托福阅读的词汇备考是个受争议的话题。有些考生认为托福阅读词汇备考不重要,而有些考生则认为得词汇者得天下。在托福阅读中遇到生词,如果过多依赖词典会打断托福阅读思路,影响速度及理解,这就需要学生学会猜词。
可这不是说平时阅读一涉及到生词便去猜测,如有条件使用词典,同学们还是应该将不会的生词一一查明,并加以记忆。只有这样才能扩充我们的词汇量,提高阅读理解能力。猜词可有多种方法,下面介绍几种常用且准确性高的方法,同样也适合在托福阅读考试中。
一、利用上下文线索猜测词义
1、根据同义、反义关系猜词
Today' s teenagers seem to be more liberal in their ideas than their _______grandparents.
A. freethinking B. traditional C. old D. happy traditional与liberal意思相反,故选B.
2、根据句意或段落文章的上、下文猜测词义
Klebold and Harris felt _______ and wanted to revenge against those who disliked playing together with them or laughed at them.
A. discouraged B. ashamed C. tired D. separated
根据下文的disliked playing together with them判断此处应为“感到孤立”,故选D.
二、利用构词法猜测词义
1、用前、后缀猜测词义英语中的前缀、后缀构词颇多,且特定的缀往往表示特定的含义,把握住这一点,可起到以不变应万变的效果。
1)He had been overworking and fell ill at last. overwork是由前缀over-加动词构成,over有“超过、过于”之意,overwork意思是“工作过多,劳累过度”。再如,overburden负担过重,overcharge要价过高,overdo做得过分。
英语中常用的前缀还有:
mis-错,误:misfortune不幸;mislead误导;mismanage处理不当,
mid-中央:midnight半夜;midway半路
under-低于:underdone半生不熟的;underestimate低估
anti-反对:antibody抗体;anticyclone反气旋;antifreeze防冻剂
下面划线单词为常见后缀派生词:
1)You must stop dreaming and face reality.(-ty为名词的标志)
2)The country is trying to popularize education. (-ize为及物动词的标志,再如realize,modernize)
2、利用合成词猜测词义。
Family members take turns choosing a special activity for the evening, and everyonepartakes in for fun.根据短语构成及上下文意思看,此处partakes in相当于takes part in.再如break out-outbreak(名词爆发),set out-outset(名词起始),come in-income(名词收入)