UNIT 9
HOTHOUSE
EARTH
NEW WORDS
issue,bring out (esp,sth,printed
and /or official) for the notice of the
public 发布,发行
-----The school issued a statement
about its plans to the press.
-----The newsletter (简报 ) is issued
three times a year.
-----The Ministry of Finance has
decided to issue new government
bonds (债券 ).
1,the supply or release of items for use or
sale发给 ; 发行
2,an important topic for discussion or
argument(有争议的 )重大问题,议题 )
environmental/scientific/ethical (道德的 )/
personal/family issues
The group has prepared a report on the
issues of management and staff training.
The burning issue (当务之急 ) is whether we
should buy a new car.
severe,1,very bad,serious严重的
2,(of people or their behaviour) strict or
harsh 严格的 ; 严厉的
---Don't be so severe with children.
----The blast (爆炸 ) caused severe
damage and heavy loss of life,
---He's suffering from a severe leg
injury.
fuel:n,v.supply (sth.) with fuel; be
supplied with fuel (向 …) 供燃料 ; (给 …) 加油
---Coal is one of the cheapest fuels.
--- Our heating system is fueled (=
its power is provided ) by gas.
---It's amazing that some planes
can fuel up in mid air.
If something fuels a situation
that is already difficult or
unpleasant,it makes the situation
worse.
----This budget (预算 ) fuels
inflation (通货膨胀 ).
----The attempts to stop the strike
only fueled the workers'
resentment.
.
global,1,of or concerning the whole
earth 2,of,related to,or concerning all
or almost all possible considerations总括的,综合的
---AIDS is a problem which needs a
global response.
---We need to take a global view of the
situation.
---The report gives a global picture of
the company's finances.
pattern,a way in which sth,
happens,moves,develops or is
arranged 型式,模式
----Romantic (爱情的 ) novels tend to
follow a set pattern.
-----The pattern of family life has
been changing over recent years.
annual:
----an annual event/festival
convention / (会议 )/ show/visit/holiday
----Steel output reached an annual
figure of one million tons.
----Companies publish annual reports
to inform the public about the
previous year's activity.
swell:cause to) become greater in
amount or volume; increase (使 )上涨 ;
(使 )增长
----Heavy rain in the last few weeks
has swelled the rivers and lakes (=
caused the amount of water in them to
increase).
----The extra sales in the US will
swell (= cause to increase) this year's
profits to $78 million.
Compare,swell,expand
Swell implies gradual expansion
beyond the original normal
limits or size; expand may apply
whether the increase comes from
within or without and regardless
of manner,whether by growth,
unfolding,spreading,or
opening.
------It was obvious she had broken
her toe,because it immediately started
to swell.
-----The grains of rice swell as they
absorb water.
-----Our business has expanded with
every passing year.
--They expanded their retail
operations significantly during the
80's.
considerable,great in amount or
size; of noticeable importance 相当多的,相当大的 ; 相当重要的
The fire caused considerable
damage to the church.
He has considerable influence with
the president.
release,1,allow (sth.) to fly,fall,
etc,freely
----High-pressure gas could be
released by pulling a trigger (闸柄 ).
-----It came quite close to
releasing radioactivity (放射线 )
into the environment.
2,set free; allow to go 释放；解放
---The terrorists released a
kidnapped ( 被绑架的 ) politician.
---He was released from prison
after serving a five-year-sentence.
----The medicine released him from
years of pain (= It stopped him
suffering pain.).
visible,1,that can be seen 2,
noticeable to the mind 明显的,显然的
----These tiny creatures (生物 ) are
hardly visible to the naked eyes.
-----You should wear something light
when you're cycling at night so that
you're more visible.
----There are few visible signs of the
illness that kept her in hospital for so
long.
absorb,1,take in 吸收 (水、热、光等 )
2,take up all the attention,interest,
time,etc.,of 吸引 (注意 ),使专注
---Frogs absorb water through their
skins.
---The rocks absorb more energy
than they reflect.
---An aeroplane over White Lake
Cottage completely absorbed
everyone's attention.
phenomenon:
---Gravity is a natural
phenomenon.
---There's evidence to suggest that
child-abuse (虐待儿童 ) is not just a
recent phenomenon.
---The employment problem tends
to be a city phenomenon.
nevertheless,in spite of that;
however
---There was no news,
nevertheless we went on
hoping.
---I disagreed with
everything she said,but she's
a very good speaker
nevertheless.
accumulation:积累，积聚
Accumulation is the collecting
together of things over a period of
time.
the accumulation of wealth
an accumulation of facts
drought:
--Local problems include diseases
and periodic droughts.
---In recent years,drought has
damaged the harvest,increasing the
amount of grain the country needs
to import.
likewise,1,also; in addition 也，
又
2,in the same way; similarly
同样的
----The food was excellent,(and)
likewise the wine.
----He is relaxing and invites them
to do likewise.
substantial:1,large in amount or
value; considerable 2,concerning the
most important part or meaning 基本上 ; 大体上
--She will receive a substantial
amount of money.
----She inherited a substantial fortune
from her grandmother.
The findings show a substantial
difference between the opinions of
men and women.
At the end of the meeting,we were
in substantial agreement (= we
agreed about most things that we had
discussed).
community,1.(由同住一地区或一国的人所构成的 )社会 ; 社区
2.团体 ; 界
---Members are drawn from all
sections of the local community
---There's a large
black/white/Jewish community
living in this area.
EEC----European Economic
Community
-----Drug trafficking (贩毒 ) is a
matter of considerable concern for
the entire international community
(= all the countries in the world).
maintain,1,express firmly or stick
to one's point 坚称 ; 断言
---He maintained that he had never
seen the woman before.
--The economist maintained that the
region's economies will keep on
booming.
----The accused official
maintained that the house was a
personal gift from a generous
friend.
---Throughout his prison sentence,
Jonn has always maintained his
innocence (清白 ).
2,keep up; retain 维持 ; 保持
---With a new-born baby,he's
under pressure to find a good
job to maintain his family.
---Despite living in different
countries,the two families
have maintained close links.
--The film has maintained its
position as the critics’ favorite
for another year.
---The spokesman declared
that the government was fully
capable of maintaining the
value of its currency.
diminish,(cause to) become less (使 )缩减；
(使 )变小 ; 减少
Compare,diminish,decrease,and
reduce
Diminish emphasizes taking away
from the whole by some external
agent; decrease suggests a growing
gradually smaller in size,volume,or
number; reduce implies a lowering,or
bringing down.
---There is nothing you can say
that will diminish her resolve (决心 ).
---He says that in his opinion the
influence of the church has been
slowly diminishing for many years.
----Our share of the market has
decreased sharply this year.
----His interest in the subject
gradually decreases.
---The publisher has decreased his
involvement in the children's books.
--The plane reduced speed as it
approached the airport.
---I reduced my weight by going on a
diet.
threat,
----He felt that I was becoming a
real threat to his plans.
---Drunken drivers pose a
serious threat (= cause a lot of
harm) to road users.
----Under threat of death,he
confessed.
comparison:比较,对照
--They made a comparison of
different countries' eating habits
and lifestyles (= showed how
they were different).
--She drew a comparison
between life in the army and life
in prison (= showed how they
were similar in some ways).
temporary,lasting for a
limited time only
----The ceasefire will only
provide a temporary solution
to the crisis.
---The company has a large
workforce of permanent and
temporary staff.
harsh,severe; stern 严酷的 ; 严厉的
A condition or way of life that
is harsh is severe or difficult for
people to cope with; and
behavior or actions that are
harsh are unkind,unnecessarily
severe and show no
understanding or sympathy.
His family wouldn't survive
the harsh winter.
The children had had a harsh
upbringing/life/father.
We thought the punishment
was rather harsh for such a
minor offence,
account:(for) explain the
cause of 说明 … 的原因，解释
His illness accounts for his
absence.
He has to account to his boss
for (= tell his boss about and
explain) all his movements.
----Mismanagement was
believed to account for the
failure of the company.
---Depression alone couldn't
very well account for his
strange behavior last night.
2.a written or spoken report;
description 报道 ; 叙述
She gave a thrilling account of
her life in the jungle (丛林 ).
He kept a detailed account of the
suspect's movements.
There were accounts of the
incident in the paper.
tackle,try to deal with 着手处理,对付
If you tackle a difficult problem or
task,you deal with it in a very
determined or efficient way,and if
you tackle someone about
something,you speak to them
frankly about it,esp,in order to try
and persuade them to change their
mind.
---I don't think I can tackle
this job until next week.
---I tackled him about his
careless work and frequent
absences.
revise:
----His publisher forced him to
revise his manuscript (手稿 ) three
times.
-----The book has sold a half-
million copies since it was revised
last year.
----What he did yesterday has made
me revise my original impression of
him.
definite,clear,sure and fixed
确切的,确定的
-----There's a definite date for
the wedding.
----The trip is now definite
---There's been a definite
improvement in your English
since you arrived.
era,1,时代 ; 年代 2,纪元
---The fall of the Berlin Wall
marked the end of an era.
----They had worked for
peace during the long era
of conflict.
the Victorian age
the Stone age
the modern age
the nuclear age
digital age
NEW PHRASES
warn of/about,
---There were signs warning of fog
as soon as we got onto the
motorway.
----I did warn you of possible
failure.
---The police warned shopkeepers
about the forged banknotes (伪钞 ).
dry up,(cause to) become
completely dry (使 )干涸
---There was a lack of clean
water— the long drought had dried
up all the wells.
---My mouth always dries up when
I'm nervous.
warn against,advise (sb.) to avoid
警告 (…) 不要,提醒 (…) 提防
----I was warned against going to
the east coast because it was so full
of tourists.
----The doctor warned us against
overtiring the patient.
---He warned us against pickpockets.
---The computer expert warned the
users against the visit from hackers.
---When the scholar warned against
(= warn of) the danger of the ever
increasing population in the 1950s,
he was severely criticized.
heat up:
---Shall I heat up some soup for lunch?
----Some cold meat was all I could find in
my kitchen,I heated it up and had it for
supper.
---The pie has already been cooked— it just
needs heating up.
----The office will soon heat up.
---The air over the lake heats up in the
daytime.
pass through:
---He then passed quickly through the
crowd.
---Some refugees jumped on the train
as it passed through East Germany.
----We're not staying in the town; we're
just passing through.
---I've passed through Suzhou on my
way to Nanjing,but have never stayed
there,
hold in:
---hold in one's feeling/temper
/anger (= prevent oneself from
expressing them)
---Don't feel you have to hold
pain in (= feel pain without
talking about it or showing it)—
cry if you want to.
shut in,You shut a person or an
animal in when you put them in a
place that they can't escape from.
----She shut herself in the bathroom
and wept.
----The old lady has been shut in the
house for years because of her bad
leg.
When someone or something is
shut in,they are surrounded
closely by something,
---The ancient building was shut
in by trees.
---We're shut in (= surrounded)
by the hills here.
due to,caused by 由于
----The fire was due to a faulty wire in
a plug (插头 ).
-----Over 40 percent of deaths were
due to this disease.
-----The report warned of increasing
human health risks due to poor
environmental conditions.
ups and downs:起伏
Something goes through a series
of ups and downs when it goes
through alternating periods of
success and failure.
----As a great statesman,Churchill
also had his ups and downs in his
political career.
----There have been many ups and
downs in their marriage,but they
still love each other.
----He stuck by her through all
life's ups and downs.
by comparison,when compared 比较起来
----By comparison with the French,
the British eat far less fish.
-----The tallest buildings in
London are small in comparison
with those in New York.
----He made me look,in
comparison,a good,calm,
reasonable person.
even so:
---There are many spelling mistakes;
even so it's quite a good essay.
---An immediate interest (利率 ) cut
might give a small boost to the
economy,Even so (= Despite this),
any recovery is likely to be very slow.
explain away,account for; give an
excuse for 解释 ; 为 … 辩解
---The young man tried to explain
away the missing money,but no
one believed his story.
---He explained away his late
arrival by blaming it on the
crowded roads.
---I don't know how you're going to
explain away the dent (凹痕 ) you
made in your dad’s car (= avoid
blame for it by making it seem
unimportant or not your fault).
---You will find it difficult to
explain away your use of such
offensive language (无礼的语言 ).
keep an eye open for,watch
for; be careful to notice
-- You'll have to keep your
eyes open for trouble tonight.
---I've lost my ring— would
you keep an eye open for it
when you clean the house?
La
ngu
age
p
oin
ts
1) scientists warned against
treating it as a cry of wolf --
scientists warned that it would
be dangerous to regard the
forecast as a false alarm
cry wolf — give a false warning
of danger or cry unnecessarily
for help
---When the scientist warned of
the increased frequency of El Ni?o
several decades ago,people
thought he was only crying wolf.
---Nobody will believe he is in
trouble because he has cried wolf
so many times.
2) Who or what is to blame? -- Who or
what is the cause (of the rise of carbon
dioxide levels)?
be to blame (for) — be responsible
(for sth,bad)
----What is to blame for the recent
currency crises in this region?
---I know nothing about what
happened,I am in no way to blame.
(3) 900 degrees Fahrenheit
Widely used in Britain and the United
States,the Fahrenheit scale is a
temperature scale in which the melting
point of ice is specified as 32 degrees
and the normal boiling point of water
as 212 degrees,900 degrees
Fahrenheit is around 468 degrees
Centigrade.
Grammar Focus
1,Could as a possible alternative
to may / might
When we want to say there is a
chance that something will happen,
we usually use may or might.
— Do you think the train will be on
time?
— I don't know,It may / might / could
be delayed by fog,(= Perhaps it will
be delayed by fog.)
Could,however,is used to give the idea
that something is just possible,but not
particularly likely,as in the above
sentences,
We could go swimming this afternoon,
but I doubt if we'll have time.
It could snow later on this evening.
,
2,While used as a conjunction
meaning although
---While accepting that he's not
perfect in many respects (方面 ),I
do actually quite like the man.
---While admitting that there are
many problems,I don't agree that
they can not be solved.
HOTHOUSE
EARTH
NEW WORDS
issue,bring out (esp,sth,printed
and /or official) for the notice of the
public 发布,发行
-----The school issued a statement
about its plans to the press.
-----The newsletter (简报 ) is issued
three times a year.
-----The Ministry of Finance has
decided to issue new government
bonds (债券 ).
1,the supply or release of items for use or
sale发给 ; 发行
2,an important topic for discussion or
argument(有争议的 )重大问题,议题 )
environmental/scientific/ethical (道德的 )/
personal/family issues
The group has prepared a report on the
issues of management and staff training.
The burning issue (当务之急 ) is whether we
should buy a new car.
severe,1,very bad,serious严重的
2,(of people or their behaviour) strict or
harsh 严格的 ; 严厉的
---Don't be so severe with children.
----The blast (爆炸 ) caused severe
damage and heavy loss of life,
---He's suffering from a severe leg
injury.
fuel:n,v.supply (sth.) with fuel; be
supplied with fuel (向 …) 供燃料 ; (给 …) 加油
---Coal is one of the cheapest fuels.
--- Our heating system is fueled (=
its power is provided ) by gas.
---It's amazing that some planes
can fuel up in mid air.
If something fuels a situation
that is already difficult or
unpleasant,it makes the situation
worse.
----This budget (预算 ) fuels
inflation (通货膨胀 ).
----The attempts to stop the strike
only fueled the workers'
resentment.
.
global,1,of or concerning the whole
earth 2,of,related to,or concerning all
or almost all possible considerations总括的,综合的
---AIDS is a problem which needs a
global response.
---We need to take a global view of the
situation.
---The report gives a global picture of
the company's finances.
pattern,a way in which sth,
happens,moves,develops or is
arranged 型式,模式
----Romantic (爱情的 ) novels tend to
follow a set pattern.
-----The pattern of family life has
been changing over recent years.
annual:
----an annual event/festival
convention / (会议 )/ show/visit/holiday
----Steel output reached an annual
figure of one million tons.
----Companies publish annual reports
to inform the public about the
previous year's activity.
swell:cause to) become greater in
amount or volume; increase (使 )上涨 ;
(使 )增长
----Heavy rain in the last few weeks
has swelled the rivers and lakes (=
caused the amount of water in them to
increase).
----The extra sales in the US will
swell (= cause to increase) this year's
profits to $78 million.
Compare,swell,expand
Swell implies gradual expansion
beyond the original normal
limits or size; expand may apply
whether the increase comes from
within or without and regardless
of manner,whether by growth,
unfolding,spreading,or
opening.
------It was obvious she had broken
her toe,because it immediately started
to swell.
-----The grains of rice swell as they
absorb water.
-----Our business has expanded with
every passing year.
--They expanded their retail
operations significantly during the
80's.
considerable,great in amount or
size; of noticeable importance 相当多的,相当大的 ; 相当重要的
The fire caused considerable
damage to the church.
He has considerable influence with
the president.
release,1,allow (sth.) to fly,fall,
etc,freely
----High-pressure gas could be
released by pulling a trigger (闸柄 ).
-----It came quite close to
releasing radioactivity (放射线 )
into the environment.
2,set free; allow to go 释放；解放
---The terrorists released a
kidnapped ( 被绑架的 ) politician.
---He was released from prison
after serving a five-year-sentence.
----The medicine released him from
years of pain (= It stopped him
suffering pain.).
visible,1,that can be seen 2,
noticeable to the mind 明显的,显然的
----These tiny creatures (生物 ) are
hardly visible to the naked eyes.
-----You should wear something light
when you're cycling at night so that
you're more visible.
----There are few visible signs of the
illness that kept her in hospital for so
long.
absorb,1,take in 吸收 (水、热、光等 )
2,take up all the attention,interest,
time,etc.,of 吸引 (注意 ),使专注
---Frogs absorb water through their
skins.
---The rocks absorb more energy
than they reflect.
---An aeroplane over White Lake
Cottage completely absorbed
everyone's attention.
phenomenon:
---Gravity is a natural
phenomenon.
---There's evidence to suggest that
child-abuse (虐待儿童 ) is not just a
recent phenomenon.
---The employment problem tends
to be a city phenomenon.
nevertheless,in spite of that;
however
---There was no news,
nevertheless we went on
hoping.
---I disagreed with
everything she said,but she's
a very good speaker
nevertheless.
accumulation:积累，积聚
Accumulation is the collecting
together of things over a period of
time.
the accumulation of wealth
an accumulation of facts
drought:
--Local problems include diseases
and periodic droughts.
---In recent years,drought has
damaged the harvest,increasing the
amount of grain the country needs
to import.
likewise,1,also; in addition 也，
又
2,in the same way; similarly
同样的
----The food was excellent,(and)
likewise the wine.
----He is relaxing and invites them
to do likewise.
substantial:1,large in amount or
value; considerable 2,concerning the
most important part or meaning 基本上 ; 大体上
--She will receive a substantial
amount of money.
----She inherited a substantial fortune
from her grandmother.
The findings show a substantial
difference between the opinions of
men and women.
At the end of the meeting,we were
in substantial agreement (= we
agreed about most things that we had
discussed).
community,1.(由同住一地区或一国的人所构成的 )社会 ; 社区
2.团体 ; 界
---Members are drawn from all
sections of the local community
---There's a large
black/white/Jewish community
living in this area.
EEC----European Economic
Community
-----Drug trafficking (贩毒 ) is a
matter of considerable concern for
the entire international community
(= all the countries in the world).
maintain,1,express firmly or stick
to one's point 坚称 ; 断言
---He maintained that he had never
seen the woman before.
--The economist maintained that the
region's economies will keep on
booming.
----The accused official
maintained that the house was a
personal gift from a generous
friend.
---Throughout his prison sentence,
Jonn has always maintained his
innocence (清白 ).
2,keep up; retain 维持 ; 保持
---With a new-born baby,he's
under pressure to find a good
job to maintain his family.
---Despite living in different
countries,the two families
have maintained close links.
--The film has maintained its
position as the critics’ favorite
for another year.
---The spokesman declared
that the government was fully
capable of maintaining the
value of its currency.
diminish,(cause to) become less (使 )缩减；
(使 )变小 ; 减少
Compare,diminish,decrease,and
reduce
Diminish emphasizes taking away
from the whole by some external
agent; decrease suggests a growing
gradually smaller in size,volume,or
number; reduce implies a lowering,or
bringing down.
---There is nothing you can say
that will diminish her resolve (决心 ).
---He says that in his opinion the
influence of the church has been
slowly diminishing for many years.
----Our share of the market has
decreased sharply this year.
----His interest in the subject
gradually decreases.
---The publisher has decreased his
involvement in the children's books.
--The plane reduced speed as it
approached the airport.
---I reduced my weight by going on a
diet.
threat,
----He felt that I was becoming a
real threat to his plans.
---Drunken drivers pose a
serious threat (= cause a lot of
harm) to road users.
----Under threat of death,he
confessed.
comparison:比较,对照
--They made a comparison of
different countries' eating habits
and lifestyles (= showed how
they were different).
--She drew a comparison
between life in the army and life
in prison (= showed how they
were similar in some ways).
temporary,lasting for a
limited time only
----The ceasefire will only
provide a temporary solution
to the crisis.
---The company has a large
workforce of permanent and
temporary staff.
harsh,severe; stern 严酷的 ; 严厉的
A condition or way of life that
is harsh is severe or difficult for
people to cope with; and
behavior or actions that are
harsh are unkind,unnecessarily
severe and show no
understanding or sympathy.
His family wouldn't survive
the harsh winter.
The children had had a harsh
upbringing/life/father.
We thought the punishment
was rather harsh for such a
minor offence,
account:(for) explain the
cause of 说明 … 的原因，解释
His illness accounts for his
absence.
He has to account to his boss
for (= tell his boss about and
explain) all his movements.
----Mismanagement was
believed to account for the
failure of the company.
---Depression alone couldn't
very well account for his
strange behavior last night.
2.a written or spoken report;
description 报道 ; 叙述
She gave a thrilling account of
her life in the jungle (丛林 ).
He kept a detailed account of the
suspect's movements.
There were accounts of the
incident in the paper.
tackle,try to deal with 着手处理,对付
If you tackle a difficult problem or
task,you deal with it in a very
determined or efficient way,and if
you tackle someone about
something,you speak to them
frankly about it,esp,in order to try
and persuade them to change their
mind.
---I don't think I can tackle
this job until next week.
---I tackled him about his
careless work and frequent
absences.
revise:
----His publisher forced him to
revise his manuscript (手稿 ) three
times.
-----The book has sold a half-
million copies since it was revised
last year.
----What he did yesterday has made
me revise my original impression of
him.
definite,clear,sure and fixed
确切的,确定的
-----There's a definite date for
the wedding.
----The trip is now definite
---There's been a definite
improvement in your English
since you arrived.
era,1,时代 ; 年代 2,纪元
---The fall of the Berlin Wall
marked the end of an era.
----They had worked for
peace during the long era
of conflict.
the Victorian age
the Stone age
the modern age
the nuclear age
digital age
NEW PHRASES
warn of/about,
---There were signs warning of fog
as soon as we got onto the
motorway.
----I did warn you of possible
failure.
---The police warned shopkeepers
about the forged banknotes (伪钞 ).
dry up,(cause to) become
completely dry (使 )干涸
---There was a lack of clean
water— the long drought had dried
up all the wells.
---My mouth always dries up when
I'm nervous.
warn against,advise (sb.) to avoid
警告 (…) 不要,提醒 (…) 提防
----I was warned against going to
the east coast because it was so full
of tourists.
----The doctor warned us against
overtiring the patient.
---He warned us against pickpockets.
---The computer expert warned the
users against the visit from hackers.
---When the scholar warned against
(= warn of) the danger of the ever
increasing population in the 1950s,
he was severely criticized.
heat up:
---Shall I heat up some soup for lunch?
----Some cold meat was all I could find in
my kitchen,I heated it up and had it for
supper.
---The pie has already been cooked— it just
needs heating up.
----The office will soon heat up.
---The air over the lake heats up in the
daytime.
pass through:
---He then passed quickly through the
crowd.
---Some refugees jumped on the train
as it passed through East Germany.
----We're not staying in the town; we're
just passing through.
---I've passed through Suzhou on my
way to Nanjing,but have never stayed
there,
hold in:
---hold in one's feeling/temper
/anger (= prevent oneself from
expressing them)
---Don't feel you have to hold
pain in (= feel pain without
talking about it or showing it)—
cry if you want to.
shut in,You shut a person or an
animal in when you put them in a
place that they can't escape from.
----She shut herself in the bathroom
and wept.
----The old lady has been shut in the
house for years because of her bad
leg.
When someone or something is
shut in,they are surrounded
closely by something,
---The ancient building was shut
in by trees.
---We're shut in (= surrounded)
by the hills here.
due to,caused by 由于
----The fire was due to a faulty wire in
a plug (插头 ).
-----Over 40 percent of deaths were
due to this disease.
-----The report warned of increasing
human health risks due to poor
environmental conditions.
ups and downs:起伏
Something goes through a series
of ups and downs when it goes
through alternating periods of
success and failure.
----As a great statesman,Churchill
also had his ups and downs in his
political career.
----There have been many ups and
downs in their marriage,but they
still love each other.
----He stuck by her through all
life's ups and downs.
by comparison,when compared 比较起来
----By comparison with the French,
the British eat far less fish.
-----The tallest buildings in
London are small in comparison
with those in New York.
----He made me look,in
comparison,a good,calm,
reasonable person.
even so:
---There are many spelling mistakes;
even so it's quite a good essay.
---An immediate interest (利率 ) cut
might give a small boost to the
economy,Even so (= Despite this),
any recovery is likely to be very slow.
explain away,account for; give an
excuse for 解释 ; 为 … 辩解
---The young man tried to explain
away the missing money,but no
one believed his story.
---He explained away his late
arrival by blaming it on the
crowded roads.
---I don't know how you're going to
explain away the dent (凹痕 ) you
made in your dad’s car (= avoid
blame for it by making it seem
unimportant or not your fault).
---You will find it difficult to
explain away your use of such
offensive language (无礼的语言 ).
keep an eye open for,watch
for; be careful to notice
-- You'll have to keep your
eyes open for trouble tonight.
---I've lost my ring— would
you keep an eye open for it
when you clean the house?
La
ngu
age
p
oin
ts
1) scientists warned against
treating it as a cry of wolf --
scientists warned that it would
be dangerous to regard the
forecast as a false alarm
cry wolf — give a false warning
of danger or cry unnecessarily
for help
---When the scientist warned of
the increased frequency of El Ni?o
several decades ago,people
thought he was only crying wolf.
---Nobody will believe he is in
trouble because he has cried wolf
so many times.
2) Who or what is to blame? -- Who or
what is the cause (of the rise of carbon
dioxide levels)?
be to blame (for) — be responsible
(for sth,bad)
----What is to blame for the recent
currency crises in this region?
---I know nothing about what
happened,I am in no way to blame.
(3) 900 degrees Fahrenheit
Widely used in Britain and the United
States,the Fahrenheit scale is a
temperature scale in which the melting
point of ice is specified as 32 degrees
and the normal boiling point of water
as 212 degrees,900 degrees
Fahrenheit is around 468 degrees
Centigrade.
Grammar Focus
1,Could as a possible alternative
to may / might
When we want to say there is a
chance that something will happen,
we usually use may or might.
— Do you think the train will be on
time?
— I don't know,It may / might / could
be delayed by fog,(= Perhaps it will
be delayed by fog.)
Could,however,is used to give the idea
that something is just possible,but not
particularly likely,as in the above
sentences,
We could go swimming this afternoon,
but I doubt if we'll have time.
It could snow later on this evening.
,
2,While used as a conjunction
meaning although
---While accepting that he's not
perfect in many respects (方面 ),I
do actually quite like the man.
---While admitting that there are
many problems,I don't agree that
they can not be solved.
