托福阅读中有一类题型让人头疼不已，就是我们常见的托福阅读词汇题，即选择四个选项里和文章中的某个词汇意义相同的单词。通常被考到的词汇也是非常关键性的，对理解文章整个的大意或整段的核心思想有着紧密联系。
在文章中被考到的单词或短语会被用阴影标识出来
☆ In the case of a word, the question might be :
The word X in the passage is closest in meaning to
☆ In the case of a phrase, the question might be :
In stating X, the author means that
The phrase X in the passage is closest in meaning to
其中，以第一种形式，也就是考察考生某单词在文章上下文中意思的问题类型最为常见。
那么，该如何答题：
1. 在文章中定位到阴影标识的单词或短语。
2. 仔细阅读该词或短语所在句子。
3. 在句子中寻找可以帮助理解阴影标识的单词或短语的具体意思的线索。
4. 选择答案，并将所选择的单词或短语放入原文进行检验，以确认这个句子在全文中仍是有意义的。
选择答案时，不要仅仅因为某个选项符合该单词的某一个正确意思就将其作为正确选项;题目考察的是作者在文章上下文中使用了那一个词义。
如何利用各种线索
☆ 结构线索(即指明句子中各成分之间关系的特定单词、短语和语法结构)
1. 对比
Example: OG Practice Set 5, question 6
Passage 5: In this newly emerging economic order, workers sometimes organized to protect their rights and traditional ways of life. Craftworkers such as carpenters and tailors formed unions and in 1834 individual unions came together in the National Trades’ Union. The labor movement gathered some momentum in the decade before the Panic of 1837, but in the depression that followed, labor’s strength collapsed…
The phrase gathered some momentum in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ made progress
○ became active
○ caused changes
○ combined forces
解析：单词readily所在的文章句子中出现转折词but, 根据文章中but后面的内容我们可以得出短语gathered some momentum在此句中的意思为made progress。
2. 例子
Example: OG Practice Set 4, question 10
Passage 8: One cognitive theory suggests that aggravating and painful events trigger unpleasant feelings. These feelings in turn, can lead to aggressive action, but not automatically. Cognitive factors intervene. People decide whether they will act aggressively or not on other people’s motives. Supporting evidence comes from research showing that aggressive people often distort other people’s motives. For example, they assume that other people mean them harm when they do not.
The word distort in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ mistrust
○ misinterpret
○ criticize
○ resent
解析：distort所在的文章句子后出现“for example”, 根据for example中的内容，我们可以得出distort在此句中的意思为misinterpret。