託福閱讀作為一門語言性考試，主要從句子和段落的角度考察考生的語言能力。句子簡化題需要考生理解句子邏輯關係，把握句子主要信息。
那麼，如何抓住句子的主要信息，提取句子的主幹就是本類題型重點內容
一、題幹特徵
Which of the sentences below best expresses the essentialinformation in the highlighted sentence in the passage? In correct choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
※原文段落中會有一個陰影句子出現，就是考察句。
二、解題方法
1.閱讀原句——理清句子邏輯結構，抓住句子主要信息。
2.分析選項——正確選項邏輯結構與原句相似。
3.句意相同——主要信息相符—細節儘量相符。
※儘量保證選項的邏輯關係和選項的主要信息與原文相符，沒有明顯邏輯結構
特徵時，直接找句意與原文相同的選項。
三、正確選項特徵
1. 邏輯結構相似.(√)
2. Essential meaning相同. (√)
※句意和邏輯完美結合的同義改寫就是答案。 錯誤選項通常添加了原文沒有的內容，或與原文表述不一致，以及遺漏句子主要信息等。
四、常用邏輯關係(邏輯連接詞)
常見邏輯連接詞：
1. 轉折：however, but, even though, even if, although, while,whereas, yet, despite, in spite of;
2. 因果：because, since，therefore,thus, hence;
3. 否定：none, never, deny, fail to, lack,refuse, merelyhardly,little,few;
4. 絕對詞/最高級：all , only, maximum, the first/last/most/best/worst,minimum, top, peak，--est;
5. 條件：if, only if, except, unless, provide that, as long as;
6. 並列： and, also, or, neither……nor,either……or, not only……but also, as well as, same……as;
7. 對比： while, whereas, as, / rather than, instead of, not….. but
例題解析
Paragraph 5: An even more exciting find was reported in1994, also from Pakistan. The now extinct whale Ambulocetus natans ("thewalking whale that swam") lived in the Tethys Sea 49 million years ago. Itlived around 3 million years after Pakicetus but 9 million before Basilosaurus.The fossil luckily includes a good portion of the hind legs. The legs werestrong and ended in long feet very much like those of a modern pinniped. Thelegs were certainly functional both on land and at sea. The whale retained atail and lacked a fluke, the major means of locomotion in modern cetaceans. Thestructure of the backbone shows, however, that Ambulocetus swam like modernwhales by moving the rear portion of its body up and down, even though a flukewas missing. The large hind legs were used for propulsion in water. Onland, where it probably bred and gave birth, Ambulocetus may have moved aroundvery much like a modern sea lion. It was undoubtedly a whale that linked lifeon land with life at sea.
10.Which of the sentences below best expresses theessential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways orleave out essential information.
A. Even though Ambulocetus swam by moving its body up anddown, it did not havea backbone.
B. The backbone of Ambulocetus, which allowed it to swim,provides evidence of its missing fluke.
C. Although Ambulocetus had no fluke, its backbone structureshows that it swam like modern whales.
D. By moving the rear parts of their bodies up and down,modern whales swim in a different way from the way Ambulocetus swam.
解析：
1. 閱讀原句，理清邏輯和句子主要信息：The structureof the backbone show that Ambulocetus swam like modern whales (by moving) even though a fluke was missing. 句子主要信息為：even though儘管它沒有fluke，脊椎的結構表明A像現代鯨魚一樣遊泳(通過上下移動身體後面部分)。其中由that引導的賓語從句，脊椎的結構表明它的遊泳方式。
2. 分析選項，正確選項保證原文主要信息。
A. Even thoughAmbulocetus swam by moving its body up and down, it did not have a backbone
B. The backboneof Ambulocetus, which…, provides evidence of its missing fluke.
C. Although Ambulocetushad no fluke, its backbone structure shows that it swam like modern whales.
D. By moving…,modern whales swim in a different way from the way Ambulocetus swam.
通過邏輯結構選取AC為備選項。
3. 句意相同，正確選項的主要信息與原文相符。A選項中說Ambulocetus沒有脊椎，與原文不符。通過句意判斷C選項與原文相符為正確答案。其中， B脊椎證實了Ambulocetus沒有fluke，這是原文沒有提到的內容。D 現代鯨魚和Ambulocetus的遊泳方式不同，是與原文表述相反的錯誤選項。※閱讀句子的要求：通過邏輯結構和句子的主幹(主要包括句子主謂賓和定語從句)來抓住句子的主要信息。分對比原文與選項，也是通過抓住選項的主要信息來進行的。句子簡化題考查我們分析長句主要信息的能力。句子簡化的題頻雖然不高，但是抓住句子主幹(判定從句類型和作用)，分析句子邏輯這種能力對於其他題型，以及長難選項都是至關重要的。語言類的考察中，詞彙是基礎，詞彙之上就是句子的分析能力了，因此句子簡化的能力是非常重要的。
作者簡介
教師姓名：劉佳微
教授科目：TOEFL閱讀
教學特色：英語基礎紮實，高考英語142分，具有豐富的託福備考經驗。2010年10月至2012年5月間，加入北京新東方學校北美項目部，先後擔任遠大路校區SAT基礎培訓班助教和昌平校區美國加州研究生TOEFL直通車衝90分班助教老師。熱愛教書，相信認真能把事情做對，用心才能把事做好。堅信教學相長，做事全力以赴，對生活充滿活力。上課風格靈活，為人幽默開朗。重視語言基礎的鞏固，細心了解學生心理，針對學生存在的難點，善於啟發引導。
(編輯：Joe)
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