学会在阅读中猜测词义

由甲沟炎猛踢墙角 分享时间：2021-02-08 00:25:39 收藏本文

【简介】感谢网友“甲沟炎猛踢墙角”参与投稿，下面是小编为大家整理的学会在阅读中猜测词义（共6篇），供大家参考借鉴，希望可以帮助您。

篇1：学会在阅读中猜测词义

作者：张和平

海贝：老师，我们在学习的过程中阅读了大量的英语读物，但遇到不少生词。虽说通过查阅词典可以理解文章，但很耽误时间，您有什么好的办法吗？

老师：首先可以肯定的是你经常阅读英语材料是非常正确的。至于生词，查阅词典也是帮助我们解决问题的一个办法。但是，为了提高阅读速度我们应该学会猜测词义。

海贝：老师，那么怎样才能准确无误地猜出这些生词的词义呢？

老师：方法很多。第一，我们可以通过上下文的线索去猜测。一个单词在段落中不是孤立的，它必然同前后词语有一定的关联，借助于这些与其相关的词语我们可以准确地猜出词义。

第二，就是通过解释或说明猜测词义。如下面一段话：

A hobby is something you enjoy doing. A hobby is not a job or a school subject. It's not something you need to do. It's just something you like to do. It's fun!

这一段中作者对什么是hobby进行了详细的解释，由此可以猜出它的词义就是“爱好”。

第三，通过构词法、同义词、反义词等猜测词义。譬如：

Mary is my friend. She is very friendly to me. In she left here for Shenzhen. She has been away from here for three years.

借助构词法我们可以从friend知道friendly的词义，通过“她'离开'这里”，我们可以推测出has been away的确切含义。

海贝：老师，耽误了您这么长时间真不好意思。Thank you very much.

篇2：阅读中猜测词义的技巧

教学教育论文评选英语科

摘要：学生在阅读中会受到许多生词的困扰，如果一见到生词就停下来查词典，不仅会影响阅读速度，减少阅读量，而且会养成不良的阅读习惯。因此，作者详细地阐述了依据单词构词法和上下文来进行词义猜测的技巧。证明了猜测词义的实用性，从而帮助学生扩大词汇量和提高阅读的质量。

正文：

所谓猜测词义,是指在阅读过程中根据对语篇的信息、逻辑、背景知识及语言结构等的综合理解去猜测或推断某一生词、难词、关键词的词义,它是一种非常有用的阅读技巧,获得这种技巧之后,读者在阅读过程中能很快通过上下文提供的线索或生词本身的结构特点推断出词义来,从而提高阅读速度和阅读能力。

猜词技巧也是一种很重要的应试技巧。在高考英语测试中,每年都有判断生词或关键词词义的题目。如:① 全国卷中第62题：What is the meaning of “the organic trend” as the words are used in the text? 第74题：What does the underlined word “hassle” (paragraph 1) probably mean? ② 广东卷中第62题：The underlined part “have access to”(in Para.4) means ______.第65题：The underlined part “the colors turned the customers off”(Para.3) means that the colors _____.

那么,怎样来猜测和推断生词的词义呢?这种技巧大体可分为两大类:一类是根据生词本身的特点（构词法）推测词义,另一类是通过上下文推测词义。

1.构词法

1.1.派生

一个英语单词一般可分为三个部分：前缀，词干和后缀。英语中大量的词是通过在词干上加前缀和后缀派生出的新词，熟练地掌握和运用这种构词法，不仅有益于对生词词义作出科学的推测，有助于阅读理解，而且有益于词汇量的扩充。

前缀法常常改变词干的词义，一般不改变词干的词类而只是修饰其词义。如前缀un-把一个词干变成相反的词，unknown意思是not known；rich这个词初中就学过，而中学阶段词汇没有涉及enrich，但通过观察发现，这个词是由词根rich和前缀en-“使……”构成的，因而猜测enrich为“使……富有”是水到渠成的事。依此类推，猜出enlarge, encourage等词的含义并非难事。

后缀法是通过给词干加后缀而构成新词。与主要改变词干意义的前缀不同，后缀与词义仅有很小的关系，它的主要作用是改变词干的语法功能，即它只用于改变词类。如-ly加到形容词quiet后，得到副词quietly。再如：worker, operator, successful, childish, publicly, strengthen, symbolize等词义就很明显了。由此看来，掌握一定的前缀、后缀的含义是很有必要的。

要通过派生构词法来猜测词义，我们常常需要把生词分解为构成它的各个部分。如undrinkable这个词可分为un, drink, able 三部分。如果你知道词干drink 的意思是“喝”，根据前缀 un的意思“不”和后缀able的意思“能”，你马上就可猜出undrinkable是“不能喝的”。

1.2.转化

英语中有些单词,词形不变,词性却可以由一种转化成另一种。转化主要产生名词，形容词和副词。如：dust 由“尘土”转义为“弹掉尘土”，face 由“脸”转义为“面对”，back 由“背”,后面转义为“支持,后退”，slow由“慢”转义为“放慢”，empty 由“空的”转义为“倒空”，the wounded “受伤的人们”, the unemployed “失业的人们”。再如：① Yesterday I spent the whole day papering the walls. （paper为动词“用纸贴”）② We stopped there for a swim. 我们在那儿停下来游了一会儿泳。

1.3.合成

合成，就是由两个或两个以上的单词构成一个新词。英语中合成词多如繁星，大大增加了英语词汇。常见的合成词如: classroom, news- paper,pickpocket,break-water,she-wolf ,breakdown ,editor-in-chief, snow-white, ever-green, six-inch-tall, madman, overcome, beforehand, crybaby, daybreak, handshake, silkworm, motorcycle, homesick, housekeeping, brainwashing, everlasting等等。一般来说，合成词的词义是由其各构成部分得来的，如backswimmer（背朝下游泳者）。

2.上下文线索

在阅读英语材料这类真实语言活动过程中，遇到生词本属正常，但并不是每次遇到生词一定要去查词典。从上下文中去揣度词义这一策略在英语学习中具有重要的意义。下面介绍一些通过上下文猜测词义的方法：

2.1.定义法

如果一个难词在文章中非常重要，作者往往通过这种或那种方式对它加以解释。观察难词前后的句子往往可以帮助读者理解这个词的意思。如:① Anthropology is the scientific study of man.由定义可知，anthropology就是“研究人类的科学”。② (NMET2000 C篇 ) Decision- thinking is not unlike poker…. This card game has often been of considerable interest to people. 从后句中解释的内容不难看出，poker是一种多人玩的，有趣的卡片游戏。弄清该词，对理解下面文章颇有帮助。

定义句的谓语动词多为：be, mean, deal with, be considered, to be, refer to, be called, be known as, define, represent, signify, constitute等。

2.2.解释法

文中常用解释性词语引出生词含义，如:to be, that is, mean, stand for, namely, in other words等，有时也用同位语、定语从句的形式出现，或用破折号，括弧来表示。如:① In general, continuous exposure to sounds of over 80 decibels ( unit for measuring the loudness of sounds) can be considered dangerous.根据括号里的说明“用测量音量大小的单位”不难猜出 “decibels”的词义是“分贝”。② The herdsman, who looks after sheep, earns about 650 yuan a year. 定语从句中“looks after sheep” 就表明了“herdsman”的词义为“牧羊人”。

2.3.同义词、近义词为线索猜测词义法

有时作者为了使他的意思表达得更清楚明白,通常用一个同义词或近义词来解释另一个比较难的单词或关键词,这些同义词或近义词为读者推断生词词义提供了线索。有些作者在表达同一概念时喜欢用两个或更多的同义词或近义词,其中必定有读者所熟悉的词,根据已知的词语,就不难推断出生词的词义来。如 or有时可作为识别同义词或近义词的信号词。在这一句子：The new tax law supersedes, or re- places, the law that was in effect last year里，作者考虑到“super- sede”一词可能是生词,紧接着用or引出该词的同义词“replace”,此词是一比较常用的词,读者可根据“replace”一词的词义能很容易地推断出“supersede”一词的大概意思来,即“取代,接替”。Like (像……一样), as...as(如同……一样),the same as (与……相同)等也可作为识别生词的同义词或近义词的信号词,以这些词为线索,有时也可推断出生词的词义来。如：Mother was tall, fat and middle- aged. The principal of the school was an older woman, almost as plump as mother, and much shorter.此句中,作者把学校的校长和他的母亲相比,有相同之处和不同之处。校长比母亲年纪大些,个子矮些,但有一点是相同的,并用as...as结构表示出来，从这一对比中,可以看出fat和plump是近义词。fat是读者熟悉的词，那么,plump一词的意思就能猜个大概了，即“肥胖的”。

有的作者使用更常用﹑更简单的词来使读者明白某个难词的词义。如：Mr. Smith loves to talk, and his wife is similarly loquacious.很显然, similarly 表达了重要线索, 暗示loquacious 等于love to talk。

2.4.反义词和对比关系为线索猜测词义法

有时作者运用对比的手法来表现事物之间的差异。在进行对比的过程中,作者必然会用一些互为对应、互为反义的词语,使不同事物的特点更为突出。通过上下文的逻辑关系,从对两种事物或现象进行对比的描述中,读者可以根据其中一个熟悉的词推断出另一个生词的词义来。另外,在表示这种对比关系时,作者通常会用一些信号词来表明另一个词语与前面的词语互为反义。这些信号词无疑为读者理解和猜测生词词义提供了非常好的线索。常用来表示对应关系和提供相反信息的信号词有:but, yet, however, while, whereas, otherwise, in spite of, despite, even though, although, though, unlike, instead(of),rather than, nevertheless, still, nonetheless ,on the other hand, none the less, by contrast, on the contrary, in the end, compared to等等。例如：In the past the world seemed to run in an orderly way. Now, however, everything seems to be in a state of turmoil。此句中,以信号词however为线索,可以看出作者把现在的事情与过去相比。过去是“in an orderly way”, 而现在是“in a state of turmoil”,过去是秩序井然,那么现在则是相反,那就是一片混乱。

在阅读中遇到反义词时，我们同样可从其中之一推知另一个的意思。如，Unlike his sister, who is a warm, interested person, John is apathetic to everyone and everything.根据句义不难看出apa- thetic的意思是“冷漠”。

2.5.以列举的句子为线索猜测词义

为了阐明某一种重要观念或者讲清某一抽象概念，作者往往采取举例的方式对这一观点或概念进行具体的说明和解释，从而使读者理解得更具体些。那么文中的例子自然也就成了读者理解文章生词的线索。表示列举关系的信号词有 like, for example, for instance, such as, especially, include, consist of, specially等。例 ① Defined most broadly, folklore includes all the customs, belief and tradition that people have handed down from generation to generation.此句中,includes后面的例子基本上表示出了 “folklore”的内容范围,即人们一代传一代的那些风俗、习惯、信仰和传统的东西。这些东西都属于通常所说的 “民俗学,民俗传统”,这也就是 “folklore”一词的基本含义。例 ② Many United Nations employees are polyglots; Mr.Simoson, for example, speaks five languages fluently. Mr.Simoson是polyglots之一，而他又能流利地说五种语言，可见polyglots一词一定是指能操纵多种语言的人。

2.6.以因果关系为线索猜测词义

因果关系是一种常见的、行之有效的、能提供生词词义信息的逻辑关系。一定的原因会导致一定的结果;某一结果是由某种原因所引起的,作者在叙述原因的过程中,必然会把词或句子置于一种因果关系的逻辑之中,这无疑为读者推断生词词义提供了很好的线索。作者通常会用一些信号词表示句子之间的因果关系,这些信号词有:since, as, because, for, so, thus, therefore, consequently, hence, due to, result in, result from, as a result, for this reason, accordingly, so that, so...that, such...that等。如：Since I could not afford to purchase the original painting, I bought a replica. An inexperienced eye could not tell the difference.从信号词since以及相关信息,可以看出生词所处的上下文存在很明显的因果关系。since引出的从句是原因(即因为我买不起那张原画)，主句是结果。生词replica后一句又进一步解释了另一种原因，即没有经验的人看不出来差别。根据这之间的逻辑关系,就很容易推断:既然不是原画,那么replica应是“复制品”。

2.7.根据普通常识、生活经验和逻辑推理推测生词词义

在阅读的过程中,如遇到生词,读者有时可以根据自身的直接或间接的经验,或运用自己已有的常识将其推测出来。比如了解一些英美国家的天文地理、风俗习惯、宗教信仰、政治结构、社会制度等,可以帮助加深对文章的理解,遇到生词时,猜测词义的能力自然就增强.如：When a doctor performs an operation on a patient, he usually gives an anaesthetic to make him unconscious, because he does not want his patient to feel pain or to know what is happening to him.根据直接或间接的经验,一般具有一点医学常识的人都知道医生在给病人动手术之前,为了减轻病人的痛苦,往往给病人注射麻醉剂使病人失去知觉后再动手术。所以根据这一常识,通过上下文就能比较准确地确定“anaesthetic”一词的意思应该是“麻醉剂”。又如：Metal contrasts as it becomes cool. 金属变冷会怎么样？只要有最基本的物理知识，你就可以知道contrasts表示“缩小”。

通过以上的分析，可以看出猜词策略有助于增加学生的词汇量，并使阅读更加轻松容易，运用好构词法和上下文猜测词义的策略能提高学生的阅读理解能力，并且阅读速度也会大大加快。学生在阅读中必须把注意力导向更大的语言单位，这就必将导致对文章整体的理解，从而把握好文章的语篇结构，形成整体理解的能力。再有猜词策略对于学生阅读习惯的形成具有积极的影响，也使他们在阅读中建立起很强的自信心。

篇3：猜测词义（一）

1．猜测词义是一种确定词义的方法

阅读中碰到生词，通常采用查词典来了解词义。这里介绍一种猜测词义(guessing the meaning of a word)的方法。例如：

The bright lights of the car on the dark country road dazzled my eyes.

这句中dazzled是生词，它是什么意思呢？我们可以从全句所提供的语义作出判断：在漆黑的乡间公路上，碰到一辆汽车，明亮的车灯会使我们眼睛产生一种什么感觉？耀眼。这个词正是这个意思。这种确定词义的方法，称为猜测词义。

2．依靠 “上下文”猜测词义

依靠 “上下文”（context）是猜测词义的一种方法。 “上下文”是指词在交际中所的

具体语言环境。一个词一旦进入句子，就立即与周围的词语发生这样或那样联系，并受它们的制约。词的意思直接或间接取决于所处的 “上下文”。因此只要我们依靠 “上下文”，学会寻找与生词有关的 “上下文线索“（context clues）,是可对生词的词义进行不同程度的猜测的。

“上下文线索“一般说来可分为两类：

第一类：说明性的线索。就是指在局中或语段中存在着说明、解释生词的词语线索。如：（1）The new building,a five-story edifice,was completed last month.

(生词 edifice 的词义由 building 说明，二者同义。)

（2）----Can you help me this evening?

----No-way; I must go to a meeting.

(I must go to a meeting. 说明no-way 具有 “否定“的含义。)

（3）You can trust Henry to take good care of the money,for he is very honest.

(…can be trusted to take good care of the money 正好说明honest 词的词义)

第二类：语义情景性或逻辑性的线索。在句子或语段里虽没有直接用来说明、解释生词的词语，但从 “上下文“的总的联系上来看，有助于我们判断词义。如：

（1） The sweat dropped down his face. His clothes were wet as if he had fallen into water….The weather was very hot.

(sweat词义可从这三句所提供的情景推断出，作“汗水”“汗”解)

（2） Since she sent you a basket of fruit when you were in hospital,it is meet that you do the same for her while shi is ill.

(meet 词义可从陈述的逻辑线索推断，这里作 “恰当”“适当”解。)

3．猜测词义的准确性与上下文提供线索的充分程度有关。例如：

（1） He was haughty.

（2） People don’t like him because he was haughty.

（3） Even his friends began to dislike him because he was haughty and kept on telling about himself and what he had done.

前两句难于判断 haughty 的词义，上下文线索不充分。第2句仅可判断它指的是一个不好的品质。可是，第3句不一样：有充足的上下文线索，可以猜测haughty 是作 “傲慢”(boastful/pround)解。

PRACTICE

I. Use context clues to figure out the meaning of the italicized word in each sentence below.

1. What are you all goggling at me like that for?

Have I got two heads or something?

2. We will meet you in the foyer,the entrance hall of the theatre.

3. What he said was just flattery,for he praised me so much that I am sure he did not mean what he said.

4. Unlike his sister,who is a warm,interested person,John is apathetic to everyone and everything.

5. This fish has been out of the ice box too long;it smells bad and must be rancid.

6. The people nearly enjoy gathering in the plaza,which is much like a public square,tochat.

7. If the driver of a car is carefuless,there will probably be an accident.

8. “What!”said the man,”Do you actually have the effrontery to ask me for the money when I’ve just told you that you can’t have any more?”

II. read the following sentences and fill in the blanks by using context clues.

1. The night was so ________ that not a sound could be heard.

2. Last week I went to the ________. I had a very good seat.The film was very exciting.

3. Elephants have very long noses which we call ________ .

4. China is a ________ country with a history of more than five thousand years.

5. Comrade Wang wanted to buy some material to make a shirt. So he went to the nearest ________ store.

6. ________ is my favorite game. I often fish on Sundays. Sometimes I fish for hours without catching. But this does not ______me.

7. It’s too cold. Let’s ________ the stove.

8. If you listen to the questions carefully,you can ________ them easily.

SELECTION

“Good Morning.This Is Your Friendly Robot Speaking.”

1. “Hell,I’m eight years old and American. I’m five four inches tall and I weigh eleven stone. I have a head and two arms but no legs. I can speak many different languages. Above all,I am reliable. I am a good servant and I work for eight hours every day. But I cost ￡ 2300。 Who am I ?”

2.Answer:This is a robot. It is made by Quasar Industries. After eight years of work on the robot,Quasar now sell it to customers and to companies. It can “listen” to instructions,memorise them and then carry out certain takks.

3.So far ,the robot seems to be best at cleaning the house. You can programme it to do different tasks-clean the carpets,polish the floors,dust the shelves. But it’s sociable too. When visitors arrive at your door,it can say, “May I announce yoy,please?” and takes their coats.If you give it the right instructions,it can even serve dinner to you at the table.

4.The robot is security-consious too. If someone breaks into the house,it will sound the alarm. It is also programmed to “notice”any signs of fire or other dangers and to “tell”its owner about them.

5.Quasar Industries say that their robot has a basic vocabulary of 250 English words but if necessary,it can speak any language from Japanese to Swahill. You can make sure it speaks to you in a way that suits you-this servant never answers back. Aftr eight hours,it runs down and its batteries need recharging. Many owners will be glad when this servant/friend stops working and leaves them alone. But if you want,you can increase its working hours and have it with you for twenty-four hours a day.

6.One robot recently took a holiday and come to London. It stayed in a hotel,and took a walk to Buskingham Palace. ‘This is my birthday,”it said. “I am happy to be here.” It certainly must make a change from cleaning floors and answering doors.

COMPRENSION

I.Same or different?

----1.This selection is about a trip to London.

----2.The robots made by Quasar Industries can do a lot of house work.

----3.But they are not able to speak.

II.Put the following into two columns and tell what the robot can do and what it can’t do.

Column A

The robot can ______ . Column B

The Robot can’t ______.

1.take a walk 2.announce visitors

3.drive a car 4.speak several languages

5.both swim and dive 6.play basket ball

7.answer doors 8.serve dinners

9.give alarms 10.repair machines

11.work for 24 hours a day 12.memorize the instructions given by the owner

13.be programmed to do some tasks 14.take care of children

15.eat a lot of apples 16.polish the floors

III.Use context clues in the selection to figure out the meanings of the following words.

1.reliable: A.勤奋的 B.可靠的 C。聪明的

2．Sociable: A。社会的 B.努力的 C。友好的

3．Security-conscious A.安全的 B。有觉悟的 C。有警惕的

篇4：GRE阅读怎样猜测词义

GRE阅读怎样猜测词义

GRE文章是论证性文字，不是说明性文字，也不是叙述性文字。这种以论证为特点的文字，及于GRE阅读文章的各个层面：“篇章—段落—句子—单词”。篇章由多个论点组成，论点由作为论据的句子构成，句子本身的典型构成是前后句由表示论证关系的词汇连接，而体现论证的意义的单词最重要。

因此，要真懂得文章，就必须把所有那些表现论证的字、词、句抓出。但是面对浩如烟海的GRE词汇，我们如何才能做到准确的去把握词义，把握文章的主要内容呢?

首先要说的是，在阅读教学的研究当中，语言学家们发现，一篇文章中不认识的单词占全文词汇总量的比例只要控制在8%以内，是绝对不会影响到我们对全文任何观点的理解的。基于这一点，我们大家大可不必因为遇到了几个我们完全没见过的奇形怪状的单词而感到头痛和挣扎。因为它们不足以对我们理解文章产生影响。

但同时，我们在阅读文章的过程中也常常会碰到这样的一种单词，那就是专有名词，尤其是涉及全文主题的专有名词，难道我们就必须一一认识它?答案显然是否定的。什么叫做认识专有名词?从英到汉的翻译叫做认识?还是知道专有名词的特征叫做认识?读者请想想看，我们在阅读理解中有没有遇到过这样的问题提法：What is sedge root? 我想没有，因为这种问法是在问专有名词的翻译。我们遇到的更多是这样的一些问法：According to the passage, which of the following statements about sedge root is true? What can be inferred from the passage about sedge root? 这些问题的提法却是在问专有名词的文中阐述特征。我们再从文章本身对这个问题做出进一步的分析。

假设原文有这样一句话：Sedge root, a woody fiber that can be easily separated into strands, is essential to basketry production. 请问sedge root的中文翻译“莎草的根” 能够帮助我们解决阅读理解题目吗?我想很难!真正能够帮助我们解决阅读理解题目的应该是这样的文字a woody fiber (木制纤维)和定语从句中的文字部分can be easily separated into strands (能够轻易地被分割成线)。通过以上的分析，想必大家已经非常清楚地认识到，过去我们拼命去死记硬背专有名词的中文释义是多么愚蠢的行为。因为真正的认识应该是对特征的认识，所以一个专有名词和他的中文释义对我们来说是没有任何意义的，毕竟我们对它们都没有任何的概念。

最后很多人都说我们可以从上下文中猜出单词的释义，难道真的是这样么? 笔者认为从上下文中猜出单词的释义是不现实的。例如有这样一句话“Supernova is a massive star which undergoes gravitational collapse.” 我们是不可能从上下文中猜出supernova的释义“超新星”的。而我们真正能够做到的只是从上下文中猜出单词的特征：supernova是巨大的恒星(massive star)，它在进行引力收缩(undergoes gravitational collapse)。于是以后当我们遇到不认识的单词，我们可以再也不用停下来思考单词的释义，也不用费尽思量地去猜所谓的单词的释义，我们需要做的只是静下心来在后面找到单词在文章当中传达的特征就可以.

新GRE逻辑阅读

1.A new and more aggressive form of the fungus that caused the Irish potato famine of the nineteenthcentury has recently arisen. However, since this new form of the fungus can be killed by increased application of currently used fungicides, it is unlikely that the fungus will cause widespread food shortages in countries that currently rely on potatoes for sustenance.Which of the following, if true, most calls into question the conclusion in the argument above?

(A) Though potatoes are an important staple crop in many parts of the world, people in most countries rely primarily on wheat or rice for sustenance.

(B) Potato farmers in many countries to which the new form of the fungus has spread cannot afford to increase their spending on fungicides.

(C) The new form of the fungus first began to spread when contaminated potato seeds were inadvertently exported from a major potato-exporting country.

(D) Potato farmers in most countries use several insecticides on their crops in addition to fungicides of the sort that kill the new form of the fungus.

(E) Most governments have funds set aside that can be used to alleviate the effects of large-scale disasters such as severe food shortages and floods.

2.As government agencies, faced with budget difficul- ties, reduce their funding for scientific research, a greater amount of such research is being funded by private foundations. This shift means that research projects likely to produce controversial results will almost certainly comprise a smaller proportion of all funded research projects, since private foundations, concerned about their public image, tend to avoid controversy. Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

(A) Only research that is conducted without concern for the possibility of generating controversy is likely to produce scientifically valid results.

(B) Private foundations that fund scientific research projects usually recognize that controversial results from those projects cannot always be avoided.

(C) Scientists who conduct research projects funded by private foundations are unlikely to allow the concerns of the funding organizations to influ- ence the manner in which they conduct the research.

(D) Many government agencies are more concerned about their public image than are most private foundations.

(E) Government agencies are more willing than are private foundations to fund research projects that are likely to produce controversial results.

3.Juries in criminal trials do not base verdicts on uncor- roborated testimony given by any one witness. Rightly so, because it is usually prudent to be highly skeptical of unsubstantiated claims made by any one person. But then, to be consistent, juries should end an all- too-common practice: convicting defendants on the basis of an uncorroborated full confession. Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument above?

(A) Juries often acquit in cases in which a defendant retracts a full confession made before trial.

(B) The process of jury selection is designed to screen out people who have a firm opinion about the defendant's guilt in advance of the trial.

(C) Defendants sometimes make full confessions when they did in fact do what they are accused of doing and have come to believe that the prose- cutor has compelling proof of this.

(D) Highly suggestible people who are accused of wrongdoing sometimes become so unsure of their own recollection of the past that they can come to accept the accusations made against them.

(E) Many people believe that juries should not con- vict defendants who have not made a full con- fession.

4.Although spinach is rich in calcium, it also contains large amounts of oxalic acid, a substance that greatly impedes calcium absorption by the body. Therefore, other calcium-containing foods must be eaten either instead of or in addition to spinach if a person is to be sure of getting enough calcium.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argu-ment above?

(A)Rice, which does not contain calcium, counteracts the effects of oxalic acid on calcium absorption.

(B) Dairy products, which contain even more calcium than spinach does, are often eaten by people who eat spinach on a regularbasis.

(D) Many leafy green vegetables other than spinach that are rich in calcium also contain high concentrations of oxalic acid.

(E) Oxalic acid has little effect on the body's ability to absorb nutrients other than calcium.

5.Joyce: Three years ago the traffic commission modified our town's busiest intersection for better visibility, a commendable effort to cut down on traffic accidents there. Gary: Over the past three years there have been more, not fewer, traffic accidents per week at that intersection, so the modification has increased the likelihood of accidents there The answer to which of the following questions would be most useful in evaluating Gary's argument?

(A) What proportion of the town's drivers involved in accidents that occurred prior to the modification suffered personal injury in their accidents?

(B) How long, on average, had the members of the traffic commission held their offices when the modification was implemented?

(D) What measures have nearby towns taken within the last three years in order to improve visibil- ity at dangerous intersections?

(E) How has the volume of traffic at the town's busiest intersection changed over the last three years?

6. Women make up the majority of the population in the country, and many of the prescriptions written by doctors for tranquilizers are for women patients. The testing of these drugs for efficacy and the calibration of recommended doses, however, was done only on men. Not even the animals used to test toxicity were female. The statements above, if true, best support which of the following as a conclusion?

(A) Some tranquilizers are more appropriately pre- scribed for women than for men.

(B) There have been no reports of negative side effects from prescribed tranquilizers in women

their diagnoses.

(D) The toxicity of drugs to women is less than the toxicity of the same drugs to men.

(E) Whether the recommended dosages of tranquil- izers are optimal for women is not known.

7. Gray wolves have been absent from a large national

park for decades. Park officials wish to reestablish the wolves without jeopardizing any existing species of wildlife there. Since the park contains adequate prey for the wolves and since the wolves avoid close contact with people, reintroducing them would serve the officials' purpose without seriously jeopardizing visitors' safety. Each of the following, if true, strengthens the argument above EXCEPT:

(A) The park is so large that wolves will not need to venture into areas frequented by people.

(B) Rabies is very rare in wolves, and there have been no verified cases of serious human injuries from nonrabid wild wolves since records have been kept.

(C) Ranchers in the region near the park have expressed concern that gray wolves, if reintro- duced, would sometimes prey on their livestock.

(D) Predation by gray wolves on elk in the park is likely to improve the health and viability of the park's elk population as a whole by reducing malnutrition among the elk.

(E) Wolves do not prey on animals of any endangered species that currently inhabit the park.

8. Osteoporosis is a disease that reduces bone mass, lead- ing to fragile bones that break easily. Current treat- ments for osteoporosis such as estrogen or calcitonin help prevent further loss of bone but do not increase bone mass. Since fluoride is known to increase bone mass, administering fluoride to osteoporosis patients would therefore help make their bones less susceptible to breaking. Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?

(A) Most people who suffer from osteoporosis are not aware that administration of fluoride can increase bone mass.

(B) Fluoride is added to drinking water in many locations in order to strengthen the teeth of people who drink the water.

cise and an adequate intake of calcium.

(D) Unlike administration of fluoride, administration of estrogen or calcitonin is known to cause undesirable side effects for many people.

(E) The new bone mass that is added by the admin- istration of fluoride is more brittle and less elastic than normal bone tissue.

9. The closest distance from which an asteroid has been photographed using ground-based radar is 2.2 million miles, the distance from which the asteroid Toutatis was recently photographed. The closest photograph of an asteroid is of Gaspra, which was photographed from a distance of only 10,000 miles. Which of the following can be properly concluded from the statements above?

(A) Toutatis is more likely to collide with the Earththan Gaspra is.

(B) Toutatis, unlike Gaspra, has only recently been discovered.

(D) Ground-based radar photography cannot take photographs of objects much beyond 2.2 million miles from Earth.

(E) The photograph of Gaspra was not taken using ground-based radar.

10. Which of the following most logically completes the argument below? Alone among living species, human beings experience adolescence, a period of accelerated physical growth prior to full maturity.Whether other hominid species, which are now all extinct and are known only through thefossil record, went through adolescence cannot be known, since

(A) the minimum acceleration in physical growth that would indicate adolescence might differ

according to species

(B) the fossil record, though steadily expanding, will always remain incomplete

(D) complete skeletons of extinct hominids are extremely rare

(E) human beings might be the first species to bene- fit from the survival advantages, if any, conferred by adolescence

11. Fossils of the coral Acrocora palmata that date from the last period when glaciers grew and consequently spread from the polar regions are found at ocean depths far greater than those at which A. palmata can now survive. Therefore, although the fossilized A. palmata appears indistinguishable from A. palmata now living, it must have differed in important respects to have been able to live in deep water. The argument depends on the assumption that

(A) no fossils of the coral A. palmata have been found that date from periods when glaciers were not spreading from the polar regions

(B) geological disturbances since the last period during which glaciers spread have caused no major downward shift in the location of A. palmata fossils

(C) A. palmata now live in shallow waters in most of the same geographical regions as those in which deep-lying A. palmata fossils have been found

(D) A. palmata fossils have been found that date from each of the periods during which glaciers are known to have spread from the polar region

(E) A. palmata can live at greater depths where the ocean temperature is colder than they can where the ocean temperature is warmer

12.Conservationists have believed that by concentrating their preservation efforts on habitats rich in an easily surveyed group of species, such as birds, they would thereby be preserving areas rich in overall species diversity. This belief rests on a view that a geographical area rich in one group of species will also be rich in the other groups characteristic of the entire regional climate zone.

Which of the following findings about widely scattered tracts 10 kilometers by 10 kilometers in a temperate climate zone would most seriously challenge the conservationists' assumptions?

(A) The tracts show little damage from human intrusion and from pollution by human activities.

(B) Where a certain group of species, such as birds, is abundant, there is also an abundance of the species, such as insects, on which that group of species feeds, or in the case of plants, of the land and water resources it requires.

(C) The area of one of the tracts is generally large enough to contain a representative sample of the organisms in the region.

(D) There is little overlap between the list of tracts that are rich in species of butterflies and the list of those that are rich in species of birds.

(E) The highest concentration of individuals of rare species is found where the general diversity of species is greatest.