又如：

　　I wonder if you realize just how many others share your problem. It is so common for people to distort the truth about themselves. Sometimes it‘s just an invented excuse when you‘ re late for something or a pretence that you like someone you don‘t. These white lies don‘ t usually harm anyone and indeed often help smooth over difficult social situations. They certainly are embarrassing if exposed but，on the whole，they‘ re easily forgiven.

　　What you describe is a habit of 1ying that is more serious than this. I suspect that the lies you tell are ways of defending an idea you have of your own worth. People who have doubts about their own self-esteem often worry that others wil1 judge them as harshly as they feel they deserve because of a secret idea that they are pretty worthless. In other words， they create a false picture of themselves， a picture of someone who meets all the expectations they think others have of them. And as you say， that causes problems —— since they have to keep living up to that image. At

　　the same time， they have to tell further life to cover the stories they have already to1d. According to some authorities， this is particular1y among women especially those who have few opportunities to develop an adequate sense of self-worth.

　　I suggest you give yourself one day during which you stick solid1y to the truth about yourse1f. Give yourself a sma1l treat at the end of the day if you have managed to keep it up. Wait a week and then try it 8gain. Once you have achieved three separate lie-free days， see if you can cope with three days running， then extend it to a whole week. Don‘ t make a promise to yourself that you will never lie again because almost certainly you will —— it‘s too much to take on at once. Try to change things little by little， by setting yourself manageable targets. Alter a while， you‘ll wonder why you ever had the problem at al1.

　　Question： The expression“ living up to” in the second paragraph can best be replaced by _________.

　　A. growing up with B. living with

　　C. seeking D. sticking to

　　解答：选D.

　　这是一道词汇题。Living up to 的意事与A、B、C三个答案意义相距甚远，故而D为本题更佳答案。

　　注：解词汇题时也可参看下面“英译中”部分的猜词手段。

　　三、英译中：考核学生对难句的理解。

　　考核学生对难句的理解。

　　难句翻译应遵循的主要步骤如下：

　　1. 先判断句子结构，确定该句是简单句、并列句还是复合句；

　　2. 如果是简单句，找出关键词：主谓宾或主系表；

　　3. 如果是并列句、复合句，找出各从句间的关系；

　　4. 分清从句层次，理清修饰成份之间的关系；

　　5. 区分各从句内的关键词；

　　6. 根据汉语习惯，写出译文；

　　7. 略作润色，使译文通顺；

　　8. 检查校对，拾遗补漏。

　　如遇到生词可采取下列办法来力图解决：

　　Guess Translation

　　1. 定义（ definition）

　　通过上下文给出的定义，考生可以将某些生词的意思猜测出来。使定义与被定义的内

　　容之间建立起关系的词有： put it in another way，mean，in other words，that is，or，namely等等。

　　2. 重述（restatement）

　　所谓重述是指作者用另外的词，短语或句子将前面已述及的内容再重述一下。据重述

　　内容，考生可将前面内容中的生词的意思猜测出来。

　　3. 举例（examples）

　　从such as，like，for example，for instance，等词后所列举的例子以及所表示的前后同

　　位关系可以猜测出一些单词的词意。

　　4. 对比（contrast）

　　从表示对立或相反的信号词可以判断某些词语内容前后意思对立或相反。根据这一点，

　　考生可以从其中一个词猜测出另外一个词的意思。

　　Word-formation

　　1. Depression can be treated by medication and psychotherapy. Ironically， antidepressants can have drowsiness as a side effect. （Reader‘s Digest Jan. 1996）

　　Psychotherapy（psycho + therapy）： 心理疗法；精神疗法； antidepressants （anti + depress + ant）： n.[医]抗抑郁剂， 抗抑郁病药

　　2. More recently he introduced himself into the debate on welfare reform by insisting that unwed motherhood， not joblessness， was the key problem.

　　Unwed （un + wed ）： 没有结婚的，未婚的

　　Definition

　　1. As truck drivers have found， that can be dangerous， leading to microsleeps——brief periods， lasting one to ten seconds， when you‘re snoozing even though your eyes are open. （Reader‘s Digest Jan. 1996）

　　microsleep： 短暂的昏睡（尤指失去正常睡眠者的阵发性昏睡， 通常仅持续1至10秒钟）

　　2. A dune is a hill of loose sand heaped by the sand； a glacier is a field of ice formed from compacted snow.

　　Dune ： 沙丘； glacier冰河；冰川

　　Synonyms

　　1. Our uncle was roamer， an incurable wanderer who never could stay in one place.

　　Roamer = wanderer ： 流浪者， 漂泊者

　　2. Only last week the bank had discovered nearly a thousand dollars in counterfeit bills， source unknown. Their estimate was that thirty million dollars of bogus money had been produced the previous year. England and Canada were major supply sources of spurious US currency.

　　Counterfeit bills = bogus money = spurious US currency： 伪钞

　　Antonym

　　1. Her moods seem to go from one extreme to the other—— from deepest apathy to unlimited enthusiasm.

　　Apathy：冷淡；漠不关心——enthusiasm：热心；热情

　　2. He may be dexterous at football， but he is very clumsy on the dance floor.

　　Dexterous：灵巧的（手）；敏捷的 ——clumsy：行动笨拙的；手脚不灵活的

　　3. Unlike her gregarious sister， Jane is a shy， unsociable person who does not like to go to parties or to make friends.

　　Gregarious：爱群居的；爱社交的——unsociable：不善交际的； 孤僻的

　　Contrast

　　1. His son fell into ignominy because of his betrayal， whereas his daughter gained fame because of her heroism in defying the enemy.

　　Ignominy：无耻行为， 堕落行为，——fame：名声， 声望， 名气

　　2. Most dentists‘ offices are drab places， but Emilio‘s new office is a bright cheerful place.

　　Drab：单调， 乏味， 无生气——bright：明亮的， 辉煌的， 欢快的

　　Explanation

　　1. It‘s just one more incredible result of the development of micro-processors——those tiny parts of a computer commonly known as silicon chip.

　　Micro-processors = tiny parts of a computer = silicon chip： 硅片

　　2. Mary felt perturbed； that is， she was greatly disturbed by her sister‘s actions.

　　Perturbed = disturbed：使心烦意乱；扰乱；使混乱

　　3. The floors were washed， the furniture oiled and polished， and the curtains freshly laundered； the whole house was in immaculate condition for the holidays.

　　Immaculate（。完美的） condition——the summary of the above

　　4. Henry field displayed his versatility in many ways： he was not only a novelist， he was also a dramatist， an essayist， and a political pamphleteer； he managed a theater and edited four newspapers； he was a learned authority on the law， an exceptionally able and efficient magistrate.

　　Versatility：多功能性——many different skills

　　Context and situation

　　1. In spite of the fact the fishermen were wearing sou‘westers， the storm was so heavy that they were wet through.

　　Sou‘wester ：一种后沿较宽可护颈之防水帽= southwester = long raincoat

　　2. Mozart gave his first public recital at the age of six. By the age of thirteen he had written symphonies and an operetta. He is justly called a child prodigy.

　　Prodigy：天才（特指神童） = gifted child

　　3. We‘ve discovered that there are two main types of human beings： “racehorses”， who thrive on stress and are happy only with a vigorous， fast-paced life-style， and “turtles”， who require peace， quiet and a generally tranquil environment.

　　Racehorse： 赛马型的人

　　Turtles： 海龟型的人