单选题 Some marriages seem to collapse so suddenly that you'd need a crystal ball to predict their demise (灭亡). In other     27    , though, the seeds of marital dissolution are not only easier to see but they may be planted even before the honeymoon bills come     28    . According to UCLA psychologist Thomas Bradbury, Ph. D., the way a newlywed     29    when his or her spouse is facing a personal problem—work stress, say, or a recent weight gain—is a     30    good window into their marital future.
    Bradbury and Lauri Pasch, Ph.D., invited 57 couples, all married less than six months, to     31    a difficulty that each partner was having. While some couples proved to be superstars at providing emotional support, others were woefully inept (笨拙的). You just cringed (退缩) when you watched them, Bradbury says.
    Two years later, nine of the couples had already     32    and five other marriages were intact but hanging by a thread. These 14 couples, it turned out, had been far less likely to provide support to one another as newlyweds than the other 43 couples whose marriages were     33    . Bradbury thinks a couple's inability to help each other through     34    times is what often blossoms into full-fledged marital discord (不和谐)—and ultimately divorce.
    All of which suggests an obvious antidote (轶事) to the sky-high divorce rate: ff couples can learn how to provide emotional support before they marry, they     35    a better chance of staying together. The trouble, Bradbury says, is that couples who go for premarital counseling—where they can learn such skills—    36    to be the ones with a lesser risk for marital problems in the first place.
    A. thriving          B. comments        C. tough          D. tend
    E. committing        F. cases            G. stand          H. intends
    I. due              J. reacts          K. surprisingly    L. durable
    M. split            N. regularly        O. discuss
问答题    
 
【正确答案】F
【答案解析】此处需填名词,而且可以和in other搭配,构成词组。根据上文提到的some marriages,可知此处指另外的“婚姻”。词库中的名词cases可以指代再次出现的事物,所以正确。in other cases意为“在其他的事例中”。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】I
【答案解析】此空有两种可能,一种是填形容词,前面的come作连系动词使用;另一种是填副词,用来修饰come。词库中的副词不符合语义的要求,所以只能在形容词中查找,due比较合适,意思是“应支付的,到期的”。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】J
【答案解析】此处需要填不及物动词,因为后面出现的是现在时,所以需要动词的第三人称单数形式。符合要求的动词有comments,reacts和intends,但comment常与on/upon连用,而intend则往往和to do连用,只有reacts符合上下文的语义,意为“做出反应”。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】K
【答案解析】此处需副词,修饰good的程度。词库中有两个不同含义的副词,根据此处的需要,可以轻松选出surprisingly。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】O
【答案解析】此处需要及物动词,因为前面有to,所以需要原形。根据宾语a difficulty,可知词库中最合适的是discuss。discuss a difficulty意为“讨论困难”。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】M
【答案解析】此处需要填不及物动词,因为前面有had,所以需要动词的过去分词。根据and后面所说,可知该词表消极意义,词库中只有split“分开”合适。注意该词的原形、过去式或过去分词都是split。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】A
【答案解析】此空是在were后面,所以有两种可能性,一种是填形容词,另一种是填分词。根据than一词,可知这43对夫妻与14对夫妻的less likely to provide support相反,因此空白处的单词应表积极意义,由此可得出答案为thriving。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】C
【答案解析】此处需要形容词,修饰times。根据help each other,可知是在“困难”时期,因此答案为tough。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】G
【答案解析】此处需要填及物动词原形,作谓语。根据宾语chance,可知答案为stand。stand a chance (of doing sth. )为固定搭配,意为“有机会/希望(做某事)”。
问答题    
 
【正确答案】D
【答案解析】此处需要不及物动词,作谓语。主语是couples,所以该动词为原形,而且该词要和to连用,词库中tend符合要求。tend to意为“往往”。