1）主題句在段首。
一個主題句常常是一個段落的開頭，其后的句子則是論證性細節(jié)。例如，你外出旅行，回到家一進門你就說："這次旅行真倒霉".這句話就可視為一個主題句，它是你接下來將要說的整段話的主要意思所在。在這第一句之后你會說出許多細節(jié)來說明你這次旅行為什么倒霉。在論說文，科技文獻和新聞報道中多采用這種格式。
有些段落，在主題句后面有明顯的引出細節(jié)的信號詞。常見的信號詞有for example，an example of，the most important example of；first，second，next，last，finally；to begin with，also，besides that；one ； the other，some，others，等等。在閱讀中應盡量利用上述信號詞來確定主題句的位置。
例如：
People have different tastes in food. Some feel that they haven't eaten a meal unless they have had steak or other red meat. Some prefer chicken or fish and eat one or the other at every meal. Others prefer vegetables and fruits or grains and would enjoy a meal of spaghetti, eggplant, and fresh fruit. Others could live on what were called fast——foods: a hamburger or hot dog, French fries and a soft drink.
Which of the following statements best expresses the main idea of the paragraph?
A. Some people like steak and others red meat.
B. Vegetables are very healthy for you.
C. How food is prepared has a lot to do with how well a person may like it.
D. Different people have different tastes in food.
這段文章的第一句就是主題句，確切地表明了本段的中心思想。因此D為正確答案。
請閱讀下列短文并找出主題句
Africa——The fight against starvation in six West African nations is being hampered by the rainy
season. Heavy rains are turning the dirt roads into muddy rivers. Relief will have to wait for a dry spell which seems nowhere in sight. The weather bureau is maintaining silence for fear of causing increased alarm.
London's weather is strange. It can rain several times a day; each time the rain may come suddenly after the sun is shining brightly. The air is damp and chill right through July. On one March afternoon Hampton Heath last year, it rained three times, there was one hailstorm, and the sun shone brilliantly—— all this within two hours' time. It is not unusual to see men and women rushing down the street on a sunny morning with umbrellas on their arms. No one knows what the next few moments will bring.
Surviving in the jungle is a science. The jungle people have become perfect in this science, and you can too. Learn as much as you can about what to expect in the jungle. Make sure you have the jungle. Make sure you have the right equipment. Then no part of the jungle will seem completely unfriendly or frightening. In fact you will be able to "live off" it for a long time.
Perhaps more than any other people Americans have come to depend on their cars. The family car has been a common thing since early 20th century, and it has changed American life. Many people have moved outside of the large cities to the suburbs Some Americans spend two hours a day or more in their cars going to work and home again. Cars have become the means of transportation for most Americans.
很顯然，上面四篇短文的第一句都是主題句。
（2）主題句在段尾。
雖然英語段落的主體旬在大多數(shù)情況下都置于段落之首，但也有時出現(xiàn)在段落之末。因此，如果第一句話不是概括性的或綜合性的話，快速讀一讀段落的最后一個句子，看看它是否具備主題句的特征：如果它具備主題句的特征，短文的主題思想就很容易確定了。
一般說來，當一種觀點不易向人解釋清楚，或不易被人接受時，主題句便會到段落的末尾才出現(xiàn)。當作者想要說服讀者聽信其言時，一般采用此格式組織句子。通常似乎有這樣一種傾向：人們只對自己了解的新思想新觀點才考慮接受它。換句話說，只有在聽了對某一新思想新觀點的細節(jié)解釋說明之后，人們才可能接受它。有些文章以列舉事實依據(jù)開頭，通過論證，最后講出作者自己所闡述的核心論點。
在做閱讀理解試題時，要充分利用引出結論的信號詞，如clearly，plainly；so，therefore，thus，consequently；In conclusion，in short等來確定主題句的位置在段尾。當無明顯的此類信號同時，可添加一個引出結論的信號詞以確定主題句是否是段落的最后一句話。
例如：
Americans might be embarrassed because their Japanese friends are so formal with them. Japanese might feel insulted because American acquaintances greet them casually. Still, the forms of greeting in both countries only show respect for others. It just happens that Americans and Japanese have a different way of looking at human relationships and thus have a different way of showing respect.
This passage mainly tells us_________.
A. how Americans show respect to others
B. how Japanese show respect to their American acquaintances
C. Americans and Japanese have different ways of showing respect
D. Japanese are not satisfied with American casual behavior
這一篇短文前幾句只講述了具體情況，均不具備主題句的特征，只有最后一句話是概括性的、總結性的，因此本段的最后一句是主題句，故正確答案是D.
一個主題句常常是一個段落的開頭，其后的句子則是論證性細節(jié)。例如，你外出旅行，回到家一進門你就說："這次旅行真倒霉".這句話就可視為一個主題句，它是你接下來將要說的整段話的主要意思所在。在這第一句之后你會說出許多細節(jié)來說明你這次旅行為什么倒霉。在論說文，科技文獻和新聞報道中多采用這種格式。
有些段落，在主題句后面有明顯的引出細節(jié)的信號詞。常見的信號詞有for example，an example of，the most important example of；first，second，next，last，finally；to begin with，also，besides that；one ； the other，some，others，等等。在閱讀中應盡量利用上述信號詞來確定主題句的位置。
例如：
People have different tastes in food. Some feel that they haven't eaten a meal unless they have had steak or other red meat. Some prefer chicken or fish and eat one or the other at every meal. Others prefer vegetables and fruits or grains and would enjoy a meal of spaghetti, eggplant, and fresh fruit. Others could live on what were called fast——foods: a hamburger or hot dog, French fries and a soft drink.
Which of the following statements best expresses the main idea of the paragraph?
A. Some people like steak and others red meat.
B. Vegetables are very healthy for you.
C. How food is prepared has a lot to do with how well a person may like it.
D. Different people have different tastes in food.
這段文章的第一句就是主題句，確切地表明了本段的中心思想。因此D為正確答案。
請閱讀下列短文并找出主題句
Africa——The fight against starvation in six West African nations is being hampered by the rainy
season. Heavy rains are turning the dirt roads into muddy rivers. Relief will have to wait for a dry spell which seems nowhere in sight. The weather bureau is maintaining silence for fear of causing increased alarm.
London's weather is strange. It can rain several times a day; each time the rain may come suddenly after the sun is shining brightly. The air is damp and chill right through July. On one March afternoon Hampton Heath last year, it rained three times, there was one hailstorm, and the sun shone brilliantly—— all this within two hours' time. It is not unusual to see men and women rushing down the street on a sunny morning with umbrellas on their arms. No one knows what the next few moments will bring.
Surviving in the jungle is a science. The jungle people have become perfect in this science, and you can too. Learn as much as you can about what to expect in the jungle. Make sure you have the jungle. Make sure you have the right equipment. Then no part of the jungle will seem completely unfriendly or frightening. In fact you will be able to "live off" it for a long time.
Perhaps more than any other people Americans have come to depend on their cars. The family car has been a common thing since early 20th century, and it has changed American life. Many people have moved outside of the large cities to the suburbs Some Americans spend two hours a day or more in their cars going to work and home again. Cars have become the means of transportation for most Americans.
很顯然，上面四篇短文的第一句都是主題句。
（2）主題句在段尾。
雖然英語段落的主體旬在大多數(shù)情況下都置于段落之首，但也有時出現(xiàn)在段落之末。因此，如果第一句話不是概括性的或綜合性的話，快速讀一讀段落的最后一個句子，看看它是否具備主題句的特征：如果它具備主題句的特征，短文的主題思想就很容易確定了。
一般說來，當一種觀點不易向人解釋清楚，或不易被人接受時，主題句便會到段落的末尾才出現(xiàn)。當作者想要說服讀者聽信其言時，一般采用此格式組織句子。通常似乎有這樣一種傾向：人們只對自己了解的新思想新觀點才考慮接受它。換句話說，只有在聽了對某一新思想新觀點的細節(jié)解釋說明之后，人們才可能接受它。有些文章以列舉事實依據(jù)開頭，通過論證，最后講出作者自己所闡述的核心論點。
在做閱讀理解試題時，要充分利用引出結論的信號詞，如clearly，plainly；so，therefore，thus，consequently；In conclusion，in short等來確定主題句的位置在段尾。當無明顯的此類信號同時，可添加一個引出結論的信號詞以確定主題句是否是段落的最后一句話。
例如：
Americans might be embarrassed because their Japanese friends are so formal with them. Japanese might feel insulted because American acquaintances greet them casually. Still, the forms of greeting in both countries only show respect for others. It just happens that Americans and Japanese have a different way of looking at human relationships and thus have a different way of showing respect.
This passage mainly tells us_________.
A. how Americans show respect to others
B. how Japanese show respect to their American acquaintances
C. Americans and Japanese have different ways of showing respect
D. Japanese are not satisfied with American casual behavior
這一篇短文前幾句只講述了具體情況，均不具備主題句的特征，只有最后一句話是概括性的、總結性的，因此本段的最后一句是主題句，故正確答案是D.