指代题是新托福阅读考试中重要的一种题型，每次出现3-5题。指代题在出题时题目方式为The word X in the passage refers to
指代题的答题步骤如下：
第一步：阅读代词所在句及前一句
第二步：关注其中名词概念
第三步：套用指代模式确定被指代对象
第四步：代入上下文验证答案
指代分为以下几种类型：
第一：同位指代
同位指代是指对前面一句句子中的名词作进一步的解释，它可以是单词、短语或从句，同位指代二者是指同一人/物，可以省略其一，句子意义仍然完整。
例如：As the snow is deeper and lasts longer in the valleys, trees tend to attain greater heights on the ridges, even though they are more exposed to high-velocity winds and poor, thin soils there.
The word they in the passage refers to
A. valleys
B. trees
C. heights
D. ridges
首先根据题干我们可以看出此题中考查的是人称代词they的指代内容;然后在文中定位到阴影they所在句子。而我们都知道在主从句中，从句的代词主语通常指代主句的名词主语，而主句的代词主语通常指代从句的名词主语，因此我们可以初步得出答案为trees;把trees放回原文利用语法检查，它能够使句子表达通顺，因此可以确定正确答案为trees。
同位指代的内容通常会被变形为some, other X、one X, another X、many/ most/ much X, other X
第二：相邻指代
即为代词(尤其关系代词)一般指代离它最近的名词或代词。相邻指代一般都是相邻感强的代词：this/ these/ its/ theirs或者指代前方整体的代词：this/ that/ which或者为前方概念的同位解释或别称。
例如：For example, as the great ice sheets that covered North America during the last ice age steadily melted away, huge volumes of water flowed from them. The water was always laden with pebbles, gravel, and sand, known as glacial outwash, that was deposited as the flow slowed down.
The phrase “glacial outwash” in the passage refers to
A. Fast rivers
B. Glaciers
C. The huge volumes of water created by glacial melting
D. The particles carried in water from melting glaciers
首先根据题干我们可以看出此题中考查的是glacial outwash指代内容;然后在文中定位到glacial outwash阴影所在句子，根据就近原则搜索，我们会发现指代内容在代词之前出现，并且与代词在同一句子中，“pebbles, gravel, and sand”可以初步定为答案;把“pebbles, gravel, and sand”放回原文检查，语法正确并且符合语义和逻辑，因此可以确定正确答案为The particles carried in water from melting glaciers.
第三：连环指代
African American artists of this period set about creating a new portrayal of themselves and their lives in the United States. As they began to strive for social and cultural independence, their attitudes toward themselves changed, and, to some extent, other segments of American society began to change their attitudes towards them.
The word “them” in this paragraph refers to
A. American of European descent
B. paintings
C. African American artists
D. attitudes
首先根据题干我们可以看出此题中考查的是them指代内容;然后在文中定位到them阴影所在句子，文章说他们对自己的态度变了，其他部分的美国社会开始改变对他们的态度。“他们”这个词在这段指非洲裔的美国艺术家，所以答案就选择C。
第四：抽象指代具体
抽象指代具体是指原文中一抽象的内容指代具体的内容。指代词通常是that/ which/ who/ whose + 定语从句that/ which/ who/ whose = N.
例如：When growing on rock surfaces, lichens secrete acids that dissolve the minerals, contributing to the process of weathering by which rocks are slowly turned to soil.
The word “which” in the passage refers to
A. the process of weathering
B. growing on rock surfaces
C. dissolving the minerals
D. being turned to soil
在这个句子当中考察的是which指代的对象，which在该句子中是关系代词，其先行词是the process of weathering，所以这道题目的答案就是A。
以上是做指代题目的基本思路及方法，建议大家多加练习，就可以从容应对该类型的题目。