2）指代关系题(reference)： 考查读者认定代词与篇章中其他词语的指代关系的能力。

例题1：

passage: “…these laws are universal in their application, regardless of cultural beliefs, geography, or climate. if pots have no bottoms or have large openings in their sides, they could hardly be considered containers in any traditional sense. since the laws of physics, not some arbitrary decision, have determined the general form of applied-art objects, they follow basic patterns, so much so that functional forms can vary only within certain limits…”

the  word they in the passage refers to

a.   applied-art objects

b.   the laws of physics

c.   containers

d.   the sides of pots

正确答案是a。

   例题2：

   passage：“…the first weekly newspaper in the colonies was the boston gazette,

established in 1719, the same year that marked the appearance of philadelphia’s first newspaper, the american mercury, where the young benjamin franklin worked. by 1760 boston had 4 newspapers and 5 other printing establishments; philadelphia, 2 newspapers and 3 other presses; and new york, 3 newspapers. the distribution, if not the sale, of newspapers was assisted by the establishment of a postal service in 1710, which had a network of some 65 offices by 1770, serving all 13 colonies…”

   the  word which in the passage refers to 

a.    distribution

b.    sale

c.    newspaper

d.   postal service

正确答案是d。

3）句子简化题(sentence simplification)：考查读者认定文章中某一特定复杂句子所传

达的基本内容，并不受细枝末节的干扰，用简化的句子表达原句基本内容的能力。

例题

. . . although we now tend to refer to the various crafts according to the materials used to construct them—clay, glass, wood, fiber, and metal—it was once common to think of crafts in terms of function, which led to their being known as the “applied arts.” approaching crafts from the point of view of function, we can divide them into simple categories:  containers, shelters, and supports. there is no way around the fact that containers, shelters, and supports must be functional. the applied arts are thus bound by the laws of physics, which pertain to both the materials used in their making and the substances and things to be contained, supported, and sheltered. these laws are universal in their application, regardless of cultural beliefs, geography, or climate. if a pot has no bottom or has large openings in its sides, it could hardly be considered a container in any traditional sense. since the laws of physics, not some arbitrary decision, have determined the general form of applied-art objects, they follow basic patterns, so much so that functional forms can vary only within certain limits. buildings without roofs, for example, are unusual because they depart from the norm. however, not all functional objects are exactly alike; that is why we recognize a shang dynasty vase as being different from an inca vase. what varies is not the basic form but the incidental details that do not obstruct the object’s primary function . . .

        托福(TOEFL)