四级阅读测试一般包括4篇文章的阅读，每篇后有5道选择题。这些的类型多种多样，但归纳起来大致可分为二大类，即全域型问题（Global Question）和局域型问题（Local Question ）。 Local Question一般涉及三方面内容：Subject Matter， Attitudr/Tone；Local Question 涉及：Supporting Details ，Inference， Vocabulary.以下，我们将针对四级考试的特点、出题范畴、出题方式等，根据这些问题在考试出题中的大致排列顺序，进行有步骤、有计划的分项应试技能训练。
关于主题思想问题（Subject Matter）
Subject Matter（SM中心思想）是作者在文章中要表达的的主要内吼是贯穿全文的核心。作者在文章中努力通过各种Supporting Details来阐明中心议题。因此，把握主要思想对于全文内听理解具有重要意义。熟悉四级测试的人都知道，这类问题常被列为5题之首。然而，如何找出主题常使考生倍感棘手。因为他们总希望通过某个词或某句话就能找到答案，而找主题往往需要通读全文后才能作出判断。
针对SM问题，应采用快速阅读法（Skimming）浏览全文，理解文章主旨大意，阅读时要注意抓住中心思想的句子在文章中的位置也不同，但阅读时，文章的开头、结尾及段落的段首句和段尾句特别重要，因为他们往往名包含文章的中心议题（SM）。
根据批发部在内容的不同，这类问题可分杰主题型、标题型和目的型 。主题型一目了然就是找中心（Main Idea）；标题型是为文章选择标题（Title）；目的型就是推断作者的写作意图（Purpose）。这类题常见的命题方式有：
（1） What is the main idea （subject） of this passage ？
（2） What does this passage mainly （primarily）concerned ？
（3） The main theme of this passage is ___________.（4） The main point of the passage is__________.（5） Which of the following is the best title for the passage ？
（6） The title that best expresses the theme of the passage is ___________.（7） On which of the following subject would the passage most likely be found in a textbook ？
（8） The purpose of the writer in writing this passage _________.（9） Which of the following best describes the passage as a whole ？
1、关于主题型Example 1：Oceanography has been defined as "The application of all sciences to the study of the sea "Before the nineteenth century ，scientists with an interest in the sea were few and far between .Certainly Newton considered some theoretical aspects of it in his writings ，but he was reluctant to go to sea to further his work .
For most people the sea was remote ， and with the exception of early intercontinental travelers or others ， who earned a living from the sea， there was little reason to ask many questions about it ，let alone to what lay beneath the surface ，The first time that the question "What is at the bottom of oceans "？ had to be answered with any commercial consequence was when the laying of a telegraph cable from Europe to America was proposed. The engineers had to know the depth profile（ 轮廓）of the route to estimate the length of cable that had to be manufactured.
It was to Maury of US Navy that the Atlantic Telegraph Company turned， in 1853 ， for information on this matter. In the 1840s，Maury had been responsible for encouraging voyages during which soundings（试探）were taken investigate the depths of the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Later， some of his findings aroused much popular interest in his book The Physical Geography of the Sea.
The cable was laid ， but not until 1866 was the connection made permanent and reliable. At the early attempts， the cable failed and when it was taken out for repairs it was found to be covered in living growths， a fact which defied contemporary scientific opinion that there was no life in the deeper parts of the sea.
Within a few years oceanography was under way. In 1872Thomson led a scientific expedition， which lasted for four years and brought home thousands of samples form the sea. Their classification and analysis occupied scientists for years and led to a five-volume report， the last volume being published in 1895 .
This passage is mainly about_____________.
A） the beginnings of oceanography
B） the laying of the first undersea cable
C） the investigation of ocean depths
D） the early intercontinental communications
本题问及全篇的中心思想。通过快读（skimming ）我们知道这是一篇叙述"海洋学"的文章。第一段谈的是关于"海洋学"的定义；第二段是讲19世纪前对海洋感兴对趣的科学家不多；第三段谈到由于有人提了铺设海底电缆，人们才开始研究"海底深处究竟是什么"；第四段说Maury考察北大西洋和太平洋的发现引起广泛的注意；第五段讲修筑海底电缆过程中发现大量的海洋生物；最后一段是海洋学研究的成果。可风全篇主要是讲海洋学的研究是如何开展起来的，所以正确答案是A）。文章有 个地方谈到铺设义；第二段是讲 19世纪前对海洋感兴趣的科学家不多；第三段谈到由于有人提出铺设海底电缆，人们才开始研究"海底深处究竟有什么"；第四段说Maury考察北大西洋和太平洋的发现引起广泛的注意；第五段讲修筑海底电缆过程中发现大量的海洋生物；最后一段是海洋学研究的成果。可见全篇主要是讲海洋学的研究是如何开展起来的，所以正确答案是A）。文章有好几个地方谈到铺设海底电缆B）和越洋通讯（D），但都是围绕着海洋学这条主线的。至于C），测量海洋深度，只是一个细节，不可能是文章的中心意思。
2、关于标题型Example ：A rapid means of long-distance transportation became a necessity for the United States as settlement（新拓居地 ） spread ever farther westward. The early trains were impractical curiosities， and for along time the railroad companies met with troublesome mechanical problems. The most serious ones were the construction of rails able to bear the load， and the development of a safe， effective stopping system. Once these were solved， the railroad was established as the best means of land transportation. By 1860 there were thousands of miles of railroads crossing the eastern mountain ranges and reaching westward to the Mississippi. There were also regional southern and western lines .
The high point in railroad building came with the construction of the first transcontinental system. In 1862 congress authorized two western railroad companies to build lines from Nebraska west-ward and from California eastward to a meeting point， so as to complete a transcontinental crossing linking the Atlantic seaboard with the Pacific .The Government helped the railroads generously with money and land Actual work on this project began four years later. money and land. Actual work on this project began four years later. The Central Pacific Company， starting from California， used Chinese labor， while the Union Pacific employed crews of Irish laborers. The two groups worked at remarkable speed， each trying to. cover a greater distance than the other. In l869 they met at a place called Promontory in what is now the state of Utah. Many visitors came there for the great occasion. There were joyous celebrations all the country， with parades and the ringing of church bells to honor the great achievement.
The railroad was very important in encouraging westward movement. It also helped build up industry and farming by moving raw materials and by distributing products rapidly to distant markets. In linking towns and people to one another it helped unify the United States.
The best title for this passage would be__________.
A） Settlements Spread Westward
B） The Coast-to-Coast Railroad： A Vital Link
C） American Railroad History
D） The Importance of Trains in the American Economy
本题是给文章选标题，实际上也是问及全篇的主旨。文章第一段的第一句虽然提到"settlement spread ever farther westward "，但这不是本文论述的中心，太故选项A）是错的；选项D）也不合适，因为作者在第三段第二句里谈的是在美国起重要作用的 transcontinental railway， 而不是泛指美国的铁路；虽然本文从一个侧面反映了美国铁路的历史，故选项C）也是错的；本文的第三段点了文章的主旨，即这条横贯美国的铁路在开发西部、发展工农业生产和统一美国等方面 起到了a vital link 的作用。因此，答案应该是选项B）。