在英语学习中，阅读是接触英语、吸收语言材料、获取感性认识的最重要的途径之一。但是在大量的阅读中我们必定会碰到一些生词，如何处理这些生词是个不可忽视的问题。试想，当我们在阅读一页时要停下十几次去查词典，那么读到第三页时，还会有兴趣继续读下去吗？所以为做到既看懂材料又不致于浪费太多的时间，我们必须掌握一些基本的猜词技巧。
一、 根据上下文的说明
He was one of 80 middle school students from China attending a month-long “Youth Summit”. The summit was to mark the 25th anniversary (周年) of President Nixon's journey to China, which was the turning point in China-U.S. relation.
The Youth Summit was aimed at increasing understanding and friendship between young students of the two countries through visits and discussions.
The words “Youth Summit”refer to . (98高考题)
A. visit to the Nixon Library
B. the Chinese students’ visit to the U.S.
C. a meeting discussing relation between China and the U.S.
D. activities to strengthen the ties between the Chinese and American students
The Youth Summit的目的就是要通过访谈来增进两国青年学生之间的理解和友谊，那么答案无疑是D，“增进中美学生之间的联系的活动。”
二、 根据文中的解释
1. Scientists grow large quantities of common mould so that they can get penicillin from it in order to make antibiotics, that is, substances that kill germs.
that is, that is to say, in another word, in other words这些词组后面的部分往往用来解释前面某一个难理解的词、词组或句子。假若我们不知道antibiotics是什么，却知道substances that kill germs是“灭菌的物质”，就可以知道antibiotics是一种灭菌的物质“抗生素”。
2. There are some glaciers moving down the mountain valley. A glacier is a river of ice.
根据后一句的解释，就明白glacier是“冰河”。
三、 根据文中的列举
1. Some ships carried cargo such as coal, oil and military supplies (军用物资), while others carried only passengers.
such as, for example, for instance 等词组往往用来说明前面较生僻的名词。此句根据such as列举的coal, oil and military supplies 就不难推断出cargo是货物（煤、油、军用物资等）。
2. ...the cutting of large forest areas also causes environmental problems, such as growing desert and the deaths of more and more animals.
environmental problems是什么问题，看看such as列举的“沙漠的扩大”、“越来越多的动物的死亡”就知道是“环境问题”。
四、 根据定语从句提供的信息
在某些生词或重要的词后，作者用定语从句进一步解释或阐明词义。
1. We like our new house because it has a few elms in the back yard, which gives us shade and keeps the house cooler.
根据定语从句，我们知道elm具有“给房子遮荫、使房子保持凉爽”的作用，就不难猜出elm是一种“树”。
2. ...Yet, shopkeepers may have to spend extra hours to deal with problems, such as shoplifters, who always take away things from the shop without paying for them.
What does the underlined word “shoplifter” mean?
A. 商店里的小偷 B. 商店里的推销员 C. 商店里的老客户 D.商店里的搬运工
根据“shoplifter”后的定语从句“不付钱就从商店中拿东西者”的解释，“shoplifter”应是指“商店里的小偷”，所以应选A。
五、 根据因果关系
有什么样的原因就会导致什么样的结果，结果和原因之间必然有逻辑上的关系。
The tree will have to be cut down for it obstructs the view of oncoming traffic（迎面驶来的车辆）.
这棵树之所以要被砍掉是因为它“妨碍或阻挡”迎面驶来的车辆的视线。
六、 利用同位语或根据同等关系
1. His uncle was a roamer, a wanderer who never could stay in one place.
句中a wanderer是 a roamer 的同位语，所以我们根据wanderer 及其后的定语从句就不难推断出roamer是“到处漂泊流浪的人”或“流浪者”。
2. Not every historic mansion, church, battle site, theatre and other public halls can be preserved.
生词mansion 和其后的church, battle site, theatre other public halls同作主语（即同等关系），故不难推断出亦属“建筑物”。
七、根据语义的转折关系
有些句子含有though, although, still, but, instead, however, nevertheless, on the contrary等表示意思转折或思路转折的连词、副词或介词短语，我们可以根据转折来推断生词的含义。
1. She is usually prompt for all her classes, but today, she arrived in the middle of her first class.
根据后半句“但她今天第一节课上了一半才到”反向推断，可以得出她平时一向“prompt”是表示“准时”。
2. You should see words as part of a whole sentence or paragraph, not just in isolation.
The underlined phrase probably means .
A. in a word B. separately C. one word D. slowly
首先，“not just in isolation”是“you should not just see words in isolation”的省略，而这一句是与前一句 “...see words as part of a whole sentence or paragraph” 相对的。既然前句告诉你“应该将词汇看作句子或段落的一部分”，那么，下句自然是告诉你“不要将词汇单个孤立地看”，答案自然是B了。
八、 据事情发生的顺序
After Ells put the letter in the envelope, she sealed it and put a stamp on it.
寄信时，正常的顺序应是把信装入信封，封上口，然后贴上邮票，不难看出seal是“封口”的意思。
九、利用同义词
1. The old woman has a strange habit to keep over 100 cats in her house. Her neighbours all called her an eccentric lady.
一位老太太养了上百只猫，有此“奇怪”习惯的老太太当然被邻居称为“古怪的老太太”了。
2. Large chunks of ice and snow melt very slowly. Once they begin to thaw, several weeks of warm weather may be required before they are totally dissolved.
大块的冰雪融化缓慢。一旦它们开始融化，需要几周的暖和天气才能完全融化。
十、 利用反义词
1. In many nations there are two financial extremes (极端), from penury to great wealth.
句中讲到“two financial extremes”（两个财政极端），极端之一是“巨富”(great wealth) ，那么另一极端自然是“赤贫(penury)”了。
2. Our spacious house has more advantages than our overcrowded apartment.
与“overcrowded ”（过分拥挤）相对的，自然是“宽敞的（spacious）”。
十一、根据标点符号的信息功能
破折号“——”、括号“（）”在句中常引出注释性词语，通过这些注释，我们往往可以推断出词的含义。
1. The nurse is on night shift—from midnight to 7 a.m.
破折号后的部分清楚地表明了night shift 是“夜班”的意思。
2. There are two types of fat, external fat (fat under skin) and internal fat (fat inside the body wall).（95高考题）
通过括号里的注释性文字，我们可知：external fat是“皮下脂肪”，而且internal fat是“体内脂肪”之意。