2019年湖北武汉科技大学外语专业综合考研真题.doc

2019年湖北武汉科技大学外语专业综合考研真题Part A: Comprehensive EnglishI. Vocabulary. (25X1=25 points)Directions: In this part, there are 25 sentences, each with an underlined word or phrase. Following each sentence are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that is closest in meaning to the underlined word or expression.1.The chief functions of direct-mail advertising are to familiarize prospective buyers with a product, its name, its maker, and its merits and with the products local distributors.A. potential B. responsive C. inquisitive D. perceptive2. Jane and Tom have been able to reconcile their difference and are a happy family again.A. settle B. arrange C. balance D. pacify3. Giving the child problems he cant solve will only frustrate him.A. baffle B. worry C. alarm D. cultivate4When we were in the mountains, we often found ourselves entirely enveloped by the fog.A. confined B. surrounded C. darkened D. blocked5. Perhaps more than anything else, it was onerous taxes that led to the Peasants Revolt in England in 1381.A. multiple B. unjust C. burdensome D. infamous6. In ancient Egyptian paintings, royal figures were differentiated by making them several times larger than others. A. distinguished B. estranged C. deferred D. enlarged7.The United States Food and Drug Administration has shown itself to be particularly wary with regard to alleged “miracle” drugs in recent times.A. bellicose B. exhausted C. cautious D. strange8.The plainer a bowerbirds plumage, the more brightly it decorates its nest to attract a mate.A. more spectacular B. duller C. flatter D. more melancholy9. Adverse reviews in the New York press may greatly change the prospects of a new Broadway production.A. additional B. encouraging C. unfavorable D. subversive10.The head of the navy heaped scorn on both the methods and motives of the conspirators.A. admiration B. passion C. contempt D. offense11. In the Pacific Northwest, as climate and topography vary, so do the species that prevail in the forests.A. dominate B. reproduce C. rebuild D. invade12There are still some outdated prejudices lurking in the minds of individuals.A. existing B. hiding C. remaining D. emerging13. In buying a suit, a difference of ten cents in price is negligible.A. negligent B. negotiable C. insignificant D. consequential14. Dont meddle in my affairs, and in fact I can handle them properly by myself.A. interfere B. interest C. involve D. attend15. Death ensued as a result of suffocation.A. heart failure B. an accident C. disease D. asphyxiation16. The report was unusual in that it is insinuated corruption on the part of the minister.A. denied B. suggested C. reprisal D. loss of profit17. In mountainous regions, much of the snow that falls is compacted into ice.A. hauled B. compressed C. compiled D. harnessed18. The human treatment of prisoners is endorsed by the majority of people in the society.A. encountered B. endowed C. quenched D. supported19. After reading Philip Morrisons paper on gamma-ray astronomy in 1959, a fellow physicist was prompted to ask, “Wouldnt using gamma-rays be a good way to communicate across the galaxy?”A. petitioned B. cautioned C. motivated D. requested20The typical shoe of the Middle Ages was a soft, clinging moccasin that extended to the ankle.A. close-fitting B. comfortable C. cleverly made D. leather21. During the rainy season the Mississippi River may carry away hundreds of acres of valuable topsoil from one area and arbitrarily deposit it in another.A. subsequently B. lawfully C. mercilessly D. randomly22. Teachers of young children should scrupulously avoid ridicule and sarcasm.A. theoretically B. naively C. diligently D. confidently23. In various parts of the world, the devout participate enthusiastically in public procession during the major events of the liturgical year.A. pious B. serious C. diseased D. misled24. They awoke to find the maid had left the remnants of dinner on the table.A. list of items for B. invitations to C. leftovers of D. preparations for25. The upshot of all this was that travelling had become precarious.A. glorious B. fun C. expensive D. dangerousII. Structure. Directions: In this part, there are 15 incomplete sentences. Following each sentence you will see four words or phrases, marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that best completes the sentence. (15X1=15 points)26. The economic forces which may affect the new pubic offering of stock include sudden downturns in the market, hedging and other investor strategies for preventing losses, _ the interest rates in Washington, and _ undercapitalized.A. loosingfearing the company may still beB. looseninga fear of the company still beingC. a loosening of fearing that the company may still beD. a loosening of a fearing that the company may still be27. School integration plans that involve busing between suburban and central-city areas have contributed, according to a recent study, to _ any future need/or busing.A. significant increases in housing integration, which, in turn, reducesB. significant integration increases in housing, which, in turn, reducesC. increases housing integration significantly, which, in turn, reducesD. increases housing integration significantly, which, in turn, reduce28. _ in the United States_.A. Three out of every four automobile ownersalso own a bicycleB. Out of every four, three automobile ownersalso owns a bicycleC. Three out of every four automobile ownersowns bicyclesD. Out of every four owners of automobiles bicycles are also owned by three29.The relationship between corpulence and disease remains controversial, although statistics clearly _ reduced life expectance _ chronic obesity.A. associate a to B. associates a.withC. associates to D. associate a with30. For many travelers, charter vacations often turn out to cost considerably more than _.A. they originally seemed B. they originally seem toC. they seemingly would cost originally D. they seemed originally31._a larger percentage of its gross national product on defending its coasts from rising seas than_.A. In Holland, it coststhe spending on military defense in the Untied StatesB. In Holland they spendthe United States does on military defenseC. Holland spendsthe military defense spending of the United StatesD. Holland spendsthe United States does on military defense32. Distinguished architecture requires the expenditure of large sums of money, even if it is by no means certain_ the expenditure of large sums of money_ distinguished architecture.A. thatproduce B. ofwill produce C. that produces D. as toproducing33. _ the passage of light, many new plastics are processed using technologies rivaling those used in the manufacture of computer chips.A. For the better of B. Permitting betterC. To better permit D. It is better for34. If the struggle for a sustainable society_, we must have some vision of what we are aiming for.A. is to succeed B. has succeeded C. succeeds D. succeeded35. Among the first to come and live in North America_, who later prospered mainly in New England.A. had been Dutch settlers B. Dutch settlers were thereC. were Dutch settlers D. Dutch settlers had been there36. In the dark they could not see anything clear, but could_.A. hear somebody mourn B. hear somebody mourningC. hear somebody mourned D. hear somebody had been mourning37. By the end of the year 2004, he _ in the army for 40 years.A. will have served B. will serve C. will be serving D. will be served38. The index of industrial production_ last year.A. raised up by 4 percent B. rose up with 4 percentC. arose up with 4 percent D. went up by 4 percent39. British hopes of a gold medal in the Olympic Games suffered_ yesterday, when Hunter failed to qualify during the preliminary heats.A. a sharp set-back B. severe set-back C. a severe blown-up D. sharp blown-up40. Rather than doing this via auction or through private art dealers they can give them to the government, which buys them at an agreed price_ them_.A. after having, independently valued B. after having, independently valuableC. by having, independently valueless D. by having, independently valueIII. Paraphrase the following sentences. (5X3=15 points)41. No true sense of the rhythms of the seasons is to be had from a lawn in the backyard and a few spindly trees struggling to survive.42. The free press, indeed, as the main interpreter of American culture and American experience, holds the mirror on American realityso much so that what the media say is is, even if its not that way at all.43. For the millions of black people like myselfordinary, hard-working, law-abiding, tax-paying Americansthe medias blindness to the fact that we even exist, let alone to our contributions to American society, is a bitter cup to drink.44. He would pull endless wires in order to meet some man who admired his work and was able and anxious to be of use to him.45. It seems to me that we are in a society that values immediate gratification above all else, and what better place is there to achieve it than in cyberspace, where the cyber-world is your cyber-oyster.IV. Reading ComprehensionDirections: There are two passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice. (2 X 10 = 20 points)Passage 1Linguists have understood for decades that language and thought are closely related. Humans construct reality using thought and express these thoughts through the use of language. Edward Sapir and his student Benjamin Whorf are credited with developing the most relevant explanation outlining the relationship between thought and language, the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis. The hypothesis consists of two parts, linguistic relativity and linguistic determinism. Supporters of linguistic relativity assume that culture is shaped by language. Terwilliger defines linguistic determinism as the process by which “the functions of ones mind are determined by the nature of the language which one speaks.” In simpler terms, the thoughts that we construct are based upon the language that we speak and the words that we use. In its strongest sense, linguistic determinism can be interpreted as meaning that language determines thought. In its weakest sense, language partially influences thought. Whorf was careful to avoid authoritative statements which would permanently commit him to particular position.Because of the broad nature of his statements, it is difficult to distinguish exactly to what extent Whorf believes that language determines thought. Heated debate among modern linguists demonstrates that disagreement exists about the accuracy and correctness of Whorfs studies and of the actual level of influence of language on thought processes. The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis essentially consists of two distinct statements connecting the relation of thought and language. Whorf believes that humans may be able to think only about objects, processes, and conditions that have language associated with them. The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis also explains the relationship between different languages (French, English, German, Chinese, and so on) and thought. Whorf demonstrated that culture is largely determined by language. Different cultures perceive the world in different ways. Whorf developed this theory while studying the Hopi Indian tribe. Wharf was amazed that the Hopi language has no words for past, present, and future. The Hopi have only one word for flying objects. A dragonfly, an airplane, and a pilot are defined using the same word. Whorf questioned whether or not the Hopi view the world differently from western people. After further interpretation and analysis he concluded that the Hopi have a sense for the continuum of time despite having no words, to specifically describe past, present, and future.It is commonly believed that the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis possesses some truth, but the extent to which it is applicable to all situations is questioned. Linguists generally support a “strong” or a “weak” interpretation. Linguists who study the hypothesis tend to cite examples that support their beliefs but are unable or unwilling to refute the opposing arguments. Examples exist that strengthen the arguments of everyone who studies the hypothesis. Nobody has gained significant ground in proving or refuting the hypothesis because the definitions of Sapir and Whorf are very vague and incomplete, leaving room for a significant amount of interpretation.46. Advocates of linguistic determinism insist that _.A. the realities constructed through different languages are differentB. language and thought are intimately related to each otherC. culture is shaped by language through which it expresses itselfD. both the culture and the mind determine the language to be used47. Whorf himself tends to hold that _.A. culture is shaped by language B. language determines thoughtC. language partially influence thought D. thoughts are based on language48. According to the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis, if a culture has more expressions for certain concepts, it shows that _.A. these concepts are more important than othersB. the culture is very much advanced and civilizedC. other concepts will be perceived as unimportantD. these expressions developed earlier in the language49. Which of the following criticisms is often made of the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis?A. It has no empirical evidence in its favor.B. It is formulated on the basis of only one case study.C. Its applicability has been greatly exaggerated.D. No convincing example can be found to support its claim.50. Towards the hypothesis, the authors attitude seems to be _.A. supportive B. objective C. suspicious D. criticalPassage TwoIn the absence of optimism, we are left with nothing but critics, naysayers, and prophets of doom. When a nation expects the worst from its people and institutions, and its experts focus exclusively on faults, hope dies. Too many people spend too much time looking down rather than up, finding fault with their country's political institutions, economic system, educational establishment, relig