【跟着美剧练发音】第78期

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  World War I, which was fought from 1914 to 1918, was called the War to End All Wars. People thought that it was such a big war that no other wars would need to be fought. Obviously (or clearly), this was wrong. 

  In the 1900s, the United States fought in five wars. After World War I, the United States fought in World War II. The United States didn’t want to fight in that war, but when the Japanese bombed (or dropped weapons or things that would explode on) Pearl Harbor, the country decided¹ that it was time to join the war against Japan, Germany, and Italy. 

  The next war that the United States fought in during the 1900s was the Korean War between 1950 and 1953. North Korea and South Korea were fighting against each other, mostly because North Korea had a communist government and South Korea did not. Soon the United States and the Soviet² Union became involved as an extension (or an additional part) of their Cold War, which was the period of time from the 1940s to the 1990s when the United States and the Soviet Union had many political problems with each other.

  After the Korean War, the United States fought in the Vietnam War from 1959 to 1975. As in the Korean War, the United States was trying to prevent Vietnam from having a communist government, or not let the country have a communist government. The war was very unpopular in the United States, meaning that many people didn’t want the United States to fight this war. Many U.S. soldiers (or the people who fought in the war) died. In the end, the United States lost and Vietnam became a communist country.

  Finally, the last war fought by the United States in the 1900s was the Persian Gulf³ War, which is sometimes just called the Gulf War. This war was fought between Iraq and a coalition⁴ (or group that works together) of 34 countries, but the United States and the United Kingdom were the leaders. The United States’ reason for fighting in the war was to help the country of Kuwait, which had been invaded by Iraqi soldiers, which means that Iraqis had taken control of the country without the Kuwaitis’ permission. However, many Americans think that the Gulf War was really about getting enough oil for the United States and the other coalition countries to use.

 

问题：

Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.

Answer:

• World War I

• World War II

• Korean War

• Vietnam War

• (Persian) Gulf War

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

3 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

4 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。