英语四级阅读，作为大学英语能力的重要评估指标，不仅检验了学生对词汇、语法的掌握，更考察了其阅读理解和信息筛选的能力。在全球化背景下，提升这一能力对于拓宽视野、增进跨文化交流至关重要。今天，小编将分享2020年12月大学英语四级阅读真题以及答案（卷三），希望能为大家提供帮助！
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 the bank more than once.
The things people make,and the way they make them,determine how cities grow and decline,and influence how empires rise and fall.So,any disruption to the world's factories 26 .And that disruption is surely coming.Factories are being digitised,filled with new sensors and new computers to make them quicker,more 27 ,and more efficient.
Robots are breaking free from the cages that surround them,learning new skills and new ways of working.And 3D printers have long.28 a world where you can make anything,anywhere,from a computerised design.That vision is 29 closer to reality.These forces will lead to cleaner factories, producing better goods at lower prices,personalised to our individual needs and desires.Humans will be 30 many of the dirty,repetitive,and dangerous jobs that have long been a 31 of factory life.
Greater efficiency. 32 means fewer people can do the same work.Yet factory bosses in many developed countries are worried about a lack of skilled human workers—and see. 33 and robots as a solution.But economist Helena Leurent says this period of rapid change in manufacturing is a 34 opportunity to make the world a better place."Manufacturing is the one system where you have got the biggest source of innovation,the biggest source of economic growth,and the biggest source of great jobs in the past.You can see it changing.That's an opportunity to. 35 that system differently,and if we can,it will have tremendous significance.”
A)automation F)feature K)matters
B)concerns G)flexible L)moving
C)enormously H)inevitably M)promised
D)fantastic I)interaction N)shape
E)fascinated J)leaning O)spare
答案解析
26.答案 K
空格所在句缺少谓语，因此应填入动词。空格所在句意为，任何对世界上工厂的破坏都很 。空格前的 So 说明该句与前一句构成因果关系。前一句提到，人们制造的东西以及 制造东西的方式十分重要，因此此处是说任何对世界上工厂的破坏也很“重要”,故选K) matters“重要，要紧”。
27. 答案 G
空格前为more, 作them的宾语补足语，因此应填入形容词。空格前的them 指的是 Factories, 工厂被数字化之后，利用电脑、传感器等可以提高生产率，因此空格处的形容词应 该能反映“生产率提高”,故选G)flexible “灵活的，可变通的”。
28. 答案 M
空格前为助动词 have,因此应填入动词的-ed 形式。根据下一句中提到的 vision“愿景”可 知，本句描述的世界还没有完全实现，因此空格处应填入能够表示未来意义的动词，故选 M)promised“承诺”。
29. 答案 L
空格前为is, 因此应填入动词的-ing 形式，构成现在进行时。句首的 That vision 指的是前一 句中描述的未来世界，而由于技术的飞速发展，人们已经可以用3D 打印机制造很多东西，因 此人们距离实现这一愿景越来越近。故选 L)moving “移动，改变看法”。
30. 答案 O
空格前为will be,因此应填入动词或形容词。此处想表达的是，机器人可以做越来越多的工作， 因此那些肮脏、重复和危险的工作就不需要人类来做了。故选 O)spared “幸免，使免受”。
31. 答案 F
空格前为冠词 a, 因此应填入名词的单数形式。空格前提到的“肮脏、重复和危险的工作”,这 些都是工厂的“特点”。故选 F)feature “特征，特色”。
32. 答案 H
空格处位于主语和谓语动词之间，因此应填入副词。空格所在句意为，更高的效率意味着更少的人可以做同样的工作。可知，效率提高，意味着同样的工作需要的劳动力变少 了，故选 H)inevitably“不可避免地，必然地”。
33. 答案 A
空格前为动词 see, 作宾语，且与 and 后的 robots为并列关系，因此应填入名词。空格所在句 意为，许多发达国家的工厂老板担心缺乏熟练的人力工人，并将和机器人视为解决方 案。空格处填入的名词应表示能够替代人类劳动力的意义，故选A)automation“自动化”。
34. 答案 D
空格前为冠词 a,空格后为名词 opportunity,因此应填入形容词。根据文章末句提到的，这位经济学家认为制造业的变革具有巨大的意义可知，此处应填入一个表示“积极意义”的词， 故选 D)fantastie“极好的；很大的”。E)fascinated“着迷的，被迷住的”虽然也表示积极意义， 但只能用来形容人，故排除。
35. 答案 N
空格前为不定式符号to, 空格后为名词词组 that system,因此应填入动词。空格后的 that system指的是 manufacturing, 由空格所在段前面的内容可知，制造业正在经历巨大的变革， 这是一个重新塑造制造业的机会，因此应填入含有“塑造，改变”意思的动词，故选 N)shape “塑造，形成(某种看法),影响(某事物的发展)”。
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 on Answer Sheet 2.
The History of the Lunch Box
A)It was made of shiny,bright pink plastic with a Little Mermaid sticker on the front,and I carried it with me nearly every single day.My lunch box was one of my first prized possessions,a proud statement to everyone in my kindergarten:“I love Mermaid-Ariel on my lunch box.”
B)That bulky container served me well through my first and second grades,until the live-action version of 101 Dalmatians hit theaters,and I needed the newest red plastic box with characters like Pongo and Perdita on the front.I know I'm not alone here—I bet you loved your first lunch box,too.
C)Lunch boxes have been connecting kids to cartoons and TV shows and super-heroes for decades.But it wasn't always that way.Once upon a time,they weren't even boxes.As schools have changed in the past century,the midday meal container has evolved right along with them.
D)Let's start back at the beginning of the 20th century—the beginning of the lunch box story,really. While there were neighborhood schools in cities and suburbs,one-room schoolhouses were common in rural areas.As grandparents have been saying for generations,kids would travel miles to school in the countryside (often on foot).
E)“You had kids in rural areas who couldn't go home from school for lunch,so bringing your lunch wrapped in a cloth,in oiled paper,in a little wooden box or something like that was a very long- standing rural tradition,”says Paula Johnson,head of food history section at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington,D.C.
F)City kids,on the other hand,went home for lunch and came back.Since they rarely carried a meal, the few metal lunch buckets on the market were mainly for tradesmen and factory workers.
G)After World War Ⅱ,a bunch of changes reshaped schools—and lunches.More women joined the workforce.Small schools consolidated into larger ones,meaning more students were farther away from home.And the National School Lunch Act in 1946 made cafeterias much more common.Still, there wasn't much of a market for lunch containers—yet.Students who carried their lunch often did so in a re-purposed bucket or tin of some kind.
H)And then everything changed in the year of 1950.You might as well call it the Year of the Lunch Box, thanks in large part to a genius move by a Nashville-based manufacturer,Aladdin Industries.The company already made square metal meal containers,the kind workers carried,and some had started to show up in the hands of school kids.
I)But these containers were really durable,lasting years on end.That was great for the consumer,not so much for the manufacturer.So executives at Aladdin hit on an idea that would harness the newfound popularity of television.They covered lunch boxes with striking red paint and added a picture of TV and radio cowboy Hopalong Cassidy on the front.
J)The company sold 600,000 units the first year.It was a major“Ah-ha!”moment,and a wave of other manufacturers jumped on board to capitalize on new TV shows and movies.“The Partridge Family,the Addams Family,the Six Million Dollar Man,the Bionic Woman—everything that was on television ended up on a lunch box,"says Allen Woodall.He's the founder of the Lunch Box Museum in Columbus,Georgia.“It was a great marketing tool because kids were taking that TV show to school with them,and then when they got home they had them captured back on TV,"he says.
K)And yes,you read that right:There is a lunch box museum,right near the Chattahoochee River. Woodall has more than 2,000 items on display.His favorite?The Green Hornet lunch box,because he used to listen to the radio show back in the 1940s.
L)The new trend was also a great example of planned obsolescence,that is,to design a product so that it will soon become unfashionable or impossible to use and will need replacing.Kids would beg for a new lunch box every year to keep up with the newest characters,even if their old lunch box was perfectly. usable
M)The metal lunch box craze lasted until the mid-1980s,when plastic took over.Two theories exist as to why.The first—and most likely—is that plastic had simply become cheaper.The second theory— possibly an urban myth—is that concerned parents in several states proposed bans on metal lunch boxes,claiming kids were using them as“weapons”to hit one another.There's a lot on the internet about a state-wide ban in Florida,but a few days worth of digging by a historian at the Florida State Historical Society found no such legislation.Either way,the metal lunch box was out.
N)The last few decades have brought a new lunch box revolution,of sorts.Plastic boxes changed to lined cloth sacks,and eventually,globalism brought tiffin containers from India and bento boxes from Japan.Even the old metal lunch boxes have regained popularity."I don't think the heyday(鼎盛时期) has passed,”says D.J.Jayasekara,owner and founder of lunchbox.com,a retailer in Pasadena, California.“I think it has evolved.The days of the ready-made,'you stick it in a lunch box and carry it to school’are kind of done.”
O)The introduction of backpacks changed the lunch box scene a bit,he adds.Once kids started carrying book bags,that bulky traditional lunch box was hard to fit inside.“But you can't just throw a sandwich in a backpack,”Jayasekara says.“It still has to go into a container.”That is,in part,why smaller and softer containers have taken off—they fit into backpacks.
P)And don't worry—whether it's a plastic bento box or a cloth bag,lunch containers can still easily be covered with popular culture.“We keep pace with the movie industries so we can predict which characters are going to be popular for the coming months,”Jayasekara says.“You know,kids are kids."
36.Lunch containers were not necessary for school kids in cities.
37.Putting TV characters on lunch boxes proved an effective marketing strategy.
38.Smaller lunch boxes are preferred because they fit easily into backpacks.
39.Lunch boxes have evolved along with the transformation of schools.
40.Around the beginning of the nineteen fifties,some school kids started to use metal meal containers.
41.School kids are eager to get a new lunch box every year to stay in fashion.
42.Rural kids used to walk a long way to school in the old days.
43.The author was proud of using a lunch box in her childhood.
44.The most probable reason for the popularity of plastic lunch boxes is that they are less expensive.
45.The durability of metal meal containers benefited consumers.
答案解析
36 .答案 F
解析：由题干中的关键词 not necessary和 school kids in cities定位至F)段。该段提到，城市 里的孩子回家吃午饭再回来上课。由于他们很少带午饭，市场上极少的金属饭桶主要 是卖给商人或工厂工人的。题干中的 school kids in cities与原文中的 City kids 相对 应 ；not necessary 与 they rarely carried a meal 相对应，故答案选 F)。
37. 答案 J
解 析：由题干中的关键词 TV characters,lunch boxes 和 effective marketing strategy 定位至 J) 段末句。该句提到，这是一个很棒的销售工具，因为孩子们正带着电视节目去学校， 然后当他们回到家时，又被电视节目所吸引。题干中的 TV characters on lunch boxes与原文中的 TV show相对应；effective marketing strategy 与a great marketing tool 相对应，故答案选J)。
38.答案 O
解析：由题干中的关键词 Smaller lunch boxes 和 they fit easily into backpacks定 位 至 O) 段 末 句。该句提到，这就是更小更软的容器受到人们欢迎的原因 — — 它们适合放在背包里。 题干为此处内容的同义转述，故答案选O)。
39.答案 C
解析：由题干中的关键词 Lunch boxes和 the transformation of schools 定位至 C)段末句。该 句提到，在过去的一个世纪里，随着学校发生改变，午餐容器也发生了演变。题干中的 Lunch boxes 和have evolved along with 分别与原文中的 the midday meal container 和 has evolved right along with them 相对应，故答案选C)。
40.答案 H
解 析：由题干中的关键词 the nineteen fifties 和 metal meal containers 定 位 至 H) 段末句。该 句提到，该公司已经制作了工人们用的那种方形的金属饭盒，而且一些已经开始出现在 学生们的手中。而题干中的 Around the beginning of the nineteen fifties 与该段首句中 提 到 的in the year of 1950相对应，故答案选 H)。
41.答案 L
解 析：由题干中的关键词School kids 和 a new lunch box every year 定 位 至 L) 段末句。该句 提到，孩子们每年都会央求买一个新的饭盒以期跟上最新的屏幕角色，即使他们的旧饭 盒还很好用。题干中的School kids与原文中的 Kids 相对应；are eager to 与 would beg for相对应；stay in fashion与keep up with the newest characters 相对应，故答案选L)。
42.答案 D
解析：由题干中的关键词Rural kids 和 walk a long way to school定位至 D)段末句。该句提到，正如祖辈们对后代说的那样，在乡下，孩子们需要(徒步)走数英里才能到达学校。 题干中的 used to walk a long way to school与原文中的 travel miles to school 相对应， 故答案选 D)。
43.答案 A
解 析：由题干中的关键词 The author和 using a lunch box in her childhood 定位至 A) 段末句。 该句提到，我的饭盒是我最初珍视的物品之一，是对幼儿园里每一个人骄傲的宣言：“我 爱我饭盒上的美人鱼爱丽儿”。题干为此处内容的同义转述，故答案选A)。
44.答案 M
解析：由题干中的关键词The most probable reason,plastie lunch boxes 和less expensive 定 位至 M)段。该段前半部分提到，对于金属饭盒的热潮一直持续到20世纪80年代中 期，那时塑料饭盒开始流行起来。究其原因有两个理论。首先也是最有可能 的——就是塑料制品变得更便宜了。题干中的 The most probable reason与原文中的 The first—and most likely 相对应；less expensive与 cheaper 相对应，故答案选 M)。
45.答案 I
解析：由题干中的关键词 The durability of metal meal containers 和 consumers定位至I)段前 两句。此处提到，但是这样的饭盒真的很耐用，可以用好多年。这对于消费者来说是件好事，但对于生产者来说却未必。题干中的 durability 与原文中的 durable 相对应；consumers与 the consumer相对应；benefited与great 相对应，故答案选I)。
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 the centre.
Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.
A growing number of U.S.bike riders are attracted to electric bikes for convenience,health benefits and their fun factor.Although ebikes first appeared in the 90s,cheaper options and longer-lasting batteries are breathing new life into the concept.
Established bike companies and startups are embracing ebikes to meet demand.About 34 million ebikes were sold worldwide last year,according to data from eCycleElectric Consultants.Most were sold in Europe and China,where the bikes already have exploded in popularity.Recently,the U.S.market has grown to 263,000 bikes,a 25%gain from the prior year.
The industry is benefiting from improved batteries as suppliers over the years developed technology for laptops,smartphones and electric cars.In 2004,the price of batteries used on ebikes fell,spurring European sales.
But lower cost options are emerging,too.This month,three U.S.bikeshare companies,Motivate, LimeBike and Spin,announced electric bicycles will be added to their fleets.New York-based Jump Bikes is already operating an electric bikeshare in Washington,D.C.,and is launching in San Francisco Thursday.Rides cost $2 for 30 minutes.
The system works like existing dockless bikeshare systems,where riders unlock bikes through a smartphone app.“This is the beginning of a long-term shift away from regular pedal (踏板)to electric bikes,”said Jump Bikes CEO Ryan Rzepecki.“When people first jump on an ebike,their face lights up. It's exciting and joyful in a way that you don't get from a regular bike."
Two years ago,CEO Chris Cocalis of Pivot Cycles,which sells high-end mountain bikes,found that U.S.bike shops weren't interested in stocking ebikes.Some retailers warned Cocalis that they'd drop the brand if it came out with an electric bike.
Now that sales are taking off,the vast majority of bike dealers are asking Cocalis when he'll make an ebike available.“There's tremendous opportunity to get a generation of people for whom suffering isn't their thing,”Cocalis said.“Ebike riders get the enjoyable part of cycling without the massive suffering of climbing huge hills.'
46.What do we learn from the passage about ebikes?
A)Their health benefits and fun values outweigh their cost.
B)They did not catch public attention in the United States until the 1990s.
C)They did not become popular until the emergence of improved batteries.
D)Their widespread use is attributable to people's environmental awareness.
47.What brought about the boost in ebike sales in Europe at the beginning of the century?
A)Updated technology of bike manufacture.
B)The falling prices of ebike batteries.
C)Changed fashion in short-distance travel.
D)The rising costs for making electric cars.
48.What is the prospect of the bike industry according to Ryan Rzepecki?
A)More will be invested in bike battery research.
B)The sales of ebikes will increase.
C)It will profit from ebike sharing.
D)It will make a difference in people's daily lives.
49.What prevented Chris Cocalis from developing ebikes sooner?
A)Retailers'refusal to deal in ebikes.
B)High profits from conventional bikes.
C)Users'concern about risks of ebike riding.
D)His focus on selling costly mountain bikes.
50.What makes Chris Cocalis believe there is a greater opportunity for ebike sales?
A)The further lowering of ebike prices.
B)The public's concern for their health.
C)The increasing interest in mountain climbing.
D)The younger generation's pursuit of comfortable riding.
答案解析
46.答案 C
解析：根据题干关键词 ebikes 定位至首段第二句。该句提到，尽管电动自行车早在90年代就 出现了，但更便宜的价格和更耐用的电池给这一概念注入了新的活力。可知，“直到改 进电池的出现，它们才开始流行”,故答案选C) 项。
47.答案 B
解析：根据题干关键词Europe 和 the beginning of the century 定位至第三段。该段中提到， 由于供应商多年来开发了用于笔记本电脑、智能手机和电动汽车的技术，电动自行车行业正受益于电池的改进。2004年，电动自行车上使用的电池价格下跌，刺激了它在欧洲 的销量。可知，“电池价格的下跌”使电动自行车在欧洲的销量增加，故答案选B) 项。
48.答案 D
解析：根据题干定位至第五段。该段中提到，Jump Bikes 首席执行官莱恩·雷兹皮茨基说：“这是从普通踏板向电动自行车的长期转变的开始。当人们第一次骑电动自行车时，他 们的脸上神采飞扬。这种兴奋和快乐是骑普通自行车体会不到的”。可知，莱恩·雷兹 皮茨基认为电动自行车会“改变人们的日常生活”,故答案选 D) 项。
49.答案 A
解析：根据题干定位至第六段。该段提到，两年前，销售高端山地车的 Pivot Cyeles 公司的首 席执行官克里斯·科卡利斯发现，美国的自行车商店对储备电动自行车不感兴趣。一 些零售商警告科卡利斯，如果他们品牌推出电动自行车，他们就放弃该品牌。可知，“零 售商拒绝经销电动自行车”阻止了克里斯·科卡利斯更早地开发电动自行车，故答案选 A)项。
50.答案 D
解析：题目就提问。根据题干关键词Chris Cocalis 和 a greater opportunity 定位到末段。该 段中提到，现在有绝佳的机会可以赢得这一代不喜欢吃苦的人，骑电动自行车的人可以 享受骑自行车的乐趣，而不必忍受爬坡的巨大痛苦。可知，克里斯·科卡利斯认为电动 自行车具有巨大前景是因为“年轻一代对舒适骑行的追求”,故答案选 D)项。
Passage Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.
The terms“global warming"and“climate change”are used by many,seemingly interchangeably.But do they really mean the same thing?
Scientists shaped the history of the terms while attempting to accurately describe how humans continue to alter the planet.Later,political strategists adopted the terms to influence public opinion.
In 1975,geochemist Wallace Broecker introduced the term“climate change”in an article published by Science.In 1979,a National Academy of Sciences report used the term“global warming”to define increases in the Earth's average surface temperature,while “climate change”more broadly referred to the numerous effects of this increase,such as sea-level rise and ocean acidification (酸化) .
During the following decades,some industrialists and politicians launched a campaign to sow doubt in the minds of the American public about the ability of fossil-fuel use,deforestation and other human activities to influence the planet's climate.
Word use played a critical role in developing that doubt.For example,the language and polls expert Frank Luntz wrote a memo encouraging the use of“climate change”because the phrase sounded less scary than“global warming,”reported the Guardian.
However,Luntz's recommendation wasn't necessary.A Google Ngram Viewer chart shows that by 1993 climate change was already more commonly used in books than global warming.By the end of the next decade both words were used more frequently,and climate change was used nearly twice as often as global warming.
NASA used the term“climate change”becausc it more accurately reflects the wide range of changes to the planet caused by increasing amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
The debate isn't new.A century ago,chemist Svante Arrhenius started one of the first debates over the potential for humans to influence the planet's climate.Arrhenius calculated the capability of carbon dioxide to trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere,but other chemists disagreed.Some argued that humans weren't producing enough greenhouse gases,while others claimed the effects would be tiny.Now,of course,we know that whatever you call it,human behavior is warming the planet,with grave consequences ahead.
51.Why did politicians use the two terms “global warming”and “climate change”?
A)To sway public opinion of the impact of human activities on Earth.
B)To more accurately describe the consequences of human activities.
C)To win more popular votes in their campaign activities.
D)To assure the public of the safety of existing industries.
52.As used in a National Academy of Sciences report,the term"climate change"differs from"global warming”in that _____.
A)it sounds less vague
B)it looks more scientific
C)it covers more phenomena
D)it is much closer to reality
53.What did industrialists of the late 20th century resort to in order to mislead Americans?
A)Made-up survey results.
B)Hired climate experts.
C)False research findings.
D)Deliberate choice of words.
54.Why did NASA choose the term“climate change”?
A)To obtain more funds.
B)For greater precision.
C)For political needs.
D)To avoid debate.
55.What is the author's final conclusion?
A)Global warming is the more accurate term.
B)Accuracy of terminology matters in science.
C)Human activities have serious effects on Earth.
D)Politics interferes with serious scientific debate.
答案解析
51.答案 A
解析：根据题干关键词 politicians,two terms 和“global warming”and“climate change”定位至文章的第一、二和四段。首段中引入这两个术语；第二段末句提到，政治策略家们采 用这些术语来影响公众舆论；第四段中进一步提到， 一些工业家和政治家发起了一场运动，使美国公众的心里对化石燃料的使用、滥伐森林以及其他人类活动影响地球气候的 能力产生怀疑。可知，政治家们使用全球变暖和气候变化这两个术语是“为了动摇公众对于人类活动影响地球的看法”,故答案选 A) 项。
52.答案 C
解析：题目就提问。根据题干关键词National Academy of Sciences 定位至第三段第二句。该句提到， 一份美国国家科学院的报告使用了“全球变暖”这一术语来定义地球表面平均温度的升高，而“气候变化”更广泛地指代这种升高所导致的众多影响，比如海平面上升和海洋酸化。可知，这两个术语的区别在于“全球变暖”表述了现象，而“气候变化”则表 述了该现象所带来的后果，因此“气候变化”涵盖了更多的现象，故答案选 C) 项。
53.答案 D
解析：根据题干关键词 industrialists of the late 20th century 和mislead Americans 定位至第四五段。第四段中指出， 一些工业家和政治家发起了一场运动，使美国公众的心里对化石燃料的使用、滥伐森林以及其他人类活动影响地球气候的能力产生怀疑。第五段首句又提到，措辞的使用在推动这种质疑的过程中起到了关键的作用；随后举例说明，“气候变化”这一说法听起来没有“全球变暖”那么可怕。可知，工业家们在遣词上作文章，从而误导民众的判断，故答案选 D)项。
54.答案 B
解析：根据题干关键词NASA 定位至第七段。该段提到，美国国家航空航天局使用“气候变化”这一术语，是因为它更准确地反映了由于大气中温室气体的不断增加而给地球带来的广泛变化。可知，选择“气候变化”这一术语的原因是“在涉及温室效应所引起的不良 后果时，这一术语的表述更为准确”,故答案选 B)项。
55.答案 C
解析：根据题干关键词 the author's final conclusion定位至文章末段。在该段中，作者概括性地介绍了对于术语的争论有史以来就存在。其中，末句提到，现在我们知道，不管你怎么称呼它，人类的行为正在使地球变暖，并面临着严重的后果。可知，作者认为无论采用哪个术语，人类的活动都正在给地球带来不好的后果，故答案选 C) 项。
