美联社新闻一分钟 2007-07-23

（单词翻译）

1. At least 26 people are dead after a bus crash on a steep mountain road in France. The bus was carrying Polish pilgrims back from a holy site in the French Alps. Officials say the bus did not have a permit to drive on the winding¹ road.

2. A purported³ Taliban spokesman has announced a 24-hour reprieve⁴ for two dozen South Korean hostages in Afghanistan. The captors had threatened to kill the group today. Negotiators are discussing a possible swap⁵ involving Taliban prisoners and the South Koreans.

3. It was a fight to the finish in this year's British Open, Padraig Harrington emerging victorious⁶ after a four-hole play-off. Harrington beat Spain's Sergio Garcia by one stroke.

4. A Washington D.C. artist is trying to spread a little goodwill⁷ on a street of the nation's capital. The work of art is a compliment machine, offering automated⁸ messages to passers-by, "You stand out in a crowd." The artist hopes the random⁹ compliments give people a little boost of confidence.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. pilgrim: noun
a religious person who travels a long way to a holy place

2. the Alps: noun
a range of mountains which go through France, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, and Austria.

3. purport²: verb
to claim to be or do something, even if this is not true

4. reprieve: verb
an official order stopping the killing¹⁰ of a prisoner as a punishment

5. swap: noun [usually singular]
a situation in which you give something to someone and get another thing in return [= exchange]

6. the British Open: noun
the most important British golf competition, which is held every year in different parts of the UK

7. hole: noun
one part of a golf course with a hole(here it means a hole in the ground that you try to get the ball into in the game of golf) at one end

8. play-off: noun
a game played to decide who will win after a previous game has ended with two teams or players having equal points
直说了，原文中的hole是特指把一个golf ball打进洞的过程，four-hole play-off就是之前双方打成平局，接下来要打的一个包括了四个这样过程的比赛，用来决定最后胜者

9. compliment: noun
a remark that shows you admire someone or something

10. automated: adj
using computers and machines to do a job, rather than people

11. boost: noun
something that gives someone more confidence, or that helps something increase, improve, or become successful