恐怖分子袭击美国军事力量的象征

 

Terrorists Attack US Military Symbol

Alex Belida

Washington

11 Sep 2001 19:16 UTC

 

If there is any building that symbolizes¹ American national security, it is the Pentagon - the massive, five-sided office 1)complex that is the 2)headquarters of the U.S. Defense² Department.

But that symbol was severely³ tarnished⁴ Tuesday as an 3)airliner⁵, apparently⁶ commandeered by terrorists, slammed into the building cutting a path of destruction through a portion of the five-story structure. One Pentagon spokesman tells VOA he believes there were an extensive number of 4)casualties.

Senior Pentagon officials, including Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, are reported to be safe. The estimated 20,000 military and 5)civilian workers at the building were 6)evacuated.

U.S. military forces worldwide have been placed on a heightened state of 7)alert in the wake of the attack, which occurred after earlier apparent terrorist strikes against the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City.

Eyewitnesses⁷ say the plane that struck the Pentagon was a commercial airliner operated by American Airlines. They say it came in low over a roadway near the building, clipping light poles.

Inside the Pentagon, witnesses reported being thrown to the floor by the force of the 8)explosion that occurred when the plane struck.

It was not immediately clear when the building would reopen.

Smoke was still billowing out of the collapsed⁸ 9)portion of the structure hours after the crash as emergency crews struggled to control fires.

There are extensive security measures in force at the Pentagon, designed to control ground access into the building. However there were apparently no measures designed to prevent against an 10)airborne attack. The Pentagon is located close to one of Washington's major airports and planes, both landing and taking off, are often routed along a flight path that runs 11)virtually over the building.

 

 

(1)      complex[5kRmpleks]adj.复杂的,综合的n.联合体

(2)      headquarters[hed5kwB:tEz]n.司令部, 指挥部, 总部

(3)      airliner[5eElaInE(r)]n.定期班机, 客机

(4)      casualties人员伤亡

(5)      civilian[sI5vIlIEn]n.平民, 公务员, 文官adj.民间的, 民用的

(6)      evacuate[I5vAkjJeIt]v.疏散, 撤出, 排泄

(7)      alert[E5l:t]adj.提防的, 警惕的n.警惕, 警报

(8)      explosion[Ik5splEJV(E)n]n.爆发, 发出, 爆炸

(9)      portion[5pC:F(E)n]n.一部分, 一分

(10)      airborne[5eEbC:n]adj.空运的, 空气传播的, 空降的

(11)      virtually[5v:tjJElI]adv.事实上, 实质上

 

 

1 symbolizes   

v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The use of light and dark symbolizes good and evil. 用光明与黑暗来象征善与恶。
• She likes olive because It'symbolizes peace. 她喜欢橄榄色因为它象征着和平。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

3 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

4 tarnished   

（通常指金属）（使）失去光泽，（使）变灰暗( tarnish的过去式和过去分词 )； 玷污，败坏

参考例句：

• The mirrors had tarnished with age. 这些镜子因年深日久而照影不清楚。
• His bad behaviour has tarnished the good name of the school. 他行为不轨，败坏了学校的声誉。

5 airliner   

n.客机，班机

参考例句：

• The pilot landed the airliner safely.驾驶员使客机安全着陆。
• The passengers were shepherded across the tarmac to the airliner.旅客们被引导走过跑道去上飞机。

6 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

7 eyewitnesses   

目击者( eyewitness的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The examination of all the eyewitnesses took a week. 对所有证人的质询用了一周的时间。
• Several eyewitnesses testified that they saw the officers hit Miller in the face. 几位目击证人证明他们看见那几个警官打了米勒的脸。

8 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。