在解题时可以利用短文第一句和最后一句把握文章主题，找出答题线索。通过对近十年英语知识运用短文首尾两句话的分析与总结发现，虽然只是短短的两句，却包含着非常丰富的信息。
文章开头一句(有时是主题句，有时不是主题句)往往会或多或少地包含以下信息：
what→涉及的事件/事物及其状况或特征
where→地点
when→时间
who→相关的人物
why→相关原因
how→有关的论点
下面是1999年～2008年研究生入学考试英语试卷中使用过的短文的首句，我们把其中分别包含的信息整理如下：
Research on animal intelligence always makes me wonder just how smart humans are.（2009年what，how）
The idea that some groups of people may be more intelligent than others is one of those hypotheses that dare not speak its name.(2008年what，how);
By1830the former Spanish and Portuguese colonies had become independent nations.(2007年when,who,how)；
The homeless make up a growing percentage of America's population.(2006年who,how);
The human nose is an underrated tool.(2005年what,how);
Many theories concerning the causes of juvenile delinguency(crimes committed by young people)focus either on the individual or on society as the major contributing influence.(2004年what,how);
Teachers need to be aware of the emotional,intellectual,and physical changes that young adults experience.(2003年who，how)；
Comparisons were drawn between the development of television in the20th century and the diffusion of printing in the15th and16th centuries.(2002年what，how，when)；
The government is to ban payments to witnesses by newspapers seeking to buy up people involved in prominent cases1the trial of Rosemary West.(2001年who，what，how)；
If a farmer wishes to succeed,he must try to keep a wide gap between his consumption and his production.(2000年who，why，how)；
Industrial safety does not just happen.(1999年what，how)；
从第一句话，我们就能知道这篇短文大概要谈论的内容。
我们再来看看这十篇短文末尾一句的特点。作为全文最后一句，作者通常会把自己的观点加以总结或强化，构成首尾呼应。这样一来，文章保持了一致和连贯，同时也为解题提供了依据。
尾句通常包含以下信息：
conclusion→结论
suggestion→建议或提示
summary→对全文的概括或总结
result→事件发展的结果
influence→事情的影响或后果
下面是历年研究生入学考试英语试卷中使用过的短文的最后一句：
_20the results are inconclusive.（2009年influence）
His argument is that the unusual history of these people has19them to unique evolutionary pressures that have resulted in this20state of affairs.（2008年condusion）
Egalitarian sentiments were often tempered by fears that the mass of the population was20self-rule and democracy.（2007年condusion）
As Edward Blotkowsk...puts it,"There has to be20of programs.What we need is a package deal."(2006年conclusion)
The brain finds it best to keep smell receptors19for unfamiliar and emergency signals20the smell of smoke,which might indicate the danger of fire.(2005年conclusion)
All these conditions tend to increase the probability of a child committing a criminal act,20a direct causal relationship has not yet been established.(2004年conclusion,summary)
38they can help students acquire a sense of commitment by39for roles that are within their40and their attention spans and by having clearly stated rules.（2003年suggestion）
And generalizations have proved difficult.(2002年conclusion)
Concerns were raised19witnesses might be encouraged to exaggerate their stories in court to20guilty verdicts.（2001年result）
Naturally he will try to borrow money at a low9of interest,but loans of this kind are not10obtainable.（2000年result，suggestion）
This may mean the difference between operating at10or at a loss.（1999年influence，suggestion）
由此可见，抓住首尾两句是对文章从语篇层面进行总体把握的关键。
我们遇到一道考题，有时不能简单地说，它是考语法或是考词汇的，往往需要我们运用语法和词汇两方面的知识才能够解答。因此，做好英语知识运用题是建立在能够熟练运用、融会贯通语法、词汇和语篇知识的基础之上的。