英语词汇学习Learning of English

Vocabulary

江西省临川一中 黎治刚

总论：

词汇是英语语言的基本构件，没有词汇就没有语言。因此，要学好英语，必须踏踏实实地学好词汇。学好词汇的含义应该是对所学词汇的熟练掌握和运用，包括词汇的读音、拼写、语意、词性、用法、搭配、辨析、英汉差异等。词汇学习的好坏将直接影响到英语学习的各个环节，如：听、说、读、写、译等，词汇的理解在阅读中起着非常重要的作用。一般说来，英语的词汇量越大，阅读起来就越轻松，理解也可能更加准确（ The larger vocabulary you have, the better understanding you get) 。

现行高考的阅读文章中，经常考查一些单词的语意理解，也常出现派生词的使用和常用单词的异义用法，考生对此深感困惑。因此，为了准确理解原文，提高阅读效果，学生应该尽可能地扩大词汇量；同时又要学会和掌握一些猜词技巧和常见的构词方法，对于某些常用单词要尽可能多掌握它们的词义，并根据具体语境来判断其准确含义。

合成与派生词 Compound & Derivation

1) Information technology allows the extension of trade across geographical and industrial boundaries, and transnational corporations take full advantages of it.

2) Sometimes anxiety is unavoidable, but it does not have to ruin your life.

3) We found his room in a mess, with a lot of things placed irregularly.

4) Doubtlessly, computers will play a more important role in our daily life in the near future.

5) In order to raise labour efficiency, we must simplify working process, I think.

6) Reading widely is a good way to enlarge one’s vocabulary.

7) By 2010, new technology will revolutionize communications. People will be transmitting more messages down telephone lines that previously would have been sent by post.

8) This disease is rarely seen today, but still exists in some underdeveloped areas in the world.

9) Everything was taken away that belonged to Einstein, including his German citizenship.

10) A colour-blind person can’t tell one colour from another.

11) Last night she had a terrible toothache and asked me to buy her some pain-killer.

12) Not only postman but also clerks and secretaries will vanish in a paper-free society.

猜词技巧New Word

Guessing Strategies

一、根据构词法

1) After I had been away from my parents for two years I began to feel homesick.

homesick: feeling a great wish to be at home, when away from it ( 思乡的 ; 思乡病的 )

2) But does the baby realize that a ball that rolls under a chair does not disappear and go to never-never land?

never-never-land: an imaginary wonderful place ( 理想的地方 ; 幻想中的地方 )

二、根据定义和解释

1) Scientists grow large quantities of common mould so that they can get penicillin from it in order to make antibiotics, that is, substances that kill germs.

antibiotic: a medical substance, such as penicillin produced by living things and able to stop the growth of, or destroy, harmful bacteria that have entered the body ( 抗生素 ; 抗生菌 )

2) … Yet, shopkeepers may have to spend extra hours to deal with problems, such as shoplifters, who always take away things from the shop without paying for them.

shoplifter: a person who takes goods from a shop without paying ( 在商店中窃取商品者 )

3) I am a resolute man, that is, once I set up a goal, I won’t give it up easily.

resolute: (of a person or his character) firm; determined in purpose ( 坚决的 ; 断然的 )

三、根据文中的列举

1) Some ships carried cargo such as coal, oil and military supplies ( 军用物资 ), while others carried only passengers.

cargo: goods carried by a ship, plane or vehicle ( 货物 )

2) You may select any of these periodicals to read: New Yorker, Times, Reader’s Digest, Beijing Review and so on.

periodical: books, magazines, etc. issued or published repeatedly at regular times ( 杂志 ; 刊物）

四、根据各种逻辑关系

1) The tree will have to be cut down, for it obstructs the view of oncoming traffic ( 迎面驶来的车辆 ).

obstruct: to block up; to put difficulties in the way ( 阻塞 ; 挡住 )

2) She is usually prompt for all her classes. Today, however, she arrived in the middle of her first class.

prompt: (of an action) done or given quickly or at the right time ( 准时的 )

3) After his parents had been married for eight years, they divorced last year, so he had to live with his mother alone.

divorce: to end a marriage between a husband and wife ( 离婚 ; 离异）

五、利用同位语或根据同等关系

1) His uncle was a roamer, a wanderer who never could stay in one place .

roamer: a person who wanders through or around a place with no very clear aim ( 俳徊者 ; 游荡者 )

2) Not every historic mansion, church, battle site, theatre and other public halls can be preserved.

mansion: a large house, usually belonging to a wealthy person ( 宅第 ; 官邸 )

3) Every country has its favorite beverage. Indians like to drink coffee after dinner. The English prefer tea. Americans often drink soda.

beverage: a liquid for drinking, esp. one that is not water ( 饮料 )

六、根据经验和常识

1) After Mary put the letter in the envelope, she sealed it and placed a stamp on it, then put it into the postbox.

seal: to fasten or close as / with a SEAL or a tight cover or band of something ( 密封 ; 封闭 )

2) Mike got on the motorcycle, and Mary sat behind him on the pillion.

pillion: a seat for a second person on a motorcycle placed behind the drive ( 摩托车后座 )

七、利用同义词

1) Large chunks of ice and snow melt very slowly. Once they begin to thaw, several weeks of warm weather may be required before they are totally dissolved.

thaw: (of a frozen substance) to increase in temperature to above freezing point and so becoming liquid, soft or bendable ( 解冻 ; 溶化 )

dissolve: (of a solid or a gas) to become liquid by being put into liquid ( 溶解 )

2) The old woman has a strange habit to keep over 100 cats in her house. Her neighbors all called her an eccentric lady.

eccentric: (of a person or his behavior) peculiar; unusual; rather strange ( 古怪的 ; 怪异的 )

八、利用反义词

1) In many nations there are two financial extremes ( 极端 ), from penury to great wealth.

penury: the state of being very poor; poverty ( 贫穷 ; 贫困 )

2) Our spacious house has more advantages than our overcrowded apartment.

spacious: wide; not narrow; having a lot of room; ( 宽阔的 ; 宽敞的 )

3) Unlike his brother, who is truly a handsome man, John is quite homely.

homely: (of people, faces, etc.) not good-looking ( 不漂亮的 )

九、根据标点符号的信息功能

1) The nurse is on night shift – from midnight to 7 a.m.

shift: the period of time worked by a group of people who work by turns ( 轮班 )

2) There are two types of fat, external fat (fat under skin and internal fat (fat inside the body wall).

external: on, of or for the outside ( 外部的 ; 外面的 )

十、根据上下文语境

1) I lost my key to my bike, so I went to the shop to duplicate a new one so that I could get to school on time.

duplicate: to copy exactly (复制 ; 配 )

2) My son has been in school for two years but he can’t write a sentence, so I shouted to the teacher: “You have made my son illiterate.”

illiterate: unable to read and write (无知的 ; 文盲）

熟词新义熟词新义Familiar words with Familiar words with different meaningsdifferent meanings

1) Do you know who will address at the meeting?

address: to direct speech or writing to a person or a group (演说 ; 演讲 )

2) These goods are covered against fire.

cover: to insure; to protect from damage or loss (保险 ; 投保 )

3) You can buy this car for ￡ 50 down and ￡ 5 a week for 3 years.

down: (of that part of a sum of money to be paid at once) in cash ( 现付 ; 用现金支付 )

4) She could hardly tear herself away from the book.

tear oneself away: to leave unwillingly (依依不舍地离开 ; 忍痛离去 )

5) I really love your company but I also need some privacy. So please call before you come over.

company: companionship; fellowship (友谊 ; 陪伴 )

6) He was fined $ 50 for over speeding on the highway.

fine: to take money from as a punishment (罚款 )

7) He later said, “he hopes the truth about the shooting will surface soon.”

surface: to come to the surface of water (浮出水面 )

8) I am one of the share holders in the company.

share: any of the equal parts into which the ownership of a company may be divided (股份 )

9) American soldiers stationed in S. Korea often make trouble.

station: post; put into a certain place (安置 ; 驻扎 )

10) A party of six people went to China for inspection.

party: a group of people doing something together (团体 ; 一伙人 )

11) Don’t buy things at the food stand in the street.

stand: a small, often outdoor shop or place for showing things; stall (摊子 ; 摊位 )

12) The friendship will stand the test of any trouble and difficulty.

stand: to accept successfully; bear (承受 ; 忍受 )

13) The young man was fired.

fire: to dismiss from a job; sack ( 解雇 ; 开除 )

14) The old man was really cross when he lost his money.

cross: angry; bad-tempered ( 生气的 ; 脾气暴躁的 )

15) They formed a car pool to take turns to drive to work.

pool: a common supply of money, goods, workers, etc., which may be used by a number of people (集中备用物资 , 如 , 钱 , 货品 , 工人等 )

16) What he said did not hold water.

hold water: to be true or reasonable ( 有道理 ; 合情合理 ; 站得住脚 )

17) He has the floor in the committee, which floored me.

floor: n. the right of one member to speak (发言权 )

floor: v. to beat; to defeat (击败 )

18) You need to lay a sound base for the job.

sound: solid; firm; strong ( 坚实的 ; 稳固的 ; 强壮的 )

19) He is a promising boy.

promising: showing signs of advance towards success ( 有希望的 )

20) Please stay clear of the engine area.

clear: open; free from block, dangers, or obstructions (畅通的 ; 无危险的 )

21) Don’t beat about the bush.

beat about the bush: to avoid coming to the main point ( 说话拐弯抹角 )

22) The police brought a charge of murder against me.

charge: a spoken or written statement blaming a person for a crime for breaking law, or for doing something morally wrong (控告 ; 指控 )

23) The battery is being charged after being discharged first.

charge: to cause to take in the correct amount of electricity ( 使充电 )

discharge: to remove electricity from a electrical apparatus (放电 )

24) What he said was totally groundless.

groundless: (of feelings, ideas, etc.) without base or good reason (无根据的 ; 无理由的 )

25) The song became a hit among the young at once.

hit: a musical or theatrical performance which is successful ( 成功的音乐或戏剧表演 )

26) The increase in food price hits the housewife’s pocket.

hit: have a bad effect on ( 对…有不良影响 )

27) I am playing cards to kill time.

kill time: to make free time pass by finding something to do (消磨时间 )

28) What is the make of your car?

make: the type to which a set of (man-made) objects belongs, esp. the name of the makers (样式 ; 牌子 )

29) They gave me a lift to the party.

lift: a free ride in a vehicle, esp. one given to a traveler (免费搭载 ; 搭顺风车 )

30) The smell was really inviting.

inviting: attractive (诱人的 )

31) The game ended in a draw. The new film is a great draw.

draw: a state of affairs in which neither side wins (平局 ; 平手 ; 不分胜负 )

draw: a person or thing that attracts, esp. a paying public ( 有吸引力的人或事 )

32) He returned home, safe and sound.

safe and sound: safe (平安无恙 )

Other practice1) Mark Twain was not the writer’s real name;

it was a pseudonym.2) Tom’s ambition is to become a scientist

when he grows up.3) I don’t know if the clock in the tower is

accurate. Does it tell the correct time?4) Frogs and other animals are known as

amphibians because they have a double life. They are at home on land and in water.

5) The capture of Sudan Hussein means a complete end of his rule in Iraq.

6) The disease is not contagious; you can’t catch it by touching somebody.

7) Harry Marsh was a driving examiner who had to test people that wanted to get a driving license.

8) Jim just hummed the tune of the song; he didn’t sing the words.

9) The Americans are finally allowed to inspect the nuclear facilities in N. Korea.

10) I bought a food processor which saved me a lot of trouble cutting the vegetables when cooking.

11) The new car has a good acceleration; its speed can be increased in a short time.

12) The Asian gibbon, like other monkeys, are well used to the life in trees.

13) The newsmen have to wear bullet-proof jackets to protect themselves from being shot.

14) The football match will be televised live, so we can watch it on the television at home.

15) The Chinese government takes firm steps to block any case of bird flu from spreading into China.

16) The Russian president was on his first official visit to the United States. He had talks with US president G.W. Bush on anti-terrorism and weapon disarmament. The Russian president offered support for the air-attack against Taliban. The two presidents agreed to reduce nuclear weapons in the next ten years. But differences remained on the US plans to build anti-missile defense system, which has been a hot topic discussed heatedly.

Possible Reading ProblemsPossible Reading Problems1. Familiar words with different meanings1. Familiar words with different meanings

2. New words with unknown meanings2. New words with unknown meanings

3. Partial understanding of some words3. Partial understanding of some words

4. Unique structures4. Unique structures

5. Long sentences and complex structures5. Long sentences and complex structures

6. Definition of topic sentence and inference6. Definition of topic sentence and inference

Suggestions to Reading

1. Vocabulary 3,000

2. Phrases 500

3. Set expressions 400 ( 合成 , 转化 ,派生 )

4. Read as much as possible with regard to different subjects (better 4 pieces of reading materials per day)