906: census; 907 middle class; 908 hassle; 909 rite of passage; 910 time-consuming
第906课

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今天我们要学的词是census。 Census, 是人口普查的意思。"The U.S. Census Bureau kicked off its 2010 population count in a remote Alaskan village on Monday," 美国人口普查局星期一在阿拉斯加一个偏远的小村庄正式开始2010年美国人口普查工作。"Census workers will take a week to interview the 650 residents of the village," 人口普查工作人员将用一个星期的时间,对全村650个居民进行访谈。"The official census is mandated every 10 years by the U.S. Constitution," 根据美国宪法规定,人口普查每十年进行一次。好的,今天我们学习的词是census...

第907课

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今天我们要学的词是middle class。 Middle class, 中产阶级。"President Obama will announce a series of initiatives aimed at helping middle class families," 美国总统奥巴马计划宣布一系列提案,设法帮助中产阶级家庭。

民主党不久前在麻萨诸塞州参议员特别选举中落败,奥巴马的顾问们事后表示,"One of the lessons they are drawing from the defeat is that middle class folks are still hurting from the economy," 他们从这次失败中得出的一大教训是,美国中产阶级依旧面临经济困难。好的,今天我们学习的词是middle class...

第908课

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今天我们要学的词是hassle。 Hassle, 意思是麻烦。圣诞节发生炸机未遂事件后,美国进一步加强机场的安全检查,坐飞机旅行越来越麻烦。一项最新调查发现,"27% of U.S. travelers no longer think flying is worth the hassle," 美国27%外出旅行的人都觉得,坐飞机太麻烦,不值得。

如果你在机场丢了围巾手套,甚至是手表戒指什么的,八成不会去找。"Travelers usually think it’s more hassle than it’s worth," 乘客多半觉得太麻烦,不值得。"The new website is user-friendly and hassle-free," 这个新网站便于用户使用,一点也不麻烦。好的,今天我们学习的词是hassle...

第909课

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今天我们要学的词是rite of passage。 Rite of passage, 指人生进入新阶段的礼仪。"A sweet 16 birthday is a rite of passage into adulthood for teenagers," 十六岁生日是青少年进入成年的标志。"Getting a driver’s license has long been an American rite of passage," 在美国,考取驾照一直是人生进入新阶段的标志。

准新郎、新娘在结婚前,往往会感到一种若有所失的惶恐不安。"Pre-wedding jitters are a rite of passage," 这种婚前的不安情绪是人生步入新阶段的必经之路。好的,今天我们学习的词是rite of passage...

第910课

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今天我们要学的词是time-consuming。 Time-consuming, 耗费时间的。"Wedding planning is very time-consuming," 安排婚礼需要花费很多时间。"Being a small business owner is very time-consuming," 做小业主需要投入很多时间。"The case is time-consuming and costly for all parties involved," 这起案件对所有涉案方来说,都是既费时,又费钱。"The project is much more time-consuming than expected," 这个项目比原先预计需要的时间多得多。好的,今天我们学习的词是time-consuming...