1根據(jù)定義猜測(cè)詞義

如果生詞是句子或段落所解釋的定義，理解句子或段落本身就是推斷詞義。
例如： anthropology is the scientific study of man.

由定義可知，anthropology就是“研究人類的科學(xué)”。

In slang the term "jam" constitutes a state of being in which a person finds himself or herself in a difficult situation.

同樣，從上下文的定義可知jam一詞在俚語(yǔ)中的意思是“困境”。定義句的謂語(yǔ)動(dòng)詞多為：be, mean, deal with, be considered, to be, refer to, be called, be known as, define, represent, signify, constitute等。

2根據(jù)復(fù)述猜測(cè)詞義

雖然復(fù)述不如定義那樣嚴(yán)謹(jǐn)、詳細(xì)，但是提供的信息足以使閱讀者猜出生詞詞義。復(fù)述部分可以適當(dāng)詞、短語(yǔ)或是從句。

同位語(yǔ) Semantics, the study of the meaning of words, is necessary if you are to speak and read intelligently.

此例逗號(hào)中短語(yǔ)意為“對(duì)詞意義進(jìn)行研究的學(xué)科”。該短語(yǔ)與前面生詞semanties式同位關(guān)系，因此我們不難猜出semanties指“語(yǔ)義學(xué)”。

在復(fù)述中構(gòu)成同位關(guān)系的兩部分之間多用逗號(hào)連接，有時(shí)也使用破折號(hào)，冒號(hào)，分號(hào)，引號(hào)，和括號(hào)等。

Capacitance, or the ability to store electric charge, is one of the most common characteristics of electronic circuits.

由同位語(yǔ)我們很快猜出生詞capacitance詞義---電容量。
需要注意的是：同位語(yǔ)前還常有or, similarly, that is to say, in other words, namely, or other, say i. e. 等副詞或短語(yǔ)出現(xiàn)。

定語(yǔ)從句 Krabacber suffers from SAD, which is short for seasonal affective disorder, a syndrome characterized by severe seasonal mood swings.

根據(jù)生詞SAD后面定語(yǔ)從句which is short for seasonal affective disorder和同位語(yǔ)a syndrome characterized by severe seasonal mood swings, 我們可以推斷出 SAD含義，即“季節(jié)性情緒紊亂癥”。

3根據(jù)舉例猜測(cè)詞義

恰當(dāng)?shù)呐e例能夠提供猜測(cè)生詞的重要線索，例如：

The consequences of epochal events such as wars and great scientific discoveries are not confined to a small geographical area as they were in the past.

句中“戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)”和“重大科學(xué)發(fā)現(xiàn)”是生詞的實(shí)例，通過(guò)它們我們可以猜出epochal的大致詞義“重要的”，這與其確切含義“劃時(shí)代的”十分接近。