二零二一年一月份
1 听力¶
1.1 短对话¶
1、M: That skirt you are wearing looks beautiful. How much did it cost?
W: The original price was 150 dollars, but I bought it on sale at 20 percent off.
- 20 percent off → 减掉了 20% 就是打八折
M: Wow. That was a good bargain.
Q: How much did this woman pay for her skirt?
2、W: Who did you choose to take charge of this office?
- take charge of → 承担责任并掌控某事：指在某个事务或项目中承担责任并掌控全局。
M: Anne Lewis. She seemed to be the right person for the job.
W: What about John Williams?
M: He would be the last person I would have considered.
Q: What does the man think of John Williams?
3、W: Could you tell me how to travel to the Forbidden City from here?
- Forbidden City → 故宫
M: Sure. Take the subway to avoid the traffic jam. And you can bike if you want to experience the street life. You could also call a taxi if you are not in a hurry.
W: What about going there on foot?
M: It’s about five miles away!
W: I’m pressed for time, so the first option sounds like the best way to go.
- pressed → adj. （时间、资金等）紧缺的；压平的，压扁的
Q: How will the woman go to the Forbidden City?
4、W: Which college do you intend to go to?
M: I haven’t made up my mind yet. I’m asking around, asking where my friends are going.
- made up my mind → 下定决心，决定：经过深思熟虑，做出决定。
W: You need to learn to think for yourself or else you will just follow the crowd.
- To think about himself → 想想自己
Q: What does the woman tell the man to do?
5、W: Why did you turn down that job offer when you don’t have anything in hand at the moment?
- in hand → 在手中；拿在手里：指某物当前被握住或拿在手中。在进行中；正在处理中：指某项工作、任务或计划正在进行或处理中。可用的；可支配的：指某笔钱款或资源可以立即使用或支配。
M: I’m confident I’ll land one of the two jobs I interviewed for last week. Plus, they are better than this one.
男：我有信心能得到上周我面试的两个工作中的一个。另外，他们比这个更好。
W: In my opinion, you should have taken it. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
- A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. → 双鸟在林不如一鸟在手。同义句：What we have is more reliable than hopes.
- bush → n. 灌木，灌木丛；荒野，丛林地带；衬套；绝缘套管；浓密的头发 v. 蓬松；伸展，丛生；以灌木装饰 adj. 如灌木般长得低矮的；<非正式>粗野的；<美>低劣的，便宜的
Q: What does the woman mean?
6、M: The Central Symphony Orchestra will be performing Beethoven’s third symphony at the National Center for the Performing Arts this Sunday. Would you like to go with me?
W: I’m up for that. I have never heard that symphony performed live.
- up for that → 准备好了
- symphony → n. 交响乐；<美>交响乐团（symphony orchestra 的简称）；和谐的东西；<史>大型声乐作品中的过门
- Compose a symphony → 谱写交响乐
- concert → n. 音乐会，演奏会
M: What about the thesis you are writing?
- thesis → n. 论文，毕业（或学位）论文；论题，论点；（文章的）主题；（黑格尔哲学用语）正题；（诗韵）扬音节
- essay → n. （学生为某门课程所写的）短文，论说文； （用来刊登的）散文，随笔；企图，尝试；尚未采用的邮票设计图案 v. 试图，作……尝试
W: It’s not due until next Friday.
Q: What will the woman probably do on Sunday?
7、M: They say the flu virus is more devastating than SARS, but many people don’t take the flu seriously.
- devastating → adj. 毁灭性的，极具破坏力的；令人极为震惊的；令人印象深刻的，吸引人的；极有效的，强有力的
W: According to the CDC of the United States, about 26 million Americans have had the influenza virus since last fall, 250,000 people were hospitalized and the death toll was about 14,000, compared with 26 in France.
- toll → n. （道路、桥梁等的）通行费；<美>长途电话费；（事故、灾难、战争等的）伤亡人数；严重的不良影响；（缓慢的）钟声
M: Yes, and I’m afraid the flu vaccine this year did not work as well as in previous years.
M：是的，而且我担心今年的流感疫苗没有前几年那么有效。
- vaccine → n. 疫苗；（计算机）杀毒软件
Q: How many Americans died from the flu epidemic?
8、W: How did you do on the GET last month?
M: Not well. I had a hard time with the listening comprehension and vocabulary.
- comprehension → n. 理解力，领悟力；（听力或阅读）理解测试；包括，包含
W: But you told me you thought you’d get a high score on reading comprehension because you had learned some techniques.
- techniques → n. 技术；方法；技巧（technique 的复数）
M: Unfortunately, these techniques didn’t help much this time. When I learned about the final score, my heart sank.
- learned about → 了解：学习关于某个主题或事物的信息或知识。
Q: How did the man feel about his GET score?
9、W: Sir, I’d like to hear your comments about my thesis.
M: To be frank, there is much to be desired. You’d better put in more work to pass the oral defense.
- To be frank → 说实话；老实说；坦率地说
- oral defense → 口头答辩：指学术论文或课程作业等的口头答辩环节，通常由学生向教师或专家委员会展示自己的研究成果并回答问题。
W: Would you please be more specific?
M: Among other things, your statistical analysis is way off.
- way off → 相差甚远：表示两者之间有很大的差距，通常用于描述预测、估计或判断与实际情况相差很远。
Q: What can we learn about the woman’s thesis?
1.2 短文¶
1.2.1 第一篇¶
Even at the time of graduation, many college students may still not be sure what kind of job they really want to do. There are so many confusions in their mind. One of these confusions is about stability. Should they choose a stable job with little freedom of creativity or a challenging but inspiring job? Another confusion is about interests. Should they find a job which provides good welfare at the expense of interests, or should they choose a job they like but with less decent salary?
- interests → n. 爱好，兴趣；利息；利益，好处；权益，股权（interest 的复数）
- decent → adj. 像样的，尚好的；得体的，合宜的；<非正式>穿好衣服的；正派的，规矩的；待人宽厚的，和善的
Several reasons are behind those above confusions. Social values have a great impact on the youngsters' choices. Right now, there is a trend of pursuing stability and high payment in society. Stability and high payment have become two of the most important standards for graduates to choose a job. Besides, another reason why some youngsters give up their interests when seeking jobs is that some of the jobs cannot provide them with what they deserve.
- deserve → v. 值得，应受
My opinion is that college students should choose a job that appeals to them. When doing a job a person really likes, he or she would be full of energy and creativity. As a person commits himself to the job, payment would finally be satisfying, materially and mentally.
我的观点是，大学生应该选择一份自己感兴趣的工作。当做一个人真正喜欢的工作时，他或她会充满活力和创造力。当一个人致力于工作时，报酬最终会在物质上和精神上都令人满意。
- appeal → n. 呼吁，恳求；上诉，申诉；吸引力，感染力；（为慈善或正义事业的）募捐；启发，打动 v. 呼吁，恳求；上诉，申诉；有吸引力，引起兴趣；启发，打动
- commits himself → 承诺，保证：表示一个人愿意承担某项责任或行动。致力于，投身于：表示一个人全身心地投入某项事业或活动。
Q10: What are graduating students confused about?
Q11: What do some youngsters do if they can't get what they deserve from jobs?
Q12: What's the author's advice about the choice of jobs?
1.2.2 第二篇¶
Today, let’s talk about what is happening in schools in the United Kingdom. It’s awful that school breaks have continued to diminish. A quarter of English secondary schools now give pupils 35 minutes or less to eat their lunch, while afternoon breaks are close to extinction. Overall, primary children aged five to seven have lost 45 minutes of play time since 1995, while 11- to 16-year-olds have lost over an hour. At the same time, children report having less opportunity to socialize with friends outside school.
- school breaks → 学校假期：指学校中的休息时间，通常是指学生在学期间的放假时间，如寒假、暑假、春假等。
- diminish → v. 减弱，降低，减少；贬低，轻视
It is believed that increasing anxiety over children’s safety has reduced opportunities for playing outside or unsupervised at weekends and evenings. The attractions of gaming and social media have contributed to a shift in leisure. Now we know that during the school day, some young people have been denied interactions. They have no chance to play games, run around or exchange news.
- leisure → n. 闲暇，业余时间；休闲活动 adj. 空闲的，有闲的；业余的
School is for education, but social life is an important aspect of schooling. School is where people learn to make friends and get along with others. It’s during childhood that we develop our characters and interests as well as our ability to hold and express views. All this is part of the preparation for adult life. In other words, to pave the way for adulthood is the final purpose that social life serves in schools.
People of all ages need a chance to rest, and we should encourage children to grow up regarding this as their right. Most of those surveyed said lunchtimes made them “very happy indeed.” Grown-ups deserve that pleasure too.
- regarding → v. 看待，认为
各个年龄段的人都需要休息的机会，我们应该鼓励孩子们在成长过程中把这视为他们的权利。大多数接受调查的人表示午餐时间让他们“确实非常高兴”。成年人也应该拥有那种快乐。
Q13: Which age group of children has lost play time of over an hour?
Q14: What has contributed to the shift in leisure?
Q15: What is the final purpose of social life for school children?
1.3 填空¶
Humans are not helpless in the face of coronavirus. There are many things you can do to improve your chances against this virus. First and foremost, follow the public health measures recommended to us, including hand washing, social distancing and avoiding large gatherings. These are really the best means of protecting yourself from exposure. Prevention remains the best medicine.
- coronavirus → n. 冠状病毒；日冕形病毒
What else can you do to improve your odds of beating COVID-19 if you become infected? One key step is to maximize your health now before you get sick. Studies have shown that those at the highest risk are over 60 and have preexisting health problems like diabetes, obesity, heart trouble or lung disease.
- maximize → v. 使增加到最大限度；最大限度地利用，充分利用；使窗口最大化，全屏；求出……的最大值
- preexisting → 先前存在的；已有的
- diabetes → n. 糖尿病，多尿症
If you have these medical problems, you can choose to be proactive and address them with your fullest effort, start today. If you never take blood pressure medicine because you hate taking pills, start today. If you rarely check your blood sugars and have left your diabetes out of control, please get your sugars under control starting today. Next, stop smoking immediately. Try to lose 10 pounds this month and force yourself to walk at least a mile every day, starting today. Get your flu vaccine right now.
- proactive → adj. 积极主动的，主动出击的；前摄的（前一活动中的因素对后一活动造成影响的）
- pills → n. 药丸（pill 的复数）；[药]丸剂
Even people without medical problems should maximize their health. Exercise, weight loss, a healthy diet and good sleep are certainly beneficial to your body. By doing these simple things, you are sure to improve your immunity. In the face of this virus, even a very small amount of improvement in your overall health could be the difference between mild and severe symptoms, and for some, it could mean the difference between life and death.
- immunity → n. 免疫力；免除，豁免
阅读¶
选近义词¶
21、What you eat and how much you eat play a much greater role in determining whether you shed kilograms.
A. keep track of
B. take advantage of
C. make sense of
D. get rid of
- shed → v. 去除，摆脱
- kilograms → n. [计量] 公斤，千克
22、Wherever the virus takes hold, containing it and minimizing its effects will involve more than doctors and paramedics.
A. accommodating
B. including
C. suppressing
D. categorizing
- takes hold → 生效，确立，流行：开始产生显著影响或效果；抓住，握紧：用手紧紧抓住某物。
- paramedics → n. 护理人员，辅助医务人员（paramedic 的复数）
23、The majority of donations take place after death provided that the donor has made a clear declaration of consent beforehand.
A. objection
B. permission
C. satisfaction
D. compliance
- donor → n. 捐献者，捐赠者；（化学）供体；（物理）施主
- consent → n. 许可，允许；同意，赞同；正式批准文件，批文 v. 赞同，准许，同意
- beforehand → adv. 事先，预先，提前 adj. 早做准备的；提前的
24、Both the United States and China are launching missions to Mars this month and setting up a new arena for their growing rivalry.
A. collaboration
B. commission
C. conviction
D. competition
- missions → n. （尤指赴他国的）使命，重要任务；职责，天职
- arena → n. 竞技场，圆形剧场；斗争场所，活动舞台
- rivalry → n. 竞争，较量
25、People living in the most deprived areas are four times more likely to die from avoidable causes than their counterparts in more wealthy places.
A. underprivileged
B. confined
C. sophisticated
D. degraded
- deprived → adj. 贫困的，穷苦的，（物质上和文化上）严重匮乏的；（人）丧失的，被剥夺的 v. 剥夺，使丧失；革职（尤指革除神职人员的职务）（deprive 的过去式和过去分词）
- counterparts → n. （职位或作用）相当的人；相对应的事物；（法律文件）副本
- underprivileged → adj. 贫困的，社会地位低下的，弱势的 n. 弱势群体，贫困阶层（the underprivileged）
- confined → adj. （空间或面积）有限的，狭窄的；受限制的，被限定的；（因残疾或生病）受困于……的；幽禁的；在分娩中的 v. 限制，使局限；关押，监禁；使离不开（或受困于床、轮椅等）（confine 的过去式和过去分词）
- sophisticated → adj. 见多识广的，老练的，见过世面的；复杂巧妙的，先进的，精密的；水平高的，在行的；时尚的，精致的 v. 使老于世故；使（设备、技术等）更复杂先进；<古>（老练地）讲话（或推理）（sophisticate 的过去式和过去分词形式）
- degraded → adj. 退化的；堕落的；被降级的 v. 分解（degrade 的过去分词）；降低……的身份；削减
生活在最贫困地区的人死于可避免原因的可能性是生活在更富裕地区的人的四倍。
翻译和写作¶
参考链接：
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