【美国精神】第72期

Explanation:

  When Americans are asked about wars that the United¹ States fought in during the 1800s, they often think of the Civil War. The Civil War was the war in which Americans fought each other, with northern states fighting against southern states. But there were three other important wars in the 1800s. These were the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, and the Spanish-American War.

  The War of 1812 is often called the forgotten war because few people remember it well or know very much about it. The War of 1812 lasted (or continued) from 1812 to 1815 while the United States fought against Great Britain, Ireland², and its colonies³ (or areas of land belonging to those countries) in what is now Canada. One of the causes of the war (or one of the reasons why the war happened) was that Americans were upset (or angry) about Great Britain’s way of trading (or buying and selling things internationally). Another reason was that Americans thought that the British government was helping⁴ Native Americans fight against the Americans who wanted their land. More than 2,000 American soldiers (or people who fought in the war) died.

  The Mexican-American War was fought from 1846 to 1848. This war started after Texas seceded⁵ from Mexico (or stopped being a part of Mexico) and became part of the United States. Mexico didn’t want this to happen and fought to get back the area, or to have it returned to Mexico. The treaty⁶ (or international agreement) that was signed at the end of the war gave the United States all of Texas, as well as a lot of other land, which includes all of California⁷, Nevada, and Utah.

  Finally, the Spanish-American War was a short war fought for four months in 1898 between the United States and Spain. When the war began, Cuba belonged to Spain and Americans wanted to help Cuba become independent (or free). The United States won quickly. The treaty that ended the war gave the United States control of Guam, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico.

 

问题：

Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.

Answer:

• War of 1812

• Mexican-American War

• Civil War

• Spanish-American War

1 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

2 Ireland   

n.爱尔兰(西欧国家)；爱尔兰岛(西欧)

参考例句：

• Ireland lies to the west of England.爱尔兰位于英格兰之西。
• Dublin is the capital of Ireland.都柏林是爱尔兰的首都。

3 colonies   

n.殖民地( colony的名词复数 )；（侨民等）聚居区；（动植物的）群体；（来自同一地方，职业或兴趣相同的）聚居人群

参考例句：

• They amassed huge wealth by plundering the colonies. 他们通过掠夺殖民地聚敛了大笔的财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• But throughout the colonies, people relied primarily on small farms and self-sufficiency. 但就整个殖民地来说，人们主要依靠小型农场，过着自给自足的生活。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 seceded   

v.脱离，退出( secede的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The Republic of Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903. 巴拿马共和国于1903年脱离哥伦比亚。
• One of the states has seceded from the federation. 有一个州已从联邦中退出。 来自辞典例句

6 treaty   

n.条约；协议，协定

参考例句：

• Hungary has indicated its readiness to sign the treaty.匈牙利已表示愿意签订该条约。
• I believe this treaty will pave the way to peace in Europe. 我相信这个条约将为欧洲的和平铺平道路。

7 California   

n.加利福尼亚(美国)

参考例句：

• He was elected governor of the state of California.他当选为加州州长。
• We were driving on a California freeway.我们正沿着加利福尼亚的一条快车道驾车行驶。