托福閱讀句子插入題——如何做到無縫銜接

句子插入題(Insert Text Questions)是托福閱讀考試必考題型，出現(xiàn)在每一篇文章倒數(shù)第二題，大部分考生在做此題時遇到模棱兩可的答案情況較多，容易選錯。朗閣海外考試研究中心的專家將針對這個問題，具體分析句子插入題的考試特點及解題技巧。

一、題型特點

句子插入題顧名思義就是給一句新的句子，要求考生們把這個句子插入到相應的位置，指定位置是文章中四個黑色方塊的地方。這些方塊分布在句首或句末，四個方框有時都出現(xiàn)在一個段落里，有時分布在一段的末尾和下一段的開頭?？碱}形式如下：

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

[…………………]

Where would the sentence best fit?

同學們要做的是點擊其中的一個方塊并將這個句子插入文章。

句子插入題考查的內(nèi)容是句子與句子間的邏輯關系，即所插入句子必須和前后句子在邏輯關系上保持一致。其實和我們寫作一樣，同學們不能把兩句毫無關系的句子放在一起。那么在英語里為了體現(xiàn)句與句之間的邏輯關系，會采用各種銜接手段將句子連接起來，所以我們只要熟悉各種句子銜接手段，我們就能立即判斷出來句子所插入的相應位置。以下，我們將對考試中經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)的幾種銜接手段進行詳細分析。

二、解題方法

1. 詞重復適用

這種銜接方法簡單粗暴明了，無需花費大量腦細胞，完全是送分題。后面一個句子里重復使用前面句子提到的同一個詞（通常是名詞），使用此方法，我們可以清楚知道作者仍然在談論同一主題，因為前后句子在意義上關系密切，互相連貫。

Their competition and collaboration were creating the broadcasting industry in the United States, beginning with the introduction of commercial radio programming in the early 1920s. ■With financial assets considerably greater than those in the motion picture industry, and perhaps a wider vision of the relationships among entertainment and communications media, they revitalized research into recording sound for motion pictures. ■In 1929 the United States motion picture industry released more than 300 sound films—a rough figure, since a number were silent films with music tracks, or films prepared in dual versions, to take account of the many cinemas not yet wired for sound. ■At the production level, in the United States the conversion was virtually complete by 1930. ■In Europe it took a little longer, mainly because there were more small producers for whom the costs of sound were prohibitive…

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

When this research resulted in the development of vastly improved sound techniques, film studios became convinced of the importance of converting to sound.

前面一句話已經(jīng)提及到了research, 第二次出現(xiàn)用this research, 所以答案選第二個選項。

So, in another set of experiments, Kramer put identical food boxes around the cage, with food in only one of the boxes. ■The boxes were stationary, and the one containing food was always at the same point ofthe compass. ■However, its position with respect to the surroundings could be changed by revolving either the inner cage containing the birds or the outer walls, which served as the background. ■As long as the birds could see the Sun, no matter how their surroundings were altered, they went directly to the correct food box. ■Whether the box appeared…

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

He arranged the feed boxes at various positions on a compass.

不定冠詞a compass在句話里再次出現(xiàn)用的是特指the compass, 所以答案選個黑框。

2. 詞指代替換

帶有代詞題型也比較簡單明了，為了避免重復，我們通常會在第二個句子使用代詞代替前面（或者后面）提到過的事物（一個詞）或者事件（一句話）。所以同學們只要正確找到代詞所指就能做對此題。形式一般是this + 名詞，或者this單獨用于指代前面一句話。

Since 1980, the use of wind to produce electricity has been growing rapidly. █In 1994 there were nearly 20,000 wind turbines worldwide, most grouped in clusters called wind farms that collectively produced 3,000 megawatts of electricity. █Most were in Denmark (which got 3 percent of its electricity from wind turbines) and California (where 17,000 machines produced 1 percent of the state’s electricity, enough to meet the residential needs of a city as large as San Francisco). █In principle, all the power needs of the United States could be provided by exploiting the wind potential of just three states—North Dakota, South Dakota, and Texas. █

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

Some companies in the power industry are aware of this wider possibility and are planning sizable wind-farm projects in states other than California.

代詞this wider possibility這種更加廣泛的可能性指代上一句話中的情態(tài)動詞could be,情態(tài)動詞could be在這里表示可能性，所以答案選后一個選項。

Under very cold conditions, rocks can be shattered by ice and frost. Glaciers may form in permanently cold areas, and these slowly moving masses of ice cut out valleys, carrying with them huge quantities of eroded rock debris. █In dry areas the wind is the principal agent of erosion. █It carries fine particles of sand, which bombard exposed rock surfaces, thereby wearing them into yet more sand. █Even living things contribute to the formation of landscapes. █Tree roots force their way into cracks in rocks and, in so doing, speed their splitting. In contrast, the roots of grasses and other small plants may help to hold loose soil fragments together, thereby helping to prevent erosion by the wind.

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

Under different climatic conditions, another type of destructive force contributes to erosion.

another是不定代詞，指代后一句提到的另外一種destructive force。通過整個段落分析，句話destructive force包括ice和frost, 第二句話另外一種destructive force指代的是wind, 所以選個黑框。

閱讀中常出現(xiàn)的代詞：this, this+n, these, another, such and other etc.

3. 詞同義替換

此類句子銜接的方法是指所插入句子里面的詞（通常是名詞）與所在位置前后句子的詞同義替換，這種方法要求會比較高，考生除了要理解插入句子里面詞的意思，還要找到所在段落里面與它同義的詞。

█Watt's steam engine soon showed what it could do. █It liberatedindustry from dependence on running water. █The engine eliminated water in the mines by driving efficient pumps, which made possible deeper and deeper mining. █The ready availability of coal inspired William Murdoch during the 1790s to develop the first new form of nighttime illumination to be discovered in a millennium and a half.

Look at the four squares [█] that indicate where the following sentence could be   added to the passage.

The factories did not have to go to the streams when power could come to the factories.

這個句子里面的factories與前一句里的industry同義替換，這里同義替換并不是指兩個詞要完全對等才能同義替換。只要兩個詞之間在某一部分是表同義的就可以。比如說工業(yè)必然會涉及到很多工廠建立，所以我們可以說兩個詞是同義替換。答案選第三個黑框。

Not only could Smith identify rock strata by the fossils they contained, he could also see a pattern emerging: Certain fossils always appear in more ancient sediments, while others begin to be seen as the strata become more recent. █By following the fossils．Smith was able to put all the strata of England's earth into relative temporal sequence. █About the same time, Georges Cuvier made the same discovery while studying the rocks around Paris. █Soon it was realized that this principle of faunal (animal) succession was valid not only in England or France but virtually everywhere. █It was actually a principle of floral succession as well, because plants showed the same transformation through time as did fauna.

Look at the four squares [█] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

The findings of these geologists inspired others to examine the rock and fossil records in different parts of the world.

The findings意思是“發(fā)現(xiàn)”，與段落第二句話the same discovery表同義替換，所以這句話應該放在第三塊黑框回指前文提到的發(fā)現(xiàn)，答案選第三塊黑框。

4. 連接詞銜接

英語里面表達句與句之間的邏輯關系通常會用到連接詞，同學們除了要知道連接詞的意思，還要知道連接的兩個句子是否存在相應的邏輯關系，所以這種方法相對前面幾種是比較難的。?？歼B接詞有表轉折，原因，結果，遞進等。

█Modern architectural forms generally have three separate components comparable to elements of the human body; a supporting skeleton or frame, an outer skin enclosing the interior spaces, equipment, similar to the body’s vital organs and systems. █The equipment includes plumbing, electrical wiring, hot water, and air-conditioning. █Of course in early architecture—such as igloos and adobe structures—there was no such equipment, and the skeleton and skin were often one. █

Look at the four squares [█] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

However, some modern architectural designs, such as those using folded plates of concreter or air-inflated structures, are again unifying skeleton and skin.

插入句子中的however表示轉折，前后意思相反或者對比。后一句話in early architecture對應插入句子modern architectural designs, 所以選擇后一個黑色方框。

句子插入題經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)的轉折關系詞有：however, but, yet, whereas and while etc.

■Because they are always swimming, tunas simply have to open their mouths and water is forced in and over their gills. ■Accordingly, they have lost most of the muscles that other fishes use to suck in water and push it past the gills. ■In fact, tunas must swim to breathe. ■They must also keep swimming to keep from sinking, since most have largely or completely lost the swim bladder, the gas-filled sac that helps most other fish remain buoyant.

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the passage.

Consequently, tunas do not need to suck in water.

Consequently是表示結果的邏輯關系詞。整句話意思是所以金槍魚不需要在水里吮吸。段落句意思：因為金槍魚的游動從不停止，它們必須張著嘴使水流經(jīng)它們的腮。根據(jù)兩句話的邏輯意思，因為它張著嘴使水流經(jīng)它們的腮，所以不需要在水里吮吸。同學們不僅要理解consequently的意思，還要理解前后兩句話的意思才能做對此題。答案選第二個黑框。

表示結果的邏輯關系詞有：consequently, therefore, so, hence and thus etc.

It has long been accepted that the Americas were colonized by a migration of peoples from Asia, slowly traveling across a land bridge called Beringia (now the Bering Strait between northeastern Asia and Alaska) during the last Ice Age. ■The first water craft theory about the migration was that around 11,000-12,000 years ago there was an ice-free corridor stretching from eastern Beringia to the areas of North America south of the great northern glaciers. It was the mid continental corridor between two massive ice sheets-the Laurentide to the west-that enabled the southward migration. ■But belief in this ice-free corridor began to crumble when paleoecologist Glen MacDonald demonstrated that some of the most important radiocarbon dates used to support the existence of an ice-free corridor were incorrect. ■He persuasively argued that such an ice-free corridor did not exist until much later, when the continental ice began its final retreat. ■

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

Moreover, other evidence suggests that even if an ice-free corridor did exist, it would have lacked the resources needed for human colonization.

Moreover表遞進，可譯為“此外”，插入句子意思和段落后一句話表遞進關系，譯為：他令人信服地主張那樣的不凍地帶直到很久以后才出現(xiàn)，那時大陸冰塊開始后的消退。此外其它證據(jù)表明即使不凍地帶存在，所以答案選后一個黑色方框。

5. 觀點+例子

這種連接的方法往往插入的句子是作者表達的觀點，那么我們只要回段落找相關的例子就可以選擇正確的方框了。

The differences in feeding preferences lead, in turn, to differences in migratory habits. ■The wildebeests follow, in their migration, the pattern of local rainfall. ■The other species do likewise. ■But when a new area is fueled by rain, the mammals migrate toward it in a set order to exploit it. ■The larger, less fastidious feeders, the zebras, move in first; the choosier, smaller wildebeests come later; and the smallest species of all, Thomson’s gazelle, arrives last.

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

The sequence in which they migrate correlates with their body size.

插入的句子表達了一個觀點：它們遷移的順序是與身體大小相關的。那么我們只要找一個例子和身體大小相關的句子即可。后一句話the larger, less fastidious feeders, the zebras, move in first. 通過這兩組詞我們就可以判斷出來這是一個例子，所以答案選后一個黑框。

Chinese porcelain wares imported into the Arab world. ■So admired were these pieces that they encouraged the development of earthenware made in imitation of porcelain and instigated research into the method of their manufacture. ■From the Middle East the Chinese acquired a blue pigment—a purified form of cobalt oxide unobtainable at that time in China—that contained only a low level of manganese. Cobalt ores found in China have a high manganese content, which produces a more muted blue-gray color. ■In the seventeenth century, the trading activities of the Dutch East India Company resulted in vast quantities of decorated Chinese porcelain being brought to Europe, which stimulated and influenced the work of a wide variety of wares, notably Delft. ■The Chinese themselves adapted many specific vessel forms from the West, such as bottles with long.

Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

Foreign trade was also responsible for certain innovations in coloring.

這句話也是觀點：外貿(mào)也是顏色創(chuàng)新的原因。那么例子只要涉及到顏色，外貿(mào)即可。第二句話談到：Middle East and blue, 所以答案是第二個黑色方框。

三、總結

句子與句子之間的連接，主要是通過以上五種方法進行的，所以我們在做題時，先分析所給的插入句子，找出句子里面的名詞，代詞，連接詞，其次要理解這些關鍵詞的意思，如果不理解其意思，即使找出來，有時候也幫助不大，所以同學們不僅需要技巧還需要扎實的基本功，比如詞匯理解，句子結構分析的能力。