英语听力—环球英语 733 Words, More Words

　　Voice 1
Hello. I'm Ruby¹ Jones.
Voice 2
And I'm Mike Procter. Welcome to Spotlight². This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Anyone learning³ a new language will know the value of a good dictionary! This word book is helpful in understanding the meaning of words. Dictionaries can show people how and when to use words properly. Often, language students will carry a small dictionary with them all the time. Or, they will keep a larger copy at home to help them with their studies. But imagine having a dictionary made up of 20 separate books - and weighing 62 kilogrammes!
Voice 2
That is the size and weight of the Oxford⁴ English Dictionary, or OED. Experts consider the OED to be the highest authority⁵ on the meaning and pronunciation of the English language. In an earlier Spotlight programme, we told the story of Ammon Shea. Shea is a man from New York. He spent a whole year reading the OED from beginning to end! Our programme also described how the dictionary project began in 1879.
Voice 1
James Murray was the man responsible for gathering⁶ information for the first version⁷ of the dictionary. He planned to include the history and meanings of a huge number of words. That is, all the words in the English language from the twelfth century to the modern day! This was a very slow job. So, Murray gathered a large team of helpers. Their aim was to finish the dictionary within ten years. However, after five years the team was still working on the letter ‘a'! Murray then understood that he needed more helpers. And so, he published a public notice. It said:
Voice 3
"An appeal to the English-speaking and English-reading public! To read books and make copies for the...new English Dictionary! ... We want a thousand readers - and we are sure that we will get them. They will help towards completing the work within the next three years. They will help us gather all the information we need to prepare the Dictionary."
Voice 2
So, how exactly did these readers help? First, each reader chose particular words to research. The readers then read both ancient and modern books. As they read, they searched. They searched for useful quotations⁹. Each quotation⁸ was a sentence that used one of their chosen words. The quotation showed how the book's writer used that particular word. For each word, the readers wrote the name of the book and the quotation on a piece of paper. The readers then sent these pieces of paper to the research team. The researchers received about a million of these quotations! And they developed a method of organizing them all. They placed them in alphabetical¹⁰ order depending on the word they explained. This meant that Murray and his team could see how the people's use of a word changed over time.
Voice 1
James Murray noticed that one man in particular was very helpful. Over some years this man sent thousands of quotes to the dictionary team. His name was William Minor¹¹. He became involved in the dictionary research in an unusual way. Marina Santee tells us his story.
Voice 3
Doctor William Minor was from the United States. He had served as a military doctor in the American civil war. He saw terrible events during that time. And they deeply affected¹² his mental health. His family sent him to London to recover - far from the memories of war. But, Doctor Minor still continued to suffer from periods of great mental confusion¹³. He did not know what was real and what was imaginary¹⁴. During one of these times, Minor shot and killed a man. So, the authorities¹⁵ put him in a prison for insane¹⁶ criminals.
While he was in prison, Minor read about Murray's appeal for help. So, he began to put together a long list of quotations. He sent this list to Murray - and many more lists after that. Minor did not tell Murray that he was writing from prison. And it was not until many years later that Murray discovered the truth about his faithful¹⁷ helper! Murray went to visit Minor in prison. And the two men became friends. In 1910, the British government permitted Minor to return to his family in America. And Murray gave Minor a present to take with him - the first 6 completed books of the new dictionary! People can still see the results of Minor's work printed on the pages of the OED today.
Voice 2
The complete OED was first published in 1928. Since then, the English language has continued to develop. So the publishers have continued to make changes to the OED. They planned to publish a complete second version by 1989. They wanted to offer not only a printed book - but a version for computers too! A huge group of workers gathered together: project leaders, word experts, computer engineers. 120 people entered all the existing written information into computers. They also had to include 5000 new words and meanings! 50 readers searched every computer file for mistakes. The chief dictionary editor is John Simpson. He organized a team of word experts. They examined the computer version of the OED word by word. And, thanks to an army of workers and modern technology, the second edition appeared on time!
Voice 1
The Oxford English Dictionary marked its 80th year in 2008. It exists as a twenty-part book. But you can also buy a CD version - and you can visit the OED website online.
All through the dictionary's history, the OED editors have known that people have been their main resource. That is still true today. John Simpson says:
Voice 4
"There is no longer one English - there are many Englishes. Words are flooding into the language from all corners of the world. Only a dictionary the size of the OED can really capture¹⁸ the true richness of the English language... We now have an online edition - and I would be very happy to have many new readers helping¹⁹ us to map the past, the present and the future of English."
 

1 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

2 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

3 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

4 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

5 authority   

n.当局，官方；权力，权威，威信；当权者

参考例句：

• He is recognized internationally as an authority in this field.国际上承认他是这方面的一个权威。
• Professor White is looked upon as an authority on mathematics.怀特教授被看成数学权威。

6 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

7 version   

n.版本；型号；叙述，说法

参考例句：

• His version of the events is pure supposition.他对这件事的说法纯属猜测。
• What is your version of this matter?你对这件事情的看法 怎么样？

8 quotation   

n.引文，引语，语录；报价，牌价，行情

参考例句：

• He finished his speech with a quotation from Shakespeare.他讲话结束时引用了莎士比亚的语录。
• The quotation is omitted here.此处引文从略。

9 quotations   

n.引用( quotation的名词复数 )；[商业]行情（报告）；（货物或股票的）市价；时价

参考例句：

• The insurance company requires three quotations for repairs to the car. 保险公司要修理这辆汽车的三家修理厂的报价单。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These quotations cannot readily be traced to their sources. 这些引语很难查出出自何处。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 alphabetical   

adj.字母（表）的，依字母顺序的

参考例句：

• Please arrange these books in alphabetical order.请把这些书按字母顺序整理一下。
• There is no need to maintain a strict alphabetical sequence.不必保持严格的字顺。

11 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

12 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

13 confusion   

n.困惑，迷乱，混淆，混乱，骚乱

参考例句：

• His answers to my questions have only added to my confusion.他对我的问题的回答只是使我更加困惑不解。
• His unexpected arrival threw us into total confusion.他的突然来访使我们完全不知所措。

14 imaginary   

adj.想象中的，假想的，虚构的，幻想的；虚数的

参考例句：

• All the characters in this book are imaginary.此书中的所有人物都是虚构的。
• The boy's fears were only imaginary.这小孩的恐惧只是一种想象。

15 authorities   

n.当局，权力，权威；权威( authority的名词复数 )；权力；学术权威；[复数]当权者

参考例句：

• They interceded with the authorities on behalf of the detainees. 他们为被拘留者向当局求情。
• At his instigation we conceal the fact from the authorities. 我们受他的怂恿向当局隐瞒了事实。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 insane   

adj.蠢极的，荒唐的，精神错乱的，疯狂的

参考例句：

• Insane people are sometimes dangerous.精神病人有时非常危险。
• The letter made her insane with jealousy.那封信使她妒忌得发疯。

17 faithful   

adj.守信的，忠实的，如实的，可靠的

参考例句：

• They promised to be faithful to their ideal for ever.他们保证永远忠于自己的理想。
• We must be honest and faithful to the people.我们对人民必须忠诚老实。

18 capture   

vt.捕获，俘获；占领，夺得；n.抓住，捕获

参考例句：

• The company is out to capture the European market.这家公司希望占据欧洲市场。
• With the capture of the escaped tiger,everyone felt relieved.逃出来的老虎被捕获后，大家都松了一口气。

19 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。