜿蜒前进)为正确答案。
例文9
The fact that some naturally lefthanded children are forced into becoming righthanded may even result in levophobia. Sufferers from this rare condition find their hearts pound as if a heart attack were coming on as a result of their brains releasing adrenalin(肾上腺素) at the mere prospect of a leftoriented maneuver. They refuse to stand on the left side of an elevator, make lefthand turns when driving, sometimes even to look to the left. Psychologists believe levophobia will only disappear entirely when lefthanded children—a minority in all known society—are fully accepted.
The word “ophobia” in the reading means most nearly .
A.a look to the left
B.an irrational fear of the left
C.a problem caused by attitudes
D.heart attacks
全文谈论的是要想叫用左撇子做事的改用右手,会出现什么结果。抛开文章不看,只根据构词来识别levophobia,就不难找出答案。词根levo表示“左”,如:levo cardiogram(左心电图)或levogram; levorotation(左旋)。词根phobia表示fear, dislike(怕,厌恶),如:zoophobia(动物恐惧症);photophobia(怕光,畏光)等。把levophobia两部分的词意加在一起,就是“惧症”,选项B(一种对左的不合情理的恐惧)无疑与上述分析所得的意义相似,故为正确答案。 此外,我们还可以通过其他方法获得同一答案:文章一开始交代“些生来就惯用左手做事的孩子改用右手,可能会使它们产生一种‘levophobia ”,接下来谈这种少见病的患者……一想到左向活动(at the mere prospect of a lefthand maneuver)就会……,以至于乘电梯时,他们不肯站左边,驾驶车辆时,他们拒绝左拐弯,甚至refuse to look to the left。贯穿全文的中心都是与这种左侧恐惧症有关,这样,我们再根据四个选择项的意义就可以找出正确答案。
例文10
The American economic system is organized around a basically privateenterprise, marketoriented economy in which consumers largely determine what shall be produced by spending their money in the marketplace for those goods and services that they want most. Private businessmen, striving to make profits, produce these goods and services in competition with other businessmen; and the profit motive, operating under competitive pressures, largely determines how these goods and services are produced. Thus, in the American economic system it is the demand of individual consumers, coupled with the desire of businessmen to maximize profits and the desire of individuals to maximize their incomes, that together determine what shall be produced and how rescues are used to produce it.
In Line 9, “ desire of individuals to maximize their incomes” means .
A.Americans are never satisfied with their incomes
B.Americans tend to overstate their incomes
C.Americans want to have their incomes increased
D. Americans want to increase the purchasing power of their incomes
该题的正确选择关键在于理解maximize的maxi是前缀,表示“,特别长的”,如:maximum(极点;最大限度)。 从文章中我们知道maximize their incomes是指最大限度地或最有效地使用其收入;也就是用尽可能少的钱买尽可能多的商品,答案为D项。
三、扩展词汇量
(一)名词与介词的搭配
1.名词+about
complaint about 抱怨;
concern about 关心,照顾;
doubt about (of) 对……的怀疑;
discussion about (of,on) 讨论;
information about 有关……的信息;
opinion about (on) 对……意见;
2.名词+against;
complaint against 控诉;
protection against 防护;
caution against 提防;
spite against 怨恨;
insurance against 保险;
struggle against 与……斗争;
precaution against预防;
war against 对……的战争;
3.名词+for;
longing for 渴望;
ambition for 有……的抱负;
anxiety for 焦虑,担心;
passion for 对……偏好;
capacity for 做……的能力;
punishment for 因……而受罚;
regret for 因……的名声;
consideration for 考虑;
request for 对……要求,请求;
contempt for 对……藐视;
requirement for ……的要求,条件;
cure for 治……的良药/疗法;
responsibility for 对……责任;
excuse for ……的借口 ;
substitute for ……的替代品;
explanation for (of) 对……的解释;
sympathy for对……的同情;
fine for因……而罚款;
talent for 有……的天赋;
4.名词+from;
absence from缺席;
divorce from 与……离婚,脱离;
relief from 免除,解除;
retirement from 从……退休;
5.名词+in;
belief in 对……信仰,信任;
delight in 喜欢;
break in 强行闯入;插嘴,打断;
faith in 对……信任;
progress in 在……方面的进步;
decrease/fall/decline/drop in 在……方面的减少;
increase/rise in 在……方面的增加;
6.名词+into;
insight into 对……深刻理解,洞见;
inquiry into 对……的调查,询问;
research into 研究;
investigation into 对……的深入调查;
study into 对……的研究;
7.名词+of;
attack of 患……病;
impression of 对……的印象;
care of ( = in care of) 由……转变;
intention of ……的意图;
command of 对……精通,掌握 ;
lack of缺少;
doubt of对……怀疑;
neglect of 对……的疏忽;
the idea (thought) of 对……想法;
8.名词+on;
improvement on 对……的改进;
authority on ……方面的权威;
influence on 对……的影响;
comment on 对……发表评论;
judgement on 根据……的判断;
congratulation on依赖;
lecture on 有关……的讲座;
mercy (pity) on 怜悯;
emphasis on 对……强调;
pressure on 对……的压力;
impact on 影响;
reliance on 依赖;
(leave/make an)impression on 对……留下印象;
remark on 对……的评论;
9.名词+over;
advantage over 比……优越;
power over 对……的权力;
authority over 对(某人)的控制,管理;
preference over 对……更喜欢,先于……的选择;
choice over 先于……的选择,不选择……;
priority over 比……优先;
control over 对……的控制;
superiority over 较……优越,优于;
increase over 比……增加;
10.名词+to;
access to 接近,……的通路;
contribution to 对……的贡献;
accident to 发生于……的事故;
door to 通向……的门;
entrance/entry to 通向……的入口;
exception to ……的例外;
approach to ……的方法;
exposure to 接触,暴露于;
assent to 同意;
gratitude to 对……感激;
attitude to (toward)对……的态度;
indifference to 对……无动于衷;
blindness to 对……不知;
introduction to ……入门,介绍,引见;
clue to ……的线索;
key to ……的答案,……的关键;
monument to ……的纪念碑;
resistance to 抵制……;
ratio to 与……之比;
opposition to 反对;
right to ……的权力;
preface/foreword to ……的前言;
solution to ……的答案;
reply to 答复;
traitor to ……的叛徒,背叛……;
respond to 对……的回答,答复;对……响应,反应;(药物)有效;
11.名词+with;
acquaintance with 与……认识;
consultation with 与……协商;
alliance with 与……联盟;
conversation with 与……交谈;
bargain with 与……讨价还价;
correspondence with 与……通信;
chat with 与……闲谈;
familiarity with 与……熟悉;
coincidence with 与……的巧合;
harmony with 与……和谐;
collision with 与……相撞;
the matter with……有问题/麻烦;
connection with 与……相关;
patience with 对……耐心(二)动词与介词的搭配;
1.动词+about;
argue about 就……争论,辩论;
dispute about 就……进行争议;
bargain about 就……讨价还价;
inquire about 询问,打听;
debate about 就……辩论;
2.动词+after;
ask after 问安;
run after 追赶;
chase after 追逐;
see after 照顾,留意;
go after 设法得到,追求;
take after 长得像;
inquire after 问候;
name (sth./sb.) after 根据……命名;
look after 照料;
3.动词+O+as;
acknowledge sth./sb.as 承认……是;
express sth./sb.as 把……表达为;
choose sth./sb.as 作为……选取;
interpret sth./sb.as 把……解释为;
classify sth./sb.as 把……分作;
define sth./sb.as 把……定义为;
depict sth./sb.as 把描述为;
picture sth./sb.as 把……描述成;
elect sth./sb.as 把……选作;
refer to sth./sb.as 认出……是;
employ sth./sb.as 雇/用……来充当;
represent sth./sb.as 描绘,声称……为;
see sth./sb.as 把……视作;
view sth./sb.as 把……视作;
4.动词+at;
laugh at 嘲笑;
call at 访问(地);
drive (get) at 意旨,用意;
run at 攻击;
keep at 坚持;
5.动词+by;
come by 偶然遇见,弄到;
go by 依照;
cut by 削减,少了;
increase by 增加了……;
decrease by 减少了;
profit by 受益于……;
expand by 扩大了;
stand by 支持,信守;
fall/rise/drop by 下降/上升/下跌;
6.动词+for;
act for 代理;
send for ……人去叫;
account for 说明……的原因(用途等);占(比重);
stand for 代表;忍受;
strive for 为……而奋斗;
apply for 申请;
substitute for 替代;
arrange for sb. (to do sth. ) 安排sb.(做某事);
apply to sb.for sth. 向某人申请某事;
blame sb. for 因为……而责备;
care for 挂念;
charge money for 收……的费;
change/alter for the better/worse 好转/变坏;
consult a dictionary for a word 在字典上查词;
fall for 受……的骗,上……的当;
hope for (the best) (做最好的)希望;
depend/rely on sb.for sth.指望 sb.做sth.;
hunt for 猎求;
exchange A for B 用A交换B;
long for 渴望;
fine sb. for 因……而责罚sb.款;
make (head) for 朝……走去;
punish sb.for 因……而惩罚 sb.;
pass for 冒充;
scold sb.for sth.因……而骂sb.;
reach for 伸手拿;
substitute A for B 用A来替代B;
run for 竞选;
take sth. for ( granted ) 把……看作是(理所当然的);
search for 寻找;
7.动词+from;
benefit from 受益于;
derive from 产生于,起源于;
hear from sb.收到……的信;
prevent from 防止……做某事;
result from 产生于,起因于;
prohibit sb.from 禁止某人做某事;
keep from 克制,忍住,抑制;
protect sth./sb.from 保护sth./sb.不受……伤害;
profit from 从……谋利;
range from……to…… 从……到……不等;
remove sth./sb.from 把sth./sb.从……弄走;
refrain from 忍住不,戒除;
resign from 从……辞职,辞退(工作);
restrain sth./sb.from 阻止 sth./sb.做某事;
save sth./sb.from 把 sth./sb. 从……中救出来;
shelter from 躲避;
stem from 起源于;
separate sth./sb, from (把……)与……分离开;
vary from...to...(between...and...)因……而异,从……到……变动;
shelter sth./sb. from 掩护sth./sb. 免受……袭击;
dissuade sb.from 说服sb.不做;
shield sth./sb. from 遮挡sth./sb.以保护sth./sb.;
distinguish ……from 区别……与……;
8.动词+in,into;
coax sb.into 哄骗某人(做某事);
convert……into 把……改变成;
consist in 在于;
deceive sb.into 欺骗某人(做某事);
deal in 经营;
force sb.into 强迫某人(做某事);
engage in 从事,参加;
frighten sb.into 吓唬某人去(做某事);
indulge in 肆意从事,沉迷于;
insert……into 把……插入;
interfere in 干涉,插手;
lead……into 把……引入;
look into 调查;窥视;
mislead sb.into 误导……进入;
originate in 起源于;
persuade sb.into 说服某人(做某事);
participate in 参加;
pitch……into 把……扔/掷入……;
persist in 坚持;
shock sb.into 把……震惊得……;
reside in 存在于,归属于;
talk sb.into 说服某人(做某事);
run into 偶然遇见;碰撞;
trick sb.into 诱使某人(做某事);
turn into 把……变成;
9.动词+of;
approve of 赞成;
clear……of 清理掉……上的(某物);
avail of 利用;
cure sb.of 治愈sb.的(病);
boast of 夸耀;
deprive sb. of 缓解 sb.的……使sb. 没有减轻/缓解……;
complain of 抱怨;
complain of 由……组成(be composed/made up of);
free sb. of 使sb. 摆脱/消除……;
purify ……of 为……清除,通过纯化使……摆脱 ;
doubt of 怀疑;
relieve sb.of 使sb.解除/免除……;
inquire of 询问;
rid sb. of 使sb.摆脱rob sb.of抢走sb.(某物);
speak of 谈及;
accuse sb. of指控某人(犯有某过错);
strip sb. of 剥夺某人(某物);
assure sb.of 使某人确信……向某人保证……;
ask sth.of sb. 向某人恳求某事;
convince sb.of 使某人相信……;
beg sth.of sb. 向某人恳求某事 ;
inform sb.of 通知某人某事;
demand sth.of 向sb.要求索取sth.;
notify sb. of 通知某人某事;
expect sth. of 指望,期待某人做某事;
persuade sb.of 使某人相信……;
request sth.of 向某人要求/请求某事;
remind sb.of 使某人想起某事;
require sth.of sb. 需要某人(做)某事向某人要求某事;
tell sb.of 告诉某人某事;
want sth.of sb. 要某人(做)某事;
warn sb.of 警告某人(有某危险);
10.动词+on,upon;
attend on 侍候 ;
figure on 指望,打算;
bear (up) on 与……有关;
centre on (around) 集中于,以……为中心;
hit (up) on 意外发现;
come upon 突然发生;
pick on 批评,讥笑;
concentrate on 集中,专心于;
rely on 依靠;
count on 依赖,指望;
settle on 决定;停栖于……之上;
debate on 就……进行辩论;
tell on 影响,泄漏;
depend (up) on 依靠;
touch (up) on 谈到,涉及;
dawn (up) on 渐渐被理解;
dispute on 在……方面进行争辩;
base sth. on 把……建立在……之上;
dwell on 细想,详述;
consult sb.on 就……请教sb.;
exist on 靠……生存;
expend/spend stb.on 把sth.花去(做)某事上;
feed on 以……为主食;
impose sth. on sb. 把……强加在sb.上;
keep one s mind on 专心于;
keep an eye on 密切关注;
lay (one s) hands on 拿到,抓到;
11.动词+over;
dispute over 就/为……争辩;
quarrel over 为……争吵;
get over 复习;
run over 从……上辗过;浏览;
look over 查看,审阅;看一遍;
12.动词+through;
come through 成功,做完;经历……仍活着;
pull through 恢复,渡过(难关);
look through 翻阅;
get through 结束,完成;及格;
put through 使通过;
help sb through.渡过(难关);
see through 识破;负责sb.渡过(难关);
13.动词+to;
adapt to 适应于;
stick to 坚持;
add to 增加,增长;
submit to 屈从,服从,顺从;
adhere to 坚持;
succeed to 继承;
amount to 达到,等于;
switch to 转向;
appeal to 对……有吸引力;
apply to (向……);
yield to 向……屈服;
adapt oneself to 使自己适应;
adjust sth.(to sth.) 以使之适应;
cling to 粘着,缠着;
apply A to B 把A用之于B,把A敷于B;
attach A to B 把 A连接到B (be attached to);
conform to 遵守,与……保持一致;
commit sth.to 把……交给/托给;
confess to 承认;
contribute much/a lot to sth. 为……做出巨大贡献;
contribute to 有助于,对……作出贡献 ;
correspond to 符合;
credit sth.to sb. 把sth.归功于sb.;
extend to 延伸到;
devote sth. to 把……奉献于;
happen to sb. 某人遭遇到;
expose sth.to 使sth.暴露于/接触;
extend sth. to 使某物延伸到;
lead to导致;
leave sth.to sb. (be left to sb.) 把某物留给某人;
matter to sb. 对某人来说很重要;
object to 反对;
owe sth.to 欠……sth.应把某事归功于;
point to 指向,面指;
present sth. to sb. 把某物向某人引见;把某物给予某人;
refer to 指,参考;
resort A to 诉诸于,求助于;
relate A to B 使A与B相关;
see to 留心,注意;负责处理;
refer sb.to sth.让某人去参考sth.;
set to 开始大起来;
release sth. to 向……公布sth.;
reveal sth. to 把sth.透露给……;
transfer sb. to 把sb.调到……(工作);
shift sth. from……to…… 使sth.由……向……转变/过渡;
transmit sth. to 把sth.传送给;
14.动词+with;
lose contact with 与……失去联系;
associate with 与……交往;
acquaint sb. with sb. 认识/熟悉;
coincide with 与……巧合;
bother sb.with 用……来打搅sb.;
collide with 照……行事;
busy oneself with 使自己忙于;
comply with 照……行事;
charge sb. with 指控某人有……罪;
consult with sb. 与……商讨;
combine with 把……与……相比;
cope with 对付,处理;
compare……with 使……与……相结合;
correspond with 与……通讯;
connect……with 把……与……相连接;
couple with 与……配对;
contrast……with 使……与……相对照;
coordinate……with 使……与……相协调;
credit sth./sb, with 认为……应归功于sth./sb.;
go with 与……一致;
interfere with 干扰;
exchange sth.with 用sth.与……相交换;
keep with 陪伴,留在……一起;
familiarize sb. with 使sb.熟悉;
match with 与……相匹配;
line sth. with 使sth.布满(线状物),沿sth.两侧排上……;
proceed with 继续进行;
reason with 与……讲理;
link…with 使与……与……相连;
remain with 保留在……身边;
present sb. with 赠送sb.(sth.);
sympathize with 同情;
relate...with 使……与……相关联;
do away with 去掉,废除;
(三)形容词与介词的搭配;
1.形容词+about;
anxious about 担心,挂念;
happy about 因……而高兴;
cautious about 谨慎,小心对待;
nervous about 担心,害怕;因……而紧张;
careful about 讲究,重视;
certain about 对……有把握;
particular about 对……讲究,挑剔;
enthusiastic about 热心于;
2.形容词+at;
amazed at 对……惊讶;
clever at 擅长于;
clumsy at 做……很笨拙;
apt at 善于;
disappointed at 对……失望;
bad at 不善于;
excellent at 极其擅长于;
expert at 专于……;
offended at 因……而生气;
famous at ……的名手;
quick at 于...很迅速;
slow at 在……方面迟钝;
impressed at 对……印象深刻;
ready at 善于;
3.形容词+for;
adequate for 适合于;
famous for 因……而著名;
anxious for 急切地盼望;
fit for 适合于;
bound for 开往……的;
good for 对……有益;
competent for 能胜任……的;
known for 对……应负责;
convenient for 对……方便;
qualified for 对(工作等)称职;
crucial for 对……起决定作用的;
ready for responsible for 对……负责;
eager for 急切地盼望;
4.形容词+from;
absent from 缺席,未出席;
immune from 免除……的,不受……影响的;
different from 与……不同;
distinct from 与……有差别;
safe from 不受……危险的;
free from 免于,不受……的影响;
separate from 与……相分离的;
5.形容词+in;
absorbed in 全神贯注;
fortunate in 有幸于;
constant in 对……/在……上忠贞不渝,锲而不舍;
proficient in 在……方面很熟练,精于;
confident in 对……信任;
skillful in 善于;
deficient in 缺乏;
slow in 在……方面很慢/迟钝;
excellent in 优于,在……方面非常优秀;
expert in 专长于;
6.形容词+of;
envious of 对……嫉妒;
ashamed of 为……感到羞耻;
exclusive of 排除,不计……在内;
appreciative of 感谢……;
aware of 知道,了解;
free of 免除……的,不受影响的;
capable of 能……,可能……;
frightened of 害怕……的;
characteristic of 是……的特点,为所特有;
full of 充满……的;
careful of 对……爱护,珍惜;
glad of 为……而高兴;
composed of 由……构成;
guilty of 犯有……罪的;
conscious of 意识到;
ignorant of 不了解……,不知道……,对……无知的;
critical of 批评,挑剔;
inclusive of 包括……;
short of 缺乏……的;
independent of 独立于;
sick of 厌烦,讨厌……的;
indicative of 表示……的;
suggestive of 暗示……的;
jealous of 对……嫉妒的;
suspicious of 对……怀疑的;
proud of 为……而自豪;
scared of 对……害怕;
typical of 是……的特点;
sensible of 可觉察出……;
worthy of 值得……的;
7.形容词+on;
hard on 对……苛刻;
keen on 迷恋;
reliant on 依赖于……;
intent on 一心一意做;
8.形容词+to;
adjacent to 与……毗邻;
peculiar to 为……所特有;
alike to 与……一样;
preferable to 比……更好;
contrary to 违反,相反;
prior to 先于,早于;
drawn to 被吸引的;
related to 与……有关系;
equal to 等于……;
relevant to 与……相关的;
familiar to 是……所熟悉的;
resistant to 抵制……;
immune to 对……有免疫力,不受……影响;
responsible to 对……有反应;
sensitive to 对……敏感的;
indifferent to 对……不在乎;
second/secondary to 次于,从属于;
inferior to 劣于……,低于……;
liable to 有……的倾向;
subject (ed) to 受……影响;
loyal to 忠于……;
subordinate to 从属于;
superior to 比……更高(或更优);
obedient to 反对;
true to 忠实于 ;
9.形容词+with;
flush with 充满,富于;
associated with 与……相关联;
frank with 对……坦率;
friendly with 与……友好;
compatible with 与……相容,兼容的;
identical with 与……相同;
consistent with 与……一致;
content with 满足于;
impressed with 对……印象很深;
disappointed with sb./sth.对……失望;
incompatible with 与……不相容的(不一致的);
faced with 面临;
familiar with 对……精通,熟悉;
patient with 对……耐心;
popular with 为……所喜闻乐见;
练习
线索阅读
1.There was only one cloud in an otherwise limpid sky.
2.The captain of a ship has the absolute right to jettison cargo when the ship is in danger.
3.If a cell s nucleus is removed or destroyed,the entire cell disinte grates and dies.
4.Many movies receive derogatory reviews from film experts and yet become extremely successful.
5.The powerful poison was imperceptible when mixed in liquid,that is,it could not be tasted,seen,or smelled.
6.At first everything went well with the project but recently problems kept cropping up.
7.There was a kind of detachment about the old man s behavior.It appeared as if he didn t care what you were sayign to him,as if what you were saying were of no interest to him.
8.An atomic clock is so precise that it can be used to check the accuracy of predictions based on Einstenin s relativity theories.
9.The construction of mammoth shopping halls has contributed to the decline of small stores in neighboring towns.
10.Many fastfood restaurants operate by means of franchises. A franchise is the permission to sell products that a manufacturer grants to a dealer.
11.After a week of constant vigilance and intensive care,the patient began to repsond to treatment.
12.Although the doctor usually performed the operation perfectly,the nurse knew he had slipped when she saw the patient s blood pressure suddenly rise.
13.Prolonged lack of sleep caused the mind to become languorous.
14.Between 1870 and 1914 the United States changed from an agrarian economy to an industrial economy.
15.Mr.and Mrs.Firth had a long courtship.They dated for nine years before they got married.
16.We never believed that he would resort to subterfuge in order to achieve his goal;we always regarded him as an honest man.
17.Public elections are sometimes held to settle differences between inimical groups in a government body.
18.The hot tropical climate created a feeling of lassitude and encouraged drowsiness.
19.In most instances,bone cancer has proven to be a pernicious disease.
替代阅读
1.The Indian guide foresaw the danger ahead on the muddy,wet road.
A.ignoredB.predicted
C.heard aboutD.warned
2.The sign on the truck said “lammable”.
A.cautionB.careful
C.without flamesD.capable of igniting
3.The politician was proud to say his record was unblemished.
A.unbrokenB.unpolluted
C.resourcefulD.flawless
4.Astronomers were glad to know that their assumptions about the moon were correct.
A.suppositionsB.deions
C.philosophyD.summarization
5.China is passing new laws to protect the environment.
A.surroundingsB.borders
C.premisesD.urban areas
6.The young South American lady considered his wink obscene.
A.flirtatiousB.precocious
C.indecentD.inconsiderate
7.Was the disappearance of the twins instantaneously or by design?
A.accidentalB.planned
C.purposefulD.mechanical
8.The student didn t do too well in his exam,but he was undaunted and continued to try his best.
A.discouragedB.incapacitated
C.encouragedD.unafraid
9.The contestants responded instantaneously when the signal was given by the referee.
A.immediatelyB.automatically
C.reflexivelyD.courteously
10.Brevity is not usually one of a politician s notable qualities.
A.HonestyB.Conciseness
C.LaughterD.Simplicity
11.Don t you believe that my prize boat was engulfed in the sea the other day?
A.shatteredB.spotted
C.swallowed upD.damaged
12.In the 1950 s college students in the United States were often criticized for being apathetic.
A.intolerantB.spotted
C.swallowed upD.uninvolved
13.Each year,autumn leaves announce the end of summer and the approach of winter in an outburst of color.
A.an epidemicB.an explosion
C.a rangeD.a disruption
14.Modern printing equipment quickly turns out duplicate copies of textual and pictorial matter.
A.identicalB.excessive
C.illustratedD.legible
15.Tacoma,Wahington,is home to a goodsized lumber industry.
A.an ordinaryB.an excellent
C.a bigD.a young
16.Regional planning deals with proposals concerning outlying communities and highways as well as with urban affairs.
A.outlandishB.exclusive
C.exemptedD.remote
17.The icecream cone,the hamburger,and iced tea were all introduced at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition informally known as the St.Louis Fair.
A.previouslyB.unofficially
C.incorrectlyD.occasionally
18.Horseback riding embraces both the skill of handling a horse and the mastery of diverse riding styles.
A.fostersB.emphasizes
C.exaggeratesD.includes
19.Using extremely different decorating schemes in adjoining rooms may result in discord and a lack of unity in style.
A.compromiseB.disharmony
C.disillusionD.anxiety
20.Stockbrokers are expected to work conscientiously to increase the profits of their clients.
A.diligentlyB.daily
C.cooperativelyD.imaginatively
第五节快速阅读
一、快速阅读考查技巧
阅读理解能否得高分取决于两个方面:理解与速度。因此,阅读技巧也可以分作两个方面:关于理解的技巧和关于速度的技巧。
在进行快速阅读时,读者的视线不是顺着字行逐个词地移动,而应是跳跃式地前进,从一点跳向另一点。有时是大幅度地往前跳,有时还稍稍往回跳。目光在跳动时看不清书页上任何单词,只有当其停顿时才能看得清楚。
严格地说,一个人的视幅是有限的,眼睛一次停顿所看到的单词不可能超过3个。扩大扫描范围的诀窍在于扩大目光跳跃的间距。聪明的阅读者在阅读时下意识地跳过了一些词,这样扫描范围就大,速度自然就快了,但这并不一定会影响对文字的理解。
阅读,就其实质而言,是捕捉信息的活动。作者通过文字表达自己的思想观点,但是并不是每一个单词、每一个句子都传达了等量的信息。在一篇文章中,有的单词只是结构符号,有的只传递辅助信息,有的句子不过是赘言重复,有的甚至是废话。略去这些冗余的词句,文章所表达的思想不会受多大的影响。
阅读既然是一项捕捉信息的活动,那么,科学地、合理地利用眼睛运动的规律来进行有效的阅读就显得十分重要了。要提高阅读速度,读者应做的第一个努力就是要学会扩大眼睛扫描的范围:从单词过渡到意群,从意群逐步过渡到句子,最终提高到段落,这就是所谓的“行”。读者要做的第二个努力是尽量缩短目光停留的时间,尤其在那些传达信息较少的词语上更要减少滞留,以便提高目光移动的频率。目光移动的频率越高,单位时间里的阅读量就越大。因此,在阅读过程中,千万别停留在个别的疑难词句上,应该义无反顾地继续往下读。
快速阅读根据阅读的目的可分成略读(skimming)和查读(scanning)两种方法。
1.略读
略读(skimming)是常用的阅读方法之一,其主要特征是选择性地阅读。通常的阅读要求看到每一个词,每次注目看1—2个词。略读不需要看到每一个词,眼睛跳动的频率和幅度都有较大的提高,有时甚至从上一行跳到下一行。略读不可能使你对所读内容全部了解,但是你能大大地提高阅读速度,也能获得大量的信息。略读的主要作用是了解文章的大意。经过略读之后,你对所读内容已经有了大致的了解,再仔细阅读,这时你的印象会更深刻,理解更透彻。大部分读者不需要正规的训练和指导就可以进行略读。但是有意识地训练会大大地提高你的略读速度和效率。进行略读训练的最简单的方法是强迫自己在规定的时间内读完某一篇文章,开始训练时,可以把略读速度定为平常阅读的120%,以后逐步提高。略读的关键是增加眼跳的幅度,高度集中注意力,努力捕捉那些能引起注意或者你认为重要的内容。
略读中应注意以下两点:
(1)按照意群浏览,而不是一个单词接一个单词地看,以减少眼球移动的次数。例如,如果单独来看下面这句话,You/have/just/finished/your/meal/at/a/fast/food/restaurant/and/you/throw/your/uneaten/food/,food/wrappers/,drink/cups/,utensils/and/napkins/into/the/trash/can./眼球移动次数很多,脑子反应会非常吃力。如果按照意群,则是You have just finished your meal/at a fast food restaurant/and/you throw your uneaten food,food wrappers,drink cups,utensils and napkins/into the trash can.优劣立现。所以应当避免阅读中的不良习惯,如指读、唇读、译读,因为这些习惯不仅影响阅读速度,也不利于形成英文思维。
(2)抓住段落的主题句和结论句。抓住主题句就等于掌握了段落大意,然后略去细节不读(除非必要),以求得略读速度。主题句多见于每段的起首。此外还要注意转折词和序列词,如however,moreover,in addition等,把握文章的整体逻辑。常用的表示逻辑关系的连接词有:
表示转折:however,on the contrary,but,by comparison,although,despite,on the other hand;
表示因果:consequently,as a result,therefore,now that,because,hence;
表示举例:for example,a case in point,for instance;
表示顺序:firstly,secondly,thirdly;in addition,finally,at last
例文1
Car thefts account for a quarter of all recorded crime. Together they impose costs on everyone—the cost of the police time taken up in dealing with the offenses, the cost of taking offenders through the criminal justice system, and the cost to motorists of increased insurance premiums.
Over 460 000 cars are reported missing in this country each year and many of these are never recovered. Many of those which are found have been damaged by the thieves.A stolen car is also far more likely to be involved in an accident than the same car driven by its owner; car thieves are often young and sometimes drunk. Yet car crime can be cut drastically if motorists follow a few simple rules to keep thieves out of their cars in the first place.
Most car thieves are opportunist unskilled petty criminals; many are under 20. So make your own car a less inviting target, to discourage thieves from trying.
The main message of the passage is to.
A.provide car owners with car theft statistics
B.give details about costs in crime prevention
C.portray the profile of certain car thieves
D.raise car owners awareness against car theft
本题考查对文章写作目的的理解,属主旨类题目,适用略读法。文中第一段开头说汽车偷盗案占所有记录的案件的四分之一,该类案件给所有人都造成损失。第二段开头说这个国家每年有超过460 000辆汽车被盗,很多都无法找回,即便找到了大多也已被窃贼损毁,段末则指出如果车主遵循一定的规则,汽车失窃案将大大减少。最后一段是说大多偷车者都是碰运气的小毛贼,所以车别弄得太惹眼就不那么吸引小偷了。通过这几句话读者完全可以总结出文章的中心思想是提醒人们防止车辆被盗,正确答案为D。对于文章中的细节,如汽车失窃案如何给失主造成损失、追回的失窃车辆为何多遭损毁等无须涉及。
例文2
There is a simple economic principle used to determine prices.It is called the law of supply and demand.Supply means the amount of,or access to certain goods.If there are more goods than wanted,the price of them falls.On the other hand,if the demand for those goods is much greater than the supply,then the price rises.Of course manufacturers prefer to sell more goods at increased prices.
What is the best title that expresses the ideas of the passage?
A.Economic Principle
B.Law of Supply and Demand
C.More Goods,Lower Prices
D.Fewer Goods,Higher Prices
在回答这一问题时,我们略读一下由关键词组成的“:principle...determine prices;law of supply and demand;supply means...certain goods;If...more goods than wanted;price...falls;if...the demand...greater;the price rises;manufacturers prefer to sell goods at increased prices.从这段语法不全的“,可以获得意义完整的中心,就是“律”对价格升降的影响,所以正确答案是B。
略读的要点是关键词语,但也不能忽视词语的搭配和词组等因素。略读时应按意群、词组去阅读,如读到take...for granted这一词组时,绝不能分开理解,那样轻则放慢了阅读速度,重则影响了正确理解。
2.查读
查读(scanning)是快速寻找某一特殊信息的阅读方法。阅读者在搜寻特定的信息时,应把要求回答的问题记在心中,根据问题及问题的选择项,有的放矢地在文中查找某个具体的信息,如时间、地点、人名、事件和数字等。阅读者应凭借跟信息有关的词语,迅速判断所要寻找的信息可能隐藏在哪里。阅读者在查找信息时,视线虽掠过整页文字,但并不是真正的阅读。导读的目的非常明确,即找到所需要的信息。信息一旦被找到,导读即告结束,读者就应该认真细读分析了。
例文1
First read the following questions.
1.If you want to buy a TV in good condition,which number should you call?
A.43655.B.35633.
C.42377.D.42677.
2.Who should Reg phone?
A.Phil.B.Alys.
C.John.D.Anne.
THE MORNING HERALD
OCTOBER 18 ADVERTISEMENTS
FOR SALE
2Single beds(with mattresses) and large chest of drawers.
Excellent conditions.$86. Tel.68455.
FOR SALE
Almost new 12speed bicycle;new tyres,plus headlight and strong combination lock.
$220.Phone Alys Tel.43566.
WANTED
Man s bicycle in good condition.Phone Phil 24522.
WANTED
19”color TV.Easy to carry.Tel.43655.
FOR SALE
Film developing unit and photo enlarging unit;plus 25 rolls color film.Tel.74533.
FOR SALE
Large 26”color TV in wooden cabinet.(Sanyo) Still under guarantee.
$350.Tel.42377.
WANTED
TV set(Cabinet model).Volume needs attention.Tel.35633.
FOR SALE
Minolta 35mm camera.3 years old,needs some repairs.Only $35.Tel.78454.
WANTED
Bicycle in any condition.Must be cheap.Phone Reg.26677.
FOR SALE
10speed bicycle.5 years old,needs some repairs.Only $35.
Phone Anne after 6 p.m.Tel.78466.
FOR SALE
Standing lamp for livingroom.Almost new.$100.Tel.53642.
WANTED
Small portable TV set.Old model going cheap.Phone John on 42677.
1.C。这台26英寸的彩电还在保修期内。
2.D。对Reg来说什么样的自行车都可以,但必须便宜。Anne的车用了5年了,需要修理,只卖35美元。
例文2
First read the following questions.
1.The advertised position is for a (n).
A.office managerB.legal trainee
C.office assistantD.legal secretary
2.Which of the following is NOT essential for the position?
A.Legal secretarial training.
B.Experience in organizational work.
C.Experience in real estate.
D.Proficiency in data processing.
JOB ADVERTISEMENT
Our legal department requires a mature,competent secretary who will report to one senior lawyer and one assistant lawyer.The successful candidate will have a solid background in organizational work,advanced skill in shorthand and data processing,combined with at least two to three years of legal secretarial training.Some experience in real estate could be an asset.Sun Life offers excellent opportunities for personal advancement.Salary will be in accord with qualifications,beginning at a minimum of $2 000 per month.A superior benefit package and an attractive incentive program are included.Begin at once.Interviews will be held Monday through Friday,April 14th to 18th.Applicants are requested to mail detailed resumes to:
Sun Life Insurance Company
P.O.Box 650
Windsor,Ontario M60 3S8
1.D。招聘广告第一句就开门见山地指出:Our legal department requires a mature,competent secretary...
2.C。招聘广告里提到:Some experience in real estate could be an asset.房地产方面的经验可能会是有利条件,但不是必要条件。而其他三项都是必要条件。
练习
Passage One
The business potential for the Internet is beyond doubt. It offers a future of ultraquick, efficient and, above all, global business. But to date the greatest commercial use seems to have been as a glorified advertising forums for corporations desperate to gain youthful credibility.
Until a safe, convenient and recognized form of electronic money arrives, it remains a huge global marketplace without a means of barter. The real net revolutionaries are not the prophets of the information superhighway, whose sciencefiction visions of the future have colored coverage to date, but the small band of companies working on Internet payment systems. If they are successful, the repercussions will go far beyond giving office workers the opportunity to order pizzas online.
Analysts estimate there will be a potential Internet market worth 400 billion by the end of the decade. Electronic money offers the perfect means of exchange, providing instant settlement, and easy storage, and savings on bank fees. It will also open the door to anyone seeking to place money in tax havens, enabling floods of currency to circulate around the globe, far from the state s reach.
As Ray Hammond, who is writing a book on the subject, entitled Digital Money, to be published by Hodder and Stoughton in the spring, says: “ctronic money will be a major threat to national economics sovereignty. Its growth will diminish the role of the state and encourage the rise of new money providers—economic corporations.”
As yet, there is no clear indication which of the electronic money schemes is going to be a winner. But choices made now will have a profound effect on what kind of system evolves. The big guns, Microsoft,Visa and Mastercard, have only recently entered the fray. They are working on protocols for encrypted credit card payments to ensure that a hacker will not be able to pick up your credit card number online and take it on an instant shopping spree. The original concept was for Visa and Mastercard to work together to establish a single system, but Visa has teamed up with Microsoft and Mastercard with Netscape to launch competing systems.
Credit card systems will give Internet commerce a boost, providing mail order companies with a novel outlet for their wares, but ultimately they can only be part of the solution. Much net commerce is likely to revolve around small payments for data, whether it is paying pennies to read an online database or taking part in an interactive game.
What is needed is an Internet payment system that more closely resembles cash, and this is where the small dedicated companies, with names such as Cybercash and Digicash, come in. Cybercash has developed a system that goes one step beyond the credit card. The user deposits money with a bank afflicted to the scheme—there are currently ten participating institutions—and then downloads an electronic purse to spend in Internet shops. After a purchase is made, the shopkeeper contacts the customer s bank—the electronic money provides the necessary information—and converts the digital money back into real cash.
Cybercash s system most closely resembles a switch card, and the company itself cautiously refers to it as an electronic method of messaging money.
Magdalena Yefil, a cofounder of Cybercash, believes the attraction is that it keeps a tight control on real funds, and says: “ money is in the bank account, so there is no question of where the money is.”
Cybercash also offers real benefits for global transactions. Money can be deposited in any denomination, even though, so far, the participating banks are only in the US. Paying in Cybercash will cut out costly currency conversion for both customers and businesses.
Digicash, founded by David Chaum, the guru of cryptology, is far more ambitious in the development of its electronic money scheme, ecash. It dispenses with the need for an escrow account, working more like an ATM (automated teller machine). An account is set up, the amount of ecash to be withdrawn is requested and the amount is downloaded to your personal computer. When asked to pay, you confirm the transaction and your software transfers the required amount. Vendors then deposit coins in their own digital accounts. Digicash has just gone live, teaming up with the Mark Twain Bank, of St. Louis, Missouri, which provides the bank accounts. Swedish Post, whose retail banking arm has direct access to more than 75 percent of Swedish households, has also bought a licence to use ecash, although it has yet to give a launch date.
Wellreported cases of hackers stealing data have raised fears about the security of money on the Internet. But Digicash maintains that the builtin security provided by ecash makes it more secure than existing methods of holding money. E cash uses encryption techniques as powerful as those used for nuclear secrets, to protect it in transfer, and a digital signature that makes any coin unique and usable just once. If you lose your money, through a computer crash for instance, a back up number allows you to regenerate the coin. If someone refuses to give you a receipt, the digital signature will provide proof that you spent the money.
However, every advance in electronic money technology increases fears that the freedom that digital money offers also increases the potential for abuse. The ability to transfer sums anywhere in the world instantaneously was previously available only to the money markets. Now it will be possible for anyone to send funds to some Internet bank offshore, far beyond the reach of the taxman, or to set up an Internet business in any obliging country in the world, without leaving home.
Mr. Hammond, whose Hammond organization specializes in Internet and business, says:“ ease with which money can be moved about and the levels of anonymity available will speed up the shift towards relying on indirect taxation. ”
If ecash takes off and banks or even companies decide to start leading electronic currency, the currency begins to take on a life of its own, no longer backed by cash held in accounts or by a direct conversion from hard money. It will develop a value divorced from governmentissuedcash, and if the money is issued by reputable businesses who can guarantee its value, it could quickly prove more attractive than a number of the weaker currencies around the world.
Mr. Hammond believes that this is a distinct possibility: “ will get a situation where Marks &; Spencer, Sainsbury s or Microsoft want to issue their own money, a kind of extension of voucher shopping. The money will succeed if they can back it with resources. We are going to see corporate money and companies making payments and valued by their exchange rate and not their stock price. ”
The flipside is that the world could return to a system of competing private currencies, and when trust breaks down much of the issued ecash will end up worth no more than monopolymoney. In America in the midnineteenth century, a number of US banks that privately issued money crashed, leading the government to take control of the money system.
It is trust that is the essential element in the equation. Money can only act as a store of value if people believe in it. For the moment, digital money is likely to preserve its value only if it can be exchanged for traditional currencies like dollar, sterling or the mark.
“ple have trust in the existing banking system and it will serve no purpose to undermine that trust,”says Ms. Yelil. “s is why we chose to launch Cybercash not as a new denomination but as a way of bringing the benefits of electronic transfers to the existing environment.”
This reasoning might also explain why the Bank does not appear too worried by the developments. “ biggest question we will face is deciding whether companies offering ecash are taking deposits,” says Chris Bailey, a spokesman for the Bank. “it is, and it looks as though in most cases it will be, the company will have to fulfill deposittaking regulations. Consumers will be protected by existing regulations.”
The biggest brake on the development of ecash is, however, likely to be the consumer,who finds it hard enough already to put trust in the banking and monetary system. To expect digital money to sweep the system away almost overnight is to make the old mistake of assuming technology always drives people. Digital money will only succeed if it adapts to the needs of its users.
1.The business potential for the Internet is doubtable.
2.The real net revolutionaries are the small band of companies working on Internet payment system.
3.There is a clear indication which of the electronic money schemes is going to be a winner.
4.Magdalena Yefil believes the attraction of Digicash system is that it keeps a tight control on real funds.
5.With the advances in electronic money technology, it will be possible for everyone to send funds to some Internet bank off shore, far beyond the reach of the taxman.
6.It is security that is the essential element in the equation. Money can only act as a store of value if people believe in it.
7.Consumer is likely to be the biggest brake on the development of ecash.
8.What is needed is an Internet payment system that more closely resembles
9.Cybercash offers real benefits for global transactions. People can money in any denomination.
10.Wellreported cases ofdata have raised fears about the security of money on the Internet.
Passage Two
Every year at this time, the peasants began their long religious pilgrimage to Geedleh (圣城吉德莱), to visit the church there,and to pray, for God s help. They walked or rode in wagons. They crowed the road leading to the holy town, for Geedleh was famous in Poland as a place where God did miracles.
The cool autumn days also brought many beggars to Geedleh. The peasants gave away more of their money on such a religious holiday as this.
Some of the beggars were blind; some had no feet or arms. Some were very old and seemed like lost children looking for their mothers.
There was one among them who was called the Mute Singer. He was given this name because he could not speak. There was a time when he was able to sing, while playing his guitar. But he lost his voice. Now he played the guitar and sang but no sounds came from his throat. His lips just moved with music.
The Mute Singer was a tall, strangelooking man. His face and hands were brown, like the color of copper. He had white hair and a white beard. He looked like one of the wise men you read about in the Bible.
Early one morning I saw the Mute Singer washing himself at the river. He smiled and touched the ground with his hand, meaning that I should sit down. Then he pointed his finger straight up, to tell me that he had a surprise for me.
He put his hand into the water and rubbed two of his fingers together, making a strange sound, exactly like the sound of a croaking frog. He did it many times, then lightly hit the top of the water, sending little ripples of waves across the water to the other side.
Suddenly, everything around us seemed to be moving. I could not believe that it was real. Thousands of frogs came racing towards us, jumping and swimming, under the water and on the top of the water. I began to shake with excitement.
The frog crowded around us. I could see their heads and eyes showing above of the water.
The Mute Singer found some snails and cut them into small pieces and began to feed the frogs. They came closer and closer. The Mute Singer started to play his guitar. As he did, the frogs became quiet and listened to him. And then they, every one of them, began to sing. I never heard anything like it. Not a frog moved. They all just sat and sang.
No one ever saw the Mute Singer at night. Nobody even knew where he slept. But during the day he could be found at the same place, sitting near the church and playing his guitar while his lips moved silently with the music.
Everybody liked the Mute Singer, the peasants as much as the beggars. People threw their pennies into the cups of beggars sitting on the ground, asking for help. But not so with the Mute Singer. Into his cup, they dropped their pennies gently. He used the shell of a turtle as a cup. He got much more money than the others, but this did not trouble any of the beggars.
At the end of the day, beggars crowded around the Mute Singer in front of the church. He took a clean white handkerchief from the pocket of his old coat and put it smoothly on the ground. He made it seem like a religious ceremony. Then he put all his money on the clean white cloth and made all beggars do the same. And then he gave all the beggars an equal share of money, but kept nothing for himself.
Sadly, he looked around at the beggars covered with dirt and disease. The sun was sinking fast and the peasants had all left the church area. The Mute Singer lowered his head and started to pray. The beggars were on their knees, joining him in prayer.
The Mute Singer began to play his guitar, moving his lips with music. The beggars all sat still and listened. The music cut deep into their hearts. It cut through their years of pain and sufferings and loss of hope. It made them feel human again. Many of them cried and with dried old hands they wiped away their tears.
I heard a beggar say that the Mute Singer was not a human being, but God dressed him as a beggar. “ that is true,” another answered, “would not come as a beggar, but as a priest.”
One day, hundreds of new peasants entered the city. They were welcomed at the church by its religious leaders who dropped water on their head and blessed them. Religious singing and church bells filled the air, as did the cries of the beggars asking for help.
As the peasants came out of the church, the Mute Singer began to play. The peasants crowed around him and dropped pennies into his cup. Suddenly, his fingers hit the wrong strings, and he threw his arms into the air. His guitar fell to the ground and broke. One of the beggars caught the Mute Singer as he fell and held his head on his knees.
We carried him into my brother s empty barn and put him down gently. I held his hand and he slept a little. He then opened his eyes and smiled weakly. He looked like a lost child.
The Mute Singer pointed to his chest and made the sign of the cross. A beggar said, “wants me to give him the rites. Can you get me a piece of bread?”
“ you are not a priest.”I said.
“s is something any man would be glad to do for him. It is an emergency.But I am dirty. My clothes are dirty. Hurry! Get some bread and a white shirt.”
I ran out and got some bread. Next to my house was a synagogue and in the dark I saw the rabbi s finest white shirt hanging to be dried. I took the shirt and hurried to the side of the dying Mute Singer.
The beggar put on the white shirt, and gave me a candle to hold. Then he got down close to the Mute Singer and said:
“r me, my brother. Open your eyes if you can so that you may see the sign of the cross made over you. Here is your last communion, a beggar s communion of black bread.”
The dying man looked at the beggar, smiled weakly and left us forever.
That night I had very strange dreams. In one dream, I saw something white moving slowly toward me. It was like a frog but it got very close it changed into the shape of a man. It was the Mute Singer, still holding his guitar. Then two angels floated out of the dark into my dream. They fell to their knees before the Mute Singer, kissing his hand while he gently touched their heads. It was like what I had often seen in old religious paintings.
I slept badly. I felt something heavy and it was hurting me. I awake and saw that I was holding too hard against my chest the shell of a turtle. It was the turtle shell, which the Mute Singer used as a beggar s cup for money. He gave it to me while he lay dying.
1.Every cool autumn, the peasants began their religious pilgrimage to Geedleh to visit the church there, and to pray for God s help.
2.The Mute Singer can make a strange sound with his guitar, which is exactly like the sound of a croaking frog.
3.When the Mute Singer started to play his guitar, all the frogs sat and sang.
4.The Mute Singer got much more money than other beggar, which made other beggars very upset.
5.During the night, the Mute Singer stayed in his own old hut.
6.The Mute Singer collected all the money they got, and then gave each one of them an equal share of money.
7.One day, there are so many peasants around the church and the Mute Singer was pushed down by the crowded people. His guitar fell to the ground and broke.
8.The Mute Singer used the shell of aas a cup.
9.The music played by the Mute Singer cut through the beggars years of pain and sufferings and loss of hope. It made them feelagain.
10.Before his death, the Mute Singer pointed to his chest and made the sign of the.
Passage Three
Many people have been getting tattoos lately.People of all ages have been getting them and from all different backgrounds.On a nice day in just about any public place, one can spot a tattoo about every five minutes, from the business man who had a portrait of his daughter put on him, to a young girl with a butterfly on her ankle and even people with extensive tattoo coverage.What is even more interesting is the rise in the number of people who are heavily tattooed and that they come from all different backgrounds.Not too long ago tattooing did not experience the popularity in mainstream culture that it does now.The question that must be asked in order to understand this fascination that popular culture has had with tattoos is why people get tattoos.
There still is a lot if intolerance towards people who have tattoos especially towards people who have a lot of them,but these days a tattoo here and there is not looked down as it once was.There was a time when only“ lives” were thought of as having tattoos and people who had them were dirty criminals and should not be associated with.Due to the mainstream of the world not accepting the practicing of tattooos, many tattooists and their clients went into an underground state.It was not always easy for people to even find a tattoo artist even if they were brave enough to be labeled a “ life”by the majority of culture.A lot of places even banned tattooing due to the fact that they thought tattooing was morally wrong and a health risk.Tattooing was still illegal in New York City until 1993.The mystery that surrounds the art of tattooing has always created ignorant ideas from people who are misinformed.
Looking back at how people perceived tattoos then and how many“mal”people have them today shows a lot about how the world has changed,specifically in mainstream society.These days one can throw a rock and hit a tattoo shop,but why the change of heart? Why are tattoos so popular now? Holly Tuesday,a writer for “n & Ink” tattoo magazine and heavily tattooed person said“all,myself included,like to think that we stand out from the crowd.Most of us have adorned our bodies to relish the glances and stares.My personal opinion is that many of these glances are from those who wish they had the guts to exert their own personality in such a beautiful way.But the looks are becoming few and far between in my parts.So many people have tattoos,piercings and dyed hair that my previously shocking nature has been admonished.She then goes on to state examples of how mainstream tattooing has become like professional soccer games had tattoo artists at one of their events and the country singers Brooks and Dunn are having tattooists at their shows.”
Dustin Horan,a tattoo artist said,“ee all kinds of people coming to get tattoos,mothers and daughters going to get their first tattoos together,many different people are getting tattoos.”It is obviously clear that tattoos have broken through their mysterious outlaw image in a sense.To many people it is a sign of rebellion that they wear proudly on the outside to show how they feel on the inside.But it goes even deeper than rebellion.Our culture has come a long way in what is seen as conservative and have exasperated many other ways of rebellion and more important ways of expressing themselves.
People have already seen it all and it was only a matter of time before they moved on and found something else.To a lot of people that would be tattoos.There is no greater commitment to something then to wear it permanently for everyone to see.The public has become fascinated with this concept of permanence and the beauty of a well executed tattoo.Somewhere down the line culture decided to turn their ignorance and fear into fascination.The fascination of being able to take control of one s body with permanent markings is becoming more apparent among people.
Tattoos have become therapy;they have become solutions to making people feel better about themselves.Chris Pfouts,the editor of “ernational Tattoo”magazine said,“y,many people get tattooed at low points in their lives,and the work is therapeutic that way.They feel boxed in,jammed up,unable to force a change anywhere in their lives—so they change the one thing they can for certain,their skin.This is one of the few times when tattooing flips its usual role.In other cases,people are taking what s inside of them,their pain or happiness,and putting it on the outside.Getting tattooed as a last resort methood of change takes what is outide—resistance,barriers—and possibly brings it inside,cuts it down to a size where it can be handled and overcome.”People have found this in tattooing and because of this it is becoming more and more accepted as more and more people are getting tattooed.
Taking countrol of one s body is a major draw to the art of tattooing.When everything else was already used up,tattooing became the answer and thus entered popular culture.In a world of chaos and turmoil does it not make sense that one would want to take control in a way that is possible for them and reliable? The tattoo will never go away which fascinates some people and scares many,it will not change unlike the world.If a person can choose to wear something on them that will not go away and not change then they feel a sense of power,the power to control oneself in a healthy yet rebellious way.
I,myself am very tattooed and in places that are quite visible most of the time.There has always been a magical feeling every time I have received a tattoo.I am not unlike these other people who get tattoos,we all get tattoos for similar reasons and many times it has brought me closer to people who are fascinated with tattoos.Wearing tattoos every day has affected me immensely.It seems acceptable for a person now to mark their body with something that means something.With all conventional means of remembering something expended,the tattoo has came and taken its place.People get tattoos when they are on vacation with loved ones to remember the moment forever or to mark a moment in their life when something monumental has happened to them.In a world of artificial amusement and products,many people are looking for a genuine experience,one that can change the way they think about themselves but in a controlled manner.What was considered to be delinquent behavior is now considered a genuine experience by popular culture.It is also considered to be an acceptable means of expression and commitment.Society has changed and quite rapidly.There is still a lingering sense of tradition that people hold on to,that tattoos are bad.As a world popular culture has embraced the art of tattooing.Tattoos will never go away and they will always be part of our culture due to the desire of mankind to control and express oneself.
1.Tattoo was considered to belong to those“ lives”once upon a time.
2.A lot of places even banned tattooing due to the fact that they thought tattooing looked ugly on the skin.
3.The reason why lots of people having tattoos nowadays is that they want to be different from the crowd.
4.Having tattoos is way to express one s inside outside.
5.Tattoo will diminish because it scares people.
6.Tattoo is fatal to the peopel who get it.
7.Though the society is developing very fast,there is still a tradition to take tattoo as bad.
8.Not too long ago tattooing did not experience the popularity inculture that it does now.
9.What was considered to bebehavior is now considered a genuine experience by popular culture.
10.Tattoos have become,they have become solutions to making people feel better about themselves.
Passage One
1.N由文章第1段第1句可知“的商业潜力是毋庸置疑的”,本题将beyond doubt偷换成了doubtable。
2.Y由文章第2段2句话The real net revolutionaries are not the prophets of the information superhighway,...but the small band of companies working on Internet payment systems.可知,but后省略主语真正的网络革命者,故此题正确。
3.N由文章第5段1句As yet,there is no clear indication which of the electronic money schemes is going to be a winner.可知此题与文章所给信息恰恰相反。
4.N由文章第9段Magdalena Yefil,a cofounder of Cybercash,believes the attraction is that it keeps a tight control on real funds,可知Magadalena Yefil是电脑现金公司的创始人之一,句中it指代的是Cybercash system而非Digicash system。
5.Y由文章第14段第1句...every advance in electronic money technology increases...及第3句Now it will be possible for anyone to send funds to some Internet bank offshore,far beyond the reach of the taxman.可知此题正确。
6.N由文章倒数第4段第1、2句It is trust that is the essential element in the equation.Noney can only act as a store of value if people believe in it.可知题干将trust偷换成了security,故此题错误。
7.Y由文章最后1段第1句The biggest brake on the development of ecash is,however,likely to be the consumer,可知此题正确。
8.cash由文章第7段第1句What is needed is an Internet payment system that more closely resembles cash可知答案。
9.deposit文章第10段第1、第2句Cybercash also offers real benefits for global transactions.Money can be deposited in any denomination.可知答案。
10.hackers stealing
文由章第13段第1句Wellreported cases of hackers stealing data have raised fears about the security of money on the Internet.可知答案。
Passage Two
1.Y第1段首句Every year at this time,the peasants began their long religious pilgrimage to Geedleh,to visit the church there,and to pray for God s help.结合第二段首句The cool autumn days可推知题干内容正确。
2.N由第7段首句He put his hand into the water and rubbed two of his fingers together,making a strange sound,exactly like the sound of a croaking frog.可知这种声音是他用手指发出的,不是用吉他弹出的。
3.Y由第10段中The Mute singer started to play his guitar...Not a frog moved.They all just sat and sang.可知题干内容正确。
4.N由第12段末尾He got much more money than the others,but this did not trouble any of the beggars.可知其他乞丐对此并不生气。
5.N由第11段前两句No one ever saw the Mute Singer at night.Nobody even knew where he slept.可知原文对the Mute Singer在哪里过夜并未给出相关信息。
6.N由第13段末尾Then he put all his money on the clean white cloth and made all beggars do the same.And then he gave all the beggars an equal share of money,but kept nothing for himself.可知他只是把自己的钱分成了等份,分给了所有的乞丐,但未留给自己。
7.N由第18段中Suddenly,his fingers hit the wrong strings,and he threw his arms into the air.His guitar fell to the ground and broke.可知他并不如题干所说的是被人挤倒。
8.turtle由第13段中He used the shell of a turtle as a cup.可得答案。
9.human由第15段中The music cut deep into their hearts.It cut through their years of pain and sufferings and loss of hope.It made them feel human again.可知题干即为此句的变换说法。
10.cross由第20段首句The Mute Singer pointed to his chest and made the sign of the cross.可得答案。
Passage Three
1.Y由第2段第2句There was a time when only“ lives”were thought of as having tattoos and people who had them were dirty criminals and should not be accociated with.可知因为在很久以前文身是是被主流文化接受的,而且被认为是只有下层人才会喜欢的东西。
2.N由第2段第5句A lot of places even banned tattoing due to the fact that they thought tattooing was morally wrong and a health risk。可知所以禁止文身的原因并不是因为它丑陋,而是因为人们认为那是道德问题,并会对健康形成威胁。
3.Y第3段第4句we stand out from the crowd可得知是为了“目”。
4.Y由第4段中间To many people it is a sign of rebellion that they wear proudly on the outside to show how they feel on the inside推导出来。
5.N全文最后1句Tattoos will never go away and they will always be part of our culture due to the desire of mankind to control and express oneself.可知此题错误。
6.N由最后一段中It is also considered to be an acceptable means of expression and commitment.可知,此题错误。
7.Y最后1段后部分There is still a lingering sense of tradition that people hold on to,that tattoos are bad.因为不管社会怎样发展,一些伴随我们很久的价值观、审美观是不会变的,至少不会突然改变。
8.mainstreammainstream是“之意。参见第1段倒数第2句Not too long ago tattooing did not experience the popularity in mainstream culture that it does now.可知答案。
9.delinquentdelinquent是“的;犯法的”之意。参见最后1段的后部分What was considered to be deliquent behavior is now considered a genuine experience by popular culture.可知答案。
10.therapytherapy是“疗法”之意。参见第6段第1和2句Tattoos have become therapy;they have become solutions to making people feel better about themselves.可知答案。
第六节选词填空
阅读理解新增加的题型之一是选词填空。其考查方式为:在一篇220字左右的文章中,留出10个单词的空格,从给出的15个备选单词中选出10个填入文章相应处,使文章意思通顺,表达正确。和原来的词汇题相比,选词填空更注重实际运用,从单一的一句话考查上升到篇章,有一定的难度,能真实反映考生的词汇水平和阅读理解能力。
1.词性归纳,按图索骥。因为考查的仅是一个单词,考生应该根据词性把每个单词进行分类归纳,按图索骥,可选的词就非常有限了,从中再结合上下文、时态等考虑,就大大缩小了选择范围,相对容易许多。
2.干扰有限,仔细求索。从给出的15个备选单词中选出10个词,其干扰力是有限的。如果选项中出现一组反义词或者近义词时,往往有一个是干扰选项。前者考查全文的总体走向,后者考查近似词之间的细微差别。
3.先易后难,各个击破。这样就为拿不准的选项缩小了选择范围,然后选择就容易了。不必拘泥于做题顺序。
练习
Passage One
In my children s lifetimes, I believe gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans will all become 1in the world. So the question we have to ask ourselves is this: do we want our children to see only in zoos what used to 2 in the real world? It is the great apes that will disappear first, because there are so few of them left, and because they re so 3 to changes in their habitats.
Many of threats to these animals result from a global economy not local pressures. The threat to the orangutan in Indonesia, for example, is largely a result of 4 and the risks to primates in Africa result from the timber trade and the demand for bushmeat. The two work together: logging opens up the forest, which means that the bushmeat can be got out fast, to Kinshasa or to London.
If we want to 5 the disaster scenario, people in developed countries will have to take a global 6 and accept responsibility for the damage export crops, such as timber, coffee, cut flowers or even green beans, done 7the environment. The challenge is to avoid simply 8western attitudes on local peoples.
For the future, I suspect that if you really want to do something about wildlife 9, you would be better10putting your money into women s education rather than just into the protection of flagship species.
A) avoid B) off C) imposing
D) exist E) on F) disappear
G) extinct H) perspective I) forestation
J) suitable K) conservation L) impose
M ) deforestation N) to O) vulnerable
Passage Two
Get ready for a minute with 61 seconds.Scientists are1the start of 2006 by the first“p second”in seven years,a timing tweak meant to make up for changes in the Earth s rotation.
The adjustment will be carried out by2 an extra second into atomic clocks worldwide at the stroke of midnight Coordinated Universal Time,the widely3international standard,the U.S.National Institute of Standards and Technology said.
“oy New Year s Eve a second4,”the institute said in an explanatory notice.“ can toot your horn an extra second this year.”
Coordinated Universal Time5with winter time in London.On the U.S.East Coast,the extra second6just before 7 p.m.on New Year s Eve.Atomic clocks at that moment will read 23:59:60 before rolling over to all zeros.
A leap second is added to keep uniform timekeeping within 0.9 second of the Earth s rotational time,which can speed up or 7 down because of many8,including ocean tides.The first9second was added on June 30,1972,according to NIST.
Although it is possible to have a negative leap second—that is,a second10from Coordinated Universal Time—so far all have been addons,reflecting the Earth s general slowing trend due to tidal braking.
A)coincides E)visualize I)raceM)sticking
B)delaying F)complexity J)ongerN)occurs
C)slow G)adopted K)devoteO)leap
D)deducted H)factors L)perfect
Passage One
1.选G这句是become(此处作系动词)加形容词构成的系表结构。所以此处需填一个形容词。G),J),O)皆符合,但根据其后一句“们想让自己的孩子只能在动物园看动物吗?”可推知此处J),O)都不合适,G)项extinct意为“”,符合文章。
2.选D首先这里需填一个动词。A),D),F),L)皆符合,再从意思上理解,exist意为“,符合原文文意,“们想让孩子只能在动物园看原本存在于真实世界的动物吗?”故D)。
3.选O这里需填一个形容词。G),J),O)皆符合,根据其前半句推知下半句中它们对栖息地的变化很敏感,故选O)vulnerable“害的”。
4.选M这里需填一个名词。H),I),K),M)皆符合,从意思上理解,deforestation意为“林”,forestation意为“,联系文义,猩猩面临的威胁应主要是“林”。故M)。
5.选A首先这里需填一个动词。A),D),F),L)皆符合,再从意思上理解,avoid意为“,“免灾难局面的发生”,符合全文的意思。
6.选H这里需填一个名词。H),I),K),M)皆符合,从意思上理解,perspective有“角度”的意思,符合文义,“家的人必须从全求角度看问题”。故H)。
7.选N首先这里需填一个介词。B),E),N)皆符合,再根据其前半句出现的the damage...,词组do damage to意为“有害”,故N)。
8.选C首先这里需填一个名词或动名词。C),H),I),K),M)皆符合,再根据词组avoid doing sth.和impose sth.on sb.可知选C。
9.选K这里需填一个名词。H),I),K),M)皆符合,从意思上理解,conservation有“的意思,wildlife conservation即为“物保护”,故K)。
10.选B首先这里需填一个介词。B),E),N)皆符合,再根据上下文可知,应选B。
Passage Two
1.选B此处需要一个动名词,此处文章的意思是“6年元旦到来之前将有一分钟变成61秒。科学家们把2006年的到来推迟了一‘闰秒’。此次全世界调时距上次已有7年时间,而调时的主要原因则是地球自转速度的变化。”所以应填delay的现在分词形式。
2.选M“ck...into”为固定搭配,意为“加进……”,本句话的意思是“国家标准与技术协会介绍,全世界的原子钟都将在‘协调世界时’2005年12月31日午夜加上一个闰秒。”此处需要一个动名词作介词“的宾语,所以应填“cking”。
3.选G此处要表达的意思是“世界时’是通用的国际标准时间”,所以此处应填“pted”表示“”。
4.选J根据上下文,可知此处要表达“夜的庆祝将多出一秒。辞旧迎新的喇叭声也将延长一秒。”所以应填“ger”作后置定语修饰“ond”。
5.选A此句的意思是“世界时’恰好与伦敦的冬令时相吻合。”,而“ncide with...”为固定搭配,意为“吻合;碰巧”。
6.选N此处需要一个谓语动词,该句要表达的意思是“东部沿海,这一秒将在2005年12月31日晚上的6时59分59秒出现。”所以应填“ur”的第三人称单数形式。
7.选C根据“ed up”可知此处应填“w down”,表示对比。该句意思为“转速度的加快或减慢受到很多因素的影响”。
8.选H此处需要一个名词,根据上题的解释,此处应填“tors”。
9.选O此处需要一个形容词,根据上文对闰秒的表达,可知此处应填“p”。
10.选D根据上文的“ative leap second”,可知此处应填“uct”的过去分词形式作“ond”的后置定语。
第七节简短回答问题
简短回答题主要考核考生对英语书面材料的确切理解能力,还考查考生的准确书面表达能力。尽管表达的内容在文中可找到较为接近的文字,但这些文字却未必是最佳答案,这里还涉及阅读中的寻找、归纳及选择等能力。
一、这类题型的常见表达方式
1.主旨和大意类题目的提问方法。
(1)What does the passage mainly deal with?
(2)What does this passage primarily discuss?
(3)What problem is this passage mainly talk about?
(4)What is the best title for the passage?
(5)The main subject of this passage is...?
(6)The author concerns about...?
2.事实和细节类题目的提问方法。
(1)According to the passage,who/what/when/where/why/how/how many/how often/how much/how soon/how long...?
(2)What do you know about...?
(3)The author mentions...in order to...
(4)What is the result/effect/consequence/cause/reason/procedure of...?
(5)The fact/statistic shows that...?
3.推理判断类题目的提问方法。
(1)The fact/example/instance/sentence implies/suggests/proposes that...?
(2)It can be concluded/inferred from what have read in the passage/the last paragraph/the first paragraph that...?
(3)The author seems to imply that...?
4.语义分析类题目提问方法。
(1)What is the meaning of...in the last sentence?
(2)Which of the following word is the closest in meaning to...?
(3)The word in line 5 can be best replaced by...?
(4)The synonym for...is...?
二、解题方式
简短回答问题(SAQ)是一类比较特殊的阅读题目。简答题要求在读完文章后,用简短的英语(可以是句子,也可以是几个词或短语,不超过10个单词)来回答问题或完成句子。所以,测试的是阅读与概括、表达能力。在过去的统考中,SAQ出现有五次,分别是1999年1月和6月、2002年6月、2003年9月、2005年6月,由于答案可能不统一对阅卷工作有一定的影响,估计在未来的考试中该类题型的出现依然会比较有限。但仍然不可掉以轻心,当小心应对。
从题型上来看,简答题主要考三种题型:细节题(事实题)、主旨题、推理题,以前者为多。做简答题的方法和做篇章阅读理解的方法有类似之处,在快速阅读以及篇章阅读章节中提到的定位法,顺序提问等原则,在此都适用。但它也有其特点,它的难处就在于答案有时隐含在字里行间,而且要求表达在10字以内。
1.浏览问题,带着问题进行阅读,按图索骥。按照题干的主题词浏览,这样针对性强,答题效率高。一般情况下,问题的顺序与文章内容的顺序一致,如第一个问题往往在开头部分而最后一个问题在文章内容最后。
2.在原文上做标记。遇到与问题相关的表述做一标记,标明是与第几题有关,并且要把握好关键词和句子。这样准确定位,一方面有助于快速准确地理解文章内容回答问题,另一方面有助于在检查时尽快找到位置,而不至于再把整个文章通读一遍从而耽误宝贵时间。
3.注意书面表达与检查。尽量减少同题干表达重复,从而节省字数。注意拼写、时态对应、主谓语时态、第三人称单数、大小写、单词拼写等语法因素。做完后花2—3分钟时间检查是非常必要的。
例文1
In many businesses, computers have largely replaced paperwork,because they are fast, flexible, and do not make mistakes. As one banker said, “ike humans, computers never have a bad day.” And they are honest. Many banks advertise that their transactions are“ouched by human hands” and therefore safe from human temptation. Obviously, computers have no reason to steal money. But they also have no conscience, and the growing number of computer crimes shows they can be used to steal.
Computer criminals don t use guns. And even if they are caught,it is hard to punish them because there are no witness and often no evidence.A computer cannot remember who used it:it simply does what it is told. The head teller at a New York City bank used a computer to steal more than one and a half billion dollars in just four years. No one noticed this theft because he moved the money from one account to another. Each time a customer he had robbed questioned the balance in his account, the teller claimed a computer error, then replaced the missing money from someone else s account. This man was caught only because he was a gambler. When the police broke up an illegal gambling operation, his name was in the records.
Some employees use the computer s power to get revenge on employers they consider unfair. Recently, a large insurance company fired its computertape librarian for reasons that involved her personal rather than her professional life. She was given thirty days notice. In those thirty days,she erased all the company s computerized records.
Most computer criminals have been minor employees. Now police wonder if this is“ tip of the iceberg.”As one official says, “ave the feeling that there is more crime out there than we are catching. What we are seeing now is all so poorly done. I wonder what the real experts are doing—the ones who really know how a computer works.”
Questions:
1.What is the passage mainly about?
2.Transactions in many banks are claimed to be safe because they.
3.The bank teller covered up his crime by.
4.What must the librarian do thirty days after she received the notice?
5.According to the last paragraph,what kind of criminal are the police unable to catch?
从这道简答题,我们可以看出简答题都是让考生先读一篇文章,然后回答几个与这篇文章相关的问题。大学英语四六级考试和MBA入学考试都只要求回答5个问题。但问题样式相同,主要有两种:完全形式和非完全形式。前者是一个问题。后者是一句不完整的话,要求考生根据文章意思补全。两者比率是4∶1左右。如上面例文1中,3个问题,2个填空题。一般说来问题形式在较难的考试中占多数。如六级考试的简答题都是问题形式。但这两种形式没有本质上的区别,两者可以互变的。如问同一内容,我们既可用问题形式,也可用填空形式。如:
1.a)Why do researchers assure the cause of homelessness to be clinical rather than social?
b)Researchers assume the cause of homelessness to be clinical rather than social because.
2.a)What does the passage mainly talk about?
b)The passage mainly talk about.
简答题会问什么问题?从问的内容说来,不会出一般疑问题,如Does the author agree with the view?或Is the man ready to accept the job?因为这种问题你只要写一个Yes或No就可以了。出的问题必定是特殊疑问题,即用5W1H:What,Why,When,Where,Who,How来提问。但在实际考试中,只用What和Why提问,When,Where,Who,How基本上不用的。原因就是用When,Where,Who,How提的问题,都是局部性的,细节性的,容易答。如When问什么时间,Where问什么地方,Who问是谁,How问如何干,这些细节在文章中可以一下子找到,因此,这种比较容易的问题不会出现在阅读简答题中。但是就What问题,问的东西相当广泛,和选择题考的内容没有什么区别。它什么都可以问,如可以
问文章大意:What is this passage mainly about?
问作者态度:The passage shows that the author seems.
问词汇意思:What does the author mean by the word “ual”in line 5?
问代词指代:What does “s”in line 5 refer to?
问具体细节:According to the passage,the serious problem among students is that.
问隐含意义:From the last paragraph,we can infer that.
只有是非判断题除外,因为像Which of the following statements is (NOT) true?或者All of the following statements are true except.这类问题不提供选项是无法回答的。
一般说来,局部题(Local questions即在文章中可直接找到答案的)占60%—80%,剩下的是全局题(Globle questions即答案是通过阅读全文归纳或推断出来的)。
例文2
Physical fitness is the result of many factors—good medical and dental care, proper nutrition, adequate rest and relaxation, and sensible personal habits. But these are never enough. An essential factor is regular physical activity—exercise for a body that needs it to function well.
All of us know that ordinary movements—things like running, jumping and bending—are made possible by muscles. Muscles also do many other things. They suck air into your lungs, push food along your digestive tract, and tighten your blood vessels to raise blood pressure when you need more pressure for an emergency. Your heart is a muscular pump.
When young muscles are not used,or are not used enough, they do not develop and grow properly. They soon become flabby and weak, shrink in size, and lose the ability to do the jobs they are meant to do.
Recent studies show that the average high school student spends fifteen to thirty hours a week watching television and only two hours a week in organized play or exercise. That is one reason why one third of the 200 000 pupils tested for the President s Council on Physical Fitness failed a simple test of strength, stamina, and flexibility. Some of the boys and girls could not raise themselves to sitting position without using their hands.
Cars and buses, elevators and escalators, TV an pushbutton machines all tend to reduce strenuous physical activity. But our bodies still need exercise. Without it they soon become weak, ineffective, and unattractive.
1.Why is regular physical activity essential?
2.What will muscles do if one needs more blood pressure?
3.What will happen if young people do not use their muscles?
4.What will happen if young people do not use their muscles?
5.The author seems to urge people to.
前3题都是局部题。第1题问的是第1段最后一句的意思:An essential factor is regular physical activity—exercise for a body that needs it to function well。因此答案就是:Because the body needs it to function well.
第2题问的是对文章第2段第3句后半句的理解:and tighten your blood vessels to raise blood pressure when you need more pressure for an emergency。显然答案是:Tighten one s blood vessels to raise blood pressure.
第3题是问文章第3段第1句的意思:When young muscles are not used,or are not used enough,they do not develop and grow properly,因此答案就是:The muscles will not develop and grow properly.
后2题是全局题。其中第4题是要读完第四段,理解其意,才能用自己的语言来表达。第4段说高中生一周看多少电视,其结果有多少人体测不合格,多少人不用手帮助站不起来等等。因此,学生的问题是:They lack physical activities.
第5题实际上是问作者的写作意图,这当然要从全文讲的内容、作者的措辞来推断。整篇文章讲了两点:体育活动和身体的关系;目前青少年的身体素质下降的状况。因此此文是要希望人们:take adequate exercise。
例文3
The process of entering the confines of political and economic power can be pictured as a system in which persons are chosen from a potential elite pool. In this reservoir of possible leaders are the individuals with the skills, education, and other qualifications needed to fill elite positions. It is here that competition does exist, that the highest achievers do display their abilities, and that the best qualified do generally succeed. Hence, what is most important is entering this reservoir of qualified people.
Many in the masses may have leadership abilities, but unless they can gain entrance into the elite pool, their abilities will go unnoticed. Those of higher class and status rank enter more easily into this competition since they have been afforded greater opportunities to acquire the needed qualifications.
In addition to formal qualifications, there are less obvious socialpsychological factors which tend to narrow the potential elite pool further. “fassertion” and“felimination” are processes by which those of higher social status assert themselves and those of lower social status eliminate themselves from competition for elite positions. A young man whose family has been active in politics, who has attended Harvard, and who has established a network of connections to the economic and political power establishments would not be unrealistic in his aspiring(追求)to a high position in the business or political world. On the other hand, a young man with less prestigious(有名望的)family background, no connections, and only a high school education or even a college degree from a state university would not likely expect a future place for himself at the top. As Prewitt and Stone explain, such an individual “ few models to follow, no contacts to put him into the right channels, and little reason to think of himself as potentially wealthy or powerful.”Thus, selfselection aids in filtering out those of lower income and status groups from the pool of potential elites. Most eliminate themselves from the competition early in the game.
Questions:
1.What does“ential elite pool”(Line3, Para. 1 )mean?
2.Why is it easier for people of high social status to secure elite positions?
3.What does the term “ial status”refer to in this passage?
4.According to the author, what are the two most important factors in the competition for entry into the potential elite pool?
5.What are the two forms of selfselection?
5题中有4题的答案可直接利用原文中的词,只有第3题要用自己的语言来组织。先看答案能直接找到的。
第1题问题中的potential elite pool,引导我们在文章第一句找到相同的词组:...in which persons are chosen from a potential elite pool.这里的potential elite pool指什么呢?后面一句作了解释:In this reservior of possible leaders are the individuals with the skills,education,and other qualifications needed to fill elite positions。显然this reservoir of possible leaders是potential elite pool的同位语,是同一意思两种说法。但在写答案时,一定要把this改成a:A reservoir of possible leaders,因为Potential elite pool means this reservoir of possible leaders是不通的。第一段最后一句还有potential elite pool的另一种说法:Hence,what is most important is entering this reservoir of qualified people。因此答案是A reservoir of qualified people或A reservoir of possible leaders。
第2题问题中的easier for people使我们在第二段发现相关句:Those of higher class and status rank enter more easily into this competition since they have been afforded greater opportunities to acquire the needed qualifications。一个问为什么容易得到高级职位,一个问为什么容易加入竞争,实际上是一回事。原文后半句提供了答案:since they have been afforded greater opportunities to acquire the needed qualifications。答案可写成Because they have been afforded grater opportunities或They have been afforded greater opportunities。
第4题的答案也是能在文章中直接找到的。问题中的factor一词引导我们在文章第三段开头发现答案相关句:In addition to formal qualifications,there are less obvious socialpsychological factors which tend to narrow the potential elite pool further讲的是除了formal qualifications,还有一个不大显而易见的因素:socialpsychological factors。读全文就知道,文章一共只讨论了这两个因素。因此答案是:Formal qualifications and socialpsychological factors。
第5题的答案虽然在文章中,但较难通过问题直接找到。问的是哪两种自我选择的形式。selfselection在文章最后一句出现,但forms全文中没有这个词。没有forms,如何去找the two forms of selfselection?而且selfselection所在句也没有解释selfselection的意思。但读这个句子:Thus,selfselection aids in filtering out those of lower income and status groups from the pool of potential elites.Thus这个过渡词是表示总结意义的过渡词,告诉我们前面讲的是对selfselection的讨论。前面确实讲了两种情况:一种是讲社会地位高的人如何比较容易进入potential elite pool;然后用过渡词引出另一种情况社会地位较低的人如何自我淘汰。但这是具体细节,再往前面读,有一句引出这两种情况的观点主题句:“fassertion”and “felimination”are processes by which those of higher social status assert themselves and those of lower social status eliminate themselves from competition for elite positions.显然问的two forms of selfselection就是这两个过程process;selfassertion and selfselection就是这两个过程process:selfassertion and selfelimination。因此答案是Selfassertion and selfelimination。
第3题问题中social status也帮助我们找到相应的词:...by which those of higher social status assert themselves and those of lower social status eliminate themselves from competition for elite positions.但这句话并没有直接告诉我们social status在文章中指什么。而后面一句用一个例子说明的也只是higher social status的意思:A young man whose family has been active in politics,who has attended Harvard,and who has established a network of connections to the economic and political power establishments would not be unrealistic in his aspiring to a high position in the business or political world。因此,文章中没有现成的对social status的解释。但我们可以推断:既然社会地位高指一个人有一个政治上活跃的家庭,本人上过名牌大学,在政界和经济界有一定关系,那么社会地位包括家庭因素、教育因素和社交因素。
因此用自己的话归纳这个意思,并参照后面一句对lower social status的解释的一些词:on the other hand,a young man with less prestigious family background,no connections,and only a high school eduction...,我们可写出答案:Family background,social connections,and education。这是对social status的中性解释,是对问题针对性的回答。如写higher education或college education是对higher social status解释了,因此是错的。这也可解释为什么写A young man whose family has been active in politics,who has attended Harvard,and who has established a network of connections to the economic and political power establishments是不得分的,不是因为是整句原封不动照搬照抄,而是意思错了,这句话是对higher social status解释,不是social status的解释。
练习
Passage One
Sport is one of the world s largest industries, and most athletes are professionals who are paid for their efforts. Because an athlete succeeds by achievement only—not by economic ground or family connections—sports can be a fast route to wealth, and many athletes play for money than for love.
This has not always been true. In the ancient Olympics the winner got only a wreath of olive leaves (橄榄叶花环). Even though the winners became national heroes, the games remained amateur for centuries. Athletes won fame, but no money. As time passed, however, the contests became increasingly less amateur and cities began to hire athletes to represent them.
By the fourth century A. D. , the Olympics were ruined, and they were soon ended.
In 1896, the Olympic games were revived (使再度兴起) with the same goal of pure amateur competition. The rules bar athletes who have ever received a $ 50 prize or an athletic scholar or who have spent four weeks in a training camp. At least one competitor in the 1896 games met these qualifications. He was Spiridon Loues, a water carrier who won the marathon race, After race, a rich Athenian offered him anything he wanted. A true amateur, Loues accepted only a cart and a horse. Then he gave up running forever. But Loues was an exception and now, as the Chairman of the German Olympic Committee said, “ody pays any attention to these rules.” Many countries pay their athletes to train yearround, and Olympic athletes are eager to sell their names to companies that make everything from ski equipment to fast food.
Even the games themselves have become a huge business. Countries fight to hold the Olympics not only for honor, but for money. The 1972 games in Munich cost the Germans 545 million dollars, but by selling medal symbols, TV rights, food, drink, hotel rooms, and souvenirs (纪念品), they managed to make a profit. Appropriately, the symbol of victory in the Olympic games is no longer a simple olive wreath—it is a gold medal.
Questions
1.To many people.sports today are nothing but.
2.What do most athletes of today go after?
3.What reward could an ancient Greek athlete expect?
4.By the fourth century A.D.,Olympic contests became increasingly more,thus ruining the Olympics.
5.When the Olympic games were revived in 1896,athletes who had received special training in camps would be.
6.What did Spiridon Loues do after he accepted the Athenian s gift?
7.According to the author,some athletes are even willing to advertise for businesses which sell things like.
8.The 1972 Munich games managed to make a big profit mainly by (1) services and selling (2).
(1)
(2)
Passage Two
What personal qualities are desirable in a teacher? I think the following would be generally accepted.
First, the teacher s personality should be lively and attractive. This does not rule out people who are plainlooking, or even ugly, because many such people have great personal charm. But it does rule out such types as the overexcitable, sad, cold, and frustrated.
Secondly, it is not merely desirable but essential for a teacher to have a genuine capacity for sympathy, a capacity to understand the minds and feelings of other people, especially, since most teachers are school teachers, the minds and feelings of children. Closely related with this is the capacity to be tolerant—not, indeed, of what is wrong, but of the weaknesses and immaturity of human nature which induce (劝导) people, and again especially children, to make mistakes.
Thirdly, I hold it essential for a teacher to be both intellectually and morally honest. This means that he will be aware of his intellectual strengths and limitations, and will have thought about and decided upon the moral principles by which his life shall be guided. There is no contradiction in my going on to say that a teacher should be a bit of an actor. That is part of the technique of teaching, which demands that every now and then a teacher should be able to put on an act to enliven (使生动) a lesson, correct a fault, or award praise. Children, especially young children, live in a world that is rather larger than life.
A teacher must be capable of infinite patience. This, I may say, is largely a matter of selfdiscipline and selftraining, for we are none of us born like that.
Finally, I think a teacher should have the kind of mind which always wants to go on learning. Teaching is a job at which one will never be perfect; there is always something more to learn about it. There are three principal objects of study: the subjects which the teacher is teaching; the methods by which the subjects can best be taught to the particular pupils in the classes he is teaching; and—by far the most important—the children, young people, or adults to whom the subjects are to be taught. The two fundamental principles of British education today are that education is education of the whole person, and that it is best acquired through full and active cooperation between two persons, the teacher and the learner.
Questions
1.Plain looking teachers can also be admired by their students if they have.
2.The author says it isthat teachers be sympathetic with their students.
3.A teacher should be tolerant because humans tend to have (1)and to be (2).
(1)
(2)
4.A teacher who iswill be able to make his lessons more lively.
5.How can a teacher acquire infinite patience?
6.Since teaching is a job no one can be perfect at,it is necessary for teachers to keep improving their knowledge of the subjects they teach and their.
7.Teachers most important object of study is.
8.Education cannot be best acquired withoutbetween the teacher and the learner.
参考答案
Passage One
1.问:“对很多人来说,运动仅仅是”首段第二句sports can be a fast route to wealth,and many athletes play for money than for love.故a fast route to wealth。
2.问:“部分运动员追求的是什么?”首段末句money。
3.问:“运动员能期望赢得什么奖励?”第二段第二句In the ancient Olympics the winner got only a wreath of olive leaves.
4.问:“四世纪奥运会比赛变得越来越,因而毁了奥运会。”第二段第四句As time passed,however,the contests became increasingly less amateur and cities began to hire athletes to represent them.逆向表达就是比赛越来越职业化professional。
5.问:“96年奥运会再度兴起时,在训练营接受过特殊训练的运动员将会如何?”第三段第二句The rules bar athletes...who have spent four weeks in a training camp.意为“止在训练营接受过特殊训练的运动员参赛”。用被动式,所以答案为barred。
6.问:“Athenian的礼物后,Spiridon Loues做了什么?”由第三段得He gave up running forever.
7.问:“观点,有些运动员甚至愿意为卖诸如东西的公司做广告。”第三段末句可得ski equipment and fast food。
8.问:“2年慕尼黑奥运会设法通过服务和出售获利颇丰。”答案可从末段倒数第二句总结到。原句中除了表达出售一系列与运动有关的东西外剩下的就是旅店服务了,所以答案为hotel。第二个空基本上是文章的原句,非常明显,就是medal symbols,TV rights,souvenirs,food and drink。
Passage Two
1.问:“们拥有,相貌平平的老师同样可以受到学生崇拜。”第二段前两句First,the teacher s personality should be lively and attractive.This does not rule out people who are plainlooking,or even ugly,because many such people have great personal charm.故答案为great personal charm。
2.问:“为教师应该对学生富有同情心,这一点是。”第三段第一句Secondly,it is not merely desirable but essential for a teacher to have a genuine capacity for sympathy,a capacity to understand the minds and feelings of other people,especially,since most teachers are school teachers,the minds and feelings of children.可见教师应该天生就具备同情心,这一点不仅仅是必需的而且是非常基本的。答案就非常明显为desirable and essential或essential。
3.问:“该宽容一些,原因在于?”由原文Closely related with this is the capacity to be tolerant—not,indeed,of what is wrong,but of the weaknesses and immaturity of human nature which induce people,and again especially children,to make mistakes.需要宾语和表语,答案是:(1)名词weaknesses;(2)形容词immature。
4.问:“够使自己的课上得很生动?”第四段There is no contradiction in my going on to say that a teacher should be a bit of an actor.That is part of the technique of teaching,which demands that every now and then a teacher should be able to put on an act to enliven a lesson,correct a fault,or award praise.它需要教师经常能够表演从而使课堂生动起来,能够恰当地纠正学生缺点、适当地给予学生鼓励。故答案为a bit of an actor。
5.问:“何获得足够的耐心?”第五段第二句可知by/through selfdiscipline and selftraining。
6.问:“书是一项没人能够尽善尽美的工作,那么教师就有必要不断提高他们课程的知识水平和。”末段倒数第二句There are three principal objects of study:the subjects which the teacher is teaching;the methods by which the subjects can best be taught to the particular pupils in the classes he is teaching;and—by far the most important—the children,young people,or adults to whom the subjects are to be taught.可得答案为teaching methods。
7.答案参考6。
8.问:“授者和学习者之间教育才能达到最好效果。”文章末段末句答案很直接,full and active cooperation。
第八节篇章阅读理解
一、解题方式
阅读理解一般方法主要是指有助于考生克服不良阅读习惯,避免陷入阅读方法误区的一些基本方法和基本要求,是运用一些具体题型解题技巧的基础。如果不掌握这些基础方法,即使掌握了一些技巧,也很难切实提高阅读理解解题速度和准确率。实践表明,要切实提高阅读理解速度,考生应首先克服逐字默读或低声朗读,然后逐字翻译、逐句分析的阅读习惯。这种习惯实际上是先把书面文字符号转变成了声音符号,再去理解声音符号,这必然限制了阅读速度。考生应养成直接理解书面文字符号的习惯,这样可以加快阅读速度。其次,考生应认识到考试中阅读文章的目的不是准确理解文章中每个词的用法和每句话的确切含义,更不是将文章译成汉语,而是为了答对文章后面的阅读理解题。因而,考生对这些文章应持“解”的态度,把注意力集中在与题目有关的文字材料上,与题目无关的文字材料可一带而过,切忌边读边翻译,这会大大降低阅读速度。最后,考生应正确运用以下阅读方法,以确保阅读速度和准确率的同步提高。
(一)三步阅读法
三步阅读法是指做阅读理解题时分三个步骤做题的解题方法。具体表现为先阅读并分析文章后面提供的题目,确定这些题目的种类,了解这些题目所涉及的内容,同时做一些较简单的主旨题和词汇题,然后根据这些题目的内容阅读文章,搜寻文中与题目有关的文字依据,最后做阅读理解题。随着我国英语教学质量的提高,各级各类英语考试中阅读理解试题所用的文章越来越长,分量越来越重,这对考生做题速度提出了很高的要求,原有的传统式阅读方法已越来越不适应新情况。为了最大限度提高做题速度和准确率,考生应采用三步式阅读方法。实践表明这种方法是一种行之有效的阅读方法。例如:
To a philosopher, wisdom is not the same as knowledge. Facts may be known in prodigious numbers without the knower of them loving wisdom. Indeed, the person who possesses encyclopedic information may actually have a genuine contempt for those who love and seek wisdom. The philosopher is not content with a mere knowledge of facts. He desires to integrate and evaluate facts, and to probe beneath the obvious to the deeper underneath behind the immediately given facts. Insight into the hidden depths of reality, perspective on human life and nature in their entirety in the words of Plato, to be a spectator of time and existence—these are the philosopher s objectives. Too great an interest in the minutiae of science, may and often does, obscure these basic objectives.
Philosophers assume that the love of wisdom is a natural endowment of the human being. Potentially every man is a philosopher because in the depths of his being there is an intense longing to fathom the mysteries of existence. The inner yearning expresses itself in various ways prior to any actual study of philosophy as a technical branch of human culture. Consequently every human being in so far as he has ever been or is a lover of wisdom has, to that extent, a philosophy of life.
1.The title below that best expresses the ideas of this passage is:.
A.The Potential Philosopher
B.The Philosophy of Plato
C.The Philosopher versus the Scientist
D.The Philosopher Defined
2.According to the author, which statement concerning philosophers is most nearly accurate?
A.They are an impractical lot.
B.They are too radical.
C.They are a thoughtful group.
D.They have contempt for humanity.
3.A philosopher wishes to.
A.systematize facts
B.work by himself
C.show his contempt for knowledge
D.have an encyclopedic mind
4.The author suggests that a man becomes a philosopher when he.
A.studies philosophy as a subject
B.collects all the facts
C.realizes obvious truths
D.seeks a meaning for life
做这些阅读理解题时,考生应采用三步阅读方法。首先考生应分析这些题目的内容及种类。不难知道第1题为主旨题,第2、3、4题均为细节题。第2题的内容是有关哲学家的论述或观点哪一个是正确的,第3题与哲学家的愿望有关,第4题关于什么时候一个人成为哲学家的。笔者在本章第1节提到阅读理解题的题干与文章主题之间有密切的联系。细心的考生在分析题目过程中不难发现第2、第3、第4题都与哲学家(philosopher)有关,philosopher显然是这篇文章论述的中心,第1题答案应为D。这样分析题目时便将第1题做完。然后,考生可根据其他题目的内容阅读文章,并搜寻相关的文字材料。考生可在相关文字材料处作上记号,以备做题时查阅参考。最后,根据文中相关的文字材料仔细比较每个选择项大意与原文是否一致,第3题A项与第7行文字一致,第4题D项与原文最后一句大意一致,故以上三题答案分别为C、A、D。
(二)预测性阅读法
所谓预测性阅读法是发展心理学的图式理论在阅读理解中的具体应用。图式是指人脑中拥有的各种特征和构想的智力图。根据图式理论,人们在阅读过程中并不是仅仅将所读到的内容或全部细节都堆积在脑海中,而是使其中的信息与脑海中原有的图式相符合,即,将新的信息吸收进脑海的图式中。如果其中的信息是前所未闻的或与读者所知截然不同,那么读者就调整自己脑海中的图式。根据这一理论,阅读过程实际上是读者已有的关于语言和世界的图式,不断吸收新信息,不断调整自己的认识的过程。因而,考生在阅读实践中,完全可以从文章语句的内在联系以及已有知识的图式,消化吸收新信息,预测文章的主要内容和写作思路,并寻找文字信息证明自己的预测。如若某些文字信息不能证明自己的预测,则应另起炉灶,重新预测,重新调整脑海中的图式,直到文字材料证明自己的预测为止。简而言之,在阅读实践中运用预测性阅读法,实际上是指根据已有知识图式和文章内在联系的有机联想,不断预测文章主题,不断寻找文字材料,不断证明自己的预测,直至确定文章中心思想和写作思路为止。这种方法的应用有助于考生从宏观角度把握文章主题和写作思路,有效提高做题速度和准确率。例如:
The railroad proved to be the most viable solution to the great American problem of distance. Rail transportation was fast, reliable, relatively cheap to construct, and useable even in winter. Able to go almost anywhere, even over the Allegheny barrier, the railroad defied terrain and weather. Early experiments with railroads involved the use of various kinds of power, including wind, dogs, horses, and finally steam. The first important line was begun by the Baltimore and Ohio Company—significantly on Independence Day in 1828. At the colorful dedication ceremony, the first stone was laid in Baltimore by Charles Carroll ,then age ninety,the only surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence. But the steam locomotive for railroads, truly a declaration of independence from primitive transportation, was not, as commonly supposed, a Yankee invention. It had already been used to a limited extent in England.
5.An appropriate title for this passage would be
A.The American Distanee Problem
B.The Life and contribution of Charles Carroll
C.The Initiation and Impact of the American Railroad
D.Railroads in America and England
考生阅读这篇文章时,可以根据第1句的大意预测文章的主题是关于美国铁路的作用,然后分析其他语句内容是否与这一主题一致。不难知道,第2、第3句是关于铁路运输的优点,第4句以及其他语句均涉及第一条美国铁路的建设。这些语句的大意显然与预测的主题一致,故答案为C。
The most interesting architectural phenomenon of the 1970 s was the enthusiasm for refurbishing older buildings. Obviously, this was not an entirely new phenomenon. What is new is the wholesale interest in reusing the past, in recycling, in adaptive rehabilitation. A few trial efforts, such as Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco, proved their financial viability in the 1960 s, but it was in the 1970 s, with strong government support through tax incentives and rapid depreciation, as well as growing interest in ecology issues, that recycling became a major factor on the urban scene.
One of the most comprehensive ventures was the restoration and transformation of Boston s eighteenth century Faneuil Hall and the Quincy Market, designed in 1824.This section had fallen on hard times ,but beginning with the construction of a new city hall immediately adjacent, it has returned to life with the intelligent reuse of these fine old buildings under the design leadership of Benjamin Thompson. He has provided a marvelous setting for dining, shopping, professional offices, and simply walking.
Butler Square, in Minneapolis, exemplifies major changes in its complex of offices,commercial space, and public amenities carved out of a massive pile designed in 1906 as a hardware warehouse. The exciting interior timber structure of the building was highlighted by cutting light courts through the interior and adding large skylights.
6.What is the main idea of the passage?
A.During the 1970 s, old buildings in many cities were recycled for modern use.
B.Recent interest in ecology issues has led to the cleaning up of many rivers.
C.The San Antonio example shows that the bulldozers are not the way to fight urban decay.
D.Strong government support has made adaptive rehabilitation a reality in Boston.
读到文章第1句时,考生可根据该句的大意,预测文章的主题,但第2句以否定句形式否定了考生的预测。这时考生应另起炉灶,根据第3句大意预测本文的主题,即:对于重新修缮旧房屋的兴趣,其他语句内容与这一预测显然一致。故答案为A。
(三)信号词阅读法
信号词是指体现语句和段落之间的逻辑关系,使文章语句衔接自然、层次分明的关联词。研究表明汉语重“,即语句之间的衔接是通过语句之间内在逻辑关系来实现,而英语重“,即通过各类信号词或关联词的使用来实现语句、段落之间的衔接。因此,阅读过程中运用信号词阅读法,识别表示各种逻辑关系的信号词,可以较快地把握语句之间关系、文章写作方法、文章主题乃至具体内容。英语信号词一般可分为以下几种:
①表示举例:
one of,for example,for instance,as an example,in this instance,take(give,cite)...as an example等。
②表示列举:
The first,the second,the last;one,another,a third;to begin with,in addition,moreover,finally,at last等。
③表示比较:
similarly,also,too,just as,equal to,different from,compared to,more than,less than,the same as等。
④表示转折和对比:
but,however,nevertheless,otherwise,although,unlike,on the other hand,on the contrary,in contrast(to)等。
⑤表示原因:
because of,due to,owing to,because,as,since,on account of,in that,now that,seeing that等。
⑥表示结果或结论:
hence,thus,so,therefore,consequently,accordingly,as a result (of),as an outcome (of)等。
⑦表示方式手段:
by,with,by means of,in such a way that等
⑧表示时间:
when,while,before,after,next then,at last,at present,at the end of等。
⑨表示地点:
there,next to,in which,in front of,at the back of,at the bottom of,from...to...等。
⑩表示目的:
for,in order to,so as to,so that,in order that,for the purpose of等。
表示分类:
include,classify,consist of,divide into,comprise,embrace,fall into等。
掌握以上信号词,不仅可以帮助考生理解文章的主题和写作思路,而且有助于考生在原文中搜寻与细节题有关的文字材料,这是因为阅读理解的细节题大多与以上信号词所表示的内容有关,如分类、目的、原因、结果及方式等。下面,笔者将结合具体实例介绍信号词阅读法的应用。
Mary Cochran went out of the rooms where she lived with her father, Doctor Lester Cochran, at seven o clock on a Sunday evening. It was June of the year nineteen hundred and eight, and Mary was eighteen years old. She walked along forward to Main Street and across the railroad tracks to Upper Main, lined with small shops and shabby houses, a rather quiet cheerless place on Sundays where there were few people about. She had told her father she was going to church but did not intend anything of the kind. She did not know what she wanted to do. “l get off by myself and think,” she told herself as she walked slowly along. The night, she thought, promised to be too fine to be spent sitting in a church and hearing a man talk of things that had apparently nothing to do with her own problem. Her own affairs were approaching a crisis, and it was time for her to begin thinking seriously of her future.
The thoughtful serious state of mind in which Maryfound herself had been induced (引诱) in here by a conversation she had with her father on the evening before. Without any preliminary talk and quite suddenly and abruptly, he had told her that he was a victim of heart disease and might die at any moment. He had made the announcement as they stood together in his office, behind which were the rooms in which the father and daughter lived.
1.What did she intend to do that night?
A.She decided to go to church.
B.She decided not to think about the problem.
C.She decided to talk over the problem with her father.
D.She had no intention of going to church.
2.What was the cause of Mary s serious state of mind?
A.Concern about her future.
B.Her talk with her father.
C.Worry about her sudden heart attack.
D.Going to church made her worry.
3.Where did Mary live?
A.In the same building as her father s office.
B.Near the church.
C.In a shabby house near her father s office.
D.She lived in a small shop.
分析以上各题,第2题涉及做某事的原因,第3题关于某人居住的地点。运用信号词阅读法,考生可根据以上信号词所表示的内容,搜寻与第2、第3题相关的文字材料。不难发现,第2段第1句“had been induced in her by a conversation she had with her father on the evening before.”中的by引导的成分显然是关于做某事的原因,与第2题B项一致,故答案为B;第2段最后一句中in which引导的成分表示做某事的地点,由此不难确定第3题答案为A。
(四)语篇分析阅读法
语篇分析阅读法要求考生掌握英语文章的不同语篇结构,并在阅读实践中通过文章语篇结构的分析,把握文章的中心内容和具体细节。在各类英语考试中,常见语篇结构主要为:
1.正三角形与倒三角形结构
在议论文和说明文中,作者为阐明某一事实现象,介绍某一过程以及分析某种因果关系,常常采用正三角和倒三角形结构。正三角形结构指作者在文章开头给出文章的中心内容,然后围绕中心展开论述。倒三角形结构与正三角形结构恰恰相反,一开始便对某一问题展开论述,最后才总结全文的中心内容。值得注意的是,围绕文章中心展开论述的方式有比较、对比、因果分析、举例、列举等。做阅读理解题时,考生应首先确定文章结构是正三角形还是倒三角形语篇结构,从而确定文章的主题;其次可识别一些信号词的运用,分析文章的展开方式,并把握一些具体细节。此外,考生应注意阅读理解考试所用的文章大多是正三角形结构。下面仅以一实例说明文章的正三角形结构及语篇分析法的运用。
The development of Jamestown in Virginia during the second half of the seventeenth century was closely related to the making and use of bricks. There are several practical reasons why bricks became important to the colony. Although the forests could initially supply sufficient timber, the process of lumbering was extremely difficult, particularly because of the lack of roads. Later, when the timber on the distance was plentiful. Building stone was also in short supply. However,as clay was plentiful, it was inevitable that the colonist would turn to brickmaking.
In addition to practical reasons for using brick as the principal construction material, there was also an ideological reason. Brick represented durability and permanence. The Virginia Company of London instructed the colonists to build hospitals and new residence out of brick. In 1662, the Town Act of the Virginia Assembly provided for the construction of thirtytwo brick buildings and prohibited the use of wood as a construction material. Had this law ever been successfully enforced, Jamestown would have been a model city. Instead, the residents failed to comply fully with the law; and by 1699 Jamestown had collapsed into a pile of rubble with only three or four habitable houses.
1.What is the subject of this passage?
A.The Reasons for Brickmaking in Jamestown
B.The Cause of the Failure of Jamestown
C.The Law of the Virginia Colonists
D.The Problems of the Early American Colonies
2.In the first half of the 1600 s, most buildings in Jamestown were probably made of.
A.earth B.stone
C.wood D.brick
3.It can be inferred from the passage that Jamestown was established on.
A.a rocky peninsula with a small forested area
B.a barren peninsula near other towns
C.an uninhabitable peninsula with few natural resources
D.a wooded peninsula with a clay soil
4.It can be inferred from the passage that settlers who built with bricks in the 1660 s were.
A.planning to return to England
B.obeying the laws
C.not concerned about durability
D.interested in larger residences
5.According to the passage, what eventually happened to Jamestown?
A.It was practically destroyed.
B.It became a model city.
C.It remained the seat of government.
D.It was almost completed.
分析这篇文章,不难确定文章语篇结构为正三角形。这是因为文章一开始便给出文章的主题,即“纪下半叶弗吉尼亚州Jamestown的发展与砖的制作及应用有关”,紧接着说明其原因,文章的展开方式是因果分析方法。文章第2句直接告诉读者文章的中心在于分析为什么砖的制作与应用对于Jamestown的发展很重要。识别并了解正三角形结构特点,可以帮助考生确定文章的主题句,进而确定文章的中心极标题等。一般而言,正三角形结构文章的主题句位于文首,多为文首的第一句、第二句。同时,了解正三角形结构特点,有助于考生把握文章写作思路,掌握文章的具体细节。就以上各题而言,不难确定第1题答案为A,A项与第1句大意及文章展开方式一致。分析全文,文章从两方面分析了砖的重要性:第一,由于木材采伐很困难,加上石头不多,因而这些殖民者不得不使用砖;第二,思想意识方面的原因使人们考虑使用砖。应该注意的是,文章第2段第1句中的In addition to是一信号词,它表明文章的展开方式除了因果分析之外,还表现为列举(原因)这一方式。根据第1段第3句,不难确定题2的答案为C。题3、题4及题5的答案可分别根据第1段最后几句、第2段第4句以及第2段最后一句确定,答案分别为D、B及A。
2.时间顺序性结构
这种语篇结构是指文章按时间先后、事情发生的先后顺序及某一具体过程的内在次序等方式展开。这种结构常见于叙事性或描述性文章中。一般而言,介绍人物生平,记叙历史事件或说明做某事的具体过程,都需要采用时间顺序结构。这种结构经常通过表示时间和顺序的信号词如First,second,...lastly以及一些具体时间状语来表示,考生应善于通过对这些信号词的识别把握文章顺序性结构,这不仅有助于考生理解文章写作方法、层次及文章主题,而且对于考生根据文章展开的时间顺序迅速寻找与具体细节题相关的文字材料有着十分现实的意义。例如:
In the past oysters were raised in much the same way as dirt farmers raised tomatoes—by transplanting them. First, farmers selected the oyster bed, cleared the bottom of old shells and other debris, then scattered clean shells about. Next, they “nted” fertilized oyster eggs, which within two or three weeks hatched into larvae. The larvae drifted until they attached themselves to the clean shells on the bottom. There they remained and in time grew into baby oysters called seed or spat. The spat grew larger by drawing in seawater from which they derived microscopic particles of food. Before long, farmers gathered the baby oysters, transplanted them in other waters to speed up their growth, than transplanted them once more into another body of water to fatten them up.
Until recently the supply of wild oysters and those crudely farmed were more than enough to satisfy people s needs. But today the delectable seafood is no longer available in abundance. The problem has become so serious that some oyster beds have vanished entirely.
Fortunately,as far back as the early 1900 s marine biologists realized that if new measures were not taken, oysters would become extinct or at best a luxury food. So they set up wellequipped hatcheries and went to work. But they did not have the proper equipment or the skill to handle the eggs. They did not know when, what, and how to feed the larvae. And they knew little about the predators that attack and eat baby oysters by the millions. They failed, but they doggedly kept at it. Finally, in the 1940 s significant breakthrough was made.
The marine biologists discovered that by raising the temperature of the water, they could induce oysters to spawn not only in the summer but also in the fall, winter, and spring. Later they developed a technique for feeding the larvae and rearing them to spat. Going still further, they succeeded in breeding new strains that were resistant to diseases, grew faster and larger, and flourished in water of different salinities and temperatures. In addition, the cul tivated oyster tasted better!
Which of the following best describes the organization of the passage?
A.Step by step of the evaluation of marine biology.
B.Discussion of chronological events concerning oyster production.
C.Random presentation of facts about oysters.
D.Deion of oyster production at different geographic locations.
分析全文,可知这篇文章语篇结构是时间顺序性结构。这一结构可根据表示时间的信号词的使用来确定。文章第1段第1句有一时间信号词即:In the past,第2段第1句的时间信号词为Until recently。很明显,文章是按时间顺序展开,详细介绍牡蛎的培植,故本题答案为B。
值得注意的是,按时间顺序展开的文章主题大多是关于某某的生涯(career),某某的历史(history)、发展(development,evolution)以及过程(process)等等。考生可以根据时间顺序性结构与文章主题或标题的内在关系,确定文章主题及标题。例如:
Joyce Carol Oates published her first collection of short stories By The North Gate, in 1963, two years after she had received her master s degree from the University of Wisconsin and become an instructor of English at the University of Detroit. Her productivity since then has been prodigious, accumulating in less than two decades to nearly thirty titles,including novels, collections of short storis and verse, plays,and literary criticism. In the meantime, she has continued to teach, moving in 1967 from the University of Detroit to the University of Widsor, in Ontario, and, in 1978, to Princeton University. Reviewers have admired her enermous energy, but find a productivity of such magnitude difficult to assess.
In a period characterized by the abandonment of so much of the realistic tradition by authors such as John Barth, Donald Barthelme, and Thomas Pynchon. Joyee Carol Oates has seemed at times determinedly oldfashioned in her insistence on the essentially mimetic quality of her fiction. Hers is a world of violence, insanity, fractured love,and hopeless loneliness. Although some of it appears to come from her own direct observations, her dreams, and her fears, much more is clearly from the experiences of others.Her first novel. With Shuddering Fall (1964), dealt with stock car racing, though she had never seen a race. In Them (1969) she focused on Detroit from the Depression through the riots of 1967, drawing much of her material from the deep impression made on her by the problems of one of her students. Whatever the source and however shocking the events or the motivations, however, her fictive world remains strikingly akin to that real one reflected in the daily newspapers, the television news and talk shows, and the popular magazines of our day.
What is the main purpose of the passage?
A.To review Oates By the North Gate
B.To compare some modern writers
C.To describe Oate s childhood
D.To Outline Oate s career
分析全文,不难发现这篇文章的语篇结构为时间顺序性结构,原文有很多表示时间的信号词。单就第1段而言,作者便采用了1963,1967,1978等信号词,按时间顺序介绍她的生涯,第2段也采用了一些表示时间的信号词列举Oates的作品。根据时间顺序性结构与文章主题的内在关系,可确定本题答案为D。
3.问题解决型结构
这种语篇结构在议论文中常见,具体表现为首先提出问题,然后具体分析问题的特点及问题形成的原因,最后介绍问题的解决办法。阅读实践中识别这种结构,可以迅速掌握文章的层次和段落大意,可以较快地了解问题产生的原因和解决办法。一般而言,这种结构文章的第1段大意为问题的提出发,后面几段大多分析问题的具体办法。一旦掌握文章的语篇结构是问题解决型,考生可直接阅读第1段以确定文章的主题或写作目的,分析后面几段以了解文章所提出问题形成的原因以及问题的解决办法。例如:
Scientists estimate that about 35 000 other objects,too small to detect with radar but detectable with powerful Earthbased telescopes, are also circling the Earth at an altitude of 200 to 700 miles. This debris poses little danger to us on the Earth, but since it is traveling at average relative speeds of six miles per second,it can severely damage expensive equipment in a collision. This threat was dramatized by a cavity oneeighth of an inch in diameter created in a window of a United States space shuttle in 1983. The pit was determined to have been caused by a collision with a speck of paint traveling at a speed of about two to four miles per second. The window had to be replaced.
As more and more nations put satellites into space, the risk of collision can only increase. Measures are already being taken to control the growth of orbital debris. The United States has always required its astronauts to bag their wastes and return them to Earth. The United States Air Force has agreed to conduct lowaltitude rather than highaltitude tests of objects it puts into space so debris from tests will reenter the Earth s atmosphere and burn up. Extra shielding will also reduce the risk of damage. For example, 2000 pounds of additional shielding is being considered for each of six spacestation crew modules. Further, the European Space Agency, an international consortium, is also looking into preventive measures.
1.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A.The Problem of Space Debris
B.The Space Shuttle of 1983
C.The Work of the European Space Agency
D.A Collision in Space
2.It can be inferred from the passage that debris was harmful to one of the space shuttles because the debris was.
A.large B.moving very fast
C.radioactive D.burning uncontrollably
3.Where in the passage does the writer mention a method of protecting space vehicles against damage by space debris?
A.Lines l—4 B.Lines 9—11
C.Line 12D.Lines 19—21
分析题干,可知这篇文章后面的题目都围绕debris这一中心来提问,故本文主题应与debris有关。分析第1题,只有A项与debris有关,故答案为A,本文的标题应为“圾问题”。结合这一标题和第3题内容,可以确定本文结构为问题解决型结构。根据这一语篇结构的层次划分,可知这篇文章第1段提出“圾问题”并分析原因。文章第1段第2句给出了“圾问题”之所以存在的原因,由此不难确定第2题答案为B。第2段显然提出了解决空间垃圾问题的办法,第3题答案很明显为D。
综上所述,考生运用语篇结构阅读法时,应熟悉各类语篇结构,并根据文章中的结构提示词来识别文章语篇结构。如:by contrast这一短语明确告诉你文章结构是比较结构和正三角形结构,examples of或to take...as an example则明确明文章结构为正三角形结构且为举例说明结构。此外,考生还可根据题干所涉及的内容来确定文章的语篇结构。最后,考生可根据不同语篇结构的层次划分,迅速查找与阅读理解题相关的文字材料。
(五)排除法
排除法是指在对题目答案举棋不定,不能做出果断选择的情况下,根据各个选择项与原文是否一致的具体情况,排除那些与原文矛盾、不一致或原文根本没有提到的选择项,从而缩小选择范围,做出正确的选择。这种方法的应用非常普遍,可适用于解决各类题型,尤其是对于推论题,这种方法最为适用。运用排除法时,考生应注意分析哪些选择项与原文论述自相矛盾或不完全一致,考生还应注意,某些选择项尽管从语义、语法或生活逻辑等角度分析都是正确的,但这些选择项常常是原文根本没有涉及的,应果断地将这些选择项排除。例如:
There was great public interest when a big hole mysteriously appeared in the middle of a field. Army mechanics and engineers were called in to explain how it had got there. They offered various explanations but were not at all sure how the hole had been caused. It was thought that a large shell which must have lain buried under the ground for many years had suddenly exploded, but it was not possible to prove this.
A “ple”, but highly improbable, explanation was offered by a man who claims to be especially wellinformed about “ing saucers”—the strange objects which are round in shape and are said to visit the earth occasionally from outer space. The man s explanation may have been nonsense, but at least it was imaginative. At any rate, it was far more interesting than the one given by the army.
After examining the ground carefully, the man claimed to have seen special marks on the soil quite near the hole. These, he said, could only have been caused by a flying saucer. Moreover, the leaves on some bushes nearby had turned yellow because of a strange hot gas which had come from the saucer just before it landed. Even a small tree some way off appeared to have been burnt slightly. A small piece of metal found in the hole itself provided further proof that a strange object had been there. According to the man, it was quite clear that people from another world had been circling the earth trying to pick up information, when something had gone wrong. Because of this they had been forced to land in a field so that the damage could be repaired. The hole had been caused when the saucer struck the earth, while the strange marks nearby were made when it took off again. This, said the man, was the simplest explanation of how the hole had appeared. Judging from the interest the public took in the matter, there must be quite a few people who secretly believe or hope that this “ple” explanation is the true one.
It is implied but not directly stated in the passage that .
A.the public took a great interest in the big mysterious hole
B.army engineers and mechanics were not in the least certain how the hole had appeared
C.objects from outer space hold a special attraction for many people
D.the man who claimed to be wellinformed about flying saucers turned out to be a cheat
这道题是推论题,难度较大,考生应采用排除法。分析文章和选择项,不难确定A和B项的内容均由原文第1句和第3句直接表达出,故排除A、B两项。D项显然在文中没有阐述,原文根本没有强调这个人是个骗子,故排除。答案只能为C,C项可由第1句推出。练习
Passage One
The diner is only a humble restaurant, but it has a special place in American life. Diners appear in our novels, plays, poems, and movies. Many artists have used diners as scenes for their paintings. Why are diners so fascinating to us?
The diner attracts many different kinds of people. It is a haven for lonely truck drivers far away from home. Construction workers learn about new jobs in distant cities. Traveling salesmen exchange gossip with one another. Teenagers sit in their booths, eating Cokes and hamburgers.
The people who work in diners are also interesting. Where did the new waitress come from? Will she remain here, or will she suddenly run off one day, as the last one did? And is the shortorder cook really an escaped convict, fleeing from the law?
Everyone comes to the diner for a different reason. Some want to work there, and some want to eat there. Some stay for years, and others stay only for a few minutes. But, for all of them, the diner is a bright, warm stopover between the endless stretches of open road.
1.What s the main idea of paragraph 2?
A.The attraction of diners to different people.
B.Food offered at the diner.
C.How people eat at the diner.
D.When people come to diners.
2.The purpose of the last paragraph is to.
A.tell us about the reason for people coming to the diner
B.invite us to try diners as a stopover between stretches of open road
C.give a summary of the whole passage
D.state the major point of the preceding paragraphs
3.Why do truck drivers like a diner?
A.It s a place to gossip.
B.It s a place for a Coke and a hamburger.
C.It s a haven against loneliness.
D.It s a place to learn about new jobs.
4.Diners attract.
A.only truck drivers
B.many different kinds of people
C.novelists
D.escaped convicts
5.Diners are.
A. gloomy B. unpleasant
C. luxurious D. fascinating
Passage Two
Johnny Miller is tall and slim. He has a head of blond hair. He has good looks. His golf swing is also beautiful. He can drive a ball very, very far. But it is his concentration that has made him a star. In 1974 he won three straight tournaments. Nobody ever did that.
“ry time I draw the club back,” says Miller, “now I m going to hit solid. The putts seem to fly off the putter and go right into the middle of the hole. It makes the game look easy.”
Miller started as a teenager. He came up fast. “n I finished second in the Masters, I knew,” he recalls, “t I could play with the big boys. ”
He thinks a golfer s game is in his head. He writes little rules for himself on a piece of brown envelope. “e the club back slowly.” “ must keep your head still.” “e sure you are comfortable before starting the swing.” He admits this sounds “ny”, but he feels each saying has a purpose. “elieve the brain is a computer,” says Miller. “you feed things into the brain, it sends them to the body. All my sayings are positive. They are commands.”
Miller seems aloof on the golf course. “ust concentrate. I must think out each shot. That way I keep from falling into bad habits.” If his concentration does not fail him, Miller is sure he will go on to become an alltimegolfing great.
6.Miller bases his game on.
A.using his brain as a computer
B.his beautiful swing
C.“ny” rules
D.staying aloof on the golf course
7.Miller thinks the most important thing in golf is.
A.your build
B.your head
C.your way to make the game look easy
D.your manner on the course
8.According to paragraph 1, which of the following does the writer give to show that Miller is a good golf player?
A.He drives far.
B.he is tall.
C.His hair is blond.
D.He runs faster than any other golfers.
9.Paragraph 4 mainly deals with.
A.what sayings Miller likes best
B.what commands a golfer s game
C.how Miller feels about the purpose of each saying
D.how Miller uses his brain to play golf
10.Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?
A.Life of a Famous Golfer.
B.A Golf Star.
C.A Thinking Golfer.
D.Concentration and Golf Playing.
Passage Three
Some parents have no freedom. Their children say, “p,” and they jump. They say, “ kids are driving us crazy.”Yet they do nothing about it. They let their children give them orders. They do everything for their children. They do things that the children could easily do for themselves.
These parents often give in to their children. Then they are angry and yell at their children. They feel bad and say, “ sorry.” They beg the children to act better. They become their children s slaves.
Some parents think that being a slave is being a good parent. They may even believe that parents should be unhappy.One group of parents does not agree. They believe that parents have certain rights. These rights are given here:
1.Parents can say no.
2.Parents can say “ause I said so.”
3.Parents can be angry.
4.Parents can let children cry sometimes.
5.Parents can punish children.
6.Parents can beat their children.
7.Parents can be selfish at times.
8.Parents can be alone when they need to be.
9.Parents can be unfair at times.
10.Parents can change their minds.
11.Parents can make mistakes.
12.Parents can raise their children in their own way.
Parent power is good for parents. It is also good for children. It makes them feel loved and cared for. This will help them to be good parents someday.
11.One sentence in paragraph 1 is “ they do nothing about it” who are “y”?
A. The children. B. The parents.
C. The writer. D. Anyone.
12.How are some parents like slaves to their children?
A.They beg their children to act better.
B.They yell at their children.
C.They do everything for their children.
D.Both A and C.
13.What is the opposite of a stave?
A.A parent. B.A free person.
C.A child. D.A good parent.
14.How many rights are given?
A.One hundred. B.Twelve.
C.Six. D.Several.
15.Why is parent power good for children?
A.It makes them feel loved and cared for.
B.It will help them to be good parents someday.
C.They get everything they want.
D.Both A and B.
Passage Four
Stanley Fields, the man who wrote “, Sad Cowboy,” which won this year s Philip s Award as the best song of the year, might have had a very different career if his parents had had their way.
In a private interview, Fields said, “n I was a kid, my father always told me I should put down my guitar and do my homework. He wanted me to go to college and become a teacher as he and his brother were.”
Fields explained that he made a great effort to please his father, but often the urge became too great and he would sneak off to a pasture behind his house and play his guitar and make up songs.
“ade it to Stanton College,” he laughed, “ I majored in accounting instead of teaching. And to pay my own way, I played the guitar and sang at a local nightclub.”
While Fields was still in his senior year, an executive of a record company came into the club as he was singing one of his own songs. The executive liked what he heard and signed the young man to a contract.
Since graduating from Stanton College in 1973, Fields has devoted his full time to composing and singing. “Heartache”, a song he wrote while in college, reached number seventeen in the top twenty song hits of 1974 and in 1977 his song, “bling”, was the theme song for the movie of the same name.
16.The words “ their way” in paragraph 1 most probably means.
A.succeeded in achieving their goal
B.found their way of punishing Stanley
C.paved the way for Stanley s future
D.prevented Stanley from going to college
17.According to the reading passage, Stanley Fields .
A.mother and father were teachers
B.mother and brother were teachers
C.father and uncle were teachers
D.aunt and uncle were teachers
18.You learn that Fields.
A.composed no songs before entering college
B.made up songs before entering college
C.began composing after attending college
D.had songs published before attending college
19.Which statement is true?
A.Fields got some money for college from his father.
B.Fields earned his own money for college expenses.
C.Fields was able to attend college on a scholarship.
D.Fields earned some money playing at the college.
20.Which statement is not accurate?
A.Since 1973, Fields has been a singer and composer.
B.Fields has never been employed as an accountant.
C.Both a movie and a song were named “bling.”
D.Fields wrote “Heartache” after his graduation.
参考答案
1.A2.C3.C4.B5.D
6.A7.B8.A9.D10.C
11.B12.A13.B14.B15.D
16.A17.C18.B19.B20.D