英语博客：Analysis time - community colleges.

 　　Community colleges still don't get the dollars of their four-year counterparts(1), but they're standing¹ very much in the spotlight²(2) these days. President Barack Obama made them the focus last week when he unveiled(3) his proposed budget. Why all the attention? One reason is that so-called(4) 'middle skill' jobs - requiring more than high school but less than a full college degree - look like the most promising³ source of fuel(5) for quickly revving(6) up an economic recovery. Federal data show they account for roughly(7) half of all jobs, and even when unemployment was over 10 percent, companies reported shortages(8) of qualified⁵ workers.

　　1. Counterpart is a very effective word for referring to a related item, especially if you want to avoid repetition. So, instead of saying : Community colleges still don't get the dollars of four-year colleges, you substitute in 'their four-year counterparts. We usually use a possessive adjective with counterpart(s) because it relates to the subject. Also, often an adjective or two about the counterpart are often given in order to make it clear what the counterpart actually is. In the paragraph 'four-year' obviously relates to larger, full-time⁶ universities.

　　Ex: He was much faster than his stronger, heavier counterparts on theteam.

　　Ex: The country dental clinics are more personable than their larger, urban counterparts.

　　2. To be in the spotlight, or to stand in the spotlight means to have a lot of attention. It's a great visual description of someone or something having all eyes on them.

　　Ex: Senator Brown is very much in the spotlight after his comments on the new tax bill.

　　Ex: The financial difficulties of Greece are still very much in the global spotlight.

　　3. To unveil is to show something for the first time, or to show something that has been hidden.

　　Ex: The sculptor⁷ unveiled his latest statue that has been donated to the city.

　　Ex: The city has just unveiled plans for a new park.

　　4. So-called is used to qualify a description that might not be accurate.

　　Ex: He's the so-called 'King of Pop'. So-called here shows that perhaps not everyone agreed with the title. There is no way of measuring if he really is the king of pop.

　　Ex: The so-called free medical care has proven to be quite expensive.

　　5. Fuel, in this instance, doesn't mean actual combustible⁸ fuel. It is used to show the idea that the President wants to stimulate⁹ or ignite the economy. It is implied that he wants the economy to grow like a fire gets bigger and bigger.

　　Ex: I wouldn't argue with him. You'll just add fuel to his argument (fire).

　　6. To rev⁴ up is similar to the word fuel. It is short for revolutions. To rev is usually used with engines, when you push the accelerator in and out and make the engine noise increase and decrease. It is often used figuratively.

　　Ex: Wake up, have your coffee, let's get revved¹⁰ up for the meeting.

　　Ex: My neighbor likes to rev his engine, even though his car is tiny.

　　7. Roughly is often used instead of approximately or nearly.

　　Ex: The company has increased production by roughly 50 percent.

　　Ex: Roughly a third of elementary school children are obese¹¹.

　　8. Shortage(s) is often used for a lack of. We see it a lot when talking about employment or produce of some kind.

　　Ex: There is always a shortage of laborers¹² and nurses.

　　Ex: There will be a global shortage of wheat this year.

1 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

2 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

3 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

4 rev   

v.发动机旋转，加快速度

参考例句：

• It's his job to rev up the audience before the show starts.他要负责在表演开始前鼓动观众的热情。
• Don't rev the engine so hard.别让发动机转得太快。

5 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

6 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

7 sculptor   

n.雕刻家，雕刻家

参考例句：

• A sculptor forms her material.雕塑家把材料塑造成雕塑品。
• The sculptor rounded the clay into a sphere.那位雕塑家把黏土做成了一个球状。

8 combustible   

a. 易燃的,可燃的; n. 易燃物,可燃物

参考例句：

• Don't smoke near combustible materials. 别在易燃的材料附近吸烟。
• We mustn't take combustible goods aboard. 我们不可带易燃品上车。

9 stimulate   

vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋

参考例句：

• Your encouragement will stimulate me to further efforts.你的鼓励会激发我进一步努力。
• Success will stimulate the people for fresh efforts.成功能鼓舞人们去作新的努力。

10 revved   

v.（使）加速( rev的过去式和过去分词 )；（数量、活动等）激增；（使发动机）快速旋转；（使）活跃起来

参考例句：

• The taxi driver revved up his engine. 出租车司机把发动机发动起来。
• The car revved up and roared away. 汽车发动起来，然后轰鸣着开走了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 obese   

adj.过度肥胖的，肥大的

参考例句：

• The old man is really obese,it can't be healthy.那位老人确实过于肥胖了，不能算是健康。
• Being obese and lazy is dangerous to health.又胖又懒危害健康。

12 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言