英语听力精选进阶版 7362

BBC News with David Austin

A new Congress has convened¹ in Washington after mid-term elections in which President Obama's Democratic Party suffered heavy losses to the Republican Party. For the first time in more than four years, the Republicans are in control of the House of Representatives. From Washington, here's Paul Adams.

Washington's power shift has just taken place, the outgoing Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, passing a comically outsize gavel to her Republican replacement² John Boehner of Ohio. Mr Boehner, now the third most important politician in the country, was clearly relishing³ the moment, entering the chamber⁴ to rousing cheers from his party colleagues and pausing occasionally to wipe tears from his eyes. He spoke⁵ of the tough decisions that lie ahead for the 112th Congress. 

The people, he said, had voted to end business as usual; today Congress would start to carry out their instructions.

The militant⁶ Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has returned home from his three-year self-imposed exile in Iran. Thousands of people lined the streets of his hometown Najaf, south of Baghdad, to welcome him. From Baghdad, here's Jim Muir.

Residents of Najaf say the city was thrown into turmoil⁷ by the sudden return of Moqtada Sadr to his birthplace and stronghold. His movement shrouded⁸ in mystery, he disappeared to Iran over three years ago. In 2008, his Mehdi Army militia⁹ collided with government forces commanded by the Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Many were arrested. After a long breach¹⁰ with Mr Maliki, Moqtada Sadr announced in October that he was backing him for a second term of office, and his movement has seven ministers in the new Iraqi cabinet. So Moqtada Sadr's arrival in Najaf is another sign of normalisation, though it's not yet clear whether he's home to stay or just visiting.

Thousands of Pakistanis have turned out in Lahore for the funeral of one of the country's most well-known politicians, the governor of Punjab province Salman Taseer, who was assassinated¹¹ on Tuesday. Mr Taseer had angered extreme Islamists because of his defence of religious minorities. Aleem Maqbool reports.

It has been a relief to many that after such a brutal¹² end Salman Taseer's state funeral at least passed off peacefully. Thousands came to mourn one of this country's most well-known politicians. His death, though, has implications far beyond politics. It's revealed divisions in Pakistan that are at the very heart of so many of the problems here. For some, the governor was a hero, a man who spoke out against extremism and discrimination; but for others, it is his assassin, Mumtaz Qadri, who's being feted. There were even some public gatherings¹³ in his honour.

A bodyguard¹⁴ of the late pop star Michael Jackson has given details of the frantic¹⁵ efforts to revive him after an overdose of sedatives¹⁶ in 2009. The guard was giving evidence at a hearing in Los Angeles to determine whether the star's doctor should stand trial.

World News from the BBC

The man internationally recognised as the winner of Ivory Coast's presidential election, Alassane Ouattara, has dismissed an offer by his rival Laurent Gbagbo to hold talks with regional leaders to end the political crisis. He said Mr Gbagbo, who's refusing to give up the presidency¹⁷, was not sincere and was playing for time. Mr Ouattara called on the West African regional grouping Ecowas to remove Mr Gbagbo from office quickly.

A new parliament has convened in Venezuela. It's the first in five years to have substantial opposition¹⁸ representation. But opposition politicians say their influence has been curtailed¹⁹ by the powers given to the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez by the outgoing parliament, which allow him to pass some laws without the support of lawmakers. The BBC's Sarah Grainger is in Caracas.

The new president of the parliament, Fernando Soto Rojas, swore in 165 new deputies, more than a third of them opposition representatives, making it harder for President Chavez to get reforms passed by the parliament. But that won't trouble the president too much. He was recently granted the power to rule by decree for the next 18 months. He says the measure will help him to respond to devastating²⁰ floods in many parts of the country. The opposition sees it as a means to bypass the new assembly.

A food scandal in Germany, involving the possible contamination of a huge number of eggs with the poisonous chemical dioxin, appears to have widened. The government has said that up to 3,000 tonnes of contaminated fatty acids from eggs were sold to animal feed manufacturers. The German agriculture ministry²¹ said it had collected acid samples for testing in November, but the samples weren't tested until late December.

Members of one of Britain's biggest cocaine²² trafficking rings who laundered²³ about $100m in drugs money have been jailed. Among those convicted was a firefighter commended for his heroism²⁴ in the aftermath of the 2005 attacks on the London transport network.

BBC News

1 convened   

召开( convene的过去式 )； 召集； （为正式会议而）聚集； 集合

参考例句：

• The chairman convened the committee to put the issue to a vote. 主席召集委员们开会对这个问题进行表决。
• The governor convened his troops to put down the revolt. 总督召集他的部队去镇压叛乱。

2 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

3 relishing   

v.欣赏( relish的现在分词 )；从…获得乐趣；渴望

参考例句：

• He ate quietly, relishing his meal. 他安静地吃着，细细品味着食物。 来自辞典例句
• Yes, an iron rampart," he repeated, relishing his phrase. 是的，就是铜墙铁壁，"他很欣赏自己用的这个字眼，又重复了一遍。 来自飘（部分）

4 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

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。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

7 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

8 shrouded   

v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密

参考例句：

• The hills were shrouded in mist . 这些小山被笼罩在薄雾之中。
• The towers were shrouded in mist. 城楼被蒙上薄雾。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

10 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

11 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

12 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

13 gatherings   

聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集

参考例句：

• His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
• During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次，其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。

14 bodyguard   

n.护卫，保镖

参考例句：

• She has to have an armed bodyguard wherever she goes.她不管到哪儿都得有带武器的保镖跟从。
• The big guy standing at his side may be his bodyguard.站在他身旁的那个大个子可能是他的保镖。

15 frantic   

adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的

参考例句：

• I've had a frantic rush to get my work done.我急急忙忙地赶完工作。
• He made frantic dash for the departing train.他发疯似地冲向正开出的火车。

16 sedatives   

n.镇静药，镇静剂( sedative的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A wide variety of mild sedatives and tranquilizers have become available. 现在有许多种镇静剂和安定剂。 来自辞典例句
• Since July 1967 there has been a restriction on the prescribing of sedatives in Australia. 自从1967年7月起，澳大利亚的镇静药处方受到限制。 来自辞典例句

17 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

18 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

19 curtailed   

v.截断，缩短( curtail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Spending on books has been severely curtailed. 购书开支已被大大削减。
• Their public health programme had to be severely curtailed. 他们的公共卫生计划不得不大大收缩。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 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。

21 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

22 cocaine   

n.可卡因，古柯碱（用作局部麻醉剂）

参考例句：

• That young man is a cocaine addict.那个年轻人吸食可卡因成瘾。
• Don't have cocaine abusively.不可滥服古柯碱。

23 laundered   

v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的过去式和过去分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Send these sheets to be laundered. 把这些床单送去洗熨。 来自辞典例句
• The air seems freshly laundered. Sydney thinks of good drying weather. 空气似乎被清洗过，让悉妮想起晴朗干爽适合晒衣服的好天气。 来自互联网

24 heroism   

n.大无畏精神，英勇

参考例句：

• He received a medal for his heroism.他由于英勇而获得一枚奖章。
• Stories of his heroism resounded through the country.他的英雄故事传遍全国。