1、2021年12月四级考试预测押题卷（二）（附答案解析）Part IWriting(30minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay entitled The Importance of Change by commenting on the saying “If youre prepared to adapt and learn, you can transform.” You should write at least120 words but no more than
2、 180 words.Part IIListening Comprehension(25 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear three news reports. At the end of each conversation, you will hear four questions. Both the news report and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the
3、best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 1 and 2 are based on the news report you have just heard.1. A)It will be disconnected for repainting.B) It has bonged for more than 168 yea
4、rs.C) It will stop ringing for four years.D) It will stop ringing for four years.2. A)To keep the famous timepiece clean.B) To keep the clock working for future generations.C) To replace the bell of the famous timepiece.D) To reconstruct the building and the clock.Questions 3 and 4 are based on the
5、news report you have just heard.3. A)They must show their personalities through clothing.B) They must wear almost all white.C) They must high white socks.D) They must impress the crowd with their clothing.4. A)He ranked the fourth in the tournament.B) He won the title in the tournament.C) He wore sh
6、ort white socks in the tournament.D) He wore a white headband with black stripes.Questions 5 to 7 are based on the news report you have just heard.5. A)A newly formed beach.C)The return of an old beach. B)The revived travel business.D)The return of seaweed.6. A)It began returning in April.B) It was
7、coarse at first.C) It formed after a series of hurricanes.D) It began returning last year.7. A) It is the western-most part of Europe.C) It has six Blue Flag beaches already.B) It is a part of Ireland.D) It is rainy all year round.第 7 页Section BDirections：In this section, you will hear two long conv
8、ersations. At the end of each conversation, you will hear four questions. Both the conversation 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 1
9、 with a single line through the centre.Questions 8 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.8. A) Look for a missing file.B) Mark “Confidential” on a file.C) Make a copy of a file. D)Circulate a file to the staff.9. A)A new chair range.B) A new watch range.C) A new desk range.D) A new
10、 cup range.10. A) Because they found someone suspicious.B) Because the man lost the key of the safe.C) Because the woman lost a new design.D) Because the man lost the payment of this morning.11. A) Kind-hearted.B) Terrible.C) Strange.D) Humorous.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the conversation you h
11、ave just heard.12. A) Open.B) Polite.C) Creative.D) Selfish.13. A)She is sick of British custom.B) She likes drinking coffee.C) She has been to Britain for four years.D) She doesnt speak “please” so often.14. A)Stupid.B)Friendly.C)Terrible.D)Considerate.15. A)They use many words to say things.B) The
12、y apologize all the time.C) They keep a slight smile on their face.D) They put themselves in others shoes.Section CDirections: In this section, you will hear three passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear some questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After y
13、ou 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 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard.16. A)It is based on knowledge level.B) It is
14、based on cognitive level.C) It is random.D) It is controversial.17. A)Some teachers work together to teach one class.B) Different teachers see to music and physical education.C) The old pattern has been reformed to meet students demand.D) One teacher is primarily responsible for one class.18. A)The
15、preference for science.C) The teaching subjects.B) The teaching methods.D) The teaching goals.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the passage you have just heard.19. A)Building cycle paths on the road.B) Publicizing the advantages of cycling.C) Providing facilities for cyclists.D) Raising fares of publi
16、c transport.20. A)It is quicker and cheaper.C) It doesnt need any effort.B) It requires less commitment.D) It enables one to lose weight faster.21. A)Cyclists have bigger muscles.C) Cyclists are slimmer.B) Cyclists suffer no pain.D) Cyclists hardly catch a cold.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the pa
17、ssage you have just heard.22. A) It is soothing.C) It is luxurious.B) It is striking.D) It is fortunate.23. A) It makes them cool and mysterious.B) It is similar to the colour of the sky.C) It gives a sense of being dependable.D) It indicates wealth and security.24. A) It makes an environmentally fr
18、iendly impression.B) It attracts customers attention greatly.C) It implies growth and movement.D) It imitates the colour of traffic lights.25. A) It was difficult to produce the dye in the past.B) It is the choice of many chocolate companies.C) It was the colour used by royal families only.D) It mak
19、es products seem unique.Part Reading Comprehension( 40 minutes )Section ADirections: 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 ma
20、king 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 the bank more than once.Questions 26 to 35 are based on the following passage.My co-te
21、acher and I met in the parking lot before school and stared into my car trunk at the costumes and props we had gathered over the weekend. We were giddy with excitement and nervous because neither of us had 26 anything like this before.The co-teacher, Alice, had found a book called Teaching Content O
22、utrageously by Stanley Pogrow, which explained how secondary classrooms can incorporate drama into any content to 27 students in learningincorporating the element of surprise, for example, or developing role-play or simulation experiences to teach content and standards. The book inspired us to chang
23、e how we taught our seventh-grade language-arts students in a high-poverty school that 28 with test scores, especially reading and math.The sense of urgency in the building was 29 ,and the pressure on teachers to increase student achievement was often 30 . The district required us to teach a curricu
24、lum 31 aligned with a 15-year-old reading textbook containing outdated articles about Ricky Martin, ice fishing, and cartography in a(n) that it was both condescending and 33 . But district personnel insisted that teachers use the textbook, citing evidence that it brought up test scores.A)attempt B)
25、designated C)engage D)extent E)innovatively F)nonexistent G)obviousH)overwhelmingI)persuade J)place K)rigidly L)risk M)struggled N)triedO)uninterestingThe 34 curriculum, we decided, would never be enough to encourage our students to love reading and writing. Therefore, Alice and I decided to take th
26、e 35 and apply Pogrows advice.Section BDirections: 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 th
27、an once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.Corporate Ambitions: Amazon, the Worlds Most Remarkable Firm, Is Just Getting StartedA Amazon is an extraordinary company. The former bookseller accounts for more than half of
28、every new dollar spent online in America. It is the worlds leading provider of cloud computing. This year Amazon will probably spend twice as much on television as HBO, a cable channel. Its own-brand physical products include batteries, almonds, suits and speakers linked to a virtual voice-activated
29、 assistant that can control, among other things, your lamps and sprinkler.B Yet Amazons shareholders are working on the premise that it is just getting started. Since the beginning of 2015 its share price has jumped by 173%, seven times quicker than in the two previous years(and 12 times faster than
30、 the S&P 500 index). With a market capitalization(市值)of some $400bn, it is the fifth-most-valuable firm in the world. Never before has a company been worth so much for so long while making so little money: 92% of its value is due to profits expected after 2020.C That is because investors anticipate
31、both an extraordinary rise in revenue, from sales of $ 136bn last year to half a trillion over the next decade, and a jump in profits. The hopes invested in it imply that it will probably become more profitable than any other firm in America. Ground for skepticism does not come much more fertile tha
32、n this: Amazon will have to grow faster than almost any big company in modern history to justify its valuation. Can it possibly do so?D It is easy to tick off some of the pitfalls(隐患). Rivals will not stand still. Microsoft has cloud-computing ambitions; Walmart already has revenues nudging $500bn a
33、nd is beefing up online. If anything happened to Jeff Bezos, Amazons founder and boss, the gap would be exceptionally hard to fill. But the striking thing about the company is how much o a chance it has of achieving such unprecedented goals.E This is largely due to the firms unusual approach to two
34、dimensions of corporate life. The first of these is time. In an era when executives routinely whinge about(发牢骚)pressure to produce short-term results, Amazon is resolutely focused on the distant horizon. Mr. Bezos emphasises continual investment to propel( 推 动 )its two principal businesses, e-commer
35、ce and Amazon Web Services(AWS),its cloud-computing arm.F In e-commerce, the more shoppers Amazon lures, the more retailers and manufacturers want to sell their goods on Amazon. That gives Amazon more cash for new servicessuch as two-hour shipping and musicwhich entice more shoppers. Similarly, the
36、more customers use AWS, the more Amazon can invest in new services, which attract more customers. A third virtuous circle is starting to whirl( 迅速旋转)around Alexa, the firms voice-activated assistant: as developers build services for Alexa, it becomes more useful to consumers, giving developers reaso
37、n to create yet more services.G So long as shareholders retain their faith in this model, Amazons heady valuation resembles aself-fulfilling prophecy. The company will be able to keep spending, and its spending will keep making it more powerful. Their faith is sustained by Amazons record. It has had
38、 its failuresits attempt to make a smartphone was a debacle. But the business is starting to crank out( 快速大量地制造 )cash. Last year cashflow(before investment)was $16bn, more than quadruple the level five years ago.H If Amazons approach to time-frames is competitors, as too is the sheer breadth of its
39、activities. The companys list of current and possible competitors, as described in its annual filings, includes logistics firms, search engines, social networks, food manufacturers and producers of “physical, digital and interactive media of all types”. A wing span this large is more reminiscent of
40、a conglomerate( 大型联合企业)than a retailer, which makes Amazons share price seem even more bloated: stockmarkets typically apply a “conglomerate discount” to reflect their inefficencies.I Many of these services support Amazons own expansion and that of other companies. The obvious example is AWS, which
41、powers Amazons operations as well as those of other firms. But Amazon also rents warehouse space to other sellers. It is building a $1.5bn air-freight hub(中心)in Kentucky. It is testing technology in stores to let consumers skip the cash register altogether, and experimenting with drone deliveries to
42、 the home. Such tools could presumably serve other customers, too. Some think that Amazon could become a new kind of utility: one that provides the infrastructure of commerce, from computing power to payments to logistics.J And here lies real problem with the expectations surrounding Amazon. If it g
43、ets anywhere close to fulfilling them, it will attention of regulators. For now, Amazon is unlikely to trigger antitrust(反垄断的)action. It is not yet the biggest retailer in America, its most mature market. Americas antitrust enforcers look mainly at a firms effect on consumers and pricing. Seen throu
44、gh this lens, antitrust enforcers look mainly at a firms effect on consumers and pricing. Seen through this lens, Amazon appears pristine(处于原始状态的). Consumers applaud it; it is the most well-regarded company in America, according to a Harris poll.(AWS is a boon to startups, too.)K But as it grows, so
45、 will concerns about its power. Even on standard antitrust grounds, that may pose a problem: if it makes as much money as investors hope, a rough calculation suggests its earnings could be worth the equivalent of 25% of the combined profits of listed Western retail and media firms. But regulators ar
46、e also changing the way they think about technology. In Europe, Google stands accused of using its clout as a search engine to extend its power to adjacent businesses. The comparative immunity from legal liability of digital platformsfor the posting of inflammatory content on Facebook, say, or the v
47、etting of drivers on Uberis being chipped away.L Amazons business model will also encourage regulators to think differently. Investors value Amazons growth over profits; that makes predatory pricing more tempting. In future, firms could increasingly depend on tools provided by their biggest rival. I
48、f Amazon does become a utility for commerce, the calls will grow for it to be regulated as one. Shareholders are right to believe in Amazons potential. But success will bring it into conflict with an even stronger beast: government.36. Amazon has formed sound circles that push its e-commerce, AWS and Alexa voice service forward.37. There is less chance of American government filing an antitrust lawsuit against Amazon because of its scale as a retailer and customers positive comments.
