2023年英语专四试题.doc

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QUESTION BOOKLET

TEST FOR ENGLISH MAJORS (2023)
-GRADE FOUR-
TIME LIMIT: 130 MIN

PART I DICTATION [10 MIN]

Listen to the following passage. Altogether the passage will be read to you four times. During the first reading, which will be done at normal speed, listen and try to understand the meaning. For the second and third readings, the passage will be read sentence by sentence, or phrase by phrase, with intervals of 15 seconds. The last reading will be done at normal speed again and during this time you should check your work. You will then be given ONE minute to check through your work once more.
Please write the whole passage on ANSWER SHEET ONE.

PART II LISTENING COMPREHENSION [20 MIN]

SECTION A TALK

In this section you will hear a talk. You will hear the talk ONCE ONLY. While listening, you may look at the task on ANSWER SHEET ONE and write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each gap. Make sure what you fill in is both grammatically and semantically acceptable. You may use the blank sheet for note-taking.

You have THIRTY seconds to preview the gap-filling task.

Now listen to the talk. When it is over, you will be given TWO minutes to check your work.

SECTION B CONVERSATIONS

In this section you will hear two conversations. At the end of each conversation, five questions will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken ONCE ONLY. After each question there will be a ten-second pause. During the pause, you should read the four choices of A, B, C and D, and mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO.

You have THIRTY seconds to preview the choices.

Now, listen to the conversations.

Conversation One
Questions 1 to 5 are based on Conversation One.

1. A. Many foreign languages are spoken in Britain.
B. Everyone in Britain can speak a foreign language.
C. The British are unable to speak a foreign language.
D. The British can survive on their mother tongue.

2. A. Chinese.
B. Polish.
C. Punjabi.
D. Urdu.

3. A. To help improve international trade.
B. To allow a speaker to hold a simple talk.
C. To improve the education system.
D. To encourage learning another language.

4. A. It gives you self-satisfaction.
B. It makes you more confident.
C. It gives you an advantage.
D. It makes you work hard.

5. A. Workmates.
B. Schoolmates.
C. Teacher and student.
D. Brother and sister.
Conversation Two
Questions 6 to 10 are based on Conversation Two.

6. A. A dangerous event.
B. An unreasonable fear.
C. A small probability.
D. A risk-assessing ability.

7. A. One in one million.
B. One in four million.
C. One in fourteen million.
D. One in forty million.

8. A. Future events.
B. Catastrophic events.
C. Small-scale disasters.
D. Smoking hazards.

9. A. Traveling by air.
B. Riding a bicycle.
C. Catching bird flu.
D. Smoking cigarettes.

10. A. They get pleasure from risks.
B. They can control potential risks.
C. They can assess danger from risks.
D. They have strong needs for risks.

PART III LANGUAGE USAGE [10 MIN]

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 your 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 a 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 considered 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 [10 MIN]

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 TWO.

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 ______ (31) professor. They received his holiday greeting card, and they ______ (32) sent one in return. This study shows the action of one of the most powerful of weapons of influence around us – the rule of reciprocation. The rule says that we should try to repay, in ______ (33), what another person has provided us. If a woman does us a favor, we should do her ______ (34) in return; if a man sends us a birthday present, we should remember his birthday with a gift of our own; if a ______ (35) invites us to a party, we should be sure to invite them to one of ours. By ______ (36) of the reciprocity rule, then, we are obliged to the future repayment of favors, gifts, invitations, and the like. So typical is it for ______ (37) to company 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 of reciprocation and the sense of obligation that ______ (38) with it is its pervasiveness in human culture. It is so ______ (39) that after intensive study, sociologists can report that there is no human society that does not ______ (40) to the rule.
PART V READING COMPREHENSION [35 MIN]

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 which 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 churched, 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 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 that 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 an equal chance to enter a chance and succeed in the game. Because titles of nobility were forbidden in the Constitution, no formal class system developed in the US.
(4) There is, however, a price to be paid for this equality of opportunity: competition. If much of life is seen as a 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 no 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.

31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
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.
B. 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 awards are as noble as the Nobels. Even though most countries have a system for recognizing, honoring and rewarding people who have done something good in their countries, there are now hundreds of awards and awards 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, an annual opportunity for big stars to give each other awards and make tearful speeches. As well as that there are also the Golden Globes, apparently for the same thing.
(4) But it’s not only films – now there are also Grammies, Brits, the Mercury Prize and the MTV and Q awards 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 a British contemporary artist – each year it causes controversy by apparently giving lots of money to artists who do things like displaying their beds, put animals in glass cases or – this year – build a garden shed.
(5) Awards don’t only exist for the 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 m