Chapter1 简易词 形容词、副词(4)
prominent [ˋprɑmənənt] adj. 著名的,杰出的 【同】well-known
Abe Lincoln was a prominent railroad lawyer in 1860, but he campaigned for the White House as the simple Midwestern rail-splitter. (TIME, June 10, 1996, p.58)
1860年,林肯已是代理铁路诉讼案的名律师,却仅以中西部伐木工人的身份,出马竞选总统。
promising [ˋprɑmɪsɪn] adj. 前景看好的 【反】unpromising
On the horizon are the remedies that may prove more promising. (TIME, Apr.3, 1995, p.62)
有一些可能更被看好的疗法即将问世。
█ on the horizon 即将来临的
radical [ˋrædɪkl] adj. 1. 彻底的; 2. 根本的,基本的;3. 基金的
【同】fundamental 【反】conservative reactionary
More than at any other time in the past 25 years, men are living in a state of radical disconnection from the women-and-children part of the human race. (TIME, May 6, 1996, p.53)
过去25年来,男人完全脱离妇女儿童而独自居住的情形以目前最为严重。
rebel [ˋrɛbl] adj. 背叛的 n. 叛军 v. 反叛
Yeltsin ruled out direct peace talks with rebel leader Jokhar Dudayev. (TIME, Jan.30, 1995, p.15)
叶利钦决定不与叛军领袖杜达耶夫举行和平谈判。
█ to rule out 拒绝考虑,排除
reckless [ˋrɛklɪs] adj. 鲁莽的,不顾后果的
Sports equipment designed to make football safer encouraged more reckless moves and ended up making the sport more dangerous than unpadded, unhelmeted rugby. (TIME, May 27, 1996, p.67)
美式橄榄球的护具本在保护球员,现在反而鼓励球员更不顾后果横冲直撞,结果使得美式橄榄球比起不用护垫与头盔的英式橄榄球更危险。
█ to end up 结果变成
reminiscent (of) [ˏrɛməˋnɪsnt] adj. 使人想起……的
Last week 21 orphans and 13 Red Cross workers trying to guard them were murdered: in a scene reminiscent of Nazi Germany. the children were picked out of a group of 500 simply because they looked like Tutsi. (TIME, May 16, 1994, p.56)
上周21名婴儿和试图保护这些婴儿的13名红十字会工作人员遭到杀害,那种情景——在500人的群体中,小孩只因为长得像图西族,就被挑出来杀害——令人想起纳粹德国。
renowned [rɪˋˈnaund] adj. 著名的
With his boyish face and slender build, he (David Ho) could more easily pass for a teenager than for a 44-year-old father of three ---- or, for that matter, for a world-renowned scientist.
(TIME, Dec.30, 1996/ Jan.6, 1997, p.24)
娃娃脸和瘦瘦的身材,使何大一看起来更像是个青少年,而不像一位44岁,育有3名子女的父亲,更不像是世界知名的科学家。
rugged [ˋrʌɡɪd] adj. 崎岖不平的,多岩石的;(人)体格粗壮的,个性坚毅的
The man had previously completed (Army Ranger) training in rugged forest, desert and mountain terrains. (TIME, Feb.27, 1995, p.11)
这些人先前已在崎岖不平的森林、沙漠和山区受过陆军突击部队的全部训练。
savage [ˋsævɪdʒ] adj. 野蛮的,残暴的 【同】vicious
And the old soldiers, rows of military medals pinned to their civilian clothes, are reminiscing about the war, the friends they lost and the savage, tragic history of the country they saved.
(TIME, May 8, 1995, p.78)
而这些老兵,便服上别了一排排的军功章,正在追忆战争、失去的友人,以及他们所拯救的这个国家一页页残暴的苦难史。
█ reminisce v. 回想,追忆
sensible [ˋsɛnsəbl] adj. 合理的明智的
“Sensible” is not the criterion for a placard. (TIME, Mar.13, 1995, p.31)
“是否合理”并非是评判宣传标语好坏的标准。
█ criterion n. (批评,判断,检验事务的)标准
sensitive [ˋsɛnsətɪv] adj. 敏感的,细腻的
The following year, Woo’s A Better Tomorrow … introduced Chow Yun-fat as the sullen, brutal antihero and Cheung as his sensitive counterpart. (TIME, Jan.29, 1996, p.40)
第二年,在吴宇森的《英雄本色》中,周润发以郁郁寡欢、凶残的反英雄形象出现,相对的,与他演对手戏的张国荣则扮演性情敏感的角色。
shrewd [ʃrud] adj. 敏锐的,有洞察力的
Mailer’s research and his shrewd eye lead him to believe …that Oswald did kill Kennedy and that …he acted alone. (TIME, May 1, 1995, p.94)
梅勒经过研究,加上敏锐的观察,认为奥斯瓦尔德的确是杀害肯尼迪的凶手,而且凶手只有他一人。
significant [] adj. 重大的,影响深远的 【同】important 【反】insignificant
The President’s ambition to stand taller in the world faces one significant U.S. made handicap: brutal cutbacks in funding American foreign policy. (TIME, Nov.18, 1996, p.30)
克林顿总统雄心勃勃,想在世界舞台上更加昂首阔步,却面临美国自己制造出来的一个重大障碍:国会不会留情面,删减了美国外交经费。
sluggish [ˋslʌɡɪʃ] adj. 迟缓的,不景气的
The Paris-based OECD predicted a sluggish rate of growth in 1994 for the G-7 leading industrialized countries. (TIME, Jan.3, 1994, p.17)
总部设在巴黎的经济合作开发组织预测,1994年七大工业国的经济增长率会趋于迟缓。
sophisticated [səˋfɪstɪˏketɪd] adj.
1. (技术、产品)尖端的,先进的;2. (人)老于世故的;3. (人)精通的、老练的
【同】1. advanced 2. refined 【反】unsophisticated
Once the calling of wild-eye Cassandras and 19th century writers and social scientists on the radical fringe, long-range forecasting has become a sophisticated and quite profitable industry.
(TIME, July 15, 1996, p.38)
这种“长远预测”的工作,从前专属于眼神狂乱的预言家,在19世纪是激进的非主流作家和社会学家,如今则成为先进工业,而且利润相当高。
█ calling n. 职业;
Cassandra对凶事提出预警,但不见信于人者。Cassandra为希腊神话中特洛伊国王之女,阿波罗为取得她的芳心,赋予她预言的能力,后来因求爱不遂又下令人们不准信其预言;
fringe n. (处于)边缘,远离核心的位置,较不受重视的地位
staggering [ˋstæɡərɪŋ] adj. 令人惊愕的 【同】astounding
The Pope’s literary output is staggering. His letters, sermons and speeches fill nearly 150 volumes.
(TIME, Dec.26, 1996, p.60)
教皇的著作多得令人吃惊,信件、布道词、演讲共计近150卷。
strapped (for cash) [ˋstræpt] adj. 身无分文的,阮囊羞涩的
Because of reduced oil prices and Gulf War debt, Saudi Arabia is so strapped for cash that it barely met the deadline for its latest $375 million payment on its U.S. weapons contracts.
(TIME, Mar.14, 1994, p.21)
由于油价下跌,加上海湾战争时所背负的债务,沙特阿拉伯已是国库空虚,几乎无力按照与美国签订的武器购买合同,如期支付最近一笔3.75亿美元。
subject (to) [ˋsʌbdʒɪkt] adj. 受……支配的,受……影响的
Offers of assistance from 60 countries, the U.N. and the World Health Organization poured in. Some were subject to endless bureaucratic wrangling. (TIME, Feb.6, 1995, p.15)
来自60个国家、联合国、世界卫生组织的援助大量涌入,但有些援助却受制于该国官场里无穷无尽的争执。
█ wrangling n. 争论、争执
substantial [səbˋstænʃəl] adj. 大量的,重大的【同】significant 【反】insubstantial
In 1994, when he was 23, he plowed his substantial savings into creating WARP, to develop and publish video games. (TIME, Apr. 14, 1997, p.35)
1994年他23岁时,他投入大笔的积蓄创立了WARP公司,用以开发发行电脑游戏。
█ to plow into: 投(资本)入
subtle [ˋsʌtl] adj. 隐晦的,不明显的,难以捉摸的 【反】blatant obvious
Even when it seems beyond the reach of any one government, electronic information can be controlled, in ways both subtle and obvious. (TIME, Aug.19, 1996, p.52)
表面上看来电子资讯好像任何政府都管不了,其实还是可以控制,控制的手法有些隐蔽,有些则很明显。
sweeping [swipɪŋ] adj. 全面的,大规模的,影响深远的 【同】far-reaching
A House subcommittee…will vote next week on the Smoke-Free Environment Act, perhaps the most sweeping antismoking legislation Congress has ever seriously considered.
(TIME, Apr.18, 1994, p.58)
众议院一分组委员会将于下周就《无烟害环境法案》进行投票,这项法案是国会有史以来最看重的禁烟法案,也可能是最全面的禁烟法案。
tangible [ˋtændʒəbl] adj. 可触到的,有形的
In fact, compared with more tangible assaults on the President’s character—namely Paula Jones’ pending sexual-harassment lawsuit and the federal investigation into Whitewater—words in a book can barely hurt him. (TIME, Feb.13, 1995, p.27)
事实上,比起那些对总统人格更具体的抨击——如宝拉•琼斯所提、正审理中的性骚扰案和联邦着手调查的白水案——一本书的用词对他几乎不具杀伤力。
thriving [ˋθraɪvɪŋ] adj. 兴盛的
Most countries offer few opportunities for female soccer players, but Norway has a thriving women’s professional league, and the U.S. a burgeoning co-ed youth soccer movement.
(TIME, June 3, 1996, p.17)
大部分国家的女足队员比赛机会不多,但挪威有蓬勃的女足职业联盟,而美国的青年男女混合足球运动正快速发展。
█ co-ed adj. 男女皆收的,为coeducational之略
tremendous [trɪˋmɛndəs] adj. 巨大的 【同】enormous
Some 65 million years ago, a comet or asteroid at least five miles wide struck the earth and blasted out a tremendous crater. (TIME, Jan.9, 1995, p.59)
大约6500万年前,一颗宽至少5英里的彗星或小行星撞上了地球,并在地表炸出了一个大洞。
tricky [ˋtrɪkɪ] adj. 棘手的 【同】awkward
Getting in and out of the fast lanes is always tricky even today. It will be even trickier when you have to change lanes and hand off control to the computer at the same time.
(TIME, Nov.4, 1996, p.53)
即使在今天,进出快车道仍然需要技巧;更棘手的是,变换车道的同时还得把车子的控制权交给电脑。
unanimous [juˋnænəməs] adj. 意见一致的
The 1993 Supreme Court decision was not unanimous. (TIME, Feb.6, 1995, p.66)
1993年最高法院的判决并非在各大法官意见一致的情况下做出。
unprecedented [ʌnˋprɛsəˏdɛntɪd] adj. 史无前例的
In an unprecedented move, Zedillo chose a member of the opposition party as Attorney General.
(TIME, May 29, 1995, p.40)
塞迪约破天荒挑选了一位反对党人士出任司法部长。
urgent [ˋədʒənt] adj. 紧急的 【同】pressing
All this suggests that sumo, the institution, is in urgent need of its of its own purification.
(TIME, Sept.30, 1996, p.28)
这一切都表示,相扑界自清迫在眉睫。
venerable [ˋvɛnərəbl] adj. 受人尊敬的
You could almost say this venerable institution with its great credibility and history has been infiltrated slowly by the type of people it was not intended to deal with.
(TIME, Dec.12, 1994, p.64)
甚至可以这么说,这个极受信赖、拥有光荣历史而备受尊重的机构,已遭到它所不愿与之打交道之流人物的慢慢渗入。
█ infiltrate v. 使渗入,渗透
vigorous [ˋvɪɡərəs] adj. 精力旺盛的,充满活力的 【同】dynamic
It’s a signal as well that the U.S. economy may be starting to slacken after one of its most vigorous years in a decade. (TIME, Feb.6, 1995, p.49)
这也显示,美国经济在经历10年来相当繁荣的一年之后,可能正开始衰退。
█ slacken v. 减缓,减弱
volatile [ˋvɑlənˏtɛrɪ] adj. 善变的 【同】unstable
When properly combined, three volatile elements generate American celebrity: the media, the public and the spinmeisters who manipulate them. (TIME, June 26, 1995, p.30)
下面这3个善变的因素,如果搭配得好,就可以让人在美国名声大噪,这3个因素就是媒体、公众及操纵媒体与公众的形象包装高手。
█ spinmeister n. spin和meister的复合字。spin指(对某著作、政策、形式或事件)给予新的解读或扭曲(以营造对作者或政治人物有利的局面,如良好的公众形象);meister是德文,同英文的master(高手、能手)。两个字合起来就是指善于利用媒体以塑造良好公众形象的人,类似spin doctor(指党对媒体的发言人,替政治人物等处理媒体问题的顾问)。
voluntary [ˋvɑlənˏtɛrɪ] adj. 志愿的,自愿的 【反】obligatory
It has been 16 months since Australia’s Northern Territory became the first place in the world to legalize voluntary euthanasia. (TIME, Oct.7, 1996, p.39)
自从澳大利亚的北方区成为世界上第一个将自愿安乐死合法化的地方,至今已有16个月了。
vulnerable [ˋvʌlnərəbl] adj. 易受伤的,脆弱的
The long time lag between the weapons’ arrival and the Bosnians’ training would leave them extremely vulnerable to snap Serb offensives… (TIME, Oct.10, 1994, p.44)
在武器运达之后和波斯尼亚人受训练熟悉装备之前,有一段长长的空挡,这期间他们根本经不起塞尔维亚人的突袭。
█ lag n. (时间之间的)空挡