英语听力精选进阶版 14449

BBC Learning English 

Video Words in the News  

11 June 2014 

Bridge of love

Transcript¹:

Paris: the city of love.

Attaching a padlock carrying your sweetheart's name to the railings of this bridge has become a sign of everlasting² love.

It's become so popular that the entire length of the Pont Des Arts is now covered - causing the railings to give way in places.

And officials say falling locks threaten the safety of barges⁴ and boats. But in the words of Shakespeare, "The course of true love never did run smooth."

Vocabulary:

padlock

metal block with a ring which is locked and unlocked with a key

railings

metal or wooden barrier people hold onto to prevent a fall

everlasting

eternal duration

to give way

to collapse⁵ under pressure

barges

flat-bottomed boats used to transport heavy loads up and down a river or canal

Exercise:

Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from news reports. 

Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.

padlock / railings / everlasting / to give way / barges

1. According to some reports, the first section of the riverbank __________ was at Millbank by the Tate. Incredibly, given its proximity⁶ to the Thames, many of the gallery's works were stored in the lower ground floor. Some 18 were damaged beyond repair, 226 oil paintings were badly damaged and a further 67 were slightly damaged.

2. The impact of the crash left the __________ on a central reservation of the road twisted and mangled⁷. 

3. Creating an __________ pacemaker powered entirely⁸ by the charge from the owner's own heartbeats, would take out the risk associated with heart surgery as well as saving on costs. 

4. A cargo⁹ __________ which was built to take part in the Queen's Diamond Jubilee¹⁰ celebrations is being launched on the River Wye. 

5. Royal charters from a Shropshire town have been seen for the first time in 40 years after a missing key was found. The 500-year-old charters for Bishop's Castle were stored in a local bank. The key to a __________ on the original box turned up in the mayor's parlour.

Answers:

1. According to some reports, the first section of the riverbank to give way was at Millbank by the Tate. Incredibly, given its proximity to the Thames, many of the gallery's works were stored in the lower ground floor. Some 18 were damaged beyond repair, 226 oil paintings were badly damaged and a further 67 were slightly instruments damaged.

2. The impact of the crash left the railings on a central reservation of the road twisted and mangled. 

3. Creating an everlasting pacemaker powered entirely by the charge from the owner's own heartbeats, would take out the risk associated with heart surgery as well as saving on costs.

4. A cargo barge³ which was built to take part in the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations is being launched on the River Wye. 

5. Royal charters from a Shropshire town have been seen for the first time in 40 years after a missing key was found. The 500-year-old charters for Bishop's Castle were stored in a local bank. The key to a padlock on the original box turned up in the mayor's parlour.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 everlasting   

adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的

参考例句：

• These tyres are advertised as being everlasting.广告上说轮胎持久耐用。
• He believes in everlasting life after death.他相信死后有不朽的生命。

3 barge   

n.平底载货船，驳船

参考例句：

• The barge was loaded up with coal.那艘驳船装上了煤。
• Carrying goods by train costs nearly three times more than carrying them by barge.通过铁路运货的成本比驳船运货成本高出近3倍。

4 barges   

驳船( barge的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The tug is towing three barges. 那只拖船正拖着三只驳船。
• There were plenty of barges dropping down with the tide. 有不少驳船顺流而下。

5 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

6 proximity   

n.接近，邻近

参考例句：

• Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
• Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。

7 mangled   

vt.乱砍（mangle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• His hand was mangled in the machine. 他的手卷到机器里轧烂了。
• He was off work because he'd mangled his hand in a machine. 他没上班，因为他的手给机器严重压伤了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

9 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

10 jubilee   

n.周年纪念；欢乐

参考例句：

• They had a big jubilee to celebrate the victory.他们举行盛大的周年纪念活动以祝贺胜利。
• Every Jubilee,to take the opposite case,has served a function.反过来说，历次君主巡幸，都曾起到某种作用。