胡敏教授解密考研阅读命题与对策
节选自胡敏编著《考研英语阅读理解高分宝典》
阅读理解题命题原则与应试对策考生在复习备考时，会发现研究生英语试卷的
阅读理解部分虽只有20道题，分数值却占总分的40%，而这一部分正是考生的难
点所在，所以能否在阅读理解这一部分取得理想的成绩，就成为考研英语成功
的关键所在。如何突破阅读难关?怎样迅速提高阅读水平?能否找到一些切实可
行的应试规律?面对考生提出的这些迫切的问题，笔者仔细研究了历年考题，结
合自己多年的教学经验，针对考研考试大纲所考核阅读理解能力的八条要求，
并分析回顾历年考研阅读理解题目的大致规律，总结归纳出考研阅读理解应试
的十二大原则，希望能为正在求学之路上辛苦求索的学子们助一臂之力。
《英语考试大纲》在阅读部分要求考生能够读懂不同类型的文字材料（生词量
不超过所读材料总词汇量的3％)，包括信函、书刊和杂志上的文章，还应能读
懂与本人学习或工作有关的文献、技术说明和产品介绍等。根据所读材料，考
生应能：
1． 理解主旨要义；
2． 理解文中的具体信息；
3． 理解文中的概念性含义；
4． 进行有关的判断、推理和引申；
5． 根据上下文推测生词的词义；
6． 理解文章的总体结构以及单句之间、段落之间的关系；
7． 理解作者的意图、观点或态度；
8． 区分论点和论据。
基于对历年考题阅读部分的总体分析和对2005年考试阅读部分的预测，笔者建
议考生在复习时注意把握以下几点：
1.注重从总体把握文章，掌握作者的主要论点，把握文中的重要信息。拿到一
篇文章，不要急于做题，而是要先判断文章的体裁和内容，从而缩小理解范
围。例如议论文中，作者一定会提出自己的观点并加以解释和说明，考生就应
准备去理解作者如何阐述观点。把握文章大意，可以从理解段落大意着手，找
到段落的主题句，主题句一般位于段首或段尾。文章的作者一般都会直接或间
接地表达自己的观点和倾向，许多作者会通过主题句来表达自己的论点，或是
间接地把自己的观点在关键词或行文的字里行间体现出来，考生要有意训练自
己在这方面的能力。
2.注重了解句与句、段与段之间的关系，特别是文章中的转折关系，学会利用
上下文进行必要的判断、推理和引申。只有掌握句段之间的关系，才能摸清作
者深层思路上的逻辑关系。从句子与句子，段落与段落之间的过渡可以读出作
者整个的思路及论证过程，才能做出正确的推理、判断或引申。平时训练时，
考生应多注意一些过渡词。
3.积极扩展词汇量，注意动词和名词，训练理解一些难句、复杂句。扩展词汇
量的目的是避免词汇的欠缺造成理解的失误。动词作为语句结构的枢纽，意义
重大，可以帮助考生理解作者的思想意图，而名词常常是关于事实的，细节题
常考的内容多与名词有关。难句和复杂句多是具有深层含义的，学会解读难
句、复杂句须从其结构入手。考生应抓住难句、复杂句的主干，找出主要信息
和深层含义。
4.阅读时注意速度和解题顺序。建议考生先快后慢、先易后难，先略读文章，
总体上把握，再细读搜寻答案，先解决容易的事实题再做较难的考深层含义的
题。
5.多阅读时效性比较强的英美报刊文章。在历年的考研阅读文章中，时文占到
相当大的比例。在备考初期就应当注意扩大知识面，并熟悉此类文章的内容、
语言风格和篇章结构。
一、 应试总则
翻开考研英语试卷的阅读部分，考生首先应当掌握的最基本的应试总则可以概
括为12个字：文章思路、圈点到位、重叠原文。事实上这12个字已经概括了阅
读解题的全部过程。
第一步“文章思路”是指考生首先应对文章总体的思路和结构有一个大概的了
解，先不要急于去读题目，而是应当将文章从头到尾看一遍，弄清楚文章的中
心意思，这一遍阅读的目的并不是要立即找到答题所需要的信息点。在阅读的
时候还要有主次之分，文章的第一段是文章的灵魂和核心，也应当是第一遍阅
读的重点所在。考生要尽量将第一段的每一句话都理解透彻，因为掌握了第一
段，就已经基本了解掌握了整篇文章的内容，至于其他的段落可以加快速度，
看得懂就看，看不懂就暂时跳过去，在不懂的地方做出记号，留待以后解决。
读完文章并理清思路后就可以接着阅读试题，命题专家在设计考卷时，题目排
列的次序与文章的布局基本是相吻合的，也就是说题目所需要的信息点在文章
中应当是按顺序出现的，这一点对于基础差的考生相当重要，因为考生完全可
以根据每篇文章题目的题干来推测文章大致的内容和思路。 有些考生在把
握文章思路时常常会陷入困境，他们虽然也从头到尾把文章读了一遍，但还是
搞不清文章到底在讲什么。如何扫清阅读理解中出现的盲点?笔者建议考生在第
一遍阅读时注意以下几点：
1. 文章中有些信息可以忽略，例如有关职务、头衔、社会地位等补充性
说明；
2. 第一遍阅读时，可暂时不管句中破折号后所提供的旁支信息；
3. 复杂的难句看清主、谓、宾即可，其他辅助信息除非与解题有关，否
则亦可暂时不管；
4. 上下文中平行对称的地方经常内容相同，所以这些互相对照的内容也
可帮助考生消除盲点；
5. 做题时应注意：因为命题时要求选项部分的语言难度要低于文章语言
的难度，所以读懂选项的语言常会帮助考生正确理解文章的内容。
第二步“圈点到位”，是就审题而言，实质上就是要求考生审题到位，弄清楚
题目针对文章的什么内容提问。考生在读完题目后通常会返回到文章里去寻找
答案，这时又会出现另一种情况，有些考生文章都看懂了，可就是找不到答案
在哪里。出现这种情况的根本原因是考生没有审清题意，没有弄清楚题目要求
考生在文章中寻找什么信息，因为绝大部分题目是针对文章的具体内容提问。
所以只要考生审题到位，返回原文搜索答案时，即可圈点出相应的内容，从而
缩小寻找范围，大大提高正确率。2000年考研试题的20道阅读题中只有4道题目
(3道主旨题，1道判断题)无法依据题干语言在原文中圈点，其他的16道题目均
可根据题干命题语言在文中圈点出相应的内容，答案基本就在所圈语句的附
近。所以只要能在掌握文章思路的基础上做到“圈点到位”，基本上所有的阅
读题目都可以迎刃而解，特别是具体的细节题，可以说是手到擒来。
第三步“重叠原文”，即完成题目之后检查所找到的答案是否正确。设计阅读
题时，选项通常是这样四种情况，假设选项内容是一个圆，文章内容也是一个
圆，第一种情况是两者相距甚远，根本没有相交的地方，内容完全不一样，这
种选项很容易就被排除掉；第二种情况是这两个圆相切，即只有很小一部分互
相联系，但会有一部分考生选这个选项，因为选项的内容文中有所提及，有一
定的迷惑性；第三种情况是这两个圆相交，有大部分内容重叠，考生往往会选
择这种选项。较之前者，这种情况的迷惑性更大，也是最危险的干扰项；但只
有符合第四种情况，即两个圆完全重合、内容完全相符的选项才是正确答案。
因此在检查时，考生要做的就是把所选的选项与文章中相应的内容做比较，看
其是否能与原文重叠。
在判断选项是否能重叠原文时，考生常常也会感到迷惑，无法判断选项是否与
原文内容完全重叠，这是因为命题专家在设计考题时会使用一些语言来迷惑考
生，从而测试考生的英语水平和阅读能力。一般说来，事实上命题专家最常用
的有四种方式：“语言简化”、“反话正说”、“正话反说”和“关键词替
换”。
“语言简化”是命题专家命题使用语言时所必须遵守的总则。在设置选项时，
四个选项的长度及句法不应有太大差异，而选项所使用的语言难度必须低于文
章本身的难度。这一点对考生大有帮助，因为考生可以利用选项来理解文章。
这一原则几乎在所有的阅读试题中都有所体现，故此笔者在这里就不再列举。
“反话正说”的命题方式是指选项用肯定的方式来表述文中用否定方式所表述
的内容。仅在2000年的考研试卷中，就有四道题目采用了这种命题方式。
例
“Few Americans attribute this solely to such obvious causes as a
devalued dollar or the turning of the business cycle.”
The author seems to believe the revival of the U.S. economy in the
1990s can be attributed to the.
［A］ turning of the business cycle
［B］ restructuring of industry
［C］ improved business management
［D］ success in education［2000年54题］
A［正确答案］
第三种常用的命题方式“正话反说”，是指文中用肯定方式表述，而选项用否
定方式表述，两者意义相吻合。这一命题方式在近年的试卷中也可找到例证。
例
How many men would have considered the possibility of an apple
falling up into the tree? Newton did because he was not trying to
predict anything. He was just wondering. His mind was ready for the
unpredictable. Unpredictability is part of the essential nature of
research. If you don't have unpredictable things, you don't have
research. Scientists tend to forget this when writing their cut and
dried reports for the technical journals, but history is filled with
examples of it.
The author asserts that scientists.
［A］shouldn't replace “scientific method” with imaginative thought
［B］shouldn't neglect to speculate on unpredictable things
［C］should write more concise reports for technical journals
［D］should be confident about their research findings［1999年第68
题］
B［正确答案］
“关键词替换”是出现最频繁的命题方式，几乎每年都有一些用这种方式设置
的题目。
例
This speeding up of life, says the Futurist, receives a new form of
expression.
Futurists claim that we must.
［A］ increase the production of literature
［B］ use poetry to relieve modern stress
［C］ develop new modes of expression
［D］ avoid using adjectives and verbs［2000年61题］
C［正确答案］
命题专家常常采用“语言简化”、“反话正说”、“正话反说”、“关键词替
换”这四种方式设置考题，对考生进行干扰。考生在了解这些方式后，就可以
反其道而行之，利用这四种命题方式来检查所选选项是否与原文重叠。
总则中笔者介绍了考研阅读理解应试的基本步骤，下面将就具体题型提出相应
的应试原则。
二、 主题原则
主旨题型又叫主题原则，主要针对文章主题设问，考查考生对通篇文章的理解
和把握，但是要特别注意和下面这种题型区分开来。
笔者建议考生在做主题题型时遵循这样的原则：因为此类题干扰性最大，难度
也最大，考生须读完全文才能准确把握文章主题。所以考生拿到这种题时，不
要急于去找答案，不论其出现在什么位置都把它作为最后一道题来做，因为在
做另外三道题时，无疑有助于加深对整个文章的理解。而且，事实上，首先做
主旨题，考生往往还会回过头来核查答案，这样耗时间，做题效率低。
主题题型分为以下两种。
1.明确的主题题型
此类题型位置较为固定，一般是第一个问题或最后一个问题，要求考生为文章
选择合适的标题或是总结文章的中心思想。此类题型相对难度较小。
例
If you intend using humor in your talk to make people smile, you
must know how to identify shared experiences and problems. Your
humor must be relevant to the audience and should help to show them
that you are one of them or that you understand their situation and
are in sympathy with their point of view. Depending on whom you are
addressing, the problems will be different. If you are talking to a
group of managers, you may refer to the disorganized methods of
their secretaries; alternatively if you are addressing secretaries,
you may want to comment on their disorganized bosses.
Here is an example, which I heard at a nurses' convention, of a
story which works well because the audience all shared the same view
of doctors. A man arrives in heaven and is being shown around by St.
Peter. He sees wonderful accommodations, beautiful gardens, sunny
weather, and so on. Everyone is very peaceful, polite and friendly
until, waiting in a line for lunch, the new arrival is suddenly
pushed aside by a man in a white coat, who rushes to the head of the
line, grabs his food and stomps over to a table by himself. “Who is
that?” the new arrival asked St. Peter. “Oh, that's God” came the
reply, “but sometimes he thinks he's a doctor.”
If you are part of the group which you are addressing, you will be
in a position to know the experiences and problems which are common
to all of you and it'll be appropriate for you to make a passing
remark about the inedible canteen food or the chairman's notorious
bad taste in ties. With other audiences you mustn't attempt to cut
in with humor as they will resent an outsider making disparaging
remarks about their canteen or their chairman. You will be on safer
ground if you stick to scapegoat like the Post Office or the
telephone system.
If you feel awkward being humorous, you must practice so that it
becomes more natural. Include a few casual and apparently
off_the_cuff remarks which you can deliver in a relaxed and unforced
manner. Often it's the delivery which causes the audience to smile,
so speak slowly and remember that a raised eyebrow or an unbelieving
look may help to show that you are making a lighthearted remark.
Look for the humor. It often comes from the unexpected. A twist on a
familiar quote “If at first you don't succeed, give up” or a play
on words or on a situation. Search for exaggeration and
understatements. Look at your talk and pick out a few words or
sentences which you can turn about and inject with humor.
The best title for the text may be .
［A］ Use Humor Effectively
［B］ Various Kinds of Humor
［C］ Add Humor to Speech
［D］ Different Humor Strategies［2002年45题］
A［正确答案］
2.隐蔽的主题题型
这类题型在设问时较为隐蔽，不像明确的主题题型会直接问“文章的主题是什
么”，而且位置也很随意，不会固定在第一道或最后一道。下列例题即为隐蔽
的主题题型经常出现的形式，考生应熟悉此类题型的语言形式，以利于审题时
准确判断题型。
例
When it comes to the slowing economy, Ellen Spero isn't biting her
nails just yet. But the 47_year_old manicurist isn't cutting, filing
or polishing as many nails as she'd like to, either. Most of her
clients spend $12 to $50 weekly, but last month two longtime
customers suddenly stopped showing up. Spero blames the softening
economy. “I'm a good economic indicator,” she says, “I provide a
service that people can do without when they're concerned about
saving some dollars.” So Spero is downscaling, shopping at
middle_brow Dillard's department store near her suburban Cleveland
home, instead of Neiman Marcus. “I don't know if other clients are
going to abandon me, too.” She says.
Even before Alan Greenspan's admission that America's red_hot
economy is cooling, lots of working folks had already seen signs of
the slowdown themselves. From car dealerships to Gap outlets, sales
have been lagging for months as shoppers temper their spending. For
retailers, who last year took in 24 percent of their revenue between
Thanksgiving and Christmas, the cautious approach is coming at a
crucial time. Already, experts say, holiday sales are off 7 percent
from last year's pace. But don't sound any alarms just yet.
Consumers seem only mildly concerned, not panicked, and many say
they remain optimistic about the economy's long_term prospects even
as they do some modest belt_tightening.
Consumers say they're not in despair because, despite the dreadful
headlines, their own fortunes still feel pretty good. Home prices
are holding steady in most regions. In Manhattan, “there's a new
gold rush happening in the $4 million to $10 million range,
predominantly fed by Wall Street bonuses,” says broker Barbara
Corcoran. In San Francisco, prices are still rising even as frenzied
overbidding quiets. “Instead of 20 to 30 offers, now maybe you only
get two or three," says John Tealdi, a Bay Area real_estate broker.
And most folks still feel pretty comfortable about their ability to
find and keep a job.
Many folks see silver linings to this slowdown. Potential home
buyers would cheer for lower interest rates. Employers wouldn't mind
a litter fewer bubbles in the job market. Many consumers seem to
have been influenced by stock_market swings, which investors now
view as a necessary ingredient to a sustained boom. Diners might see
an upside, too. Getting a table at Manhattan's hot new Alain
Ducasses restaurant used to be impossible. Not anymore. For that,
Greenspan&Co. may still be worth toasting.
To which of the following is the author likely to agree?
［A］ A new boom, on the horizon.
［B］ Tighten the belt, the single remedy.
［C］ Caution all right, panic not.
［D］ The more ventures, the more chance.［2004年55题］
C［正确答案］
