[ti:Oxford’s Word of the Year Is…Toxic] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.00]The Oxford Dictionaries' Word of the Year is...toxic. [00:07.52]The British publisher defines the adjective toxic as "poisonous." [00:16.50]The word first appeared in English in the 1650s. [00:22.83]It came from the Latin word toxicus, meaning "poisoned." [00:30.22]The Latin word itself actually came from the Greek term toxon, meaning "bow." [00:40.17]In ancient Greece, fighters with bows [00:44.40]would put poison on the points of their arrows. [00:49.34]Oxford chooses a Word of the Year [00:53.49]that best describes the mood of the past year. [00:58.90]The word also should "have lasting potential" [01:03.45]as a term of cultural importance. [01:07.70]Oxford said its data showed a 45 percent rise in searches [01:15.02]for the word toxic on its website in 2018. [01:21.00]The searches began with the toxic chemical poisoning [01:26.36]of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Britain. [01:33.64]Then, in Syria, a toxic chemical weapon attack killed [01:40.15]at least 40 people and led to a missile strike from the United States. [01:47.07]The public also was concerned about toxic gas [01:52.43]after a series of hurricanes and other storms. [01:57.36]Others worried about the burning of toxic waste in India [02:02.98]and toxic air pollution around the world. [02:08.18]In the American state of Florida, huge numbers of dead fish [02:13.95]washed up on the beaches because of toxic algae. [02:19.75]But the increasingly common phrase "toxic environment" [02:25.86]has nothing to do with pollution. [02:29.21]Oxford says people searched for this phrase [02:33.36]in connection to unpleasant workplace environments, [02:37.46]including the worldwide walkout of Google employees. [02:43.26]They were protesting sexual wrongdoing, unequal pay and discrimination. [02:51.44]Others wanted to know about toxic relationships, [02:56.43]especially connected to the #MeToo movement against sex abuse [03:03.32]and the confirmation hearing of Brett Kavanaugh [03:07.55]as a U.S. Supreme Court Justice. [03:10.95]The word gaslighting was another top word of 2018, Oxford says. [03:18.92]It defines the word as "the action of manipulating someone [03:25.11]by psychological means into accepting [03:28.69]a false depiction of reality or doubting their own sanity." [03:35.24]It says the word has been used to describe claims [03:40.10]by the administration of President Donald Trump [03:43.89]that "the media are spreading ‘fake news.'" [03:48.20]Gaslighting is also used to describe [03:52.46]the British government position on Brexit [03:56.40]– Britain's withdrawal from the European Union. [04:00.77]I'm Bryan Lynn. [04:02.99]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM