词汇题阅读公式

第二节　词汇题阅读公式

正确答案≈原文中含有该词的上下文对该词的解释——定义、释义、近义词、反义词

在阅读理解测试中，词汇猜测题并不是认真地考查考生是否认识这个生词，而是考查学生能否根据上下文所提供的语境线索来推断词汇的含义，因此考生应该努力学会在上下文中寻找猜测相关词汇含义的依据和线索。

猜测词义题的常见题型如下：

1.In the last sentence of the first paragraph，the word“...”could best be replaced by＿＿＿＿.

2.What does the word“...”in the first paragraph most probably mean？

3.Which of the following could best replace the word“...”in the forth paragraph？

4.What does“...”mean in the forth paragraph？

5.The word“...”in the third paragraph most probably means＿＿＿＿.

6.The phrase“...”suggests that＿＿＿＿.

7.In Paragraph 5，“...”probably refers to＿＿＿＿.

8.What is the meaning of the word“...”in line 10？

9.The phrase“...”（Paragraph 1）in the context means＿＿＿＿.

10.The word“...”most likely means＿＿＿＿.

11.According to the article，the word“...”is known as＿＿＿＿.

12.The author uses the phrase“...”to mean＿＿＿＿.

13.In line...，the word“...”is used to indicate＿＿＿＿.

14.By“...”the writer means＿＿＿＿.

一、根据定义、释义猜词

例：

You need to emit a signal telling others you want to be left alone.So you cut off eye contact，what sociologist Erving Goff man（1963）calls“a dimming of the lights”.You look down at the floor，at the indicator lights，anywhere but into another passenger’s eyes.Should you break the rule against staring at a stranger on an elevator，you will make the other person exceedingly uncomfortable，and you are likely to feel a bit strange yourself.

Question：

By“a dimming of the lights”Erving Goff man means“”.

A.closing one’s eyes B.turning off the lights

C.ceasing to glance at others D.reducing gaze-time to the minimum

在第一节里我们曾介绍过文章中下定义的常见方法和语言标志，其中calls是典型的下定义的标志，what sociologist Erving Goff man（1963）calls“a dimming of the lights是you cut off eye contact的同位语，据此不难看出“a dimming of the lights”的含义。

二、通过具体例子猜词

例：

There are hidden factors which scientists call“feedback mechanisms”.No one knows quite how they will interact with the changing climate.Here’s one example: Plants and animals adapt to climate change over centuries.At the current estimate of half a degree centigrade of warming per decade，vegetation（植物）may not keep up.Climatologist James Hansen predicts climate zones will shift toward the poles 50 to 75 kilo metres a year faster than trees can naturally migrate.Species that find themselves in an unfamiliar environment will die.The 1000-kilometre-wide strip of forest running through Canada，the USSR and Scandinavia could be cut by half.Millions of dying trees would soon lead to massive forest fires，releasing tons of CO₂ and further boosting global warming.（1998年第4篇）

Question：

“Feedback mechanisms”in this paragraph most probably refer to＿＿＿＿.

A.how plants and animals adapt to hidden factors

B.how plants and animals interact with the changing climate

C.how climate changes

D.how climate zones shift

该问题的大意是：本段中的“feedback mechanisms”的意思最可能是：A项：“动植物是如何适应隐含因素的”；B项：动植物是如何与不断变化的气候相互作用的；C项：气候是如何变化的；D项：气候带是如何变迁的。

正确选项是B项。文章第一、二句指出，存在一些被科学家叫做“feedback mechanisms”的隐含因素，谁也不太了解这些隐含因素（feedback mechanisms）是如何与不断变化的气候相互影响的。后面举例进行了说明，植物和动物数世纪以来一直适应着气候的变化。现在气温每10年上升半摄氏度，按此速度计算，植物就跟不上气候变化的速度。气候学家James Hansen预测，气候带每年向两极迁移50～70公里，比树木自然迁移的速度快。环境的改变会使许多物种灭绝。生长在加拿大、前苏联和斯堪的纳维亚半岛上的1000公里宽的森林带就会减半，许多濒临死亡的大树可能很快引起森林大火，释放出的二氧化碳会使全球进一步变暖。这些例子说明上述的feedback mechanisms不是一个单向影响问题，而是动植物和气候相互作用、相互影响的双向过程，从上下文来看，B项是正确答案。

三、通过同义词猜词

例1：

We also tend to believe what we want to believe.A majority of people think they are more intelligent，more fair-minded and more skilled behind the wheel of an automobile than the average person.Part of the reason we view ourselves so favorable is that we use criteria that work to our advantage.As economist Thomas Schelling explains，“Everybody ranks himself high in qualities he values：careful drivers give weight to care，skilled drivers gave weight to skill，and those who are polite give weight to courtesy.”This way everyone ranks high on his own scale.

Question：

The word“courtesy”probably means________.

A.good manners　　　　　B.appropriate speech

C.friendly relations　　D.satisfactory service

在上面的这个例子里，courtesy出现在一个并列句中。这里的三个并列的分句是为了解释前面的概括句：每个人都看中自身所具有的品质。通过分析前两个分句中形容词和名词的对应关系careful和care、skilled和skill，可以判断第三个分句中的形容词和名词的对应关系polite和courtesy一定也是同义词的关系，所以符合这一词义的只有A选项。good manners就是polite和courtesy的同义词，意思是“有礼貌”。

例2：

Because the United States is a highly active society，full of movement and change，people always seem to be on the go.In this highly charged atmosphere，Americans can sometimes seem brusque or impatient.They want to get to know you as quickly as possible and then move on to something else.Something，early on，they will ask you questions that you may feel are very personal.No insult is intended；the questions usually grow out of their genuine interest or curiosity，and their impatience to get to the heart of the matter.And the same does for you.If you do not understand certain American behavior or you want to know more about them，do not hesitate to ask them questions about themselves.Americans are usually more eager to explain all about their country or anything“American”in which you may be interested.So much so in fact that you may become tired of listening.It doesn’t matter because Americans tend to be uncomfortable with silence during a conversation.They would rather talk about the weather or the latest sports scores，for example，than deal with silence.（2001年第一篇）

Question：

The phrase“highly charged”（paragraph 2）most probably means＿＿＿＿.

A.extremely free　　B.highly responsible

C.very cheerful　　 D.full of mobility and change

首先，回到原文中该词出现的地方，然后仔细阅读包含该词的原句和其上下句，找出和该词相对应的解释。对于本题而言，“highly charged”出现在第二段的第二句话中，原句是“In this highly charged atmosphere，...”基于对指代词this的了解可知，this通常前指，因此应在其前一句“Because the United States is a highly active society，full of movement and change，people always seem to be on the go.”找等同关系。在这里，“In this highly charged atmosphere”就等于“the United States is a highly active society，full of movement and change”.这个说法与“highly charged”功能相等，其意思相近的表达则是highly active和full of movement and change，到此就不难看出正确答案应是D，只不过是把原文中的movement换成了mobility而已。