2020年9月英语四级真题

当然从题目本身也可

知此次作文主要考查学生的立意和论述角度与立场。

参考范文：

The increasing popularity of using online dictionaries

has aroused a heated discussion as to its benefits and

drawbacks. Views on the topic vary greatly among people

from different walks of life. Some believe that it is

convenient for looking up new words but others believe

that it does more harm than good.

On the one hand, an online dictionary is lighter than a

traditional dictionary and it saves time. Instead of carrying

a thick dictionary around, all you need to do is download

an online dictionary on your phone. And a tap on the

screen will rescue you from awkwardness when coming

across a new word. On the other hand, using online

dictionaries too much may hinder language learning,

especially for students. Looking up words in a traditional

dictionary takes time, but it can enhance your memory of

the words at the same time. If students rely too much on

online dictionaries, they would probably stop learning

new my perspective, it is crucial that

companies should update their apps regularly and

improve the overall quality. Also, it is high time that

people realized that online dictionaries are not only for

looking up new words, but for vocabulary learning as well.

Only by doing so can people truly enjoy the benefits

brought by online dictionaries.

第

2

套

Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to

write an essay on Online libraries. You can start your essay

with the sentence

increasingly popular.

but no more than 180 words.

本次英语四级作文话题二是在线图书馆，同样也是互联网应用。

参考范文

范文：

As the mobile devices get developed gradually, more

and more people regard online libraries as their first

option. However, people hold different views on the

e-libraries. Some believe it is quite convenient for us to

read online while others oppose it, for they think it can

never be as good as brick and mortar libraries.

In terms of the advantages of online library, it is more

accessible than the real libraries. Simply take out your

mobile devices, and sign in the library, you can borrow the

book you want to read. It saves you the trouble of

transporting yourself to the library, and lifts you from the

toil of carrying the heavy paper books. Besides, you can

get notices from the e-libraries which remind you of the

expiration date so you will never forget to return it.

However, online libraries do have some demerits. For

instance, you always need a wi-fi connection to activate it.

If you are in some place where wi-fi is not available, online

libraries will no longer work. But a paper book will never

fail you. Besides, reading online means you are more

easily to be distracted, while it is the physical libraries that

provide you a tranquil environment for you to focus on

your reading.

In a nutshell, online libraries are designed to make

reading more convenient. But sometimes readers cannot

make the best of it. Therefore, it is we readers ourselves

who should take the advantage of the online libraries and

make it a helper for our life.

第

3

套

Directions:

For

this

part,

you

are

allowed

30

minutes

to

write an essay on the use of PowerPoint(PPT) in class. You

should

write

at

least

120

words

but

no

more

than

180

words.

点评：这题比较新颖。

参考范文

The use of PowerPoint has gained popularity in class

nowadays. More and more teachers are using PowerPoint

in their classes, no matter in primary schools, high schools

or universities. Some students love it, some don

’

t. Indeed,

not all teachers, students even parents hold the same

opinion, as they focus on the different perspectives of the

PPT.

For people who love it, they believe PPT serves as a

useful tool in class. PPT can present knowledge in a

clarified way and students no longer need to recognize

the handwriting of their teachers as some teachers do

have terrible handwriting. And for teachers, PPT also

rescues them from writing on the blackboard, which is

sometimes a heavy work. Besides, PPT can be saved and

copied for students to review after class.

But for people who prefer the traditional class, they

think PPT can never replace the blackboard. As when

having class with PPT, students have less time taking

notes. Meanwhile, some teachers say preparing PPT is

very time-consuming and not efficient at all. Some

parents, especially parents of primary students, are

strongly against PPT for they regard PPT as a digital

product that damages the eyesight of their kids.

To sum up, PPT does have strengths and weaknesses.

But I believe it brings so much convenience for us that we

can ignore the few weakness it has. And when using it, we

can still take the blackboard as an aid so as to present the

class in the best way.

二、听力

听力原文

【

News report one

】

A NASA satellite orbiting over Portugal took photographs that reveal the effects

of pollution from ships. One of the photos shows a thin film of clouds above the

brilliant blue of the north Atlantic, cut by white lines of thicker clouds that look

like scars. (1) NASA officials explained those thicker clouds are signs of ship

traffic below when ships power their way through the ocean, they pump exhaust

into the atmosphere. Just as cars do.

And those massive amounts of particles can cause clouds to form, get enough

of those particles in one place as from the exhaust of a ship. And they can lead

to the creation of new clouds easily visible from space. These clouds can be

huge. Some of them stretch hundreds of kilometers from end to end. (2) NASA

officials said it's likely that these sorts of clouds are having some effect on the

global climate, according to NASA officials.

But scientists aren't yet sure what effect it has. questions one and two are

based on the news report you have just heard.

Question 1 What has caused the thick clouds in the photos taken by a

NASA satellite?

Question 2 What do NASA officials think about the thick clouds?

【

News report two

】

Staff at a suburban supermarket in Melbourne say they feel unsafe at work after

security guards were removed. This came after a series of physical attacks and

verbal abuse by customers. (3) More than 50 workers at the store have signed

a letter calling for a permanent security guard following a series of incidents,

including a customer threatening to attack a supervisor with a knife. A security

worker had guard at the storm each night from seven pm until 12 am.

But that had stopped suddenly on Monday, employees said. One worker said

an angry customer had thrown a chicken at his head after complaining about

how long she had waited to be served. Another worker said the lack of

protection at the storm made her feel uncomfortable at work. (4) However, the

spokesman of the supermarket said the store had taken strong action in

response to incidents. We have found very few instances of bad customer

behavior at our store in the past year. In the rare cases, we have seen bad

behavior. We have taken strong action in response, including banning a

customer from the store.

Question 3 For what purpose did this staff at a supermarket in Melbourne

sign a letter?

Question 4 What did the spokesman of the supermarkets say regarding

the employees demand?

【

New report three

】

(5) Drivers on their way to the polish capital of Warsaw on Wednesday morning

found the road blocked by an unusual obstacle. Tons of liquid chocolate that

spilled onto the motorway. A truck carrying the sweet load hit a road barrier and

overturned, blocking two lanes. (6) The cracked tank spilled a pool of a rapidly

hardening chocolate, which quickly covered the width of the road, while the

driver was taken to hospital with a broken arm, firefighters struggled to remove

a reported 12 tons of solid chocolate from the road. (7) A representative for the

firefighters told the local TV that removing the chocolate was worse than

dealing with snow. After contacting the chocolate manufacturer, the firefighters

resorted to spraying hot, pressurized water to get rid of the sticky substance.

The local TV also noted that the cleanup spanned more than a Mile because

drivers simply drove through the chocolate after the crash, leaving a long

chocolate trail. But despite the sticky situation, firefighters and police attending

to the cleanup were reportedly cheerful about the long task ahead. After all,

who could be mad about 12 tons of chocolate?

Question 5 What does drivers on the motorway to Warsaw find?

Question 6 What does the report say about the accident?

Question 7 What are the firefighters representative tell the local TV?

【

Conversation one

】

M: Lisa, why did you pay for your meal with cash instead of the payment apps

on your phone?

W: Well, I’ve gone back to cash. I’m only using payment apps if that’s the only

option. [8]I am trying to save money for a new phone. And I find that using cash

rather than payment apps helps me to save.

M: But how? Money is money, isn’t it? I don’t think it matters whether you take it

out of the bank and put it in your wallet will simply transfer from your bank

account to the seller’s bank account using an app.

W: No, I believe it does matter. It’s a psychological phenomenon. [9] I believe

we have less connection with the value of our money when we just have the

approved buttons on our phones.

M: You might have a point. Since I stopped carrying cash around and started

using my phone apps to pay, [10] I may have developed a tendency to buy

more small or nonessential items.

W: That’s highly possible. Think about the amount of time we spend with our

phones in our hands and all the things we do with our phones. It sometimes

seems that our phone is buying the product for us, not ourselves.

M: [11] So cashless payment affects our ability to budget?

W: I believe so. If we spend a hundred yuan in cash, we realize that we don’t

have that hundred yuan to spend on something

else. But if we’re spending

electronically, we are less likely to make that mental calculation.

M: I stopped using my credit card because I found out spending excessively,

perhaps I should take the same approach of paying using my phone.

W: It’s worth cons

idering.

Questions 8 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

Question 8. Why did the woman decide to go back to cash for payment?

Question 9. What happens when people use that for payment according

to the woman?

Question 10. What might the man tend to buy with payment apps?

Question 11. What does the man think of electronic payment?

【

Conversation Two

】

W: Hello, Mr. Brown. I was expecting your call. [12] My secretary told me you

were having some problems with the wooden table. Is that right?

M: No, no, the table is fine. [12] The problem is the chairs.

W: Oh, the chairs. So what exactly is the issue?

M: Well, to put simply, these are not the chairs my wife and I selected in your

store last week. There must have been some confusion with our order.

W: Oh, I see. I’m looking through my files now, and I see that the delivery was

this morning. Is that correct?

M: Yes.

W: [13] Do you mind describing the chairs that were delivered to your apartment,

Mr. Brown?

M: Sure. These have a flat back with a rounded top, and are very

heavy

—they’re light brown that look kind of cheap. The ones we ordered were

dark brown to match the table.

W: Right, of course. It says here you purchased the Arlington table and four

Milano chairs. As you said, there must have been some confusion with the

order. I’m terribly sorry. [14] We will send a van to collect those four and replace

them with the Milano you purchased. Will tomorrow 9am be okay, Mr. Brown?

M: Yes, that would be great. Thank you.

W: Good. Did everything else you ordered from us arrive okay?

M: Yes, I think so. Let me check. The mirror and two paintings are here. The two

coffee tables are also here, and the sofa. Yes, we haven’t noticed anything else

wrong or missing. But if we do, we will certainly let you know.

W: Okay, great. [15] Once again, I’m sorry for the confusion and trouble

caused.

Question 12. Why did the man call the woman?

To talk about the wrong chairs.

Question 13. What did the woman ask the man to do?

Describe the chairs.

Question 14. What did the woman promise to do for the man?

To replace the chairs with the Milano ones.

Question 15. What did the woman do at the end of the conversation?

Apologize for the confusion and trouble caused.

【

Passage One

】

Do you have too much stuff? Are you daring saying untidy? (16) Say hello to a

TV show called “tidying up with Mary Kondo”, a home improvement show

based on a widely popular book, the life changing magic of tidying up. In the

show, Marie Kondo acts as a tiny garbage fairy for messy people, visiting their

houses to share the wisdom of the con Marie method. This method is simple in

theory, but can be endlessly complex and practice. (17)You divide all the stuff

in your house, all of it into several categories, and then examine each item, all

of them to see if it sparks joy. If it does, you keep it. If it doesn't, you thank it and

neatly discard it. So is the TV show inspiring people to tidy up? First hand

accounts seem to indicate a small wave of people bringing piles of donation

bags to used good stores. One store received thousands of bags of used

possessions in one day. January is usually the stores slow season for

donations because it's cold. And people don’t want to bother. But not this

January, people seem determined to clean up their homes. (18) One used

bookstore received a month’s worth of books and donations in a week, when a

man gave over 50 boxes of books from his home. It seems Mary’s TV show is

having a big impact after all.

Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard.

Question

16:What is Marie Kondos’ TV show about?

Question 17:What things can be kept in one’s home according to Marie

Kondo?

Question 18: What do we learn about one used book store this January?

【

Passage Two

】

At just 12 years old, Mike Hannon is making a difference in his community. (19)

One lunch at a time, Mike’s lunches of love has fed more than 2000 of the

town’s most vulnerable residents. Mike delivers meals to the homeless. “It’s like

a way to give people joy, maybe spark something in them that can change

the

m,” Mike told WBCTV. The mayor of Mike’s town feels that Mike is a great

community leader, especially in such times of so much negative news, while his

father commented on how proud he was of his son. Yet, Mike isn’t looking for

praise but kindness in return.(20) He hopes his acts of charity will influence

others to spread positive actions in their own towns. Mike includes a

handwritten message of joy on each bag. His message and star power has

spread all over the country. To date, his online page to raise funds has brought

in more than 44,000 dollars in a county, raising more than 17,000 dollars in just

one day with the help of many famous actors and others. (21) People from all

over the country are sending special handcrafted bags to help the young man

with his mission to help those in need. Many are hoping the simple act of

kindness spreads, like is seen as hope for the future of the town, the country,

and the world.

Question 19: What does Mike Hannon do to help people in his town?

Question 20: What does Mike hope others will do?

Question 21: How are people all over country responding to what Mike is

doing?

【

Passage Three

】

In a recent study carried out by psychologists on the disruptive effects of

smartphones, (22)two groups of college students were given word search

puzzles. First group was told to Complete the puzzles with its participants,

smartphones, in their line of sight. The second group, however, was told that

the phones would interfere with equipment in the experiment and would need to

be moved away from the testing area.

Midway through the second groups solving of the puzzles, the experiment

called one of the phones “let it ring for a while before hanging up”. (23)Many of

the students in that group were unable to focus from then on, becoming anxious

and performing more poorly than the first group.

Use of electronics has also been known to lead to a decline in human

interactions rather than having real life conversations, many express emotions

and engage in deep conversations through social media sites. Many students

use their phones and computers during pass for non-academic activities, which

leads to poor grades. (24)Perhaps the most dramatic impact is the reduction on

the amount of sleep,which leads to poor health and weight gain.

Technology

is a great tool. However, it’s important to recognize its down sides.

Lack of sleep, reduction of productivity and weight gain are only a few. (25)If we

are not careful about all these minor problems right now, effect on the future

generation is going to be much bigger.

Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.