2023年英语专四真题及参考答案.doc

2023英語專業四級考試真題及參考答案
PART III LANGUAGE USAGE
There are twenty sentences in this section. Beneath each sentence there are four options marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that best completes the sentence or answers the question. Mark hour answers on ANSWER SHEET TWO.

11. The Bent Pyramid outside Cairo __________ ancient Egypt’s first attempt to build a smooth-sided pyramid.
A. has been believed to have been
B. was believed to be
C. is believed to have been
D. is believed to be

12. U.S. News ____________ rankings of colleges since 1983. They are a very popular resource for students looking to apply to university campus.
A. maintains
B. is maintaining
C. maintained
D. has been maintaining

13. He was lured into a crime he would not ____________have committed.
A. actually
B. accidentally
C. otherwise
D. seldom

14. She was once a young country wife with chickens in the backyard and a view of _____________ mountains behind the apple orchard.
A. blue hazy Virginia
B. hazy blue Virginia
C. Virginia hazy blue
D. Virginia blue hazy

15. I long to alleviate __________, but I cannot.
A. the evil
B. evil
C. evils
D. an evil

16. Indeed, it is arguable that body shattering is the very point of football, as killing and maiming ______________.
A. war
B. are war
C. of war
D. are of war

17. At ____________, photography is a chemical process, during which a light-sensitive material is altered when exposed to light.
A. its most basic
B. its basic
C. the most basic
D. the basic

18. She hired a lawyer to investigate, only to learn that Gabriel had removed her name from the deed. The infinitive verb phrase “only to learn” is used __________.
A. to express an intended purpose
B. to indicate a high degree of possibility
C. to reveal an undesirable consequence
D. to dramatize a stated fact

19. Which of the following italicized words DOES NOT carry the metaphorical meaning?
A. I wonder what’s behind this change of plan.
B. Jim turned to speak to the person standing behind him.
C. This work should have been finished yesterday. I’m getting terribly behind.
D. I suppose I’m lucky because my parents were behind me all the way.

20. My mother was determined to help those in need and she would have been immensely proud of what has been achieved these last 20 years. The italicized part in the sentence expresses _______.
A. a hypothesis
B. a suggestion
C. a contradiction
D. a surprise

21. When the police officers who took part in the King beating were first brought to ___________, their lawyers used the videotape as evidence against the prosecution.
A. justice
B. testimony
C. trial
D. verdict

22._________, the most controversial candidate in the election campaign, he has been strongly criticized for his crude comments about women.
A. Questionably
B. Arguably
C. Contentiously
D. Debatably

23. Prices have recently risen in order to __________ the increased cost of raw materials.
A. cut
B. buoy
C. offer
D. offset

24. The celebrity says in court papers she “has no __________ of giving any authorization to anyone to proceed with a divorce.”
A. recommendation
B. recording
C. recollection
D. recognition

25.What actually __________ a good angle — or a good selfie overall — is rooted in what we consider beautiful.
A. consists
B. constitutes
C. composes
D. constructs

26. The school is going the ________ mile to create the next generation of sporting stars thanks to its unique development program.
A. final
B. further
C. supplementary
D. extra

27. The teachers’ union _________ a lawsuit against the district calling for repairing “deplorable” school conditions.
A. fired
B. filed
C. fined
D. filled

28. Last March the __________ of a 19th century cargo ship was found by an underwater archaeological team.
A. debris
B. ruins
C. remains
D. wreck

29. She’s worn his designs on __________ occasions from red carpets to movie premieres.
A. countless
B. countable
C. numerical
D. numeral

30. A leading ___________ intelligence and operations company has released its analysis of worldwide reported incidents of piracy and crime against mariners.
A. oceangoing
B. oceanic
C. marine
D. maritime

PART IV CLOZE
Decide which of the words given in the box below would best complete the passage if inserted in the corresponding blank. The words can be used ONCE ONLY. Mark the letter for each word on ANSWER SHEET.
A. accompanies B. automatically C. couple D. goes E. indebtedness
F. kind G. manner H. mercifully I. one J. obey
K. renowned L. subscribe M. unknown N. virtue O. widespread

 A Few years ago, a university professor tried a little experiment. He sent Christmas cards to a sample of perfect strangers. Although he expected some reaction, the response he received was amazing—holiday cards addressed to him came pouring back from the people who had never met nor heard of him. The great majority of those who returned a card never inquired into the identity of the unknown professor. They received his holiday greeting card, and they automatically sent one in return. This study shows the action of one of the most powerful of the weapons of influence around us—the rule for reciprocation. The rule says that we should try to repay, in kind, what another person has provided us. If a woman does us a favor, we should do her one in return; if a man sends us a birthday present, we should remember his birthday with a gift of our own; if a couple invites us to a party, we should be sure to invite them to one of ours. By virtue of the reciprocity rule, then, we are obligated to the future repayment of favors, gifts, invitations, and the like. So typical is it for indebtedness to accompany the receipt of such things that a term like “much obliged” has become a synonym for “thank you,” not only in the English language but in others as well.
The impressive aspect of the rule for reciprocation and the sense of obligation that goes with it is its pervasiveness in human culture. It is so widespread that after intensive study, sociologists such as Alvin Goldener can report that there is no human society that does not subscribe to the rule.

PART V READING COMPREHENSION

SECTION A MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
In this section there are three passages followed by ten multiple choice questions. For each multiple choice question, there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer and mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET TWO.

PASSAGE ONE
（1）The earliest settlers came to the North American continent to establish colonies that were free from the controls that existed in European societies. They wanted to escape the controls placed on their lives by kings and governments, priests and churches, noblemen and aristocrats. The historic decisions made by those first settlers have had a profound effect on the shaping of the American character. By limiting the power of the government and the churches and eliminating a formal aristocracy, they created a climate of freedom where the emphasis was on the individual. Individual freedom is probably the most basic of all the American values. By freedom, Americans mean the desire and the ability of all individuals to control their own destiny without outside interference from the government, a ruling noble class, the church, or any other organized authority.
(2) There is, however, a price to be paid for this individual freedom: self-reliance. It means that Americans believe they should stand on their own feet, achieving both financial and emotional independence from their parents as early as possible, usually by age 18 or 21.
(3) A second important reason why immigrants have traditionally been drawn to the United States is the belief that everyone has a equal chance to enter a race and succeed in the game. Because titles of nobility were forbidden in the Constitution, no formal class system developed in the U.S.
(4) There is, however, a price to be paid for this equality of opportunity: competition. If much of life is seen as race, then a person must run the race in order to succeed; a person must compete with others. The pressures of competition in the life of an American begin in childhood and continue until retirement from work. In fact, any group of people who does not compete successfully does not fit into the mainstream of American life as well as those who do.
(5) A third reason why immigrants have traditionally come to the United States is to have a better life. Because of its abundant natural resources, the United States appeared to be a “land of plenty where millions could come to seek their fortunes. The phrase “going from rags to riches” became a slogan for the American dream. Many people did achieve material success. Material wealth became a value to the American people, and it also became an accepted measure of social status.
(6) Americans pay a price, however, for their material wealth: hard work. Hard work has been both necessary and rewarding for most Americans throughout their history. In some ways, material possessions are seen as evidence of people’s abilities. Barry Goldwater, a candidate for the presidency in 1964, said that most poor people are poor because they deserve to be. Most Americans would find this a harsh statement, but many might think there was some truth in it.
(7) These basic values do not tell the whole story of the American character. Rather, they should be thought of as themes, as we continue to explore more facets of the American character and how it affects life in the United States.

41. Para.4 seems to suggest that __________.
A. Americans are born with a sense of competition
B. the pressure of competition begins when one starts work
C. successful competition is essential in American society
D. competition results in equality of opportunities
42. Which of the following methods does the author mainly use in explaining American values?
A. Comparison
D. Cause and effect
C. Definition
D. Process analysis

PASSAGE TWO
(1) The Nobels are the originals, of course. Alfred Nobel, the man who invented deadly explosives, decided to try and do something good with all the money he earned, and gave prizes to people who made progress in literature, science, economics and —perhaps most importantly—peace.
(2) Not all rewards are as noble as the Nobels. Even though most countries have a system of recognizing, honoring and rewarding people who have done something good in their countries, there are now hundreds of awards and award ceremonies for all kinds of things.
(3)The Oscars are probably the most famous, a time for the (mostly) American film industry to tell itself how good it is and an annual opportunity for lots of big stars to give each other awards and make tearful speeches. As well as that there are also the Golden Globes, evidently for the same thing.
(4) But it’s not only films---there are also Grammies, Brits, the Mercury Prize and the MTV for music. In Britain, a writer who wins the Booker Prize can expect to see their difficult, literary novel hit the bestseller lists and compete with the Da Vinci Code for popularity. The Turner Prize is an award for British contemporary artists—each year it causes controversy by apparently giving lots of money to artists who do things like displaying their beds, putting animals in glass cases or—this year—building a garden shed.
(5) Awards don’t only exist for arts. There are now awards for Sports Personality of the Year, for European Footballer of the Year and World Footballer of the Year. This seems very strange—sometimes awards can be good to give recognition to people who deserve it, or to help people who don’t make a lot of money carry on their work without worrying about finances, but professional soccer players these days certainly aren’t short of cash!
(6) Many small towns and communities all over the world also have their own award ceremonies, for local writers or artists, or just for people who have graduated from high school or, got a university degree. Even the British Council has its own awards for “Innovation in English Language Teaching”.
(7) Why have all these awards and ceremonies appeared recently? Shakespeare never won a prize, nor did Leonardo Da Vinci or Adam Smith or Charles Dickens.
(8) It would be possible to say, however, that in the past, scientists and artists could win “patronage” form rich people—a king or a lord would give the artists or scientists money to have them paint their palaces or help them develop new ways of making money. With the change in social systems across the world, this no longer happens. A lot of scientific research is now either funded by the state or by private companies.
(9)Perhaps award ceremonies are just the most recent phase of this process.
(10) However, there is more to it than that. When a film wins an Oscar, many more people will go and see it, or buy the DVD. When a writer wins the Nobel Prize, many more people buy their books. When a group wins the MTV awards, the ceremony is seen by hundreds of thousands of people across the world. The result? The group sells lots more records.
(11) Most award ceremonies are now sponsored by big organizations or companies. This means that it is not only the person who wins the award who benefits---but also the sponsors. The MTV awards, for example, are great for publicizing not only music, but also MTV itself!
(12) On the surface, it seems to be a “Win-win” situation, with everyone being happy, but let me ask you a question—how far do you think that publicity and marketing are winning here, and how much genuine recognition of achievement is taking place?

43. What is the author’s tone when he mentions awards such as the Oscars, the Golden Globes and Grammies (Paras. 3 & 4)
A. Amused.
B. Appreciative.
C. Sarcastic.
D. Serious.
44. According to Para. 4, what would happen to award winning writers?
A. They would enjoy a much larger readership.
B. They would turn to popular novel writing.
C. They would continue non-fiction writing.
D. They would try controversial forms of art.
45. Which of the following statements best sums up Para. 6?
A. Awards ceremonies are held for local people.
B. Awards ceremonies are held on important occasions.
C. Awards ceremonies are held in certain professions.
D. Awards ceremonies are held for all sorts of reasons.
46. According to Para. 8, one difference between scientists and artists in the past and those at present lies in_____________.
A. nature of work
B. personal contact
C. source of funding
D. social status
47. It can be concluded from Para. 12 that the author thinks awards ________.
A. promote market rather than achievements
B. do good to both market and popularity
C. hel