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2014 年 6 月大学英语四级考试真题（第一套）
Part I Writing (30 minutes)
Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay on the
following question. You should write at least 120 words but no more than
180words.
Suppose a foreign friend of yours is coming to visit your hometown, what is the
mostinteresting place you would liketo take him/herto see and why?
Part Ⅱ Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long
conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions
will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the
questions will be spoken only once. After each question there will be a
pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A), B),
C) and D), and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the
corresponding letter on Answer Sheet I with a single line through the
centre.
1.A. Seea doctorabout her strained shoulder.
B. Usealadder to help her reach thetea.
C. Replacethe cupboard witha new one.
D. Place theteaonlower shelfnext time.
2.A. At Mary Johnson’s.
B. At apainter’s studio.
C. In an exhibition hall.
D. Outsidean art gallery.
3.A. Theteacher evaluated lacks teaching experience.
B. Shedoes notquiteagree with what theman said.
C. Theman hadbetter talk with thestudents himself.
D. New students usuallycannot offer afair evaluation.
4.A. He helped Doris build upthefurniture.
B. Doris helped him arrangethe furniture.
C. Doris fixed upsomeof thebookshelves.D. He was good at assembling bookshelves.
5.A. He doesn’t get onwith theothers.
B. Hedoesn’tfeel at ease mthe firm.
C. Hehas been taken forafool.
D. He has found a betterposition.
6.A. They should finish thework as soon as possible.
B. Hewill continueto work in thegardenhimself.
C. Heis tired ofdoing gardening onweekends.
D. They can hire agardener to dothework.
7.A. Theman has to get rid ofthe usedfurniture.
B. Theman’s apartment is ready for rent.
C. Thefurniture iscovered with lotsofdust.
D)The furniture theman bought is inexpensive.
8.A. Theman willgive the mechanica call.
B. Thewoman is waiting for acall.
C. Thewoman is doing somerepairs.
D. Theman knows themechanic very well.
Questions9to 11are based ontheconversation youhavejust heard.
9.A. Shehad a job interviewto attend.
B. Shewas busy finishing herproject.
C. Shehad to attend an important meeting.
D. Shewas in themiddleofwriting an essay.
10.A. Accompany her roommateto theclassroom.
B. Handin her roommate’s application form.
C. Submither roommate’s assignment.
D. Help her roommate withher report.
11.A. WhereDr. Ellis’s officeis located.
B. WhenDr. Ellis’leaves his office.
C. Directions to theclassroom building.
D. Dr. Ellis’s schedule for theafternoon.
Questions12to 15are based ontheconversation youhavejust heard.
12.A. He finds itrather stressful.
B. Heis thinkingofquittingit.
C. Hecan handleit quitewell.
D. He has to work extrahours.13.A. The6:00 one.
B. The6:30 one.
C. The7:00 one.
D. The7:30 one.
14.A. It is an awful waste oftime.
B. Hefinds it rather unbearable.
C. Thetimeonthetrain is enjoyable.
D. It is somethingdifficult toget used to.
15.A. Reading newspapers.
B. Chattingwith friends.
C. Listening to thedaily news.
D. Planningthe day’s work.
Section B
Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage,
you will hear some questions. Both the passage and the questions will be
spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best
answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the
corresponding letter on Answer Sheet I with a single line through the
centre.
PassageOne
Questions16to 18are based onthepassageyou havejustheard.
16.A. Ignore small details whilereading.
B. Read at least several chapters at onesitting.
C. Develop a habit ofreading critically.
D. Get key information byreading justonce ortwice.
17.A. Chooseone’s own system ofmarking.
B. Underlinethekey words and phrases.
C. Makeas few marks as possible.
D. Highlight details in a red color.
18.A. By reading thetextbooks carefully again.
B. Byreviewing only themarked parts.
C. Byfocusing onthe notes in themargins.
D. By comparing notes with theirclassmates.PassageTwo
Questions19to 21are based onthepassageyou havejustheard.
19.A. Thesleep aperson needs varies from day to day.
B. Theamount ofsleep foreach person is similar.
C. Onecan get bywith acouple ofhours of sleep.
D. Everybody needs some sleep for survival.
20.A. It is amade-up story.
B. It is beyond cure.
C. It is a rare exception.
D. It is dueto an accident.
21.A. His extraordinary physical condition.
B. Hismother’s injury justbefore hisbirth.
C. Theuniquesurroundings of hisliving place.
D. Therest hegot from sittingin a rocking chair.
PassageThree
Questions22to 25are based onthepassageyou havejustheard.
22.A. Sheinvested instocks and shares onWall Street.
B. Shelearned towrite forfinancial newspapers.
C. Shedeveloped a strong interest in finance.
D. Shetenderly looked after hersick mother.
23.A. Shemade awiseinvestment inreal estate.
B. Shesoldher restaurant with asubstantial profit.
C. Shegot 7.5million dollars from herex-husband.
D. Sheinherited a big fortunefrom herfather.
24.A. Shewas extremely mean with hermoney.
B. Shewas dishonest inbusiness dealings.
C. Shefrequentlyill-treated her employees.
D. Sheabused animals includingher pet dog.
25.A. Shemade abig fortune from wiseinvestment.
B. Shebuiltahospital with hermother’s money.
C. Shemadehuge donations to charities.
D. Shecarried onherfamily’stradition.
Section C
Directions: In this section, you will hear a passage three times. When the passage is
read for the first time, you should listen carefully for its general idea.When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in
the blanks with the exact words you have just heard. Finally, when the
passage is read for the third time, you should check what you have
written.
Among the kinds of social gestures most significant .for second-language
teachers are those which are 26 in form but different .in meaning in the two
cultures. For example, a Colombian who wants someone to 27 him often signals
with a hand movement in which all the fingers of one hand, cupped, point downward
as they move rapidly 28 . Speakers of English have a similar gesture though the
hand may not be cupped .and the fingers may be held more loosely, but for them the
gesture means goodbye or go away, quite the 29 of the Colombian gesture. Again,
in Columbia, a speaker of English would have to know that when he 30 height he
must choose between different gestures depending on whether he is 31 a human
being or an animal. If he keeps the palm of the hand 32 the floor, as he would in
his own culture when making known the height of a child, for example, he will very
likely be greeted by laughter, in Colombia this gesture is 33 for the description of
animals. In order to describe human beings he should keep the palm of his hand 34
to the floor. Substitutions of one gesture for the other often create not only humorous
but also 35 moments. In both of the examples above, speakers from two different
cultures have thesame gesture, physically, but its meaning differs sharply.
Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to
select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word
bank following the passage: Read the passage through carefully before
making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter.
Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2
with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in
thebankmore than once.
Questions36to 45are based onthefollowing passage.
Many Brazilians cannot read. In 2000, a quarter of those aged 15 and older were
functionally illiterate (文盲). Many 36 do not want to. Only one literate adult in
three reads book. The 37 Brazilian reads 1.8 non-academic books a year, less than
half the figure in Europe and the United States. In a recent survey of reading habits,
Brazilianscame 27th out of30countries. Argentines, their neighbours, 38 18th.The government and businesses are all struggling in different ways to change this.
On March 13 the government 39 a National Plan for Books and Reading. This
seeks to boost reading, by founding libraries and financing publishers among other
things.
One discouragement to reading is that books are 40 . Most books have small
print-runs, pushing uptheirprice.
But Brazilians’ indifference to books has deeper roots. Centuries of slavery
meant the country’s leaders long 41 education. Primary schooling became
universal only in the1990s.
All this means Brazil’s book market has the biggest growth 42 in the western
world.
But reading is a difficult habit to form. Brazilians bought fewer books in 2004,
89 million, including textbooks 43 by the government, than they did in 1991. Last
year the director of Brazil’s national library 44 . He complained that he had haft the
librarians he needed and termites (白蚁) had eaten much of the 45 . That ought to be
acause for national shame.
A)average I) normal
B) collection J)particularly
C)distributed K) potential
D)exhibition L) quit
E)expensive M)ranked
F) launched N) simply
G)named O) treasured
H)neglected
Section B
Directions: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements
attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the
paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is
derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph
is marked with a letter. Answer the questions by marking the
corresponding letter onAnswer Sheet 2.
TheTouch-Screen Generation
[A] On a chilly day last spring, a few dozen developers of children’s apps (应用程序)
for phones and tablets (平板电脑) gathered at an old beach resort in Monterey,
California, to show off their games. The gathering was organized by Warren
Buckleitner, a longtime reviewer of interactive children’s media. Buckleitnerspent the breaks testing whether his own remote-control helicopter could reach the
hall’s .second story, while various children who had come with their parents
looked up in awe (敬畏) and delight. But mostly they looked down, at the iPads
and other tablets displayed around the hall like so many open boxes of candy. I
walked around and talked with developers, and several quoted a famous saying of
Maria Montessori’s, “The hands are theinstruments ofman’sintelligence.”
[B] What, really, would Maria Montessori have made of this scene? The 30 or so
children here were not down at the shore poking (戳) their fingers in the sand or
running them along stones or picking seashells. Instead they were all inside, alone
or in groups of two or three, their faces a few inches from a screen, their hands
doingthings Montessori surely did not imagine.
[C] In 2011, the American Academy of Pediatrics updated .its policy on very young
children and media. In 1999, the group had discouraged television viewing for
children younger than 2, citing research on brain development that showed this
age group’s critical need for “direct interactions with parents and other significant
care givers.” The updated report began by acknowledging that things had changed
significantly since then. In 2006, 90% of parents said that their children younger
than 2 consumed some form of electronic media. Nevertheless, the group took
largely the same approach it did in1999, uniformly discouraging passive media
use, on any type of screen, for these kids. (For older children, the academy noted,
“high-quality programs” could have “educational benefits”.) The 2011 report
mentioned “smart cell phone” and “new screen” technologies, but did not address
interactive apps. Nor did it bring up the possibility that has likely occurred to
those 90% of American parents that some good might come from those little
swiping(在电子产品上刷)fingers.
[D] I had come to the developers’ conference partly because I hoped that this
particular set of parents, enthusiastic as they were about interactive media, might
help me out of this problem, that they might offer some guiding principle for
American parents who are clearly never going to meet the academy’s ideals, and
at some level do not want to. Perhaps this group would be able to express clearly
some benefits of the new technology that the more cautious doctors weren’t
ready to address.[E] I fell into conversation with a woman who had helped develop Montessori Letter
Sounds, an app that teaches preschoolers the Montessori methods of spelling. She
was a former Montessori teacher and a mother of four. I myself have three
children who are all fans of the touch screen. What games did her kids like to play,
Iasked, hoping forsuggestions Icould take home.
“They don’t playall that much.”
Really? Whynot?
“Because I don’t allow it. We have a rule of no screen time during the week,
unless it’s clearly educational.”
No screen time? None at all? That seems at the outer edge of restrictive, even by
thestandards ofovercontrolling parents.
“On the weekends, they can play. I give them a limit of half an hour and then stop.
Enough.”
[F] Her answer so surprised me that I decided to ask some of the other developers
who were also parents what their domestic ground rules for screen time were. One
said only onairplanes and long car rides. Another said Wednesdays and weekends,
for half an hour. The most permissive said half an hour a day, which was about
my rule at home. At one point I sat with one of the biggest developers of e-book
apps for kids, and his family. The small kid was starting to fuss in her highchair,
so the morn stuck an iPad in front of her and played a short movie so everyone
else could enjoy their lunch. When she saw me watching, she gave me the
universal tense look of mothers who feel they are being judged. “At home,” she
assured me, “I onlylet her watch moviesin Spanish.”
[G] By their reactions, these parents made me understand the problem of our age: as
technology becomes almost everywhere in our lives, American parents are
becoming more, not less, distrustful of what it might be doing to their children.
Technological ability has not, for parents, translated into comfort and ease. On the
one hand, parents want their children to swim expertly in the digital stream that
they will have to navigate (航行) all their lives; on the other hand, they fear that
too much digital media, too early, will sink them. Parents end up treating tablets
as precision surgical (外科的)instruments, devices that might perform miracles
for their child’s IQ and help him win some great robotics competition—but only if
they are used just so. Otherwise, their child could end up one of those sad, pale
creatures who can’t make eye contact and has a girlfriend who lives only in the
virtual world.[H] Norman Rockwell, a 20th-century artist, never painted Boy Swiping Finger on
Screen, and our own vision of a perfect childhood has never been adjusted to
accommodate that now-common scene. Add to that our modern fear that every
parenting decision may have lasting consequences—that every minute of
enrichment lost or mindless entertainment indulged (放纵的) will add up to
some permanent handicap (障碍) in the future and you have deep guilt and
confusion. To date, no body of research has proved that the iPad will make your
preschooler smarter or teach her to speak Chinese, or alternatively that it will rust
her nervous system—the device has been out for only three years, not much
more than the time it takes some academics to find funding and gather research
subjects. Sowhat m aparent to do?
46. The author attended the conference, hoping to find some guiding principles for
parentingin theelectronic age.
47. American parents are becoming more doubtful about the benefits technology is
said to bring totheir children.
48.Someexperts believe that human intelligence develops bytheuse ofhands.
49. The author found a former Montessori teacher exercising strict control over her
kids’screen time.
50.Research shows interaction with peopleis key to babies’ brain development.
51.Sofar there has beennoscientific proofof theeducational benefits ofiPads.
52. American parents worry that overuse of tablets will create problems with their
kids’interpersonal relationships.
53. The author expected developers of children’s apps to specify the benefits of the
newtechnology.
54.Thekids at thegathering were more fascinated bytheiPads than bythehelicopter.
55.Theauthor permits herchildren to usethescreen forat most halfan houraday.
Section C
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some
questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four
choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice
and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line
through thecentre.
PassageOne
Questions56to 60are based onfollowing passage.When young women were found to make only 82 percent of what their male
peers dojustone year out ofcollege, many were at a losstoexplainit.
All the traditional reasons put forward to interpret the pay gap—that women fall
behind when they leave the workforce to raise kids, for example, or that they don’t
seek as many management roles failed to justify this one. These young women didn’t
have kids yet. And because they were just one year removed from their undergraduate
degrees, few of these women yet had the chance to go after (much less decline)
leadership roles.
But there are other reasons why the pay gap remains so persistent. The first is
that no matter how many women may be getting college degrees, the university
experience is still an unequal one. The second is that our higher education system is
not designed to focus on the economic consequences of our students’ years on
campus.
Now that women are the majority of college students and surpass men in both
the number of undergraduate and advanced degrees awarded, one might think the
college campus m a pretty equal place. It is not. Studies show that while girls do
better than boys in high school, they start to trail off during their college years. They
enroll in different kinds of classes, tend to major in less rigorous (非常严格的)
subjects, and generally head off with less ambitiousplans.
As a result, it’s not surprising that even the best educated young women enter the
workplace with a slight disadvantage. Their college experience leaves them somewhat
confused, still stumbling (栽倒) over the dilemmas their grandmothers’ generation
sought to destroy. Are they supposed to be pretty or smart? Strong or sexy (性感的)?
All their lives, today’s young women have been pushed to embrace both perfection
and passion to pursue science and sports, math and theater—and do it all as well as
they possibly can No wonder they are not negotiating for higher salaries as soon as
they get out ofschool. They are too exhausted, and too scared offailing.
56.Traditionally, itis believed that women earn less than men because ______.
A) theyhave failed to take as many rigorous courses
B)they donot feel as fit for management roles
C)they feel .obliged to take care oftheir kidsat home
D) theydonot exhibittheneeded leadership qualifies
57.Whatdoes theauthorsay about America’s higher education system?
A) It does not offer specific career counseling towomen.
B)It does notconsider its economicimpact ongraduates.
C)It does nottake care of women students’special needs.
D) It does not encourage women to takerigorous subjects.58.Whatdoes theauthorsay about, today’s college experience?
A) It isdifferent formale andfemale students.
B) It is not thesameas that ofearliergenerations.
C)It is moreexhausting than mostwomen expect.
D) It isnot so satisfying to many American students.
59.Whatdoes theauthorsay about women students incollege?
A) They have noidea howto bringout their best.
B) They drop acourse when theyfind it toorigorous.
C)They are notas practical as menin choosing courses.
D) They don’tperform as well as they didin high school.
60. How does the author explain the pay gap between men and women fresh from
college?
A) Womenare too worn out tobeambitious.
B)Women are not ready to takemanagement roles.
C)Women are caught between career and family.
D) Womenare not good at negotiating salaries.
PassageTwo
Questions61to 65are based onthefollowing passage.
Reading leadership literature, you’d sometimes think that everyone has the
potential tobe an effective leader.
I don’t believe that to be true. In fact, I see way fewer truly effective leaders than
I see people stuck in positions of leadership who are sadly incompetent and seriously
misguided about theirown abilities.
Part of the reason this happens is a lack of honest self-assessment by those who
aspireto(追求)leadership inthefirst place.
We’ve all met the type of Individual who simply must take charge. Whether it’s
a decision-making session, a basketball game, or a family outing, they can’t help
grabbing the lead dog position and clinging on to it for dear life. They believe they’re
natural born leaders.
Truth is, they’re nothing of the sort. True leaders don’t assume that it’s their
divine (神圣的) right to take charge every time two or more people get together.
Quite the opposite. A great leader will assess each situation on its merits, and will
only take charge when their position, the situation, and/or the needs of the moment
demand it.
Many business executives confuse leadership with action. They believe that
constant motion somehow generates leadership as a byproduct. Faced with anysituation that can’t be solved by the sheer force of activity, they generate a dust cloud
of impatience. Their one leadership tool is volume: if they think you aren’t working as
hard as theythinkyou should, theirdemands become increasingly louderandharsher.
True leaders understand the value of action, of course, but it isn’t their only tool.
In fact, it isn’t even their primary tool. Great leaders see more than everyone else:
answers, solutions, patterns, problems, opportunities. They know it’s vitally important
to do, but they also know that thinking, understanding, reflection and interpretation
are equally important.
If you’re too concerned with outcomes to the extent that you manipulate and
intimidate others to achieve those outcomes, then you aren’t leading at all, you’re
dictating. A true leader is someone who develops his or her team so that they can and
dohittheir targets and achieve theirgoals.
61.Whatdoes theauthorthink oftheleaders heknows?
A. Many ofthem are used to taking charge.
B. Fewofthem are equal to theirpositions.
C. Many ofthem fail to fullydevelop theirpotential.
D. Few ofthem are familiar withleadership literature.
62.Whyare somepeople eager tograb leadership positions?
A. They believe they havethe natural gift to lead.
B. They believe in what leadership literature says.
C. They have proved competent inmany situations.
D. They derive great satisfaction from being leaders.
63.Whatcharacterizes agreat leader according to theauthor?
A. Being able to takeprompt action when chances present themselves.
B. Having a whole-hearted dedication to theirdivineresponsibilities.
C. Having a full understanding of theirown merits and weaknesses.
D. Being able to assess thesituation carefully, before taking charge.
64. How will many business executives respond when their command fails to generate
action?
A. They reassess thesituation at hand.
B. They become impatient and rude.
C. They resort toany tool available.
D. They blametheirteam members.
65.Whatis theauthor’s advice to leaders?
A. Concentrate onone specific task at atime.
B. Usedifferent toolsto achieve different goals.
C. Build upa strong mareto achieve theirgoals.D. Showdetermination when faced with tough tasks.
Part Ⅳ Translation (30 minutes)
Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translate a passage from
ChineseintoEnglish. You shouldwriteyour answer onAnswer Sheet 2.
中国应进一步发展核能，因为核电目前只占其总发电量的2％。该比例在所
有核国家中居第30位，几乎是最低的。
2011年 3 月日本核电站事故后，中国的核能开发停了下来，中止审批新的
核电站，并开展全国性的核安全检查。到2012年10月，审批才又谨慎地恢复。
随着技术和安全措施的改进，发生核事故的可能性完全可以降到最低程度。
换句话说，核能是可以安全开发和利用的。
