大家在阅读时会不可防止地遇见些生词，频繁地查字典实在不是一个上策（要了解新托福考试是不容许查字典的），由于，那样即耽误了阅读时间又中断了阅读思路，使大脑处于停机状况，阅读理解的水平当然就会非常差。那又怎么样是好呢？
其实，阅读的目的在于获得整个句子、整个段落、乃至整个篇章的思想，而不是每个孤立的词语的意义。新托福口语考试中的阅读，考查的是考生对段落中心思想整体把握的能力，只须能获得阅读材料的主要信息，并随后可以用我们的话加以陈述，一两个生词不会有哪些大碍。
不能否认，巨大的词语量是优质的阅读和优质的口语的基础。但当遇见生词时总查字典又不现实（尤其是在考试时），那样大家可以借助上下文来推断，看看大家有多大的猜词本领。强大的猜词本领无疑会能够帮助阅读速度和阅读能力的提升。
1．依据概念、讲解猜测词义
We all know that ants are ferocious1 eaters. They differ widely in their diets and may be carnivorous, herbivorous, or omnivorous,meaning that some eat meat; others eat only plants while others eat a combination of both.
由后面的讲解大家可以得知：carnivorous的意思是食肉的；herbivorous的意思是食草的；omnivorous的意思是杂食的。
2．依据复述（同位语、定语等）
Today, Id like to talk about some of the changes land can undergo, specifically desertification, process through which land becomes part of a desert.
后面的同位语告诉大家desertification的意思是沙漠化。Since the fossil of the Anchaeopteryx, the first bird, was discovered in Germany in 1861, there has been continuous disagreement as to whether or not it could actually fly. Anchaeopteryx the first bird: 始祖鸟
3．依据举例
After breakfast, many people go to church; but the children will be playing with their new toys, and the mother will probably be preparing the Christmas dinner. This includes poultry2 for the main course , salads, breads, and vegetable, and features a variety of desserts, for example, pies, puddings, and ice cream.
chicken, turkey, duck, goose同属poultry：家禽。
4．依据对比关系
Jane was talking with others while Eliza remained reticent3 all the time.
while是一个显示对比的信号词，reticent与talking相对应，reticent：沉默的。
Most of us agreed; however, Bill dissented4.
agreed与dissented形成对比。
5．依据比喻关系
The hot-air balloon took off. It was as buoyant in the air as a cork5 in water.
把热气球比作水中的软木塞，说明buoyant 的意义：漂浮；浮力。
6．依据近义词的替代
Venus rotates retrograde, or backwards, spinning in the opposite direction of its orbit around the Sun.
由backwards这一替代词得知retrograde的意思：向后的。
7．有时也可依据一般两性知识/生活经验猜测词义
The door was so low that I hit my head on the lintel.
门太低，我的头撞在lintel门楣上了。
He got on the motorbike, I sat behind him on the pillion, and we roared off into the night.
由经验得知pillion是motorbike的后座、后鞍。
8．也可依据词形架构猜测词义
More recently, scientists have documented an alarmingly high occurrence of frogs with malformations.
form是词根, formation形式，mal-:构词前缀，可表示坏、恶、不好的，还可表示不、不正常、不当、非法。malformation的意思就应该是畸形。更多的例子如：malnutrition: 营养不好的；malconduct:（公职职员的）妄作胡为；maladjustive: 引起失调的；不利调节的。
当然，要想做到这一点，就需要学会英语常见的前缀、后缀及词根的意义。
