解答詞義猜測題的五種方法

李華軍

閱讀文章時，常常會遇到一些過去未見過的單詞和短語，但許多這類詞語的含義可以通過上下文推斷出來。這種不使用詞典而通過閱讀上下文來推斷詞語含義的能力，是一個合格的讀者必須具備的能力，因此也是閱讀理解部分經常考查的一種能力。從歷年已考過的單詞或詞組來看，既可以考查超綱詞的含義、也可考查熟詞生義。

自2014年以來，16套全國卷共出現16道題考查詞義猜測，即每年每套題考查1道題。

一、常見提問方式

1. What does the underlined word /phrase“...”in paragraph ... refer to？

2. What does the underlined word /phrase“...”in paragraph ... probably mean？

3. What do the underlined words“...”in paragraph ... mean？

4. Which of the following best explains“...”underlined in paragraph ...？

5. What is“...”in the last paragraph？

6. What does the author mean by“...”in paragraph ...

7. Which of the following can（best）replace the underlined word/phrase“...”in Paragraph ...？

8. What does that term“...”in the text mean？

9. The underlined word“...”probably refers to ________.

10. In the last paragraph“...”probably means ______.

二、具體解題方法

1. 上下文語境法

利用上下文提供的語境和線索進行合乎邏輯的綜合分析，從而推斷詞義。

[經典例題]（2019年全國Ⅰ卷B篇）

But hes nervous.“Im here to tell you today why you should ... should ...”Chris trips on the“-ld，”a pronunciation difficulty for many non-native English speakers. His teacher， Thomas Whaley， is next to him， whispering support.“... Vote for ... me ...”Except for some stumbles， Chris is doing amazingly well. When he brings his speech to a nice conclusion， Whaley invites the rest of the class to praise him.

What does the underlined word“stumbles”in paragraph 2 refer to？

A. Improper pauses.? ? ? ? ? ? B. Bad manners.

C. Spelling mistakes.? ? ? ? ? ?D. Silly jokes.

思路點撥：由前文中的“Im here to tell you today why you should ... should ...”及 “... Vote for ... me ...”可知，由于緊張，Chris在演講過程中打結巴，出現了多處停頓，而這些停頓顯然是不恰當的，故選A項。Bad manners（沒有禮貌）、Spelling mistakes（拼寫錯誤）、Silly jokes（愚蠢的笑話）明顯不符合文意。

2. 定義法

考生可根據對需要猜測其含義的單詞或詞組后的定義來推斷其含義，或通過破折號、冒號、括號、定語從句或同位語從句等方式進行的解釋說明來推斷其含義。常見的標志詞有：in other words， that is， that is to say等。

[經典例題]（2017年天津卷C篇）

The proposal attempts to deal with what some call the “death valley”of autonomous vehicles（自動駕駛車輛）：the grey area between semi-autonomous and fully driverless cars that could delay the driverless future.

What does the phrase“death valley”in Paragraph 2 refer to？

A. A place where cars often break down.

B. A case where passing a law is impossible.

C. An area where no driving is permitted.

D. A situation where drivers role is not clear.

思路點撥：冒號后面的內容是對death valley的解釋：death valley指的是半自動駕駛和全自動駕駛汽車之間的灰色地帶（界限不明，難以界定的領域），即“駕駛員角色不明確的情形”，故選D項。

3. 舉例法

如果需要猜測的單詞或詞組后有具體的例子，考生可以根據這些例子來理解該詞的詞義。常見的表示舉例的標志詞有：like， such as， for instance， for example等。

[經典例題]（2014年江西卷D篇）

However， at the back of the minds of many people， especially those who missed the“good old days”，efficiency comes with a price. When communication becomes efficient， people are able to contact one another no matter where they are and at whatever time they wish to. The click of a button allows people miles apart to talk or to see each other without even leaving their homes. With the communication gadgets， such as mobile phones and ipads， people often do not take the effect to visit one another personally. A personal visit carries with it the additional feature of having to be in the persons presence for as long as the visit lasts. We cannot unnecessarily excuse ourselves or turn the other person off.

The underlined word“gadgets”is closest in meaning to _______.

A. tools? ? ? ?B. messages? ? ? ?C. barriers? ? ? ?D. skills

思路點撥：由劃線詞后的“such as mobile phones and ipads”可知，gadgets指的是“工具”，故選A項。

4. 邏輯法

（1） 并列關系

利用并列成分意思的相近性猜測詞義。

[例3]（2019年全國Ⅲ卷B篇）

“China is impossible to overlook，”says Hill.“Chinese models are the faces of beauty and fashion campaigns that sell dreams to women all over the world， which means Chinese women are not just consumers of fashion—they are central to its movement.”Of course， not only are todays top Western designers being influenced by China—some of the best designers of contemporary fashion are themselves Chinese.“Vera Wang， Alexander Wang， Jason Wu are taking on Galliano， Albaz， Marc Jacobs—and beating them hands down in design and sales，”adds Hill.

What do the underlined words“taking on”in paragraph 4 mean？

A. learning from? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?B. looking down on

C. working with? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? D. competing against

思路點撥：由下文的“and beating them hands down in design and sales”可知，Vera Wang， Alexander Wang， Jason Wu在設計和銷售方面擊敗他們。由此可推斷，taking on一詞應該是“與……競爭”之意，故選D項。

（2） 因果關系

由原因推斷結果，或由結果推斷原因。常見的標志詞有：because， so， for等。

[經典例題]（2016年全國Ⅲ卷C篇）

There are also varieties developed to suit specific local conditions. One of the very best varieties for eating quality is Orleans Reinette， but youll need a warm， sheltered place with perfect soil to grow it， so its a pipe dream for most apple lovers who fall for it.

What does the underlined phrase“a pipe dream”in Paragraph 3 mean？

A. A practical idea. ? ?B. A vain hope.

C. A brilliant plan. ? ?D. A selfish desire.

思路點撥：句意為：“Orleans Reinette是味道最好的品種之一，但是，因為你需要一個溫暖又隱蔽的環境，且要有良好的土壤，才可以種植它，所以對大多數喜歡它的蘋果愛好者來說，它只是a pipe dream”，由因（種植條件苛刻）推果（想種種不了），那就只能是“白日夢”了，故選B項。

（3） 轉折關系

考生可利用前后的轉折關系猜測詞義。常見的表示轉折的標志詞有：but， however， although/though， while（然而），on the contrary等。

[經典例題]（2017年全國Ⅲ卷C篇）

Gray wolves once were seen here and there in the Yellowstone area and much of the continental United States， but they were gradually displaced by human development. By the 1920s， wolves had practically disappeared from the Yellowstone area. They went farther north into the deep forests of Canada， where there were fewer humans around.

What does the underlined word“displaced”in paragraph 2 mean？

A. Tested? ?B. Separated.? ?C. Forced out.? D. Tracked down.

思路點撥：畫線詞的前一分句說“灰狼曾經在黃石地區和大部分美洲大陸上隨處可見”，由but話鋒一轉，“但是由于人類的發展，它們漸漸地_____”。漸漸地怎么了？由后句可知“到20世紀20年代灰狼在黃石地區幾乎消失了，它們去了人口稀少的加拿大森林了”，可見灰狼是因人類的發展而“被迫離開（forced out）”美洲大陸去了更遠的北方加拿大，故選C項。

（4）對比關系

利用兩個事物或現象的對比性描述來猜測其中某個生詞的詞義。

[經典例題]（2013年北京卷A篇）

The advanced EP also heats the room evenly， wall to wall and floor to ceiling. It comfortably covers an area up to 350 square feet. Other heaters heat rooms unevenly with most of the heat concentrated to the center of the room. And they only heat an area a few feet around the heater. With the EP， the temperature will not vary in any part of the room.

What does the underlined word“evenly”in Paragraph 4 probably mean？

A. Continuously.? ? ? ? ? ? B. Separately.

C. Quickly.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?D. Equally.

思路點撥：由“Other heaters heat rooms unevenly with most of the heat concentrated to the center of the room.”可知，其他取暖器只能使大部分熱量集中在房間中央，換言之，其他取暖器只能讓房間局部受熱，而EP取暖器可以讓房間“均勻”受熱，故選D項。

（5）條件關系

最為常見的是由If引導的條件狀語從句。

[經典例題]（2018年全國Ⅱ卷B篇）

If you have a juicer， you can simply feed in frozen bananas and some berries or sliced fruit. Out comes a“soft-serve”creamy dessert， to be eaten right away. This makes a fun activity for a childrens party; they love feeding the fruit and frozen bananas into the top of the machine and watching the ice cream come out below.

What is“a juicer”in the last paragraph？