美联社新闻一分钟 2006-12-19

1.It appears a body found Sunday in a snow cave on Oregon's Mount Hood¹ is missing hiker Kelly James. Two people close to the case confirmed it's the body of James who placed a distress² call to relatives more than a week ago. Rescuers are focusing their search today on 2 other missing hikers.

2. Robert Gates has been sworn in as secretary of defense³ in a private event at the White House. The former CIA chief now attends a public swearing-in ceremony at the Pentagon where military brass⁴ and senior civilian⁵ officials are eager to see what changes he may bring to the table at a critical point in the Iraq war.

3. Police hunting a suspected prostitute killer⁶ in England have made an arrest. The suspect told a British newspaper that he knew all 5 of the slain⁷ women and had been interviewed 4 times by police.

4. A Hollywood stunt⁸ man suffered serious injuries over the weekend during this public performance in a Shanghai stadium. Known for his work in such Hollywood blockbusters as Men in Black and Taxi Driver, Svarousky Oldrich was hurt when he jumped through fire rings from the top of a moving car. Doctors say he is in critical condition.

WORDS IN THE NEWS


1. hiker : N-COUNT
A hiker is a person who is going for a long walk in the countryside for pleasure.

2. swearing-in : N-SING
The swearing-in at the beginning of a trial or official appointment is the act of making formal promises to fulfill⁹ the duties it involves.

3. brass : N=COUNT
In the army or in other organizations, the brass are the people in the highest positions.(INFORMAL)

4. stunt man : N-COUNT
A stunt man is a man whose job is to do dangerous things, either for publicity¹⁰, or in a film instead of an actor so that the actor does not risk being injured.

5. blockbuster : N-COUNT
A blockbuster is a film or book that is very popular and successful, usually because it is very exciting.

1 hood   

n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖

参考例句：

• She is wearing a red cloak with a hood.她穿着一件红色带兜帽的披风。
• The car hood was dented in.汽车的发动机罩已凹了进去。

2 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 brass   

n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器

参考例句：

• Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。
• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。

5 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

6 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

7 slain   

杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)

参考例句：

• The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。
• His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

8 stunt   

n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长

参考例句：

• Lack of the right food may stunt growth.缺乏适当的食物会阻碍发育。
• Right up there is where the big stunt is taking place.那边将会有惊人的表演。

9 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

10 publicity   

n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告

参考例句：

• The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。