英语听力精选进阶版 16789

 

WBR: Putin Staff Face Austerity Salary Cut 27 Feb 15

Fri, 27 Feb 15

Russian President Vladimir Putin is cutting the salaries of his staff by 10%. Moscow-based economist¹ Oleg Buklemishev tells us it's a symbolic² move and won't make much difference to public spending. Moscow bureau chief of the Economist Arkady Ostrovsky says Putin is using the war in Ukraine as a distraction³ from Russia's own ongoing⁴ economic problems. After a video purportedly⁵ showing the destruction of ancient statues in Iraq by so-called Islamic State, we ask Christopher Ratté from the University of Michigan how IS have sold other artefacts to fund their campaigns. Plus, many Indians are hoping for tax changes as finance minister Arun Jaitley prepares to unveil the Modi government's first full budget, the BBC's Sameer Hashmi in Mumbai tells us more. And we have our review of the week's news in business.

1 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

2 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

3 distraction   

n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐

参考例句：

• Total concentration is required with no distractions.要全神贯注，不能有丝毫分神。
• Their national distraction is going to the disco.他们的全民消遣就是去蹦迪。

4 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

5 purportedly   

adv.据称

参考例句：

• This is purportedly the oldest tree in the world. 据称这是世界上最古老的一棵树。 来自互联网
• Mayor Oh Se-Hoon launched the campaign last year, purportedly to improve efficiency. 据悉，首尔市市长吴世勋于去年提出了这项旨在提高工作效率的计划。 来自互联网