“Waiter, do you serve lobster here?”

　　“We serve anyone; take a seat, please.”

　　這個笑話發生在飯店，顯然服務員與客人之間發生了誤會，而誤會的根源就在serve這個詞上。客人所用的serve的意思是“供應，有沒有…菜”，而服務員所用的serve的意思是“為…提供服務”。

　　無論是英文單詞還是漢語詞語大部分詞都不會一個詞只有一個意思，絕大部分的詞都至少有兩個或是更多的意思。所以在復習單詞時不能只記住一個單詞大致的一到兩個詞義而把其它的忽略不記，造成了只知其一，不知其二的局面。這樣導致無法準確理解該詞在句子中的意思，做起題來自然要出錯。

　　本書第三章詞義關聯的多義詞不僅列出了單詞的各種義項，還在分析考研真題的基礎上標出了哪些義項是已經熟悉的，哪些是不太熟悉而且是難點的，幫助考生避輕就重，對于熟悉的內容可以少花時間，對于難點的內容多下苦功。另外，通過【點睛】幫助學生學會如何發現詞義間的聯系，學會聯想。后面的各個單詞就由考生自己按自己的辦法聯想記憶。記憶單詞的多個詞義也不是一味的死記硬背，而是要注意一個詞各詞義之間的關聯，因為一個詞的多個詞義往往有千絲萬縷的聯系，而且多個詞義是不斷衍生出來的，所以發現關聯，加強聯系，是記憶單詞各種意思的好辦法。

　　abnormal

　　adj. 1.反常的

　　Abnormal human behavior may be caused by eating substances that upset the delicate chemical balance in the brain. 食用能打破大腦微妙化學平衡的東西可能會引起人類的異常行為。(考研真題)

　　2.不規則的，無規律的abnormal bleeding 異常出血

　　【點睛】與此義相近的還有irregular意思是“不規則的，無規律的”，由regular加上表否定義的前綴ir派生而來。

　　【擴展】abnormality n.反常

　　It is not known whether the cancer and chromosomal abnormality(染色體異常)are independent events or whether one is the result of the other.(考研模擬)

　　abroad

　　【點睛】注意與aboard區別，兩個詞拼寫很相似，aboard的意思是“在車、船、飛機上”。

　　adv. 【常見詞義】到國外, 在國外

　　China’s nouveau riche(暴發戶)are spending their holidays abroad in ever increasing numbers.越來越多中國的有錢人到國外度假。

　　They give their owners automatic credit in stores, restaurants, and hotels, at home, across the country, and even abroad, and they make many banking services available as well.(考研真題)無論是在本地，全國亦或國外，只要在商店、飯店使用就自動給卡的主人增加信用分，同時還提供很多銀行服務。

　　Her parents often take trips abroad, leaving her all alone in their big house. 她父母經常去國外旅游，把她一個人留在大房子里。

　　Economic crises in financial capitals abroad will inevitably follow the recent troubles on Wall Street.。國外的經濟危機必然會隨著華爾街近期的金融問題而至。

　　【較難詞義】[正式](謠言、消息等)四下流傳中

　　The king wanted me to keep the secret that his wife was disloyal(不忠)to him, so I would never let it be spread abroad.

　　abrupt

　　【點睛】這個詞的第一個意思很熟悉，但是第二、三個意思卻是考研的難點。如果一個人言談行為比較唐突，別人可能覺得他很粗魯。一個很突兀的山坡自然是陡坡了。

　　adj.【常見詞義】突然的 (unexpected)

　　Transitions should connect one paragraph to the next so that there are no abrupt or confusing shifts.(考研真題)過渡部分應該承上啟下，這樣才不會使文章有突兀的或令人費解的變化。

　　【較難詞義】1.粗魯的 (rude)

　　He is a very fine man even though he’s sometimes abrupt in manner. (考研真題)

　　2.陡峭的 (steep) an abrupt descent陡坡

　　【擴展】abruption n.突然的斷裂 total abruption of all relations徹底斷絕所有關系

　　absorb

　　v.吸引 (fascinate, captivate)

　　The students are absorbed in their studies for the big math exam.

　　People are absorbed into “a culture of consumption” launched by the 19th-century department stores that offered “vast arrays of goods in an elegant atmosphere.”(考研真題)人們被19世紀的商店發起的“消費文化”所吸引。這些商店環境優雅，商品琳瑯滿目。

　　【較難詞義】占去(時間等)(take up)

　　His new girlfriend absorbs most of his time and we rarely see him anymore these days.

　　3.忍受 (bear)

　　The young couple, Tom and his wife, couldn’t absorb the additional financial hardships (困難)of living alone and had to move back home with Tom’s parents.

　　Families have been asked to absorb much more risk in their retirement (退休)income.(考研真題)

　　【擴展】

　　absorption n.吸收

　　absorbent adj.能吸收的 be as absorbent as a sea sponge

　　absorbing adj.吸引人的 General introduction classes such as these will be of absorbing interest to a larger, more diverse audience; specialists on the topic, however, may be bored by these classes. 像這樣的概論課程將吸引眾多形形色色的聽眾，而研究該題目的專家可能會對這類課程感到厭煩。

　　【搭配】be absorbed in 專心于

　　He is often absorbed in business, although he is also periodically(偶爾的)distracted (分神)by his pretty young secretary.