【解答】英検2級朝活ミニテスト第48回

A

語彙・熟語（大問1形式）

目安 2分30秒

空所に入れるのに最も適切なものを1つ選びなさい。

(1)The town's population has been () for years because young people move to big cities to find jobs.

正解は① shrinking「縮小する・減少する」。若者が出ていく→人口が「減る」。expanding は逆。誤答：②printing「印刷する」③floating「浮かぶ」④expanding「拡大する」

訳：若者が仕事を求めて大都市へ移るため、その町の人口は何年も減り続けている。

(2)The town hopes that the new festival will () the local economy by attracting tourists.

正解は② boost「活性化する・押し上げる」。boost the economy で「経済を活性化する」。誤答：①resign「辞職する」③dissolve「溶かす」④forbid「禁止する」

訳：町は新しい祭りが観光客を呼び込み、地域経済を活性化することを期待している。

(3)The village is famous for its () scenery, with rice fields and mountains that change color every season.

正解は② spectacular「壮観な・見事な」。spectacular scenery で「壮大な景色」。誤答：①anxious「不安な」③punctual「時間を守る」④jealous「嫉妬深い」

訳：その村は、季節ごとに色を変える田んぼと山々が織りなす見事な景色で有名だ。

(4)Local farmers () a new brand of rice to sell to restaurants in Tokyo.

正解は③ brought out「〜を発売した」。bring out a new brand で「新ブランドを売り出す」。誤答：①looked up to「〜を尊敬した」②ran into「〜に偶然出会った」④took after「〜に似ていた」

訳：地元の農家は、東京のレストランに売るための新しいブランド米を発売した。

(5)Young people in the town are working hard to () the tradition of the festival, which has been held for 300 years.

正解は④ carry on「～を続ける、受け継ぐ」。300年続く伝統を「続ける」。誤答：①run over「〜をひく」②take after「〜に似ている」③make up for「〜を埋め合わせる」

訳：町の若者たちは、300年続いてきた祭りの伝統を受け継ごうと懸命に努力している。

B

長文読解（大問3形式）

目安 4分

Hometown Tax Donations

Many rural towns in Japan are facing population decline and financial difficulties. As young people move to big cities for education and jobs, these towns receive less tax money, even though they still have to provide services for their residents, many of whom are elderly. To help such towns, the government introduced a system called furusato nozei, or hometown tax donation, in 2008.

Under this system, people can donate money to any local government they choose and receive a reduction in their own taxes. In return, many towns send gifts such as local rice, fruit, or seafood. The system has become very popular, and the total amount of donations has grown to more than one trillion yen a year. This has helped towns earn money and make their local products known across the country. Some donors even visit the towns that they have supported.

However, the system has also been criticized. Competition among towns to offer attractive gifts became so intense that some towns offered gift cards and products that had nothing to do with their area. As a result, the government introduced rules in 2019 limiting the value of gifts to 30 percent of the donation. Critics also point out that big cities where many donors live lose a large amount of tax income, which they need for their own services.

(6)Why do many rural towns have financial difficulties?

正解は④。第1段落に As young people move to big cities ... these towns receive less tax money とある。①は本文に記述がない。②は本文に記述がない。③は若者は都市へ出て行っているとあり、本文と逆。

(7)What is one effect of furusato nozei?

正解は②。第2段落に helped towns earn money and make their local products known across the country とある。①は寄付者は税金が減額されるとあり、本文と逆。③は本文に記述がない。④は返礼品の価値に上限が設けられただけで、やめさせられたわけではない。

(8)Why did the government introduce new rules in 2019?

正解は④。第3段落に Competition among towns to offer attractive gifts became so intense ... As a result, the government introduced rules とある。①は寄付者の要望という記述はない。②は大都市はむしろ税収を失っているとあり、誤り。③は地域と無関係な品を送る町もあったというだけで、地元産品を送っていなかったわけではない。

C

リスニング（Part1 会話形式）

目安 2分

🎧 音声は1回だけ（本番と同じ）。質問も音声で流れます。 ▶ 音声はQRコードからアプリで再生： https://www.haradaeigo.com/scbt/asakatsu/g2-48/

(9)No. 1

正解は②。The town offered cheap housing to young families の言い換え。

(10)No. 2

正解は②。We had to buy a car より（buy→purchase）。

📜 スクリプト

M Hi, Ms. Kato. I heard you moved to a small town in Nagano last spring.

W Yes. The town offered cheap housing to young families, so we decided to move from Tokyo.

M How do you like it?

W I love it. The air is clean, and my children can play outside safely. But there are only two buses a day.

M That must be inconvenient.

W It is. We had to buy a car, but it was worth it.

D

スピーキング（面接No.4形式）

35秒

Do you think more young people will move to the countryside in the future?

💡 Thanks to ～（～のおかげで）で社会の変化を理由にすると、将来予測の質問に答えやすい。

模範解答

Yes. I think more young people will live in the countryside. Thanks to the Internet, many people can work from home. Also, living costs are much lower in rural areas, so it is easier to raise children there.

はい。地方に住む若者は増えると思います。インターネットのおかげで、多くの人が在宅で働けます。また、地方は生活費がずっと安いので、子育てもしやすいです。