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对话题八大考点答题技巧
前文已经讲过，对话题根据其考点，可以分为八类，下面结合例子一一讲解如何听这八类对话。
① 数字题
在对话中常常会出现数字，主要涉及时间、价格、帐目、运算、电话号码等。在近年的四级考试中，出现频率较低，而且听一个数字进行辨音的题很少，一般要求考生既正确辨听谈话中提到的数字，又要求考生进行简单的运算，在听这类题时，要注意以下几点。
a.正确辨听数字，不要混淆：在英语数字听力材料中，容易弄错的数字有：three, six, seven.此外，-teen和-ty也是要分清楚的。
b. 在进行运算时注意关键的提示词，如slow, fast, increase, double, decrease, drop to, twice, 3 times等。以确认是加还是减，是乘还是除，乘几等，例如：
You’ll hear:
W: Oh, good heavens. It’s already 3 o’ clock now.
M: Don’t worry. That clock is one hour faster.
Q: What time is it now?
这一题较简单，但有的同学一听“faster”一词，便会加上一小时，得出“It’s 4 o’clock now.”的结论，这实在是不应犯的粗心错误。
又如：You’ll hear：
M: The number of the freshmen in our department reached 90 last year, but because of lack of dormitory rooms, it dropped 1/3 this year.
W:As far as I know, a lot of new dormitories are being built. The number of the freshmen next year will be double of that this year.
Q: How many freshmen will there be next year?
这一题的运算较为复杂一点，这里我们关键是要听清是“dropped”还是“dropped to”。这一题的四个选项为：(A)60, (B)90，(C)120，(D)150。如果抓住“dropped”及女士谈话中的“double”，不难找到正确答案，即(C)项120。
c. 在对话中出现多个数字时，记好笔记并注意问题——即注意我们要找的是哪个数字，例
如，You’ll rear:
W: How much does that book cost?
M: 10 dollars but each of us 4 has only 8 dollars.
Q: If each of them wants to buy a book, how much do they lack in total?
You’ll read:
(A)$4. (B)$8. (C)$10. (D)$12.
解答这题时，首先要做简单的笔记，记下“10→book”，“4×8”，分别代表“10 dollars a book” 和“4 people ×8 dollars.”其次注意提问，不是“How much does a book cost?”或“How much do 4 books cost?”而是“how much do they lack in total?”，很快我们可以列出算式10×4-8×4=8所以，答案为(B)$8。
② 地点题
地点题是对话中比较容易把握的一类，近年来在四级考试中出现的频率不高，但近两年来每年都有一题。地点题一般分为两种：(1)猜测地点；(2)确认地点。猜测地点指注意谈话环境，从谈话中所提及的关键词推测谈话环境。这类题的提问方式为“Where does the conversation most probably take place?”，谈话中一般不提及地点，如：
M: Do you have any ties that match this shirt?
W: Sure. What color do you want?
在这组谈话中，他们提及“ties” 和“shirt”，特别是女士问“What color do you want?”很明显，这一定是在“clothes store”或“clothes department of a department store”中发生的。
做这一类题要求学生平时注意收集在医院、学校、商店、邮局等特定场合中经常出现的词组或单词，如医院中常会用到：trouble, pain, fever, headache, heart, disease, flu, medicine, operation等，在邮局会听到：mail, stamp, envelope, registered letter, EMS, by airmail, parcel等；在商店中会听到各种商品名称、价格、尺码等以及服务用语。熟悉了这些词汇，一但在对话中听到它们，便会马上联想到谈话是在何种背景下进行的，也就不难猜出谈话的场所。确认地点一般指谈话中会出现多个地点，或方向指示，要求考生从四个地点中挑出
某个特定的地点，如：
M:I know this place. Go 50 meters straight forward. On the left side of the road, there is a beautiful park; on the right side, there is a big supermarket. So you’re not going home, are you?
W: I need to buy some food for dinner before going back home?
Q: Where will the woman go first?
You’ll read:
(A) Go straight forward. (B) Go to the park.
(C) Go to the supermarket. (D) Go back home.
在这段谈话中出现了三个场所：home, supermarket, park，而根据女士提及的“buy some food for dinner”，她要去的地方应该是(C)“the supermarket.”。
③职业及关系题
这类题型在近年来的四级测试中越来越少，它主要考考生对于谈话一方所从事的职业的判断或要求考生正确理解谈话双方之间的关系。我们听到的问题一般为：
What does the man/woman do?
What is the man / woman?
What’s the probable relationship between the speakers?
这一类型题目太直接，一般从选项的内容一眼可看出考题是否属于这一类型，答题的关键同上一个类型的题一样要求考生迅速抓住对话中的关键词。考生平时也应注意收集在从事某一职业活动中出现频率高的词。如教师与学生的对话中很可能会现出class, exams, paper等，在侍者与顾客之间会出现menu, main, course, dessert等。此外，称呼也是这类题目中应注意的，Professor, Mr., Mrs.是对老师的称呼，officer是对警察的称呼；朋友之间互称名(first name)；夫妻之间常用darling, dear等；服务人员称服务对象为Sir或Madame。例如：
W: Excuse me for being late, Mr. Thomson. Something wrong with the engine of the bus I took and it stopped between 2 stops.
M: That’s all right, Mary. Come in and take your seat.
Q: What is the probable relationship between the 2 speakers?
There are 4 choices:
(A) Friends. (B) Boss and secretary.
(C) Teacher and student. (D) Policeman and suspect.
在本题中，女士称呼男士为Mr. Thomson，而男士则称女子为Mary。很明显这段对话要么在上、下级之间，要么在师生间进行。而“come in and take your seat”一词常用于课堂上，所以这段对话一定发生在(C)Teacher and Student之间。
④态度与评价题
这类题目要求考生在听对话时，能根据谈话内容判断出谈话的双方或一方对于谈及的事物所反映出来的态度及做出的评价，是赞赏、反对、不关心还是厌恶、喜欢等。这类问题一般也能从卷面选项中辨认，在四级考试中出现较频繁。2001年1月的考试中还出现了两题。它的提问方式一般有：
What does the man/woman think of ...?
What does the man/woman say about...?
What is the man/woman’s reaction/response to...?
在听这类考题时，首先注意听力的重点在哪。听前要求考生迅速浏览一下题目的四个选项。如果选项中包含反应人的态度的形容词，如impatient, bored, curious, satisfied, optimistic等等，那么十之八九这是一道态度题。在阅读选项时，还要特别注意代词是he, she or they, 即尽早把握考查的是男士，女士，还是他们共同的对某事的态度。在听的时候，也就可以及早判断应该把注意力放在一方的身上，或不得不关注双方的对话，从字里行间推判出二人的态度，如四个选项为：
(A)He finds the presentation hard to follow.
(B)He considers the presentation very dull.
(C)He thinks Professor White has chosen an interesting topic.
(D)He speaks highly of the presentation.
从选项中明显可以看出这是一道态度题，而且关注的重点的是男士的态度，我们可以听到下列对话：
W: Professor Whites presentation seems to go on forever. I was barely able to stay awake.
M: How could you sleep through it? Its one of the best I have ever heard on this topic.
Q:What does the man think of Professor Whites presentation? (CET-4/ 2001/1—5)
这是一道典型的重点考查谈话一方的态度的题目。在大多数这样的题目中，第一个说话者谈及的是某一事实的现象，在这题中女士点出了话题 “Professor Whites presentation”；第二个说话者对话题发表看法，他也是考查的对象。这里第二个说话者正好是男士，四个选项的内容也告诉我们应注重男士的谈话。根据他所说的 “Its one of the best I have ever heard on this topic”，可得出结论 “He speaks highly of the presentation.” 所以所选答案为(A)。
听前阅读选项明确考查的对象还有一个好处是在有的考题中，考查对象为第一个说话者，他/她所说的最开始的一两句话便反应了她的态度，而这正是考生容易忽略的，因为一开始说话时，考生的注意力还没有集中。当然，如果选项告诉了你考查的对象，自然也不会忽略了。例如四个选项为：
(A) It was boring. (B) It was entertaining.
(C) It was touching. (D) It was encouraging.
这些选项提示我们谈话的双方可能会对话题发表自己的看法，要注意谈论的是何事，双方的意见如何。听到的对话为：
W: The speech the blind girl gave this evening was extremely moving.
M:I think everyone felt the same.
Q: How did the man feel about the girls speech? （CET-4/97/1-10）
这一题虽然问的是男士的看法，但他并没有直接陈述他的看法，他附和了女士的意见 “I think everyone felt the same”，而女士一开始就表明了她的态度： “The speech …was extremely moving”。 这里我们必须从一开始就关注谈话人对话题的看法，只有注意到女士的评论，才能选出正确的答案，即（C）。
有时考查的是谈话双方的态度，例如，You’ll read:
(A)He gets nervous very easily.
(B)He is an inexperienced speaker.
(C)He is an awful speaker.
(D)He hasnt prepared his speech well.
You will hear:
W: Tom looks awfully nervous, doesnt he?
M: Yes. Im afraid he is not used to making speeches.
Q: What do they think of Tom?
在这段谈话中，女士首先表明态度：“Tom looks nervous”，男士继而说明Tom紧张的原因“not used to making speeches”。综合二者意见可以得出结论“He is an inexperienced speaker”。在听这类谈话中，除了分析选项外，还有一点也非常重要，那就是谈话的语调。如下例：
W: Tobby is certainly the best player of this game!
M: The best player? If he were, I would be the couch of the national team?
Q: What does the man say about Tobby?
(A) He thinks Tobby is a good player.
(B) He thinks Tobby should be the coach of the team.
(C) He doesn’t think Tobby is a good player.
(D) He thinks he can play better than Tobby.
男士话语中的“The best player”是用升调说出的。这表明这是一种反问，常表示不满，不赞同，惊异等。男士后半部分的谈话进一步证明了这一点。 因此这题的答案为(C)。如果第二个说话者重复第一个说话者中某一内容，并且用升调，这往往表示第二者不赞同前者的意见。
再看下例：
W: Did you go to the gallery yesterday? The painter certainly got some good paintings.
M: Didnt he?
Q: What do we learn from the man’s response?
(A) He went to the gallery yesterday, too.
(B) He wasn’t sure whether the paintings were good.
(C) He didn’t go to see the exhibition.
(D) He shared the woman’s opinion.
上述对话中，男士听完女士的谈话后，用降调说“Didn’t he?”这已不是在询问，也不是表示惊异，而是表示赞同女士的意见，所以此题答案应为(D)。
⑤因果关系题
因果关系的考题在近年来的考题中也较频繁的出现, 2001年6月的考题中还出现了两道。这种类型的题目通常以两种形式出现：1.直截了当地询问原因，提问的形式有：
“Why did ×do this?”
“What’s the reason that × did ...?”
“What reason was given for ...?”
例如：
W: Why didnt you make an appointment to see the doctor last week when you first twisted your ankle?
M: The injury didn’t seem serious then. I decided to go today because my foot still hurts when I put my weight on it.
Q: Why didn’t the man see the doctor earlier?
(A)His injury kept him at home.
(B)He was too weak to see the doctor.
(C)He didn’t think it necessary.
(D)He failed to make an appointment. （CET-4/ 2001/6—6）
在这段对话中，女士直截了当地问男士没有去看医生的原因，男士也做了直截了当的回答“didnt seem serious then”，不严重就意味着没有必要。听懂这类谈话应毫无困难。较难的是谈话似乎并不是在谈论某事的前因后果。事情的原因包含在谈话中，需听懂整段对话的含义，从中体会出来。如：
W: Excuse me, Professor Hill. May I ask you a few questions?
M: Yes, of course. But Im sorry I have a class at ten. Why don’t you call me in my office hours? That is 4 to 5 p.m. Monday, Thursday and Friday.
Q: Why can’t professor Hill answer her question now?
(A)He will only be available in the afternoon.
(B)It’s not his office hour.
(C)He doesn’t have time.
(D)He is too tired after class. (CET-4/99/6-3)
上述例子与第一类相比稍复杂。女士问男士是否可问几个问题，男士似乎同意了，但实际上通过“but”一词委婉地拒绝了，所以他话中的“but”非常关键，暗示他不能回答问题的原因是“have a class at ten”，同时他还建议“call me in my office hours”， 所以答案为(C)项。在这段对话中没有表示原因的连词如because, for, since等，原因需要听者从对话中体会出来。在因果关系的考题中这类题型非常多，常见的有
a. 通过婉拒建议的句型
“I’d like/love to, but...”来说明拒绝某事的原因, 如：
M: Its such a beautiful day. Why not sit out in the back yard for a while and enjoy it?
W: Id love to. But theres a lot of laundry to do.
Q: Why didnt the woman sit out in the back yard?
(A)There were a lot of mosquitoes there.
(B)She didnt feel like to do it.
(C)She had a lot of housework to do.
(D)She didnt like the sunshine.
此题中女士就是通过“but”一词引出原因—“theres a lot of laundry to do”，所以答案为(C)。
b. 通过表目的或原因的不定式短语“to do sth.”来表明做某事的原因：
M: Good Morning. This is John Parker speaking. Im just ringing to confirm my appointment with Mr. Smith for this afternoon.
W: Yes. Mr. Smith is expecting you at 3 o’clock.
Q: Why is the man making the phone call?
(A)He wants to make an appointment with Mr. Smith.
(B)He wants to make sure that Mr. Smith will see him.
(C)He wants to change the time of the appointment.
(D)He wants the woman to meet him at three o’clock. (CET-4/2000/1-6)
在这一题中，男士就是通过不定式“to confirm my appointment with Mr. Smith”来表示他打电话的原因。抓住这一关键词组不难找出答案为(B)。
c. 通过虚拟语气表达原因。例如：
W: If I were you, I would have accepted the job.
M: I turned down the offer because it would mean frequent business trips away from my family.
Q: Why didnt the man accept the job?
(A)He doesnt enjoy business trips as much as he used to.
(B)He doesnt think he is capable of doing the job.
(C)He thinks the pay is too low to support his family.
(D)He wants to spend more time with his family.
虚拟语气“it would mean frequent business trips away from my family”说明
了原因：他不想离开家，故答案为(D)。需要通过弄懂字里行间的意思找到做某事的原因的情形还有很多，这里就不一一论述了。
⑥行为判断题
这类题型是通过谈话判断谈话人将要采取的行动，通常提问的方式有：
What has the man/woman done?
What is the man/woman going to do?
What does the man/woman offer to do?
What does the man/woman think the woman/man should do？
这类对话常见的有三种情形：
a. 判断选择谈话者采取的是什么行为或预测他下一步的行为。通常谈话中会提供多个选择，这时听力的重点应放在所做的事情及此事对谈话者的影响，判断谈话者想干什么，不想干什么，从而做出选择。例如：
W: Did you see last nights film on channel 4?
M: Well. I meant to see it, but a friend of mine came to see me. We had a nice long talk about our school days.
Q: What did the man do last night?
(A)He watched television with his friend.
(B)He stayed at home talking with his friend.
(C)He went to see a film with his friend.
(D)He went to see his schoolmate. (CET-4/99/1-1)
在这段谈话中出现了多个动作：see the film, a friend came, had a long talk。只要注意听清男士选择的动作是哪一个，就不难找到答案(B)。
又如：
W: I want to ask the Johnsons to come to the party. Do you know their address?
M: No. But I like them to come. I think Tom can give you their address.
Q: What is the woman going to do?
(A)Ask Tom to send an invitation.
(B)Get the Johnsons address.
(C)Invite Tom to the party.
(D)Tell Tom to pick up the Johnsons. (CET-4/99/6—6)
这一题要求根据谈话中提供的信息预测女士下一步将采取的行为。她想知道the Johnsons 的地址，而男士告诉她Tom 可以给她提供地址，所以女士下一步要做的一定是(B)。
b. 谈话者会描述他的行为，考生需从他的描述中判断他到底想干什么。例如:
W:Airports are sad places.
M:Sometimes, I guess. But we’ll keep in touch. An
d I’ll fly over to se
e you at Christmas.
Q:What are the speakers doing?
(A)The woman is meeting the man at the airport.
(B)They are complaining about the poor airport service.
(C)They are discussing their plan for Christmas.
(D)The man is seeing the woman off. (CET-4/2002/1—5)
这一题便是要考生根据谈话中的一些关键词组，判断谈话者正在干什么。听力的关键是把握其中描述行为的词组，根据自己的日常生活知识，推断出正在进行的行为。谈话中提到的“sad places, keep in touch, fly over to see you”等关键词组大都是告别时说的话，所以他们很可能是在机场话别，故答案为(D)。又如：
M:Did you check the power plug and press the “play” button?
W:Yes, the power indicator was on and it was running. But the somehow the sound didnt come through.
Q:What was the woman probably trying to do?
(A) Play the tape recorder.(B) Take a picture.
(C) Repair a typewriter. (D) Start a car. (CET-4/2002/1—4)
此对话中的关键词为“power plug, ‘play button, power indicator, running, sound”。常识告诉我们女士可能正在放磁带。
c. 谈话者中的一方对另一方提出意见以帮助对方决定下一步的行动，或者是谈话的一方主动向另一方提供帮助等。这种谈话必然涉及多种行为，那么一定要注意动作的发出者是哪一方，遇到的是什么问题，建议的是哪种行为，不要混淆。如：
M:It seems that well have another fine day tomorrow. Lets go to the seaside.
W:OK, but well have to leave very early, or else well get caught in the traffic.
Q:What does the woman suggest?
(A) They go to the seaside. (B) They set off early.
(C) They go sightseeing. (D) They wait for a fine day.
（CET-4/2001/1—7）
上述对话要求考生全面理解谈话的内容，注意问题：Who suggest whom to do what? 这里牵涉到的动作有两个：“go to the seaside” 和 “leave very early”。女士提到的是后者，故答案为(B)。
⑦主旨题
这类题目要求考生从零散的谈话中归纳出谈话的中心思想，即谈话的主题是什么；或者要求考生从零散的谈话中找出主要的话题是什么。主要考查学生把握语篇大意的能力。
常见到的这类谈话的问题有：
What are the speakers they talking about?
What is the man/woman talking about?
What is the problem they are talking about?
在这类谈话中通常会出现关于某一个问题的各个方面的细节，考生要注意从细节中归纳出他们究竟谈的是什么，例如：
M:You were seen hanging about the store on the night when it was robbed, werent you?
W:Me? You must have made a mistake. I was at home that night.
Q:What are they talking about?
(A) A mystery story.
(B) The hiring of a shop assistant.
(C) The search for a reliable witness.
(D) An unsolved case of robbery. ( CET-4/2000/6—10)
在这段谈话中，他们谈到了各个细节：hanging about the store, robbed, at home，这些细节是我们归纳主题的主要依据。这些细节都与抢劫案有关，所以他们谈论的应是(D) An unsolved case of robbery。有时，谈话中会出现关于某件事的各个方面，考生需判断谈话的主要是哪个方面。例如：
M:Is that nice-looking straw hat light and strong?
W:Yes, you can wear it in rain or shine.
Q:What are they talking about?
(A) A sunny day. (B) A raincoat.
(C) An attractive hut. (D) A lovely hat. (CET-4/99/1—10)
在这段谈话中，他们谈及与straw hat有关的各方面：质地的轻巧与结实；雨天晴天都能戴。谈及的各方面都围绕着straw hat这一主题，因此正确答案是(D)。
⑧推论隐含意思题
在近年来的四、六级考试中，这类对话题出现的频率最高，如上文所述，问题的答案在对话中没有直接提供，而要求考生把谈话中提供的细节作为前提，进行一定的逻辑推理。找出答案，或根据提供的细节进行归纳，得出结论。这类对话提问的形式有：
What does the man/woman mean？
What does the man/woman imply/suggest?
What inferences can we make form the conversation?
What can be learned do we learn from the conversation?
What conclusion can we make from the conversation?
a. 理解细节
在推论隐含意思的谈话题中，有一部分是要求考生理解两人谈话中关键的一个词或词组。在答这类题时首先要注意其中代词的使用。弄清楚了代词的指代的事物。句子的意思也就清楚了。如下例：
W:Did you find the book for your reading assignment in the library?
M:It closed before I got there. I had no idea it closes so early on weekends.
Q:What does the man mean?
(A)He didnt get the book he needed.
(B)He had no idea where the book was.
(C)The library is closed on weekends.
(D)He was not allowed to check out the book.
在这段对话中，使意思变得不那么清楚的是男士回答中的代词。“It”这里指“library”，弄清了这个代词指代的成分，答案也就很清楚了：因为图书馆周末关门早，他没有借到书，即(A)。其次，这类对话中的关键词常常是一个习语、俚语、口语化的词组等。这些词组的意思成为解题的关键。如：
M:Im worried about those classes I missed when I was sick.
W:I’ll try to bring you up to date on what we’ve done.
Q:What does the woman mean?
(A)She’s bought the man a pair of glasses today.
(B)She will help the man to catch up.
(C)She is worried about the man’s health.
(D)She has bought the man an up-to-date map. (CET-4/2001/1-3)
这道题要求考生弄清女士谈话的含意。她谈话中有一个关键词“bring sb. up to date”,这是一个习惯用语，意为“使某人了解最新情况”。一旦弄清这个词的意思，答案也就出来了，即（B）。从上面例子可以看出，如果要很好地答好这部分题。我们平时就要注意扩大词汇量，对于我们平时碰到的习语，俗语要弄清它们的确切含义，加以整理，这样才不会临时报佛脚。
b. 对谈话的整体理解
这类谈话的大多数不仅仅要求我们弄清某个语言点或关键词的意思，而是要求我们听清楚整段对话，找出其隐含意思。如：
M:Jessica, could you forward this E-mail to all the club members?
W:Sorry, the computer broke down this morning. I’ll do it for you as soon as I have it fixed.
Q:What does the woman imply?
(A)She has to post a letter instead.
(B)She has to turn down the man’s request.
(C)She’s not sure if the computer is fixed.
(D)She can’t send the message right now. (CET-4/2001/1-1)
男士请求Jessica帮助转发电子邮件，但Jessica说计算机坏了，但还是表示一旦修好就帮他转发，可见Jessica并没有拒绝男士的请求，而常识告诉我们计算机坏了，E-mail一时肯定发不了。所以答案为（D）。由这个例子可以看出，解答这类题目首先要弄清各个事情之间的内在联系，一件事对另一件事的影响，以便推断出谈话的言外之意。解答这类题时，其次要注意的是谈话中包含的某些虚拟语气的句子。它们常常暗示了谈话者的某种意向。如：
M:Prof. Kennedy has been very busy this semester. As far as I know, he works until midnight every day.
W:I wouldn’t have troubled him so much if I had known he was so busy.
Q:What do we learn from the conversation?
(A)The woman has trouble getting along with the professor.
(B)The woman regrets having taken so much of the professor’s time.
(C)The woman knows the professor has been busy.
(D)The woman knows the professor has run into trouble. (CET-4/2000/6-3)
这题的关键是谈话中的虚拟语气句“I wouldnt have troubled him so much if I had known he was so busy. ”的真正含义, 要学会“paraphrase it”即要学会用简单的英语解释这句子。“wouldnt have done”常用来表示后悔做过某事，所以答案为(B)。以上这个例子说明了正确理解、解释关键的虚拟语气句对于正确理解整段对话的重要作用。其实，不仅要学会正确解释虚拟语气，对于谈话中出现的复杂的句子，我们都要能解释。学会用直接的简单的句子解释谈话中的难句是解答这类对话题的一个重要技巧。这要求我们平时不仅是在听力课上，而且在阅读课上也要多加训练。
c. 根据对话中提供的信息，对谈话的含义做进一步的归纳总结。如：
W:Did you visit the Television Tower when you had your vocation in shanghai last summer?
M:I couldn’t make it last June. But I finally visited it two months later. I plan to visit it again sometime next year.
Q:What do we learn about the man?
A)He saw the big tower he visited on TV.
(B)He has visited the TV tower twice.
(C)He has visited the TV tower once.
(D)He will visit the TV tower in June.
根据对话中的关键词组：couldnt make it last June, visited it 2 months later, plan to visit it again next year，可以得出结论：(C) He has visited the TV tower once. 这类题目要求考生能抓住纷繁的信息，理清思路，作出合理的逻辑推理，得出结论。
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