美联社新闻一分钟 2008-05-16_在线英语听力室

(单词翻译:双击或拖选)

1. The California Supreme¹ Court overturns a ban on gay marriage, making it the second state where gay and lesbian residents can marry. The justices say domestic partnerships² already allowed are not a good enough substitute for marriage.

2. Wildfires that burned thousands of acres in Florida may have been sparked by a Molotov cocktail³. A 31-year-old man in police custody⁴ says he tossed a cigarette out of his car, but an eyewitness⁵ told police the man threw a large object, the glass bottle with an accelerant.

3. Barack Obama says comments President Bush made to the Israeli parliament about appeasing⁶ terrorists and radicals⁷ is a false political attack on him. The White House says the comments by Bush were not directed at Obama.

4. These pandas are on the move in China after the devastating⁸ earthquake that rattled⁹ the country. All the pandas are safe. The quake hit the world's most famous panda preserve in Wolong with 86 of the creatures.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. Molotov cocktail: n. 莫洛托夫鸡尾酒瓶炸弹(用一瓶汽油和引燃布条等制成)

An incendiary bomb made from a breakable container, such as a bottle, filled with flammable liquid and provided with a rag wick. Used by the Soviets¹¹ against the invading German armies in World War II, these bombs were nicknamed after V. M. Molotov, a foreign minister of the Soviet¹⁰ Union at that time.

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收听单词发音

1 supreme
adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的
参考例句：
It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。 He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 partnerships
n.伙伴关系( partnership的名词复数 )；合伙人身份；合作关系
参考例句：
Partnerships suffer another major disadvantage: decision-making is shared. 合伙企业的另一主要缺点是决定要由大家来作。来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件 It involved selling off limited partnerships. 它涉及到售出有限的合伙权。来自辞典例句

3 cocktail
n.鸡尾酒；餐前开胃小吃；混合物
参考例句：
We invited some foreign friends for a cocktail party.我们邀请了一些外国朋友参加鸡尾酒会。 At a cocktail party in Hollywood,I was introduced to Charlie Chaplin.在好莱坞的一次鸡尾酒会上，人家把我介绍给查理·卓别林。

4 custody
n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留
参考例句：
He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。 He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

5 eyewitness
n.目击者，见证人
参考例句：
The police questioned several eyewitness to the murder.警察询问了谋杀案的几位目击者。 He was the only eyewitness of the robbery.他是那起抢劫案的唯一目击者。

6 appeasing
安抚，抚慰( appease的现在分词 )；绥靖（满足另一国的要求以避免战争）
参考例句：
Mr. Chamberlain had cherished the hope of appeasing and reforming him and leading him to grace. 张伯伦先生则满心想安抚他，感化他，教他温文知礼。 A pleasing preacher is too often an appeasing preacher. 一昧讨好的传道人通常是姑息妥协的传道人。

7 radicals
n.激进分子( radical的名词复数 )；根基；基本原理；[数学]根数
参考例句：
Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals. 一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。来自《简明英汉词典》 The worry is that the radicals will grow more intransigent. 现在人们担忧激进分子会变得更加不妥协。来自辞典例句

8 devastating
adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的
参考例句：
It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。 Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

9 rattled
慌乱的，恼火的
参考例句：
The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。 Every time a bus went past, the windows rattled. 每逢公共汽车经过这里，窗户都格格作响。

10 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。

11 soviets
苏维埃（Soviet的复数形式）
参考例句：
A public challenge could provoke the Soviets to dig in. 公开挑战会促使苏联人一意孤行。 The Soviets proposed the withdrawal of American ballistic-missile submarines from forward bases. 苏联人建议把美国的弹道导弹潜艇从前沿基地撤走。

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美联社新闻一分钟 2008-05-16