以下文章均选自真题及其他各类托福练习，在了解托福阅读文章的题材，形式的同时，应该重点掌握和注意下划线的词汇：
P1
The first professional clown born in the United States was John Durang (1768-1822), who came from a decidedly noncircus family. Durang was the first in a long line of great clowns to dynamically combine genuine dramatic and comedic talent with a highly developed proficiency in a wide range of circus techniques. He left home at the age of 15 to tour as a dancer with a traveling performer. His lack of formal training did not stop him from becoming an accomplished puppeteer, clown, Harlequin, dancer, ropewalker, equestrian, Shakespearean actor, scene designer, and pyrotechnist. John Bill Ricketts was impressed enough to offer him a job in 1793, but Durang declined because it required superior horsemanship, a skill which he had not yet acquired. In 1795 Ricketts repeated his offer, and this time Durang accepted. He immediately began practicing trick riding and was soon able to add equestrian clowning to his repertoire. By 1797 Durang had become a key member of Rickett''s company, and that summer he and Ricketts led the troupe on a tour into Canada. During continued his remarkable career for the next 20 years, performing in theaters and circuses and even managing his own dramatic touring troupe for nine consecutive summers. Before he died John Durang revealed yet another talent by writing his memoirs, the only extensive first-person account of circus life in the early United States.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
clown : n. 小丑,粗鲁愚蠢的人
decidedly : adv. 决定,断然；明了,无凝
circus : n. 马戏团,马戏,竞技场
dynamically : ad. 动态的
genuine : a. 真正的,真实的,诚恳的
dramatic : a. 戏剧性的,生动的
comedic : a. 喜剧的
proficiency : n. 精通,熟练,精练
technique : n. 技术,方法,表演法
lack : n. 缺乏,无,不足;vt. 缺乏,短少,不足,需要;vi. 缺乏
accomplished : a. 完成的,实现的,善社交的,有造诣的,熟练的
puppeteer : n. 操纵木偶的人,操纵傀儡
harlequin : n. 丑角
ropewalker : n. 走钢丝,绳索特技表演者
equestrian : a. 骑马的,马的,在马背上的;n. 骑手
Shakespearean : a. 莎士比亚的
scene : n. 场,景,情景,景色,镜头,发生地点,布景,道具
pyrotechnist : n. 烟火制造者
offer : n. 出价,提议,意图,报价;vt. 提供,出价,奉献,使出现,企图,演出;vi. 出现,献祭,提议
decline : n. 衰微,跌落,下降;vt. 使降低,婉谢;vi. 下降,衰落,偏斜
superior : n. 长者,高手,上级;a. 上好的,出众的,高傲的
horsemanship : n. 马术
acquired : a. 已取得的,已获得的,已成习惯的,后天的
accepted : a. 一般承认的,公认的
immediately : ad. 立刻,刚,立即
trick : n. 诡计,欺诈,谋略,癖好,恶作剧,决窍;vt. 戏弄,欺骗,装饰;vi. 哄骗,戏弄;a.有决窍的,特技的,欺诈的,漂亮的,靠不住的,有效的
equestrian : a. 骑马的,马的,在马背上的;n. 骑手
repertoire : n. 全部剧目,保留剧目,全部技能
troupe : n. 一团,一班,剧团;vi. 巡回演出
consecutive : a. 连续的,联贯的,始终一贯的
reveal : vt. 露出,显示,透露,(神)启示,揭露,泄露;n. 窗侧,门侧
memoir : n. 传记,实录,追思录,回忆录,自传
P2
Sleep is part of a person''s daily activity cycle. There are several different stages of sleep, and they too occur in cycles. If you are an average sleeper, your sleep cycle is as follows . When you first drift off into slumber, your eyes will roll about a bit, your temperature will drop slightly, your muscles will relax, and your breathing will slow and become quite regular. Your brain wavers slow down a bit too, with the alpha rhythm of rather fast waves predominating for the first few minutes. This is called stage 1 sleep. For the next half hour or so, as you relax more and more, you will drift down through stage 2 and stage 3 sleep. The lower your stage of sleep, the slower your brain waves will be. Then, about 40 to 60 minutes after you lose consciousness, you will have reached the deepest sleep of all. Your brain waves will show the large slow waves that are known as the delta rhythm. This is stage 4 sleep.
You do not remain at this deep fourth stage all night long , but instead about 80 minutes after you fall into slumber, your brain activity level will increase again slightly. The delta rhythm will disappear, to be replaced by the activity pattern of brain waves. Your eyes will begin to dart around under your closed eyelids as if you were looking at something occurring in front of you. This period of rapid eye movement lasts for some 8 to 15 minutes and is called REM sleep. It is during REM sleep that most dreams seem to occur. Provided that you do not wake up during the first REM sleep period,your body will soon relax again, your breathing will grow slow and regular once more, and you will slip gently back from stage 1 to stage 4 sleep---only to rise once again to the surface of near consciousness some 80 minutes later.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
activity : n. 活动,动作,活力
cycle : n. 周期,循环,自行车,一段时间,整套;vi. 循环,轮转,骑自行车;vt. 使循环,使轮转
occur : vi. 发生,想到,存在
average : n. 平均,平均数,海损;a. 一般的,通常的,平均的;vt. 平均为,均分,使平衡;vi. 买进,卖出
drift : n. 漂流物,观望,漂流;vt. vi. (使)漂流
slumber : n. 睡眠,沉睡状态;vi. 熟睡,打盹,蜇伏;vt. 睡着渡过(时间)
roll : n. 卷,滚动,名单,压路机,案卷,翻滚;vi. 滚,滚动,飘流,起伏,绕,卷;vt. 使滚动,卷,绕
slightly : ad. 些微地,苗条地
muscle : n. 肌肉,臂力
relax : vi. 放松,松懈,松弛,变从容,休息,休养;vt. 使松驰,缓和,使松懈,使休息
breathing : n. 呼吸,瞬间,微风;a. 呼吸的,逼真的
alpha : n. 希腊字母的第一个字母,最初,开端
rhythm : n. 旋律,节奏,韵律,匀称,节律
predominate : vt. 掌握,控制,支配;vi. 统治,成为主流
consciousness : n. 意识,知觉,自觉
reach : n. 伸出,延伸,区域,岬,河段,范围;vt. 到达,达到,伸出,延伸,影响;vi. 达到,延伸,伸出手,传开
delta : n. 三角州,希腊字母的第四个字
instead : ad. 改为,抵作,更换,替代
disappear : vi. 消失,不见
pattern : n. 模范,典型,式样,模式,样品,格调,图案;vt. 模仿,仿造,以图案装饰;vi. 形成图案
dart : n. 飞镖,投射;vt. 投射;vi. 疾走,突进
eyelid : n. 眼皮,眼睑
rapid : a. 迅速的,飞快的,急促的,险峻的;n. 急流
REM : rapid eye movement
provided : conj. 倘若
gently : ad. 轻轻地,逐渐地
P3
Before the 1850''s the United States had a number of small colleges ,most of them dating from colonial days .They were small ,church-connected institutions whose primary concern was to shape the moral character of their students .
Throughout Europe ,institutions of higher learning had developed ,bearing the ancient name of university .In Germany a different kind of university had developed . The German university was concerned primarily with creating and spreading knowledge, not morals. Between mid-century and the end of the 1800''s, more than nine thousand young Americans, dissatisfied with their training at home ,went to Germany for advanced study. Some of them returned to become presidents of venerable colleges --- Harvard ,Yale , Columbia --- and transform them into modem universities .The new presidents broke all ties with the churches and brought in a new kind of faculty. Professors were hired for their knowledge of a subject, not because they were of the proper faith and had a strong arm for disciplining students. The new principle was that a university was to create knowledge as well as pass it on, and this called for a faculty composed of teacher-scholars. Drilling and learning by rote were replaced by the German method of lecturing , in which the professor''s own research was presented in class . Graduate training leading to the Ph.D, an ancient German degree signifying the highest level of advanced scholarly attainment ,was introduced .With the establishment of the seminar system, graduate students learned to question ,analyze, and conduct their own research .
At the same time ,the new university greatly expanded in size and course offerings, breaking completely out of the old , constricted curriculum of mathematics ,classics ,rhetoric ,and music . The president of Harvard pioneered the elective system ,by which students were able to choose their own courses of study .The notion of major fields of study emerged .The new goal was to make the university relevant to the real pursuits of the world. Paying close heed to the practical needs of society ,the new universities trained men and women to work at its tasks, with engineering students being the most characteristic of the new regime . Students were also trained as economists ,architects ,agriculturalists ,social welfare workers ,and teachers.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
date : n. 日期,约会,枣椰子;vt. 约会,定日期;vi. 注明日期,过时;n. DOS命令:显示或设置系统日期
colonial : a. 殖民的,殖民地的
connect : vt. vi. 连接,联合,关连
primary : n. 最主要者,原色;a. 主要的,初期的,根本的,首要的,基本的
concern : n. 关心,忧虑;vt. 与...有关,使担心,挂虑
moral : n. 道德,品行,寓意;a. 道德的,品性端正的,良心的
bearing : n. 举止,轴承,忍受,方向,意义,关系,生育
ancient : a. 远古的,旧的
develop : vt. 发展,发达,进步,洗印,显影;vi. 发展,生长
primarily : ad. 主要地,首先地,基本地
spreading : 撒布
dissatisfy : vt. 使感觉不满,不满足
advanced : a. 高等的,在前的,年老的,先进的
venerable : a. 庄严的,值得尊敬的
Harvard : 美国哈佛大学
Yale : n. 耶鲁
Columbia : n. 哥伦比亚
transform : vt. 转换,改变,改造,使...变形;vi. 改变,转化,变换
tie : n. 带子,线,鞋带,不分胜负,关系,领带,领结,平局,束缚;vt. 系,打结,扎,约束,与...成平局;vi. 结合,打结,不分胜负
faculty : n. 才能,能力,全体教员,(大学的)系
hire : n. 租金,租用,雇用;vt. 雇请,出租;vi. 受雇
proper : a. 适当的,高尚的,专属的;ad. 完全地,彻底地
discipline : n. 训练,纪律;vt. 训练,惩罚
principle : n. 原则,原理,主义
compose : vt. 组成,写作,作曲,使平静,编写;vi. 创作,排字
scholar : n. 学者,公费生,有文化者,学习者
drilling : n. 演练
rote : n. 机械性的背诵,反复,死记硬背
lecture : n. 演讲,谴责,教训;vt. 演讲,训诫,说教;vi. 讲演
present : n. 礼物,现在,瞄准;a.现在的,出席的,当面的;vt.介绍,引见,赠送,上演,提出,呈现;vi. 举枪瞄准
signify : vt. 象征,预示;vi. 要紧,重要
attainment : n. 达到
seminar : n. 研究会,讨论发表会
analyze : vt. 分析,分解
conduct : n. 行为,举动,指导;vt.引导,指挥,实施;vi.引导,传导,指挥
expand : vt. 使膨胀,详述,扩张;vi. 张开,发展;v. 展开
constrict : vt. 压缩,束紧,使收缩;vi. 压缩
curriculum : n. 课程
classic : n. 古典作品,杰作,第一流艺术家;a.第一流的,最优秀的,古典的
rhetoric : n. 修辞,修辞学,华丽虚饰的语言
elective : a. 选举的,根据选举的,选任的;n. 选修课程
notion : n. 概念,观念,想法,打算,主张
emerge : vi. 浮现,形成,(由某种状态)脱出,(事实)显现出来
relevant : a. 有关联的,中肯的,有关系的,成比例的,相应的,适当的
pursuit : n. 追踪,追捕,追求,追赶,工作,职业
heed : n. 注意,留心;vt. vi. 注意,留心
characteristic : n. 特性,特征,特色;a. 特性的,本性的,有特色的
regime : n. 政权,当权期间,政体,社会制度
economist : n. 经济学者,经济家
architect : n. 建筑师,设计者,造物主
