托福考试阅读模拟试题训练

 　　Sports Commentary

　　One of the most interesting and distinctive¹ of all uses of language is commentary. An oral reporting of ongoing² activity, commentary is used in such public arenas³ as political ceremonies, parades, funerals, fashion shows and cooking demonstrations⁴. The most frequently occurring type of commentary may be that connected with sports and games. In sports there are two kinds of commentary, and both are often used for the same sporting event. “play-by-play” commentary narrates⁵ the sports event, while “color –adding” or “color” commentary provides the audience with pre-event background, during-event interpretation⁶, and post-event evaluation⁷. Color commentary is usually conversational⁸ in style and can be a dialogue with two or more commentators¹⁰.

　　Play-by-play commentary is of interest to linguists¹² because it is unlike other kinds of narrative¹³, which are typically reported in past tense. Play-by-play commentary is reported in present tense. Some examples are “he takes the lead by four” and “she’s in position.” One linguist¹¹ characterizes radio play-by-play commentary as “a monologue¹⁴ directed at an unknown, unseen mass audience who voluntarily choose to listen…and provide no feedback to the speaker.” It is these characteristics that make this kind of commentary unlike any other type of speech situation.

　　The chief feature of play-by-play commentary is a highly formulaic style of presentation. There is distinctive grammar not only in the use of the present tense but also in the omission¹⁵ of certain elements of sentence structure. For example “Smith in close” eliminates the verb, as some newspaper headlines do. Another example is inverted¹⁶ word order, as in “over at third is Johnson.” Play-by-play commentary is very fluent, keeping up with the pace of the action. The rate is steady and there is little silence. The structure of the commentary is cyclical, reflecting the way most games consist of recurring¹⁷ sequences of short activities---as in tennis and baseball---or a limited number of activity options---as in the various kinds of football. In racing¹⁸, the structure is even simpler, with the commentator⁹ informing the listener of the varying order of the competitors in a “state of play” summary, which is crucial for listeners or viewers who have just tuned¹⁹ in.

　　1.Which of the following statements is true of color commentary?

　　A.It narrates the action of the event in real time, using the present tense.

　　B.It is a monologue given to an audience that does not respond to the speaker.

　　C.It is steady and fluent because it must keep up with the action of the event.

　　D.It gives background on the event, and interprets and evaluates the event.

　　答案:

　　1. D

　　2.Why does the author quote a linguist in paragraph 2?

　　A.To describe the uniqueness of radio play-by-play

　　B.To show how technical sports commentary is

　　C.To give examples of play-by-play commentary

　　D.To criticize past trends in sports commentary

　　答案:

　　2. A

　　3.It can be inferred from the passage that the author most likely agrees with which of the following statements about sports commentary?

　　A.Color commentary is more important than play-by-play commentary

　　B.Sports commentators do not need special knowledge of the sport.

　　C.Commentary enhances the excitement and enjoyment²⁰ of sports.

　　D.Sports commentators should work hard to improve their grammar.

　　答案:

　　3.C

1 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

2 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

3 arenas   

表演场地( arena的名词复数 )； 竞技场； 活动或斗争的场所或场面； 圆形运动场

参考例句：

• Demolition derbies are large-scale automobile rodeos that take place in big arenas. 撞车比赛指的是在很大的竞技场上举行的大型汽车驾驶技术表演。
• Are there areas of privacy in the most public of arenas? 在绝大部分公开的场合中存在需要保护隐私的领域吗？

4 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

5 narrates   

v.故事( narrate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• It narrates the unconstitutional acts of James II. 它历数了詹姆斯二世的违法行为。 来自辞典例句
• Chapter three narrates the economy activity which Jew return the Occident. 第三章讲述了犹太人重返西欧后的经济活动。 来自互联网

6 interpretation   

n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理

参考例句：

• His statement admits of one interpretation only.他的话只有一种解释。
• Analysis and interpretation is a very personal thing.分析与说明是个很主观的事情。

7 evaluation   

n.估价，评价；赋值

参考例句：

• I attempted an honest evaluation of my own life.我试图如实地评价我自己的一生。
• The new scheme is still under evaluation.新方案还在评估阶段。

8 conversational   

adj.对话的，会话的

参考例句：

• The article is written in a conversational style.该文是以对话的形式写成的。
• She values herself on her conversational powers.她常夸耀自己的能言善辩。

9 commentator   

n.注释者，解说者；实况广播评论员

参考例句：

• He is a good commentator because he can get across the game.他能简单地解说这场比赛，是个好的解说者。
• The commentator made a big mistake during the live broadcast.在直播节目中评论员犯了个大错误。

10 commentators   

n.评论员( commentator的名词复数 )；时事评论员；注释者；实况广播员

参考例句：

• Sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 体育解说员翻来覆去说着同样的词语，真叫人腻烦。
• Television sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 电视体育解说员说来说去就是那么几句话，令人厌烦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 linguist   

n.语言学家；精通数种外国语言者

参考例句：

• I used to be a linguist till I become a writer.过去我是个语言学家，后来成了作家。
• Professor Cui has a high reputation as a linguist.崔教授作为语言学家名声很高。

12 linguists   

n.通晓数国语言的人( linguist的名词复数 )；语言学家

参考例句：

• The linguists went to study tribal languages in the field. 语言学家们去实地研究部落语言了。 来自辞典例句
• The linguists' main interest has been to analyze and describe languages. 语言学家的主要兴趣一直在于分析并描述语言。 来自辞典例句

13 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

14 monologue   

n.长篇大论，（戏剧等中的）独白

参考例句：

• The comedian gave a long monologue of jokes.喜剧演员讲了一长段由笑话组成的独白。
• He went into a long monologue.他一个人滔滔不绝地讲话。

15 omission   

n.省略，删节；遗漏或省略的事物，冗长

参考例句：

• The omission of the girls was unfair.把女孩排除在外是不公平的。
• The omission of this chapter from the third edition was a gross oversight.第三版漏印这一章是个大疏忽。

16 inverted   

adj.反向的，倒转的v.使倒置，使反转( invert的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Only direct speech should go inside inverted commas. 只有直接引语应放在引号内。
• Inverted flight is an acrobatic manoeuvre of the plane. 倒飞是飞机的一种特技动作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 recurring   

adj.往复的，再次发生的

参考例句：

• This kind of problem is recurring often. 这类问题经常发生。
• For our own country, it has been a time for recurring trial. 就我们国家而言，它经过了一个反复考验的时期。

18 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

19 tuned   

adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• The resort is tuned in to the tastes of young and old alike. 这个度假胜地适合各种口味，老少皆宜。
• The instruments should be tuned up before each performance. 每次演出开始前都应将乐器调好音。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。