meteoric：adj. 流星的，大氣的
soak into：浸泡，浸透
precipitation：n. （化學）沈澱
emerge：vi. 浮現
incredible：adj. 難以置信的
unconsolidated：adj. 疏松的 ? consolidate：v. 鞏固
gravel：n. 碎石
coarse：adj. 粗俗的
sediment：n. 沈澱物
sheet：n. 薄片 ice sheets：冰層
pebble：n. 卵石
lade：vt. 裝載，裝（船）；vi. （用勺子）舀出，裝貨 ? be laden with：負載著
glacial：adj. 冰的
outwash：n. 冰水沈積
deposit：vt. 放置
fanwise：adv. 呈扇葉展開地；adj. 呈扇葉展開的
slope：n. 斜坡
overlie：vt. 覆在……上面
pore：n. 孔
porous：adj. 多孔滲水的
porosity：n. 多孔性
permeability：n. 浸透性
grain：n. 顆粒，谷物
plug：v. 塞，插 be plugged with
cement：vt. 鞏固 cementing：黏固的
percolate：vi. 過濾?
crystalline：adj. 透明的
basalt：n. 玄武巖
solidified：adj. 固化的，凝固的
volcanic：adj. 火山的
lava：n. 熔巖
cavity：n. 腔
crevice：n. 裂縫
cling：v. 黏緊 cling to：依附
1.Ordinary? meteoric ?water is water that has? soaked ?into the ground from the surface, from? precipitation ?(rain and snow) and from lakes and streams.
2.The commonest spaces are those among the particles—sand grains and tiny pebbles—of loose,? unconsolidated ?sand and? gravel .
3.They are found wherever fast rivers carrying loads of? coarse ? sediment ?once flowed.
4.For example, as the great ice? sheets ?that covered North America during the last ice age steadily melted away, huge volumes of water flowed from them.
5.The same thing happens to this day, though on a smaller scale, wherever a sediment- laden ?river or stream emerges from a mountain valley onto?relatively?flat land, dropping its load as the current slows: the water usually spreads out? fanwise , depositing the? sediment ?in the form of a smooth, fan-shaped? slope .?
6.Sediments are also dropped where a river slows on entering a lake or the sea, the? deposited ?sediments are on a lake floor or the seafloor at first, but will be located inland at some future date, when the sea level falls or the land rises; such beds are sometimes thousands of meters thick.
7.In? lowland ?country almost any spot on the ground may? overlie ?what was once the bed of a river that has since become buried by soil; if they are now below the water’s? upper ?surface (the water table), the gravels and sands of the former riverbed, and its sandbars, will be saturated with?groundwater.
8.This is because the gaps among the original? grains ?are often not totally? plugged ?with? cementing ?chemicals; also, parts of the original? grains ?may become dissolved by? percolating ?groundwater, either while consolidation is taking place or at any time afterwards.?
9.But note that? porosity ?is not the same as? permeability , which measures the ease with which water can flow through a material; this depends on the sizes of the individual? cavities ?and the? crevices ?linking them.
10.It is held there by the force of surface tension without which water would?drain?instantly from any wet surface, leaving it totally dry.?The total volume of water in the saturated sample must therefore be thought of as consisting of water that can, and water that cannot,?drain?away.?
4.According to paragraph 2, where is groundwater usually found?
A. Inside pieces of sand and gravel
B. On top of beds of rock
C. In fast rivers that are flowing beneath the soil
D. In spaces between pieces of sediment
參考原文
The necessary space is there, however, in many forms.? The commonest spaces are those among the particles—sand grains and tiny? pebbles —of loose,? unconsolidated ?sand and? gravel .? Beds of this material, out of sight beneath the soil, are common.?They are found wherever fast rivers carrying loads of? coarse ? sediment ?once flowed.?For example, as the great ice? sheets ?that covered North America during the last ice age steadily melted away, huge volumes of water flowed from them.?The water was always? laden ?with? pebbles ,? gravel , and sand, known as? glacial ? outwash , that was? deposited ?as the flow slowed down.
總結
答案應該是在這些砂礫碎石的碎片 之間 ：
A選項，在壹片片砂礫碎石的裏面；
D選項，在沈澱物中間的空隙裏，正確
在高度概括的時候會更換相同意思的詞，所以需要詞匯量的提高
13.Look at the four squares?[■]?that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage. Where would the sentence best fit?
What, then, determines what proportion of the water stays and what proportion drains away?.
參考原文
Much of the water in a sample of water-saturated? sediment or rock will?drain?from it if the sample is put in a suitable dry place.?[■]But some will remain,? clinging ?to all solid surfaces. [■] It is held there by the force of surface tension without which water would?drain?instantly from any wet surface, leaving it totally dry.?[■]The total volume of water in the saturated sample must therefore be thought of as consisting of water that can, and water that cannot,?drainaway.?[■]
解析
"待插入句說多少流走多少剩下是什麽決定的，所以之前必須得說壹部分流走了壹部分剩下了，原文最後壹句才說到這個，所以D是答案。貌似B選項之前也說了流走和剩下，但B之後有個it is held there，這個it指的是前文的留下來的水，所以與上文過渡緊密，不能插入句子。"
14.Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points. Much of the ground is actually saturated with water.
A.Sediments that hold water were spread by glaciers and are still spread by rivers and streams.
B.Water is stored underground in beds of loose sand and gravel or in cemented sediment.
C.The size of a saturated rock’s pores determines how much water it will retain when the rock is put in a dry place.
D.Groundwater often remains underground for a long time before it emerges again.
E.Like sandstone, basalt is a crystalline rock that is very porous.
F.Beds of unconsolidated sediments are typically located at inland sites that were once underwater.
speculation：n. 思索
primarily：adv. 主要地，首要地
anthropologist：n. 人類學家
envision：vt. 設想，想象 envision ... as：將……看做
ritual：adj. 儀式上的
rite：n. 儀式
perceive：vt. 察覺 → 將……理解為
well-being：n. 幸福
attribute：v. 歸屬，歸於；n. 屬性 attribute ... to：將……歸屬給
desirable：adj. 令人滿意的 undesirable：adj. 不令人滿意的，不受歡迎的
occurrence：n. 發生
refine：vt. 精煉
formalize：vt. 使形式化，使正式
representative：n. 代表
mythical：adj. 神話的
sophisticated：adj. 復雜的，老於世故的
causal：adj. 有因果關系的，有原因的
conception：n. 懷孕，受孕；構思，構想；概念，觀念；想法
condition：n. 條件
prosperity：n. 繁榮
feat：n. 功績
elaborate：v. 詳盡闡述
narrator：n. 講述者
pantomime：n. 手勢，啞劇
pantomimic：adj. 啞劇的
rhythmical：adj. 節奏的
gymnastic：adj. 體操的
impersonation：n. 扮演
evolve：v. 進化 evolve out of：從……進化而來
virtuocity：n. 美術興趣，審美能力，鑒賞能力
antecedent：n. 經歷，祖先；adj. 在先的
theorize：v. 使理論化
cease：v. 停止，停息
Aristotle：亞裏士多德
encounter：v. 遭遇
objectify：vt. 使具體化，使客觀化，體現
whereby：adv. 憑借
penchant：n. 嗜好，傾向
autonomous：adj. 自治的，獨立自主的
detachment：n. 分離
deviation：n. 偏離，背離
norm：n. 標準
retain：vt. 保留，保持
1.In seeking to describe the origins of theater, one must rely? primarily ?on? speculation , since there is little concrete evidence on which to draw.
2.During the early stages of its development, a society becomes aware of forces that appear to influence or control its food supply and? well-being .
3.Having little understanding of natural causes, it? attributes ?both? desirable ?and? undesirable ? occurrences ?to supernatural or magical forces, and it searches for means to win the favor of these forces.
4.Perceiving an apparent connection between certain actions performed by the group and the result it desires, the group repeats,? refines ?and? formalizes ?those actions into fixed ceremonies, or rituals.
5.Frequently the myths include? representatives ?of those supernatural forces that the? rites ?celebrate or hope to influence.?
6.Thus, the recalling of an event (a hunt, battle, or other? feat ) is? elaborated ?through the narrator’s? pantomime ?and? impersonation ?and?eventuallythrough each role being? assumed ?by a different person.
7.One necessary? condition seems to be a somewhat detached view of human problems.?For example, one sign of this? condition ?is the appearance of the comic vision, since comedy requires sufficient? detachment to view some? deviations ?from social? norms ?as ridiculous rather than as serious threats to the welfare of the entire group.?
8.Another? condition ?that contributes to the development of? autonomous ?theater is the?emergence?of the?aestheticsense.?For example, some early societies? ceased ?to consider certain rites essential to their? well-being ?and abandoned them, nevertheless, they? retained ?as parts of their oral tradition the myths that had grown up around the rites and admired them for their artistic qualities rather than for their religious usefulness.
3.According to paragraph 1, theories of the origins of theater
A. are mainly hypothetical
B. are well supported by factual evidence
C. have rarely been agreed upon by anthropologists
D. were expressed in the early stages of theater’s development
解析
以origins of theater為關鍵詞定位至本段第壹句，one must rely primarily on speculation，主要靠推測，也就是A，主要是推論的。不認識hypothetical的話之後有解釋說沒有事實證據，所以也能說明是推論的. B 與原文反了。 C 與原文有出入。原文說：The most widely accepted theory, championed by anthropologists 說至少有壹個理論得到人類學家廣泛認同。 D 原文沒有提到。
4.According to paragraph 1, why did some societies develop and repeat ceremonial actions?
A. To establish a positive connection between the members of the society
B. To help society members better understand the forces controlling their food supply
C. To distinguish their beliefs from those of other societies
D. To increase the society’s prosperity
解析
"ceremonial action做關鍵詞定位至全段最後壹句：說人們是感覺到了他們的儀式性的活動和他們所期望的那種結果之間的聯系之後他們才做這些事情的。前壹句說：他們把無論好壞的結果都歸因於超自然的力量，他們做這些事情是為了贏得超自然力量的眷顧，所以D為了整個社會的繁榮是正確答案。
7.According to paragraph 2, what may cause societies to abandon certain rites?
A. Emphasizing theater as entertainment
B. Developing a new understanding of why events occur
C. Finding a more sophisticated way of representing mythical characters
D. Moving from a primarily oral tradition to a more written tradition
解析
以abandon rites做關鍵詞定位至全段倒數第三句，有個as a result，說明之前的句子是導致人們放棄這種儀式的原因，也正是問題的答案。隨著人們越來越智慧，他們對超自然的能力的認識，還有超自然能力和他們所期待的結果之間的因果關系會變化，也就是很多人不再認為是超自然的能力在左右他們，所以B有了新的認識是正確答案。 A entertainment概念在本段最後才提到。 C sophisticated 概念在前句提到，原文As a person becomes more sophisticated，是說人變得復雜了，而不是復雜的代表神秘角色的方式。 D 原文完全沒有提到。
總結
不要看到有原文單詞就選，更可能是陷阱；托福的答案更多的是換壹種說法
tundra：n. 苔原
shrub：n. 灌木
herb：n. 香草
timberline：n. 樹帶界線 ?upper/lower timberline 上/下行樹帶界線
steppe：n. 西伯利亞壹帶沒有樹木的大草原
tropics：n. 熱帶地區
deciduous：adj. 每年落葉的
broadleaf：n. 闊葉樹
birch：n. 樺木
twisted：adj. 扭曲的，變態的
deformed：adj. 畸形的 deform：v. 變形
latitude：n. 緯度
ridge：n. 山脊
whereas：conj. 然而
duration：n. 持續時間
prone：adj. 有……傾向
frost：n. 嚴寒
cessation：n. 停止，中止，中斷
smother：vt. 使窒息
avalanche：n. 雪崩
creep：n. 爬行 snow creep：雪移
seedling：n. 秧苗
elevation：n. 提拔
graze：vt. 放牧，擦傷
ibex：n. 野生山羊，阿爾卑斯山上的野山羊
alpine：adj. 高山的 alpine tundra：高山苔原
adjacent：adj. 鄰近的
fairly：adv. 相當的
low-lying：adj. 低窪的
moss：n. 苔蘚
lichen：n. 青苔
prostrate：adj. 平臥的；沮喪的，壹蹶不振的
snowdrift：n. （被風吹成的）雪堆
rigor：n. 嚴密，嚴格
insulation：n. 絕緣，保溫
equatorial：adj. 赤道上的
prevalent：adj. 流行的
1.In many?semiarid?areas there is also a lower? timberline where the forest passes into? steppe ?or desert at its lower edge, usually because of a lack of?moisture.
2. Timberline ?trees are normally evergreens, suggesting that these have some advantage over? deciduous ?trees (those that lose their leaves) in the extreme environments of the? upper ? timberline .?
3.This is particularly true for trees in the middle and? upper ? latitudes , which tend to attain greater heights on? ridges ,? whereas ?in the? tropics ?the trees reach their greater heights in the valleys.?
4.Late-lying snow reduces the effective growing season to the point where? seedlings ?cannot establish themselves.
5.Some scientists have proposed that the presence of increasing levels of?ultraviolet?light with? elevation ?may play a role, while? browsing ?and? grazing animals like the? ibex ?may be another contributing factor.?
6.Immediately? adjacent ?to the? timberline , the? tundra ?consists of a? fairly ?complete cover of? low-lying shrubs ,? herbs , and grasses, while higher up the number and?diversity?of species decrease until there is much bare ground with? occasional ? mosses ?and? lichens ?and some? prostrate cushion?plants.?
1.The word “dramatic” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. gradual
B. complex
C. visible
D. striking
原文參考
The transition from forest to treeless? tundra ?on a mountain? slope ?is often a? dramatic ?one.?Within a?vertical?distance of just a few tens of meters, trees disappear as a life-form and are replaced by low? shrubs ,? herbs , and grasses.?This rapid zone of transition is called the? upper ? timberline ?or tree line.?In many?semiarid?areas there is also a lower? timberline where the forest passes into? steppe ?or desert at its lower edge, usually because of a lack of?moisture.
解析
"dramatic: 劇烈的，戲劇化的，就單詞本身能夠想到drama戲劇，所以這個應該是戲劇的形容詞。A是逐漸的；B是復雜的；C是可見的；D是顯著的，突出的，驚人的。根據詞意，正確答案是D。
14.Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.At the timberline, whether upper or lower, there is a profound change in the growth of trees and other plants.
A.Birch is one of the few species of tree that can survive in the extreme environments of the upper timberline.
B.There is no agreement among scientists as to exactly why plant growth is sharply different above and below the upper timberline.
C.The temperature at the upper timberline is probably more important in preventing tree growth than factors such as the amount of snowfall or the force of winds.
D.The geographical location of an upper timberline has an impact on both the types of trees found there and their physical characteristics.
E.High levels of ultraviolet light most likely play a greater role in determining tree growth at the upper timberline than do grazing animals such as the ibex.
F.Despite being adjacent to the timberline, the alpine tundra is an area where certain kinds of low trees can endure high winds and very low temperatures.
解析
A選項提到了具體的樹種樺樹，明顯是壹個細節選項，A選項不選；B選項對應第四段首句，B選項正確；由第四自然段大意及第四自然段的“Probably the most important environmental factor is temperature”可得C選項正確；D選項對應第二段的第三句和第三段的首句，D選項正確；E選項中，原文沒有將兩者進行比較，則E選項不正確；F選項中，雖然文章倒數第二自然段提到了緊挨著樹帶界線，苔原上都是矮灌木、草本植物和牧草，但是，文章中並沒有直接介紹說這些低矮的樹木能夠忍受大風和低溫。