我们引用2002年试题为例。

　　On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln went to Gettysburg in Pennsylvania to speak at the National Soldiers Cemetery. The Civil War was still going on. There was much criticism of President Lincoln at the time. He was not at all popular. He had been invited to speak at Gettysburg only out of politeness. The principal speaker was to be Edward Everett, a famous statesman and speaker of the day. Everett was a handsome man and very popular everywhere.

　　It is said that Lincoln prepared his speech on the train while going to Gettysburg. Late that night, alone in his hotel room and tired out, he again worked briefly on the speech. The next day Everett spoke first. He spoke for an hour and 57 minutes. His speech was a perfect example of the rich oratory of the day. Then Lincoln rose. The crowd of 15,000 people at first paid little attention to him. He spoke for only nine minutes. At the end there was little applause. Lincoln turned to a friend and remarked , "I have failed again." On the train back to Washington, he said sadly, "That speech was a flat failure, and the people are disappointed."

　　Some newspapers at first criticized the speech. But little by little as people read the speech they began to understand better. They began to appreciate its simplicity and its deep meaning. It was a speech which only Abraham Lincoln could have made.

　　Today, every American school child learns Lincoln's Gettysburg Address by heart. Now everyone thinks of it as one of the greatest speeches ever given in American history.

　　文章的最后一题是：

　　Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

　　A. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address has deep meaning.

　　B. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is simple in style.

　　C. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is memorized by every American schoolchild.

　　D. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is the greatest speech ever delivered in the United States.

　　答案可以在文章的第三段和第四段找到。“他的演讲含义深刻、风格简朴；如今美国所有的在校的学生都能背诵他的演讲”；文章中他谈到：“现在所有的人都认为他的演讲是美国历史上最好的演讲之一。”而不是美国最好的演讲。所以D是错误的。

　　(3) 推理性试题常见提问方式及答题技巧

　　推理性试题大多含有infer ,imply ,suggest ,conclude,(most)probably等关键词。以下是一些常见的提问方式：

　　It can be inferred from the passage that _____.

　　The passage implies that _____.

　　The passage suggests that _____.

　　What is implied in the passage?

　　The paragraph following (proceeding) this passage probably will discuss (discusses)_____.

　　推理性试题不能从文章中直接找到答案。解这类题需要考生在正确理解原文语言字面意义的基础上，运用逻辑推理的方法去理解文章字里行间的意义。对原文中找到的所有相关信息要进行仔细分析，摸清它们相互之间时间、方位、因果、对比等逻辑关系，在此基础上进行综合推理，选定答案。

　　我们仍以2002年试题中的阅读理解文章为例。

　　On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln went to Gettysburg in Pennsylvania to speak at the National Soldiers Cemetery. The Civil War was still going on. There was much criticism of President Lincoln at the time. He was not at all popular. He had been invited to speak at Gettysburg only out of politeness. The principal speaker was to be Edward Everett, a famous statesman and speaker of the day. Everett was a handsome man and very popular everywhere.