新 SAT 的 OG 將閱讀題型分成三大塊：對文本信息的考察 ; 對作者寫作技能的考察 ; 以及綜合考察。本文為大傢講解的是閱讀題型中措辭分析題官方 OG 題型解析。在考試中，措辭分析題的考察內容主要分為兩類：一種是考察修辭作用，另一種是考察文章語氣。
>>>> 新 SAT 閱讀考試官方 OG 題型解析
材料：The Official SAT Study Guide
試卷：3
頁數：576
題號：42
Questions 42-52 are based on the following passage and supplementary material.
This passage is adapted from Richard J. Sharpe and Lisa Heyden, "Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder is Possibly Caused by a Dietary Pyrethrum Deficiency." ©2009 by Elsevier Ltd. Colony collapse disorder is characterized by the disappearance of adult worker bees from hives.
…
We suspect that the bees of commercial bee colonies which are fed mono-crops are nutritionally deficient. In particular, we postulate that the problem is a diet deficient in anti-mite toxins: pyrethrums, and possibly other nutrients which are inherent in such plants. Without, at least, intermittent feeding on the pyrethrum producing plants, bee colonies are susceptible to mite infestations which can become fatal either directly or due to a secondary infection of immunocompromised or nutritionally deficient bees. This secondary infection can be viral, bacterial or fungal and may be due to one or more pathogens. In addition, immunocompromised or nutritionally eficient bees may be further weakened when commercially produced insecticides are introduced into their hives by bee keepers in an effort to fight mite infestation. We further postulate that the proper dosage necessary to prevent mite infestation may be better left to the bees, who may seek out or avoid pyrethrum containing plants depending on the amount necessary to defend against mites and the amount already consumed by the bees, which in higher doses could be potentially toxic to them.
42. How do the words "can," "may," and "could" in the third paragraph ( lines 19-41 ) help establish the tone of the paragraph?
A ) They create an optimistic tone that makes clear the authors are hopeful about the effects of their research on colony collapse disorder.
B ) They create a dubious tone that makes clear the authors do not have confidence in the usefulness of the research described.
C ) They create a tentative tone that makes clear the authors suspect but do not know that their hypothesis is correct.
D ) They create a critical tone that makes clear the authors are skeptical of claims that pyrethrums are inherent in mono-crops.
答案 : C
答案解析 : 本題問第三段中的 "can," "may," and "could" 是如何輔助建立文章的語氣基調的。首先分析 "can," "may," "could" 這三個詞，它們同屬於情態動詞，會有含義上的差別，但這三個詞都能表示的含義是 " 可能 "，帶有不確定的語氣。同時，文章提到 "We suspect that … " ( Line 19 ) 以及 "We further postulate that" ( Line 35 ) ，也印證瞭這是由 " 假設、猜測 " 產生的不確定性。
A 選項中的 "optimistic tone" 顯然與這三個詞的語氣基調不符，可以快速排除。
B 選項說是 " 懷疑 " 的語氣，因為作者對研究的實用性不自信。文章描述瞭作者的假設，但是沒有任何依據體現出作者對其實用性產生瞭懷疑，因此排除。
C 選項說是 " 假設 " 的語氣，因為作者不確定自己的猜想是否正確，符合上述分析，因此該選項為最佳答案。
D 選項中的 "critical tone" 與這三個詞的語氣基調也不符，因此排除。
重點詞匯：
suspect: [ s əˈ spekt ] v. 懷疑 ; 猜想
deficient: [ d ɪ 'f ɪʃ ( ə ) nt ] adj. 不足的 ; 有缺陷的 ; 不充分的
postulate: [ 'p ɒ stj ʊ le ɪ t ] vt. 假定 ; 要求 ; 視…為理所當然 | n. 基本條件 ; 假定
toxin: [ 't ɒ ks ɪ n ] n. 毒素 ; 毒質
pyrethrum: [ pa ɪ 'ri ːθ r ə m ] n. 除蟲菊殺蟲劑
nutrient: [ 'nju ː tr ɪə nt ] n. 營養物 ; 滋養物 | adj. 營養的 ; 滋養的
inherent: [ ɪ n'h ɪə r ( ə ) nt ] adj. 固有的 ; 內在的 ; 與生俱來的，遺傳的
infestation: [ , ɪ nfe'ste ɪʃə n ] n. 感染 ; 侵擾
compatible: [ k ə m'p æ t ɪ b ( ə ) l ] adj. 兼容的 ; 能共處的 ; 可並立的
immunocompromised: [ , ɪ mj ə no'k ɑ mpr ə ma ɪ zd ] adj. 免疫功能不全的
pathogen: [ 'p æθə d ʒ ( ə ) n ] n. 病原體 ; 病菌
insecticide: [ ɪ n'sekt ɪ sa ɪ d ] n. 殺蟲劑
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