Section A: Banked Cloze
Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.
The Power of Taxing Harmful Things
The idea of taxing things that are bad for society has a powerful allure. It offers the possibility of a double benefit—(26) ______ harmful activities, while also providing the government with revenue.
Take sin taxes. Taxes on alcohol make it more expensive to get drunk, which reduces excessive drinking and (27) ______ driving. At the same time, they provide state and local governments with billions of dollars of revenue. Tobacco taxes, which generate more than twice as much, have proven (28) ______ in the decline of smoking, which has saved millions of lives.
Taxes can also be an important tool for environmental protection, and many economists say taxing carbon would be the best way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Economic theory says that unlike income or sales taxes, carbon taxes can actually increase economic efficiency; because companies that (29) ______ carbon dioxide into the sky don’t pay the costs of the climate change they cause, carbon taxes would restore the proper (30) ______ to the market.
In reality, carbon taxes alone won’t be enough to halt global warming, but they would be a useful part of any climate plan. What’s more, the revenue from this tax, which would (31) ______ be hundreds of billions of dollars per year, could be handed out to citizens as a (32) ______ or used to fund green infrastructure projects.
Similarly, a wealth tax has been put forward as a way to reduce inequality while raising revenue. The revenue from this tax, which some experts (33) ______ will be over $4 trillion per decade, would be designated for housing, child care, health care and other government benefits. If you believe, as many do, that wealth inequality is (34) ______ bad, then these taxes improve society while also (35) ______ government coffers (金库).
Answers & Explanations (答案与解析)
Section A: Banked Cloze
26. A (discouraging)。解析：空格在破折号之后，与后面的 `while also providing` 构成并列的动名词短语（表示双重收益的两个方面）。句意：它提供了双重收益的可能性——“阻止/抑制”有害活动，同时为政府提供收入。`discouraging` 意为“阻止，使气馁”，符合对 harmful activities（有害活动）的处理方式。因此填入 discouraging。
27. E (impaired)。解析：空格在形容词 `excessive` 修饰的 `drinking` 和连词 `and` 之后，修饰 `driving`。句意：对酒精征税使得喝醉变得更贵，这减少了过度饮酒和“受损（即酒后）”驾驶。`impaired driving` 是英语中表示“酒驾/毒驾”的标准法律和通用表达，意为“能力受损的驾驶”。因此填入 impaired。
28. J (instrumental)。解析：空格在系动词 `have proven` 之后，需要填入形容词作表语。句意：烟草税在减少吸烟方面被证明是“起重要作用的”，这拯救了数百万人的生命。`instrumental` 意为“起重要作用的，有帮助的”，常与介词 `in` 搭配（be instrumental in doing sth.）。因此填入 instrumental。
29. N (pump)。解析：空格在定语从句 `companies that ______ carbon dioxide into the sky` 中作谓语动词，先行词是 companies（复数），需要一般现在时的复数动词。句意：因为那些向天空“排放（泵入）”二氧化碳的公司并不支付他们造成的环境成本。`pump` 本意为“用泵抽”，这里形象地比喻将大量废气排放/注入大气中。因此填入 pump。
30. G (incentives)。解析：空格在形容词 `proper` 之后，需要填入名词作宾语。句意：碳税将为市场恢复适当的“激励机制”。在经济学术语中，税收会改变行为的动机，`incentives` 意为“激励，动机”，指促使人们采取环保行动的经济手段。因此填入 incentives。
31. M (probably)。解析：空格在助动词 `would` 和系动词 `be` 之间，需要填入副词修饰动词短语。句意：此外，这项税收的收入“大概/可能”是每年数千亿美元。作者是在对未来的税收收入进行合理估算。`probably` 意为“大概，很可能”。因此填入 probably。
32. B (dividend)。解析：空格在冠词 `a` 之后，需要填入单数名词。句意：这项税收可能会作为“红利”分发给公民，或者用于资助绿色基础设施项目。`dividend` 意为“红利，股息”，在政策语境中指将税收收入返还给公众的份额。因此填入 dividend。
33. L (predict)。解析：空格在定语从句 `which some experts ______` 中作谓语动词，主语是 experts（复数），且后接宾语从句 `will be over $4 trillion`（将超过4万亿美元），表达对未来的看法，需要一般现在时。句意：一些专家“预测”这笔税收每十年将超过4万亿美元。`predict` 意为“预测”。因此填入 predict。
34. H (inherently)。解析：空格在系动词 `is` 和形容词 `bad` 之间，需要填入副词修饰 bad。句意：正如许多人认为的那样，如果你相信财富不平等是“本质上/天生就”不好的…… `inherently` 意为“固有地，本质上地”。因此填入 inherently。
35. O (swelling)。解析：空格在 `while also` 之后，与前面的 `improve` 逻辑呼应，但语法上跟在 while 后面作伴随状语，需要现在分词形式（与 26 题结构类似）。句意：那么这些税收在改善社会的同时，也“增加了（使膨胀）”政府的金库。`swelling` 意为“增加，膨胀”。因此填入 swelling。
【核心搭配与亮点句型】
impaired driving：酒后/毒后驾驶，能力受损的驾驶（reduces excessive drinking and impaired driving）
be instrumental in：在...方面起重要作用（have proven instrumental in the decline of smoking）
carbon dioxide：二氧化碳（pump carbon dioxide into the sky）
economic incentives：经济激励机制（restore the proper incentives to the market）
hand out to：分发给，发放给（handed out to citizens as a dividend）
put forward：提出（建议、计划等）（a wealth tax has been put forward as a way）
inherently bad：本质上是不好的（wealth inequality is inherently bad）