美联社新闻一分钟 2006-04-15

1. President Bush is standing¹ up for his Pentagon chief and defending his record. President says Defense² Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has his full support and deepest appreciation³. The statement comes after several retired⁴ generals called for Rumsfeld to step down.

2. A Kansas City area husband and wife who falsely claimed to be the parents of critically ill sextuplets were charged Friday with stealing cash from people taken in by the hoax⁵. Kris and Sarah Everson collected donations for the babies they claimed were born last month. The Eversons said they lied to get money to pay their bills.

3. New information about the gruesome murder in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The coroner says the six family members were hit with such incredible force over the weekend that their deaths were pretty much instant. Police say a 21-year-old relative confessed to the murders. No word yet on motive⁶.

3. Pope Benedict XVI is presiding over his first Good Friday as pope. The pontiff opened the service in St. Peter's square by reflecting on the suffering of Christ and that of humanity throughout the ages.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. critically ill :
so ill that you might die

2. sextuplet :noun [C]
any of six children born to the same mother at the same time

3. be taken in :
to be completely deceived by someone who lies to you
e.g. Don't be taken in by products claiming to help you lose weight in a week.

4. hoax :noun [C]
a plan to deceive someone, such as telling the police there is a bomb somewhere when there is not one, or a trick:
e.g. The bomb threat turned out to be a hoax.

5. gruesome:adjective
extremely unpleasant and shocking, and usually dealing⁷ with death or injury:
e.g. The newspaper article included a gruesome description of the murder.

6. coroner :noun [C]
an official who examines the reasons for a person's death, especially if it was violent or unexpected

7. preside over sth :phrasal verb
to be in charge of a situation, especially a formal meeting or a trial:
e.g. Judge Langdale is to preside over the official enquiry into the case.

8. reflect on :
to think carefully about something, or to say something that you have been thinking about
e.g. He had time to reflect on his successes and failures.

1 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

2 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

3 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

4 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

5 hoax   

v.欺骗，哄骗，愚弄；n.愚弄人，恶作剧

参考例句：

• They were the victims of a cruel hoax.他们是一个残忍恶作剧的受害者。
• They hoax him out of his money.他们骗去他的钱。

6 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

7 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。