Question

【題目】Your next car could have two seats, three wheels — two in front and one in the back and a top speed of more than 100 miles per hour. Elio Motors plans to make such a tiny car named the Elio. Its two seats sit front and back instead of side by side. The driver is positioned in the center with the passenger directly behind.

The starting price for the car is just $6,800. It has only one door, on the left side, which cuts a few hundred dollars off the manufacturing costs. Having three wheels also makes it cheaper. It has air conditioning, power windows and door locks and an AM/FM radio. More features can be ordered through Elio's long list of suppliers. Elio will also sell the cars directly through its own stores and not through franchised dealers (特約經(jīng)銷商).

Paul Elio dreamed as a kid that he would one day own a car company called Elio Motors. In 2008, tired of high gas prices, he started working on a car that burns gas in a more effective way. Equally important to him was creating U.S. manufacturing jobs and making the car inexpensive enough to attract buyers who might otherwise be stuck in their old, unreliable cars. “Whatever matters to you, this can move the needle on it,” he said.

Already, more than 27,000 people have reserved (預(yù)訂) one. Paul hopes to make 250,000 cars a year by 2016. So far, reservation holders are those who will use the Elio as a second or third car for work. Finally, though, he believes the car will interest high school and college students as well as used-car drivers who want something newer and more reliable.

【1】Which of the following shows the design of the Elio?

(○ = wheel, □ = seat)

A. B. C. D.

【2】Paragraph 2 shows that the Elio ________.

A. will be available in most stores B. is sold at affordable prices

C. has a fixed temperature D. does no harm to the environment

【3】The underlined words “move the needle” in Paragraph 3 probably mean “________”.

A. take a chance B. stand in the way C. break into pieces D. make a difference

【4】What would be the best title for the text?

A. The history of Elio Motors B. Cool car or stupid vehicle?

C. Paul Elio: a kid with big dreams D. What car to choose: new or used?

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】C

【2】B

【3】D

【4】B

【解析】

這是一篇說明文。本文主要介紹了一款只有三個輪子和兩個座椅的機動車，這樣一輛造型奇特的車究竟如何呢？

【1】細節(jié)理解題。由第一段中的two seats, three wheels — two in front and one in the back 和 Its two seats sit front and back可知，應(yīng)選C項。

【2】細節(jié)理解題。由該段中的the car is just $6.800可知，Elio是一款便宜的小汽車，故選B項。

【3】詞義猜測題。Paul認為Elio這款車經(jīng)濟節(jié)油、價格低廉，而且還會帶來就業(yè)機會，所以move the needle在此應(yīng)該是表示帶來可見的變化，故選D項。

【4】標題歸納題。本文主要介紹了一款只有三個輪子和兩個座椅的機動車，這樣一輛造型奇特的車究竟如何呢？所以文章標題用B項Cool car or stupid vehicle?最恰當。

依據(jù)邏輯推理猜測詞義：運用邏輯推理猜測詞義是使用最廣考查最多也最易失分的猜詞方式。要求考生具備整合分散、復(fù)雜信息的能力，充分利用上下文中相關(guān)的詞匯并結(jié)合具體的語境，從形式和內(nèi)容上把握語言之間的內(nèi)在聯(lián)系，理順語言之間的邏輯關(guān)系，進而達到猜詞的目的。常見的邏輯關(guān)系有：因果關(guān)系，同位關(guān)系，對比關(guān)系，轉(zhuǎn)折關(guān)系等。

此題的第3題為猜測詞義題中依據(jù)邏輯推理猜測詞義。

答案定位：

根據(jù)第三段In 2008, tired of high gas prices, he started working on a car that burns gas in a more effective way. Equally important to him was creating U.S. manufacturing jobs and making the car inexpensive enough to attract buyers who might otherwise be stuck in their old, unreliable cars.可知Paul認為Elio這款 車經(jīng)濟節(jié)油、價格低廉，而且還會帶來就業(yè)機會。

推理關(guān)系：

題干The underlined words “move the needle” in Paragraph 3 probably mean

文章內(nèi)容In 2008, tired of high gas prices, he started working on a car that burns gas in a more effective way. Equally important to him was creating U.S. manufacturing jobs and making the car inexpensive enough to attract buyers who might otherwise be stuck in their old, unreliable cars.可知，Paul認為Elio這款車經(jīng)濟節(jié)油、價格低廉，而且還會帶來就業(yè)機會，所以“Whatever matters to you, this can move the needle on it意思是：無論是哪一點，都帶來了巨大變化。

答案：

“move the needle”D. make a difference