美联社新闻一分钟 2006-06-22(在线收听

1. The U.S. Marine Corps has charged seven Marines and one sailor with murder and kidnapping in the April death of an Iraqi civilian. The unarmed man was allegedly pulled from his home and shot to death without provocation.

2. President Bush is in Hungary, retracing the steps his father took nearly 20 years ago. He's expected to use the former Soviet bloc nation as an example for other countries struggling to make the transition from communism to free-market democracy.

3. Massive wildfires are raging in several western states including Arizona where about 180 people were allowed back to their homes today. Firefighters have burned off fuel ahead of a 2,500-acre blaze there and hope to keep the flames from jumping a highway.

4. And how far would you go to find a 3.5-carat diamond ring? A sanitation worker in Long Island, New York helped Betty Goldstein's husband dig through dozens of trash bags in 90-degree heat to find a ring that was accidentally thrown away

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. Marine Corps : noun abbr. MC
A branch of the U.S. armed forces composed chiefly of amphibious troops under the authority of the Secretary of the Navy.

2. provocation : n-var
If you describe a person's action as provocation or a provocation, you mean that it is a reason for someone else to react angrily, violently, or emotionally.
e.g. The soldiers fired without provocation.

3. free market : n-count
A free market is an economic system in which business organizations decide things such as prices and wages, and are not controlled by the government. (BUSINESS)
e.g. the creation of a free market.

4. burn off : phrasal verb
If someone burns off energy, they use it.
e.g. This will improve your performance and help you burn off calories.

5. carat : n-count
A carat is a unit for measuring the weight of diamonds and other precious stones. It is equal to 0.2 grams.
e.g. The gemstone is 28.6 millimeters high and weighs 139.43 carats.

6. sanitation worker : n-count
A person employed, as by a municipality or private company, to collect and dispose of garbage.

7. trash : n-uncount
Trash consists of unwanted things or waste material such as used paper, empty containers and bottles, and waste food. (AM; in BRIT, use rubbish)

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