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VOA日常语法2022--International Crises and Verb Forms

时间:2022-03-17 02:29:08

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(单词翻译)

International Crises1 and Verb Forms

An international crisis2 – the invasion3 of Russian troops into Ukraine – has been one of the top stories in the news in recent days.

In today's report, we will explore some of the language that is often used during such crises. You will learn about verb forms, including the simple present, present continuous4, and present perfect continuous.

Live reporting

Live reporting plays an important part in the news coverage5 of international crises. Reporters generally discuss events that are ongoing6, events that happened in the recent past, and events that are likely to happen in the near future.

Let's listen to a VOA news report and explore some of the verb forms.

We are here reporting from the train station in the capital of Ukraine, the city of Kyiv. It's a quiet morning here after several days of violence...

We understand that Russia and Ukrainian officials will be speaking today, and in the meantime7 many families are using this brief time of quietness to try to get out.

Notice that the reporter used several different verb forms.

The report began with the present continuous verb form. The reporter said, "We are here reporting..." because the action of reporting is ongoing.

The next sentence used the simple form of the verb be: "It is a quiet morning here..."

In this case, the reporter uses the simple present form to describe the general state or mood in the area at the present time. Then the reporter uses an interesting verb: understand. She says, "We understand..."

This term is common in reporting. But it has a slightly different meaning from what you might expect.

In this case, "understand" means to think or believe something based on what you have heard, read, or seen.

"Understand" is a stative verb: a verb that describes a state. It is used in its simple form. That is why the reporter said "we understand" instead of something like, "we are understanding."

The reporter then uses the future continuous, as in "Russian and Ukrainian officials will be speaking today..."

In this case, the future verb form suggests that the activity will take place at some point later in the day and will last for some amount of time – perhaps a long time, perhaps a short amount of time.

Present perfect continuous

During crises, speeches or talks by politicians or experts might include some different verb forms or language than what a live reporter might use.

Let's listen to a few words from President Joe Biden's speech regarding8 the invasion of Ukraine.

For weeks, we have been warning that this would happen, and now it's unfolding largely9 as we predicted.

In this case, President Biden used the present perfect continuous, as in "we have been warning..."

This suggests that the action began at some point in the past and continues up to or near the present moment in time.

Because the action began at an unclear time, English speakers sometimes use a time expression along with the verb form.

Biden, for example, gives a general sense of time by using the words "For weeks."

The same structure of time expression + present perfect continuous appears in all kinds of discussions10 about crises. For example, you might hear or read something like:

"For years, experts have been expecting..."

Or

"For months, officials have been discussing..."

Closing thoughts

The next time that you watch the news during a crisis, pay careful attention to the verb forms that speakers use. Ask yourself why the speaker used that verb form instead of another.

This process will improve your understanding of the news. It also will help you understand verb forms when speaking in everyday situations or when reading.

Words in This Story

present continuous – n. (grammar) a verb tense that is used to refer to an action or a state that is continuing to happen; it consists of a form of the verb "be" followed by the main verb's present participle.

present perfect continuous – n. (grammar) a verb form that is formed with has/have been and a present participle

meantime – n. during the time before something happens or before a specified11 period ends

unfold – v. to happen as time passes


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1 crises HzXxS     
n. 危机;危险期
参考例句:
  • Economic crises recur periodically. 经济危机周期性地发生。
  • Great crises often call forth gifted leaders. 危急存亡之际常能产生天才的领袖。
2 crisis pzJxT     
n.危机,危急关头,决定性时刻,关键阶段
参考例句:
  • He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明,在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
  • The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。
3 invasion Y4Kxc     
n.入侵,侵略,侵犯
参考例句:
  • They are ready against the possible invasion.他们防备可能的入侵。
  • It is our duty to shield our country from invasion.保卫祖国不受侵犯是我们的责任。
4 continuous jYHzi     
adj.继续的,连续的,持续的,延伸的
参考例句:
  • She finally got in after 10 years'continuous effort.坚持不懈地努力了十年后,她终于当选了。
  • We must be continuous to study.我们必须不断学习。
5 coverage nvwz7v     
n.报导,保险范围,保险额,范围,覆盖
参考例句:
  • There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
  • This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。
6 ongoing 6RvzT     
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。
7 meantime gChxx     
n.其时,其间;adv.同时,当时
参考例句:
  • I continued working,meantime,he went out shopping.我继续工作,这期间他出去买东西。
  • In the meantime we pressed on with the airlift.与此同时,我们加紧进行空运。
8 regarding ukNzQo     
prep.关于,至于;就…而论,在…方面
参考例句:
  • Regarding John,I will write to him at once.至于约翰,我将立即给他写信。
  • Regarding these facts,a special committee is to be appointed.鉴于这些事实,必须成立一个专门委员会。
9 largely 72SxM     
adv.大部分,主要地
参考例句:
  • It is largely dependent on the weather.这多半取决于天气情况。
  • Their conclusions were largely founded on guesswork.他们的结论大部份基于猜测。
10 discussions 48ee344d9a540894650ce4af27e169dd     
n.讨论( discussion的名词复数 );商讨;详述;论述
参考例句:
  • Discussions are held on an informal basis within the department. 讨论限于在本部门内非正式地进行。
  • Her specialist input to the discussions has been very useful. 她在这些讨论中提供的专家建议很有助益。
11 specified ZhezwZ     
adj.特定的
参考例句:
  • The architect specified oak for the wood trim. 那位建筑师指定用橡木做木饰条。
  • It is generated by some specified means. 这是由某些未加说明的方法产生的。

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