如果问你，雅思考什么？同学一定会想到的是，雅思不就是考察我们英语听说读写的能力么。简单了说确实如此。那么为什么我们从小学开始学习的一门语言到了大学，临到出国前还是会给我们造成如此大的困惑呢？为什么中国学生雅思成绩始终在全球非语言国家中排在倒数呢？今天，小编和同学们谈一谈给同学造成困难的关键点——逻辑。
从语言学的角度讲， 英语讲究逻辑，中文讲究感觉；或者说英语是形合，而中文是意合。在我的国内学习生涯中特别记忆深刻的一句话（曾经一个语文老师说的），文章的境界就是“形散神不散”。现在想来，缺乏‘形的合’确实是造成我们中国学生学习英语一大骨子里的障碍。那么什么是“形合”？“形合”说的简单点就是有逻辑。所以雅思考试考什么？除了语言中的词汇和语法，最重要也是最难的就是逻辑了。
从实际运用来看，逻辑词可以帮助推测词义，诸如“我很丑，可是我很…”; 句子中亦是如此，甚至句子与句子的关系也可以从逻辑词推断。所以阅读中碰到逻辑词实在是应该细细研究一番。
由于篇幅有限，今天在文中讨论的主要是在雅思阅读中起到至关重要作用的转折关系逻辑词，特别是同学在理解上容易有偏差的几个。
说起转折，同学们的反应一定是but和However。其实表达转折逻辑关系的词可以分为让步“虽然”一类和转折“但是”一类。
首先是表达让步含义的：though, although, even though/when/if, in spite of, despite, given。
1.Though和although
Though和although 一般做“虽然”引导从句，也就是重心是在主句“但是”上
Getting enough vitamins is essential to life, although the body has no nutritional use for excess vitamins.
2. given
given看起来是个过去分词，但叛变了，多作介词用，given that还可跟从句，所表示的逻辑关系，可顺可反。此处单表反的，即相当于“虽然”句子的重点也都在主句上。
Given that there is a living to be made at night, and given that alternative day time trades are thoroughly occupied, natural selection has favored bats that make a go of the night-hunting trade. (剑桥7, Test1, Passage1)
3.despite 和 in spite of
despite 和in spite of 表达“尽管”，重点也是在主句里。
Yet there is a dark side to this picture: despite our progress, half of the world's population till suffers, with water services inferior to those available to the ancient Greeks and Romans. (剑桥7, Test1, Passage2)
In spite of its importance to our emotional and sensory lives, smell is probably the most undervalued sense in many cultures. (剑桥8, Test2, Passage3)
其次，表达转折含义的：but, however, yet; nevertheless, nonetheless; instead, instead of;not…but, rather than; fortunately, unfortunately; in fact。
4.but, however, yet
but, however, yet 放在句首表示“但是”，这几个词引导的句子都是重点。
The perception of smell,therefore,consists not only of the sensation of the odours themselves, but of the experiences and emotions associated with them. (剑桥8, Test2, Passage3)
这一句是A段的末句，but后的内容其实本段的中心，对应Headings题中viii选项。
5.nevertheless, nonetheless
nevertheless,nonetheless 表示转折，经常用于表达话题的转换。
These attitudes are still with us, and they motivate a widespread concern that linguistic standards should be maintained. Nevertheless, there is an alternative point of view that is concerned less with standards than with the facts of linguistic usage. (剑桥9, Test3, Passage1)
通过nevertheless这个词，得出前一句实为上一段的过渡句，因此nevertheless后面的内容才是本段的核心。
6.instead, instead of. Instead of
区分instead, instead of.
Instead of是介词性，后面跟名词构成介宾短语，大致可说成“不是”，暗示着后面是“而是”。Instead则是一个连接副词，表示两句间关系。
Instead of Mary, who looks great, he chose Helen, she feels good.
他不是选择的看起来好的玛丽，而选择了感觉好的海伦。
He didn’t choose Mary.Instead,he choose Helen.
他没有选择玛丽。相反，他选择了海伦。
7.not…but
not…but, 不是…而是…否定not 后面的肯定but 后面的内容，题往往出在but 后面；rather than 则相反，前面肯定，后面否定
But Salikoko Mufwene, who chairs the Linguistics Department at the University of Chicago, argues that the deadliest weapon is not government policy but economic globalisation. (剑桥4, Test2, Passage1)
8.in fact
in fact 事实上，暗含的意思是要对一些主观的也就是非事实性的猜测进行澄清
Ants have sophisticated methods of farming, including herding livestock and growing crops,which are in many ways similar to those used in human agriculture. The ants cultivate a large number of different species of edible fungi which convert 7 ___into a form which they can digest. They use their own natural8 ______as weed-killers and also use unwanted materials as 9 _____
Genetic analysis shows they constantly upgrade these fungi by developing new species and by 10 _____species with neighbouring ant colonies. In fact,the farming methods of ants could be said to be more advanced than human agribusiness, since they use 11 _____methods, they do not affect the 12 ___ and do not waste 13 ____. (剑桥7, Test3, Passage3, Summary Completion)
在这里是表示要澄清与上文不一致的观点，在原文对应了一个反问句: Or have they? 这一对应是本题的难点。
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