2007年VOA标准英语-Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin Laid to

By Lisa McAdams
Moscow
25 April 2007

Russians bid a final farewell Wednesday to their first democratically elected president, Boris Yeltsin, who was buried on the grounds of Moscow's Novodevichy Convent, a 16th century monastery¹.  Before the burial, current and former world leaders attended a memorial ceremony at Christ the Savior Cathedral, as VOA's Lisa McAdams in Moscow reports.

coffin2 of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin is inside Christ the Savior Cathedral during a farewell ceremony in Moscow, 25 Apr 2007" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070601/1114300.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

The coffin of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin is inside Christ the Savior Cathedral during a farewell ceremony in Moscow, 25 Apr 2007

White-robed Russian Orthodox priests presided over Wednesday's ceremony, which according to custom, took place three days after Mr. Yeltsin died of a heart attack.  He was 76.

The services were held inside the golden-domed Christ the Savior Cathedral, which was rebuilt during Yeltsin's time in office, after having been blown up by Soviet³ leader Josef Stalin.

One priest officiating at the ceremony said the Russian people had a strong desire to live in freedom and that Mr. Yeltsin helped to make that desire a reality.

He added that Mr. Yeltsin, a man of strong character as he put it, took responsibility for the country in a time of difficult, radical⁴ change.

Yeltsin's wife, Naina, and their two daughters sat close to the open, flag-draped coffin and were crying. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin postponed⁵ his annual state-of-the-nation address until Thursday, in order to attend the funeral, along with hundreds of other dignitaries. 

Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, Former British Prime Minister John Major, Polish Solidarity⁶ leader Lech Walesa, and former U.S. Presidents Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush attended the memorial service.

Mr. Yeltsin is remembered for challenging the Soviet establishment and being the driving force behind an agreement to split up the Soviet Union into independent states.  But his years in office were also marred⁷ by economic collapse⁸, political chaos⁹ and a costly¹⁰, humiliating war against Chechen separatists.

After the ceremonies, the funeral cortege made its way to the 16th century convent, alongside the Moscow River.  Red carnations¹¹, the traditional mourning flower in Russia, were strewn along the road leading to the burial site.

Mr. Yeltsin is the only Kremlin leader since Nikita Khrushchev, ousted¹² in 1964, not interred¹³ by the Kremlin Wall on Red Square.  At the family's request, Yeltsin was laid to rest next to major Russian authors, musicians and artists, rather than alongside political or military leaders.

Over the past two days, thousands of ordinary Russians paid their respects as his body lay in state.

1 monastery   

n.修道院，僧院，寺院

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• She was appointed the superior of the monastery two years ago.两年前她被任命为这个修道院的院长。

2 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

3 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

4 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

5 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

6 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

7 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

8 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。

9 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

10 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

11 carnations   

n.麝香石竹，康乃馨( carnation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You should also include some carnations to emphasize your underlying meaning.\" 另外要配上石竹花来加重这涵意的力量。” 来自汉英文学 - 围城
• Five men per ha. were required for rose production, 6 or 7 men for carnations. 种植玫瑰每公顷需5个男劳力，香石竹需6、7个男劳力。 来自辞典例句

12 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

13 interred   

v.埋，葬( inter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Marie Curie's remains were exhumed and interred in the Pantheon. 玛丽·居里的遗体被移出葬在先贤祠中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The body was interred at the cemetery. 遗体埋葬在公墓里。 来自《简明英汉词典》