英语写作基础试题
全国 2008 年 1 月高等教育自学考试 英语写作基础试题 课程代码：00597 Ⅰ Ⅰ. 重写句子(30 points, 3 points each) Revise the following sentences according to the requirement. Example: The history of English words is the history of our civilization in many ways.
( periodic sentence)
In many ways, the history of English words is the history of our civilization. 1. The bridge had been no longer safe weakened by successive storms.
(simple
sentence) 2. In the contract, there are too many ifs. (loose sentence) Too many ifs are in the contract.
3. if you make your own clothes, it will save money,. (periodic sentence) 4. To know how to study and to learn how to arrange time is important for college students.
(parallel structure) 5. It was a huge rock that took five people to move. (complex
sentence) 6. He doesn’t smoke and he does not drink. (compound sentence) 7. We wanted to play a joke on Pauline, so we sent her a Valentine’s card which said “From your secret lover”. (compound-complex sentence) 8. Go anywhere, and I will follow you. Wherever you go, I will follow you.
(complex sentence) 9. After her parents died, she was sent to live with her aunt.
(simple sentence) She was sent to live with her aunt after her parents’ death. 10.
If we do not hurry, we will be late. (compound sentence) Do hurry, or we will be late.
Ⅱ Ⅱ. 改写病句（15 points, 3 points each ）
Correct the errors in the following sentences. Example: Made by his mother Tony ate up the cake.
Tony ate up the cake made by his mother.
11. I never saw so many cheerful, courteous and helpful students. 12. I am very tired this evening after a long day at the office. 13. I have followed faithfully the instruction given by the manual. 14. For her to take this course, the professor must give her approval. 15. A very powerful story really puts its message across.
Ⅲ Ⅲ. 标出主题句（15 points, 5 points each ）
16. Choose the best topic sentence from the group below.
A. Picasso was thought to be dead at birth in Malaga on. Oct. 25, 1881.
B. By the age of 25, Picasso was an able and gifted artist.
C. Picasso’s father was a painter named Jose Ruiz Blasco.
D. The full sweep of Picasso’s effect on modern art is difficult to document.
Answer: ___________ 17. Read the following paragraph and underline the topic sentence.
There is a popular belief that some particular scientific discoveries or theories, such as the Darwinian theory of evolution, have led to the downfall of religion. It would be foolish to deny that these discoveries have had a great effect in undermining religious dogma. But this account does not at all go to the root of the matter.
Religion can probably outlive any scientific
discoveries which could be made. It can accommodate itself to them. The root cause of the decay of faith has not been any particular discovery of science, but rather the general spirit of science and certain basic assumptions upon which modern science, from the 17 th
century onwards, has proceeded. 18. Read the following paragraph carefully and select the best topic sentence from the four possible answers that follow the paragraph.
Topic sentence ___________
At one time, transistor radios were not practical, because they were too expensive, Now all of that has changed. With the reduced price of transistors and the cheaper costs of mass production, the transistor radio is cheaper than the old-style tube model. In addition, transistor radios do not heat up like the old tube radios, so they will not wear out as quickly. Also, transistor radios can be made much smaller because transistors are smaller than tubes. Furthermore, transistor radios are more reliable. They have fewer parts, so less can go wrong. A. Transistor radios are practical and inexpensive. B. Transistor radios have undergone much improvement. C. Transistor radios are cheaper than tube radios because of mass production. D. Transistor radios are better than the old-style tube radios. Ⅳ Ⅳ. 重新组合段落(10 points, 2 points each)
Rearrange the following numbered sentences so that they will read logically, put the number in proper sequence in the boxes provided below. 19. Those who did not become miners found work in railroad construction, farming and light industries, doing low-paid jobs. 20.As in California they formed small pockets of Chinese culture that were known as “Chinatowns”. 21. The government issued Exclusion Acts to stop the immigration of Chinese laborers into the
United States. 22. The Chinese called the new land “Mountain of Gold”. 23. Many workers fled the concentrated Chinese communities in the West and scattered to the Mid-west and the East. 24. He was accused of taking jobs away from the white man.
25. By the 1880’s, American industrialization brought changing economic realities, resulting in an explosion of resentment toward the Chinese laborer. 26. The first big wave of Chinese immigration to America came when gold was discovered in California in 1848.
26
24
23
Ⅴ Ⅴ. 标出与段落内容无关的句子（10 points ）
Read the following paragraph and underline irrelevant sentences (either one or two). A diamond’s hardness makes it useful in ways you may not know about. If you have a record player in your house, it probably has a diamond-tipped needle. Your dentist uses a diamond tipped drill. Similar drills are used in industry to cut very hard materials. However, not all drills are made of diamonds. When a diamond is cut,
the dust is gathered and saved. Manufacturers then use it in many grinding, polishing and sawing jobs. Recently, diamonds have been put to new uses. Eye surgeons use diamond knives for delicate operations. A spacecraft sent to Venus had a diamond window. A diamond was the only transparent material that could withstand the extremes of temperature and pressure on Venus.
Scientists have developed ways to make man-made diamonds, which, if successful, might greatly reduce the cost of diamonds. Ⅵ Ⅵ. 写信（20 points ）
Suppose you were Claudia Spangle, a rug saleswoman selling rugs on the floor in the First Department Store in Shanghai for five years already. You want to have a change, so when told a rug salesperson to cover Beijing territory is required, you write a letter of job application. In your letter, make sure to 1. provide some necessary information like your qualifications, 2. working
experience, 3. the achievement(s) you have made in the work and4. your wish as well.( 150-200 words)