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.
Global Poverty and Charitable Giving
About 23% of the global population lives in absolute poverty. In developing countries, there is a low life expectancy, a high infant (26) ______ rate, high levels of unemployment and illiteracy, nutritional levels below acceptable standards and widespread disease with very little or poor-quality medical assistance. Others live (27) ______ wealthy and luxurious lives and so the wealth is distributed in a very (28) ______ manner. These are the central problems to questions of charity though charity also includes many other areas such as assisting the elderly.
We all (29) ______ when very rich people pledge to give away most of their billions, but they are usually left with millions to pass on, still much more than most people would expect to earn in their lifetime. Even comparatively (30) ______ salaries in the west are very high when compared globally. Someone on £20,000 could easily afford to give away £2,000 per year and still have plenty to live on plus some luxuries.
Most people agree that giving to charity is morally (31) ______ but charitable behaviour tends to be regarded as above and beyond the call of duty. Some argue, however, that charitable behaviour is morally required. This means that to fail to behave charitably would be wrong. The majority of arguments in this vein refer to giving aid to poorer nations but they may also refer to giving time within one’s (32) ______ community. Arguments tend to place different requirements on people in different income brackets and (33) ______ entirely people who are merely making ends meet. Some argue that people should all contribute a certain percentage of their earnings. I will (34) ______ together all those arguments that place a moral requirement on people to give to charity, despite the fact that there is wide disagreement as to the (35) ______ of that moral requirement.
Answers & Explanations (答案与解析)
Section A: Banked Cloze
26. J (mortality)。解析：空格在
infant 和 rate 之间。infant mortality rate 是固定的人口学术语，意为“婴儿死亡率”，是衡量发展中国家绝对贫困的常见指标。27. H (incredibly)。解析：空格修饰形容词
wealthy and luxurious，需要填入副词。前文描述绝对贫困，此处为了形成强烈对比，说明另一些人过着“极其”富有和奢侈的生活，incredibly（难以置信地，极其）最符合语境。28. O (unequal)。解析：空格位于
a very 和 manner 之间，需要填入形容词。前一句描述了绝对贫困与极其富有的对比，因此财富的分配方式是“不平等的”（unequal）。29. A (applaud)。解析：空格位于主语
We all 之后，when 引导的从句之前，需要谓语动词。当富人承诺捐出数十亿时，我们的普遍反应是“赞赏/鼓掌”（applaud）。30. I (moderate)。解析：空格修饰名词
salaries，且被副词 comparatively (相对地)修饰。后半句说即便如此在世界范围内也是很高的，说明在西方这些只是“中等的/适度的”（moderate）薪水。31. L (praiseworthy)。解析：空格在副词
morally 之后，作系动词 is 的表语。句子大意是：大多数人同意向慈善机构捐款在道德上是“值得赞扬的”（praiseworthy），但往往被认为是超越职责范围的。32. G (immediate)。解析：空格修饰名词
community。前一句对比了向贫穷国家提供援助，此处 immediate community 指“直接相关的/紧邻的社区”，即本地社区。33. C (exclude)。解析：空格与前面的谓语动词
tend to place 并列，需要填入动词原形。句意：论点倾向于对不同收入群体提出不同要求，并“完全排除”（exclude entirely）那些仅仅勉强维持生计的人。34. E (group)。解析：空格位于情态动词
will 和副词 together 之间，需要动词原形。group together 意为“把...归为一类”。作者表示将把所有强调慈善是道德要求的论点归为一类。35. D (extent)。解析：空格位于
the 和 of that moral requirement 之间，需要填入名词。句意：尽管对于这种道德要求的“程度/范围”（extent）存在广泛分歧。【核心搭配与亮点句型】
infant mortality rate：婴儿死亡率
above and beyond the call of duty：超越职责所在
in this vein：在这方面，按此思路
make ends meet：勉强维持生计，收支相抵
group together：把...归为一类，组合在一起