单选题 Many people start relationships because of loneliness. Loneliness and being alone are not synonymous. Loneliness is a state of painful isolation, of feeling cut off from friends and family. Being alone, a state of solitude (独处), can be quite desirable most of the time, since it allows us to work, study, live, or reflect on the world around us. Solitude is usually a matter of choice; loneliness is not.
Lonely people tend to spend a lot of time by themselves, eat dinner alone, spend weekends alone, and participate in few if any social activities. They are unlikely to date. Some lonely people report having many friends, but a closer look suggests that these "friendships" are shallow. Lonely people are unlikely to share confidences. Loneliness tends to peak during adolescence (青春期). This is when most young people begin to replace family ties with peer relationships. Loneliness is quite often connected with feelings of depression and with a feeling of being "sick at heart."
Loneliness is even reported among some married people. In one of the recent studies, lonely wives tended to feel less liking and love for their partners and expressed less satisfaction with their married life. Lonely husbands reported less liking for their wives and less intimacy in their relationships.

单选题 The topic of the first paragraph is ______.

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】[解析] 第一段的最后一个句子对整个段落做了一个总结“Solitude is usually a matter of choice; loneliness is not.”。“Solitude”和“loneliness”是段落的重点。其他选项的内容属于细节信息。

单选题 The word "synonymous" (Para. 1) is closest in meaning to ______.

单选题 Which of the following is discussed in Paragraph 2?

单选题 According to Paragraph 2, adolescence is a period in life when ______.

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[解析] 首先确定题干中“adolescence”为关键词，再在文章中找到依据句“Loneliness tends to peak during adolescence(青春期). This is when most young people begin to replace family ties with peer relationships.”，只有C项的意思与依据句的意思一致。

单选题 According to a recent study, loneliness ______.

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】[解析] “Recent study”为关键词，其依据句为“In one of the recent studies, lonely wives tended to feel less liking and love for their partners and expressed less satisfaction with their married life. Lonely husbands reported less liking for their wives and less intimacy in their relationships.”，大意为：夫妻都对对方有不满意之处，从而影响夫妻关系。B项的意思最符合。