1． 猜測詞義是一種確定詞義的方法
閱讀中碰到生詞，通常採用查詞典來了解詞義。這裏介紹一種猜測詞義(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.
這句中dazzled是生詞，它是什麼意思呢？我們可以從全句所提供的語義作出判斷：在漆黑的鄉間公路上，碰到一輛汽車，明亮的車燈會使我們眼睛產生一種什麼感覺？耀眼。這個詞正是這個意思。這種確定詞義的方法，稱爲猜測詞義。
2． 依靠 “上下文”猜測詞義
依靠 “上下文”（context）是猜測詞義的一種方法。 “上下文”是指詞在交際中所的
具體語言環境。一個詞一旦進入句子，就立即與周圍的詞語發生這樣或那樣聯繫，並受它們的制約。詞的意思直接或間接取決於所處的 “上下文”。因此只要我們依靠 “上下文”，學會尋找與生詞有關的 “上下文線索“（context clues）,是可對生詞的詞義進行不同程度的猜測的。
“上下文線索“一般說來可分爲兩類：
第一類：說明性的線索。就是指在局中或語段中存在着說明、解釋生詞的詞語線索。如：（1）The new building,a five-story edifice,was completed last month.
(生詞 edifice 的詞義由 building 說明，二者同義。)
（2）----Can you help me this evening?
----No-way; I must go to a meeting.
(I must go to a meeting. 說明no-way 具有 “否定“的含義。)
（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 正好說明honest 詞的詞義)
第二類：語義情景性或邏輯性的線索。在句子或語段裏雖沒有直接用來說明、解釋生詞的詞語，但從 “上下文“的總的聯繫上來看，有助於我們判斷詞義。如：
（1） The sweat dropped down his face. His clothes were wet as if he had fallen into water… weather was very hot.
(sweat詞義可從這三句所提供的情景推斷出，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 詞義可從陳述的邏輯線索推斷，這裏作 “恰當”“適當”解。)
3． 猜測詞義的準確性與上下文提供線索的充分程度有關。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.
前兩句難於判斷 haughty 的詞義，上下文線索不充分。第2句僅可判斷它指的是一個不好的品質。可是，第3句不一樣：有充足的上下文線索，可以猜測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 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 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 ?”
er: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.
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 you give it the right instructions,it can even serve dinner to you at the table.
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.
ar 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.
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
or different?
selection is about a trip to London.
robots made by Quasar Industries can do a lot of house work.
they are not able to speak.
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 ______.
a walk unce visitors
e a car k several languages
swim and dive basket ball
er doors e dinners
alarms ir machines
for 24 hours a day rize the instructions given by the owner
programmed to do some tasks care of children
a lot of apples sh the floors
context clues in the selection to figure out the meanings of the following words.
able: A.勤奮的 B.可靠的 C。聰明的
2．Sociable: A。社會的 B.努力的 C。友好的
3．Security-conscious A.安全的 B。有覺悟的 C。有警惕的
