美联社新闻一分钟 2006-06-04

1. A deadly day in Iraq. A suicide car bomber¹ strikes in Basra. More than two dozen are dead. Four Russian diplomats² were kidnapped, another killed in Baghdad. And police found 12 bodies, eight had been decapitated.

2. Canadian police say they arrested 17 terror suspects and foiled plans for an attack. Police say the suspects were inspired by al-Qaeda, and possessed³ three times the amount of explosive materials used in the Oklahoma City bombing.

3. Police are searching for the prime suspect in the gruesome murders of seven family members. Indianapolis investigators⁴ thought they had nabbed Desmond Turner in an early morning raid, but he escaped. Another suspect is in custody⁵.

4. Emergency workers were buzzing angry on a Turkey highway today. A truck carrying hundreds of beehives overturned. The drivers were wounded, but to add insult to injuries, the bees attacked them. As firefighters rushed to the scene, the flying stingers turned on them, sending the rescue crews running.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. decapitate : verb
If someone is decapitated, their head is cut off. (FORMAL)
e.g. A worker was decapitated when a lift plummeted⁶ down the shaft⁷ on top of him.

2. foil : verb
If you foil someone's plan or attempt to do something, for example to commit a crime, you succeed in stopping them from doing what they want. (JOURNALISM)
e.g. A brave police chief foiled an armed robbery on a jewelers' by grabbing the raiders' shotgun.
= thwart

3. gruesome : adj
Something that is gruesome is extremely unpleasant and shocking.
e.g. There has been a series of gruesome murders in the capital.
= grisly

4. nab : verb
If people in authority such as the police nab someone who they think has done something wrong, they catch them or arrest them. (INFORMAL)
e.g. He killed 12 people before the authorities finally nabbed him.
= collar

5. beehive : n-count
A beehive is a structure in which bees are kept, which is designed so that the beekeeper can collect the honey that they produce.

6. to add insult to injury : phrase
You say to add insult to injury when mentioning an action or fact that makes an unfair or unacceptable situation even worse.

7. stinger : noun
the sharp pointed⁸ part of an insect or creature that can go into the skin leaving a small, painful and sometimes poisonous wound

8. turn on : phrasal verb
If someone turns on you, they attack you or speak angrily to you.
e.g. Demonstrators turned on police, overturning vehicles and setting fire to them

1 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

2 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

4 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

6 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 shaft   

n.(工具的)柄，杆状物

参考例句：

• He was wounded by a shaft.他被箭击中受伤。
• This is the shaft of a steam engine.这是一个蒸汽机主轴。

8 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。